THE LEFT TURN
NASCAR playoffs at Vegas: South Point 400 preview, picks
Oct 14, 2022, 1:04 pm
Joey Logano looks like a good bet this week. Photo via: Wiki Commons.
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Sin City this week for the South Point 400. This is the first race of the Round of 8 also known as the semi-final round of the playoffs. A win here for advanced drivers will assure them a spot in the championship race at Phoenix. Las Vegas Motor Speedway is a mile-and-a-half track shaped like a bullring. This track is hell on tires, but luckily, the track temperature will be much cooler this time than it was in the spring.
Last week in dramatic fashion, Christopher Bell took the checkered flag at the Charlotte Roval to advance to the Round of 8. The race was pretty tame for most of the day as most drivers had an extremely hard time passing. It wasn’t till the final two laps when a caution came out for a sign on the racetrack, after this we would see absolute chaos. Christopher Bell would use his fresh tires to power past the first three cars to take the lead. The battle would be for the final transfer into the Round of 8 as Kyle Larson would have mechanical issues that would knock him out of the playoffs by Chase Briscoe. This wasn’t without controversy as Briscoe needed to pass two cars to move into the next round, one of those cars was his teammate Cole Custer. Going into the backstretch, Custer backed off the throttle enough to let his teammate go by and get the points he needed to move on.
After an investigation, NASCAR president Steve Phelps came to the conclusion that Stewart-Haas Racing manipulated the outcome of the race and leveled the #41 team with a massive penalty. The team was docked 50 points, a $200,000 fine, and an indefinite suspension for crew chief Mike Shiplett. Not surprisingly, car owner Tony Stewart is not happy about this, stating that “if he didn’t have any appearances he had to be at, he wouldn’t go to a single NASCAR race for the rest of the year.” While I can understand Tony’s frustration, this was fairly black and white, as it was blatantly obvious that the 41 helped his teammate. On the radio, Shiplett was heard saying “back er down it looks like you got a flat.” It was next to impossible for the crew chief to know if his driver had a flat, considering he was on the complete opposite end of the racetrack, and he couldn’t see the car.
Aside from all this, NASCAR and the race teams are further apart than they have ever been. The car owners are upset that the racetracks are making too much money, the cars are not safe enough, and the sanctioning body is disputing everything. According to reports, the racetracks (that are owned by NASCAR) are taking up 93 percent of the revenue that comes in from television and ticket sales. NASCAR’s retort was that the teams were only going off of how much the charters were worth, and that they are receiving much more money than being reported.
After all the turmoil, NASCAR made a peace offering to the race teams by announcing that they will cover all the costs of the new car upgrades for 2023. Let's hope the two sides can make an agreement, so we don’t miss any races after the media contract expires in 2025.
There is some news coming down this Saturday as 2004 champion Kurt Busch is expected to announce his retirement. This is something that we had all been fearing was the case, as he has not raced since Pocono in July. The road for Kurt was never easy, as he faced plenty of adversity over the course of his twenty-year career. Busch would be involved in multiple altercations with drivers like Jimmie Spencer and Greg Biffle. Throughout the 2010’s Busch would struggle as he would lose his ride at Penske after verbally berating ESPN Pit Reporter Jerry Punch in 2011 at Homestead and would have the most difficult year of his career in 2012 after driving for James Finch. He would then completely rebuild his career the next year driving for Furniture Row and making the chase for the cup and finding new employment at Stewart-Haas Racing, Ganassi and 23xill over the next 7 years. He would win in every car he drove in. There is no doubt that Kurt is a first-ballot NASCAR Hall of Famer, and he will be missed.
The driver that is expected to replace him at 23XI is Tyler Reddick. There was a lot of talk about him finishing out his contract at RCR in a third team, but Toyota has since bought out the remaining year in his contract and will bring him to their team a year earlier.
The driver I have winning this weekend is Joey Logano. No one has been as consistent as the 2018 championship in these playoffs, and now he’s going to one of his personal best racetracks. In his 18 starts here, Logano has won twice, 6 top-five finishes, and 11 top-tens. It’s clear that Joey has a championship-caliber pace and a win at Las Vegas will get him one step closer to that second title.
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How Hunter Brown's impact on the Astros sparks a fresh perspective
Jul 26, 2024, 2:42 pm
With Tuesday’s trade deadline fast approaching, the Astros will look to add the necessary pieces to sustain their recent winning ways and make another playoff run this season.
It's no secret Houston is in need of rotation help with players such as J.P. France, Cristian Javier and Jose Urquidy all needing season-ending surgeries. Even considering the presumptive returns of Justin Verlander and Luis Garcia in some capacity, it would behoove the Astros to acquire more pitching options to help solidify their rotation.
General manager Dana Brown has made it clear he will be looking to add both starting pitchers and players who can play first base.
Astros fans should expect their team to make a move or two by Tuesday’s deadline, just as they have done in years past.
Zach Eflin
Recent reports suggest the Astros are one of several teams interested in Rays’ pitcher Zach Eflin who has a 5-7 record and 4.09 ERA this season.
The 30-year-old signed a three-year, $40 million deal with the Rays prior to the 2023 season and would be an affordable option for the Astros if they were to acquire him.
Although the Rays have a 52-51 record, it doesn't seem like they will become buyers at the trade deadline and could sell off some of their pieces while staying competitive.
Historically speaking, Tampa Bay has never been afraid to let their higher level pitchers go as they did with Blake Snell prior to the 2021 season and Tyler Glasnow during this past offseason
The Rays have multiple pitchers returning from injuries and can afford to let someone like Eflin go.
The only pause the Astros might have is the asking price in return from the Rays. If this is the case, there are other short-term pitching options the Astros could look to instead.
Jack Flaherty
The Tigers are stuck in the middle between good and bad and don’t seem to be playoff contenders this season, making them an ideal candidate to become sellers at the trade deadline.
One of the biggest names on the trading block recently has been Jack Flaherty who has a 7-5 record with a 2.92 ERA and 133 strikeouts this season.
Considering he's a free agent at the end of the year, it shouldn’t cost the Astros much in return to acquire the Tigers' pitcher.
Houston has not been directly linked to the 28-year-old, but he could be a low-risk, high-reward rotation piece.
Flaherty could be a perfect number 3 or 4 option in the rotation behind Framber Valdez, Ronel Blanco and Hunter Brown.
Yusei Kikuchi
Similarly to Flaherty, Yusei Kikuchi is on a Blue Jays team with little to no playoff hopes this year and is set to become a free agent at the end of this season.
Toronto has already hinted at becoming sellers at the trade deadline and could look to offset many of their impending free agents.
Kikuchi’s record at 4-9 and 4.54 ERA might not be impressive, but he does have 133 strikeouts this season and can be a reliable back end of the rotation piece for the Astros if acquired.
Adding a starting pitcher is certainly a priority, but Houston will also scour the market for first base options as well.
Isaac Paredes
The Astros have been connected to Rays’ infielder Isaac Parades in the last few days and it seems to make sense for both sides.
As mentioned earlier, Tampa Bay is in an interesting situation this season and could become pseudo sellers by the deadline.
The Rays have a plethora of infielders in their origination and can afford to trade someone like Parades and still remain competitive.
The 25-year-old can play first or third base, and has been used as a designated hitter this season as well. Parades has a slash line of .250/.353 /.797 and could be an improvement at first base over Jon Singleton.
Acquiring him could be affordable as his salary is only $3.4MM this year. Parades has three additional years of club control, and his defensive versatility could make him a perfect long-term addition to this Astros’ roster.
Brent Rooker
This one might be a stretch, but would it be shocking to see the A’s let go of one of their best players? The answer is no. Brent Rooker has had a remarkable season, hitting near .300 and becoming one of Oakland’s most consistent bats in their lineup.
The 29-year-old has been the A’s primary designated hitter this season, but has the ability to play both corner outfield positions as well.
Even though Houston doesn't need another DH/outfielder, Rooker's bat would be an upgrade in the lineup and could give the Astros another weapon to add to their offensive arsenal.
Although not as likely as the other candidates mentioned, Rooker would be a more realistic and cheaper option to acquire than someone like Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Honorable Mentions
Starting pitchers Jameson Taillon (Cubs) and Erick Fedde (White Sox) have been linked to the Astros recently, and either would be an ideal fit.
Both players would add necessary pitching depth, and either could fit in seamlessly as a 4th or 5th starter in the rotation.
Needless to say, Houston seems to be casting a wide net to increase their odds of landing someone who can help the team immediately.
An ideal scenario would be for the Astros to acquire at least one pitcher and use a six-man rotation once Verlanader and Garcia come back at some point this year.
It would be beneficial for the Astros to acquire an extra starting pitcher or two to add to their rotation and maybe another option who can play first base as well to ensure this team continues to improve and make another run at the postseason this year.