Not gonna lie, y’all: This week’s been a doozy. I’m tired.
But I think I can find a little something extra in the tank for the weekend.
It’s All-Star time, baby.
Quick links: Braves lose in extras | United president has cancer | Bijan wants more
IT TAKES A VILLAGE
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
The winner of Monday’s Home Run Derby will receive a very large chain.
It’s 14-karat yellow gold and sterling silver encrusted with 715 diamonds. In the middle? A spinning baseball made of crystal quartz and emblazoned with the late Hank Aaron’s favorite mantra for life on and off the field: “Keep swinging.”
For some reason, the folks at Major League Baseball let me try it on. And they’ll let you do it, too.
Just head on over to the All-Star Village at the Cobb Galleria.
All-Star Game festivities hit high gear this weekend, with tonight’s HBCU Swingman Classic; the Futures Game and celebrity softball on Saturday; and Sunday’s MLB draft, live from the Coca-Cola Roxy. (This local kid expects to go in the first round.)
All worthy events! But the All-Star Village is where the party’s at.
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
It opens tomorrow morning — and I got an early look at all 500,000 square feet of baseball nerd nirvana.
- I wore the chain. (Not my style. It’ll look good on Ronald Acuña Jr., though.)
- I put on a virtual reality headset and launched homer after homer out of Truist Park. (The crowd loved me.)
- I even saw the World’s Largest Baseball. (A fairly dubious claim but … it is pretty big.)
There’s also a real live diamond to play on, a rather extensive kids area (complete with mascot appearances!), museum-type exhibits and plenty of shopping. Beer and cocktails, too, if you’re into that.
Plus: A ton of photo ops, autograph signings and panel discussions featuring bona fide baseball royalty — from Mad Dog (Greg Maddux) to the Crime Dog (Fred McGriff).
“I would say certainly test out the pitching and batting cages,” Rob Field, MLB’s senior manager of global events, said Thursday. “You certainly want to check out the World Series trophies down in the mall area. And then enjoy the entire show floor. There’s so much to do.”
He ain’t lying. You could easily spend an entire day exploring.
And if nothing else?
“We’ve got AC as well,” Field said.
Most adult tickets for the All-Star Village run around $35. Officials suggest downloading the MLB Ballpark app to reserve space at celebrity appearances. More details here.
WEEKEND WATCH PARTY
Lots of non-All-Star stuff going down this weekend, too. Let’s take a chronological look.
🏀 The Hawks’ Summer League squad — which includes former UGA star Asa Newell — gets going this afternoon in Las Vegas (4:30 p.m. on ESPN2). Beat writer Lauren Williams has a few things she’s keeping her eye on.
⚾ The Braves — who battled back against the A’s last night but lost 5-4 in the 11th anyway — start their final pre-break series tonight in St. Louis. First pitch arrives at 8:15 p.m. on FanDuel Sports.
- Saturday and Sunday’s games both start at 2:15 p.m.
🏀 The Dream head up to Indianapolis tonight to take on the Fever (7:30 p.m. on Ion). Megastar Caitlin Clark returned to Indy’s lineup earlier this week after missing time with her latest injury.
⚽ Atlanta United visits Toronto on Saturday (7:30 p.m. on Apple TV). The team expects to know later today if goalkeeper Brad Guzan — who just had surgery on a fractured cheekbone — is good to go. Either way, it could stand to be a tad more aggressive.
THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS
Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC
Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC
Team president Garth Lagerwey will not be at Atlanta United’s upcoming match. As beat writer Doug Roberson reports, he’s taking an indefinite leave of absence after receiving a cancer diagnosis.
The team didn’t reveal the type of cancer but said the prognosis was encouraging.
“I shall return,” Lagerwey said.
Another somber note: Former UGA coach Mark Richt said his father, Lou, died Wednesday.
YOUR FALCONS FIX
We’re less than two weeks from the Falcons reporting for training camp, and our man D. Orlando Ledbetter is launching an eight-part breakdown of the roster.
The first installment takes a look at Atlanta’s running backs — a position group that’s pretty easy to feel good about.
😤 But don’t tell Bijan Robinson that: “We finished sixth in the league in total yards,” he said. “That’s not good enough. Sixth is not good enough. There were five other teams that were better than us. … We have to look ourselves in the mirror and say, ‘What do we need to do to become the offense that everybody talks about? The offense that everybody mimics?’”
ALSO INTERESTING
🐝 Georgia Tech football set Aug. 2 as the date for this year’s “First Saturday on the Flats,” its annual fan-stravaganza. (It also got a commitment from a 3-star defensive lineman.)
🍌 The Savannah Bananas recently held a four-day youth baseball tournament. Hundreds of kids from 44 different states showed up — and yes, they had just a little fun.
💪 Atlanta officials are pretty happy with how the city’s Club World Cup matches went, from security to that new grass playing surface. Consider a confidence boost ahead of next year’s (much larger) run of World Cup contests.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez/AJC
As part of their tradition of giving back in All-Star Game host cities, MLB and the Braves refurbished a field at the Barksdale Boys & Girls Club in Conyers.
They unveiled the finished product on Wednesday.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
That is what it is absolutely about. And young people, I want you to know that you deserve spaces and places that look like this in your lives. You deserve it, and don't let anybody ever let you forget that.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of Sports Daily. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.
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