Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Stanley Cup champions get do-overs
When you win the Conn Smythe Trophy, you get as many mulligans as you want.
Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals will be the heroes of D.C. for the indefinite future after winning their first Stanley Cup on Thursday night with a victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Caps stopped by Nationals Park on Saturday to share some of the glory with the baseball team. Ovechkin — the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs — threw out the first pitch. It wasn’t great.
The ball soared over the head of Nationals’ ace Max Scherzer — who had so much fun cheering for the Caps during their playoff run. When Ovechkin asked for another shot, Scherzer happily let the hockey captain try again. This time, the pitch was catchable.
I’m done
Having your worst start ever while pitching in the New York Mets’ minor-league system can totally defeat a player. How do we know this? Because veteran Aaron Laffey proved it.
Laffey had a disastrous start Wednesday for the Mets’ Class AAA affiliate. Over three innings, Laffey allowed 14 total runs (12 earned). That was too many runs for Laffey. Shortly after the start, the 33-year-old decided to hang up his cleats. He retired after that performance.
From 2007-2010, Laffey posted a 4.41 ERA over 79 games with the Cleveland Indians. He was mostly utilized as a starter, but he moved into a bullpen role during his final years with the team.
His 4.41 ERA may seem high, but it was about league average at the time. He wasn’t a standout player, but he was useful for a few years. His final majorleague appearance came with the Colorado Rockies in 2015. He posted a 4.44 career ERA over eight seasons in the majors.
Brotherly love
Once college football players, and amateur athletes in general, make it to the professional ranks, one of their first decisions is what they will do with their initial checks. For some, it’s all about giving back to those who helped the most in their careers.
For rookie mid-round pick Chase Edmonds of the Arizona Cardinals, his initial paychecks will be used to pay off his sister’s college loan debt.
Having earned a full scholarship to Fordham, Edmonds had no idea how much the bills can pile up for others going to school without a full ride. That included his sister, Morgan.
“When you’re on full scholarship you don’t realize these bills. These things add up,” Edmonds told ESPN. “When my mom told me Morgan’s debt at the time, I said, ‘Wow. If I ever can make it to the NFL that’s something that I would love to do, just to surprise her and pay that off for her so she can really live free and do whatever she wants with her money.’ ”
Morgan’s debt stands at a cool $80,000. Once the running back was selected in the fourth round of April’s draft by the Cardinals, he knew he could make good on his promise.
“I didn’t realize my student loans were on his radar,” Morgan said. “It’s not something I talk about. It’s not something I complain about. It’s just a reality of going to grad school.”