Westplex Today Sports Page:   August 28, 2008

As the Cardinals trailed Milwaukee entering the 8^th inning of last night’s game, they showed that they still have some fight left in them.   Aaron Miles drove in the go-ahead score in a four-run eighth inning as the Cardinals rallied to beat the Brewers 5-3 at Busch Stadium. 

Ryan Ludwick went 3-for-4 with a solo homer and two RBI for St. Louis , which moved back to within 3 ½ games of Milwaukee for the National League wild card lead.  Ryan Franklin got the win in relief and Chris Perez his sixth save.  David Riske blew the save and took the loss for the Brewers after Manny Parra pitched six innings of one-run ball.  J.J. Hardy went 3-for-5 with an RBI, and Mike Cameron and Jason Kendall each had two hits and drove in a run for Milwaukee in defeat.

The defeat was costly for the Brewers, in their attempt to stay close to the Cubs in the NL Central.   The Cubs completed a three-game sweep in Pittsburgh by shutting out the Pirates 2-0 yesterday.  Jason Marquis picked up his ninth win of the season after scattering five hits over seven innings, striking out three and walking none.  Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood each worked a hitless relief inning with Wood notching his 27th save.  Ronny Cedeno and Henry Blanco drove in the Cubs' runs, while Alfonso Soriano and Mark DeRosa each had a pair of hits.  The Cubs now have a 6-game lead in the division, and they host the Phillies tonight.

The Cardinals and Brewers both have today off.   The Cardinals travel to Houston to start a weekend series with the Astros tomorrow night.   The Redbirds have a tougher opponent, since the Astros are 21-11 in their last 32 games.   The Brewers go to Pittsburgh for a weekend series with the struggling Pirates, who have lost 7 games in a row.

The Cardinals added some pop to their bench yesterday in the form of infielder Josh Phelps.  The Cards purchased Phelps' contract from Triple-A Memphis yesterday.  Phelps made his Cardinals debut last night with a pinch-hit single.  The Cardinals also optioned relief pitcher Jaime Garcia to Triple-A yesterday and moved Mark Mulder from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day DL to make room for Phelps on the 40-man roster.

In the other playoff races in Major League Baseball:   The New York Mets own a slim half-game lead over the Phillies in the NL East, and a 5 ½ game lead over the Marlins.   In the NL West, Arizona leads the Dodgers by 3 games and the Rockies by 6.   In the American League:   Tampa Bay leads Boston by 3 ½ games in the East, the White Sox have a one-game lead over Minnesota, and the Red Sox have a 2 ½-game lead over the Twins in the wildcard race.   The LA Angels have a very comfortable 15-game lead in the West.

In football:   The Rams face Kansas City on the road tonight in their 2008 preseason finale.  Kickoff is 6:00 at Arrowhead Stadium.  Backup quarterback Trent Green is expected to make the start for the Rams in place of starter Marc Bulger.  Bulger is being rested for the season opener a week from Sunday against Philadelphia .   All-Pro running back Steven Jackson is also not likely to see any playing time for the Rams in the exhibition.  The Rams beat the Chiefs 10-3 last year in St. Louis and claimed the Governor's Cup.

Missouri and Illinois open the college football campaign against one another on Saturday night at the Edward Jones Dome.  Kickoff in the "Arch Rivalry" game is set for 7:36 .  KFAV will begin its broadcast around 6:30 Saturday night with pre-game activities.  

The Tigers are ranked 6^th while the Fighting Illini own the 20th position in the Associated Press preseason poll.  Mizzou won the matchup 40-34 last September, and it served as a springboard to a 12-2 season, a rout over Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl, and a #4 final ranking, tops in school history.   Illinois staged a comeback that fell short against Mizzou, but the Fighting Illini went on to post a surprising 9-3 season that included a loss to USC in the Rose Bowl.

The 2008 college football season kicks off this evening as 23rd-ranked Wake Forest travels to Baylor.  The Demon Deacons finished 9-4 last season, ending the year with a 24-10 triumph over Connecticut in the Meineke Bowl.  Baylor suffered an 8-game losing streak to close a 3-9 season in 2007.    In other season-opening highlights:   In the SEC, South Carolina hosts North Carolina State tonight.   And, the Pac-10 season kicks off as Oregon State visits Stanford.

KFAV kicks off its first regular-season broadcast of a high school sports event in 13 years tomorrow night, as 99.9 broadcasts the football season opener between 8^th-ranked Wentzville Timberland and Duchesne.   The Countdown to Kickoff Show begins at 6:45 , and the opening kickoff will be 7:00 at Duchesne High School in St. Charles .

In auto racing:   NASCAR has placed Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards on probation for the next six races for their actions after last weekend's Sprint Cup race at Bristol.  NASCAR.com says the probations will begin with this week's race at Fontana , California .  With 30 laps left in the Sharpie 500, Edwards bumped Busch to take the lead in the race.  Edwards went on for the win, after the checkered flag dropped, the two drivers continued to bump each other. Eventually, Edwards sent Busch and the number-18 Toyota spinning.  Hitting a competitor's car after a race is a violation of the rules, according to this year's NASCAR rulebook.

Andy Roddick moved into the second round of the U.S. Open with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 win over veteran Fabrice Santoro Wednesday.  On the women's side, Lindsay Davenport defeated Alisa Kleybanova of Russia 7-5, 6-3 to advance.

Oklahoma City 's new NBA franchise has finally set a date to announce its name and team colors.   The team said Wednesday that it would unveil the name and colors simultaneously on its Web site and at a downtown event Sept. 3.   Clay Bennett's ownership group has applied for trademarks for six names: Thunder, Energy, Wind, Marshals, Barons and Bison.   Oklahoma City television station KOCO has reported that the choice will be Thunder, but Bennett has refused to comment on what the name will be.  The former Seattle SuperSonics announced on July 2 that they would be moving to Oklahoma City .

A large photograph of Michael Phelps is being reinstalled at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery and will go on display today.  The photo was taken in 2004 by Ryan McGinley and was first put on display when the museum reopened in July 2006.  Smithsonian officials say the photo shows Phelps underwater, with his right arm reaching toward the surface.  Phelps recently set a record by winning eight gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Beijing .  The photo will be on display through January of next year.