The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.5MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The semi-finals in State Baseball for Class 1A & 2A take place today at Principal Park, in Des Moines…

Class 1A:

11:00—#1 Newman Catholic, Mason City (36-3) vs. #4 Don Bosco, Gilbertville (29-4)

1:30—#2 Alburnett (33-5) vs. #6 St. Mary’s, Remsen (27-7)

Class 2A:

4:30—#2 Van Meter (32-3) vs. #6 West Sioux, Hawarden (22-5)

7:00—#1 North Linn, Troy Mills (39-5) vs. #5 Des Moines Christian (29-8)

All Championship games take place this Saturday.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Kyle Hendricks struck out seven in seven innings and Ian Happ hit an RBI single in the sixth inning to break a scoreless tie as Chicago Cubs beat St. Louis 2-0 and moved into a tie with the Cardinals atop the NL Central. The teams have identical 57-50 records. The Cardinal have lost three of their last four.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Freddy Galvis and rookie Bo Bichette hit solo home runs to lead the Toronto Blue Jays over the Kansas City Royals 4-1 Wednesday for a three-game sweep. Bichette hit his first career homer to open the eighth inning against Royals starter Jakob Junis, a drive to left field.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — No team in the NFL last season made more big plays on offense than the Kansas City Chiefs. And while matching their incredible total of 52 passes of at least 25 yards seems like a longshot, there are quite a few reasons to believe the Chiefs could be even more explosive this season. It starts with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and goes from there.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Dodgers acquired infielder Jedd Gyorko and international signing bonus allocation from the St. Louis Cardinals for pitchers Tony Cingrani and Jeffrey Abreu at the trade deadline. The Cardinals will send $2,938,710 to the Dodgers to offset much of the money owed Gyorko, who is due $4,193,548 of his $13 million salary this year and is guaranteed a $1 million buyout of a $13 million club option for 2021.

ST. LOUIS, Mo., July 31, 2019 – The St. Louis Cardinals announced this afternoon that they have completed a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers, acquiring left-handed pitcher Tony Cingrani and minor league right-handed pitcher Jeffry Abreu in exchange for infielder Jedd Gyorko, 2019/2020 International Cap Space and cash considerations.

Cingrani, 30, is a veteran of seven-plus seasons in the majors with Cincinnati and the Dodgers.   He is currently on the 60-day Injured List (left shoulder surgery) and has not pitched this season.   The 6-4, 215-pound Cingrani owns a 12-22 career mark with a 4.01 ERA in 164 games pitched (61 starts), winning a career-high seven games for the Reds in 2013.

Abreu, 19, is a native of the Dominican Republic.   He’s 2-0 with a 4.66 ERA in six games pitched this season for the Arizona Rookie League Dodgers.  The 6-4, 200-pound Abreu was an International free-agent signing by the Dodgers in July of 2017.

Gyorko, 30, who joined the Cardinals in 2016, has been on the Injured List (back/right wrist) since June 8.   He appeared in 38 games for the Cardinals this season, batting .196 with 2 HR’s and 7 RBI.

Class 4A

Quarterfinals – Wednesday, July 31

Dowling Catholic, W.D.M. 7,  Southeast Polk 0

Johnston 6, Ankeny 0

Urbandale 3, Epworth, Western Dubuque 0

Iowa City, West 6, Pleasant Valley 3

(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is warning paddlers to use caution on the Raccoon River in Des Moines and Upper Iowa River in Winneshiek County as there could be obstructions caused by falling trees and logs. The D-N-R’s Todd Robertson says people in kayaks and canoes have flipped when a strong current took them into the obstructions. Robertson teaches paddling courses and says it’s something everyone should look into — especially rookies. “Whether it’s canoe, kayak or paddle board, you should know four or five basic strokes. If you know those strokes and know how to navigate your vessel — your’re going to be much, much safer out on the water,” according to Robertson. “But when you end up going to a corner store and just buying the first kayak you see and then head straight to the river, that’s when things can happen.

Seeking formal instruction, knowing safety, knowing rules and regulations is very important for first-time paddlers.” Robertson teaches paddling classes through the D-N-R and says there are other opportunities for lessons. “There’s padlding clubs around with seasoned paddlers that you can find on Facebook. Granted, they may not be certified instructors, but you can learn some basic strokes. A lot of these bigger retails stores that you go into, some of them offer a free hour or two-hour paddling class,” he says. Robertson has been seeing more people get into paddle boards. “It’s so easy to get into paddle boarding because unlike a canoe or kayak — it doesn’t fill up with water. So, if you dump into the water you are able to get back on your board real quick, plus it’s just real fun,” Robertson says. “I think for the last four or five years it’s been the fastest growing outdoor vessel as far as activity goes.”

Paddle boards can be used on the same waterways that are used for kayaks and canoes. “You can definitely run them on a river — but it’s not advised until you have a lot experience — because it is a whole different ballgame. The storkes are basically the same, but you are up against moving water rather then just flat unmoving water,” Robertson says. Robertson says the lifejacket rules apply the same to paddle boards as the other vessels. “Just like canoes and kayaks — you’ve got to have a lifejacket on that board,” Robertson says.

Robertson, is the D-N-R River Programs Outreach Coordinator, and says it’s natural for rivers to have the hazards from trees and logs. A section of the Raccoon River from Walnut Woods State Park to Waterworks Park in Des Moines has caused a lot of problems for paddlers recently. A large log jam that formed upstream of Chimney Rock Park on a river left outside bend of the Upper Iowa River in Winneshiek County near Decorah has also been causing problems. You can see a real time look at issues on the water through the D-N-R’s interactive paddling map at iowadnr.gov/paddlingmap.

The Iowa Girls Coaches Association hosted the 2019 Softball All-Star Games on Monday, July 29th at Waukee High School. Atlantic’s Baylee Newell was a member of the Blue Team that was coached by Treynor’s Kara Huisman and Atlantic’s Terry Hinzmann.

Other area players that competed during the All-Star Games were Harlan’s Morgan Schaben and Treynor’s Sydni Huisman.

2019 IGCA Softball All-Star Blue Team

The Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association released their 2019 All-District Baseball Teams late Tuesday. Here is a look at the lists for each class.

2019 All-District Team Class 4A

2019 All-District Team Class 3A

2019 All-District Team Class 2A

2019 All-District Team Class 1A

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.6MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Class 3A Quarterfinals – Tuesday, July 30

Xavier, Cedar Rapids 7, ADM, Adel 2

Marion 4, Bishop Heelan, Sioux City 0

Central DeWitt 11, Centerville 1 (5 innings)

Assumption, Davenport 7, Boone 3

3A Semifinals – Friday, August 2

11:00—#1 Xavier, Cedar Rapids (39-2) vs. #4 Marion (33-5)

1:30—#2 Assumption, Davenport (32-4) vs. #3 Central DeWitt (37-3)

Class 4A Quarterfinals – Wednesday, July 31

11:00—#4 Dowling Catholic, W.D.M. (30-11) vs. #5 Southeast Polk (30-13)

1:30—#1 Johnston (34-5) vs. #8 Ankeny (21-17)

4:30—#3 Epworth, Western Dubuque (32-9) vs. #6 Urbandale (28-14)

7:00—#2 Iowa City, West (33-7) vs. #7 Pleasant Valley (25-11)