SPORTS
FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2018
FOCUSING ON
COMPETING AND
IMPROVING 2B
1B
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SEAHAWKS FOOTBALL
The ‘Hawks are back
Seahawks camp
begins, but another
safety holdout
dampens the day
By TIM BOOTH
Associated Press
RENTON, Wash. — For the
second time in four seasons, the
Seattle Seahawks have started
training camp with a star safety
absent because of his contract
situation.
This one may not end as ami-
cably as the last time.
In an offseason already filled
with
big
name depar-
tures,
the
Seahawks
o p e n e d
camp Thurs-
day without
safety Earl
Thomas,
who is try-
ing to force
Thomas
the hand of
the only franchise he’s played
for in his attempt to get a new
contract.
Thomas’ current deal runs
through the end of the upcoming
season. He announced his inten-
tions in June to skip any team
activities until Seattle addressed
his long-term security and he
held true to that statement by
skipping the mandatory mini-
camp and not showing up for the
Seahawks’ first practice.
While Thomas’ teammates
seemed to understand what he is
doing, coach Pete Carroll seemed
less than thrilled to be facing
another prolonged holdout.
“We always expected him to
be here. That’s kind of how it is.
He should be here and he’s not,”
Carroll said. “It’s really about
the guys that are here and we’re
going to keep moving and groov-
ing and putting it together. It’s
unfortunate.”
If this feels familiar, it’s
because the Seahawks went
down this road before the start of
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
Seattle Seahawks fullback Khalid Hill (40) drinks water during NFL football training camp, in Renton, Wash.
the 2015 season with safety Kam
Chancellor. Chancellor unex-
pectedly decided to hold out as
he also sought a new contract
even with three years remaining
on his deal. Seattle never budged
from its position, causing a con-
trite Chancellor to finally report
after the second week of the reg-
ular season.
Chancellor eventually got a
new contract before the 2017
season.
Thomas may not be as for-
tunate, especially considering
some of his antics late last sea-
son indicating he wanted out of
Seattle, and one social media
post in particular where he asked Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll smiles and he greets
the Seahawks to trade him if he players at Seahawks training camp.
Mariners hope slumping offense
can rediscover its punch
Seattle’s averaging
just 3.2 runs per game,
hitting only .232 in July
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Seattle Mariners’ Kyle Seager reacts after striking out during the
eighth inning of the team’s baseball game.
we go out there we’re trying to do
the best that we can ... and some-
times it’s going to be one of those
games where you’re dragging and
it’s going to be a (lot of) close
games down the stretch. One of
See MARINERS/3B
See SEAHAWKS/3B
PENDLETON
All-Stars ousted at
Western Regional
By ERIC SINGER
East Oregonian
By TIM BOOTH
Associated Press
SEATTLE — When the Seattle
Mariners surged in June and sud-
denly became a legitimate playoff
contender in the American League,
it was largely on the strength of
an offense that was scoring plenty
of runs with jolts of power at the
plate.
Just as quickly, that offense has
disappeared and become a major
concern for a team that has seen its
lead for the second AL wild card
shrink to only a couple of games.
“The offense has kind of cooled
down. That’s baseball. It’s going to
happen once in a while,” shortstop
Jean Segura said. “Everybody is
dragging, even myself. Every time
wasn’t getting a new contract.
“We’re expecting him back.
He’s under contract,” Carroll
said.
Seattle’s training camp start
had a surreal feeling. Carroll was
still running around in charge,
while Russell Wilson was lead-
ing the offense and Bobby Wag-
ner, the defense.
But so many of the familiar
faces that defined Seattle’s ros-
ter for the past half-decade were
gone. Richard Sherman, Michael
Bennett and Jimmy Graham all
have new addresses. Chancel-
lor is unlikely to play again due
to a neck injury and had to be
For the third straight year,
Pendleton’s 12U All-Stars came
up just short of a champion-
ship at the Little League Western
Regional.
On Thursday morning, the
Pendleton team saw its run come
to an end with a 10-0 loss to a
very good Kirkland, Washington,
team at Al Houghton Stadium
in San Bernardino, California. It
was Pendleton’s second loss to
the Washington team at the tour-
nament, following a 11-1 loss on
Tuesday.
“I thought we could turn things
around today,” Pendleton coach
Scott Wilson said Thursday eve-
ning. “We made some changes
in the field and in the lineup, but
nothing worked. Washington was
just too good.”
Pendleton’s offense, which
had scored 47 runs in its first two
regional games, was kept out of
the hit column by Washington
pitchers Kya Aldrich and Chris-
tina Minor, as the duo struck out
four and induced five groundouts
and three pop fly outs.
The only two baserunners
for Pendleton were Lea Wil-
son and Madaline Schumacher,
each reaching on walks. Schum-
acher and Melanie Boatman both
pitched for Pendleton and the duo
couldn’t keep Washington’s red-
hot offense quiet enough, giving
up five hits and seven walks.
Pendleton finishes the regional
with a 3-2 record for the second
consecutive year. Later on in the
evening, Washington went on to
defeat Arizona (Flagstaff) 4-1 to
win the regional championship.
Sports shorts
Aaron Judge fractures
wrist, out 3 weeks
NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees
slugger Aaron Judge sustained a
fractured right wrist when he was hit
by a fastball and is expected to miss
three weeks, overshadowing New
York’s 7-2 victory Thursday against
the Kansas City Royals.
The Yankees said that no surgery
has been recommended.
He winced when he was stung by
a pitch from Jakob Junis in the first
inning, got an infield hit the next
time up and then was pulled for a
pinch-hitter in the fourth.
THIS DATE IN SPORTS
Yankees acquire J.A. Happ from Toronto
NEW YORK (AP) — The New
York Yankees acquired left-hander
J.A. Happ from Toronto on Thurs-
day to bolster their starting rotation,
a deal that sent infielder Brandon
Drury and minor league outfielder
Bill McKinney to the Blue Jays.
Happ, who turns 36 in October,
is 10-6 with a 4.18 ERA in 20 starts
and was a first-time All-Star. He
joins a rotation that includes Luis
Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, CC
Sabathia and Sonny Gray.
Happ has a $13 million salary in
the final season of a $36 million,
three-year contract, and the
Yankees are responsible for
the remaining $4,543,011.
Reliever Zach Britton
reported to the Yankees on
Thursday, two days after
he was acquired from
Baltimore for three pitch-
ing prospects. Britton
added $4,387,097 to the
Yankees payroll.
1973 — The Miami Dolphins
beat the College All-Stars 14-3.
1986 — Greg Lemond becomes
the first American to win the Tour
de France. LeMond’s teammate,
Bernard Hinault of France, finishes
second.
2015 — The Arizona Cardinals
hire Jen Welter to coach inside line-
backers through their upcoming
training camp and preseason. The
Cardinals say Welter is believed to
be the first woman to hold a coach-
ing position of any kind in the NFL.
Contact us at 541-966-0838 or
sports@eastoregonian.com