Connect with us

Published

on

The ACC announced its full 2024 schedule Wednesday, featuring new members Cal, Stanford and SMU as part of the expanded 17-team football league.

The league previously unveiled its seven-year scheduling model through 2030, with annual conference opponents for each team. Although teams knew which other teams they would be playing this coming season, on Wednesday they found out their exact dates.

Cal and Stanford will open ACC play on the road — the Cardinal at Syracuse on Friday, Sept. 20, and the Bears the next day at Florida State. SMU opens ACC play the next week, with a home game against the defending ACC champion Seminoles.

In creating the schedule with three new members — including two based on the West Coast — the conference tried to be strategic with road trips and open dates. Stanford, for example, has an open date before traveling to Syracuse, and then an extra day to prepare for a road game the next week at Clemson on Sept. 28. Cal has an open date after its game at Florida State, then plays its ACC home opener against Miami on Oct. 5.

Stanford opens ACC play at home the same day against Virginia Tech. The ACC wanted to give its three new members strong football brands for their home openers, to help build excitement on their respective campuses.

“The 2024 ACC football schedule is significant for so many reasons. As always, there’s tremendous anticipation and excitement surrounding the upcoming season, which this year will include our newest members in Cal, SMU and Stanford,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement.

“Throughout the entire process — from creating the new model and building the complete 2024 schedule — the membership was incredibly thoughtful and committed to producing an exciting, fair, and balanced schedule with our student-athlete experience as the top priority. Between first-time matchups, meaningful rivalry games and once again playing arguably the toughest collection of non-conference opponents — there will be no shortage of interest in ACC football throughout the season.”

Among the other highlights: Florida State and Georgia Tech open the season in Dublin on Aug. 24, then the Seminoles host Boston College on Labor Day night Sept. 2 — giving them two conference games to open the season over the span of 10 days. That is a byproduct of scheduling work done years earlier, when the ACC determined that BC and Florida State would play on Labor Day night — well before the Seminoles were approached with an opportunity to play in Ireland in Week 0.

The Seminoles also play their two protected rivalry games in October — Oct. 5 at home against Clemson, with former Tigers quarterback DJ Uiagalelei now at Florida State, then at Miami on Oct. 26.

Clemson opens the season against Georgia in what should be a game with national championship implications. The Tigers also play at Virginia Tech on Nov. 9, the same day Florida State travels to face Notre Dame.

The league will continue to play eight conference games without divisions. All 17 teams will play each other at least twice over the next seven seasons — once at home and once on the road. There are 16 protected matchups: Boston College-Syracuse, Boston College-Pitt, Syracuse-Pitt, North Carolina-Virginia, North Carolina-Duke, North Carolina-NC State, NC State-Wake Forest, NC State-Duke, Duke-Wake Forest, Virginia Tech-Virginia, Florida State-Clemson, Miami-Florida State, Miami-Virginia Tech, Stanford-Cal, Stanford-SMU and Cal-SMU.

The Cal-SMU game is set for Week 14 and will remain on the final weekend of the regular season moving forward. Without divisions, the top two teams in the standings at the end of the season will play in the ACC championship game in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Dec. 7.

Continue Reading

Sports

Walker back in Phils’ rotation after Abel demoted

Published

on

By

Walker back in Phils' rotation after Abel demoted

PHILADELPHIA — Mick Abel couldn’t sustain his sublime major league debut and is headed to the minors.

Taijuan Walker is back in Philadelphia’s rotation. And anticipation that prized prospect Andrew Painter could be headed to the Phillies will stretch past the All-Star break.

Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez and Cristopher Sánchez are about the only sure things this year in Philadelphia’s rotation.

The Phillies demoted Abel, the rookie right-hander who has struggled since he struck out nine in his major league debut, to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The Phillies also recalled reliever Seth Johnson from Lehigh Valley ahead of Friday’s loss to Cincinnati.

The 23-year-old Abel made six starts for the Phillies and went 2-2 with 5.04 ERA with 21 strikeouts and nine walks.

“Mick needed to go down and breathe a little bit,” manager Rob Thomson said. “Just get a little reset. It’s not uncommon.”

A 6-foot-5 right-hander selected 15th overall by the Phillies in the 2020 amateur draft, Abel dazzled against Pittsburgh in May when his nine strikeouts tied a Phillies high for a debut, set by Curt Simmons against the New York Giants on Sept. 28, 1947.

Abel hasn’t pitched beyond the fifth inning in any of his last four starts and was rocked for five runs in 1⅔ innings Wednesday against San Diego.

Abel was 3-12 with a 6.46 ERA last year for Lehigh Valley, walking 78 in 108⅔ innings. He improved to 5-2 with a 2.53 ERA in eight minor league starts this year, walking 19 in 46⅓ innings.

“This guy’s had a really good year,” Thomson said. “His poise, his composure is outstanding. He’s really grown. We just need to get back to that. Just attack the zone and get through adversity.”

The Phillies will give Walker another start in Abel’s place against San Francisco. Walker has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen over the past two seasons. He has made eight starts with 11 relief appearances this season and is 3-5 with one save and a 3.64 ERA.

Thomson had said he wanted to give Walker an extended look in the bullpen. Abel’s struggles instead forced Walker — in the third year of a four-year, $72-million contract — back to the rotation. For now.

“He always considers himself a starter and ultimately wants to start,” Thomson said. “He’ll do anything for the ballclub, because he’s that type of guy, but I think he’s generally happy he’s going to go back into a normal routine, normal for him, anyway.”

Wheeler, Suárez and Sánchez have been lights-out in the rotation this year and helped lead the Phillies into first place in the NL East. Jesús Luzardo was a pleasant early season surprise but has struggled over the past two months and gave up six runs in two-plus innings in Friday’s 9-6 loss to the Reds.

“I still have all the confidence in the world in Luzardo,” Thomson said. “Everybody’s going to have bad outings here and there. I think we’re still fine.”

Thomson said he had not made a final decision on who will be the fifth starter after the All-Star break. Painter has two more scheduled starts in Triple-A before the MLB All-Star break and could earn a spot in the rotation. The 22-year-old will not pitch in the All-Star Futures Game as part of the plan to keep him on a hopeful path to the rotation.

Painter hurt an elbow during spring training in 2023 and had Tommy John surgery later that year. He was the 13th overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft and signed for a $3.9 million bonus.

Because of the All-Star break and a quirk in the schedule that has them off on all five Thursdays in July, the Phillies won’t even need a fifth starter after next week until July 22.

Aaron Nola could be back by August as he works his way back from a rib injury. Nola will spend the All-Star break rehabbing in Florida and needs one or two minor league starts before he can rejoin the rotation.

Continue Reading

Sports

Cubs’ Taillon (calf) to miss more than month

Published

on

By

Cubs' Taillon (calf) to miss more than month

CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs righty Jameson Taillon was placed on the injured list on Friday with a right calf strain, the team announced before its game against the St. Louis Cardinals. He’s expected to miss “more than a month,” according to manager Craig Counsell.

Taillon, 33, injured his calf on his last wind sprint after a bullpen session on Thursday.

“He’s going to miss a pretty significant amount of time,” Counsell said.

Taillon was 7-6 with a 4.44 ERA in 17 starts for the Cubs this season who just got lefty Shota Imanaga back from a hamstring injury. Now they’ll have to navigate at least the rest of this month without one of their other key starters.

“There’s a little room for us to be flexible right now,” Counsell said citing the upcoming All-Star break. “We’ll use that to our advantage and we’ll go from there.”

The team recalled left-hander Jordan Wicks to take Taillon’s spot on the roster, though he won’t go directly into the rotation. Instead, the Cubs will throw a bullpen game on Saturday against the Cardinals and “go from there,” according to Counsell.

Wicks, 25, went 1-3 with one save, a 4.06 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 12 appearances (11 starts) with Triple-A Iowa this season. In his past five starts dating to May 18, he posted a 1.65 ERA with 20 strikeouts, compared to just three walks, a 0.86 WHIP and a .186 opponent batting average.

The team might also consider a bigger role for righty Chris Flexen who has been fantastic for them out of the bullpen. Flexen, 31, has a 0.62 ERA in 16 games, including a four inning stint late last month.

“He’s a candidate to be stretched out for sure,” Counsell said. “He’s prepared to do a little bit more.”

Cubs brass have already stated they are looking for starting pitching before the trade deadline later this month. Counsell was asked if Taillon’s injury increases that need. He didn’t take the bait.

“The trade deadline isn’t until July 31,” he said. “I’m focused on the next week or 10 games before the All-Star break.”

Continue Reading

Sports

Guardians OF Thomas reinjures foot, exits game

Published

on

By

Guardians OF Thomas reinjures foot, exits game

CLEVELAND — Guardians outfielder Lane Thomas left during the sixth inning of Friday night’s game against the Detroit Tigers due to mild plantar fascia symptoms with his right foot.

Thomas missed 11 games in late May and early June because of plantar fasciitis in his right foot. He is batting .160 this season and .197 (13-for-66) since coming off the injured list on June 9. He does have four homers in his past 10 games.

“We think he’s good. The plantar fasciitis flared up a little bit again and I just didn’t like the way he looked running around the outfield. So rather than take a chance, I got him out of there,” manager Stephen Vogt said after the 2-1 loss to the Tigers.

Thomas also missed five weeks due to a right wrist bone bruise after getting hit by a pitch during the April 8 home opener against the Chicago White Sox.

Continue Reading

Trending