Tradition's Finest Episode 92 - "The Minister of D'fence Episode"

Welcome Back to the Tradition's Finest Podcast! Episode 92 - "The Minister of D'fence Episode" includes a discussion of the following sports-related topics: - Miscellaneous - PGA: J.J. Spaun, 36, turned a sloppy mess of a U.S. Open at a wet and nasty Oakmont into a thing of beauty at the end of Sunday with two stunning shots that carried him to his first major championship after he finished the 2024 season ranked No.119 in the world with only one PGA tour title in his career - - The first shot came on the driving range with a 314-yard ball-buster that landed on the green on the 17th hole for a birdie that gave him the lead, and the second came on an incredible 64-foot putt for birdie on the 18th hole, to secure a two shot victory & his first major championship - - Spaun finished his storybook U.S. Open nailing the longest putt all week at Oakmont, and was the only player to finish under par at 1-under 279 - - While the PGA event at Oakmont largely lived up to the hype, it was a calamity for so many others, including veteran Adam Scott, who was attempting to become the first player to go more than eleven years between major titles (and was always a valid selection on the old Nintendo 64 PGA video games) was tied for the lead with five holes to play, but one of the best drivers could no longer find the fairway, finishing the event shooting 5-over par with a final score of 79. . ."A Return of the Glizzy Goat:" Joey Chestnut, the competitive eating legend, announced on Monday that he will be returning to the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest after a one-year hiatus from the annual Fourth of July event - - Chestnut, the 16-time "Glizzy" champion, missed last year's event due to a dispute with the Major League Eating (yes! it's thing) over his sponsorship deal with the brand, Impossible Foods, a company that manufactures "plant-based" hot dogs - - Chestnut returns to the annual hot-dog eating contest as the record-holder after consuming 76 hot dogs & buns in 2021, but he will definitely look to top that total in 2025. . .Q: Does Joey Chestnut top his current record at the 2025 Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest?. . . - NHL - The 2025 NHL Stanley Cup Final was one to remember: three OT periods in the first four games of the series with Oilers' Draisaitl & Panthers' veteran F Brad Marchand trading heroics in the first two, prior to a Panthers' rout in the next game, yet according to most recent statistics, it was one of lowest-viewed Finals in the history of the sport, even after capturing the views of two willing participants in JD & Spencer - - Game 4: The Panthers went up 3-0 early, and it looked as though the Oilers were in serious danger of losing all of the momentum the Canadian team had built, but Oilers Forward Leon Draisaitl scored a goal in OT last Thursday evening to tie the Stanley Cup Final for Edmonton, ensuring that the championship series against the Florida Panthers could not be decided in Game 5 the following Saturday night - - The Oilers would defeat the Panthers 5-4, and the series was then tied a 2-2, setting up Game 5 as another pivotal swing point in the championship series rematch - - Following the Game 4 victory, the Oilers were actually favored to go up 3-2 & were slightly favored to win it all, according to Sportsbook. . .Game 5: Florida Panthers veteran Forward Brad Marchand was at it again in Game 5, scoring twice - - he started by giving Florida a 1-0 lead at 9:12 of the 1st period, giving him six goals in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in his career, which is the most by any player since Esa Tikkanen with the Oilers in 1988 - - Panthers F Sam Bennett continued his glorius postseason run as he added to his already impressive stat-line with his 15th goal of the playoffs - - and shockingly enough, Oilers' captain Connor McDavid, who had not yet scored a goal through the first four games of the championship series, finally scored a goal on a sweet move in the 3rd period - - but it just wasn't enough as the Panthers would hang on to defeat the Oilers 5-2 to take a 3-2 series lead - - So what was the issue with the Oilers?: A big problem for the Oilers was their lack of chemistry and energy at the onset of the game - - Once again, they trailed after only twenty minutes into Game 5, this time down 2-0 instead of 3-0 like they were in Game 4, but the difference was that the Oilers could not complete the comeback to force OT. . .Game 6: At home, the Florida Panthers won their second straight Stanley Cup trophy in a 5-1 Game 6 romp, led by 11-year veteran Sam Reinhart's four goals - - For a second year in a row, the Florida Panthers conquered the Edmonton Oilers and lifted the Stanley Cup trophy as kings of the NHL - - With three consecutive appearences in the Stanley Cup Final, the Panthers have officially achieved dynasty status. . . - MLB: "The MLB's version of the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis trade:" After signing All-Star Alex Bregman, the Boston Red Sox pleaded with All-Star slugger Rafael Devers to move to first base back in April, but he refused - - They begged him to return to third base after Bregman suffered an injury, but once again, he declined - - The team apparently had enough: In one of the most stunning mid-season trades in years, the Boston Red Sox unloaded Rafael Devers, trading the homegrown star to the San Francisco Giants, on Sunday - - In return the Red Sox received pitchers Kyle Harrison and Jordan Hicks as well as prospects James Tibbs & Jose Bello, in a trade that was first reported by Fansided - - The Red Sox freed up the remainder of Devers 10-year, $313.5 million contract, and the Giants will pay the entirety of his deal, with the slugger still owed upwards of $250 million, while the Red Sox will pay the rest of Hicks' four-year, $44 million contract with 2 1/2 years remaining - - This deal sent literal shockwaves throughout the league, but this seemed like a forgone conclusion that the Red Sox were looking to move the slugger, who is hitting .272 with 15 HRs and 58 RBIs this season with .905 POS - and he has three seasons of at least 30 HRs and 100 RBIs. . .Q: What are your thoughts of the Red Sox decision to trade Rafael Devers? Does this trade improve the Giants' standing in the league for the near future?. . . - NCAA: News & Storylines - NCAA College Baseball: 2025 Men's College World Series (MCWS) - The No.13-ranked Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (56-11) and the No.6-ranked LSU Tigers (51-15) have almost seemed like a "matchup of destiny" since the beginning of this year's College World Series - - After defeating the South Carolina Gamecocks in Omaha in the 2016 CWS finals, the Chanticleers would put CCU on the map - - Fast forward to 2025, the Chanticleers have won 26 consecutive games, which is the longest streak in the nation, and have, once again, advanced to the best-of-three championship series - - With a double-elimination format in the CWS, the Chanticleers opened things up in Omaha with a 7-4 victory over the Arizona Wildcats prior to dominating the No.8-ranked Oregon State Beavers in a 6-2 rout following a career night by starting pitcher Jacob Morrison, who only allowed one run & five hits in 7 2/3 innings against a talented Beavers lineup - - In Game 11, the Chanticleers punched its ticket to the 2025 CWS Finals after picking up an 11-3 victory over the Louisville Cardinals last Wednesday evening to move to 3-0 in the CWS at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha. . .As for the No.6-ranked Tigers, LSU would start the MCWS with a 4-1 victory in an all-SEC Conference matchup versus bitter rival & the high-powered offense of the Arkansas Razorbacks, followed by a 9-5 victory over the No.15-ranked UCLA Bruins after the game was suspended due to a rain delay, and resumed the following Tuesday morning - - And, quite possibly, what was the most highly anticipated & intense game of the 2025 College World Series, the Tigers would be forced, once again, to defeat the Arkansas Razorbacks, in which LSU posted a 6-5 walk-off victory, to advance to the College World Series Finals championship series - - After securing a fifth 50-win season & advancing as one of the final four teams in Omaha, the Razorbacks' season ended in heartbreak in Omaha once again - and their let-down needs to be evaluated & studied at the molecular level - - In the rematch, Arkansas shortstop opted to get the lead runner at 3rd base instead of the game-ending double play, and at the very next at-bat, LSU's batter would hit a fly ball that careened off the Arkansas left fielder's shoulder to score two runs - - The No.6-ranked Tigers will play for their second national championship in three years when they square off against No.13 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in the best-of-three finals, which is scheduled to begin on Saturday. . .Q: Who will win the 2025 College World Series - Coastal Carolina or LSU?. . . - NFL - Cleveland Browns rookie QB Shedeur Sanders received a speeding citation for driving 101 mph earlier this week - - and this was NOT the first time that he was cited for speeding in Ohio this month - - According to the Medina [Ohio] Municipal Court record, Sanders was pulled over by the Ohio State Patrol earlier this month, on June 5th, in Brunswick Hills, for driving 91 mph in a 65 mph zone - - According to the record, Sanders failed to appear for an arraignment for that citation on Monday, and now faces $269 in fines and court costs - - He was then stopped by an officer for the Strongsville PD at 12:24AM Tuesday morning for driving 41 mph over the posted 60 mph speed limit in a black Dodge TRX. . .The Baltimore Ravens granted Lamar Jackson's wish on Wednesday by signing former Green Bay Packers CB Jaire Alexander - - The addition of Alexander gives Baltimore one of the most talented secondaries in the NFL and reunites the two-time Pro Bowler with University of Louisville (2015-2017) teammate in Lamar Jackson. . .Q: After acquiring two-time Pro Bowler CB Jaire Alexander - along with their set of elite offensive weapons - should the Baltimore Ravens be considered a favorite to win the Super Bowl next season?. . . - NBA - The Memphis Grizzlies traded Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (KCP), Cole Anthony, four unprotected first-round picks and one first-round pick swap in a blockbuster deal that was announced on Sunday - - The move represents a massive swing for the Orlando Magic to compete in the Eastern Conference, while for the Grizzlies, it's a legitimate opportunity to add a championship-level defensive 3-point shooter - as Bane is one of three NBA players entering the league in 2020 that has shot approximately 43.2% on catch-and-shoot 3s with a minimum of 1,000 attempts in the past five seasons - as well as backcourt depth & a major haul of draft picks. . .Q: Who won this blockbuster trade - the Orlando Magic, Memphis Grizzlies, or neither team?. . .The Buss family is entering into an agreement to sell majority ownershup of the Los Angeles Lakers franchise to Mark Walter, the CEO & chairman of diversified holding company TWG Global and a stakeholder for the franchise since 2021, for a franchise valuation of approximately $10 billion, which is the highest ever for a U.S. professional sports franchise - - this deal was reported by sources to ESPN on Wednesday evening - - According to multiple sources, the Buss family will retain a minority share of the team (roughly 15%) for a period of time, and in addition, Jeanie Buss will remain the Lakers' governor & continue to run the team for "at least a number of years," - - The Lakers have been owned by the Buss family since 1979, when Jerry Buss purchased the franchise - along with Los Angeles Kings (NHL franchise) and the Forum - in a $67.5 million transaction - - Since 1980, the Lakers have won 11 championships, the most by any NBA team during that span. . . - 2025 NBA Finals Weekly Review: JD & Spencer discuss & analyze the performance of the NBA Finals games from the past week, and provide a preview segment where they each give their individual predictions for the upcoming finale (i.e., Game 7); The following games are discussed in this episode: Game 4: No.1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No.4 Indiana Pacers (IND leads series 2-1) Game 5: No.1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No.4 Indiana Pacers (Series tied 2-2) Game 6: No.1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No.4 Indiana Pacers (OKC leads series 3-2) Thanks for Listening!