Lester buys $47,000 worth of beer for Cubs fans
Free agent pitcher Jon Lester ran up a $47,000 bill over Halloween weekend at four Chicago bars to buy beers for Cubs fans in thanks for their support.
The Cubs declined a $25 million option on Lester last weekend, though there is a chance he could return on a lesser deal.
In the meantime, Lester invited Cubs fans to have drinks on him — 4,838 of them for $31,082.63 worth of Miller Lite beers and $16,012.27 in gratuity.
“Thanks for coming out this weekend y’all,” Lester tweeted Monday morning, the four-year anniversary of the Cubs winning the World Series for the first time in 108 years. “Whether this is goodbye or see you next year, I love you Chicago!” HONUS WAGNER ROOKIE CARD SELLS FOR MORE THAN $1.4 MILLION >> A Honus Wagner rookie baseball card has sold for more than $1.4 million.
The price was a record for the rare T-206 card of the Pittsburgh Pirates great, the highlight of the weekend Goldin Auctions October Legends Auction in Runnemede, New Jersey.
Several items from Cal Ripken Jr.’s personal collection netted $1.2 million, with the money going to the family foundation. The jersey the Hall of Famer wore for the final game of his record 2,632 consecutive-game streak sold for $184,500.
NBA
SILVER SAYS TIME RUNNING OUT FOR DECEMBER START >> With the NBA in ongoing negotiations with the players union over proposed schedule formats and dates for the 2020-21 regular season, commissioner Adam Silver reportedly told league general managers Monday that the two sides are “running out of time” if they want to begin in December.
ESPN reported that the NBA conducted a conference call with league GMs to update teams on the state of negotiations. Sources said Silver and the league office indicated the window to start next season before Christmas – as the owners proposed last month — is closing.
WNBA
IONESCU HAS MINOR SURGERY ON ANKLE >> Former Oregon and Miramonte High star Sabrina Ionescu had minor surgery on her left ankle last week to remove some scar tissue that had formed. Ionescu missed most of her rookie season with the New York Liberty after suffering a Grade 3 sprain on that ankle in her third game as a pro. She avoided needing surgery to repair that injury, but had to do some cleanup on it last week.
Ionescu is expected to soon be cleared by the Liberty’s medical staff to return to physical activity.
NHL
SHARKS SIGN AHL FORWARD >> Sharks general manager Doug Wilson announced that the club has signed depth forward Kurtis Gabriel to a one-year contract.
Gabriel, 27, appeared in 53 games last season for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the American Hockey League, scoring nine points (five goals, four assists).
Over the course of his professional career, Gabriel has appeared in 38 NHL games with the Minnesota Wild and New Jersey Devils, recording five points (two goals, three assists).
Soccer
GALAXY BEAT REAL SALT LAKE UNDER NEW COACH KINNEAR >> Giancarlo González and Cristian Pavón scored to help the L.A. Galaxy beat Real Salt Lake 2-1 late Sunday night in their first game under interim coach Dominic Kinnear.
Kinnear took over Thursday after Guillermo Barros Schelotto was fired. Kinnear grew up in Fremont and had two stints as coach of the San Jose Earthquakes
Real Salt Lake (5-9-7), winless in its past three games, was eliminated from playoff contention.
VIRUS- HIT AJAX WITHOUT 2 MAIN GOALIES IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE >> A coronavirus outbreak at Ajax left the club without its two main goalkeepers for a Champions League game today and preparing to give an untried 20-year- old his debut.
The four-time European champion traveled to Denmark on Monday with just 17 players to face Midtjylland, including Kjell Scherpen as the only goalkeeper.
Scherpen, a Netherlands youth international who stands 6-foot-7, has not played a first-team game for Ajax since joining the club last year.
“It‘s not ideal but you have to deal with it,” Ajax coach Erik ten Hag said of his selection issues.
College sports
MISSING CAL FIELD HOCKEY PLAYER FOUND DEAD >> Cal field hockey sophomore goalkeeper Zoë Rogers, 19, was found dead last Thursday, two days after being reported missing to police near her hometown of Hatfield, Pennsylvania. No details have been released about the cause of death, or where her body was found.
With the UC Berkeley campus closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, Rogers returned home to mentor students at her alma mater of Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School. Rogers was last seen Tuesday night, driving her 2019 silver Honda CRV following the field hockey bus returning to school after an away game, according to NorthPennNow. com.
“We are absolutely heartbroken over the news about Zoë Rogers, and we offer our sincerest condolences to her family, friends, teammates and everyone who knew her,” said Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton in a statement. “Zoë was not only a member of our field hockey team, but of our entire Cal family. She was a leader on her team and among our entire student-athlete community. We will forever keep her memory in our hearts.”
Horse racing
IMPROBABLE IS 5-2 FAVORITE FOR BREEDERS’ CUP CLASSIC >> Improbable has drawn the No. 8 post position for the Breeders’ Cup Classic and is the 5-2 morning line favorite for the marquee race of the season-ending World Championships at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky.
One of three Bob Baffert-trained entries in the $6 million race for 3- year- olds and up, Improbable enters with a three-race winning streak after finishing fifth in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita. Stablemate and fellow 4-year- old Maximum Security, who crossed the finish line first in last year’s Kentucky Derby before being disqualified to 17th for interference, is the 7-2 second choice from the No. 10 post.
Filly Swiss Skydiver, who won last month’s Preakness and was a Classic pre- entry, opted to run against her own gender in Breeders’ Cup Distaff. She’s the 2-1 second choice from the No. 5 post after Monomoy Girl, the 8-5 favorite from the No. 10 post.
Saturday’s Classic will cap 14 feature events over two days at Keeneland and go off without spectators.