By Tiffany Williams –
Tuesday night delivered exactly what sports is supposed to deliver: winners making statements, losers getting exposed and absolutely no sympathy from the scoreboard.
From the WNBA to Major League Baseball and soccer pitches around the world, August 11 was loaded. The Indiana Fever dropped 106 points on New York. A’ja Wilson powered Las Vegas. Phoenix handled Los Angeles. The Yankees waited until late before punching Seattle in the mouth. Boston’s slide continued in Toronto. The Mets couldn’t score a single run in Atlanta.
And those were just the headliners.
In the WNBA, Indiana didn’t merely beat New York. The Fever hung 106 points on them in a 106-92 victory, with Kelsey Mitchell pouring in 28 points.
Breanna Stewart led New York with 19, but when the opponent reaches 106, somebody better have an extraordinary offensive answer. New York didn’t.
Las Vegas took care of Washington 86-76 behind another monster performance from A’ja Wilson. Wilson scored 26 points to lead the Aces, while Shakira Austin finished with 20 for Washington.
Phoenix finished off the WNBA slate by beating Los Angeles 94-87. Noemie Brochant led the Mercury with 24 points, while Dearica Hamby scored 19 for Los Angeles.
Three WNBA games.
Three convincing winners.
Then there were the Yankees.
New York’s 4-1 victory over Seattle wasn’t an offensive masterpiece from beginning to end, but nobody hands out extra victories for artistic beauty.
The Yankees won.
Again.
Tim Hill earned the victory, Michael Rucker took the loss and David Bednar collected the save. New York’s pitching kept Seattle under control and the Yankees found the offense when they needed it.
Meanwhile, Boston’s problems aren’t disappearing.
The Red Sox lost 5-3 in Toronto, extending their losing streak to four games. Patrick Sandoval took the loss as Boston fell to 64-55.
That’s the uncomfortable reality for the Red Sox right now.
This was baseball’s hottest team.
Now it has lost four straight.
The Yankees are winning games they have to fight through. Boston is suddenly losing them.
That’s how standings can start moving quickly in August.
And if Boston’s offense was frustrating, imagine being a Mets fan Tuesday night.
Atlanta shut out New York 4-0.
Nothing.
Four hits for the Mets.
Zero runs.
Nolan McLean took the loss while Martin Perez earned the victory for Atlanta.
The Mets fell to 53-68 and suffered their 13th shutout loss of the season.
Thirteen.
At some point, there isn’t anything left to explain. You cannot win baseball games when you repeatedly put zeroes on the scoreboard.
Miami didn’t score much either, but two runs were plenty because Eury Perez and the Marlins pitching staff shut down Pittsburgh in a 2-0 victory.
And here’s the brutal part for the Pirates: Paul Skenes took the loss.
Detroit beat Cleveland 6-4 behind winning pitcher Jacob Waguespack, with Kenley Jansen securing the save. Tanner Bibee took the loss.
The Cubs survived Washington 8-6. Ryan Rolison earned the victory, Jake Irvin took the loss and Jacob Webb recorded the save.
Baltimore handled Minnesota 5-2, with Brandon Young earning the win and Andrew Kittredge getting the save.
Cincinnati needed extra innings to escape the White Sox, winning 5-4 in 10. Brock Burke earned the victory, Sean Newcomb took the loss and Emilio Pagan finished it.
St. Louis blanked Philadelphia 2-0. George Soriano earned the victory, Alex McFarlane took the loss and Riley O’Brien recorded the save.
The Angels squeezed past Texas 3-2, with Jose Fermin earning the win and Samy Natera Jr. getting the save.
Colorado edged Arizona 3-2. Tomoyuki Sugano got the victory, Kevin Ginkel took the loss and Jordan Romano closed it out.
San Diego didn’t bother with suspense.
The Padres demolished Milwaukee 11-2.
Walker Buehler earned the victory while Kyle Harrison took the loss.
Tampa Bay was even more ruthless offensively, pounding the Athletics 12-4 behind winning pitcher Nick Martinez.
San Francisco took care of Houston 4-1, with Carson Whisenhunt earning the victory and JT Brubaker recording the save. Hunter Brown took the loss.
The Kansas City-Los Angeles Dodgers game remained live, with Michael Wacha matched against Blake Snell.
Soccer provided its own chaos.
Columbus Crew and Pumas UNAM finished 1-1 in Leagues Cup play before Columbus survived 3-2 on penalties at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field.
Atlas walked into Cincinnati and beat FC Cincinnati 2-1 at TQL Stadium.
Minnesota United delivered a 3-1 victory over Atlanta at Allianz Field, while Pachuca beat Charlotte 1-0 at Bank of America Stadium.
Real Salt Lake took care of Juárez with a decisive 3-0 victory at America First Field.
Tigres UANL and Vancouver finished 1-1 before Tigres survived a 5-4 penalty shootout at Estadio Universitario.
The Scottish League Challenge Cup delivered goals almost everywhere.
Alloa Athletic won 2-1. Peterhead rolled to a 5-1 victory. Hearts won a seven-goal battle 4-3. Bonnyrigg Rose earned a 1-0 victory. One matchup finished 5-0, another 4-0 and another 4-1.
East Fife’s matchup finished 2-2, while other games produced scorelines of 5-3, 3-1, 2-1, 3-0, 4-1, 0-4, 4-3, 2-0, 4-0 and 4-2.
There was no shortage of offense.
In Argentina, Lanús crushed Talleres 3-0 at Mario Alberto Kempes.
Brazilian Serie B action saw CRB beat Avaí 1-0.
South Africa brought more drama. One match finished 1-1, another ended scoreless, Polokwane City played to a wild 3-3 draw with Stellenbosch and another contest finished 3-2.
But when Tuesday night is stripped down to its biggest American storylines, the contrast is impossible to ignore.
Kelsey Mitchell delivered 28 and Indiana exploded for 106.
A’ja Wilson delivered another huge night for Las Vegas.
The Yankees found another way to win.
The Red Sox found another way to lose.
And the Mets found no way to score.
August doesn’t care about what anybody did in June or July.
This is when seasons start demanding answers.
Tuesday night gave us plenty of them.