Sports
Sandy Alcántara Isn't Going Anywhere, Right? Marlins Face Trade Deadline Questions
On July 3, with the Miami Marlins emerging as surprise contenders in the NL East, owner Bruce Sherman appeared to remove ace Sandy Alcántara from the trade market by calling him a “franchise icon.”
Hey, that’s different.
A week later, when the Marlins reached 10 games over .500 for the first time in three years (and for just the third time since 2011), a story in The Athletic citing unnamed sources said Miami would be buyers before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
Doubling down on the turnaround.
A week ago Thursday, with the All-Star break wrapping up, Sherman re-emerged to tell the Fish on First Podcast that Marlins president Peter Bendix “has a green light” to add to Miami’s roster in pursuit of winning the division.
Go Fish!
Since the Marlins fell hard, we’ll back of the Atlanta Braves in the division and all but erased from wild-card contention.
With the trading deadline days away, there’s still time for Sherman to say something else and have it blow up, but he must have learned his lesson by now. That’s too bad, because you know we were going to hear about the Home Run machine moving back inside the ballpark, re-installing the fish tank behind home plate, and hiring back the Clevelander Girls. Those dreams seem dead.
This is a fine kettle of Fish.
Fan reaction had been mixed to Sherman’s march of positivity. Some were excited to hear the team likely would be keeping a beloved figure like Alcántara, whose $21 million team option for 2027 isn’t expensive in Major League Baseball terms, but it is pretty pricey for the Marlins.
Other fans expressed little enthusiasm about the club being buyers at the deadline because the Marlins don’t have a long record of buying anything. It’s been a minute since the Giancarlo Stanton extension, or bringing in José Reyes and Mark Buehrle in free agency.
A few fans looked at the box scores amid Sherman’s boasts and noticed how the Fish were a-slip-slidin’ away in the standings.
While winning the division seems remote as ever, they’re still just 1 1/2 games back in the NL Wild Card race. The problem there is, they’re tied with the Washington Nationals, and also would have to climb over the Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals and Arizona Diamondbacks to make the postseason field.
Further, if you read between the lines of what Sherman said, and what Ken Rosenthal wrote in The Athletic, it’s not like the Marlins were going to cash in their mediocre farm system to maximize their chances in the playoffs. Bendix wants a sustainable contender for years to come, and the Marlins have almost no history of being one of those. They’re more famous for their meteoric World Series titles in 1997 and 2003, followed by a relatively quick and dirty teardown.
Do they seem on the verge of another championship? They’re middle of the road in hitting, and a little better than that with pitching, but their depth is being tested right now. Right-hander Max Meyer was finally having a breakout season, but recently went on the injured list because of a neck strain. Eury Pérez has bounced back from an injury in May, but like Meyer, has a short history of pitching a lot of innings.
Unless this losing streak reaches 13 or 14 (or longer, like a reverse Red Sox), the Fish should keep looking on the market for another starter and a third baseman, and try to compete. Hey, the last thing we heard from Sherman was that they’re buyers. Bendix should just act like nothing has changed.
And, if Meyer returns before the end of the season with Pérez and Alcántara, you could do a lot worse for a rotation in a postseason series. And it’s only July. Plenty of time to put back the fish tank. Maybe see what the ex-Clevelander Girls are up to. The Home Run machine, that’s probably a no-go.
But Sandy’s staying no matter what, right?
Sports
Tony Romo withdraws from golf event in wake of OWI arrest
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, now an NFL broadcast analyst for CBS, watches his tee shot off No. 11 during the OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois Championship pro-am Tuesday, June 24, 2025 at Metamora Fields Golf Club in Metamora. Tony Romo withdrew from an upcoming golf tournament in the wake of his arrest last week in Wisconsin for allegedly operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current CBS Sports analyst had been scheduled to play in the Texas State Open starting Tuesday in Tyler, Texas.
The Cascades Country Club confirmed to NBC affiliate KETK-TV that Romo, who has played in the event nine times, has pulled out of the tournament.
An avid golfer, Romo has won the celebrity American Century Golf Tournament three times.
The 46-year-old was stopped last Thursday evening on Interstate 43 and “performed poorly” on standardized field sobriety tests, according to the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office’s arrest report.
He was taken into custody and booked before being released. He has a court date scheduled for Sept. 21.
A first-offense OWI is generally a civil offense, not a criminal charge, in Wisconsin, with a citation typically carrying a fine between $150-$300.
Romo is a native of nearby Burlington, Wis., where he was the first Burlington High School student-athlete to be named all-state in three sports: football, basketball, and golf. His high school football team, the Burlington Demons, plays on a field that was named Tony Romo Field in 2020.
Romo has been the lead NFL game analyst at CBS since 2017, paired with Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson to cover games.
Signed as an undrafted free agent in 2003 out of Eastern Illinois, Romo spent the next 14 seasons with the Cowboys. He became their starting quarterback in 2006 and led Dallas to six playoff games.
A four-time Pro Bowler, he holds a 78-49 record in 156 regular-season games (127 starts). He had a career 65.3% completion rate, amassing 34,183 yards with 248 touchdowns and 117 interceptions.
–Field Level Media
Sports
FIFA prez Gianni Infantino blasts critics for 'spreading hate'
President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino present the World Cup Trophy to Spain during the FIFA World Cup 2026 final between Argentina and Spain at New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday, July 19, 2026, in East Rutherford, NJ. FIFA president Gianni Infantino rejected scrutiny of his leadership and the organization, accusing critics of “spreading hate and false rumors” while they were “delivering the best show in the world,” minimizing or altogether ignoring issues that arose with the 2026 World Cup.
His message was delivered across 15 slides on his personal Instagram account, cross-posted to the FIFA Instagram account and distributed to media personnel by FIFA’s communications team.
Infantino’s message said, “We experienced no violence, no incidents, 100% safety and security, only joy and happiness!”
There were multiple issues with some teams and fans gaining access to the tournament. Four countries — Iran, Haiti, Senegal and Ivory Coast — played their matches despite many supporters being unable to enter the United States because of travel bans imposed by the Trump administration.
Iran’s team captain Mehdi Taremi called the World Cup a “disaster” due to the restrictions on visas and movement for members of its federation.
Infantino’s message also ignored the four people who died of suffocation during celebrations in Mexico City after Mexico’s round-of-32 victory over Ecuador, per The Athletic.
The message from Infantino, who has not held a press conference since before the World Cup began, also made a dismissive apparent reference to the significant controversy when U.S. forward Folarin Balogun had an automatic one-game ban reversed. FIFA’s disciplinary committee suspended the sanction with no explanation, and President Donald Trump later said he called Infantino to have the case reviewed, which Infantino denied.
“Your dissatisfaction with a few decisions made by the competent authorities is understandable, but please refer to public records: such decisions are common in some of the most important leagues,” Infantino posted. “Indeed, ‘arguable’ referees’ decisions or ‘strange’ disciplinary rulings such as for instance potentially mistaken red or yellow cards or subsequent decisions not to ban players in certain situations are routine and widely accepted in some of the biggest leagues worldwide.”
Among other issues faced before, during and since the 2026 World Cup, the Attorneys General of New York, New Jersey, Texas and California are investigating FIFA over its ticketing prices for the tournament.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tampa city council pulls Rays stadium funding from agenda
Apr 6, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; a general view of the stadium before a game between the Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images The Tampa Bay Rays’ battle for a new ballpark deal hit another obstacle with Tampa’s city council removing from its agenda an upcoming vote on a public funding proposal.
Front Office Sports reported Monday that a deepening political rift between the city council and Mayor Jane Castor led legislators to table a vote planned for Aug. 20.
“It’s beyond frustrating that as city and county leaders are working tirelessly to hammer out an equitable deal to bring the Rays to Tampa, city council members want to halt our efforts in their tracks,” Castor said. “Some city council members are clearly intent on killing the plan before negotiations are done and an agreement is ready for review. It defies common sense that they would prefer to have no say in the benefits a Rays project would bring to our city and instead punt it to the county.”
Council members also declined to forward a land use plan for the $2.3 billion ballpark to state authorities for review, arguing that such a move was pointless.
“I think it’s a waste of time to send it to the state if I’m just going to vote against it,” said city council member Lynn Hurtak, per FOS.
The Rays are hoping to build a new domed stadium at Hillsborough College’s Dale Mabry Campus in Tampa, located near Tampa International Airport and Raymond James Stadium.
The Rays currently play home games at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. The facility opened in 1990 and was reopened this season following repairs to damage from Hurricane Milton in October 2024.
–Field Level Media
