Category: Sports

Goldeyes top Monarchs, 7-5

Newly signed right-handed pitcher Jalen Miller delivered a pitch as part of his 4.2 hitless relief innings Tuesday night at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas, in the Monarchs’ 7-5 loss to the Winnipeg Goldeyes. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)
Jacob Robson of the Kansas City Monarchs rounded the bases following his home run Tuesday night, Aug. 23, at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas, in the Monarchs’ 7-5 loss to the Winnipeg Goldeyes. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)

by Dan Vaughan Jr., Monarchs

A week ago the Kansas City Monarchs (54-34) went to Canada and had their way with the Winnipeg Goldeyes (49-39) winning all three games. What a difference a week has made, as after two games of the four-game series, the Goldeyes have a 2-0 series lead following a 7-5 win at Legends Field Tuesday night.

The Monarchs’ Mallex Smith started the game with a walk and stole a pair of bases, coming home on a Darnell Sweeney fielders’ choice to take a 1-0 lead after one. The game stayed that way a matter of minutes as Winnipeg got rolling in the second.

The Goldeyes borrowed a page from the Monarchs’ play book using the long ball off Monarchs’ starter Jordan Martinson. Logan Hill walked and then came home on a two-run homer from Kevin Lachance to make it 2-1 Winnipeg.

The Goldeyes then got another walk from Deon Stafford Jr. followed by a fly out by Reggie Pruitt Jr. for out number one. Raul Navarro then stepped to the plate and launched a home run to left to give Winnipeg a 4-1 lead. The Goldeyes added another run on an RBI single from Max Murphy and it was 5-1 in favor of Winnipeg.

The Monarchs grabbed a run back in the top of the third on an RBI single from Sweeney off Goldeyes’ starter Alex Hart. Winnipeg came right back with an answer in the top of the fourth.

Newly signed Monarch Jalen Miller provided Navarro with free transportation to first. A throwing error on a pickoff attempt and a wild pitch moved the runner to third. Max Murphy picked up his second RBI of the game and 82nd on the season on a sacrifice fly scoring Navarro.

On the mound neither starter figured in the decision. In the pen, Miller allowed just one earned run in 4.2 innings of hitless ball in his Monarchs’ debut, while R.J. Martinez allowed one earned run in two innings to pick up the relief win.

With the Monarchs trailing 6-2 in the sixth, Jacob Robson hit a solo home run to right off Martinez. It was his third game with at least one long ball and his sixth of the season.

The Monarchs loaded the bases in the seventh, but Zac Ryan struck out Sweeney to end the threat for KC.

In the top of the ninth the Goldeyes picked up a big insurance run on a double from Murphy off Jameson McGrane. David Washington singled to right and moved Murphy to third. Jacob Rhinesmith hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Murphy and the lead was 7-3.

The Monarchs battled back in the ninth to make it interesting. Pete Kozma singled and Alexis Olmeda doubled off left-hander Tasker Strobel. Mallex Smith singled to load the bases for Kansas City. Ryan Grotjohn hit a fielder’s choice to score one run but force out Smith at second.

Sweeney singled in Olmeda for his third RBI of the night to cut the lead to two runs. Once again, the Monarchs had a chance with the winning run at the plate but back-to-back strikeouts by Robson and Jan Hernandez ended the night for the Monarchs and gave the Goldeyes a 7-5 win.

The loss dropped Kansas City five full games behind front running Fargo and five games clear of Winnipeg for second place in the American Association West.

The Monarchs will try to end their three-game losing streak at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 24, in game three of the four-game series with the Winnipeg Goldeyes at Legends Field.

The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aa baseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

Len Dawson, Kansas City football and broadcasting legend, dies at 87

by Greg Echlin, KCUR and Kansas News Service

Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback and popular radio and TV sports personality Len Dawson has died. He was 87.

He led the Kansas City Chiefs to their first Super Bowl win in 1970, even picking up the MVP title. “Lenny the Cool” also guided Chiefs fans through their ups and downs as a broadcaster for more than 50 years.

“With wife Linda at his side, it is with much sadness that we inform you of the passing of our beloved Len Dawson. He was a wonderful husband, father, brother and friend. Len was always grateful and many times overwhelmed by the countless bonds he made during his football and broadcast careers,” the Dawson family said in a statement to KMBC, where Dawson was a sportscaster for more than 40 years.

“He loved Kansas City and no matter where his travels took him, he could not wait to return home. Linda wants to acknowledge and thank the wonderful team of doctors, nurses and support staff at KU Med who showed tremendous amounts of love and compassion for Len.”

Dawson was born in Alliance, Ohio, in 1935. Fifty-two years later, he stood at the Hall of Fame in nearby Canton, inducted after a 19-year football career. He was only the third person to enter the Hall of Fame as a player and a broadcaster, after Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf.

“I was into working,” Dawson said with a laugh in 2017, when the broadcasting booth at Arrowhead Stadium was formally dedicated to him. “Because my parents didn’t have a whole lot and they taught me something: ‘If you want something, find a way to earn it to get it done.’”

Dawson was a color commentator for the Chiefs radio broadcasts on the Chiefs radio network from 1984 through 2017. Play-by-play man Mitch Holthus, who grew up in western Kansas, was his broadcasting partner for 24 years and a long-time admirer.

“I made sure my mom made a crude, stitched jersey with 1 and 6 on it because I wanted to be Lenny Dawson,” Holthus said, referring to Dawson’s jersey No. 16.

Dawson was a first-round draft pick out of Purdue by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957 but was unable to get any significant playing time with the Steelers or in his two years with the Cleveland Browns in 1960 and 1961.

Meanwhile, Lamar Hunt founded the American Football League in 1960.

“I remember (Browns owner-coach) Paul Brown saying, ‘Hey, there’s a bunch of sons of rich people. This is a hobby for them,’” Dawson once recalled. “‘It won’t last more than a year or two. It’s not going to be very long.’”

Dawson signed with the Dallas Texans in the fledgling AFL before the 1962 season and was reunited with coach Hank Stram, one of his assistant coaches at Purdue. The Texans won the AFL championship that year before moving to Kansas City.

In 1964, Dawson threw 30 touchdown passes, a Chiefs record until Patrick Mahomes shattered it with 50 in 2018. On the verge of breaking Dawson’s record, Mahomes said he talked to Dawson about it.

“When you throw 30 touchdowns in today’s league where there’s a lot more passing, you’re still having a great season,” Mahomes said in 2018. “For him to be that advanced, I mean he won a Super Bowl here. He was one of the best quarterbacks to ever play.”

With Dawson at QB, the Chiefs lost in Super Bowl I, but beat the Minnesota Vikings 23-7 in Super Bowl IV. Dawson was the MVP.

“We were the underdog in that game,” he recalled in a 1993 interview. “We were supposed to get beat by a couple of touchdowns. Thankfully, we didn’t believe that.”

Dawson’s final season was in 1975 when he was 40. Behind an injury-decimated offensive line, he was sacked seven times in a late-season game. By then, Dawson said, he knew his playing career was over.

“It made my decision,” he said. “I said, ‘That’s it. I don’t need to take this whipping like this anymore.’”

Unbeknownst to Dawson in 1966, Chiefs president Jack Steadman started discussions with management at KMBC-TV and radio about working Dawson into the broadcasts.

“I didn’t have any idea he was doing that, so it ended up starting my broadcasting career,” Dawson said.

Not only did he remain a major figure in Kansas City, he also became well known for a groundbreaking national show on HBO called “Inside the NFL.”

The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their connection to public policy.
Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
See more at https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-08-24/len-dawson-kansas-city-football-and-broadcasting-legend-dies-at-87.

Monarchs reclaim home run crown, come up short

by Adam Cook, Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs (54-33) set a new American Association single season home run record by belting three long balls on Monday night at Legends Field, but the Winnipeg Goldeyes (48-39) spoiled the historic night by hitting two homers of their own and pounding out 12 hits in a 7-5 win.

The Goldeyes threatened early in this one, as Monarchs starter Brock Gilliam allowed a pair of base hits in the top of the first, putting runners at the corners with two outs.

A wild pitch in the next at-bat scored Ian Sagdal and the Goldeyes left the first half-inning of the game with a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom half, Jacob Robson reached by way of the walk and later reached third on a stolen base with an errant throw to the outfield from catcher Deon Stafford Jr., but he was stranded at third the next at bat, keeping the score 1-0 Winnipeg.

Gilliam looked much sharper in the second inning, as he put together a 1-2-3 inning with back-to-back punchouts to end it. The Monarchs offense followed up with a modified 1-2-3 inning off their own after Darnell Sweeney led the inning off with a single but was thrown out at second base three pitches later.

In the third, the top of the Goldeyes order did some more damage. Raul Navarro led the inning off with a triple, and Ian Sagdal then collected a pair of RBIs with a two-run shot to the right field Home Run Hill, extending the Winnipeg lead to 3-0. The base knock – home run one-two punch came once again after the next batter, Max Murphy, smacked a single before the batter after him, David Washington, added to his American Association lead in the home runs category with a two-run shot, lengthening the Goldeyes’ lead to five.

On the Monarchs’ side, Kevin Santa laced a one-out single to the 5-6 hole and then was moved to second on a fielder’s choice from Mallex Smith. Ryan Grotjohn then got hit by a pitch, bringing Jacob Robson to the plate with runners on first and second. The runners had a head start since Robson drew a full count, and it came in handy when Robson went the other way down the third base line for a double just past a diving Ian Sagdal, scoring Santa.

The fourth inning began with a single to center field that got under the glove of Mallex Smith, landing Deon Stafford at third base. Reggie Pruitt Jr. then roped an RBI single for the Goldeyes’ sixth run. A fielder’s choice advanced Pruitt to second, and a steal of third set Ian Sagdal up for a sacrifice fly to left, helping the Goldeyes leave the inning with a 7-1 lead.

In the Monarchs’ half, Darnell Sweeney put a charge into a 3-2 fastball, turning it out to right field for a solo home run. Unfortunately for Kansas City, this was the only base hit of the half inning, and the Monarchs left the frame down 7-2.

After a four-batter top of the fifth, Kevin Santa led the home half off with a single. Following a steal of second, Ryan Grotjohn smacked a hard ground ball straight back to the pitcher Manasa, catching Santa between second and third. Manasa looked Santa back to the bag and threw to second, but Santa got in safely before shortstop Navarro made an errant throw to first, giving Santa third base. Grotjohn also stole second, but Casey Gillaspie grounded out to strand the runners in scoring position.

Reggie Pruitt represented the only offense for the Goldeyes with a double, but he didn’t come around to score. The same happened to the Monarchs after a leadoff Sweeney double, but the inning ended with him stranded at third.

Frank Rubio entered in the beginning of the seventh, ending Brock Gilliam’s night with 10 hits and seven earned, but nine strikeouts through six innings pitched. Rubio got the job done, getting himself a 1-2-3 inning.

For the Monarchs, Santa stayed involved in this one and got on base again, this time by way of an error. This turned the lineup over to leadoff hitter Mallex Smith, who reached base on an infield single. Robson then loaded the bases with one out with yet another infield single to first base. Gillaspie followed Robson with a hard hit sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Santa and making the score 7-3 Winnipeg.

The eighth marked Rubio’s second inning of work, where he once again retired the side scoreless.

In the bottom half, Jan Hernandez sent a moonshot past the out-of-town bullpen for the Monarchs’ 148th home run of the season, setting a new American Association single-season record and bringing the score to 7-4. The Monarchs set the old record last season hitting 147 during their championship 2021 season.

In the ninth, Jeremy Rhoades relieved Rubio and struck out two of three, turning it over to the bottom of the ninth with the Monarchs chasing three. Three proved to be too much, as despite a solo homer from Robson, the Monarchs couldn’t mount a comeback, making the final score 7-5.

The Monarchs continue the four-game home series against Winnipeg at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Legends Field. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aa baseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.