NHL – Connor Bedard, as expected, taken first in the NHL draft by the Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks have selected Connor Bedard with the first pick in the NHL draft. The move should kick-start a hopeful new era for Chicago. Bedard is a highly skilled offensive forward who’s drawn comparisons to Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby. Bedard is the second No. 1 pick in Blackhawks history. Chicago took Patrick Kane first in 2007 and he helped form the core of a team that won three Stanley Cup championships. Anaheim selected Sweden forward Leo Carlsson second, followed Columbus picking Michigan freshman Adam Fantilli. The Blackhawks took center Oliver Moore with the 19th pick in a previous trade with Tampa Bay.  The Red Wings also had two first round selections. With the 9th pick, Detroit took, center Nate Danielson and with pick 17, Detroit grabbed Swedish defenseman, Axel Sandin Pellikka.  The draft continues today with rounds 2 through 7 starting at 11 a.m.

NHL – Gary Bettman urges fans to boo him, honors David Poile to kick off NHL draft

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman brought one of the league’s most beloved general managers with him to the stage to kick off the draft. That may have helped keep the usual booing of Bettman to a minimum. David Poile is the longest-tenured and winningest general manager in league history. Poile is retiring Friday after overseeing the startup of the Nashville Predators as an expansion franchise in 1997. Bettman then told fans they weren’t booing him up to their usual standards. He urged them to do better and made sure to appreciate them as the boos grew louder.

MLB – Major League Baseball
Last Night

Texas Rangers 10, Detroit Tigers 2

Chicago White Sox 11, Los Angeles Angels 5

Philadelphia Phillies 8, Chicago Cubs 5

Rangers 10, Tigers 2 – Dane Dunning comes within an out of his first shutout, the Rangers beat the Tigers 10-2

Dane Dunning threw shutout ball for a career-high 8 2/3 innings, Adolis Garcia homered for the third consecutive game and the Texas Rangers beat the Detroit Tigers 10-2 on Wednesday night. Josh Jung and Ezequiel Duran also each had solo home runs and RBI singles. Dunning (7-1) retired 17 straight batters between Zach McKinstry’s single to open the game and McKinstry’s two-out double in the sixth. With Dunning an out from a shutout, Andy Ibanez legged out an infield single, a call that stood following a Texas challenge, and Kerry Carpenter homered.

White Sox 11, Angels 5 – Zavala homers twice, drives in 4 runs as the White Sox beat the Angels 11-5

Seby Zavala had his second two-homer game of the season and drove in four runs to help the Chicago White Sox break out of an offensive slump with an 11-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night. The White Sox scored in each of the first five innings to build a 9-2 lead. Chicago had 17 hits, including three apiece from Andrew Vaughn and Zach Remillard. Luis Robert Jr. and Eloy Jiménez also went deep. Lucas Giolito (6-5) struck out nine, going seven innings for the fourth time this season.

Phillies 8, Cubs 5 – Castellanos, Sosa and Harrison go deep to help the Phillies beat Cubs 8-5  

Nick Castellanos, Edmundo Sosa and Josh Harrison homered and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs 8-5 on Wednesday night. Castellanos hit a three-run homer in the second off Drew Smyly after Sosa launched a two-run shot earlier in the inning. Castellanos also hustled out an RBI double and scored in a two-run fourth. Harrison added a solo homer in the fifth off Hayden Wesneski to make it 8-2, helping Philadelphia overcome a shaky start by Aaron Nola to win for the 17th time in 22 games.

Today

Detroit (Olson 1-2) at Texas (Gray 6-3), 2:05 p.m.          News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM 1:40

Chicago White Sox (Lynn 4-8) at L.A. Angels (Sandoval 4-6), 4:07 p.m.

Philadelphia (Walker 8-3) at Chicago Cubs (Hendricks 3-2), 8:05 p.m.

MLB – Yankees’ Domingo Germán perfect through 7 innings against Athletics

New York Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán has not allowed a baserunner through seven innings against the Oakland Athletics. Germán has nine strikeouts and has thrown 82 pitches. Germán, a seven-year veteran, has never thrown a complete game. His longest outing was 8 1/3 innings against Cleveland on May 1, when he gave up two hits and one run. The 30-year-old right-hander gave up a career-worst 10 runs, eight earned, in his previous start.

WNBA – Women’s National Basketball Association
Yesterday

Chicago Sky 80, Los Angeles Sparks 63

Sky 80, Sparks 63 – Courtney Williams scores a season-high 21, Chicago snaps a 6-game losing streak

Courtney Williams scored a season-high 21 points, Kahleah Copper added 14 points and the Chicago Sky beat the Los Angeles Sparks 80-63 to snap a six-game losing streak. Chicago’s losing streak started against Los Angeles on June 9. The two teams play each other again on Friday. Marina Mabrey added 13 points and Dana Evans had 11 for Chicago (6-9). Williams made three of Chicago’s nine 3-pointers and also grabbed nine rebounds. Williams scored 10 points in the first half to help Chicago build a 46-37 lead. Mabrey sealed it on a 3-pointer with 2:01 remaining in the fourth quarter for a 77-61 lead. Nneka Ogwumike had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Los Angeles.

Tonight

Indiana Fever at Phoenix Mercury, 10:00 p.m.

NBA – Nikola Vucevic agrees to a 3-year, $60 million extension with the Bulls

The Chicago Bulls and center Nikola Vucevic have agreed to a $60 million, three-year extension, keeping the two-time All-Star off the free agent market. The move was hardly a surprise. Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and Vucevic had expressed a desire to get a deal done. Vucevic averaged 17.6 points and 11 rebounds while playing in all 82 games for the first time in his career. The 6-foot-10 center turns 33 in October.

NFL – NFL finalizing discipline for several players linked to gambling violations

Two people familiar with the plan say the NFL is finalizing disciplinary action against more players for gambling violations, including Indianapolis Colts defensive back Isaiah Rodgers Sr. The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because an official announcement won’t be made until later this week. Rodgers is the only identified player of the group, identifying himself in a Twitter post as the Colts player accused of gambling earlier this month. The identities of the other players are not yet known. A year-long suspension would be consistent with similar punishments handed down by the NFL.

Golf – Thomas enters Rocket Mortgage Classic, hoping to boost postseason positioning

Justin Thomas may have skipped the Rocket Mortgage Classic if this was just another usual year in his career. It hasn’t been. The 2022 PGA Championship winner with 15 PGA Tour titles has fallen out of the top 10 in the world ranking for the first time in almost six years. Thomas is No. 66 on the FedEx Cup points list, putting him in jeopardy of failing to finish among the top 70 and earn a spot in the playoffs. He says that was a motivating factor for him to compete at the Detroit Golf Club, where the first round beings Thursday.

ESPYS to honor US women’s soccer team, ChiSox’s Hendriks and Bills training staff

The U.S. women’s national soccer team will be honored with the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage at The ESPYS on July 12. Liam Hendriks, the Chicago White Sox reliever who battled non-Hodgkin lymphoma, will receive the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance. Hendriks returned to play six months after his cancer diagnosis. The Pat Tillman Award for Service will go to the Buffalo Bills training staff for helping save the life of safety Damar Hamlin, who collapsed on the field in January. Hamlin has been cleared to return to football for the upcoming season.

MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night

Dayton 9, West Michigan 6

Great Lakes 4, Lansing 0

Beloit 5, South Bend 4

Tonight

Dayton Dragons at West Michigan Whitecaps, 6:35 p.m.

Lansing Lugnuts at Great Lakes Loons, 7:05 p.m.

South Bend Cubs at Beloit Sky Carp, 7:35 p.m.