ESPN La Crosse 105.5

Aaron Rodgers Wins 3rd MVP Award

By Adam Roberts – 2/8/2021

Jim Brown, Johnny Unitas, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Brett Favre, and Aaron Rodgers.

These are the players in NFL history who have won three Most Valuable Player awards in their careers, with Rodgers joining the list over the weekend. Rodgers was voted MVP by 44 of the 50 voters on the Associated Press panel. This most recent honor joins the MVPs Rodgers earned in 2011 and 2014.

In comments to the media, Rodgers expressed his honor for the inclusion on such an exclusive list, noting that Favre’s three-straight MVP accomplishment from 1995 to 1997 will likely never be repeated.

Rodgers also was named the FedEx Air Player of the Year, and previously was named the MVP by the Pro Football Writers of America. He was also one of four first-team All-Pro Packers this season.

WI Governor Tony Evers Declares February 5th Hank Aaron Day

By Adam Roberts – 2/5/2021

Today would have been the 87th birthday of Hammerin’ Hank Aaron, one of the all-time greats not just in Milwaukee sports history, but the history of major league baseball.

Also today, the state’s governor took time to recognize that fact, as well as Aaron’s recent passing, with an official declaration.

Governor Tony Evers today declared that February 5th would be Hank Aaron Day in Wisconsin.

Hank Aaron passed away January 22nd from natural causes.

Wisconsin Football Unveils Revised Big Ten Games for 2021

By Adam Roberts – 2/5/2021

The Badger football team, and the rest of the Big Ten, unveiled their revised conference game schedule today.

The unveiling changes some of the home/away sites for the 2021 season and updates some of the crossover matchups. Here is a look at who Wisconsin will play and when next season:

9/4 vs Penn State

9/11 vs Eastern Michigan

9/25 vs Notre Dame @ Soldier Field, Chicago

10/2 vs Michigan

10/9 @ Illinois

10/16 vs Army

10/23 @ Purdue

10/30 vs Iowa

11/6 @ Rugters

11/13 vs Northwestern

11/20 vs Nebraska

11/27 @ Minnesota

Brewers Move Keston Hiura to 1B Following Wong Signing.

By Adam Roberts – 2/5/2021

Since the departure of Prince Fielder, the Milwaukee Brewers have been in a seemingly endless search for his replacement at first base. Since 2012, the team has gone through a revolving door of starers, including names like Corey Hart, Yuniesky Betancourt, Mary Reynolds, Chris Carter, Adam Lind, Eric Thames, Jesus Aguilar, and last year’s duo of Justin Smoak and late-season addition Dan Vogelbach.

Going into 2021, general manager David Stearns has needed to try and figure out this position once again, and is also wondering what to do with Keston Hiura, a fan favorite but unfortunately a defensive liability at second base. With the move to acquire Kolten Wong from the St. Louis Cardinals for two years, which became official today, Stearns hopes to have found at least a short-term fix at second. Now, with today’s news that Hiura will be moved to primarily playing first, we’ll see if that position gets its much-needed fix as well.

The move for Wong made plenty of sense; Hiura had a -0.4 WAR last season, second worst among starters behind just Smoak at first. Wong meanwhile is a back-to-back Gold Glover who racked up a 1.3 WAR in 2020. In addition, Hiura had six errors in a pandemic-shortened season while Wong committed just two.

If Hiura doesn’t work out at first, it will be interesting to watch what becomes of the 24 year old.

Fauci: “Just Lay Low” To Watch Super Bowl

By Adam Roberts – 2/4/2021

In obvious news that you need to know, the nation’s most visible expert in the fight against COVID-19 is highly advising against gathering for Super Bowl parties as the pandemic continues.

Dr. Anthony Fauci is telling Americans to pass on big game parties and “just law low” this Sunday. President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser says this weekend isn’t the time to host watch parties because guests who are infected with COVID-19 could make other people sick. Fauci is the nation’s leading infectious disease expert and he said on the Today Show the best thing people can do is watch the game at home with people in your household.

Gatherings have been discouraged for the last few normal holiday gathering dates, with fears they could become super-spreader events.

UWL Men Win First 2021 Game 62-43 vs UW Eau Claire; Women Fall on Road

By Adam Roberts – 2/4/2021

300+ days since their last contest, Kent Dernbach’s UW-La Crosse men’s basketball team didn’t need much motivation to come out swinging against UW Eau Claire.

The Eagles, by a combination of stout defense and aggressive paint play, opened their abridged 8-game schedule with a 62-43 victory over the Blugolds. Sophomore Ethan Anderson (Black River Falls) led UWL in scoring with 17 including 3 3’s in 35 minutes of action.

Overall, the Eagles led in nearly all statistical categories on a night when they would never trail. UWL had the advantage in field goal, 3-point, and free throw shooting, and also outpaced the Blugolds on the boards 39-35 and in the paint 28 points to 10. The only spot where Eau Claire had the advantage was in bench points, outscoring UWL 43-10.

The two teams rematch on Friday in Eau Claire.

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Meanwhile, the Eagle women lost the lead midway through the first quarter and trailed 41-27 at halftime. That deficit would prove too large to overcome in a 76-58 defeat. Scoring was led by Austin, MN senior guard Shayley Vesel with 14 points, followed by junior Lexie Higgins with 12. Both teams face each other again Friday at Mitchell Hall.

Brewers Sign Kolten Wong For 2 Years, $18 Million

By Adam Roberts – 2/3/2021

Both of our area pro baseball teams made notable moves today.

This morning we learned the Minnesota Twins would be bringing back designated hitter Nelson Cruz for another year at a price tag of 13 million dollars, and then this afternoon the Brewers looked to bolster their infield.

Per both The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and MLB.com’s Jon Morosi, the Crew have signed infielder Kolten Wong to a two-year, 18 million dollar deal. Wong played primarily at second base for the St. Louis Cardinals since making his big league debut in 2013, and has blossomed into one of the better defenders in baseball at age 30. At bat, Wong hit. 265 with a home run and 16 RBIs in 53 games during the pandemic-shortened season, and his top-notch fielding has netted him two straight Gold Glove awards.

2022 Midwest Players Classic Schedule Released

By Adam Roberts – 2/3/2021

We learned on January 27th that the Midwest Players Classic, an event we’ve had the privilege of covering in-depth the last few years, will be growing to a two-day event next year. And today we learned who will be a part of the historic expansion.

The usual hosts, Aquinas, will be one of five teams playing both of the two days at the La Crosse Center, with the boys opening up the competition Friday January 14th against Black River Falls. They will be followed by the return of two big-profile Minnesota schools that have been highlights of the last few Classics as Caledonia challenges powerhouse Minnehaha Academy. The first day will conclude with a DeForest-Fox Valley Lutheran night cap.

Heading into day two, the event’s lone girls match up could provide plenty of early-morning fireworks as Aquinas and Minnehaha open the competition. Then the Blugold boys return to action against current Top-10 foe Bangor. Following that, another big player from the Coulee Region will tip off at noon as Onalaska play FVL. Caledonia and DeForest will follow that, and then Minnehaha is back again playing Johnston, Iowa. Johnston is one of two Iowa schools participating next year, with Council Bluffs Lincoln scheduled to face the Polars of Minneapolis North later in the evening. Eau Claire Memorial will make their MPC debut against Madison East, and the evening will wrap up with Catholic Memorial playing Owatonna, Minnesota and La Crescent and West Salem in the finale.

Stay tuned as we get closer to the event for more details on our involvement next year!

Twins Re-Sign DH Nelson Cruz

By Adam Roberts – 2/3/2021

One of the most integral players to the “Bomba Squad” in Minnesota will be returning to the Twin Cities next year.

Big bopper and fan favorite Nelson Cruz has re-signed with the Twins on a one-year, 13-million dollar deal. Despite turning 40 during the pandemic shortened season, Cruz still produced at a level many wouldn’t have achieved in a normal year; his .303 batting average, 16 home runs, 33 RBIs, and career-high OPS of 169 earned him a sixth place finish in the AL MVP vote. Back in 2019, despite dealing with numerous injury problems, he still hit 41 dingers and 108 RBIs.

The Twins still have work to do on their free agent list before spring training starts up later this month. Despite bringing back Cruz and signing starter J.A. Happ from the Yankees, the team lost reliever Trevor May to the Mets, outfielder Eddie Rosario to the Indians, and catcher Alex Avila to the Nationals. Pitcher Jake Odorizzi’s future in Minnesota is still unknown, with a market value of around 14 million dollars, while the same uncertainly applies to third baseman Marwin Gonzalez and reliever Sergio Romo.

Onalaska BBB; Aquinas GBB Top Wissports.net Coaches Polls

By Adam Roberts – 2/2/2021

We continue to inch closer to the WIAA boys and girls basketball playoffs, with recent news that the La Crosse Center will get to host some of the state finals this year. And two usual area suspects have emerged as a couple of the more dominant programs in the state.

In the latest edition of the Wissports.net Coaches Polls, the undefeated Onalaska boys and Aquinas girls are number one in Divisions Two and Three, respectively. Area ranked teams this week include:

Onalaska Boys (17-0; #1 D2)
Blair-Taylor Boys (15-1; #6 D4)
Aquinas Girls (17-0; #1 D3)
Bangor Girls (14-1; #2 D4)
Blair-Taylor Girls (14-2; #6 D4)
Cashton Girls (11-5; #10 D4)