Jonas Blixt Keeps Rising

Former Seminole Jonas Blixt has played in 14 tournaments on the PGA Tour this year.  Making his first ever start this past January during the Sony Open in Hawaii where he finished T-54 shooting a total of -1 under par.

Jonas has only missed the cut in six of the 14 tournaments he has entered.  His best finish came during the HP Bryon Nelson Championship where he finished T-3 shooting -9 under par.  During the month of May this year he finished every tournament in the top ten.

He ranks number one in sand save percentage at 65.59% and third round scoring average at 68.56.  Jonas is the 160th ranked golfer in the world.

Bright Future For Barret Browning

Barret Browning spent seven years in the minor leagues with a career record of 29 wins and 27 loses before being called up to make his major league debut on June 30th.  Since then Barret has been lights out for the St. Louis Cardinals.  He has pitched in relief for the Cardinals throwing in 13 games with 10 innings pitched.  During those games he has only given up five hits and three earned runs with seven strikeouts.  Browning is only allowing batters an average of .139 against him.

Caroline Westrup On Tour

Caroline Westrup has been playing golf overseas this year since she received her European Tour Card in 2011.  She has played in eight events on tour and has only missed one cut.  During her 26 rounds of golf she has shot par or under in 13 of the rounds.  Her best finish of the year is a T-17 during the Sara Bay classic.

Last week she played with the Swedish National Team helping them to a seventh place finish.  Next up for Caroline will be the Ladies Irish Open at Killeen Castle in County Meath, Ireland.  The tournament will be held on August 3rd-5th.  Also she has entered the LPGA qualifying event in October. 

During Caroline's time at Florida State she was a four year All-American and a four year All-ACC Selection making her the first female golfer to hold that honor.  

Link Jarret New Head Coach At UNCG

Link Jarret will become the new head coach at UNC-Greensboro.  He has spent the last three years as an assistant for the Auburn Tigers and before that he was at East Carolina and Florida State.  Jarret will bring in an offensive approach to the Spartans as he has done at every other stop.  Here is what he said about the opportunity at UNCG.

  "There is tremendous potential in our baseball program at UNCG and leading the charge toward fulfilling that potential is very exciting," Jarrett said. "This will take a unified effort within our staff, players and our proud alumni. With that vision and conviction, our future is really bright."

 During his time at Florida State as a player, Link Jarret was the starting shortstop from 1991-94 with a career batting average of .279.  He still holds the FSU record of consecutive games played 235 and at-bats 989.  Jarret was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 1994 and spent five years with the organization.

Deividas Dulkys To Lietuvos Rytas

Deividas Dulkys has had a great past two months as he was named to the Lithuanian National Team back in May and helped his team qualify for the Olympics.  Now he has signed a contract to play overseas in the Lithuanian Basketball League for Lietuvos Rytas who finished the season in second place last year.

Dulkys is a shooting guard that can get hot quick from behind the ark and is not afraid to let it fly.  He scored a career high of 32 points against North Carolina.  During the game he made 8 three pointers which is a record at Florida State.

The Lithuanian National Team will play in group A during the Olympics.  Their first game will be Sunday July 29th against Argentina at 10:15 pm.

Bernard James Signs With The Mavericks

After a strong showing in the Las Vegas Summer League where Bernard James averaged nearly a double-double, the Dallas Mavericks have signed the center to a contract adding him to their 15 man roster.  James scored 10.2 points and 9 rebounds a game while playing an average of 26.2 minutes.  He will be the backup to Chris Kaman and Elton Brand.

The Dallas Mavericks have now signed all of their draft picks from this years draft.  Jared Cunningham, Jae Crowder and Bernard James should all make contributions to the team as the Mavericks have decided to take size and athleticism to improve the team.

Anquan Boldin Back In The Seams

Since Anquan Boldin left the Arizona Cardinals after the 2009 season to become the Baltimore Ravens number one wide receiver, he has not lived up to the teams expectations.  The fault is not his own though since the Ravens have used Boldin as a big play guy trying to get him to run down the field.

In 14 games last year he averaged a career high 15.6 yards per reception.  Boldin does not have the speed to out run the top corner backs in the AFC.  He is an over the middle receiver who is not afraid to take a hit when making the catch.  We all know what happened to him in Arizona when he was knocked unconscious then had his mouth wired shut.

While he was with Arizona he had Larry Fitzgerald to stretch the field.  Last year he did get help with rookie Torrey Smith showing that he has the speed to get away from cornerbacks.  This year should be better for Anquan, as Smith will no longer be a rookie and the Ravens acquired Jacoby Jones, who also posses speed.  Boldin will now be able to move back into the seams for the Ravens.  

Devon Travis Update

Devon Travis of the Connecticut Tigers has had a great start to his minor league career.  After deciding to forgo his senior year at Florida State he has played in 16 games at second base for the Tigers.  He is currently batting .241 with a double, a triple and a home run while scoring nine runs and driving in five more. Travis had his biggest moment as a pro in a marathon game against the Vermont Lake Monsters last Tuesday. He camp up to bat in the bottom of the 18th inning and hit a walk-off home run to win the game for the Tigers.

Tonight they will play against the Tri-City Valley Cats the minor league affiliate of the Houston Astros.

Benincasa Is Settling In

Since recording his first save on July 11, Robert Benincasa of the Auburn Doubledays has been lights out.  He has pitched in three games throwing four innings of shutout baseball while striking out six batters.  Since his first outing when he gave up two earned runs in 1.1 innings pitched, he has lowered his ERA from 13.50 to 3.18.

Benincasa and the Doubledays will face off against the Batavia Muckdogs again tonight.

Great Year For Sean Gilmartin

Sean Gilmartin of the Mississippi Braves, the Double-A minor league club of the Atlanta Braves, is having a great rookie season.  He has been the starting pitcher for 19 games factoring into the decision in 13 of them. He has a record of five wins and eight losses, but that does not show how good he has been.  Three of his five wins are complete games helping him to a 3.59 ERA.  In 112.2 innings pitched he has 84 strikeouts allowing .248 batting average for opposing batters.

After his last complete game Gilmartin was named the Southern League Pitcher of the Week.  Also he was named to the Southern League Mid-Season All-Star team in June.  

James Making A Statement

Bernard James has only played in three games for the Dallas Mavericks since being drafted a month ago and is already excelling on the court.  During the Summer League he has been very efficient shooting 65.2% on 23 shots which trails second year player Dominique Jones by 30 attempts. He might not be getting the touches inside but when given the chance he converts.  Also, James has been hitting the glass grabbing 29 total rebounds for a 9.7 average which is the highest on the team.  Of those rebounds, 22 are on the defensive end helping the team not give up second chance points.  His defensive rebounds alone are more than any other player's total rebounds.

Bernard James is a force for other centers/forwards to guard and box-out and he will only get better as he gets more comfortable playing in the NBA.

Strong Outings For Hunter Scantling

The former Florida State relief pitcher is finding his spot on the Connecticut Tigers as a shutdown closer.  Hunter Scantling has pitched in three games this year for a total of six innings giving up zero hits. His last two games he has recorded the win pitching two innings in one and three in the other.  He has shown great control only walking two batters he has faced.  Another great stat is that he has only allowed one runner to reach scoring position, stranding him at second base.

Tonight Hunter and the Tigers will face off against the Lowell Spinners, the minor league affiliate of the Boston Red Sox.

Derwin Kitchen Leading The Nuggets

Last year Derwin Kitchen played overseas in the Isreali Premier League with the Maccabi Rishon honing in on his offensive skills.  As the starting point guard playing in all 32 games, he shot 60.8% from the field averaging 14.8 points and 3.3 assist per game.  Kitchen lead the team all the ways to the finals before losing to Hapoel Holon.

Everything that he did last year has payed off big time for the former Seminole now as he has a chance to make it with the Denver Nuggets.  He was added to their summer league roster and has been the starting point guard in the three games they have played.  During those games Kitchen has proved last year was no fluke with his shooting.  He is 14 of 30 overall from the field a 46.6% and his 2-point percentage is even better at 53.8%.  He has been very efficient in running the team dishing out 13 total assist.

If he can continue to play at a high level for the final two games, Derwin Kitchen should make it onto the roster for the Denver Nuggets.  He will play on Thursday and Friday.

A Good Homecoming For Buster Posey

Last night Buster Posey, a native of Leesburg, came home to Georgia to play against the Atlanta Braves.  Although his career numbers were not that good at Turner Field ( 1 for 11 ), he was able to turn it around and keep his hot hitting streak alive going 3 for 5 with two doubles and five RBIs.  He lead the way for the Giants producing more than half of their 9 runs ending the Braves seven game win streak.

Posey started off the night for the Giants hitting a RBI double to left field in the top of the First and in the Third inning, he hit a single to left field scoring another runner.  The big at-bat came in the fourth with the bases loaded, he hit a double to deep left center clearing the bases.  

In his past five games he is batting 9 for 17, a .529 avg with nine RBIs and four extra base hits.  With every hit he gets he is scoring a base runner.  The Giants are doing a great job of getting on base and then producing hits with runners in scoring position.  That is why they are now three games ahead of the Dodgers in the NL West.  

Seminoles In The NFC

Here is a full list of Florida State Seminoles in the NFC that will be attending training camps in the weeks to come.

Arizona Cardinals
Darnell Dockett -- Defensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 27 in Flagstaff, AZ.

Atlanta Falcons
Chris Hope -- Saftey
Antone Smith -- Running Back
Training Camp begins July 28 in Flowery Branch, GA.

Chicago Bears
Lorenzo Booker -- Running Back
Chauncey Davis -- Defensive End
Geno Hayes -- Linebacker
Training Camp begins July 29 in Bourbonnais, IL.

Detroit Lions
Everette Brown -- Defensive End
Andre Fluellen -- Defensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 28 in Allen Park, MI

Green Bay Packers
Andrew Datko -- Offensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 29 in De Pere, WI.

Minnesota Vikings
Christain Ponder -- Quarterback
Letroy Guion -- Defensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 29 in Mankatu MN.

New Orleans Saints 
Brodrick Bunkley -- Defensive Tackle
Patrick Robinson -- Cornerback
Training Camp begins July 28 in Metairie, LA.

Seattle Seahawks
Alex Barron -- Offensive Tackle
Leon Washington -- Running Back
Training Camp begins July 27 in Renton, WA.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 
Dekota Watson -- Linebacker
Preston Parker -- Wide Receiver
Training Camp begins July 27 in Tampa, FL.

Washington Redskins
Graham Gano -- Kicker
Beau Reliford -- Tightend
Markus White -- Linebacker
Training Camp begins July 28 in Ashburn, VA.

Seminoles In The AFC

Here is a full list of Florida State Seminoles in the AFC that will be attending training camps in the weeks to come.

Baltimore Ravens
Anquan Boldin -- Wide Receiver
Training Camp begins July 27 in Owings Mills, MD.

Buffalo Bills
Nigel Bradham -- Linebacker 
Shawn Powell -- Punter
Garrison Sanborn -- Long Snapper
Zebrie Sanders -- Offensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 29 in Pittsford, NY.

Cleveland Browns
Bert Reed -- Wide Receiver
Training Camp begins July 29 in Berea, OH.

Denver Broncos
Tony Carter -- Cornerback
Training Camp begins July 29 in Englewood, CO.

Houston Texans
Mister Alexander -- Linebacker
Training Camp begins July 31 in Houston, TX.

Jacksonville Jaguars
Mike Harris -- Conerback
Greg Jones -- Fullback
Training Camp begins July 27 in Jacksonville, FL.

Kansas City Chiefs
Rodney Hudson -- Center
Terrance Parks -- Defensive Back
Training Camp begins July 28 in St. Joseph, MO.

New York Jets
Antonio Cromartie -- Cornerback
Training Camp begins July 31 in Florham Park, NJ.

Oakland Raiders
Sebastian Janikowski -- Kicker
Training Camp begins July 27 in Napa Valley, CA.

Pittsburgh Steelers
Myron Rolle -- Saftey
Lawerence Timmons -- Linebacker
Training Camp begins July 28 in Latrobe, PA.

San Diego Chargers
Richard Goodman -- Wide Receiver
Mario Henderson -- Offensive Tackle
Training Camp begins July 27 in San Diego, CA.

Tennessee Titans
Kamerion Wimbley -- Defensive End
Training Camp begins July 29 in Nashville, TN.

Al Thornton Finishes Orlando Summer League Strong

Al Thornton just finished his first week back in the NBA with the Brooklyn Nets.  Last year he signed a contract to play for Guayama in the Puerto Rico League.  During his time there he was able to improve his offensive skills, shooting 46.2 percent field goals and 38.3 percent from three point line.  Thornton has always been a high motor player, crashing the boards getting block shots and steals.

During this past week in Orlando the former Seminole showed that he is ready to be back in the NBA.  He played in four of the five games for the Brooklyn Nets averaging 22.5 mpg, 13.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg, and 1 bpg.  Although his field goal percentage was down from 46.2 to 40.5, Thornton was able to prove that he can create for himself and get to the rim.  He lead the team in free throw attempts with 30 making 23 of them.

Al Thornton showed enough this past week to make it onto the roster of the Brooklyn Nets this season.

Chris Singleton On The Court

Friday night was the start of the Las Vegas Summer League and Chris Singleton of the Washington Wizards was ready to prove he deserves to be a starter.  Last year he did not have the opportunity to show his talents in the Summer League as the NBA was in a lockout.  

During Fridays game against the Atlanta Hawks, Singleton started off slow scoring only four points in the first half.  Then in the second half he came alive scoring 16.  He was 7 of 13 from the field and 5 of 8 from the free throw line.  The former ACC Defensive Player of the Year was all over the court, grabbing eight rebounds, four steals and two blocks.  The Wizards were unable to get the win losing to the Hawks by 20.  

Next the Wizards will play the Houston Rockets on Sunday.

Benincasa Gets First Save

Robert Benincasa only had to face one batter last night to get his first save of his professional career.  He came into the game in the bottom of the ninth with two outs runners were on second and first.  Robert was able to get the batter to fly out to center field getting the win for his team.

The former Seminole closer has only played in two games for the Auburn Doubledays, posting an ERA of 10.80 with three strikeouts and one save.

Hunter Scantling's First Outing

Hunter Scantling pitched in his first game for the Connecticut Tigers last night.  He has been with the team for several weeks and it was only fitting that the first batter he faced was former teammate Jayce Boyd, who has been playing for the Brooklyn Cyclones.  Hunter entered in the top of the seventh with a one run lead and was able to strikeout Boyd swinging.  The next batter he faced hit a grounder to the third baseman for an easy out.  The last out of the inning was another strikeout.  He was able to record the hold for his team as they went on to the one run win.

Up next for the Tigers is another game with the Cyclones today.

Taiwan Easterling With The Peoria Chiefs

Taiwan Easterling has played in 62 games as an outfielder for the Peoria Chiefs, the MiLB class A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.  He is currently batting .237 with 25 runs scored and 23 RBIs.  While at Florida State he was a two sport athlete, also playing football as a wide receiver.  He could have played another year but decided to sign his MLB contract.
The Chiefs will start a series against the Dayton Dragons on Wednesday July 11, as Taiwan looks to extend his hitting streak.  In his past three games he has four hits with two being doubles.

Sherman Johnson Gets First Hit

The former Seminole had his break out game as a Major League player last night for the Orem Owlz.  Sherman Johnson was 3 for 5 with a run, three RBIs and also had two stolen bases.  Johnson came up to bat in the bottom of the third and got his first career hit on a hard hit double to right field.  He then stole third base and scored on an error by the Idaho Falls Chukars.  Johnson had a RBI single to right field in the fourth inning and in the fifth.  Then in the sixth he had a sacrifice fly to right field which scored a runner.

Although he got his first career hit in this game, Johnson had still been a major contributor to his team.
In the previous four games he had seven walks with three runs and a RBI.  After last nights game he has an on base percentage of .400 with only three hits.  

James Ramsey Update

After playing his first full week with the Palm Beach Cardinals, James Ramsey has had a pretty good start to his career.  Ramsey came out of the gate hot in his first game going 3 for 5, but in his next three games was unable to record a hit, going 0 for 12.  In his fourth game of the year, against the Bradenton Marauders, he gets his first career RBI on a single to end his mini slump.  Since then he has gone 4 for 10 with two runs and a RBI.
James Ramsey and the Cardinals will try and take the final game of the series tonight against the Charlotte Stone Crabs.

Stephen Drew Trying to Catch Up

Since returning from injury, Stephen Drew has played in eight games for the Arizona Diamondbacks and six of them have been starts.  His surgically repaired right ankle has not seemed to bother him as much as his managers expected it to.  It is more about his timing than his ankle.  Here is what Drew said about his recovery back.

"It's hard to say right now. The ankle's fine. It's just about getting back into the swing of things. Missing a year and not having spring training like these guys, they're four months ahead of me already. That part's probably a little tougher, but for me, I know what I have and it's just a matter of time. When it starts to kick back in, it will be like normal."

The former Seminole has batted  5 for 25 with one double, two RBI's, and three runs scored.  The Diamondback will play tonight against the LA Dodgers.

Devon Travis Made First Start

On Thursday evening the former Seminoles' second baseman made his first ever start with the Connecticut Tigers, the short season affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.  Travis got his first ever hit when he led off the top of the second and hit a ground ball single to center field.  He was left on base as the next three batters were unable to move him around.  Travis also had a good night in the field helping convert on three force outs at second base, one in the second and two in the eighth.

Travis went 1 for 4 with a single and 2 strikeouts and his other at-bat was a hard hit ball to left field.  The Connecticut Tigers will play again tonight against Batavia Muckdogs where they will try and avoid the sweep.

Walk-off For Jayce Boyd

In his first career MLB game, Jayce Boyd hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to right field for the Brooklyn Cyclones. This gave his team a 7-6 victory over the Hudson Valley Renegades in the eleventh inning.  Boyd was 3 for 5 with two doubles, one triple, two RBIs, and a run scored.

In the bottom half of the fourth Boyd came up to bat and hit a double to left field scoring a runner from second.  He ended up being stranded on third base to end the inning.  Then in the the fifth he hit a ground-rule double to right field moving a runner to third.  Both were left on base as the Cyclones were unable to produce a run.  Boyd was the lead off hitter in the bottom of the eighth when he hit his first career triple to deep center field.  He finally scores when third basemen Leonardo Reginatto of the Renegades makes a fielding error.
Here is the post game interview with Jayce Boyd.

Ramsey Gets Off To Hot Start

James Ramsey signed his major league contract this past Friday at Busch Stadium with the St. Louis Cardinals and on Monday got his first start with their advance class A affiliate the Palm Beach Cardinals.  In his first game Ramsey went 3 for 5 with a double and a run scored batting third in the lineup.  He had a perfect night going until the seventh inning when he reached base on a fielder's choice, but he then stole second base and scored on a single by Rainel Rosario.  The Beach Birds were leading going into the ninth inning but allowed three runs to the Jupiter Hammerheads falling 5 to 4.  Ramsey and the Beach Birds will try and take the final game of the series tonight at 6:35 p.m.

Bernard James Ready To Contribute

Bernard James' name was called for the 33rd pick in 2012 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers who then traded the draft rights to the Dallas Mavericks.  James will now be playing in the state where he began his military career.  As a two year starter for the Seminoles' he led the team in blocks and rebound improving on both each year.
James can be a help to the Dallas Mavericks right away, he has the size and ability to be a great defender in the NBA.  Also he knows where he stands as a player.

"I know who I am as a basketball player," James said. "I'm not under the impression that I'm going to go out there and be Kobe Bryant for a team. I know I'm a hustle guy, an energy guy. I'm going to rebound, block shots and play defense well. That's my role at the NBA level. I know that and I'm happy with that. If you get a couple of points out of me, that'll be a bonus. I know I can contribute to a team."

The Dallas Mavericks will be playing in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, their first game will be played on July 15th against the Denver Nuggets.

Buster Posey Voted To All-Star Game

Buster Posey was voted to his first ever All-Star game on Sunday.  The former Seminole received the most votes ever by a National League player with 7.6 million.  He will be the starting catcher beating out St. Louis Cardinal's catcher Yadier Molina.  Here is what Buster Posey said about making the All-Star team.

"This is a little overwhelming," Posey said. "It's kind of hard to wrap my head around right now. It's going to be a blast. ... Since I can remember, I watched the All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby. It's surreal I get to play in one and watch the derby."

Posey has had a good year for the San Francisco Giants.   During his 71 games played he is batting .303 average with 42 RBIs and 32 runs scored.
The Giants will be on the road to finish the first half of the season starting with a three game series against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday then a three game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday.
The 2012 MLB All-Star game will be played on July 10th in Kansas City.

Xavier Gibson Given The Chance

Xavier Gibson will be headed to play for the Milwaukee Bucks summer league team.  The Bucks will play in the Las Vegas Summer League starting on Monday July 16th and will play five games in seven days.  The former Seminole center who was undrafted will get his chance to show his talents along side John Henson who was the Bucks first round pick.  As a Senior, Gibson and the Seminoles' beat John Henson and the Tarheels twice, shutting down their post presence.