World Cup News

Seattle is gearing up for the United States’ biggest World Cup game in years.

The US is playing Belgium for a spot in the quarterfinals at 5:00 tonight on FOX. It will be the final match Seattle hosts during the World Cup.

Team USA has only reached the quarterfinals twice in the history of the World Cup, with their last appearance coming in 2002. But this will be their toughest test of the tournament, with Belgium being the first team they’ve played that’s ranked higher than them.

Luckily for the US, they’ll have arguably their best player available in Folarin Balogun, who was initially banned from the game due to a red card he received last week against Bosnia-Herzegovina. But FIFA suspended the ban yesterday in a rare move that drew criticism from opposing countries.

The winner of tonight’s match will play Spain in the quarterfinals this Friday in Los Angeles, after the Spaniards ousted Portugal 1-0 earlier today.

Meanwhile, Bellingham took the world by storm at the World Cup last night.

England’s 23-year-old midfielder Jude Bellingham scored two goals in two minutes during their 3-2 win over Mexico. The game was delayed by an hour due to a rainstorm in front of a roaring crowd at the Azteca in Mexico City.

Before that, Norway stunned Brazil 2-1 thanks to a pair of late goals from 25-year-old phenom Erling Haaland to reach their first quarterfinals ever.

Mariners News

The Mariners have the day off today after capping off a successful homestand.

The M’s took two out of three games against the Blue Jays over the weekend in their first meeting since last year’s fateful ALCS. Seattle fell in the series opener, but won the next two games by a combined score of 15-0 to strengthen their lead in the AL West.

The Mariners’ pitching has been dominant, allowing just two runs over their past four games.

Randy Arozarena also got some good news as the team’s sole selection to the All-Star Game, which takes place this Sunday night. Meanwhile, Julio Rodriguez is sitting out the next few days after suffering a concussion in Thursday’s game against the Angels.

The M’s are now hitting the road for a six-game trip to Florida, starting tomorrow against the Marlins. Coverage begins at 2:30 and first pitch is at 3:40 on KPUG with Bryan Woo taking the mound.

MLB News

Northwest Washington will have some representation in a showcase of the MLB’s next stars.

Mount Vernon High School alum Xavier Neyens has been selected for the All-Star Futures Game. Neyens was drafted 21st overall last year by the Houston Astros after leading Mount Vernon to their first state championship in over three decades.

He’s hit 13 home runs and stolen 15 bases while reaching base in nearly half of his plate appearances with Single-A Fayetteville this season.

The All-Star Futures Games takes place at 9 am this Sunday in Philadelphia. 

Bells News

The Bells are hoping to shake off a nightmare road trip in their return home this week.

Bellingham dropped two out of three games in Nanaimo over the weekend to finish with seven losses in their nine-game trip. Their pitching struggled, giving up nearly seven runs per game over that span.

They’ll look to regain momentum with a stretch of three non-league games this week. It starts tomorrow against the Northwest Star Nighthawks with a 6:35 first pitch at Joe Martin Field.

Storm News

The Storm are back tonight as their look to avoid a skid of their own.

They’re in Los Angeles for a matchup with the Sparks. Seattle is coming off a five-point loss to the Portland Fire over the weekend and now sit just one win above last place in the WNBA standings.

They’ll aim to avoid dropping their third straight tonight against a struggling Sparks team that has lost four of their past five. Tipoff is at 7:00 in LA.