Front Row Seat: Mexico wins controversial Gold Cup final

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SDFC battered and bruised in loss to Houston Dynamo

SDFC fell victim to their own mistakes at Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday night.

Section 1904John Gennaro

Soccer / San Diego FC

Mexico repeats as Gold Cup winner, beats USMNT on Alvarez’s late header - The Athletic
Edson Álvarez’s 77th-minute header provided the winning margin in the championship game — a non-given handball inside the box minutes earlier also benefitted El Tri — but Mexico dominated for long stretches and always looked the better side.

The U.S., playing without many of the regulars expected to be on next summer’s World Cup roster, put up a good fight. Not only did the Americans take an early lead, but they had a couple chances at a second goal, too. In the end, though, Mexico’s quality was clear. It marks the first time since 2019 that Mexico has beaten the U.S. in a final.

USMNT’s Mauricio Pochettino blasts Gold Cup final refereeing after Mexico handball controversy - The Athletic
Pochettino was infuriated after television replays showed Sánchez handling the ball in the area after 66 minutes, with the Argentinean claiming that if the same thing had happened at the other end Mexico would have been given a penalty. Sánchez’s hand clearly hit the ball as he was bracing himself while slipping in the Mexico box, with the lack of intent appearing to be the reasoning for why no penalty was given, both in the moment or upon review.

‘They hate us’: Mauricio Pochettino, Chris Richards blast ‘embarrassing’ refereeing in USMNT’s loss to Mexico - Yahoo Sports
On the 67th-minute no-call when Mexico’s Jorge Sanchez tried to brace a fall and instead put his hand on the ball, Richards said: “Homie palmed the ball like Shaq in the box.”

“And then on the other end, we had a block, it was offsides,” he said. He was referring to Mexico’s César Montes, who was standing in an offside position when a 77th-minute free kick was taken. Montes didn’t play the ball, but was jostling with Richards.

“In any other league, it would've been called offsides,” Richards said. “But again, that's CONCACAF for you. They hate us.”

Houston Halts San Diego's Winning Streak - Chromatic FC
This loss marked only San Diego's second at home this season, and their first since April 26th against Real Salt Lake. For the first time this season, SDFC lost a match when they scored first. For Houston, Head Coach Ben Olsen lauded it as their "best performance to date," praising his team's resilience, ability to match their competition, and composed play, especially in the late stages of the match.

Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei taken in ambulance after head collision with opponent’s knee - The Athletic
Seattle Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei was taken off the field in an ambulance after taking a knee to the head with seconds remaining in stoppage time during the team’s matchup against the Columbus Crew on Sunday at Lumen Field.

Frei, 39, is being evaluated for a head and neck injury, according to Seattle coach Brian Schmetzer. The coach says Frei is “fine” and “was alert when he was loaded onto the ambulance.”

MLB / Padres

Tatis, Adam named All-Stars, will join Machado in Atlanta - Padres.com
Manny Machado is going to have company in Atlanta.

Right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. and righty reliever Jason Adam were named to the National League All-Star team on Sunday, as Major League Baseball announced the reserves and pitchers for the Midsummer Classic, which takes place July 15 at Truist Park.

Fernando Tatis Jr. stars with bullpen in Padres’ victory over Rangers - San Diego Union-Tribune
Tatis has spent more than two months trying to get himself out of one of the most prolonged slumps of his career and entered Sunday’s game hitting .212 with a .674 OPS since May 2, a span of 57 games. Only for portions of 2023, the season he returned after missing all of ‘22 due to injury and suspension, had Tatis ever struggled that much for that long.

But he went 2-for-3 and walked twice Sunday, providing the kind of ignition he has only sporadically been able to of late but that he — and everyone in the organization and probably in all of baseball — knows he can every night.

Padres' rotation closer to whole with Darvish set for 2025 debut - Padres.com
Yu Darvish will return to the mound on Monday night when San Diego opens a four-game series against the division-rival Diamondbacks at Petco Park, manager Mike Shildt announced on Sunday.

Darvish has yet to pitch this season, due to right elbow inflammation. When healthy, the 38-year-old right-hander has been a stalwart in the Padres’ rotation, though he has missed time in each of the past two seasons due to injuries.

MLB's 'nicest player': Cubs' Matthew Boyd is All-Star after crushing injuries - USA Today
The Padres are spreading the word to every seller that they are searching for a right-handed hitting outfielder and a catcher, and aren’t afraid to deal their prospects. They still believe they have the team to end their World Series drought, particularly with Yu Darvish’s imminent return and potentially Michael King's shortly after the All-Star break.

Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw, 19 1st-timers fill MLB All-Star rosters - ESPN
Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw, a three-time Cy Young Award winner who made his first All-Star team in 2011, was named to his 11th National League roster as a special commissioner's selection.

Kershaw, who became only the fourth left-hander to amass 3,000 career strikeouts, is 4-0 with a 3.43 ERA in nine starts after beginning the season on the injured list. He joins Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera as a legend choice, after the pair of sluggers were selected in 2022.

Odds & Ends

After 239 races, Nico Hülkenberg scores ‘the most overdue podium in F1 history’ - The Athletic
It left Hülkenberg relieved when he finally crossed the line, graced by the waving arms of his jubilant Sauber mechanics hanging over the pit wall. Jonathan Wheatley, Sauber’s team principal, jumped on the radio to say it was “the most overdue podium in Formula 1 history.”

Welcome to Another Summer of LeBron, I Guess - The Ringer
He’s 40, he just opted in, and he’s made zero trade requests. So why is LeBron James dominating the NBA offseason like it’s 2010 all over again?

'Human error' - Wimbledon sorry over missed line calls - BBC
Wimbledon organisers have apologised after the electronic line-calling system on Centre Court was turned off in error and missed three calls in one game.

Alright, that's going to do it for today's edition of Front Row Seat. I'll be back tomorrow, and every weekday, to try and make it easier for you to follow the news.

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