Sports: Scherzer Strikes out 20 Tigers!

Max Scherzer struck out 20 batters, matching the major league record for a nine-inning game as he pitched the Washington Nationals past the Detroit Tigers 3-2 on Wednesday night.  Scherzer had a chance to break the mark when James McCann stepped to the plate with two outs in the ninth inning. McCann, who whiffed his previous three times up, grounded to third for the final out.  The astounding performance came in Scherzer's first outing against the Tigers, his former team. The right-hander, who pitched two no-hitters last season and struck out 17 in the second one, joined Roger Clemens (twice), Kerry Wood and Randy Johnson as the only big league pitchers to compile 20 strikeouts in nine innings.  The loss went to Jordan Zimmermann, who was also facing his ex-team for the first time. Zimmerman gave up three runs in seven innings, including a solo blast by Danny Espinosa.   Victor Martinez had 3 hits for the Tigers, and they had solo homers from Jose Iglecias and J.D. Martinez.  Nats second baseman Daniel Murphy was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, lifting his average to .409.  The Tigers head to Baltimore tonight. Mike Pelfrey starts for Detroit.  Broadcast time is 6:40 on WBCK.

Lefty Norris Recalled

Pitcher Daniel Norris has returned to the Detroit Tigers for the first time since thyroid cancer surgery last October.  The left-hander was recalled by the Tigers Wednesday after beginning his season with Triple-A Toledo and going 0-3 with a 9.98 ERA.   Outfielder Tyler Collins was optioned to Triple-A.

MLB-Bryce Harper

Bryce Harper has been suspended one game and fined by Major League Baseball for his behavior following an ejection this week.  The commissioner's office says Wednesday that Harper has decided to appeal the penalty, so he remains eligible to play until the process is finished.

Harper was kicked out of Monday’s game with the Tigers, but failed to leave the dugout.  He ran onto the field after the game, and pointed and cursed at the umpire.

NBA
DeMar DeRozan matched his playoff career high with 34 points, and the Toronto Raptors took a three-games-to-two lead in the NBA's Eastern Conference semifinals by beating Miami 99-91.

Golden State got past Portland 125-121 to advance to the Western Conference finals for the second straight year.  Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined to hit 11 3-pointers and score 62 points

Oklahoma City Thunder has a 3-2 lead over San Antonio in the Western Conference semifinals.  The Thunder will host Game 6 tonight.

NHL

The St. Louis Blues hammered the Stars 6-1 in Dallas to advance to the NHL's Western Conference finals for the first time since 2001.   They’ll play the winner of tonight’s

Nashville-San Jose game in San Jose.

AHL-Griffins

The Grand Rapids Griffins are down 3-1 to Lake Erie.  Game 5 is Saturday night in Cleveland.

Indy 500 Hotel Sellout

Tourism industry officials say the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 has generated demand for hotel rooms not seen since the 2012 Super Bowl. Officials at tourism promoter Visit Indy say the 33,000-room metropolitan market has been a "virtual sellout" since March 15th. That's eight weeks earlier than it has for any May in the recent past.

Busch Crew Chief Suspended

Kyle Busch's crew chief has been suspended by NASCAR for one race for violating the lug nut policy during the team's win at Kansas last weekend. Adam Stevens was also fined $20,000 and placed on probation through the end of the year, while front tire changer Josh Leslie is on probation until Dec. 31.

Lug nuts have been an issue in NASCAR since the series stopped policing whether teams were applying all five on each tire during pit stops. By using less than five, a team would have a faster pit stop and gain track position.

MSU Spring Fling

MSU Alumni and friends are getting ready for the  2016 Calhoun County Spartans Spring Fling.   It’s Wednesday, May 25, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Gallagher Uniform in the Fort.  MSU Co-offensive coordinator Dave Warner will be on hand for the event which supports three scholarships for Calhoun County residents.  Will Tieman, voice of the Spartan Sports Network will be the MC and it’s your chance to get a photo with Sparty!