MILWAUKEE – Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Devin Williams, along with coaches Rickie Weeks and Ozzie Timmons, caught up with some local little leaguers on Saturday morning, May 11.

The trio stopped at Carver Park for a Beckum-Stapleton Little League game. They offered words of encouragement, helped the players warm up and served as base coaches to start the game.

“We got to fist-bump them,” said Jaden, one of the little league players. “I got to get some of the balls and throw them to first base.”

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Beckum-Stapleton Little League is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that provides opportunities for kids on Milwaukee’s north side. Since its inception in 1964, the organization has served more than 25,000 kids.

“You’re not going to make it to the big leagues if you never play the game at all,” Williams said. “A big part of us being out here is just inspiring that next generation and getting them on the field and growing a love for the game.

The Brewers and the Brewers Community Foundation have supported Beckum-Stapleton Little League for more than two decades, the organization said. Most recently, they provided a grant to purchase 400 full uniforms for little league players.

Even though the Nashville Predators have already set their tee times for the golf course this offseason, their AHL affiliate Milwaukee Admirals are rallying with two-straight wins in the Calder Cup Playoffs. Game 7 is at home on Sunday.

There is a high interest among Predators fans in the Admirals. Watching the young talent of the prospect pool has really invigorate the fansbase with the Predators already eliminated, with players like Philip Tomasino, Juuso Parssinen and Zach L’Heureux taking the spotlight.

The Admirals have home-ice advantage in their Central Division Semifinal matchup with the Dallas Stars affiliate, the Texas Stars. The first two were on the road for the Admirals, and they dropped both games leaving them up against the wall to win three in a row at home. Two down, one to go.

Admirals play-by-play announcer Aaron Sims recapped a 4-1 Game 4 win by the Admirals, which saw L’Heureux scored two goals, Tomasino with one and Parssinen with an empty-netter to put the Stars away for good.

L’Heureux is really sticking out in these playoffs through four games, notching seven points and giving Predators fans a glimpse of what he might be able to bring in Predators training camp in a few months.

A keen eye is being kept on how Tomasino responds for the Admirals. His 2023-24 campaign with the Predators didn’t good smoothly to say the least. He struggled to find adequate playing time, and even Head Coach Andrew Brunette’s future outlook for Tomasino is bleak at best.

Producer Nick Kieser of 102.5 The Game shared this quote from Brunette on Tomasino’s questionable work ethic:

Tomasino does look reinvigorated playing for the Admirals, and for obvious reasons you hope the Admirals can win Game 7 and keep this valuable postseason experience going for Tomasino and many other of these prospects who have high aspirations to be fulltime NHL players one day.

Parssinen also unexpectedly saw his NHL ice time pulled from him and was sent down to the Admirals. He also appears to be taking it in stride and producing in the Calder Cup Playoffs with five points (four assists) in three games.

This Admirals team is a wagon for sure, but the Texas Stars also have a quality roster representing the Dallas Stars who are currently on the hunt for the 2024 Stanley Cup. Their top prospect is Mavrik Bourque, a 30th overall pick in 2020, who had 77 points in the AHL regular season and 10 points in these playoffs.

There has been a switch between the pipes for the Admirals between the four games. Games 1 and 2, which the Admirals gave up 10 goals, were started by Yaroslav Askarov. The hopeful backup goalie for the Predators for 2024-25.

Askarov had a superb regular season for the Admirals with a ridiculous 2.39 GAA and .911 save percentage, but he got rocked in his two playoff starts persuading Admirals Head Coach Karl Taylor to switch to the AHL veteran Troy Grosenick.

Grosenick, who is undrafted and first cracked into the AHL in 2014-15, has been rock solid in his two playoff starts at home to even the series. He has surrendered just four goals on 56 shots faced for a .929 save percentage. He should no doubt be the Game 5 starter.

Spencer Stastney was recalled by the Admirals to boost the defensive corps after recovering from an injury suffered in the Vancouver Canucks series for the Predators. He hasn’t played in the series yet, but might be available for Game 5 so keep an eye on that.

Finally, an awesome hype situation happened in the Admirals locker room before Game 3 when Mark Jankowski rallied the team. Jankowski played in 15 playoff games and 40 regular season games last season, but made the full-time jump and played vital minutes for the Predators in 2023-24.

You can’t help but love the energy the Predators have with their AHL affiliate right now. Let’s keep this train rolling with a Game 5 win to move on. The winner of Game 5 will advance to take on the Grand Rapids Griffins, affiliate to the Detroit Red Wings.

PHOENIX (AP) — Mike Budenholzer has agreed to coach the Phoenix Suns, according to a person familiar with the decision, as the franchise turns to the man who beat them in the 2021 NBA Finals.

The 54-year-old Budenholzer replaces Frank Vogel, who was fired Thursday after one season. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been officially announced.

ESPN and The Athletic both reported that Budenholzer’s deal was for five years, with The Athletic saying it was for roughly $50 million.

Budenholzer — from Holbrook, Arizona — was coach of the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021 when they roared back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the Suns in the Finals.

Phoenix has never won a championship, advancing to the Finals three times in 56 seasons.

The veteran coach will be charged with getting more out of the team’s All-Star trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. The group never quite meshed under Vogel, finishing last season with a 49-33 record before getting swept by Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs.

Budenholzer was fired by the Bucks after five seasons in 2023 and didn’t coach in the NBA last season. He also coached the Atlanta Hawks from 2013 to 2018 and has a 484-317 record over 10 seasons.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba