Arizona

I spent last night with Arizona dems as their world fell apart

Published

2 weeks ago

November 9, 2024

I spent last night with Arizona dems as their world fell apart

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The problem with holding a election-night watch party in the mountain time zone is that by the time people start to roll in, the night will have already taken a turn. After racking up historic wins during the Trump era, Arizona Democrats entered the 2024 election hoping to keep the positive results coming. But at the party’s official celebration at an upscale hotel and conference center in north Phoenix on Tuesday, the mood started off anxious.

When I asked Mary Kuckertz, a mental-health professional from Tempe, how she was feeling, she used a term that to seemed to capture the spirit of the Democratic electorate: “Nauseously optimistic.”

At that point in the night, Vice President Kamala Harris’ path to victory was narrowing but still possible, and Kuckertz, a mental-health researcher, was thinking about what a second Trump term would mean. “So much funding got cut when Trump was president—all of these really phenomenal programs that we’re bringing these mental health services to children and families who really needed it, so many of those services have totally gone by the wayside,” she said. “I can’t handle more trans kids not getting access to basic human care.”

Arizona Dems getting nervous as the hour gets later at the watch party.Cassidy Arai

Arizona was the epicenter for the popular front against Donald Trump and his allies, and the people in the room were a reminder of what this coalition of moderate Republicans, Native Americans, Black and Latino voters, and college-educated whites had accomplished over the last eight years. Attendees heard from Gov. Katie Hobbs, who defeated election-denier Kari Lake two years ago; and Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, who defeated election denier Mark Finchem that same year; and Sen. Mark Kelly, who defeated Peter Thiel acolyte Blake Masters in 2022 and Trump-backed Rep. Martha McSally two years before that. The volunteers and organizers in the room had flipped a Senate seat in 2018 and knocked Sheriff Joe Arpaio from office in 2016. And on Tuesday, when almost everything else was looking grim, they had delivered a historic policy win—passing Prop 139, a constitutional amendment that guarantees the right to an abortion in the state to the point of viability. It wasn’t particularly close.

These were major accomplishments—the product of years or organizing and tactical ticket-splitting. There was another possible silver lining, too: Lake could lose again, this time to Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego, who predicted victory in a speech last night, but cautioned supporters that it might take time for the race to be called. (It still hasn’t been.) Gallego, a Marine veteran who was raised by a single mother, would be the state’s first Latino senator, and he ran well ahead of the presidential ticket—particularly among Latino men. He succeeded less through any sort of anti-Trump messaging than through an aspirational pitch for the American Dream and working-class economic priorities.

The longer things went on, though, the more dissonant it seemed to hear Harry Styles and “Mr. Brightside” blaring over the speakers while Steve Kornacki pointed at an increasingly crimson map. (Pick a state—it didn’t seem to matter.) The crowd dwindled, and people started to hit the cash bar with a bit more purpose.

When I asked Denise Deubery, who was watching the MSNBC feed, how she was feeling, she told me “the best way to put it is nauseously optimistic.”

Breaking down the setup at the watch party on Election Day at the Hilton Phoenix Resort at the Peak in Phoenix.Cassidy Arai

The phrase was apparently catching on. But the meaning was a little different. The nauseous part was obvious, of course, but as the networks prepared to call more states that would narrow Harris’ path to victory even more, why was Deubery optimistic? It wasn’t about Harris’ chances, she said, but about the work that had brought them all there.

“I’ve never been amongst more encouraging individuals that I’ll probably never meet again in my life,” she said. She’d been volunteering since September. The fight gave her hope. It was the type of thing you could build on. “I’ve never been more of a proud American.”

By the time Fontes spoke, to officially wind the ceremonies down, there were more photographers than partisans on floor. “Wipe that frigging sourpuss face off of your face,” he implored anyone listening. Determined to put a positive spin on things, he noted the high number of outstanding ballots to count in Maricopa, and asked Democrats to be patient as results trickled in over the coming days.

“The last thing in the world I want to see out of my Democratic Party is a lot of pearl-clutching, a lot of hand-wringing, and a lot of naysaying,” he said. He wanted them to “continue moving forward with joy, whether or not you feel good about what Jake Tapper and the rest of those folks are saying on TV tonight.” Come morning, it was time to start curing ballots.

But there was no point in denying the obvious.

“Lastly let me say this: If you’re going to drink: good—get an Uber or Lyft when you go home,” he said. “I want y’all to be safe, because we got a lot of work to still do.”

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Arizona

Two Cubs Prospects Earn High Marks for Their Arizona Fall League Performance

Published

38 mins ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Two Cubs Prospects Earn High Marks for Their Arizona Fall League Performance

The Arizona Fall League gives organizations a chance to see how some of their prospects might look when facing other stars in pipelines around the league, and for the Chicago Cubs who have a loaded farm system, this allowed them to formulate a plan for a group of their minor leaguers.

Things seem to be brewing for the Cubs this winter.

Unlike last year, they have been aggressive in the early portion of the offseason, already making trades to upgrade their bullpen by acquiring Eli Morgan, and giving themselves a solid backup catcher by landing Matt Thaiss from the Los Angeles Angels.

More moves are expected to come for Chicago, specifically regarding their starting rotation.

By adding a reliever and backstop with early trades, that allows them to hold onto some of the money they allocated to potentially get this done in free agency.

However, shipping out more talent is something they might continue to do.

Someone they could potentially look to move coming off his good showing at the Arizona Fall League is Jonathon Long.

When sharing some final thoughts on what occurred at this year’s AFL, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic gave high marks for two Cubs prospects who competed in this event, Long being one of them.

He followed up his strong Double-A season with an eye-catching performance in the Arizona Fall League by slashing 338/.425/.662 with six home runs.

Long could become an outfield option for Chicago down the line, but with other more heralded prospects who play his same position, he could be expendable as the front office searches for ways to improve their Major League roster.

The other player who received high marks shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Moises Ballesteros continues his ascent, following up his breakout performance in 2024 with a .316/.376/.557 slash line, five homers and four doubles in his 19 AFL games.

There was some thought he could be the backup catcher for the Cubs next season based on their need for offensive output at that position, but there are still questions about how he performs on the defensive end that could cause them to use him elsewhere while he continues to develop.

Still, he was impressive with the bat in his hand, prompting Lockard to state he “continues to look like a potential middle-of-the-order fixture.”

Whether it’s at designated hitter or he does become Chicago’s catcher of the future eventually, knowing he has this ability to be an elite offensive producer when he gets the call to The Show should excite the organization and fanbase.

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Arizona

Arizona State could push Big 12 title chase to final weekend

Published

8 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Arizona State could push Big 12 title chase to final weekend

TEMPE, AZ (AP/AZFamily) — The Arizona State Sun Devils are set for a huge matchup this weekend when they host the BYU Cougars at Mountain America Stadium.

Saturday’s game in Tempe will have massive implications in the Big 12 Conference with multiple teams chasing a title game appearance.

A win over the 14th-ranked Cougars would massively boost title game hopes for the 21st-ranked Sun Devils. Ticket prices have been soaring for the highly anticipated conference game.

Arizona State Head Coach Kenny Dillingham joined Good Morning Arizona on Thursday to talk about the team’s expectation-busting season. Watch the full interview in the video player at the top of this page.

Things to watch this week in the Big 12 Conference:

Game of the week

No. 14 BYU (9-1, 6-1 Big 12, No. 14 CFP) at No. 21 Arizona State (8-2, 5-2, No. 21), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

League newcomer Arizona State has a three-game winning streak and BYU is coming off its first loss. The Cougars, after losing at home to Kansas, still control their own destiny in making the Big 12 championship game. They can clinch a spot in that Dec. 7 game as early as Saturday, if they win and instate rival Utah wins at home against No. 22 Iowa State.

Arizona State was picked at the bottom of the 16-team league in the preseason media poll, but already has a five-win improvement in coach Dillingham’s second season.

The undercard

No. 16 Colorado (8-2, 6-1, No. 16 CFP) at Kansas (4-6, 3-4), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (Fox)

Coach Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes are in prime position to make the Big 12 title game in their return to the league after 13 seasons in the Pac-12. If BYU and Utah win, Colorado would be able to claim the other title game spot with a win over Kansas. The Buffs have a four-game winning streak.

The Jayhawks need another November win over a ranked Big 12 contender while trying to get bowl eligible for the third season in a row. Kansas has won consecutive games over Top 25 teams for the first time in school history, knocking off Iowa State before BYU.

Impact players

Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht has thrown a touchdown in a school-record 14 consecutive games, while receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel both have more than 800 yards receiving. San Jose State is the only other FBS team with a pair of 800-yard receivers. Becht has 2,628 yards and 17 touchdowns passing for the Cyclones (8-2, 5-2), who are still in Big 12 contention.

Inside the numbers

Oklahoma State goes into its home finale against Texas Tech with a seven-game losing streak, its longest since a nine-game skid from 1977-78. The only longer winless streak since was an 0-10-1 season in 1991. This is Mike Gundy’s 20th season as head coach, and his longest losing streak before now was five in a row in 2005, his first season and the last time the Cowboys didn’t make a bowl game. … Baylor plays at Houston for the first time since 1995, the final Southwest Conference season. The Cougars won last year in the only meeting since to even the series 14-14-1. … Eight Big 12 teams are bowl eligible. As many as six more teams could reach six wins.

Repeating 1,000

The Big 12 already has four 1,000-yard rushers, including three who did it last season. UCF’s RJ Harvey is the league’s top rusher (1,328 yards) and top scorer with 21 touchdowns (19 rushing/two receiving). The others with consecutive 1,000-yard seasons are Texas Tech career rushing leader Tahj Brooks (1,184 yards) and Kansas State’s DJ Giddens (1,128 yards). Cam Skattebo with league newcomer Arizona State has 1,074 yards.

Devin Neal, the career rushing leader at his hometown university, is 74 yards shy of being the first Kansas player with three 1,000-yard seasons. Cincinnati’s Corey Kiner needs 97 yards to reach 1,000 again.

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Arizona

What BYU coach Kalani Sitake said about Arizona State game

Published

16 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

What BYU coach Kalani Sitake said about Arizona State game

BYU’s stock plummeted this week.

After suffering a 17-13 loss to Kansas — their first loss of the season — the Cougars dropped from No. 6 to No. 14 in the College Football Playoff Rankings and into a tie with Colorado for first place in the Big 12.

And now they’re 3.5-point underdogs to Arizona State (8-2) in arguably the biggest game on the college football schedule this weekend. The winner will be in the pole position for a berth in the Big 12 championship game; the loser will be all but eliminated.

BYU coach Kalani Sitake knows anything can happen in the Big 12, and the Cougars are still very much alive for a berth in the College Football Playoff.

“You look at the conference, there’s a lot of parity … anyone has a shot,” Sitake said during his weekly press conference.

Here is a snapshot of what Sitake said ahead of BYU’s game with Arizona State:

Sitake on ASU Coach Kenny Dillingham

“Kenny Dillingham is a really good coach. I have a lot of respect for him and the way he coaches his team. You can tell he’s got a great connection with his players, and he’s a local kid so he’s from that area. He grew up an ASU fan and knows what that program can do. … I think he did it the right way bringing in a lot of local staff. … I know a lot of guys on his coaching staff. They’re really good coaches, good men.

“Looking at the talent that they have, it’s a difficult matchup. You have to be ready. We’re going on the road. We already know the time for that game and that it will be a little better weather than what we have here [in Provo]. Looking forward to the matchup. I think the goal is for us, like we said every week, stay humble, stay hungry and find ways to get better.”

Sitake on ASU Quarterback Sam Leavitt

“Really good player. He comes from a good family. He’s super athletic. He can run, he’s got an accurate arm. I think he’s got a great football IQ. He’s dangerous. He’s got a lot of football to play. I think he he saw some opportunities over there at ASU and you look at him, he’s thriving in it. He’s going to be a difficult matchup for us for sure. But man, it’s good to see good young men that you know are from amazing families get what they want. He’s doing some really cool things and he’s going to be doing really good things for a long time becauase I think he’s only a freshman right now. The sky’s the limit for him. Hopefully we just don’t see that great ‘sky limit’ performance this weekend.”

Sitake on BYU’s Recent Offensive Struggles

“There’s a fine line between it all … the key to execution is just eliminating the mistakes. There shouldn’t be any mistakes. Whether it’s alignment issues or technique issues or even running the wrong route or not doing the correct assignment. So all that should be cleaned up. But there’s also some room for improvement where you can actually install some stuff. You want to have a foundation of stuff that you’re good at and that you could lean on, but that’s the stuff that everybody knows is coming. So we have to have that and you have to have a little bit of install that gives you the favorable matchup, depending on who you’re going against.”

“That’s what we’re trying to get done. Obviously it’s worked quite a bit, and the offense they’re getting in the red zone. We’ve just got to score touchdowns. It’s hard to get in the red zone and only kick field goals. Even though you have a good kicker like Will Ferrin you’re going to need to score points and score touchdowns and finish the drives. It gives you a little bit more motivation and a little bit more ‘umph’ when you’re trying to get it done, so that’s what we’re focusing on.”