Pondering the future of All-Star Games, plus Tiger’s stinging shot

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Good morning! Who’s ready to overhype C.J. Stroud?

All-Star Snoozes: Are All-Star Games cooked?

The American League beat the National League 5-3 last night in what was a reasonably pleasant All-Star Game. Paul Skenes pitched well in his historic start. Shohei Ohtani sent a ball to the moon. The AL continued its run of dominance.

As I watched, I just couldn’t shake the same feeling I had about the NBA All-Star Game. We don’t have to fully rehash it here, but the toothlessness of these games — combined with an understandable desire to avoid injury — just renders them moot. Fluff. Was it always like this?

But the Pulse crew did wonder: Which is the worst men’s major All-Star game? Thus today’s Pulse Poll was born. Your choices:

Make your voice heard here. We’ll have results and some fresh ideas tomorrow.

Tiger Sass: Tiger still has zingers, at least

The Open Championship tees off overnight at 1:35 a.m. ET. I hope your alarms are set. While Tiger Woods is no longer the actual on-course draw he was even five years ago, the man can still produce a golden soundbite.

At yesterday’s news conference, a reporter asked the 48-year-old Woods about comments from 61-year-old golfer Colin Montgomerie, who suggested last week that Woods should just retire instead of playing this weekend. Here’s Tiger’s response:

“As a past (Open) champion, I’m exempt until I’m 60. Colin’s not. He’s not a past champion, so he’s not exempt. So, he doesn’t get the opportunity to make that decision. I do.”

A beautiful shot there. Two Open resources for you:

News to Know

Niners star wants out
49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk has requested a trade, sources told The Athletic, the latest entry in a heated contract saga between player and team. Aiyuk has arguably been the Niners’ best wideout the last two seasons and is entering the final season of his rookie contract. As Matt Barrows and David Lombardi note, the timing of this request is critical here — veterans report to training camp in a week.

Derby singer says she was drunk
Ingrid Andress, who went viral Monday for an unfortunate performance of the national anthem at the Home Run Derby, said yesterday she was drunk during the event and will enter rehab. “That was not me last night,” the four-time Grammy nominee said in a statement. Add her performance to the list of memorable anthems in history.

Southgate chooses an exit
Gareth Southgate is stepping down as coach of the English men’s soccer team after a largely impressive eight-year run. If you can divorce expectations from results, Southgate’s tenure was an undeniable success: a World Cup semifinal appearance and two Euros finals appearances. Bitter losses in all three of those contests have pockmarked his legacy, however. The list of possible Southgate replacements is dazzling.

More news

Lofty Comparisons: C.J. Stroud, the actual GOAT?

While listening to the debut episode of Scoop City, a brief moment struck me: Chase Daniel recalled a conversation he had with Texans backup Case Keenum, who told Chase that C.J. Stroud could be the best QB to ever play in the NFL.

Stroud’s rookie season was incredible, bar none. But … the best ever? Let’s do some napkin math:

Stroud started his rookie season at age 22. The four QBs on top of the NFL all-time yards list — Tom Brady (24), Drew Brees (23), Peyton Manning (22) and Brett Favre (23) — all became starters at similar ages. GOAT arc status: ✅
Last season’s Rookie of the Year threw for 4,108 yards in 15 starts. If he averages that for 20 seasons (the average career length for the above four QBs), he gets to 82,160 yards, assuming he stays healthy that entire time. That still puts him shy of Brady’s 89,214. GOAT arc status: ❌, but maybe unfair, because Brady’s number is absurd.
The real measure is Super Bowls here, right? Brady won seven. Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw won four each. Patrick Mahomes, still just 28, has three, and probably represents the best GOAT threat for Brady right now. Anyway.

Is this ridiculous? Yes. Stroud has played just one season … but it was that tantalizing. And as Chase detailed in the episode, QB nerds like himself are genuinely excited about everything Stroud. The Texans clearly are too, as they load up around Stroud with a title window firmly open.

Catch all of Scoop City’s episodes on YouTube too, as they get us ready for the season. Fun start.

Watch This Game

Basketball: Team USA vs. Serbia
Noon ET on FS1
America’s best get to play Nikola Jokić as part of their pre-Olympics tuneup. Turn it on during a work call. No one has to know.

WNBA: Fever at Wings
7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
We actually haven’t checked in on Caitlin Clark in a while. She has been progressing nicely, and is back in the No. 1 slot in our WNBA rookie rankings right now. Also, she’s getting painted onto a NASCAR hood?

Get tickets to games like these here.

Pulse Picks

Brendan Quinn traveled to Holywood, Northern Ireland, the home of Rory McIlroy, where, all at once, everything is the same as it ever was and completely different. All because of McIlroy. Make time for this story today.

Tashan Reed has a super interesting story on the rise of flag football, particularly among women, ahead of its inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games. Get ready to learn flags, buddy.

I thought this from Arpon Basu yesterday was poignant: Shea Weber and Cary Price opened up on how the former Canadiens have coped with the toll of their careers. Both players’ careers essentially ended after Montreal’s run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021.

Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our story on the Terrell Davis airline incident.

Most-read on the website yesterday: The update on the French Federation filing a complaint about Argentina’s “racist” chants after the Copa America final.

Top podcast in The Athletic network: The Athletic NBA Show had Warriors owner Joe Lacob on to discuss a transformative offseason, directly from the source. A good listen.

(Photo: Daniel Shirey / Getty Images)

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Pondering the future of All-Star Games, plus Tiger’s stinging shot

All-Star Snoozes: Are All-Star Games cooked?