Axios Sports: Tokyo nightmare — Another no-hitter — Lacrosse, reimagined

1 big thing: 🇯🇵 Tokyo's 11th hour nightmare | Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Open in app View in browser     Axios Sports By Kendall Baker ·May 19, 2021 👋 Good morning! Happy Hump Day. 🚨 Exciting news: We're debuting a new game called "Stadium from above" in today's newsletter. Today's word count: 1,886 words (7 minutes). Let's sports...     1 big thing: 🇯🇵 Tokyo's 11th hour nightmare Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   With just 65 days until the Olympics, Japan's COVID-19 infection and vaccination rates are providing legitimate cause for concern, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. Cases: The country's seven-day average of new cases surpassed 6,000 for five straight days last week, just barely trailing its worst surge to date, back in January. Vaccines: Japan's vaccination rate pales in comparison to similarly developed countries, with just 1.7% of the population fully vaccinated. (U.S., 38%; U.K., 31%; Spain, 16%). The state of play: The reasons for the slow vaccine rollout largely stem from a cultural barrier that has slowed the process from the start, as well as a reliance on foreign supply due to their feeble vaccine sector. Despite securing ample supply, a deep-seated skepticism of foreign vaccines pushed Japan to pursue additional testing on top of Pfizer's multinational test whose results were accepted by dozens of countries. Once they finally began vaccinating the population on that delayed timeline, different challenges arose. Namely, there aren't nearly enough people approved to administer the shots. "Only doctors and nurses are allowed to give them in Japan's conservative medical culture," writes AP's Mari Yamaguchi. "Getting shots from pharmacists at drug stores as in the U.S. or from volunteers with no medical background other than brief training as in Britain remain unthinkable in Japan." What they're saying: A prominent group of ~6,000 Japanese doctors is calling for the Olympics to be canceled because "the medical institutions ... have their hands full and have almost no spare capacity," per Reuters. Meanwhile, 40 towns that had registered to host athletes have abandoned those plans, and 59.7% of people in Japan think the Olympics should be canceled, per a recent Kyodo News poll. "The risk is too big," Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani told CNN. "It's not time to celebrate yet." "Holding the Olympics should be welcomed by everyone, but that is not possible under the current situation," said Japanese lawyer Kenji Utsunomiya, whose "Stop Tokyo Olympics" petition has over 350,000 signatures. The big picture: The coronavirus has evolved over time, with new and more contagious variants posing a major challenge to a world that's already weary from a year unlike any other. The U.S. has trended in the right direction, going from COVID-19's favorite breeding ground to a world leader in vaccinations. Japan has gone in the opposite direction, keeping cases low for months before stumbling on the vaccine front. And it could cost them — and thousands of athletes — their Olympic dream. Go deeper: Inside Japan's slow vaccine rollout (WSJ)     2. ⚾️ The year of the no-hitter Spencer Turnbull celebrates with his girlfriend after his no-hitter against the Seattle Mariners. Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images   Spencer Turnbull tossed the fifth no-hitter of the MLB season on Tuesday night in Seattle, baffling the Mariners in Detroit's 5-0 win. By the numbers: The five no-hitters through May 18 match the 1917 season for the most in baseball history by that date. The Mariners and Indians have both been no-hit twice, and there have been 10 games this season in which a pitcher took a no-hitter into at least the seventh inning. Through 43 games, the Mariners are hitting an atrocious .199 as a team — and yet they're still a respectable 21-22. The backdrop: Turnbull threw 117 pitches, 77 for strikes, while fanning nine batters and walking two. The 28-year-old, once best known for going 3-17 in 2019, had never lasted more than seven innings in any of his previous 49 starts. "It's just surreal," Turnbull said. "I don't have words right now. Probably the best day in my life." 🎥 Highlight: Like seemingly every no-hitter, there was a tremendous defensive play that kept it alive. Shoutout to third baseman Jeimer Candelario for making Turnbull's dreams come true with this stop.     3. 🏀🏒 Play-ins and playoffs Photo: Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images BOSTON — Jayson Tatum went off for 50 points as the Celtics beat the Wizards 118-100 to claim the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. They'll play the Nets starting on Saturday. What's next: The Wizards will play the Pacers tomorrow night after Indiana routed the Hornets, 144-117. The winner will earn the No. 8 seed and a date with the 76ers. Tonight (ESPN): No. 10 Spurs at No. 9 Grizzlies, 7:30pm ET; No. 8 Warriors at No. 7 Lakers, 10pm Photo: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images SUNRISE, Fla. — The Lightning beat the Panthers, 3-1, to take a 2-0 series lead back to Tampa and improve to a remarkable 18-6 in their last 24 playoff games. More scores: Penguins 2, Islanders 1 (Series tied 1-1); Golden Knights 3, Wild 1 (Series tied 1-1) Tonight: Capitals at Bruins, 6:30pm (Series tied 1-1); Predators at Hurricanes, 8pm (CAR leads 1-0); Jets at Oilers, 9pm; Blues at Avalanche, 10:30pm (COL leads 1-0)     A message from Axios The biggest video game news delivered to your inbox     Get the latest scoops, trends and news from the world of video games with Axios Gaming, written by Stephen Totilo and Megan Farokhmanesh, delivered every weekday to your inbox. Why it matters: A crucial view into an industry that is an essential part of millions of people's lives. Subscribe for free     4. ⚾️ MLB All-Stars so far The MLB All-Star Game is July 13 in Denver. Here are our starters through six weeks. Graphic: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios Notes: Toughest omissions: A pair of Red Sox, 3B Rafael Devers and DH J.D. Martinez, have been phenomenal; Rangers 2B Nick Solak just barely lost out to Semien; Orioles LHP John Means (1.21 ERA) is much more than "just" a guy who threw a no-hitter. Shohei Ohtani is somehow exceeding even the wildest dreams of those who'd hoped his two-way experiment would bear fruit. His 14 HR lead the majors, while his .136 opponent batting average is the lowest in MLB (min. 25 IP). What?! 🚨 Mike Trout was off to the best start of his career (which is saying something), but after straining his calf in Monday's game he's set to miss 6-8 weeks. Brutal blow for the Angels and people who love watching greatness every night. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is making good on everyone's preseason breakout projections. He's second only to Trout with 2.3 WAR and has more walks than strikeouts. Aroldis Chapman hasn't allowed an earned run through 16 IP for the Yankees, with a 34:5 K:BB ratio. Graphic: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios Notes: Toughest omissions: Dodgers 3B Justin Turner remains elite at age 36; Marlins 1B Jesús Aguilar is thriving (career-best .916 OPS); Clayton Kershaw, Brandon Woodruff and Yu Darvish could all be the starter. Jacob deGrom, however, still holds that honor. Despite injuries limiting him to just six starts and 40 IP, he has a 0.6 WAR lead over second place among NL starters. He's just that good. Trea Turner's blinding speed belies his overall value and even his power. He leads all shortstops with 10 HR and 2.1 WAR. Ronald Acuña Jr. seemingly fixed his most glaring weakness overnight, cutting his strikeout rate from an unsightly 26.4% through his first three seasons to just 15.8%. Max Muncy is the only qualified hitter with a walk rate over 20% (22.2%), which helped him get through a rough April at the plate before exploding for an 1.113 OPS so far in May. Go deeper: MLB awards watch (ESPN+)     5. 💵 Sports betting week: Tax revenue Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios   Welcome to Sports Betting Week, where we're covering the expanding industry and its impact on everything from sports leagues to state budgets. From a fan's perspective, sports betting is a way to ratchet up the entertainment. For states, it presents a tantalizing opportunity to collect tax revenue, Jeff writes. The big picture: States can never really have too much money, but with the pandemic suffocating budgets across the country, the additional influx of cash has proven even more vital. "By legalizing online sports betting we aim to keep millions of dollars of tax revenue here [in New York], which will only strengthen our ability to rebuild from the COVID-19 crisis." — Andrew Cuomo in January The state of play: Most states collect a percentage of sports betting revenue, though a few — like Delaware and Rhode Island — engage in a revenue-sharing model with their casinos. Some examples: Colorado collects a 10% tax, most of which goes toward the state's water infrastructure. To date, they've collected $5.6 million. Tennessee collects 20%, and since launching in November they've already collected over $15 million in taxes, mostly funding education and mental health services. Pennsylvania's 36% tax is by far the highest aside from the revenue-sharing states, yielding nearly $125 million for the state's general fund. Between the lines: Sports betting does have one obvious downside, which is the dangerously addictive nature of gambling. Yes, but: At least five states plus, Washington, D.C., allocate a portion of their sports betting tax revenue to fund gambling addiction programs. "We've had a great partnership with the gambling treatment programs for the 20 years that I've been here," Iowa Gaming Association CEO Wes Ehrecke tells Axios. Year-to-date, $1.75 million of Iowa's $6.6 million in sports betting taxes has gone to those programs. 📆 Sports Betting Week: Monday: Three-year PASPA anniversary Tuesday: Sports betting niches Thursday: The sports betting spectrum Friday: D.C.'s in-arena sportsbook     6. 🥍 World Lacrosse unveils six-on-six version Photo: Matthias Hangst/Bongarts/Getty Images   World Lacrosse on Tuesday unveiled "Lacrosse Sixes," a new six-on-six version of the sport that it hopes will make lacrosse more accessible. Why it matters: This new discipline appeals to the IOC, which wants to reduce the cost and complexity of the Games. The hope is that Sixes will be included in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. How it works: Sixes brings the team size down from 10 players and adds a 30-second shot clock. Matches feature eight-minute running quarters. Instead of faceoffs, goalies restart play immediately after a goal is scored. Quarters begin with a draw. Fouls are categorized as minors (30-second suspension from play), majors (one-minute suspension) and expulsions. The field is 70 x 36 meters, or roughly 75 x 40 yards. That's much smaller than a standard lacrosse field (100 x 55 meters, or 110 x 60 yards). What they're saying: "Sixes blends many of the most popular aspects of the field and box games, and introduces new elements that appeal to the next generation," said World Lacrosse president Sue Redfern. "Player capacity is always push/pull with the IOC and it is great to see innovation from a governing body to put the sport in the best position for Olympic inclusion," tweeted Premier Lacrosse League co-founder and CEO Mike Rabil.     7. ⚡️ Lightning round Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images   🎓 Great news: Stanford has reversed a decision it made last summer and will not eliminate 11 sports, saying it is now convinced it can raise the necessary funds to support all 36 varsity sports. 🏀 First of many: Sabrina Ionescu, 23, is the youngest player in WNBA history to record a triple-double, finishing with 26 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in the Liberty's win on Tuesday. 🎾 Down go to the GOATs: Roger Federer lost hist first outing in two months, falling to 75th-ranked Pablo Andújar at the Geneva Open. And fellow 39-year-old Serena Williams fell in straight sets in Rome. 🏀 Louisville gonna Louisville: Dino Gaudio, an ex-Louisville assistant coach who once led programs at Wake Forest and Army, has been federally charged with attempting to extort the university. 🤯 Wild stat: Luke Walton, who will return as the Kings head coach, has a 62-82 (.431) record with the team. That makes him the second-best coach in Sacramento history.     8. 📆 May 19, 2012: Chelsea's championship Photo: Sportphoto via Getty Images   Nine years ago today, Chelsea won their first Champions League title, defeating Bayern Munich on penalties, 4-3. Recap: The game was played at Bayern's home stadium, Allianz Arena, making them the first finalist to play at home since Roma in 1984. In regulation, Bayern's Thomas Müller put his team up 1-0 in the 83rd minute before Chelsea's Didier Drogba evened the score five minutes later to send it to extra time. In extra time, Chelsea keeper Petr Čech saved an Arjen Robben penalty to keep the game tied and send it to penalties, where Drogba netted the deciding goal. The big picture: Chelsea had made just one Champions League final prior to 2012, losing in 2008 to Manchester United (also in penalties). Since then, the London-based club has failed to make another Champions League title game ... until this year. Coming up: Chelsea faces Manchester City in this year's final on May 29 at Estádio do Dragão in Porto, Portugal. 🎥 Watch: Highlights (YouTube)     9. 🏟 New game: Stadium from above Screenshot: Google Maps Question: What city is this? Hint: An NBA play-in team calls it home (arena marked by pin). Answer at the bottom.     10. ⛳️ Photos to go: The Ocean Course Photo: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images The 2021 PGA Championship tees off tomorrow at the Ocean Course on Kiawah Island, South Carolina. Photo: Maddie Meyer/PGA of America via Getty Images My family has been vacationing in Kiawah my whole life, so I've played this course many times. And last week, I had the chance to tour the grounds with the PGA's chief championships officer, Kerry Haigh. Photo: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images Coming tomorrow: How the PGA preps a golf course for a major     A message from Axios The biggest video game news delivered to your inbox     Get the latest scoops, trends and news from the world of video games with Axios Gaming, written by Stephen Totilo and Megan Farokhmanesh, delivered every weekday to your inbox. Why it matters: A crucial view into an industry that is an essential part of millions of people's lives. Subscribe for free   Talk tomorrow, Kendall "Tatum is incredible" Baker Trivia answer: Memphis (FedExForum)   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: