A Grip on Sports: No matter the sky’s color or time of day, much in the sporting world gives us warning – and delight as well

A GRIP ON SPORTS • There was a tinge of red in the sky this morning as the sun rose over Idaho. Thank goodness I’ve never been a sailor. No need to take warning.

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• Then again, I’ve always believed in the rule it’s not paranoia if everyone is out to get you, so taking warning is a given. Time to batten down the metaphorical hatches. And take inventory of what worries me about our local sports teams.

Some are as old as the mountains the sun rises over. The Seahawks’ offensive line. The Mariners’ tradition of failure. The Cougars’ underdog status.

But some are new to the world, playing the role of weeds in our garden of earthly sporting delights. Eastern Washington’s three-year stretch of football failures. The Storm’s lack of a mandatory – if you want to win in the WNBA – top-end superstar. Idaho’s new-look football coaching staff. The Sounders’ lack of young and dynamic scoring threat – and at times shaky midfield play.

None of the above rises to tsunami warning levels – except, maybe, what’s happening in Cheney.

It sure seems as if Aaron Best needs his Eagles to win at least half their games to avoid an ignominious ending to his Eastern head coaching era. An 11-23 record the past three seasons, and a corresponding drop in interest among the school faithful, will do that to anyone, even a coach who was 41-17 before that stretch.

The ecstasy of playing for the 2018 FCS title? That’s long gone. So is the joy of the 10-win, COVID-is-over 2021 season. All that remains are the recent memories, of a 2-6 Big Sky record followed by back-to-back 3-5 ones.

The 2025 schedule isn’t easy. Three road games to start, which includes the opener at Incarnate Word (11-3 last season), followed by games with CFP participant Boise State (12-2) and rebuilding Northern Iowa (3-9), has a chance to sink the season before September’s mid-point.

There’s a reprieve of sorts with Western Illinois’ visit to Cheney but the Big Sky schedule begins the last weekend of September with a visit to Montana State, FCS runner-up last season and ranked second to start this one.

With 42% of the season done before October shows up on our iCalendars, plus a game at seventh-ranked Montana, along with home contests with 12th-ranked Idaho and 15th-ranked Sacramento State still to be played, breaking even will be an accomplishment.

• Speaking of accomplishments, the Mariners’ come-from-behind win last night was certainly that. So was the start Drew Rasmussen turned in, making an M’s rally mandatory if they wanted to keep pace with the Astros.

Rasmussen’s story is well known in these parts. A starring-role at Mt. Spokane High. That star ascendant at Oregon State after a freshman-year perfect game against WSU. The star dimming due to not one but two Tommy John surgeries in college. But he’s found success in Tampa, despite missing much of 2023 with another elbow injury that forced the addition of a surgically implanted brace of his flexor tendon.

He was solid last season. This one? He’s been more than solid, with an All-Star nod and 9-5 mark in 22 starts, including a four-hit, six-inning shutout stint last night in his home state. Friday’s outing lowered his earned run average to 2.66.

But it wasn’t enough for a win. For that, give thanks to Seattle’s MVP candidate, Cal Raleigh.

With a chant of those three letters raining down, courtesy of those left of the 39,780 that entered T-Mobile, Raleigh carried his torpedo bat to the plate in the eighth inning. The M’s were down 2-0. There were two runners on.

Raleigh also carried the weight of a 2-for-26, homer-less August into the box. And left it with an MLB-leading 43 jacks.

How? Rays’ reliever Griffin Jax tried to surprise Raleigh with a 2-0 breaking ball. Instead Jax watched as Raleigh deposited it into the right-field seats. Three Tampa outs later, courtesy of fill-in closer Matt Brash, the M’s had a 3-2 win.

It is Aug. 9. Seattle is entrenched in the American League’s second wild-card spot. Winning the West is still possible, with Houston hanging on to a 1.5-game lead after topping the Yankees in 10 innings last night. There seems to be a red sky every night at T-Mobile lately. And for seven of the last eight games, a delightful result.

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WSU: Yesterday the offensive line’s performance was the subject of Greg Woods’ training camp report. Today? It’s the other side of the coin. The defensive line. More specifically, the inside folks on that side of the ball. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, Jon Wilner has a mailbag today in the Mercury News and there is a WSU question. … Stanford’s financial issues are hitting the athletic department hard, something John Canzano delved into with his Friday column. … Washington went at it at practice yesterday. … The Oregon athletic department reported more secondary NCAA violations last year than it has in years. … The state’s Supreme Court granted a Duck football player more time before his criminal trial is scheduled to start. … Colorado is supposed to be serious about its running game. Which means one of the two quarterbacks vying to be the starter has an edge. … Utah has had to adjust after losing its No. 1 receiver. … Six New Mexico players followed Bronco Mendenhall to Utah State. … A USC defensive back went down with a noncontact injury Friday and will miss some time. … Arizona’s offensive line is taking shape. … So is Boise State’s offense. … Arizona State will scrimmage today. … Fresno State is still fiddling with its financial priorities, though it’s not part of the lawsuits against the Mountain West. … In basketball news, Oregon agreed to new contracts with its women’s assistants. … The Arizona State men added another assistant coach.

Gonzaga: Recruiting never stops. Wait, have I written that phrase before? It’s true you know. And it certainly never even rests as far as the Zags are concerned. Theo Lawson tells us the men will host a visit from a four-star small forward from Umatilla. Not Umatilla, Oregon. Umatilla, Florida. Herly Brutus will be in town for Kraziness in the Kennel, which is usually the weekend Mark Few’s staff reserves for their top targets.

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, Montana State is looking to do some new things with its tight ends. … Northern Colorado knows the starting time for its game at Colorado State. … Northern Arizona named captains. … In basketball news, Montana State has finalized it schedules. … A MSU women’s alum is headed to Spain to play professionally. … Portland State’s women made a statement in recruiting Friday.

Indians: Spokane knocked the ball around a little better Friday night and, as a result, ended a three-game losing streak with a 5-1 win at Eugene. Dave Nichols has the coverage.

Velocity: No longer atop the USL League One table, Spokane hosts AV Alta tonight at ONE Spokane Stadium, starting at 7. John Allison has a preview of the match.

Mariners: Is there a team-of-destiny thing going on? Maybe. But usually destiny is like momentum. It’s only as good as today’s starting pitcher. The 3-2 win last night was built in part on Luis Castillo limiting damage to two solo home runs. Tonight it’s Logan Evans, the rotation’s easy-to-identify weak link. Bryce Miller is expected back soon, though he’ll make another rehab start before returning. … Josh Naylor missed Friday’s game with his shoulder issue but is not expected to miss much time.

Storm: Las Vegas got past Seattle last night, despite another outstanding outing from rookie Dominique Malonga.

Seahawks: Run the ball, darn it. Where have we heard that before? Oh, ya. Most everywhere. It is supposed to actually happen this season for the Hawks. It will happen if Thursday night’s exhibition opening draw with the Raiders is actually a harbinger of the future. … How does Jalen Milroe fit into that future? … Pete Carroll was, well, Pete Carroll. That’s comforting in a way. And the Raiders were, well, the Raiders too. Al Davis’ legacy of showing his middle finger to just about everyone lives on. … Injuries are a part of football. And a part of the exhibition games being played right now.

Sounders: Seattle learned yesterday when it will play its Leagues Cup quarterfinal. It will face Puebla on Aug. 20. The question now is, will the Sounders win any trophies this summer?

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• “Houston, we have a problem” is as well-known of a line as there is in American cinema. The star of the real-life adventure story of Apollo 13, Jim Lovell, died yesterday at age 97. He was, as much as any astronaut of his time, my hero. The whole saga of the ill-fated flight filled a week of drama for me in eighth grade, as Lovell and his crew did everything they could to get home safely from space. They did. And his calm demeanor seemed to be a big reason why for this 13-year-old space-crazy kid. Godspeed Mr. Lovell. Until later …