Jul 18, 2022 3 min read

Meadows increases purses by 10%

The Board of Directors of the Meadows Standardbred Owners Association has announced a 10 percent, across-the-board purse increase, effective Aug. 3, for races at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows.

MSOA president Richard Gillock said the increase would provide immediate benefits to horsemen while stimulating handle and persuading more horsemen to locate their stables at The Meadows, making racing there even more competitive and exciting.

He attributed the increase to the stability in the state’s horse racing industry produced by the Pennsylvania Legislature’s turnback of Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed raid on the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development Fund, which provides about $230 million annually for purses and breeding. Wolf proposed diverting about $88 million from the fund in both 2022 and 2023.

Not only did the legislature refuse to consider the diversion, but it also added $5 million previously used for other purposes to the PRHDF annual allocation.

“This is a big win,” Gillock said. “The 2022 state budget has been approved, and the governor’s proposed raid is not part of it. We owe that to the strong support of our legislators, who recognize the irreplaceable impact of racing in Pennsylvania, which serves as a pillar of the Commonwealth’s agriculture sector and provides about 20,000 jobs and an annual economic impact estimated at $1.6 billion.”

In baseball

Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale had surgery on his broken left pinkie finger on Monday, a day after it was hit by a line drive in a game against the New York Yankees.

The team called the surgery successful but did not give a timetable for his return. A broken bone usually takes 4-6 weeks to heal, which would allow Sale to return before the end of the season.

In the first inning of Sunday’s game against the Yankees – just his second start since returning from a broken rib – Sale was hit in the hand by Aaron Hicks’ 106 mph line drive. The Red Sox starter screamed in pain and walked immediately off the field.

In the NBA

Milwaukee Bucks guard Pat Connaughton has signed a multiyear contract extension after scoring a career-high 9.9 points per game this past season.

The 29-year-old Connaughton played 26 minutes per game and made 2.2 3-pointers per game this past season to set career highs in both categories. He made 39.5% of his 3-point attempts.

In track & field

Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia patiently tucked behind her Kenyan rival until late in the race before surging ahead and sprinting to the win in the women’s marathon at the world championships Monday in Eugene, Ore.

Gebreslase’s finished the fast and flat course in a championship-record time of 2 hours, 18 minutes, 11 seconds. She held off Judith Jeptum Korir, who did most of the work late in the race, by nine seconds.

Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, the Kenyan-born runner who represents Israel, earned the bronze medal. Sara Hall led a strong showing by the Americans with a fifth-place finish.