Chicago Sports

Rich basketball and coach Jamere Dismukes are the perfect match.

Following the consolidation of the district’s high school athletics, which included closing Rich East following the 2019-20 school year, you have a basketball program in desperate need of stability.

In Dismukes, who was hired this spring to take over the basketball program, Rich has an up-and-coming young coach who will resonate with kids in the area.

More importantly, he’s heavily invested in the school and has a legit passion for the place. Dismukes grew up in the district and starred at Rich East, where he graduated in 2009.

“This is the right opportunity at the right time,” Dismukes said. “It was a no-brainer for me when it was offered.”

Dismukes was considered to be one of the rising young coaches in the Public League when he took over the Hyde Park program in 2020. But after two seasons in the city he is returning to the south suburbs.

“This is home for me,” Dismukes said. “And it’s always great to go home and coach where you grew up.”

Dismukes was the former coach at Rich East. When the school district, due to declining enrollment numbers, consolidated and went to two campuses — at Rich Central and Rich South — Dismukes was out of a coaching job. The district decided to go with Cornelius Crossley for the past two seasons.

Now Dismukes is back in the district and at a school where one south suburban head basketball coach says “Rich Township is a sleeping giant with the right head coach.”

And Rich has found that in the well-liked, personable and seasoned Dismukes, who has also coached at junior college power Indian Hills. You can hear the genuine energy and excitement in Dismukes’ voice when asked about how high of a ceiling this program has in the south suburbs.

“I think this place is a gold mine,” Dismukes said. “It’s a program that should be competing for sectional championships on a regular basis. Everything is in place to do that. The mindset they have here now, the resources they are putting into Rich Township and getting behind. It’s exciting.”

A brand new fieldhouse with three regulation wood courts will be completed this summer. And while the tradition-rich Big Dipper is a shell of itself, the holiday tournament played at Rich South for decades, Dismukes plans to revive it sooner than later.

“I am 100 percent invested in getting that tournament going again,” said Dismukes, who has played and coached in the tournament. “That’s a huge goal of mine, to revamp that tournament and get it back to where it once was — as one of the most prominent tournaments in the state.”

Dismukes says he will be “heavily involved” in the Big Dipper, both in trying to attract teams and, most importantly, to “make it fun and attractive again.” This was once a must-see tournament in late December, especially in the south suburbs.

“I think you will see a drastic change in the Dipper,” Dismukes said.

Dismukes says he can see all the district is implementing, both academically and athletically.

Then there is the large geographical area the district covers in the south suburbs. There are parts of Richton Park, Park Forest,Country Club Hills, Matteson, Chicago Heights and Tinley Park within the district.

“There are so many kids and so much talent,” said Dismukes of a school with roughly 3,000 students. “The main thing for me now is to keep those kids here, keep them home. They are right in our backyard. There have been so many kids and players who have left our feeder schools to go to CPS.”

Dismukes grew up in the area, so he has strong, established ties to the community. He hopes those relationships will make a difference in keeping talent home. He says he has received a ton of support already. But he also knows that going from three high schools in the district to one — and all the challenges that come with that — is still a work in progress.

“We are no longer rivals or against each other,” Dismukes said. “We are all one now, so bridging that gap is important.”

While Dismukes wants to keep young talent in place in the district, he believes he has enough talent this year to be more than just competitive.

Ray Austin, a 6-0 junior guard this past season, is a player Dismukes believes will break out as a senior. The scoring guard will be joined in the backcourt with Tyler Wooten, a promising 6-3 combo guard in the Class of 2024.

“I really do think we have a chance to be pretty good,” Dismukes said.

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Should the Chicago Cubs call up prospect Caleb Kilian? We take a look at the scenario they are facing

It is no secret that one of the Chicago Cubs struggles in years past has been developing pitching through their minor league systems. This looks to be changing and turning a corner with guys like Justin Steele, Keegan Thompson, and more that will be arriving in the near future. Enough credit is not given to pitching coach Tommy Hottovy, and other coaches behind the scenes on the pitching side in recent years.

Another guy that should be joining the Cubs at the major league level along with Steele, and Thompson soon is pitching prospect Caleb Kilian. T

he right handed pitching prospect in Kilian came over as one of the two players from the San Francisco Giants in the Kris Bryant trade last July, The other prospect that came with Kilian is outfielder Alexander Canario who has also done very well in the Cubs organization. Canario has recently been promoted to double-A level in Tennessee.

Caleb Kilian has multiple pitches to make him dangerous

Kilian has been very dominant so far at the triple-A level for the Iowa Cubs. In 8 games in 2022 he has a 2-0 record with a 1.31 ERA. Kilian’s 1.31 ERA is the league best after his latest start on Thursday. Kilian’s stat line from Thursday was 5.2 IP, 6H, 0 ER, 8 strikeouts, and only one walk.

Against Columbus on Thursday Kilian threw 80 pitches which is the most thrown this season. It is good to see him going deeper into games and stretching out his arm. The Cubs would like to see him go deeper than 5.2 innings, but throwing only 80 pitches in 5.2 innings when you have 8 strikeouts in the game is not bad either. Kilian’s league leading ERA so far is not the only impressive stat for him either. He has 40 strikeouts compared to only 13 walks.

Kilian’s command out there on the mound is very easy to see when you are able to strike out guys at a high rate, while limiting walks for the opposition. A lot of his command has to do with his control with the repertoire of pitches in his arsenal. His fastball sits in the upper-90’s, nasty cutter that sits in the low-90’s, and also a 12-6 curve ball that just falls off the table to the opposing hitters. Kilian’s different pitches really allows him to keep the batters off balance.

Cubs front office is keeping close eye on Kilian

If you are a Cubs fan you definitely are very excited about Kilian arriving on the north side of Chicago in the near future. The Cubs front office is aware and keeping an eye on their prized pitching prospect as well. Cubs President Jed Hoyer came out and talked in front of reporters on Thursday and had this to say about Kilian in the tweet below.

The Cubs do have a few doubleheaders coming up in the next few weeks against the Milwaukee Brewers, and the St. Louis Cardinals. With the extra man that is added for doubleheaders do not be surprised if in one of those games that Kilian is called up to make his major league debut. Both of those series are at home, so it would be very cool to see him make his debut at Wrigley Field. If Kilian were to be called up it would be well deserved with the numbers he is putting up in the minors to date.

With the Cubs sitting at 16-24 after Sunday’s win over the Arizona Diamondbacks it looks to be another year of selling at the deadline like in 2021. Being sellers is not fun, but at the same time the future is bright with guys like Kilian and others joining the Cubs soon at the big league level.

Make sure to check out our Cubs forum for the latest on the team.

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At least one person was killed and 31 others were shot across Chicago over the weekend, including a man wounded by a security guard during a shootout at Millennium Park.

A man was found fatally shot Sunday morning in a Gresham apartment complex on the South Side.

The man, 24, was found by a tenant with two gunshot wounds to the head in the entry way of the complex in the 7800 block of South Laflin Street about 1:30 a.m., Chicago police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

A 22-year-old man was trying to enter Millennium Park about 7:20 p.m. Friday in the first block of East Monroe Street but refused to undergo a check by a metal-detecting wand at an entry point, police said.

The man then jumped a fence to gain entry into the park. As security approached, he pulled out a gun and fired, police said. An off-duty Cook County sheriff’s officer, who was working as a security guard, returned fire.

The man was shot but was able to flee on foot to the Riverwalk. He was caught and taken into custody in the 300 block of East Riverwalk, police said, then taken to a nearby hospital. His injuries were not considered to be life-threatening.

A 16-year-old boy was shot Sunday night in East Garfield Park on the West Side.

The teen was outside in the 3300 block of West Madison Street about 11:30 p.m. when he was struck in the right leg by gunfire, police said.

He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was in good condition, police said.

No one was in custody.

Hours earlier, two teen boys were walking down the street in the 7700 block of South Essex Avenue when someone opened fire, police said.

A 13-year-old boy was shot in the body while the other, 16, was struck in the leg, police said. Both were transported to Comer Children’s Hospital. Their conditions weren’t known.

Saturday morning, two men were wounded in a shooting in South Chicago.

Three men were in a car in the 8500 block of South Commercial Avenue about 5:20 a.m. when a dark colored SUV stopped next to them and someone inside opened fire, police said.

A 25-year-old man suffered gunshot wounds to his lip and right arm and was in serious condition, officials said. Another man, 24, was grazed in the left side of his face and his condition was stabilized.

A third man in the car, 36, suffered a laceration to the hand and was good condition. Police say he wasn’t shot in the incident.

A woman was critically wounded Saturday night after a shooting on the Dan Ryan Expressway near 47th Street, according to Illinois state police.

State troopers responded to the shooting in the southbound local lanes about 8:10 p.m. and found the woman, 25, with injuries considered life threatening, fire officials and state police said.

She was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition., fire officials said.

Three men were found shot in a garage in the 4700 block of West Maypole Avenue about 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

One man, 34, was shot in the groin and taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, officials said. A second man, 33, was shot in the neck and taken to the same hospital in fair condition. The third man, 36, was shot in the ankle and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was in good condition, police said.

About 10 minutes later, two men were standing outside in the 3000 block of West Polk Street when they were struck by gunfire. A 24-year-old man was struck multiple times in the body and taken to Mt. Sinai, police said. A 23-year-old man was struck in the torso and taken to Stroger, police said. Both were listed in fair condition.

At least 19 others have been wounded in citywide shootings from 5 p.m. Friday. to 5 a.m. Monday.

Last weekend, five people were killed and 29 others wounded in shootings across the city.

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NEW YORK — The Fire’s lackluster season trudged on Sunday with a 1-0 loss to New York City FC. Their MLS winless streak climbed to nine games, their longest in nearly four years. The run has left the Fire last in the standings with only two wins from 13 games.

“I didn’t think this was one of our better performances,” coach Ezra Hendrickson said. “Even in our previous losses, I thought we were in the game. Tonight, we turned the ball over a lot and were forced to defend a lot.”

The Fire were not able to replicate their positive result from midweek, when they rallied from an early deficit to earn a 3-3 draw against the New York Red Bulls. This game against the 2021 MLS Cup champion began in nearly identical fashion, with the Fire falling behind after conceding an early penalty.

After replay review showed the ball hitting defender Miguel Navarro’s hand in the box, New York City forward Heber coolly converted from the spot to put the Fire behind 1-0 in the 23rd minute.

“[The penalty call] was a difficult one,” Hendrickson said. “[Navarro] got pushed in the back. I don’t think he was trying to put his hand up to stop the ball.”

The Fire couldn’t find a way past former teammate Sean Johnson in New York City’s net. They thought they had equalized in the 65th minute, but forward Chris Mueller was offside in the buildup. It was the seventh time the Fire have been shut out in MLS play.

“Today was not a good game,” forward Kacper Przybylko said. “We need to move the ball more. We need more movement without the ball.”

The Fire might be too reliant on star midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri (three goals, four assists in 2022) for offense. The Swiss international was named to MLS’ Team of the Week after he scored a goal and had an assist Wednesday. Only four of the Fire’s 11 goals have come without his involvement.

Goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina, who made three saves, proved to be the lone bright spot for the Fire, and he was not at fault for the penalty. It was a steadier performance after some blunders in the last two games led directly to goals.

“[Slonina] responded well,” Hendrickson said. “He made some good saves. We expected that from him, that he would rebound this way.”

Slonina, 18, announced Friday that he had chosen to represent the United States internationally, turning down overtures from Poland, the birth country of his parents.

The Fire always have struggled against New York City FC. In nine road games, the Fire have yet to win, losing the last seven matchups on the East Coast.

Still in search of their first victory since March 19, the Fire will conclude their three-game trip Saturday against Toronto FC.

“We need to stay positive,” Przybylko said. “We’re better than that; I know that for sure.”

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NEW YORK — Tim Anderson had the last word.

A day after Josh Donaldson called the White Sox shortstop “Jackie,” setting off a benches clearing incident in the Bronx, Anderson punched a pitch from Yankees reliever Miguel Castro over the right field wall for a three-run homer, breaking open a tight game with the finishing blow in a 5-0 White Sox victory Sunday night.

With Michael Kopech taking a perfect game into the sixth inning and pitching seven scoreless innings in Game 2 after Johnny Cueto pitched six scoreless innings in Game 1, the Sox claimed a doubleheader sweep against baseball’s best team.

On a hot afternoon at Yankee Stadium that required Cueto to chug two bottles of Gatorade on the mound during the sixth inning and receive intravenous fluids after Game 1, AJ Pollock hit a tiebreaking homer against Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning to break a 1-all tie and Adam Engel doubled in an insurance run.

Liam Hendriks’ perfect ninth with two strikeouts positioned the Sox for a sweep of the doubleheader against the team with the best record in baseball.

A day after Donaldson offended Anderson, Cueto quieted the Yankees bats in typical Cueto fashion.

“I had good command of all my pitches, they had very good movement and was able to locate them up and down in the zone,” Cueto said through translator Billy Russo. “That was the key to keeping the Yankees off-balance.”

“Like an artist,” White Sox manager Tony La Russa said of Cueto.

Anderson was rested in the first game, and, while booed before every at-bat in Game 2, produced three hits raising his average to .359.

It had been a frustrating exhibition of futility with runners on base for the Sox, who were 1-or-11 with runners in scoring position through seven innings, most of it against Yankees starter Luis Severino. But Andrew Vaughn finally broke through with an RBI single in the eighth, followed by another from catcher Reese McGuire before Anderson connected.

The sweep, capping a 5-3 road trip that started in Kansas City and included a 7-5 loss Saturday, improved the Sox to 21-20. The Yankees are 29-12.

Donaldson, 0-for-4 but with hard contact three times in Game 1, did not play in Game 2.

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Patrick Wisdom took off his Cubs jersey and purposely put on his “Schwisdom” t-shirt prior to a postgame interview in the Cubs clubhouse Sunday –a tribute to his pairing with teammate and next-door-lockermate Frank Schwindel.

It doesn’t quite have the same ring as the “Bash Brothers.” But on this day, Schwisdom was just as effective.

With the Cubs in a bind after losing an early three-run lead and headed toward a fifth straight defeat in the eighth inning against the Diamondbacks, Wisdom homered off reliever Ian Kennedy to tie the game and Schwindel followed with a homer of his own that gave the Cubs a 5-4 victory before 32,606 fans at Wrigley Field.

As modest as it is in the big picture, “Schwisdom” might be the best thing the Cubs’ offense has going right now. The duo also hit back-to-back homers in Saturday’s 7-6 loss to the Diamondbacks. It marked the first time the Cubs had the same players hit back-to-back homers in back-to-back games since Ernie Banks and Jim Hickman did it on Aug. 23-24, 1969, per Cubs historian Ed Hartig.

“It was a fun two batters right there,” Schwindel said. “Great team win.”

Wisdom’s homer, a 404-foot drive to left-center with little doubt, came after he lined a ball down the left-field line that looked fair to the Cubs but was called foul. “That’s one of those ones you’re like, ‘Wow that’s super close,'” manager David Ross said. “Willie [third base coach Willie Harris] is usually the guy who has a pretty good idea and he just kind of raised his eyebrows, saying it was pretty close.”

“I thought it was [fair] from my angle,” Wisdom said, “but I think we’ll all take the home run instead. It’s his call, so I just have to regroup and get back in there. I got another good pitch to hit.”

Schwindel followed with a high drive to straight left field that landed three rows into the bleachers, and he sprinted around the bases once he knew it was gone, gleefully celebrating just as Wisdom had done on his home run.

It was the third consecutive game the Cubs have had back-to-back home runs. Christopher Morel and Ildemaro Vargas –did it against Caleb Smith in Friday’s 10-6 loss.

Schwindel acknowledged the difficulty of hitting a home run off a pitcher who has just allowed one. “But I was riding the momentum right there,” he said. “I think that was the intent on the swing. It worked out today. It worked [Saturday]. It’s just a lot of fun when we can do that.”

Until then, the Cubs’ offensive hero was catcher P.J. Higgins, who was called up Sunday with Willson Contreras needing at least a couple of days off because of a strained hamstring.

Higgins, who was 1-for-23 (.043) in a nine-game stint with the Cubs last season before suffering a season-ending forearm injury that required surgery, hit a two-out, bases-loaded triple in his first at-bat this time to give the Cubs a 3-0 lead.

“Nice job of hitting,” Ross said. “Huge knock for us. Huge.”

It was a particularly clutch hit, coming after the Cubs had loaded the bases with no outs before Alfonso Rivas struck out and Andrelton Simmons fouled out.

“Definitely had some emotions,” Higgins said. “Obviously I didn’t have many hits the first go-round, so to get that with the bases loaded was awesome, The whole crowd — the whole atmosphere was awesome to be around. I was a little bit tired running around. But that happens — I don’t hit that many triples. But it was awesome.”

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In the handshake line after the White Sox won 3-1 at Yankee Stadium in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader, manager Tony La Russa stopped outfielder A.J. Pollock — who homered in the ninth inning to put the Sox ahead — and said a real mouthful in two words.

“Thank you.”

Yes, indeed. The Sox needed a win against the soaring Yankees not only to have Tim Anderson’s back, not only to stick it to New York’s Josh Donaldson and not only because the Sox just can’t seem to find any sort of traction this season. They needed a win to fight against early signs that — kind of like the Bulls, come to think of it — they’re a talented group that might not be able to stack up against the big boys of the league.

The win left them at 2-5 against the Yankees heading into the nightcap and series finale. And the low point of the season so far was a miserable three-game set at the Twins — who have a comfy lead in the division and look for real — that punctuated an eight-game losing streak.

It’s hardly too late for the Sox to crank things up before the All-Star break, but the first half has been bleak. And speaking of the Bulls, their second half was beyond bleak and led to a first-round playoff no-show against the Bucks.

What do the Bulls have to do with this? We’re thinking of Jerry Reinsdorf — his kingdom for a legit winner! — who must be wondering, at least one some level, if he’s ever going to see his basketball team or his baseball team win another championship.

Here’s what’s happening:

MON 23

Cubs at Reds (5:40 p.m., Marquee)

Since a 3-22 start earned them early “worst team in baseball” status, the Reds have played so well they’ve moved up to “possibly a tiny bit better than their still-hideous record indicates” status.

Heat at Celtics, Game 4 (7:30 p.m., Ch. 7)

The Heat can grab control of this series with a second straight road win for a 3-1 lead, but we’re not betting on it. And as absurdly pervasive as the gambling industry has become in sports, that’s saying something.

Avalanche at Blues, Game 4 (8:30 p.m., TNT)

Tensions are sky-high after the Avs’ Nazem Kadri bowled over and injured Blues goalie Jordan Binnington in Game 3. Heads on a swivel, everybody.

TUE 24

Fever at Sky (7 p.m., CW 26)

School will be in session against baby-faced Indy, which has more rookies than a sorority pledge class. Candace Parker and the Sky have so much to teach them.

Warriors at Mavericks, Game 4 (8 p.m., TNT)

Steph Curry is so close to the Finals, he can taste it. That is, when he isn’t chewing on his mouthpiece like a 7-year-old.

Flames at Oilers, Game 4 (8:30 p.m., ESPN)

There’s so much offense in this series, it almost doesn’t look like hockey. It definitely doesn’t look like Blackhawks hockey.

Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (9 p.m., HBO)

Several women who accused NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual misconduct give their first national TV interviews. Think Watson’s new $230 million deal in Cleveland might come up at some point? Same here.

WED 25

Red Sox at White Sox (7:10 p.m., NBCSCH)

The Beantowners are still under .500, but they’ve won five straight and surely haven’t forgotten being swept at their place by the South Siders earlier this month.

THU 26

Cubs at Reds (11:35 a.m., Marquee)

Iron sharpens iron, as the saying goes. And in completely unrelated news, the Cubbies and Redlegs bring a four-game series to a close.

SAT 28

Aces at Sky (2 p.m., Ch. 7)

Jackie Young is scoring like never before, Kelsey Plum pretty much can’t miss from three and A’Ja Wilson and Dearica Hamby are making everybody pay inside. The Sky are the champs, but the Aces are the league favorities.

Fire at Toronto (6 p.m., Ch. 9)

The big problem with the Fire is they never seem to score. The big problem with the Reds is they never seem to stop the other team from scoring. Consider it a tossup.

Cubs at White Sox (6:15 p.m., Fox-32)

The Sox already swept two at Wrigley Field. On the other hand, the Sox have a losing record at G-Rate and the Cubs somehow have played .500 ball on the road, so, you know, let’s just see what happens.

SUN 29

Indy 500 (10 a.m., Ch. 5)

Hello, H?lio. Castroneves guns it for his fifth win in this race, which would break a four-way tie with bygone legends A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears and Al Unser and give the 47-year-old Brazilian the most ever.

Cubs at White Sox (1:10 p.m., Marquee, NBCSCH)

And another year of the city’s baseball rivalry comes to an end — unless the Cubs and Sox collide in the World … oh, never mind.

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NEW YORK — All he does is put up zeros.

Crafty veteran right-hander Johnny Cueto, in his second start for the White Sox, pitched six-plus innings of scoreless ball against the slugging Yankees Sunday, and AJ Pollock hit a tiebreaking homer against Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning helping the Sox to a 3-1 victory in the first game of a doubleheader Sunday.

On a hot afternoon at Yankee Stadium, Cueto exited with a 1-0 lead after allowing singles to Aaron Hicks and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, putting runners on first and second with no out.

Enter right-hander Joe Kelly, who worked out of the jam by striking out Marwin Gonzalez and picking off Hicks at second base and striking out Jose Trevino looking. Trevino was up with Kiner-Falefa at second base because of catcher Yasmani Grandal’s passed ball.

Cueto did not get the win because the Yankees tied it against Kendall Graveman in the eighth on Aaron Judge’s 15th homer. Cueto’s streak of 12 scoreless innings to start his career ranks third since 1974 behind Ken Brett with 17 in 1976 and Jack McDowell with 13 in 1987, per STATS.

Cueto threw 6-plus innings, striking out five, walking two and allowing six hits. He picked off Kiner Falefa from first in the second inning. In his first start for the Sox Monday in Kansas City, Cueto, 36, gave up two hits and two walks without allowing a run. He struck out seven.

On Sunday, Cueto threw 95 pitches.

Cueto, Graveman and Chapman were checked by training staff during their outings but stayed in the game. Cueto, who chugged two bottles of Gatorade, appeared to be dealing with cramps.

Jose Abreu, Pollock and Yasmani Grandal (RBI) singled consecutively against Jameson Taillon in the fourth for the game’s only run in the first seven innings.

After Pollock connected for his second homer of the season, Adam Engel doubled home Andrew Vaughn for the Sox’ third run.

The Sox improved to 20-20 a day after losing 7-5 in a game marked by a benches clearing incident.

Liam Hendriks pitched a perfect ninth inning for his 13th save. Hendriks struck out two.

Before the game, Hendriks ripped Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson for Donaldson’s defense of a “Jackie” comment to Tim Anderson that started a benches clearing incident.

Donaldson was 0-for-4, but flied out deep twice and lined out to third base. Anderson did not play as he was rested in the first game of the doubleheader.

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