SportsBeat KC

The Kansas City Current broke ground on their new 11,500-seat stadium on Thursday and hundreds of fans came to celebrate with the owners, executives and players at Berkley Riverfront Park.’ On today’s SportsBeat KC, you’ll hear from co-owners Angie and Chris Long, PortKC president Jon Stephens and National Women’s Soccer League commissioner Jessica Berman. They spoke with Star columnists Vahe Greg...

After convincing victories, like the Chiefs’ over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4, coaches look for nits to pick. On today’s SportsBeat KC, we give Andy Reid a hand. Beat writers Herbie Teope and Jesse Newell along with columnists Sam McDowell and Vahe Gregorian say there are areas that need attention. With the next opponent, the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football at Arrowhead in mind,...

College football’s biggest party comes to Lawrence on Saturday. ESPN’s GameDay crew will set up shop near Memorial Stadium for the first time (for football, that is — the show’s been to Lawrence 10 times for hoops) because the Kansas Jayhawks are one of the nation’s biggest surprises. The No. 19-ranked KU team takes on No. 17 TCU at 11 a.m. Saturday. In today’s episode of The Star’s SportsBeat KC...

For non playoff-bound teams like the Royals, the season ends on Wednesday. They’ll get a jump on their team’s big decisions, and for the Royals it starts with manager Mike Matheny. Will he be back next season or might he be fired? Already, six managers who started the season have either been replaced or have announced their departures. Two of them, the Philadelphia Phillies and Toronto Blue Jays,...

From the first play, things were different for the Kansas City Chiefs this week. Tampa Bay fumbled away the opening kickoff, the Chiefs got a Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce touchdown pass two plays later and they were on their way to a 41-31 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After the game, Star reporters and columnists on site talked about the victory with host Blair Kerkhoff. It was an all...

Sporting Kansas City knows when its season ends and that’s a strange thing. SInce 2011, the year of the team’s rebrand from Wizards to SKC, the team missed the playoffs once. Now, it’s twice No postseason for Coach Peter Vermes’ club, and on today’s SportsBeat KC, Star soccer writer Daniel Sperry discusses how that happened and the decisions in store for the club. After a break, we switch to the a...

As the Chiefs shake off the upset loss at Indianapolis and turn their attention to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it’s natural to wonder if last week’s problems will follow them into Sunday Night Football. The running game bogged down and special teams were abysmal. Clock management at the end of the game also was questionable. On today’s podcast, beat writers Herbie Teope and Jesse Newell along with c...

Kansas State has known what it’s like to have a meaningful football season well in autumn, and after last weekend’s victory at Oklahoma, the Wildcats figure to be part of the Big 12 championship race. It’s been different at Kansas, which time of year has been about counting down the days until the first basketball game. Not this year. KU is off to a 4-0 start and coming off a victory played before...

Best-selling author and former Star columnist Joe Posnanski covered the bases talking Royals and baseball with beat writer Lynn Worthy and columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam McDowell. The Dayton Moore firing, Buck O’Neil entering the Hall of Fame, baseball’s rules changes for next year were all topics. So was this Royals team. It’s the final 1 1/2 weeks of the major league season and the Royals pla...

On Sunday, the Chiefs muffed a punt, missed a field goal and an extra point, dropped passes and still had a chance to defeat the Indianapolis Colts. But the Colts prevailed 20-17. Oh, did we mention Patrick Mahomes and offensive coordinator Eric Bienemy got into a spat as the team was leaving the field for halftime, and Chris Jones kept alive the Colts’ game-winning touchdown drive with an unsport...

The Indianapolis Colts were seen as a playoff contender headed into this season, but they’re off to a 0-1-1 start and coming off a shutout loss at Jacksonville. Abandon ship? No way. The NFL season is much too long, and a team’s fortunes can change with one game. That opportunity awaits the Colts, who play their home opener Sunday against the Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes and company are off to a fast 2...

The undefeated Chiefs visit the winless Colts on Sunday, but Kansas City will be without linebacker Willie Gay Jr., who will serve the first of his four-game suspension this week. How will the Chiefs compensate for the loss? Beat writers Herbie Teope and Jesse Newell, along with columnists Sam McDowell and Vahe Gregorian discuss on today’s SportsBeat KC. Darius Harris appears to be first man up, b...

A weekend of opportunities awaits the college football programs at Missouri, Kansas and Kansas State, and the Tigers and Wildcats will encounter theirs on the road. Mizzou visits Auburn in the SEC opener for both schools. K-State is looking for a “sandwich” victory over the Sooners. Sandwich? Well, K-State played well in beating Mizzou two weeks ago, lousy in an upset loss to Tulane last week, and...

Royals general manager J.J. Picollo called the team’s performance this year “disappointing,” and a fan base would agree. He said that and much more on SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast. Picollo joined beat writer Lynn Worthy and columnist Vahe Gregorian on the show that started as a SportsBeat Live broadcast. The topics included the development of starting pitching, the future role of...

The Kansas City Current are not only in the playoff chase, they’re looking to finish in one of the top two spots and gain a first-round bye on the bracket. That’s quite a change from a year ago, when they played out the string in a last-place season. That was the inaugural campaign for a team that was hustled together shortly before the season began. One year later, the Current are a force in the...

The Watsons played major roles in the Chiefs defeated the L.A. Chargers in an AFC West showdown on Thursday. Wide receiver Justin Watson got the game close with his 41-yard touchdown reception from Patrick Mahomes. Cornerback Jaylen Watson finished off the Chargers with a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown. We talk about both and much more on SportsBeat KC, The Star’s sports podcast, with...

Kansas State’s resounding triumph over Missouri last weekend continues to resonate at both schools, and on today’s SportsBeat KC we look back on the impact of that game as the Wildcats and Tigers prepare for non-conference games. Also, on SportsBeat KC, Kansas looks to make it two straight upset victories on the road. The Jayhawks topped West Virginia in overtime last week and now head to Houston....

Can a Week 2 game be season-defining? It can when it’s the six-time AFC West champion Kansas City Chiefs playing host to what many believe is the top challenger in the Los Angeles Chargers. It’s been a crazy series recently. The home team has lost the last four meetings and seven of the last eight in the series (with one game played in Mexico City). On today’s SportsBeat KC, beat writers Herbie Te...

Brady Singer is posting one of the best seasons by a Kansas City Royals starting pitcher in recent years, and it’s natural to wonder who else from the 2018 draft class will follow him to success. That year, the Royals selected four pitchers among the top 40 who were drafted. Singer, the first to reach the majors, is the first to have an accomplished season. On today’s SportsBeat KC podcast, beat w...

The Chiefs’ 44-21 decision over the Arizona Cardinals in the season opener was a complete game victory. Patrick Mahomes led touchdown drives on the first three possessions and finished with five touchdown passes. The defense allowed one touchdown while the game was competitive, and the kicking game got through despite an ankle injury to Harrison Butker. Now, the Chiefs have a short week to prepare...

Fridays in the fall are about high school football, and on today’s SportsBeat KC, you’ll hear from an authority on the subject in Kansas City. Dion Clisso runs the website prepskc.com. It’s the best site for results, standings, schedules, you name it’s on the site. Clisso breaks down what’s happened in the early weeks of high school and previews tonight’s big games. After a break, you’ll hear from...

Some eight months after another division championship season ended in a crushing playoff loss, the Kansas City Chiefs tee it up for the 2022 season. The regular season opens Sunday at the Arizona Cardinals, and we must talk about it. On today’s SportsBeat KC podcast, beat writers Herbie Teope and Jesse Newell join columnists Vahe Gregorian and Sam McDowell in breaking down everything Chiefs. We lo...

Missouri and Kansas State met on the football field for the first time in 1909 and became members of the same conference, the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1913. Over the next century the neighbors met 97 times. That relationship ended when the Tigers joined the SEC for the 2012 football season. But they’re back on the same field Saturday when Mizzou visits Bill Snyder Fa...

The Kansas City Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. is having a terrific season, and in most years his numbers, like becoming the fifth rookie to hit at least 20 home runs and steal 20 bases, would make him the top candidate for the American League Rookie of the Year award. But it’s looking like an uphill challenge for Witt, with Julio Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners also posting a 20/20 season and putting u...

Legal sports wagering has arrived in Kansas. Gov. Laura Kelly placed the first bet on Tuesday ($15 on the Chiefs to win the Super Bowl), and betting is happening through the state’s four casinos, including Hollywood Casino in Kansas City, Kan., and online. On today’s SportsBeat KC, columnist Sam McDowell and beat writer Kellis Robinett discuss what it means to have sports betting in the region, an...