SportsBeat KC

Good recent results for Sporting KC and KC NWSL have us talking on SportsBeat KC with Aly Trost and Shaun Goodwin. OK, we’d discuss the games no matter the outcome, but it’s more fun this way, especially after the goals scored by Daniel Salloi and Amy Rodriguez. After a break, there’s plenty to say about the ill-fated European Super League, too. The breakaway alliance appears to be a lost cause fo...

Three years ago, Steve Wilks path to highest level of football coaching was complete. After years of moving up the ladder, he became coach of the Arizona Cardinals. But the gig lasted only one season after a 3-13 record, and Wilks’ new path has brought him to Missouri, where he’s the Tigers’ defensive coordinator. On today’s SportsBeat KC, Wilks discusses his career, shares his feelings about how...

Nearly 10% of the baseball season has elapsed and the Royals are in first place. It’s the latest they’ve been atop the AL Central since 2016. What’s been going right lately? Starting pitching and Salvador Perez for starters. On today’s SportsBeat KC, beat writer Lynn Worthy and columnist Sam Mellinger join host Blair Kerkhoff to discuss the Royals and wonder if they’re built to keep up these winni...

The Chiefs have ideas about who will be their next starting left tackle. Patrick Mahomes doesn’t get to play as much golf anymore because he’s a daddy. And current Chiefs are still singing the praises of former teammate Alex Smith. In their first meeting with reporters since the Super Bowl loss in February, Mahomes, coach Andy Reid and safety Tyrann Mathieu provided updates on several key issues,...

Sporting Kansas City opens its 2021 season Saturday at the New York Red Bulls, and the team will be without regular goalkeeper Tim Melia. In steps 19-year-old John Pulskamp, making his MLS debut. Soccer writer Shaun Goodwin and Aly Trost, WHB Sports Radio 810 host and reporter, break down this development and other aspects of the game in this episode of The Star’s daily sports podcast, SportsBeat...

Let’s go to the transfer portal to catch the latest updates in college basketball roster building … and reducing. That’s where we are, with more than 1,700 in the portal as of Thursday morning. Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin spent most of his meeting with reporters this week discussing the portal and its effects. The Tigers have lost six players, gained three and aren’t finished recruiting there. In...

Earlier this week, former Chiefs assistant coach Britt Reid, the son of head coach Andy Reid, was charged with DWI in a crash two months ago that injured a 5-year-old girl. On today’s SportsBeat KC, Star reporter Glenn Rice joins beat writer Sam McDowell, columnist Vahe Gregorian and host Blair Kerkhoff in discussing the story and where it goes from here. After a break, beat writer Herbie Teope br...

Who’s going to be the Royals pitcher to stretch out a start? The rotation has produced fewer innings and a higher ERA than relievers for the Royals through eight games. The two starts of Brad Keller, who got the call on Opening Day, have been discouraging. In only two games, a Royals starter has pitched into the sixth inning. But enough has gone right for the Royals to split their first eight game...

The Kansas basketball roster could be in extreme makeover mode. With NBA Draft declarations and the transfer portal, the churn continues. On today’s SportsBeat KC, beat writers Gary Bedore and Jesse Newell tell us where things stand with Kansas and that includes on the coaching staff after assistant Jerrance Howard left for Texas.. Also, the first big task for new athletic director Travis Goff is...

A new team and season begin tonight. The Kansas City entry in the National Women’s Soccer League opens Challenge Cup play at Portland, Ore. Kansas City had a successful run in the NWSL from 2013-2017, winning two championships. The team then relocated to Utah for three years. But Kansas City is back in the league under new ownership and with some familiar names like Amy Rodriguez and Coach Huw Wil...

Like most college athletic departments, the University of Missouri-Kansas City's has experienced many changes over the past year because of the pandemic. It has suspended sports and tightened its belt in other ways. UMKC vice chancellor and athletic director Dr. Brandon Martin started taking notes at the beginning of the pandemic and never stopped. Martin has turned those thoughts and interviews i...

Chiefs got a left tackle yet? The search continues. So does the discussion on SportsBeat KC with beat writers Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell. Possibilities for the position of priority for the Chiefs is free agency and the draft. It’s been quiet on the free agency front with the offensive line interior addressed earlier with the additions of Joe Thuney and Kyle Long. Now the attention is on tackle,...

The season is only a week old, but it’s not too soon to feel good about the Royals. They’re off to a 3-1 start. Their bats led the way in their first two victories against the Texas Rangers; then Danny Duffy turned in the young season’s best game by a starter when he pitched six innings Monday in a 3-0 victory over Cleveland. In this podcast, Star beat writer Lynn Worthy and columnist Vahe Gregori...

How long will Bill Self coach the Jayhawks? After Friday he has a lifetime remaining. Self has a new deal with some interesting provisions when it comes to the program’s looming NCAA response to allegations of violations. Also, who has entered and emerged from the transfer portal lately? KU, K-State and Missouri are all deeply involved in roster reshaping. Plus, there’s an NCAA championship game t...

Roy Williams started his head coaching career at Kansas in 1988 and once said that he wasn’t a household name even in his own household. It turned out to be one of the greatest hires in college sports history. Williams remained at KU for 15 years, winning nine conference titles and taking the Jayhawks to four Final Fours. He added five more Final Fours and three NCAA titles at North Carolina, wher...

Soccer training is on its final days and Kansas City once again will have two teams in action. Sporting Kansas City is on a mission to repeat as MLS Western Conference champs. KC NWSL is the women’s team that returns to the region. The team formerly known as FCKC left Kansas City in 2017. The women will open next week. The men’s first game is April 17, and beat writer Shaun Goodwin is back to disc...

The Chiefs have remained busy during the free agency period picking up defensive tackle Jarren Reed and center Austin Blythe while losing defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon, and I don’t think we’ve spoken to beat writers Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell since Sammy Watkins signed with the Ravens. We cover all of that on today’s SportsBeat KC with host Blair Kerkhoff, along with some NFL news. The league...

With the Royals bearing down on Opening Day there’s plenty to discuss, like a surprise roster decision and demotion, and the discovery of a new pitch by a veteran that could impact the rotation. We cover these topics and provide our victory projections for the Royals on today’s SportsBeat KC podcast with Lynn Worthy, Vahe Gregorian and Sam Mellinger, which started as an audience-driven SportsBeat...

In another year we’d talk about the Final Four teams today. But the NCAA Tournament calendar has shifted and we’re at the Elite Eight round. On today’s SportsBeat KC, Jesse Newell talks regional finals and more with host Blair Kerkhoff. But Division II has completed its bracket, and what a performance by Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats were impressive winners of their third tournament in fo...

Baylor is the last Big 12 team standing in the NCAA Tournament. As top seed, the Bears are a favorite to reach their first Final Four since 1950. On today’s SportsBeat KC podcast, Baylor assistant director of broadcasting and play-by-play announcer John Morris speaks to the best team of the Scott Drew era. There’s been plenty of off-court news elsewhere, too. Missouri lost guard Xavier Pinson to t...

Opening day is a week away and the Royals are making moves. The biggest of late: a four-year contract extension for catcher Salvador Perez. On today’s episode of SportsBeat KC, Star beat writer Lynn Worthy and columnist Vahe Gregorian speak to Perez’s value in KC. Also, the pitching rotation is set: The Royals will use four starters for the first two weeks of the season. The fifth starter, when he...

After an active start to the NFL free agency season with the signing of offensive lineman Joe Thuney and Kyle Long, the Chiefs have slowed down a bit. They’ve been in discussions with players like Trent Williams and JuJu Smith-Schuster but no additional big signings yet. But don’t think for a moment the Chiefs aren’t finished on the free agency market. Beat writers Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell di...

What was that from Kansas in the NCAA Tournament? On today’s SportsBeat KC beat writers Jesse Newell and Gary Bedore provide the autopsy for one of the ugliest losses in KU history, a 34-point pounding from Southern California in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Also we take a first look ahead for the Jayhawks with roster guesses and what might happen with the NCAA investigation. Here’s ho...

A season that started with Missouri defeating five teams that would reach the NCAA Tournament and continued with an appearance in the top 10 finished with a first round NCAA Tournament loss to Oklahoma. The Tigers stumbled home, losing seven of their last 10 games. The NCAA Tournament as a reset button didn’t work and Mizzou’s season is over with a 16-10 record. Star columnist Vahe Gregorian cover...

The Chiefs used free agency this week to address their biggest need by signing the offensive lineman Joe Thuney and Kyle Long. Both players had spent their careers with one team, Thuney with the Patriots, Long with the Bears. Thuney has played most of his snaps at left guard. He’s started all 80 games in his career and was a second-team All-Pro in 2019. Long was a three-time Pro Bowler who retired...