Bartolo Colon threw eight shutout innings against the Atlanta Braves on Monday night, striking out seven along the way in the New York Mets' 4-1 victory. A performance like that is why Colon -- the oldest player in baseball at 42 -- is still a mainstay in a major league rotation. His at-bats in the first and fourth innings were also quite impressive.
In the first inning, Colon sliced his bat through the air and fouled off a 94-mph fastball from Mike Foltynewicz -- sending the ball zooming into the left-field foul territory with an exit velocity off his bat of 101.9 mph.
"I don't think I've ever hit a ball as hard as I hit that," Colon told MLB.com's Anthony DiComo after the game.
And yet, if hitting the ball nearly as hard as he can wasn't enough, Colon followed up in the fourth by swinging out of his helmet.
On top of all that, Colon earned his 220th career victory and now has the second-most victories of any MLB pitcher born in the Dominican Republic, sliding past none other than Pedro Martinez.
Unfortunate 500
Being injured and being idle has sent Tiger Woods out of the top 500 in the world for the first time in his 20-year career as a pro.
It was only a matter of time. Woods hasn't played since the Wyndham Championship in August, and he played poorly (and sparingly because of injuries) the year before that. He fell nine spots to No. 508 this week.
The last time he was out of the top 500 was July 14, 1996. The next week, he tied for 22nd in the British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, where he felt he was ready to turn pro. The 20-year-old Woods went from No. 554 to No. 431 after the 1996 British Open, and he began a swift climb when he turned pro a month later.
He still hasn't reached his low point in the ranking.
Woods was No. 875 on April 2, 1995, the week before he tied for 41st in his Masters debut as an amateur.
A new beer identity
In recent years, Asheville, N.C., has exploded into one of the craft beer capitals of the world. Buncombe County, of which Asheville is a part, is home to 24 breweries alone. This concentrated collection of alcoholic enterprise has prompted many tourists to dub Asheville as "Beer City, USA."
The Class A Asheville Tourists minor-league baseball team of the South Atlantic League got in on the act, with the announcement they will suit up as the "Beer City Tourists" on June 2 against the Greenville Drive.
According to the Tourists' news release, "The Tourists jerseys will display the customized print "BEER CITY" across the chest and their New Era caps will have a pint glass logo with the official Asheville "A" embedded on the pint glass."
Anyhow, the "Beer City Tourists" promotion makes a nice complement to Bowling Green's "Bootleggers" night. That bourbon-themed celebration is scheduled for July 16, almost six weeks after Asheville's promotion.
Sports on 05/04/2016