Local News

Ryan Sweeney placed on DL again

Ryan Sweeney's star-crossed career in Major League baseball took another detour Wednesday when he was placed on the 15-Day Disabled List with an injury to his left hamstring.

Sweeney, from Cedar Rapids, was hurt in the second inning Tuesday when the Chicago Cubs played Cincinnati.

Sweeney has spent parts of nine years in the Major Leagues with four different teams, but he's had trouble staying healthy in recent campaigns. This is his second stint on the DL this year,

He played in 134 games for Oakland in 2009, but since then he's appeared in only 82, 108, 63, 70 and 77 games the last five years due to injuries and being platooned.

Sweeney is a career .276 hitter with 23 home runs and 224 RBIs. He is hitting .251 this season with three homers and 20 RBIs.

Metro Players in Pro Baseball

The Metro Sports Report provides a daily update on Metro graduates who are playing pro baseball. Here is the report through Sept. 8:

RYAN SWEENEY (Xavier), Chicago Cubs, OF: Sweeney has been placed on the 60-day Disabled List with a hamstring injury and is finished for the season. He hit .251 (52-for-207) with 3 homers and 20 RBIs.

SCOTT SCHEBLER (CR Prairie), Chattanooga, OF, Double-A, Southern League (Dodgers): Schebler went 0-for-4 Monday as Chattanooga won the Southern League North Division title with a 7-6 victory over Huntsville. Chattanooga will meet South Division champion Jacksonville in the best-of-5 league finals beginning Wednesday. Schebler hit .118 (2-for-17) in the playoffs against Huntsville. He hit .280 (137-for-489) with 28 homers and 73 RBIs for the regular season.

CHAD CHRISTENSEN (CR Washington), Kernels, OF/IF, Class A, Midwest League (Twins): Christensen went 1-for-4 Sunday with a two-run homer in a 4-2 loss to Kane County in the Midwest League playoffs. Kane County won the series, 2-0. Christensen hit .316 in the playoffs (6-for-19) with 2 homers and 5 RBIs in 5 games. He hit .272 (134-for-492) with 9 homers and 73 RBIs for the regular season.

JON KELLER (Xavier), Frederick, P, Class A, Carolina League (Orioles): Keller went 3-0 with a 2.07 ERA this season at Delmarva in the South Atlantic League and Frederick in the Southern league. He finished the year on the Disabled List with a left intercostal strain. He struck out 71 batters in 61 innings, with 14 earned runs and 21 walks.

MITCH KELLER (Xavier), Bradenton, P, Rookie, Gulf Coast League (Pirates): Keller finished with an 0-0 record and 1.98 ERA in 9 games this season (8 starts). He struck out 29 batters in 27.1 innings with 19 hits, 6 earned runs and 13 walks.

ANDREW HANSE (Linn-Mar), Bowling Green, P, Class A, Midwest League (Tampa Bay): Hanse finished the season with a 1-3 record and 4.96 ERA.

DAKOTA FREESE (Washington), Athletics, P, Rookie Arizona League (Oakland): Freese spent the entire 2014 season on the Disabled List with an arm injury.

Saints top 3A poll; Wash 3rd in 4A

The Xavier Saints will enter the 2014 season as the No.1 team in the Class 3A football rankings, according to the Des Moines Register poll.

Xavier reached the championship game of the Class 4A playoffs in 2012 and 2013 before dropping to Class 3A this season with the advent of district football for all teams.

Dowling Catholic, which defeated Xavier in the 4A championship game last November, was voted the No.1 team in 4A to begin the season. Dowling and Xavier will meet in the opening game of the season next Friday night in West Des Moines.

Cedar Rapids Washington, coming off a 6-4 campaign and a playoff appearance, is ranked No.3 in the Class 4A preseason poll.

The other top-ranked teams in the Register poll are Clear Lake in Class 2A, Iowa City Regina in Class 1A, Maquoketa Valley in Class A and Fremont-Mills in 8-Player.

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WMT ends broadcasts of prep sports

Radio station WMT  (AM-600) of Cedar Rapids has decided to stop broadcasting high school football and basketball games, effectively immediately.

WMT has broadcast prep games on a regular basis since at least 1988 and carried events prior to that as well, according to a company employee.

Radio station KXIC of Iowa City also has decided to end its prep broadcasts. Both companies are owned by Clear Channel Communications of San Antonio, Texas, which owns and operates more than 1,200 stations in the United States.

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