Pair of Aces

As reported via Matthew Piper's blog on The Salt Lake Tribune, two Utah pitchers were selected in the 2014 MLB Draft. Mitch Watrous went to the San Diego Padres in the eighth round, and Nick Green was picked by the Kansas City Royals in the tenth round. Both players are former walk-ons for the Utes.

That's Andre

Read this profile of Andre Miller on Grantland.com, as well as this commentary on game 4 between the Wizards and the Pacers in the USA Today.

Senior Moment

Smith's pic on twitter.

Steve Smith had a painful separation from the Carolina Panthers. In order to separate himself from the other receiver named Smith on his new team he added Senior to his jersey. It's fitting for him, as it honors his son and marks the latter stages of his career.

When Baltimore meets rival Pittsburgh this year Smith, Sr. may find Brice McCain covering him. Like Smith, McCain signed with an AFC North team after being released by a team in the South (Houston).

One free agent left the AFC East (Miami) for the NFC South (Atlanta), but Paul Soliai won't see Steve Smith or Jordan Gross when he squares off against the Panthers. Zane Beadles, another lineman, moved to Florida and the AFC South (Jacksonville) from the AFC West (Denver).

Value Picks

Keith McGill and Trevor Reilly were both drafted later than projected, in the 4th and 7th rounds respectively, making them value picks in the 2014 NFL Draft. The Oakland Raiders used their second pick in the fourth round, #116 overall, on McGill. The big corner had a second day grade, but was still on the board on day three due to off the field concerns. He will join Tony Bergstrom in Oakland.

Reilly slipped all the way to #233, the last of twelve picks for the New York Jets. He has accrued some extra years and injuries, but anyone who has seen him play knows he is a difference maker. The lack of bowl game coverage may have been the difference in how many people did see Utah play last season.

Four more Utes signed free agent offers: Karl Williams and Jake Murphy with Oakland (benefit of PAC-12 coverage, perhaps?), Tenny Palepoi with San Diego, and Anthony Denham with Houston.

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

C.J. Cron didn't have a long stay in Salt Lake. Right after hitting 3-5 with a two-run homer in a 14-5 win over the Reno Aces on May 2nd, Cron was called up to Los Angeles. He made the most of his major league debut the very next day, belting an RBI single off the first pitch he saw. Cron added a double and another RBI single for the winning run as the Angels beat the Rangers, 5-3. 

Professor Passed

Andre Miller has passed the first round of the playoffs! For the first time in his career, the Professor has passed the test! He helped the young Wizards win the first game against the Bulls, and they helped him get beyond round one!

Seattle's Second

The Seattle Storm of the WNBA used their second round pick to select Michelle Plouffe. Seattle drafted UConn's Bria Hartley with the 7th pick and Plouffe 19th overall. Stanford's Chiney Ogwumike was the first player chosen by the Connecticut Sun. Plouffe is the first Ute to be drafted since Morgan Warburton, a Utah assistant coach, in 2009. BYU's Jennifer Hamson was also drafted in the second round by the LA Sparks, although she has indicated she will return to school to play volleyball in the fall.