'A boulder on their shoulder': Lynx top Liberty for third time this season
Natasha Cloud (9) of the New York Liberty possesses the ball while being guarded by DiJonai Carrington (3) of the Minnesota Lynx during the second half at Barclays Center on August 10, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Lynx won 83-71.
Ishika Samant | Getty Images
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Audio transcript
NINA MOINI: The Minnesota Twins pulled off a win against the Detroit Tigers last night with a final score of 8 to 1. Part of that is thanks to shortstop Brooks Lee, who hit a home run with the bases loaded. It was the first grand slam of his career. And the Twins lost their previous three games against the Tigers. They go on to play the athletics tomorrow at home. Joining me now with all the latest in Minnesota sports news are Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson. I love that deep sigh before we get started.
[LAUGHTER]
ERIC NELSON: Sorry.
NINA MOINI: No, that's OK. Welcome, you guys.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Happy Monday, Nina.
NINA MOINI: Happy Monday to you both. I feel like you guys get a little downtrodden when we discuss the Twins, but I have to ask Wally, what was different about last night's Twins game? They won.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, they won. That's the good news. Brooks Lee, as you mentioned, hit a Grand. Slam, bases-loaded home run, which is good. The bad news is that was the first grand slam of the season for the Twins. And I don't have the stats in front of me, but this is awfully late to get your first grand slam of the year--
NINA MOINI: Oh.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: --with just what? about six weeks left in the season. But they won the game 8 to 1. Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton also hit home runs. And all these home runs came off of former Twins pitcher Chris Paddack, who was traded to the Tigers in those last-minute deals that the Twins made before the trade deadline the week of July 31, when they unloaded 11 players, 10 Major Leaguers.
NINA MOINI: Right.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: And so Paddack has actually gotten beaten up by the Twins the last couple of times they've played him now. So as far as Twins fans are concerned, that was probably a trade that needed to be made, I guess, because Chris Paddack is now not doing very good things for the Detroit Tigers. Just 22,000 fans at the game yesterday, just 19,000 on Saturday. So attendance is definitely lagging. That's to be expected for a team that, as I mentioned, cashed it in right before the trade deadline.
Twins are currently nine games out of the last wild card spot. So that's a long ways to go and about five teams in front of them to even get there. 14 games behind Detroit in the American League Central. As you mentioned, Nina, the Twins do host the A's Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at Target Field. I call them the vagabond A's. They currently play their home games in West Sacramento, California, and they have the second worst record in the American League. So maybe more good news for the Twins on the way, potential victories on the horizon tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday over at Target Field.
NINA MOINI: All right. Well, let's move on to the Minnesota Lynx, who've played the New York Liberty three times since last year's championship game, which was a rough one for them. And all three times the Lynx have won. So what seems to be working for them, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Well, I think the way they lost in the WNBA finals last year, Nina, was fuel and motivation. The Lynx, I think, have had a boulder on their shoulder because they believe they were robbed of the title in that decisive game 5. Certainly, they have been a juggernaut all season. They won the other day at Target Center before 10,000 plus fans, 86 to 80. The game also on national television, CBS. So the nation got a chance to see just how good Minnesota is. Courtney Williams paced the Lynx with a season high 26 points. Kayla McBride sank a long-range triple late in the game. That iced the win for Minnesota. And how about this? The Lynx are a dominant 17 and 1 at home this season.
NINA MOINI: Wow.
ERIC NELSON: The same teams will play again Tuesday night in Brooklyn. And I can tell you this, that the Lynx may end up with a historical record. They're 28 and 5, which is the top mark in the entire W. They've won six straight, 10 of 11 overall. And their latest hot streak has been primarily minus Napheesa Collier. She's out with an ankle injury. She's missed four straight games. But to also balance it out from the New York perspective, their two-time MVP, Breanna Stewart, she's got a knee injury and has missed 10 straight games for the Liberty.
So if these teams were to meet again in the finals, presumably Collier and Stewart would be back on the floor. And it might be a different outcome. Now, I should also mention, after the game against the Liberty in Brooklyn, Minnesota travels to Atlanta to take on The Dream, who are 22 and 12. The Dream gave Minnesota the Lynx their only home loss of the season. So this is going to be an interesting week. And then Indiana is here next Sunday night. Will Caitlin Clark play? That is the $10 million question. A lot of fans are hoping she's playing. But she's been banged up with that groin injury for the Indiana Fever.
NINA MOINI: Right. Oh, my gosh. So that seems like one to tune in for the Lynx. So the Vikings, also in their preseason, lost their game against the New England Patriots. That was Saturday. What happened there? What went wrong there, Wally?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, again, preseason games, the winning and losing part, Nina, really irrelevant. The games don't count During. The regular season. It really doesn't count towards anything. What they're trying to do is figure out who can play, who's going to make the team, and all that type of thing. And the biggest battle right now seems to be at the second string quarterback position. Sam Howell started the game, but there should be some concern. He did not look good. He completed just one of five passes, and he threw a terrible interception. He was under duress and just threw one up for grabs that was intercepted. He looked uncomfortable against the Patriot's defense.
Kevin O'Connell, head coach, afterwards defended Howell's play and said that he was trying to get the ball out of bounds there. But just it came up short. But those are things that are going to work against him. However, that all being said, Max Brosmer, the former golfer who played well for the University of Minnesota last year, looked good again in a Vikings uniform. He was 15 of 27, 156 yards that he threw for. He did throw a late interception. But you have to think that they're at least considering this. And the other thing is you have to think that they're probably looking to see if there is another veteran quarterback available somewhere in the National Football League. Now, this is awfully late to be looking for one because most teams have already figured out who that's going to be.
NINA MOINI: Right.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: But there's a possibility that they might find one out there somewhere. So we'll see what happens.
NINA MOINI: All right, and Eric, remind us when the Viking's season officially begins. And what are you going to be watching for?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, the games that actually count for Minnesota, it's all going to begin on Monday night, September 8 in Chicago against the Bears. And the Bears last night battered Buffalo 38 to 0. Again, preseason game.
NINA MOINI: Wow
ERIC NELSON: Take it with a caveat. You never how to read these things. But that is game one. But the Vikings do have a game on Friday. That's on CBS, so over the air National television. They'll kick it off at 7:00 PM in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans. Both these teams are one and one. I'm not sure we're going to see a lot of Minnesota's JJ McCarthy or Tennessee's Cam Ward, these young quarterbacks that these franchises are building their entire teams around.
Most NFL teams don't play their starters much, if at all, in the final exhibition game. We'll see if either the Titans or the Vikings buck that trend. I do want to point out, Nina, the Titans and Vikings played last November in Music City. And the Vikings sang a winning tune as they knocked off the Titans 23 to 13. Sam Darnold, remember him?
NINA MOINI: Yeah.
ERIC NELSON: Threw for 246 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for another TD in the Minnesota win. But of course, Darnold won the NFL lottery, signed a huge deal with Seattle in the offseason. And the Vikings will see Darnold down the road in Seattle as this regular season gets going soon.
NINA MOINI: Thank you. I know you'll keep an eye on it. Thanks to Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson, our sports contributors. And thank you all for listening. Have a great rest of your day.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[LAUGHTER]
ERIC NELSON: Sorry.
NINA MOINI: No, that's OK. Welcome, you guys.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Happy Monday, Nina.
NINA MOINI: Happy Monday to you both. I feel like you guys get a little downtrodden when we discuss the Twins, but I have to ask Wally, what was different about last night's Twins game? They won.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, they won. That's the good news. Brooks Lee, as you mentioned, hit a Grand. Slam, bases-loaded home run, which is good. The bad news is that was the first grand slam of the season for the Twins. And I don't have the stats in front of me, but this is awfully late to get your first grand slam of the year--
NINA MOINI: Oh.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: --with just what? about six weeks left in the season. But they won the game 8 to 1. Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton also hit home runs. And all these home runs came off of former Twins pitcher Chris Paddack, who was traded to the Tigers in those last-minute deals that the Twins made before the trade deadline the week of July 31, when they unloaded 11 players, 10 Major Leaguers.
NINA MOINI: Right.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: And so Paddack has actually gotten beaten up by the Twins the last couple of times they've played him now. So as far as Twins fans are concerned, that was probably a trade that needed to be made, I guess, because Chris Paddack is now not doing very good things for the Detroit Tigers. Just 22,000 fans at the game yesterday, just 19,000 on Saturday. So attendance is definitely lagging. That's to be expected for a team that, as I mentioned, cashed it in right before the trade deadline.
Twins are currently nine games out of the last wild card spot. So that's a long ways to go and about five teams in front of them to even get there. 14 games behind Detroit in the American League Central. As you mentioned, Nina, the Twins do host the A's Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at Target Field. I call them the vagabond A's. They currently play their home games in West Sacramento, California, and they have the second worst record in the American League. So maybe more good news for the Twins on the way, potential victories on the horizon tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday over at Target Field.
NINA MOINI: All right. Well, let's move on to the Minnesota Lynx, who've played the New York Liberty three times since last year's championship game, which was a rough one for them. And all three times the Lynx have won. So what seems to be working for them, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Well, I think the way they lost in the WNBA finals last year, Nina, was fuel and motivation. The Lynx, I think, have had a boulder on their shoulder because they believe they were robbed of the title in that decisive game 5. Certainly, they have been a juggernaut all season. They won the other day at Target Center before 10,000 plus fans, 86 to 80. The game also on national television, CBS. So the nation got a chance to see just how good Minnesota is. Courtney Williams paced the Lynx with a season high 26 points. Kayla McBride sank a long-range triple late in the game. That iced the win for Minnesota. And how about this? The Lynx are a dominant 17 and 1 at home this season.
NINA MOINI: Wow.
ERIC NELSON: The same teams will play again Tuesday night in Brooklyn. And I can tell you this, that the Lynx may end up with a historical record. They're 28 and 5, which is the top mark in the entire W. They've won six straight, 10 of 11 overall. And their latest hot streak has been primarily minus Napheesa Collier. She's out with an ankle injury. She's missed four straight games. But to also balance it out from the New York perspective, their two-time MVP, Breanna Stewart, she's got a knee injury and has missed 10 straight games for the Liberty.
So if these teams were to meet again in the finals, presumably Collier and Stewart would be back on the floor. And it might be a different outcome. Now, I should also mention, after the game against the Liberty in Brooklyn, Minnesota travels to Atlanta to take on The Dream, who are 22 and 12. The Dream gave Minnesota the Lynx their only home loss of the season. So this is going to be an interesting week. And then Indiana is here next Sunday night. Will Caitlin Clark play? That is the $10 million question. A lot of fans are hoping she's playing. But she's been banged up with that groin injury for the Indiana Fever.
NINA MOINI: Right. Oh, my gosh. So that seems like one to tune in for the Lynx. So the Vikings, also in their preseason, lost their game against the New England Patriots. That was Saturday. What happened there? What went wrong there, Wally?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Well, again, preseason games, the winning and losing part, Nina, really irrelevant. The games don't count During. The regular season. It really doesn't count towards anything. What they're trying to do is figure out who can play, who's going to make the team, and all that type of thing. And the biggest battle right now seems to be at the second string quarterback position. Sam Howell started the game, but there should be some concern. He did not look good. He completed just one of five passes, and he threw a terrible interception. He was under duress and just threw one up for grabs that was intercepted. He looked uncomfortable against the Patriot's defense.
Kevin O'Connell, head coach, afterwards defended Howell's play and said that he was trying to get the ball out of bounds there. But just it came up short. But those are things that are going to work against him. However, that all being said, Max Brosmer, the former golfer who played well for the University of Minnesota last year, looked good again in a Vikings uniform. He was 15 of 27, 156 yards that he threw for. He did throw a late interception. But you have to think that they're at least considering this. And the other thing is you have to think that they're probably looking to see if there is another veteran quarterback available somewhere in the National Football League. Now, this is awfully late to be looking for one because most teams have already figured out who that's going to be.
NINA MOINI: Right.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: But there's a possibility that they might find one out there somewhere. So we'll see what happens.
NINA MOINI: All right, and Eric, remind us when the Viking's season officially begins. And what are you going to be watching for?
ERIC NELSON: Yeah, the games that actually count for Minnesota, it's all going to begin on Monday night, September 8 in Chicago against the Bears. And the Bears last night battered Buffalo 38 to 0. Again, preseason game.
NINA MOINI: Wow
ERIC NELSON: Take it with a caveat. You never how to read these things. But that is game one. But the Vikings do have a game on Friday. That's on CBS, so over the air National television. They'll kick it off at 7:00 PM in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans. Both these teams are one and one. I'm not sure we're going to see a lot of Minnesota's JJ McCarthy or Tennessee's Cam Ward, these young quarterbacks that these franchises are building their entire teams around.
Most NFL teams don't play their starters much, if at all, in the final exhibition game. We'll see if either the Titans or the Vikings buck that trend. I do want to point out, Nina, the Titans and Vikings played last November in Music City. And the Vikings sang a winning tune as they knocked off the Titans 23 to 13. Sam Darnold, remember him?
NINA MOINI: Yeah.
ERIC NELSON: Threw for 246 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for another TD in the Minnesota win. But of course, Darnold won the NFL lottery, signed a huge deal with Seattle in the offseason. And the Vikings will see Darnold down the road in Seattle as this regular season gets going soon.
NINA MOINI: Thank you. I know you'll keep an eye on it. Thanks to Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson, our sports contributors. And thank you all for listening. Have a great rest of your day.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
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