Recent Ducks transfer hits record bomb with the Portland Pickles
At Lents Park in Southeast Portland Josh Schleichardt loaded up on a letter-high fastball and sent it deep into the night sky Friday, his 16th home run of the season and 55th and 56th RBI, both league records for a single season for the Portland Pickles of the West Coast League.
Less than two weeks ago Schleichardt transferred to the Ducks from Vanguard University of the Division II PAC West Conference. Vanguard competes against schools like Westmont, Point Loma, Jessup, Hawai'i Pacific, a Christian college in Costa Mesa, California.
Schleichardt hit .305 for the Lions in 2025. He clubbed 10 home runs and 30 extra-base hits with an on-base percentage of .411, a disciplined hitter who logged time at third base and the outfield.
SCHLEICHARDT STANDS ALONE AT THE TOP 🏆
— Portland Pickles (@picklesbaseball) July 26, 2025
Josh Schleichardt hits the WCL record breaking homer #16 tonight in Ridgefield!
This bomb also breaks the single season RBI record previously held at 54! đź’Ł
Congratulations king đź‘‘ pic.twitter.com/59Dr7T7nDD
Ducks third baseman and top glove man Carter Garate signed a free agent contract with the Texas Rangers on July 25th, so the late addition of Schleichart is timely. His star turn in summer league with the Pickles suggests he's ready to make the jump to the Big Ten.
Pro Duck Sabrina Ionescu paces Liberty to 5th-straight win
WNBA All-Star and all-time leading scorer at Oregon Sabrina Ionescu led all scorers in Brooklyn with 29 points plus five rebounds and eight assists as the defending champion New York Liberty won their fifth game in a row, 89-76 over the Phoenix Mercury.
SABRINA IONESCU IS ON FIRE 🔥
— WNBA (@WNBA) July 26, 2025
Make that 4 THREES and 24 POINTS for Sab!
PHX-NYL | ION pic.twitter.com/5u1VEOpTrD
The Liberty play tonight on NBA TV, a 4:00 PT start against the Los Angeles Sparks and their star guard, former Washington Husky Kelsey Plum, the all-star game MVP. It's the last game in the Barclays Center before a four-game road trip for the defending champs, 17-6 on the season and in first place in the Eastern Conference.
New executive order on college sports likely to change little
Scott Reed of Duck Sports Central offers an in-depth analysis of President Trumps executive order on college sports issued Thursday from the White House.
Reed writes that the five-page order is a political message rather than a legal solution to the problems created by NIL, revenue-sharing, and the Transfer Portal.
From Reed's column Friday: "
Trump’s executive order is essentially a policy position cloaked in legal language—an attempt to mirror the House v. NCAA settlement and SCORE Act while avoiding the thorny process of collective bargaining or congressional consensus. It’s designed for headlines, not courtrooms. And if anyone tries to actually enforce it, they’ll run headfirst into constitutional landmines and administrative paralysis"
Elsewhere, he offers a scouting report on new Duck 2027 commit at receiver Kesean Bowman, the four-star from Brentwood Academy in Nashville, Tennessee.
"Kesean Bowman is a dynamic, multi-dimensional wide receiver prospect whose game is built on polish, explosiveness, and untapped upside," Reed writes, noting that the wiry, broad-shouldered wideout is Rival's No. 49 prospect and No. 10 receiver in the class.