JOTTINGS
• The Vikings will play back-to-back home games just once in 2019, the same situation they had in 2018.
• The Vikings selection of Garrett Bradbury gave North Carolina State first-round selections in back-to-back drafts for the first time since 1980. Linebacker Bradley Chubb was drafted fifth overall last season.
• After a terrible start for the Washington Nationals, former Twins second baseman Brian Dozier has three home runs and a double in his past seven games.
• While Duke has had a lot of talented Minnesota players commit there in recent years, including Tyus Jones and Gary Trent Jr., next season will mark the first time under Mike Krzyzewski that two Minnesota-born players are on the Blue Devils roster at the same time in Tre Jones and Matthew Hurt.
• Give Gophers head basketball coach Richard Pitino credit as he now has the fifth-best recruiting class in the Big Ten, according to 247 Sports, after signing Isaiah Ihnen out of Germany. The Gophers still have a shot at Myron Gardner, a 6-6 small forward out of Detroit who has offers from Cincinnati, Xavier and Georgetown.
• After a tough 2017, Byron Buxton is off to his best start as a major leaguer. He is tied for the American League lead with 12 doubles. His career high for doubles was 19 in 2016, which he totaled in 92 games.
• So far this season, former Twins reliever Ryan Pressly has given up only four hits and no runs over 11⅓ innings of relief for the Astros. And since being traded to Houston last year, for minor leaguers Jorge Alcala and Gilberto Celestino, Pressly is 2-0 with a 0.52 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 34⅔ innings. Alcala is 4-1 with a 5.70 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 23⅔ innings at Class AA Pensacola while Celestino is hitting .197 with five RBI in 17 games at Class A Cedar Rapids.
