Author Archives: RJ Hamster

I was born on 6 August 1956 in San Francisco, California to Janet and (the late) Richard Hovis. I grew up in Santa Monica, California where I attended elementary, junior high school, and high school (graduating in 1974), in addition to involvement in sports and recreation (Little League +, the Boy’s Club ++). Further, it was in elementary school – St. Augustine’s By-the -Sea Parish School that I found, and made the choice to truly journey with God. I attended Arizona State University from 1974 to 1977 – seeking to become an architect, however, I was not accepted, and, as such, I graduated with a Liberal Arts degree. Upon graduation from Arizona State University, I attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and studied City and Regional Planning at the Master’s level. I successfully completed one (1) year in a two (2) year program – I did not complete the Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning – due to personal reasons. I returned to Santa Monica where I started (October 1979) my career as graphic designer with Exxon Company, USA. I spent five years with Exxon Company, USA. While working with Exxon Company, USA I was accepted into architectural school – Sci-Arc in Southern California, however, I did not attend preferring to stay with Exxon.. In 1982 I married Laura Flosi and in April 1983 we had our one and only child – Lauren Alain Hovis – a gift from God. We moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1984 from Los Angeles, where I went to work as a graphic designer with Kitchell CEM (from 1985 -1987). From 1987 – 1995 I was an independent contractor, and a registered representative in mortgage finance, financial management, graphic design, and drafting. Further, I attended the University of Phoenix and successfully obtained a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in 1982. I was also a member of the Scottsdale Jaycees, where I became very involved in community events and projects. In 1994, I accepted a cartography position with the Defense Mapping Agency in Reston, Virginia. As such, I relocated from Phoenix to Reston. In 1998, I was accepted and worked as a Visual Information Officer with the Central Intelligence Agency. In 2002, I worked as a Support Officer until my retirement (due to a need for shoulder surgery) in September 2018. Away from my Federal Government service, I have been involved in various organizations and activities in Northern Virginia. In November of 2011, I married Rebecca Ouellette in Santa Monica, California. I reside in San Tan Valley, AZ with my two hamster - Jess and Timothy, our fish, our lizard - RJ Lizard., and our cats - Pearl and Grey. As to hobbies, I enjoy playing sports, attending sporting events, mentoring individuals from financial management to hamsters, building models, photography, travel, multimedia design, managing partner for RJ Hamster, and jazz – smooth jazz to a samba or a bossa nova. Love and God Bless, Peter – aka RJ Hamster Jo hi

Jun 25, 2026 View Online

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All-Star finalists revealed tonight

Thursday, June 25

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Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today’s games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Today’s edition is brought to you by David Adler.

The All-Star finalists will be revealed tonight. Here’s everything you need to know.

The first phase of All-Star Game voting is now over. The results will be announced at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network, with live coverage starting at 5 p.m. ET.

What’s at stake?

There are two big things:

1) The top overall vote-getter in each league clinches an automatic starting spot in the 2026 All-Star Game on July 14 in Philadelphia.

As of the latest ballot update, the National League leader was Shohei Ohtani (no surprise there), and the American League leader was Blue Jays second baseman Ernie Clement (big surprise there).

2) To determine who else is starting the All-Star Game, the top two players at every position, and the top six outfielders, advance to Phase 2 of the voting.

The winners of those head-to-head runoffs (and the top three outfielders in each league) are the All-Star starters.

How does the next phase of voting work?

Voting for Phase 2 begins at noon ET on Monday. Fans have 72 hours to cast their ballots until voting ends at noon ET on Thursday.

Vote totals from Phase 1 do not carry over. Every position race starts from scratch.

Fans can vote once per day during Phase 2, with the daily voting limit resetting each day at midnight. Just like in Phase 1, the All-Star Ballot is available at MLB.com, on all 30 MLB club sites and on the MLB App.

The All-Star starters will be announced on Saturday, July 4, at 7:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

What are the closest Phase 1 races?

Here are five close races to watch when the results are revealed tonight:

NL first base — Bryce Harper is trying to catch Matt Olson for the second finalist spot, with both stars already over the 1 million vote mark as of the last ballot update.
NL second base — Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott holds a narrow lead over the Brewers’ Brice Turang to be the second finalist.
NL outfield — Mets star Juan Soto is just barely ahead of the Nationals’ James Wood for the sixth and final spot, with the Cardinals’ Jordan Walker also close behind.
AL second base — The Rangers’ Ezequiel Duran is trying to hold off the Astros’ Jose Altuve for the No. 2 spot.
AL outfield — Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, Byron Buxton and Cody Bellinger hold a solid lead for the top four spots, but there are five outfielders fighting for the last two spots: Julio Rodríguez, Randy Arozarena, Daulton Varsho, Jesús Sánchez and Riley Greene.

See our full FAQ for tonight’s All-Star Game finalist reveal here >>

A NEAR NO-NO AND MORE AT THE TROP

Today’s Rays game was a wild one.

First of all, the team that invented the “opener” nearly got a no-hitter out of one. The Rays came within two outs of a combined no-hitter in their 13-2 win over the Royals, a game that was started by reliever Casey Legumina.

After Ian Seymour piggybacked on Legumina with 6 2/3 no-hit innings of his own, the no-hit bid was finally spoiled by Carter Jensen, who hit a home run off Craig Kimbrel in the ninth inning, extending his MLB-best hitting streak to 16 games in his final at-bat of the day.

While all that was happening for the Rays on the mound, they were also getting fireworks at the plate from star slugger Junior Caminero.

Caminero belted three home runs — his first career three-homer game — and capped off his day with an absolute moonshot off the Tropicana Field catwalks.

All in all, a pretty good way to kick off the day of games.

GAMES OF THE NIGHT

Two Cy Young contenders take the mound in the games to watch tonight.

Phillies at Nationals (6:45 p.m. ET, MLB.TV)

The Phillies have been down to their last strike two games in a row to the Nats, and they’ve come back to win both games. Now they’re looking for a third straight W behind ace Cristopher Sánchez, who’s in historic companyas the Phils’ season hits its halfway point.

Yankees at Red Sox (7:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network / MLB.TV)

Can Cam Schlittler torment the rival Red Sox once again? The AL Cy Young favorite enters tonight’s series opener with a 0.83 ERA against Boston in three starts going back to last year’s Wild Card Series, and Schlittler is also coming off a career-high 13 strikeoutsagainst the Reds in his last outing.

WHY PETERSON CAN IMPROVE WITH CUBS

The Cubs and Mets just pulled off the always fun “one dugout to the other” trade, with the Cubs acquiring lefty David Peterson in the middle of their series against the Mets at Citi Field.

Chicago needs pitching depth amid a rash of injuries, and even though Peterson has struggled this season — he has a 6.09 ERA in 16 appearances (eight starts) — there are a few reasons to believe he can bounce back with his new team.

Max Ralph explains why Peterson’s numbers could improve in Chicago, but we want to highlight the No. 1 reason here: the Cubs’ elite defense.

See, Peterson is a ground-ball machine. He’s induced a 53% ground-ball rate this season, which ranks in the 89th percentile of MLB pitchers. The one thing Peterson does really well is get hitters to put the ball on the ground. But a ground-ball pitcher needs infielders behind him who can turn those ground balls into outs.

And the Cubs? They just might have the best infield defense in the Majors, led by shortstop Dansby Swanson and second baseman Nico Hoerner.

The Cubs infield leads MLB in Outs Above Average (+22), according to Statcast, and ranks second in overall Fielding Run Value(+19 runs prevented from infield defense, just behind the Cardinals).

The Mets, on the other hand? They’ve been kind of a mess. The Mets’ infield is seventh worst in the league by Outs Above Average (-11) and sixth worst by Fielding Run Value (-11). Case in point: They just committed six infield errors in their Game 2 loss to the Cubs in yesterday’s doubleheader.

Peterson should get extra outs, and take some runs off his ERA, just by virtue of playing in front of the Cubs infielders. Read more here >>

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Here are three highlights from yesterday’s games.

• Mookie Betts reached a home run milestone with the 300th of his career — not the first “300” for the bowler extraordinaire — as the Dodgers completed a sweep of the Twins. Shohei Ohtani had a bounceback outing on the mound for L.A., even calling his own pitches.

• For whatever reason, Paul Goldschmidt has Tarik Skubal’s number. He mashed two home runs off the reigning Cy Young winner yesterday, and is 7-for-13 with four homers in his career against Skubal. So what’s his secret? “I have no idea,” Goldy said.

• The Cubs still have one more game against the Mets, but Dansby Swanson has already made history with a whopping 15 RBIs through the first three games of the series. That’s the most RBIs by a player in one series in 10 years (Danny Espinosa had that many for the Nationals in a series vs. the Reds from June 30-July 3, 2016), and the most by any player in a series against the Mets. Dansby has left teammate Pete Crow-Armstrong in awe.

BEAT THE STREAK

Can you Beat the Streak? Try to top Joe DiMaggio’s record hitting streak of 56 games by selecting a player each day to record a hit. If you get to 57, you can win $5.6 million. Plus, there’s a chance to win unique weekly prizes.

In the Cardinals’ game against the D-backs, Lars Nootbaar gets to face Zac Gallen, who he’s had strong numbers against. Nootbaar also has been raking against righties in general, and Gallen has been giving up a lot of hits.

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All You Need To Know For This Weekend’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen

Sahlen’s Six Hours Of The Glen
Spotters Guide

Sahlen’s Six Hours Of The Glen
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Sahlen’s Six Hours Of The Glen
Weekend Schedule

Close Finishes A Hallmark of Sahlen’s Six Hours Of The Glen

Watkins Glen May Be IMSA’s Toughest Physical Test

YRB Racing To Debut “Car Blanche” At Watkins Glen Following Acquisition Of Van Der Steur Racing

Single GTP Class Technical Platform Announced For 2030

1990 IMSA Camel GT Watkins Glen
3 Hour | GTP & GTP Lights

Porsche Unveils The New 911 GT4 R For Global Customer Motorsport

IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge –
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SI:AM | LaMelo Traded to Western Conference Contender

DAN GARTLAND

Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I’m glad the LaMelo Ball news broke when it did, instead of right after I sent this email.

In today’s SI:AM:

👋 LaMelo Ball traded

☘️ Jaylen Brown next?

⚾ MLB’s best young stars

NBA offseason kicks into high gear

Jim Dedmon/Imagn Images

The NBA’s Western Conference just got even tougher.

The Timberwolves have agreed to acquire LaMelo Ball from the Hornets, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports. Minnesota will receive Ball and Josh Green in exchange for Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, three second-round picks and three first-round pick swaps.

⚽ Check out SI’s World Cup Daily

The deal comes just hours after Charania first said during ESPN’s draft coverage that multiple teams were in talks with Charlotte to acquire Ball. The Bucks and Raptors were among the other teams interested in trading for him, according to multiple reports.

Ball won the Rookie of the Year in 2020–21 and was named to the All-Star team the following season, but injuries limited him to just 105 games between the ’22–23 and ’24–25 seasons. He finally had a fully healthy season this year, playing in 72 games as he led the Hornets on a late-season surge to finish with their best record in a decade and reach the play-in tournament. CONTINUE DAN’S COLUMN ON SI

The best of Sports Illustrated

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Several NBA Draft Prospects Are Leaving Millions on the Table by Jumping Early

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Super Bowl LXI Road Map: Falcons Pressed for Time With Loaded Offensive Core

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Tennis Mailbag: Serena Williams’s Return Shakes Up Wimbledon

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Inside the Numbers of the Ill-Fated Rafael Devers Trade, One Year Later

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Canada’s World Cup Journey Leaves Home, but the Dream Lives on in the United States

By Ben SteinerREAD MORE

Every USMNT Goal Means Free Friskies

When the USMNT scores this summer, cats score too! As an official US Soccer partner, Friskies is giving away one million cans of wet cat food to fans and cats in need — donating cans after the first goal of every game, plus giving fans a chance to claim a Free Friskies coupon in the myPurina app every time the USMNT scores. Let’s celebrate every Certified Frisky moment!

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👀 The top five …

… things I saw yesterday:

5. Mr. and Mrs. Met doing the Norway rowwith a bunch of soccer fans at Citi Field.

4. Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa’s moment on the field with his kids after coming on as a substitute to appear in his sixth career World Cup. Ochoa was also mobbed by his teammates after the final whistle.

3. Paul Goldschmidt’s two home runs off of Tarik Skubal. The 38-year-old Goldschmidt is having his best season at the plate in years, and he’s been especially great against lefties like Skubal. He’s batting .408/.489/.816 with eight homers in 88 plate appearances against lefties this season.

2. Mateo Chávez’s great run for Mexico’s first goal.

1. Thapelo Maseko’s goal that gave South Africa an upset win over South Korea. South Africa will advance to the knockout stage for the first time in its history.

🎥 The best of SI video

In the latest Open Floor podcast, Chris Mannix and Rachel Nichols break down the Jaylen Brown situation in Boston, whether the Bucks received enough from the Heat in the Giannis trade and the Wizards’ selection of AJ Dybantsa.

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Last chance to pick All-Star Ballot finalists

Thursday, June 25

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TOP NEWS

LAST CHANCE to vote in Phase 1 of All-Star ballot

Vote until noon ET to help your favorite stars move a step closer to an All-Star selection. Then watch the MLB Tonight National Pregame Show on MLB Network starting at 5 p.m. (with announcement at 6) to see which players will be named Finalists and move on to Phase 2.

15 RBIs in one series?! Dansby’s dominance sets franchise history

Get your Groover on! Rookie’s first homer sparks D-backs offense

Cubs to acquire lefty Peterson from Mets (source)

Hill’s a hero! Down to last strike, Phils rally for 2nd straight comeback win

Ohtani’s bounce-back start becomes learning opportunity for Rushing

How does Goldy (2 HRs) keep dominating Skubal? ‘I have no idea’

Mookie’s milestone moment brings new meaning to 300 game

Angels rally twice, walk off O’s on 10th-inning hit that went … 15 feet!

With depleted ‘pen, Crew cobbles together clutch sweep of rival Reds

With mind on tragedy in homeland, rookie Bericoto hits first walk-off home run

See who stood out during Day 2 of the 2026 Draft Combine

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Longest Home Run

Victor Bericoto

445 ft

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Hardest Base Hit

Samuel Basallo

112.5 mph

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Fastest Strikeout

Shohei Ohtani

101.4 mph

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Decisive Play

Phillies

75.1% WPA

9th Inning

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Dansby Swanson

1st Cub with 4+ RBIs in 3 consecutive games (15 total)

Samuel Basallo

8th catcher with a multi-HR game at age 21 or younger

Braxton Ashcraft

1st Pirate with 2 starts with 10+ K’s and 0 BB in the same season

Paul Goldschmidt

2 HRs vs. Skubal to raise OPS to MLB-best 1.305 vs. LHP (min. 75 ABs)

Mookie Betts

17th active player and 169th overall to hit 300+ HRs

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STAFF PICKS

Yordan Alvarez, Shohei Ohtani and Nick Kurtz

Lefty-swinging stars raking their way into Hitter Power Rankings

The top three players held strong, underscoring an emerging theme: Left-handed sluggers are dominating the game.

Answering burning Trade Deadline questions on Red Sox, Mets, Skubal and more

Senior national reporter Mark Feinsand recently took part in a Reddit AMA to answer readers’ questions about the Trade Deadline.

Seth Lugo, Sonny Gray and Tarik Skubal in an envelope with a letter addressed to Mark Feinsand

The hottest pitching prospects right now — one for each club

What a difference a month makes! Only two prospects who were red-hot in May return to the most formidable hurlers list this go-around.

Pitching prospects on a tear include Karson Milbrandt (Marlins), Kade Anderson (Mariners), Henry Lalane (Yankees), Yoel Tejada Jr. (Nationals), Briggs McKenzie (Braves), Adam Serwinowski (Dodgers) and Ramon Marquez (Phillies)

The wave just can’t compare to the ‘Viking Row’

There was a sea of red in the stands thanks to the massive group of Norwegian fans in town for the World Cup who visited Citi Field for the Mets’ doubleheader against the Cubs.

Mr. and Mrs. Met join Norwegian fans at Citi Field

MLB Network Showcase: Yankees vs. Red Sox

Willson Contreras and the Red Sox host Ben Rice and the Yankees at 7 p.m. on an MLB Network Showcase presented by Goodyear (or Rangers vs. Blue Jays).

Royals, Rays serve up lunchtime baseball

A red-hot Jac Caglianone and the Royals are at Tropicana Field to take on Junior Caminero and the Rays at noon ET.

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SCOREBOARD

TEX 2
MIA 4

CHC 10
NYM 3

CHC 10
NYM 5

CLE 4
CWS 3

BOS 6
COL 8

BAL 6
LAA 7

SEA 1
PIT 11

KC 3
TB 5

NYY 4
DET 2

PHI 5
WSH 4

HOU 3
TOR 1

MIL 6
CIN 5

LAD 4
MIN 3

AZ 9
STL 4

ATL 2
SD 5

ATH 1
SF 2

Your Night Prayer

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Today’s Night Prayer is brought to you by Catholic Company

A Night Prayer

Jesus Christ, my God, I adore You and thank You for all the graces You have given me this day. I offer You my sleep and all the moments of this night. I place myself and all my loved ones, wherever they may be, in Your sacred side and under the mantle of Our Blessed Mother. Let Your holy angels stand watch and keep us in peace. Amen.

Quote of the Day

“The true secret of love consists in this: we must forget self like St John the Baptist and exalt and glorify the Lord Jesus.” -St Peter Julian Eymard

The Power of Silence Against the Dictatorship of Noise

Today’s Meditation

The silence of the heart is the most mysterious thing, because although we can decide not to talk by keeping quiet … we have less control over our heart. In it there is a fire that burns, in which passions, anger, resentments, and violence are difficult to control. It is difficult to conform human love to God’s love. Uncontrollable rivers flow through the heart, and it is all man can do to find interior silence.

An excerpt from The Power of Silence Against the Dictatorship of Noise

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Examination of Conscience

The daily examination of conscience is an ancient Catholic practice. It’s very simple, and it’s designed to help us identify our sins and weaknesses so that we can improve and grow stronger in the spiritual life, while providing an excellent ongoing preparation for regular Confession. It consists of taking a few minutes at the end of the day to prayerfully review our actions in the light of God’s commandments, followed by the Act of Contrition.

Reflect on the victories and losses

Actively reflecting on the high and low points of the day can help you live more intentionally and bring a renewed sense of resolve into the following day.

Review your actions, words, and thoughts today. Did you actively guard yourself against temptation? Where did sin creep in?
In what moments did you practice virtue and moral courage?
Were you attuned to the Holy Spirit’s promptings today? Where did you feel His inspiration?
Ask Him for the graces necessary to follow His Will more purposefully tomorrow.

Act of Contrition

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin. Amen.

Practice gratitude

It is God’s love that has brought you into existence and to this exact moment. Practice looking for His hand in your day.

Where did you feel His loving gaze upon you today?
What people or moments helped you see God in your life?
Thank God for all these moments!
Ask Him to help you recognize His blessings and providence tomorrow.

Renew your commitment to Christ

Remember: our Faith is founded upon a Person—Christ! Renew your personal love and devotion to Him.

Thank God for the gift of His Son Jesus and our call to be His disciples.
Tell the Lord of your desire to know Christ more personally.
If possible, set an intention for your day tomorrow. Ask Our Lord to guide you in this act.
Pray a Hail Mary, Our Father, or another beloved prayer.

Rest with God

He determines the number of the stars, He gives to all of them their names. — Psalm 147:4

Compline

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Colossians 3:12-13 – Cultivating Kindness: Emulating Christ’s Mercy and Unity Through God’s Spirit

Colossians 3:12-13

(12) Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; (13) Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
King James Version Change email Bible version

The very fact that Paul urges us to dress ourselves with these virtues signifies that none of us has “arrived” spiritually. All of us are flawed, deficient, and weak in some respects. As we yield and develop these virtues, we must be forbearing and forgiving toward our brothers on the basis of Christ’s example of forbearance and mercy toward us. The enabling power of God’s Spirit is already within us, or this exhortation would be in vain.

It can be done if we will choose to humble ourselves and act when we become aware of the need of a brother or of the church itself. God calls upon us here not merely to act but to do it with affection. In all cases, we must let our heart dictate to our hand, to let our most tender feelings encounter the miseries of those in distress, just as Christdid in descending to clothe Himself in clay. We need to let our feelings be at hand and readily touched that we might open our hands wide in help.

This world has hardened us. We have seen so much arrogance and cruelty that God warns that at the end people will be “without natural affection” (II Timothy 3:3, KJV). We are this end-time generation, and we must go a long way even to start to be like Christ in kindness. But we can do it! Perhaps we can liken beginning to be like this to learning to swim by just “jumping in.” Kindness is something that we must develop, and we can do it because God has already enabled us by His Spirit. This fruit is especially sweet tasting and a major factor in producing unity.

Never forget God’s character, His example, and this promise He has given to us in Isaiah 54:10: “‘For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has mercy on you.”

— John W. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
The Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness