👨‍👦 A Triumphant Day For Fathers ... And Sons

It was a special Father’s Day for two big winners on Sunday – Jon Rahm and Trae Young. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider with Martin Rogers: It’s hard to imagine anyone having a more special Father’s Day than Jon Rahm and Trae Young, both of whom were able to share their big moments with loved ones ... we are treated to the story of a famous prerace NASCAR prayer, straight from the preacher himself ... and Joey Votto steals the heart of one young fan. There were highlights and lowlights from a packed and frenetic weekend of sports. For some, there were spectacular shots and no-you-didn’t moments. For others (here’s looking at you, Ben Simmons) the fallout was rough and unforgiving. There was Kevin Durant’s not-quite dagger, when a few millimeters of sneaker on the toe of a guy who deliberately wears one size too big, turned what would have been one of the most famed game-winners in postseason history into something that merely set up an overtime defeat. There were feats of physics-defying goalscoring from soccer’s Euro 2020, collapses aplenty on the treacherous back nine of golf’s U.S. Open and exploits of head-shaking force at the Olympic swim and track trials, including a really big guy – Ryan Crouser – hurling a 16 lb shot put farther than some of us can throw a baseball. [STORY IMAGE 1] Sports moves quickly these days and yesterday’s unmissable buzz moment is quickly supplanted by the next. Yet a pair of endearing images from Sunday will stick with me beyond the typical short-span, use-by date. The first came on Sunday afternoon, Father’s Day of course, when Spain’s Jon Rahm rolled in snaking putts of vicious difficulty on 17 and 18 to take a U.S. Open lead that he would not surrender. As he strode from the final green, his wife Kelley pressed their 10-week-old son Kepa into his arms, as his parents Edorta and Angela looked on. As he walked off to complete the post-round formalities, Rahm brought Kepa with him, because … why not? Rahm’s effort was spectacular – a closing 67 to take the title when so many others fell apart – and capped an absolute belter of a storyline. Two weeks ago, Rahm was denied a highly probable victory and a $1.7 million paycheck at the Memorial, when he tested positive for COVID-19 while leading by six shots following round three, and had to be withdrawn from the event. Sunday, he got a chance at something even better – and he took it. [STORY IMAGE 2] For all the gravity of that sporting moment and how it was the culmination of his career’s work, the thing Rahm, 26 and mature beyond his years, looked proudest of on Sunday was the bundle he held in his arms as he strode off towards the scorer’s tent. I hope every family had a wonderful Father’s Day, for everyone deserves one. Not many people got to have one like that, turning in the coolest of clutch performances to win your first major, returning to world No. 1, then getting to hang out with your little guy as you wait for the trophy. "As a father, on my first Father’s Day, with my dad here, to get this one done … is incredible," Rahm told reporters. "It feels like this is a movie about to end and I’m going to wake up soon. (Kepa) won’t remember this, but one day he will know." Not much can match that, but a few hours later the Young family likely felt something similar. On Sunday night, Trae Young’s father Rayford watched his son struggle and flounder and generally turn in a nightmare of a Game 7 for the Atlanta Hawks. [STORY IMAGE 3] Until … it turned around. Young and the Hawks never let their heads drop, and when the Philadelphia 76ers’ nerve failed them for the final time, perhaps summed up by the unfortunate Simmons being so short on confidence that he passed up an open dunk deep in the fourth quarter, one of the postseason’s wildest developments had come to fruition. Led by Young, who missed 17 of his first 19 shots but proved unstoppable down the stretch, the underrated Hawks are going to the Eastern Conference finals. And, as he made his way down the tunnel at Wells Fargo Center, Young felt something wasn’t quite right, so he turned, and headed back to the court. He moved a chair aside, stepped up into the stands, skirted up some steps, peeled off his jersey and lightly tossed it to Rayford, who responded with a fist pump, tears welling in his eyes. "A winning jersey," Trae Young told TNT. "I wanted to come out here and win, not only for my teammates but for my dad. We’ve been through a lot, so for us to have a playoff game on Father’s Day, it was only right once we won to give it to him." Happy Father’s Day, indeed. [STORY IMAGE 4] Fathers of young male and female athletes everywhere will know it is a special privilege to watch and to be there – all the transporting and writing of checks over the years notwithstanding. It’s hard, so hard at times, especially when you know how badly they want it and you’re wired to want it just as badly for them. But it’s worth it, always worth it, whether you get the fairytale Kepa Rahm moment or Rayford Young moment, or not. Father’s Day has had its share of remarkable sporting successes. Michael Jordan won his fourth NBA title with the Chicago Bulls on that day in 1996, sobbing on the floor of the United Center locker room as he remembered his murdered father, James. Jim Bunning threw the first perfect game in Philadelphia Phillies history at Shea Stadium in 1964, while in 2000 Tiger Woods claimed his third Major, and arguably his most dominant – winning by 15 strokes at Pebble Beach. Special performances, special moments. Special Father Days. Sunday was another one. [STORY IMAGE 5] Here’s what others have said ... Skip Bayless, Undisputed: “Trae Young shot 5-for-23 from the floor and 2-for-11 from 3 and the Hawks won Game 7 by seven. ‘Ice Trae’ was shivering cold.” Jon Rahm, 2021 U.S. Open Champion: “I mean, I might have looked calm. I was not calm. I wish people could see our heart rate when we’re playing in those moments because that was tense, but you practice to let your body basically take over, right? That’s what I did.” J.J. Watt, NFL Star: “Rahm proposed to his wife on that course, won his first ever major there and had his newborn baby in attendance on Father’s Day? Man that’s awesome.” [IN OTHER WORDS] - What would happen if you held a baseball game between all-time great MLB fathers and all-time great MLB sons? [We broke it down in honor of Father’s Day.]( - Kevin Durant came one shoe size away from sending the Brooklyn Nets to the Eastern Conference finals. [What happens next for the super team?]( - “Boogity, boogity. Amen.” A decade ago, Pastor Joe Nelms gave a preface prayer in Nashville that became a NASCAR legend. [We caught up with him.]( [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( A young Cincinnati Reds fan was devastated when the player she came specifically to watch on Saturday – Joey Votto – was ejected in the first inning. The mother posted a picture of her teary-eyed daughter after the incident, which tugged at the heartstrings of the Reds. The Reds and Votto soon made things better, as the young fan received not only a baseball autographed by Votto, but with a note included. “I am sorry I didn’t play the entire game,” Votto wrote. All is well that ends well! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Copa América: Argentina vs. Paraguay (FS1, 8 p.m. ET) Lionel Messi takes the field once again as Argentina faces Paraguay in group play. New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning (NBCS, 8 p.m. ET) The Isles face off against the Lightning in a critical Game 5 of their Stanley Cup semifinal series. Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres (ESPN, 10:10 p.m. ET) This budding NL West rivalry is renewed as the defending champion Dodgers head south to take on their former teammate Yu Darvish and the Padres. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres Padres to win by more than 1: +165 It’s always fun when these two NL West rivals get together, and the fact that both teams trail the San Francisco Giants in the standings doesn’t take anything away from that. Even better? The Dodgers get to face their former teammate Yu Darvish, who will get the start for San Diego. Darvish has been excellent again this season, sporting a 2.57 ERA across 14 starts. And he’s been even better historically against the Boys in Blue. In three career starts against the Dodgers, Darvish has a 1.29 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 21 innings. It seems sensible to lean into the Padres. [WHAT THEY SAID] “To me, I'll always be the skinny, 5-foot-6 eighth grader on the YMCA court, trying to get grown men to choose me for pickup games. It wasn't always easy. And that's what drives me.” — Trae Young [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2021 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. If you do not wish to receive emails like this in the future, please [unsubscribe](. FOX Sports respects your privacy. Click [here]( to view our Privacy Policy. Fox.com Business & Legal Affairs - Manager Digital Media P.O. Box 900 Beverly Hills, California 90213-0900