MLB last night announced that the Pirates and Cubs "will meet in the third" Little League Classic in '19. Like the first two iterations, the '19 game "will take place at Bowman Field" in Williamsport, Pa., around the Little League World Series, and will air on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball." The Pirates played in the inaugural version in '17, facing the Cardinals (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 8/20). Next year, the Little League Classic, "along with the June 13 matchup between the Royals and Tigers in Omaha, Neb., will make up the inaugural Geico Summer Series" (MLB.com, 8/19).

Last night's second annual Little League Classic saw the Mets top the Phillies 8-2, and both teams "spent most of the day mingling with Little League World Series teams." The crowd was "made up almost entirely of Little Leaguers, their families and friends at a minor-league ballpark that seats less than 2,500 people" (PHILLY.com, 8/19). Appearing on the ESPN game telecast, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said, "The social media from guys on other clubs who were not involved today was really phenomenal, and the word kind of got around that it's a great way to spend a day. ... They arrived, getting off the bus with big smiles, and they were great with the kids. It was fun to watch" (ESPN, 8/19).

AWESOME night from the @LittleLeague Classic ... One of the best nights for all of baseball when the big kids get to be little kids ♥️⚾️ @Mets @Phillies @MLB @espn @AROD pic.twitter.com/SkLo7oLxxv

— Jessica Mendoza (@jessmendoza) August 20, 2018

Cheez-It is deepening its ties to college football, as the popular snack brand has signed a multiyear deal to title sponsor the Cactus Bowl beginning with this year's game at Chase Field. The bowl title sponsorship is the first ever for the Kellogg's brand, which already is a big sponsor of ESPN’s weekly "College GameDay." The fully-integrated partnership includes digital and social media, content, in-game exposure, product sampling and on-site activation on game day, as well as activation in local markets. Cheez-It will also appear in the Fiesta Bowl Parade with a float and custom balloon. Denver-based Impression Sports & Entertainment helped broker the pact between the Fiesta Bowl organization, which runs the game, and Cheez-It. The 30th edition of the Cheez-It Bowl, which will feature teams from the Big 12 and Pac-12 conferences, will be played on Dec. 26. ESPN will air the game.

Fiesta Bowl Exec Dir Mike Nealy said Cheez-It in their talks expressed a desire to increase their presence around the holiday bowl season, so that was a "period that they wanted to attack and it was perfect to match up with us." Nealy added Cheez-It was "excited about this property being available" due to the connection to the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl and the consistent attendance and TV ratings the game garners. "This game worked well for their marketing needs and for us it was a great partner," Nealy said. "We've had a few years now without any long-term partner, so we're very excited about having someone who’s in this for the long term." The game was without a title sponsor last season, with Motel 6 owning the naming rights for the two iterations prior to that. Ticket City was title sponsor for the January '15 game, and Buffalo Wild Wings held the rights for the '12 and '13 games. Before that, Insight served as the title sponsor for 15 years.

USA Gymnastics President & CEO Kerry Perry in her first media briefing since being appointed to the job Dec. 1 "did little to quell growing concerns regarding the sport's future." Perry yesterday in Boston addressed the media with a "pre-written statement of around seven minutes before fielding questions." Though she "continually stressed the importance of creating an environment where athletes feel heard and are comfortable voicing their feelings and concerns, few specifics were offered, perhaps a result of the organization’s ongoing legal battles." Many of Perry’s responses were "robotic in nature and contained stock phrases about empowerment and 'the path forward'" (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/20).

The U.S. Gymnastics Championships wrapped up yesterday at TD Garden, where crowds "seemed more sparse than usual." The attendance for Friday's night session was 5,835, and Sunday "drew 8,360 for both sessions." Figures for '17 were not immediately available, but this year's numbers "paled in comparison to the same day of competition in 2015, when 15,370 attended." The Olympic trials in '16, which "justifiably tend to draw the biggest crowds, saw two sold-out nights of 17,904 people each" (ESPNW.com, 8/19).

Dr Pepper this week will launch "Fansville," its new college football ad campaign that depicts a "make-believe town." The effort launches with "six 30-second and two 60-second spots created by the soda’s longtime ad agency, Deutsch, the same agency that was behind" the Larry Culpepper spots. The new campaign is "heavy on humor performed by college football luminaries such as Brian Bosworth, Eddie George and Les Miles." It will feature an "array of storylines, all treated like a TV series." Plots will range from "State and Tech fans who fall in love, a State mother who gives birth to a baby in Tech colors and a college football family whose teenage son begins to like soccer" (SPORTS BUSINESS JOURNAL, 8/20 issue).

The A’s saw a strong turnout at the Oakland Coliseum for their weekend series against the Astros. A crowd of 29,143 turned out yesterday to see the Astros reclaim outright first place in the AL West after salvaging the series finale 9-4. Saturday night’s game, in which the A’s tied the Astros atop the standings after a 7-1 win, drew a weekend high 32,204 -- 92% of capacity. Friday’s opener saw a crowd of 23,535 walk through the gates (THE DAILY). Much was made about the "low attendance numbers throughout the A’s previous series" against the Mariners earlier in the week, which "barely cracked 10,000 each game" (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 8/18).

Meanwhile, the Braves on Saturday night drew 42,143 fans to SunTrust Park for their game against the Rockies, the highest crowd in the two-year history of the ballpark (FACEBOOK.com, 8/18).

The Colorado Classic cycling race wrapped up yesterday in Denver, and crowds along the routes "appeared to be measurably smaller than the first edition of the race" in '17. Race organizer RPM Events Group Chair Ken Gart "admitted to some 'inconsistency' in the fan support over the four days," and he "wouldn’t go so far as to guarantee a third edition of the race." Gart: "Our goal is to make this thing self-sustaining so that it can be around for the long term. ... And I feel like we’re making fantastic progress. But I can’t guarantee it" (Colorado Springs GAZETTE, 8/20).

Colorado Classic. Final stage Sunday in Denver for the men and women. Photos by Christian Murdock @csgazette @CSGazetteSports #ColoradoClassic pic.twitter.com/YYdjUUKLQH

— christian murdock (@cogrizzly) August 19, 2018

A new poll slated to come before Calgary's Olympic bid committee this week found that 53% of area residents surveyed "support bidding" on the '16 Games, versus 34% "opposed." About 13% said that they were "undecided." The poll, "commissioned by city manager Jeff Fielding, surveyed 500 Calgarians last month." Yes Calgary 2026 organizer Jason Ribeiro said that "despite the small sample size," he "believes it's still representative of Calgary." The No. 1 reason for those opposing a bid -- at 73% -- was "because of the potential costs and taxes" (CALGARY HERALD, 8/20).

The Int'l Dota 2 Championships at Rogers Arena has "broken its own record for the biggest prize pool in esports history with a purse approaching" $25M. The event last night surpassed its '17 total of $24,787,916. The tournament’s main event is set to begin today, and the pool "will be distributed to the final 18 teams" (AP, 8/20).

The CBS Sports HQ streaming service this morning debuted its new daily 7:00am ET segment with former NFLer Danny Kanell and former NBAer Raja Bell discussing the top stories across sports (CBS Sports HQ).

Two Jacksonville companies have "renewed sponsorships for the Web.com Tour Championship Sept. 20-23 at the Atlantic Beach Country Club." Pivot CPAs will "again be the official CPA firm of the Web.com Tour Championship, and Legacy Trust will be the volunteer sponsor" (JACKSONVILLE.com, 8/18).

"I don’t like the CBA. I don’t like regulating hard work. By god, if a guy wants to come here in April and learn his plays? Wants to go out there and watch tape with me? I think he ought to be able to do that" -- Raiders coach Jon Gruden, on the changes in the NFL since he last coached in '08 (NBCSPORTS.com, 8/20).

"It’s LeBron. You don’t really have a choice. You have to take the back seat ... but it’s cool. Just bringing him, him coming to L.A., obviously I’ve said it many times, this is motivation” – Rams RB Todd Gurley, on the Rams sharing the L.A. sports market with Lakers F LeBron James (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 8/18).

"If you look at opportunities throughout European football today, I find it hard to see in many cases why Americans are looking at it. I don’t think there are many opportunities left to create a global brand” -- Serie A club AS Roma Majority Owner James Pallotta, on the recent influx of American investors in notable European teams (L.A. TIMES, 8/19).

"They’ll say, ‘Oh yeah really?’ and just change the subject. When people were seeing me on ESPN, everyone’s attitude changed" -- Pro cornhole player Cody Henderson, on how being featured on ESPN's annual The Ocho telecast earlier this month has made it easier to tell people what he does (CNBC.com, 8/18).

The WALL STREET JOURNAL writes under the header, "Is It Time To Sell Your NFL Team?" Football is the "biggest sport in the country, by far," but there are "worries the party is beginning to wind down." TV ratings "aren’t climbing like they used to." The NFL "still dominates" baseball, hockey and the NBA, but the "inertia is concerning."

Also:

• Why the "brain game" is the next frontier in sports.
• Abuse accusations come for another prominent gymnastics coach.
• Should more athletes talk the talk like Jaguars' Jalen Ramsey?
• Stars among NHL teams keeping close eye on potential '20 work stoppage.
• Building boom "continues for bigger, better Big 12 athletic facilities." 
• Worcester finally lands Red Sox' minor league affiliate.
• THE RINGER's Michael Baumann on "becoming Fake News."

No NFL player has ever protested the national anthem. I wish people would stop saying they have. It's so lazy.

— Ben White (@morningmoneyben) August 19, 2018

The Athletic is delivering a pretty clear message to newspaper sports sections: Either you start paying your beat writers what they're worth, or we will.

— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) August 20, 2018

If you're having trouble remembering the last time the #Phillies played a game that counted at a neutral site, there's a reason for that!

Their game in Williamsport will be their first since Sept. 3, 1957, when they played the Brooklyn Dodgers in Jersey City (Roosevelt Stadium)

— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) August 19, 2018

The @AP_Top25 drops at noon. I’m not a voter but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night. So I’ll say 1. Alabama; 2. Clemson; 3. Ohio State; 4. Georgia. Tough call because the names change so regularly in CFB.

— rickbozich (@rickbozich) August 20, 2018

NFL Honesty Award goes to Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, on why he went for 2 in 3rd quarter with the score 10-9: “So we don’t end in a tie.”

— Tim Cowlishaw (@TimCowlishaw) August 19, 2018

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.

Im.
Burns.
Langley.
Trainer.
Lee.
Champ.
Munoz.
Albertson.
Wright.
Chin.
Jones.
Rodriguez.
Long.
Svensson.
Teater.
Clark.
Etulain.
Prugh.
Garber.
Thompson.
Ortiz.
Schnell.
Hickok.
Castro.
Lebioda.

Your 25 newest @PGATOUR members!#TOURBound pic.twitter.com/U6U7NjLS42

— Web.com Tour (@WebDotComTour) August 20, 2018

A brief hit on the stories you need to know ... Subscribe on iTunes ... Check out our podcast home.

Some of the top news items from yesterday's edition of Weekend Rap:

• Revolution-DC United on FS1 features "all-female on-air crew for the first time."
• IndyCar-TMS agreement could allow for races at COTA, San Antonio.
• MLB Cardinals hold their HOF ceremony at Ballpark Village.
• MLL Championship game in Charleston, S.C., draws crowd of "about 4,000."

This week's In Depth looks at how college athletic departments are reimagining the gameday experience in order to drive revenue.

• Digital companies kicking tires on DC United local rights.
• Opinion: LPGA schedule hurts its domestic potential.
• New practice facility brings it all together for the Celtics.

Get a jump on the big stories in this week's SBJ in the First Look podcast.

Friday night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “U.S. Place Names.”

“It’s the only state named for a woman and whose capital is also named for a woman.”

The “main story” on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” last night was “trade,” with host John Oliver saying, “The basic system of barter and exchange that you have to do really carefully or you’ll end up with Dwight Howard. Seriously parents, talk to your children about trade. You don’t want to go to school with Pizza Lunchables and come home with Dwight Howard. You think he’s going to add a three-point shot to his game now, kid? Grow up” (“Last Week Tonight With John Oliver,” HBO, 8/19).

“What is Maryland?”

The capital of Maryland is Annapolis and was named for Queen Anne of Great Britain.