The Lineup: Tuesday, September 3

Author:
Mike Bebernes
Publish date:
Sep 3, 2013

Grant Halverson/Getty Images

I prefer my James Franco braised rather than roasted. Send any suggestions to SI.TheLineup@gmail.com. (Bold indicates a national broadcast. All times Eastern.)

Pregame Reads

Lindsay Gibbs of Sports on Earthtries to convince you that Serena vs. Sloane wasn't actually a letdown.
Is Peyton Manning the best broadcasting prospect ever? SI's Richard Deitsch asks the question.
Deadspingot its hands on some FBI documents that detail the agency's suspicions that former MLBPA director Marvin Miller was a Communist.

Starter

NFL Hard Knocks, 10:00p.m. (HBO)

One season comes to a close as another begins. In the final Hard Knocks episode until 2014, the Bengals prepare for the NFL regular season. That, of course, means final roster cuts. A lot of reality shows spend a whole season building up to a $100,000 prize. This one will be handing out salaries at a minimum of $405,000 in montage form. Hopefully none of the guys on the bubble were playing "Mickey Mouse Football."

Reserves

MLB

Orioles vs. Indians, 7:05p.m.

White Sox vs. Yankees, 7:05p.m.

Nationals vs. Phillies, 7:05p.m.

Tigers vs. Red Sox, 7:10p.m.

Mets vs. Braves, 7:10p.m.

Cardinals vs. Reds, 7:10p.m.

Marlins vs. Cubs, 8:05p.m.

Twins vs. Astros, 8:10p.m.

Pirates vs. Brewers, 8:10p.m.

Mariners vs. Royals, 8:10p.m.

Dodgers vs. Rockies, 8:40p.m.

Blue Jays vs. Diamondbacks, 9:40p.m.

Rays vs. Angels, 10:05p.m.

Rangers vs. Athletics, 10:05p.m.

Giants vs. Padres, 10:10p.m.

NFL

Hey Rookie, Welcome to the NFL, 8:00p.m. (ESPN2)

Join NFL newcomers E.J. Manuel, Tyrann Mathieu, Marcus Lattimore, and Denard Robinson as they navigate the draft, training camp, and their first career games. Also, tag along with Vikings defensive tackle as he confronts the difficulties of maintaining the complex diet of an elite professional athlete.

Tennis

U.S. Open: Men's Round of 16 & Women's Quarterfinals, 11:00a.m. (ESPN2 & ESPN3) 7:00p.m (ESPN)

Roger Federer was knocked out yesterday and the eulogies to his career have already begun.

Racing

Red Bull Youth America's Cup, 2:00p.m. (ESPN3)

Basketball: FIBA Americas Championship

Paraguay vs. Dominican Republic, 11:20p.m. (ESPN3)

Canada vs. Uruguay, 1:50p.m. (ESPN3)

Mexico vs. Argentina, 5:20p.m. (ESPN3 & ESPN Deportes)

Brazil vs. Jamaica, 7:50p.m. (ESPN3)

Soccer

US Women's National Team vs. Mexico, 8:00p.m. (Fox Sports 1)

The U.S. squad will be without some of its marquee players for this friendly. Sadly, that means no repeat of this Tobin Heath bomb from the NWSL final.

Canadian Football

Montreal Alouettes vs. Toronto Argonauts, 7:30p.m. (NBC Sports & NBC Sports Live Extra)

Deep bench

Heroes of Cosplay, 10:00p.m. (SyFy)

It was inevitable that the dress-up culture of Comic Con would escalate into intense obsession for some of its practitioners. If you think these costumes are impressive, you should see some of the incredibly realistic fast food worker cosplay these guys don during the day.