Hit “Like” to share with your friends!

Happy Fourth of July to all the Inspiring Athletes readers out there! I trust you are having a blessed and safe holiday weekend with your friends and family. There was plenty of sports action last week but here are a couple of things that caught my eye:

Lance Berkman and Josh Hamilton among All-Star Game starters

On Sunday, Major League Baseball announced the rosters for the 2011 All-Star Game in Phoenix, Ariz., and both include several notable Christian athletes headlined by National League starter Lance Berkman (St. Louis Cardinals) and American League starter Josh Hamilton (Texas Rangers).

Others to make the July 12th classic include N.L., pitchers Cliff Lee (Philadelphia Phillies), Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers), Brian Wilson (San Francisco Giants) and Heath Bell (San Diego Padres); N.L., starting second baseman Rickie Weeks (Milwaukee Brewers); N.L., reserves Yadier Molina (St. Louis Cardinals), Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado Rockies), Matt Holliday (St. Louis Cardinals) and Carlos Beltran (New York Mets); A.L., starting first baseman Adrian Gonzalez; and A.L., pitcher Mariano Rivera (New York Yankees).

Click here for complete American and National League All-Star rosters.

David Ragan snags first career Sprint Cup victory in Daytona

Roush-Fenway Racing driver David Ragan picked up his first career Sprint Cup victory at the Coke ZERO 400 in Daytona over the weekend. Driving in the #6 UPS Ford, Ragan held off a charging field amid two green-white-checkered starts.

Ragan came into NASCAR’s elite level with high expectations after winning the 2007 Nationwide (then Busch) Series Rookie of the Year award. Throughout the four-and-a-half-year drought, the Unadilla, Georgia, native always kept the faith. For more on that story, click here to read the Inspiring Athletes interview with Ragan.