GLOBAL NEWS

For the first time in MLB history, eight playoff games were played in one day. What was it like to watch it all? There has never been a baseball day quite like Wednesday. There have never been eight playoff games in one day, much less eight playoff games with four potential elimination games , each doled out an hour after the last. Now, Sports Illustrated has a full slate of coverage around the actual games. But what about the game-watching experience? A record of what it was like to try to balance all eight? For posterity’s sake, I wrote it down: 12:00 p.m. ET: MLB is trying to brand this as the Fall Frenzy—a right-sized amount of chaos, just enough to invoke the opening Thursday of March Madness, all fun and no stress. Maybe! But that framework strikes me as... optimistic. The day feels both like it’s supposed to call for an intricate game plan ( Watch Game A until X happens, Watch Game B until Y, etc. ) and like it can’t possibly live up to expectations (not all of these can be

The Lakers added insult to injury by routing the Heat while they were reeling from injuries to Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler and Goran Dragic. LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – The NBA Finals just got started, but the question must be asked: Are the NBA Finals over? Forget the final Game 1 score of Lakers 116, Heat 98 . The Lakers led by 30 halfway through the third quarter. After that, the teams were not playing meaningful basketball. They were providing content. It is hard to imagine how Wednesday night could have gone worse for Miami’s players unless somebody made them re-watch the presidential debate. Their three stars all got hurt. Goran Dragic injured his foot, Bam Adebayo aggravated a shoulder injury, and Jimmy Butler rolled an ankle. Butler kept playing, but Dragic and Adebayo did not. Also, it became obvious that nobody on the Heat can guard Anthony Davis, but to be fair to Miami, when Pat Riley built the roster he was limited to a pool of eight billion people. Davis finished with 34

In a USL match, the San Diego Loyal SC left the pitch following an alleged anti-LGBTQ slur directed at Collin Martin from an opposing player. During Wednesday's game between the San Diego Loyal SC and Phoenix Rising FC, the Loyal walked off the pitch in protest after a Rising player allegedly directed an anti-LGBTQ slur at San Diego midfielder Collin Martin. Martin, 26, came out as gay in 2018 while playing for the Minnesota Timber of the MLS, making him at the time the only out active athlete in all men's major league sports in the U.S. Last week, San Diego forfeited a match in protest after an opposing player from the Los Angeles Galaxy II used the n-word toward a Loyal player. Landon Donovan, former U.S. national team starter and current co-owner, executive vice president and manager of the Loyal, issued a statement following the forfeiture saying the team "needed to stand up for something much bigger than a soccer game." During Wednesday's incid

The Cardinals’ 7-4 win over the Padres on Wednesday was reminiscent of nearly every St. Louis postseason win in recent memory. Given the ubiquitous nature of advanced stats in baseball—from their utilization in front offices league-wide, to their accessibility to the average fan via resources like Baseball Savant—it’s clear that we live in an enlightened baseball world. It’s amusing now to think, not even 20 years ago, the notion of on-base percentage being an undervalued metric was considered cutting edge. But, like Brad Pitt-as-Billy Beane will tell you, it’s important to get on base , and the sport has progressed leaps and bounds since the Moneyball revolution of the early 2000s. Yet with all of the data we have on hand, there’s still no clear-cut answer for how to harness postseason success. Beane himself has called it “ f------ luck ,” while the brightest minds from Harvard to Stanford have examined the role luck plays in October (and late-September) baseball. Their conclusio

The stars were out in (virtual) full force for Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Lakers and Heat. In a typical year, Game 1 of the NBA Finals featuring the Lakers at the Staples Center would be certain to be an A-list affair. Usual suspects like Jack Nicholson, Flea and James Goldstein would certainly be there, along with plenty of other Hollywood dignitaries. Alas, the pandemic has robbed us of that spectacle, but that doesn't mean the stars didn't show up along the screens inside the NBA bubble. Among the esteemed guests in attendance as a virtual fan on Wednesday was former president Barack Obama, a noted basketball fan. Obama's Bulls did not quite make it to the NBA Finals, though he was logged on and dressed as a neutral observer. Alongside the 44th president were Shaquille O'Neal, Dwyane Wade, Paul Pierce and James Worthy, among others. This is Obama's second interaction with the NBA zeitgeist during the pandemic. He made a notable appearance duri

For Miami to knock off the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday near Orlando, the Heat need to be at the top of their game. Heat forward Jimmy Butler said even that might not be enough. "We're going to have to play damn near perfect because they're such a good team and they do so many things well," Butler said after the Heat's series-clinching 125-113 win Sunday over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. "Obviously, you know the star power that they have. We're not going to back down, though. ... We're going to lock into this film and we're going to be ready to go. I think it will be some must-see TV." Bam Adebayo sparked Miami's victory over Boston with 32 points and 14 rebounds. Butler scored 22 points and Tyler Herro added 19 for the Heat, who will be seeking their fourth NBA title. The Heat won their last one in 2013, when LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh led them to the se

There are many ways to quantify how long it's been since the Minnesota Twins won a playoff game. Three hundred twenty-three men have pulled on Twins jerseys since Oct. 5, 2004. They hail from all six inhabited continents. They range from 5’8” to 6’11”. One of them played alongside Steve Carlton, who made his major league debut in 1962; one of them made his major league debut on Wednesday. They span, in some ways, the spectrum of human experience, but they all have one thing in common: Since that crisp Tuesday night 16 years ago, they have not won a postseason game in a Minnesota uniform. Wednesday’s 3–1 loss to the Astros was the Twins’ 18th straight playoff defeat, which extended their North American sports record. It knocked them out of yet another postseason. The streak has now stretched across seven playoff series: the 2004 American League Division Series, the ’06 ALDS, the ’09 ALDS, the ’10 ALDS, the ’17 AL wild-card game, the ’19 ALDS and now the ’20 AL wild-card series. I

For the first time ever, eight postseason games will be played in one day. Here's your viewing guide for the "Fall Frenzy." In a season full of baseball firsts, Wednesday will hold another: eight playoff games in one day. Depending on your perspective, it’s set to be either gloriously chaotic, or a total mess. (MLB’s trying to play into the idea of the former by invoking a March Madness vibe with its chosen moniker for this week, “Fall Frenzy,” but… it’s not hard to see the latter.)  It’ll be impossible to watch all of these games in their entirety. But with best-of-three series, every game is potentially important, and so there are some hard choices to make. What to watch? How? When? Here’s your viewing guide. Game 1: Cincinnati Reds (7) at Atlanta Braves (2), 12 p.m. ET, ESPN The Pitching Match-Up: Trevor Bauer vs. Max Fried. It’s the best pairing of the afternoon, with both pitchers enjoying career seasons and Bauer a favorite for the Cy Young. One Thing to Wa

The Yankees-Indians Game 1 matchup between Gerrit Cole and Shane Bieber was supposed to be a pitcher's duel. It never materialized. In the first postseason start of his career, Cleveland Indians righthander Shane Bieber decided to do something he had not done all season: start the game with four straight fastballs. Bad idea. In just that eyeblink, the New York Yankees led Game 1 of the Wild Card Series 2-0, Bieber was guiding the baseball without velocity or conviction, and the shine from his Triple Crown season lost luster. From there it degraded further. The duel between Gerrit Cole, the richest pitcher in baseball , and Bieber, the presumptive Cy Young Award winner, never materialized for even one inning. Cole in his own way pitched an homage to the late Tom Seaver . On the first day of postseason baseball since the great Seaver passed away, Cole joined him as the only pitchers with at least 13 strikeouts without a walk in a postseason game. Cole was as brilliant as you wou

For Miami to knock off the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday near Orlando, the Heat need to be at the top of their game. Heat forward Jimmy Butler said even that might not be enough. "We're going to have to play damn near perfect because they're such a good team and they do so many things well," Butler said after the Heat's series-clinching 125-113 win Sunday over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals. "Obviously, you know the star power that they have. We're not going to back down, though. ... We're going to lock into this film and we're going to be ready to go. I think it will be some must-see TV." Bam Adebayo sparked Miami's victory over Boston with 32 points and 14 rebounds. Butler scored 22 points and Tyler Herro added 19 for the Heat, who will be seeking their fourth NBA title. The Heat won their last one in 2013, when LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh led them to the se

Despite trailing by six points at halftime, the Las Vegas Aces rallied past the Connecticut Sun to advance to the 2020 WNBA Finals. Despite trailing by six points at halftime, the Las Vegas Aces rallied past the Connecticut Sun to advance to the 2020 WNBA Finals.  Las Vegas limited the Sun to just 18 second half points and held the Sun scoreless in the final 2:39 of the contest. 2020 league MVP A'ja Wilson scored a game-high 23 points and hauled in 11 rebounds in the victory, doing so while playing the entire 40-minute contest. Veteran Aces guard Angel McCoughtry added 20 points in the victory, helping to make up the production that Las Vegas lost mid-series when two-time WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year Dearica Hamby was ruled out indefinitely with a knee injury. Alyssa Thomas led the Sun with 22 points and 10 rebounds while DeWanna Bonner finished Game 5 with 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Bonner missed a last-gasp 20-foot jumper on Connecticut's final possessio

Lately, the Wildcats vs. the Cardinals had lost a bit of its edge. But now Chris Mack is fully prepared to take on John Calipari. You like Duke–North Carolina? We all do. Great games, great teams, great entertainment. But if you want piss and vinegar with your college basketball rivalry instead of wine and cheese, you must salute the hate of Kentucky-Louisville. You must respect the petty. You must embrace the enmity of two fan bases that really, really—no, really—despise each other. Remember, two senior citizens fought at a dialysis clinic over the rivalry in 2012 , before their teams met in the Final Four. Until they do that on Tobacco Road, those fancy pants programs can stand down. Lately, the Wildcats vs. the Cardinals had lost a bit of its switchblade, streetfight edge. For one thing, Kentucky has played hammer to Louisville’s nail—the Cats have won three straight and six of the last seven. For another, the coaches had stopped doing their chippy part: Rick Pitino got tired o

Barcelona star Lionel Messi said that he acted with his team's best interests in mind this summer as he tried to leave the Spanish club. Barcelona star Lionel Messi said that he acted with his team's best interests in mind this summer as he tried to leave the Spanish club.  Speaking in his first interview since he announced he was remaining with the club, Messi took responsibility for any mistakes he might have made this summer.  "I take responsibility for my errors and if they existed, it was only to make FC Barcelona better and stronger," he told Dia rio Sport. "After so many disagreements, I would like to bring an end to everything. We all have to be united and assume that the best is yet to come." In early September,  Messi announced his decision to stay with the club despite expressing his desire to leave Barcelona by way of a now infamous burofax . Messi's contract with Barcelona included a  € 700 million (approximately $835 million) relea

Raiders players were seen on video without masks during the indoor charity event while talking with guests, who also weren’t wearing masks. LAS VEGAS — Several Las Vegas Raiders players attended a charity event held by teammate Darren Waller that might have violated league rules for the coronavirus pandemic. The Darren Waller Foundation held a fundraising event at a country club just outside Las Vegas on Monday to help young people overcome drug and alcohol addiction. Players were seen on video without masks during the indoor event while talking and mingling with guests, who also weren’t wearing masks. Among the players in attendance were quarterbacks Derek Carr and Nathan Peterman, tight ends Jason Witten and Foster Moreau, and Waller. Rules from the NFL and NFLPA limit what players are allowed to do away from the facility this season to try to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Among the banned activities are music concerts or entertainment events, house gatherings of

The center back arrives from Benfica, with Nicolas Otamendi going in the opposite direction in a separate deal. MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester City completed the signing of center back Rúben Dias as its third addition of the summer transfer window on Tuesday. City did not disclose financial details but Benfica had already announced on Sunday that it was selling Dias to the Premier League club for 68 million euros ($78 million). Dias signed a six-year contract with City. “They have been the dominant team in England over the last few years, playing an attacking brand of football which I feel suits my own game,” Dias said. “It is really exciting to be part of such a talented squad and to play for a world-class manager like Pep Guardiola, who has a proven track record of developing young players like myself. “I believe I can improve here, at a club whose ambitions match my own and I will give everything to be successful and win titles.” Despite signing Nathan Ake for 40 milli

A make-up date for the "Battle of the Belt" has not been set. Saturday's Troy-South Alabama game at Hancock Whitney Stadium has been postponed due to COVID-19 concerns within the Jaguars' program. South Alabama announced the postponement is "due to precautionary measures concerning the availability of student athletes." The Jaguars will also pause workouts on a temporary basis. A make-up date for the "Battle of the Belt" has not been set, and both schools with work with the Sun Belt Conference to reschedule. "This postponement is unfortunate, however, it's prudent and wise. Our most significant concern is the well-being of our student-athletes," South Alabama director of athletics Joel Erdmann said in a statement. "We are looking forward to hosting Troy at Hancock Whitney Stadium at a date to be determined. We appreciate the collaboration and understanding of Troy and the leadership of the Sun Belt Conference office in worki

Nobody controls the coronavirus, and we've known all along an outbreak like the Titans are seeing now was likely. The first reaction is, or should be, to hope everybody is healthy. Nine people in the Titans organization have tested positive for COVID-19 , a virus that has killed more than 200,000 people in the United States alone in less than a year, and so reasonable people—and even un reasonable people—should agree: Let’s hope everybody is healthy. Think of it this way: The five-year survival rate for melanoma skin cancer is 99%. If a friend said, “I have skin cancer,” you would presumably worry and hope they are healthy. The chances of anybody in the Titans’ organization dying are impossible to know—we don’t know whether there will be more cases, or the age and health of those who tested positive—but it’s possible and scary. So let’s say that first. And then let’s acknowledge something else: This was inevitable. An outbreak at an NFL facility was inevitable. Postponing ga

Tennessee's positive COVID-19 tests should remind both the league and its fans that we have to take this pandemic seriously. How the league responds is important. Before we get too far into this, let’s answer your first question: No, this is not Big Media hand-wringing. This is not the practical among us spiking the (figurative) football and saying we told you so. This is not some pearl-clutching monologue, the likes of which you have heard a million times already. This is a recognition that, as much as we wanted football to cement itself as an escape from the coronavirus after successful bubble runs in the NBA and NHL, the fact of the matter is that this disease is not going away—not even with the NFL’s unparalleled access to rapid testing, the likes of which the general public could only dream. The Titans’ outbreak , which the league announced on Tuesday, includes three players and five personnel, and will effectively shut down the operations of both the Titans and their Week

Ethan Page will be a free agent at the end of 2020 but he’s not eager to leave Impact Wrestling, where he’s blossomed into one of the promotion’s top stars. The work of Ethan Page has been a revelation this year. Starring for Impact Wrestling, Page spent the first six months of the year alongside Josh Alexander as Impact’s tag-team champions. Teaming together as the North has significantly elevated their standing in wrestling, laying a foundation of compelling content whenever they appear on Impact programming. The North does not yet have a match for Impact’s Bound for Glory pay-per-view on Oct. 24, but there should be more definition regarding their next program following Tuesday night’s match on Impact! against Ace Austin and Madman Fulton. “We’ve got a list of tag teams in Impact Wrestling that can say their best matches are with the North, and we look forward to adding another team to that list with Ace and Madman,” Page says. “We’re the best tag team in the world, and we do

The Fulham manager didn't take too kindly to owner Tony Khan's tweets explaining away another defeat. LONDON (AP) — Fulham manager Scott Parker has criticized the club’s American owner for going on social media to apologize for the team’s display in its third straight loss to open the Premier League season. Minutes after the final whistle of Fulham’s 3-0 loss to Aston Villa on Monday, Tony Khan wrote in successive tweets that he was sorry about the performance of Parker’s team and promised “better efforts” in future games. “People have the platform. You own a football club, you can decide how you want to communicate or send a message out,” Parker said. “It’s not something I agree with, it’s not helpful from that sense, but like I said that’s down to the owner and how he sees it. “There’s one thing that I’m disappointed with and that’s how he’s actually apologizing for the performance and that is something that I don’t agree with and he shouldn’t have.” Fulham is in l

Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teófimo López have a long history filled with tension, taunting and threats, with López's father serving as both his son’s trainer and chief Lomachenko antagonist. When the two fighters clash Oct. 17, it will all come to a head. But what really happened between them? In the years before The Incident, one of boxing’s top matchmakers watched tension bubble and escalate between two of his company’s top fighters. This being boxing, sport of not kings but chaos, the machinations weren’t unusual—yet. The matchmaker: Brad Goodman of Top Rank. The future combatants in question: Vasiliy Lomachenko, one of the best fighters alive, and Teófimo López, a top prospect then blossoming into boxing’s youngest world champion. On the surface, the two lightweights held little in common beyond their similarity in size. Lomachenko grew up in Ukraine, trained in traditional dance, won two Olympic gold medals, turned pro later and fought for a title in only his second pro bout. L