O sistema de reconhecimento facial do Allianz Parque ajudou o Palmeiras a identificar o torcedor responsável por cuspir no técnico Tite, do Flamengo, no último domingo (21).
continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasDicasIndependiente del Valle x Palmeiras: odds, estatísticas e informações para apostar na 3ª rodada da LibertadoresDicas23/04/2024PalmeirasVeiga vai descansar? Veja quem Abel Ferreira pode escalar como meia no PalmeirasPalmeiras23/04/2024Fora de CampoEx-Flamengo, Andreas Pereira responde provocação de torcedor do Palmeiras; vejaFora de Campo22/04/2024
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O nome do palmeirense não foi divulgado e ele não faz parte do programa de sócio torcedor Avanti, mas sim do ‘Passaporte’, programa que é gerido pela Real Arenas, empresa que administra o estádio.
A diretoria do Verdão fará de tudo para que a empresa que é da W Torre, tome medidas exemplares contra o torcedor que tomou tal atitude contra um profissional do futebol brasileiro.
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Nesta segunda-feira (22), a diretoria alviverde já tinha se desculpado com o Flamengo e agora o Palmeiras também apresentará as imagens para a polícia, além de torcer para que o clube não seja punido pela atitude isolada de um torcedor.
Neither a new-ball spell from Jasprit Bumrah nor a confrontation with Virat Kohli could faze the young debutant
Alex Malcolm26-Dec-20241:51
Manjrekar explains how Konstas took down Bumrah
A star is born. No ordinary star either. It was a supernova that exploded onto the global stage with 65 balls of the most electric batting ever seen on Boxing Day.Sam Konstas has arrived and made his name. Nineteen-year-olds aren’t supposed to do what he did. They’re definitely not supposed to do what he did to Jasprit Bumrah.He is the fourth-youngest Australian to make his Test debut, and he scored the third-fastest half-century on debut by an Australian and the fastest by an opener.Related
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Konstas looks 19, behaves 30, and is unfazed about a Test debut at the MCG
But it was what he did to Bumrah that was the most extraordinary. He toyed with the man who has tormented Australia in this series and took the most runs off him in one spell of any Test batter to have ever faced him.The man Konstas replaced, Nathan McSweeney, scored 15 off 66 balls with four dismissals against Bumrah in three Test matches. Usman Khawaja had scored 4 for 27 in 70 balls and Marnus Labuschange had 2 for 13 in 70 balls in the same games.Konstas smashed an unbeaten 34 off 33 off Bumrah, including 18 in an over. Bumrah has never conceded more in a Test over. Konstas hit him for two sixes. Only Jos Buttler has done that before and he wasn’t opening the batting on debut. And no batter had hit him for six in Test cricket since January 2021.”I’ll look to keep targeting him,” Konstas told the Fox Cricket broadcast when interviewed on the flying mic at the first drinks break. “Hopefully he might come back on.”Mohammed Siraj sledged Konstas. The kid charged against Siraj and slapped him through point for a boundary next ball and gave it right back to him, revving the crowd up with a hand gesture shortly after. Virat Kohli deliberately walked into Konstas’ line when he had his head down and bumped shoulders with him before telling the kid to “watch where he’s going”. Konstas stood his ground and gave it right back to India’s cricketing king.When asked about the exchange, Konstas said, “Whatever [happens] on the field stays on the field.”One former Australian player suggested privately that Konstas might be the most fearless of any Australian debutant in the history of Test cricket.Sam Konstas used the ramp to counter Jasprit Bumrah•Getty ImagesAll the credit in the world must go to Konstas for the show he put on to put Australia in a commanding position at lunch on the opening day. He did need a lot of luck, but it came because of some extraordinary bravery.Some credit though must also go to Australia’s selectors. They agonised over dropping McSweeney. But they concluded that while he was good enough for Test cricket, and good enough to be selected again, he was not putting any pressure on any of India’s bowlers, especially Bumrah.Chair of selectors George Bailey said they wanted to “throw a different look” at Bumrah and India, and Konstas was that different look.The decision looks like an act of genius now. But after 21 balls it did not. He looked instead like a deer in the headlights. Another poor Australian domestic batter sent to the gallows to be Bumrah’s next victim in front of 87,242 people.Bumrah beat him four times in the first over. Two balls into the next over, he got off the mark with a flick behind square from the first straight delivery. The roar of relief from the crowd showed how invested they were in the young man not being humiliated.Bumrah went back to bending outswingers away from him outside off stump. Then, in his 11th ball in Test cricket, Konstas tried to reverse scoop Bumrah and missed. The gasp from the crowd was the audio version of “WTF”. The replay on the big screen drew nervous laughter from the crowd. The same nervous laughter Khawaja had initially at the other end.He tried another forward defence next ball and was beaten again. Three balls into Bumrah’s next over he tried another reverse scoop and missed. Now the crowd was really murmuring. Phones pinged with messages flying. “WTF is this kid doing? Didn’t know Joe Root was batting for Australia.”Konstas finally got to the other end, courtesy of Khawaja. He charged against Siraj and missed with a wild swipe. He charged again and swatted across the line through the leg side for three runs and earned a death stare from Siraj.Konstas was on 5 off 21 balls and Australia were 12 for 0 after six overs. There was no evidence at this point he was going to do any better than McSweeney had against Bumrah, which would serve only to confirm the theory that there wasn’t a single Australian citizen capable of handling him.Sam Konstas got his fifty off 52 balls•Getty ImagesHow wrong that theory was. Konstas instead proved the theory that if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.Off the first ball of Bumrah’s fourth over the game changed. Konstas shuffled outside off and scooped him over a very fine leg to a mighty roar that was only dulled slightly because landed inches short of going for six.The next shot was even more amazing. He switched hands and reverse scooped Bumrah for six. The audacity was breathtaking. Three balls later he did it again for another boundary. Bumrah went for 14 from the over.To try the shot twice, fail twice, and then try again twice and pull it off twice is evidence of a player who has complete faith in his own ability.There was scant evidence of Konstas playing this shot previously in first-class although he is capable of it in the short forms. He had done it once in the Prime Minister’s XI game off Akash Deep with success. But the score was 50 for 2 in the 14th over of a 50-over game.He is understood to have tried it in his last Sheffield Shield innings of 88 against Western Australia, which made veteran coach Greg Shipperd anxious.He barely practiced it in the nets in the lead in to his Test debut. During Australia’s first optional session on Monday, he reverse scooped one throwdown from Marnus Labuschagne. On Tuesday, he was tormented by Scott Boland and Sean Abbott while trying to defend. He got out to the latter several times but never once tried to reverse scoop him.But this is what makes Konstas unique. Having been mentored by former Australian allrounder and opener Shane Watson, Konstas has a specific mental routine. One of the mental concepts Watson teaches is for players to tap into their “gut feel”. If they feel an option is the right one in the moment, based on their preparation, then instinctively they should take that option and not fear the consequences.Bumrah’s relentless accuracy made the shot an option in the moment, just like Rishabh Pant had done to Scott Boland in Adelaide, and just as England’s Bazballers do to line-and-length bowlers on a regular basis.Konstas was asked at drinks whether he had planned that shot prior to the game and the answer was no.”When the ball was coming down,” he said.It changed the whole complexion of the game. Rohit Sharma relented and moved third slip to deep third. Konstas nicked a ball shortly after that might have been caught by third slip but no one was there.In Bumrah’s sixth and final over of his first spell, Konstas delivered an astonishing assault as the impeccable lines and lengths became scattergun. The scoops were no longer needed. He moved outside leg and thumped him straight of mid-off for four. He pulled one through midwicket for two. He then launched a length ball over long-on for six before carving a low full toss behind point for four. The last ball of the over was lofted over mid-off without timing for two.Bumrah had conceded 18 in the over and 38 in his six-over spell and was pulled from the attack. Konstas was 45 off 44, having scored 40 from his last 23 balls.He raced to 50 in 52, and received an enormous ovation, before unfurling another audacious shot, running at Siraj and clubbing a short ball over midwicket.He finally ran aground trying to defend against Ravindra Jadeja. He was nearly pinned lbw in Jadeja’s second over. Umpire Michael Gough gave him not out and it was umpire’s call on hitting leg. In Jadeja’s third over Gough raised his finger as it was smashing leg stump.Konstas got a standing ovation for 60 off 65 and then wandered back out of the rooms to casually sign autographs and take selfies with the fans near the race.Aside from the Konstas-mania that will undoubtedly ensue, the flow-on effects of his audacious batting for Australia’s team were clear for the world to see. Khawaja, under virtually no pressure at the other end, cruised to his first half-century in 12 innings. The opening partnership yielded 89 in 19.2 overs, the highest opening stand Australia had produced in over 12 months and the highest against India in a Test match since 2018.What was clear too, when Bumrah returned for his second and third spells either side of lunch, was that Konstas’ innings was a complete outlier. Normal service resumed. Khawaja and Labuschagne struggled to score despite Australia’s imposing position. Bumrah bowled three maidens in five overs, conceding just five runs. But the threat of the new ball had gone. Edges fell well short of the cordon. India looked rattled and perplexed.The afterglow of Konstas’ supernova looks spectacular for Australia, in both the short and the long term.
MLB’s hot stove is about to get cranked up this week, as the 2025 winter meetings begin Monday in Orlando, Fla., where executives from all 30 teams will gather. And with executives, managers and player agents in the same room, the proverbial engines of the free agent and trade markets are being revved up. Some of the offseason’s biggest deals often go down at the winter meetings. This year could be no different.
The best available position player on the market, Kyle Tucker, met with the reigning American League champion Blue Jays, perhaps a precursor to his market picking up speed this week. Arguably the next best free agent hitter, National League home run king Kyle Schwarber, is a candidate to be the first free agent domino to fall in Orlando. And then there’s the trade market. Will back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal be dealt by the Tigers? All these questions—and more—will be answered in the coming days, making for an exciting time for baseball fans. That said, here are the biggest questions in MLB heading into the winter meetings.
1. Where will Kyle Tucker land?
Kyle Tucker is widely expected to sign the richest contract of the offseason. / Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
Tucker, who won’t turn 29 until Jan. 17, combines a 15.8% career strikeout rate and an 11.5% walk rate with 30-home run, 30-stolen base capabilities on offense. And he’s a former Gold Glove winner in the outfield. Put it all together and Tucker is well-positioned to become just the third player in the game’s history to exceed $400 million on a free agent contract.
So where will Tucker, the biggest fish, land? The already-busy Blue Jays, who hosted Tucker at the club’s player development complex in Dunedin, Fla., earlier this week, look poised to be an aggressive suitor for the top free agent bat fresh off of the franchise’s first World Series appearance in 32 years. Contenders with money to spend, such as the Phillies and Giants, should also have a realistic shot at landing the talented outfielder. The Cubs, who traded for Tucker last offseason, aren’t expected to pony up the money to re-sign him.
And while two of the sport’s biggest spenders, the Dodgers and Yankees, may turn their attention to other endeavors rather than splurge on Tucker, they still can’t be ruled out. With a come-one, come-all market, all eyes will be on Tucker in Orlando.
2. Will a top-tier starter get dealt?
The hot stove is already cooking in the starting pitching market, as Dylan Cease, No. 10 ranked free agent, signed a $210 million deal with Toronto back in November. And we’ve already seen movement on the starter trade market, with former first-round pick Grayson Rodriguez dealt to the Angels, and three-time All Star Sonny Gray and tantalizing 27-year-old Johan Oviedo acquired by the Red Sox.
But there are bigger trades that could be facilitated with the movers and shakers in Orlando. It behooves a playoff contender like Detroit to hold onto back-to-back Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, a 2027 free agent expected to command a record deal, until at least the trade deadline. But if the Tigers are blown away by a monster prospect-laden offer for Skubal, would they pull the trigger and get what they can for the lefty ace now? It bears watching.
Skubal isn’t the only former Cy Young winner who could be moved at the winter meetings, either. Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara, a workhorse starter who was one of the top pitchers available at the 2025 trade deadline before Miami opted to hold onto him, figures to garner plenty of interest from pitcher-needy contenders given that he returned to All-Star form in the second half. If Skubal, Alcantara or another top-tier starter is dealt during the winter meetings, it could shift the hierarchy at the top of baseball’s food chain.
3. Will Kyle Schwarber change teams?
For the third time in the last four offseasons, a league leader in home runs is on the free agent market. In 2022, it was Aaron Judge. In '23, Ohtani. No one would argue that the 32-year-old Schwarber, who is tied alongside Ohtani for the second-most home runs since '22, should command a deal in the stratosphere of the two best baseball players in the world. But it’s likely that the man who just led the NL with 56 homers and finished second in the MVP voting while playing in all 162 games will net a lucrative deal.
The burning question is: Where?
Schwarber has played the last four seasons in Philadelphia, where he has blossomed into one of the very best sluggers in baseball while becoming a fan favorite, as well as a leader in the clubhouse. Since the spring, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has made clear that he’d like to retain Schwarber—and the mission hasn’t changed come winter.
But Philadelphia will have plenty of competition. The Reds, a dark horse in the race, don’t possess the same coffers that the Phillies do, but might have geography on their side. Schwarber is a native of Middletown, Ohio, which is 35 miles to the north of Cincinnati. Might he be interested in a homecoming with a team on the rise managed by World Series winner Terry Francona? Or could the Mets, sworn NL East enemy of the Phillies, continue their rivalry with Philadelphia into the offseason and push for Schwarber as a Plan B in the event free agent first baseman Pete Alonso leaves? Phillies fans shudder at the thought. Perhaps Schwarber, seeing what the Red Sox are building in Beantown, wants a longer stint in Boston after he helped lead the club to the American League Championship Series as a trade deadline acquisition in 2021. Then, there’s the possibility of a surprise team emerging in the Schwarber sweepstakes.
The hulking slugger perhaps said it best in the aftermath of the Phillies’ gut-wrenching NL Division Series defeat to the Dodgers.
“You never know how it's gonna work out, right?”
4. Which one of Scott Boras’s clients will sign next?
Scott Boras will be the belle of the ball this week. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
It’s the most wonderful time of the year for commission-gobbling agent Scott Boras, who, in anticipation of the lavish deals he hopes to negotiate, always enters the winter in a jolly mood with punny jokes about his clients not far from his lips.
And Boras has plenty of reasons to be whistling a merry tune heading into the winter meetings. He’s representing four of top 10 free agents, headlined by Cody Bellinger, Alex Bregman and Pete Alonso, the latter two of whom are the best available at their respective positions. Oh, and Boras also represents two of the more promising free agents from Japan, starter Tatsuya Imai and first baseman/third baseman Kazuma Okamoto.
Plus, for Boras, the festivities have already begun. He helped land Dylan Cease—one of the better starters on the market—the biggest free agent contract in Blue Jays history, kicking the pitching market into high gear in the process.
It’s possible more of Boras’s high-profile clients will net deals in Orlando. The question is, who will be the first? There’s a compelling case that it could be Alonso, whose market seems centered around two big-money contenders—the Mets and Red Sox—with items of equal importance to signing Alonso on their respective to-do lists. Or perhaps Boston bows out of the Alonso sweepstakes and instead quickly ensures that Bregman, a well-rounded third baseman, proven winner and key veteran presence, returns before his market intensifies. There’s also a chance that, should Tucker get signed and set a robust market for position players, that Bellinger—a fine consolation prize for Tucker hopefuls and a Plan A for the wealthy Yankees—finds a landing spot. One thing is for sure: Boras is hoping the winter meetings are quite busy.
5. Could small-market teams make a splash?
The usual suspects are expected to be busy shoppers in Orlando. Most of the teams that comprise baseball’s top 10 payrolls—the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Blue Jays, Red Sox, etc.—are among the clubs in the mix for some of the sport’s top free agents.
But what about the small-market teams, effectively baseball’s have-nots? Last offseason, the lower-budget Athletics made a free agent splash when the club signed starter Luis Severino to a three-year, $67 million contract that represented the largest guaranteed contract the franchise had ever handed out. There’s a few clubs who could surprise at this year’s winter meetings, similarly to how Oakland did last December.
The Reds, parked amid the bottom 10 teams in payroll, have been linked to Schwarber. Baltimore, possessing a strong, youthful core and an ownership that has been reluctant to spend in offseasons past, is reportedly in the mix for Tucker, as well as top free agent starters Imai, Ranger Suarez and Michael King. The Pirates, mired in a stretch of seven straight losing seasons and owners of one of the lowest payrolls in the majors, have been rumored to be a potential spender with designs on adding to the club’s offense, MLB’s lowest-scoring unit this past season.
Could little-bank-take-big-bank at this year’s winter meetings?
6. How will the Dodgers retool for a run at a three-peat?
Los Angeles became the first team since the 1999 Yankees to repeat as World Series champions. Those Yankees went on to capture a third championship in 2000. Can the Dodgers enter truly rarified air in '26? To do so, they will need to address one of the club’s biggest weaknesses: the bullpen. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, knowing where his bread was buttered—and wasn’t—largely rode his starters to the Dodgers’ second straight title, as they averaged nearly six innings pitched per start in the postseason. And after the Dodgers’ bullpen posted an ERA north of four and the seventh-most blown saves during the regular season, one would expect the club to address the bullpen this winter.
But could the events of last year’s offseason dissuade Dodgers’ brass from opening up the wallet to spend on relievers? Los Angeles inked relief pitchers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates to deals for a combined $85 million, but the two underachieved mightily. Thus far, the Dodgers have reportedly been circling the waters around three-time All-Star reliever Edwin Diaz, but perhaps the market accelerates to heights too rich even for the affluent Dodgers. Improving the bullpen on the margins is not out of the question for Los Angeles.
The Dodgers also have a need in the outfield, given Michael Conforto’s free agency, as well as the inconsistencies of Teoscar Hernández and Andy Pages. Might Los Angeles make a splash by landing the top free agent in Tucker or perhaps seek a reunion with Bellinger, who rose to MVP heights and won a World Series during his six seasons with the club? The Dodgers could also explore the trade market for some upgrades in both the bullpen and outfield.
Whether the back-to-back defending champions choose to reload loudly or quietly makes them a potential catalyst in Orlando.
Angels outfielder Taylor Ward crashed into the metal scoreboard in Daikin Park on Sunday afternoon. Ward was chasing down a fly ball when he hit the scoreboard face-first and suffered a cut that immediately required towels from the bullpen. Ward eventually left the field on a cart.
After the game fellow Los Angeles outfielder Jo Adell ripped the Houston ballpark for the dangerous location of the scoreboard.
"He's doing what he's supposed to do," said Adell via SoCal News Group's Jeff Fletcher. "He's being aggressive on a play. At the bottom line, and I've talked about this before, but there should be no out of town metal scoreboard anywhere on the baseball field. It's the big leagues. This sh– is ridiculous. A guy goes back to make a play, and he's got to worry about a metal fence. That's crazy. So that's my honest opinion about it. He did everything he could to make a play, and he gets beat up by something that's beyond controllable."
As dangerous as the scoreboard may be, this appears to be the first time that someone has suffered such an injury at Daikin Park, which was formerly Minute Maid Park and originally Enron Field. The ballpark was originally opened in 2000 when it featured a hill and flagpole in centerfield. Those features also had people worried and they were removed following the 2016 season.
This leaves the train in left field as the only unique feature in the ballpark that hasn't been removed or caused an injury.
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis lashed out at FIFA and UEFA over the number of players picking up injuries on international duty as he called for extra transfer windows and compensation for clubs. The debate of releasing players for international duties has intensified in recent years with many arguing that clubs are being unfairly impacted by the number of games players are being forced to endure.
Anguissa blow for Napoli
The Serie A champions were rocked by a fresh injury blow as in-form midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa picked up a hamstring injury during a training session with Cameroon ahead of their World Cup qualifiers. Zambo Anguissa has displayed great form for Antonio Conte's side, having already scored four goals for the Italian champions and has appeared for the club in 10 out of their 11 Serie A matches thus far. He has since been ruled out for months, which comes as a major blow for Napoli.
In September, Amir Rhahmani suffered a similar hamstring injury while playing for Kosovo, which kept him out of action until the start of November, when he returned to action against Como in the Serie A.
AdvertisementGettyNapoli chief blasts FIFA and UEFA
Napoli president De Laurentiis slammed FIFA for the club's losses as he told Motore Italia: "I loaned Rrahmani, and he came back in a wreck, Anguissa came back in a wreck. We can't go on like this. When the championships are on, I have to get to the end without interruptions. We need fewer teams, fewer matches.
"Players earn a salary from their clubs, and clubs should be able to decide whether or not to send them to their national teams. If a player gets injured on international duty, a transfer window should be reopened and we should be compensated. But it seems FIFA and UEFA don't care about national leagues."
Yamal's injury blow created tension between Spain and Barca
Earlier this week, Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal pulled out of the Spain national team for the November games, citing injury problems, which irked the Spanish Football Association (RFEF). Following Yamal's decision, the RFEF released a statement expressing their surprise.
"This procedure was carried out without prior communication to the medical staff of the National Team, with knowledge of the details only through a report received at 22:40 last night, which indicated the medical recommendation of rest for 7-10 days," the statement released on Tuesday read. "Given this situation, and prioritising at all times the health, safety and well-being of the player, the Royal Spanish Football Federation has made the decision to release the athlete from the current call-up. We are confident that he will recover well and wish him a speedy and full recovery."
Before naming Yamal in his squad for the November games, Spain boss Luis De La Fuente had justified his decision to pick the teenager because of his recent appearances for Barcelona, claiming that he was in "perfect condition". With Yamal facing fitness issues this season, the RFEF's insistence on calling him up has sparked reports of tension between the organisation and Barcelona.
A similar issue has occurred in France, where Paris Saint-Germain saw Ousmane Dembele ruled out for several weeks after playing for his national team, causing another public feud between club and national association. France coach Didier Deschamps left Dembele out of his latest squad after the Ballon d'Or winner was hit with another injury while playing in the Champions League for PSG.
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Getty Images SportHow is it going for Napoli?
Napoli started their title defence campaign on a bright note, but have now failed to win in their last two Serie A games. Conte's side are now fourth in the league after their latest loss to Bologna as Inter overtook them to climb to the top of the Serie A table with 24 points from 11 games, two more than the reigning champions. They will be back in action after the international break on November 22 as they host Atalanta in a crucial Serie A clash.
TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays are out to change baseball, one stinking, annoying, pesky, skin-crawling, chalkboard-scratching, stone-in-my-shoe, please-make-it-stop foul ball at a time.
“That’s our goal,” says Toronto infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa. “To change baseball. We’re doing something that’s not taught anymore. We’re trying to bring baseball back to … well, baseball.”
It is a lofty goal that is three wins within reach after such a pestiferous 11–4 World Series Game 1 victory Friday over Los Angeles that after it, Dodgers pitchers should have been reaching for calamine lotion instead of ice.
After five seasons in which only a top-four home run team has won the World Series, Toronto (11th in homers, first in lowest strikeout rate) wants to turn the baseball world upside down, if not back to the 1970s.
The Blue Jays scored their 11 runs on 14 hits, including three homers, while striking out just four times. Talk about retro. They turned the baseball clock all the way back to 1978, the time of bell bottoms, love beads and the only World Series game in which a team had so many runs, hits and homers with only four strikeouts: an 11–5 win for the Dodgers over the Yankees in 1978 World Series Game 3.
So artful was Toronto it had nearly as many hits as swings and misses (15). The Blue Jays fouled off 39 pitches, 19 of them with two strikes. Their turn at bat in the sixth inning played out like one of those floor-borne domino cascades in which the tiles topple over one-by-one in serpentine style; there was artistry in a chain reaction that seemed to go on forever.
Twelve batters against three pitchers in that inning saw 44 pitches, including 15 pitches with two strikes without a swing and miss, fouled 12 pitches, put nine balls in play, drew two walks, took a hit by pitch and hit two homers.
“The epitome of how we play baseball,” infielder Ernie Clement calls it. “That inning is pretty much all we do as a team, as a group.”
The Dodgers brought to the series the best swing-and-miss pitching staff in the National League, especially Game 1 starter Blake Snell, who had a 50% whiff rate in three postseason starts this year. Now they know they have a fight on their hands with the toughest team to put away in baseball, whether that refers to when the Jays trail (they scored 11 unanswered runs after falling behind 2–0) or when they have two strikes.
“He had his stuff tonight,” Kiner-Falefa says. “We did a good job of getting into their bullpen. The moment he came out of the game we took advantage. We wore him down as much as we could. And it’s tough to wear him down when he’s in the zone as much as he was.”
Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk, right, hit a two-run homer to put the finishing touch on the Dodgers in Toronto’s nine-run sixth inning. / Erick Rasco/Sports Illustrated
Blue Jays’ preparation paying dividends
What is happening in this war of resistance in Canada is a synchronicity of hitting philosophy and sports performance experts on both the athletic training and strength training sides. Everything is connected. Everything is coordinated by first-year hitting coach David Popkins, 35, and assistant hitting coaches Lou Iannotti, 32, and Hunter Mense, 41, none of whom played a day in the big leagues but have plenty of experience playing independent ball.
Each day, for instance, the team posts a readout of each player’s bat speed from the previous night’s game.
“So, if a guy’s bat speeds are down, then he’ll hit the weight room,” Kiner-Falefa says. “Or I'll back off on the field [pregame work]. And if my bat speed’s down again, then I need to go in and get in the weight room and get with the hitting coaches and make the mechanical adjustment to get the bat speed back up.”
Mostly all the Blue Jays also wear Catapult vests that track daily energy expenditure.
“We wear those Catapults and they’d be like, ‘Alright, you’re working out too much,’” Kiner-Falefa says. “It was the first time where I saw it where they helped you get ready for the game. It wasn't just like tracking how much you did. They’re tracking your [swing] rotation to see, ‘Hey, my rotation's 50% low.’ It’s very skill specific.”
Sometimes the fix is physical.
“It could just be as simple as something’s locked up in your body,” Kiner-Falefa says. “Okay, then you go in the training room. And this is the best health facility, weight room and training staff I have ever seen.”
In recent years the Blue Jays so meticulously overhauled their home clubhouse facilities—which stretch from home plate to the leftfield foul pole—that they modeled their recovery room after a Four Seasons resort, complete with sauna, hot and cold tubs and a rock waterfall that spills over a giant Blue Jays logo in a stone wall.
“The hitting coaches will send me to the weight room, like if I’m not hinging properly,” Kiner-Falefa says. “The weight training coaches will send me to the training room and say, ‘You're not able to hinge,’ or ‘do your RDL [Roman deadlift] right. You gotta get worked on.’ They are so in sync that last year when I was here, I had my best offensive year, and I felt like it had a lot to do with weight training coaches and training staff.”
The hitting coaches encourage finding different ways to beat opponents, not just the modern way of selling out for home runs and accepting strikeouts as the tariff. Each day, in addition to posting daily bat speeds, Popkins and the hitting group keep track of an internal points system, which is used in the minor league system as well.
“So, it’s things like balls-in-play points,” Clement says, “and then it’s based on your swing decisions. Like, ‘Did you swing at strikes?’ And then it’s like, ‘How likely was the swing that you had to be at least a base hit or have damage?’
“We did a lot of it in Triple A, not so much here, but I like to kind of check the numbers and see where we're at. I mean, it definitely reinforces the idea of what you're trying to do, right?”
Popkins’s philosophy also adheres to a tenet that is anathema to most teams: ground balls are okay.
“Other teams I played on were more about home runs,” says Kiner-Falefa, a former Yankee. “It’s just, ‘We're going to beat you with home runs.’ But I feel like this team, sometimes it’s better to put a ball on the ground—in certain situations. Where I feel like I could get a hit that way. So, the hitting coaches do a great job of letting you go out there and be like, ‘It’s okay to hit the ball on the ground. Just hit it hard.’
“As opposed to in New York, it’s all pull-side in the air. And if you don’t, if you hit the ball on the ground, you’re in trouble. So here it’s like, we don’t care about the results—I mean, we care—but we care about how hard we hit the ball and putting the ball in play and swinging at good pitches.”
The way Toronto teaches two-strike hitting is fascinating in its posture-based approach.
“Our hitting coaches do a great job of making us be athletic,” Kiner-Falefa says. “They try to make everybody athletic so that when you get to two strikes you’re not breaking down and you’re not stiff. They want us to get our swings off but at the same time it’s not being stiff. It’s just fighting and there’s a [priority on] competing out there and there is pride in putting the ball in play, which is rare these days.”
The Blue Jays had four walks to go with their four strikeouts. It had been 20 years, going back to the 2005 White Sox, since a team opened the World Series with four or fewer strikeouts and just as many walks.
The key storyline at the onset of this series was the matchup between the red-hot swing-and-miss pitching staff of the Dodgers against the red-hot, put-the-ball-in-play hitters of the Blue Jays. Good pitching, as the adage goes, is supposed to win those battles. But Game 1 set up the possibility that maybe it’s good hitting’s turn to win. Maybe putting the ball in play is the postmodern way forward. Maybe the Blue Jays are the future of baseball—or at least for the next week.
New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman excited the club's fanbase by importing seven players at the trade deadline, including three high-leverage relief pitchers to aid a bullpen that's been among the league's worst over the course of the last month.
Two of those relief pitchers, Jake Bird and David Bednar, made their debuts for the Yankees during Friday's game against the Miami Marlins. Let's just say it didn't exactly go according to plan.
Bird entered the game with a 9-4 lead and promptly loaded the bases with a pair of singles and a walk. Then, Bird missed badly with a sinker out over the middle of the plate to Marlings power-hitting outfielder Kyle Stowers, who belted it for a grand slam to make it a 9-8 ballgame. The Yankees then turned to Bednar, who they hoped would quickly put an end to the inning and preserve the club's lead.
Instead, Bednar surrendered the game-tying home run and a go-ahead RBI single. Fortunately, the Yankees tied the game in the top of the eighth inning and Bednar settled in for a scoreless frame in the bottom half.
The Yankees scratched a pair of runs across in the top of the ninth and handed the ball to another new reliever in Camilo Doval, hoping the trade deadline pickup could shut the door on a victory. But the nightmarish night for the Yankees continued, as Doval allowed two baserunners on after getting the first out of the inning. Then, the Yankees righthander allowed a single to right field, which rolled under right fielder Jose Caballero's glove, allowing the tying runs to score.
The Marlins then won the game on an unplayable slow roller between Doval and catcher Austin Wells.
It might be a little premature, but there is a slight sense of optimism around West Ham United at the moment.
Granted, they are far from safe, but there was plenty to be encouraged by in the win over Newcastle United in the Premier League last weekend, as well as in the latest victory over Burnley.
For example, Freddie Potts – while knocked back injury – has seized his opportunity with both hands after back-to-back starts in the top-flight, showing Nuno Espírito Santo what he had been missing.
Interestingly, there is another overlooked talent in the West Ham squad who, with the proper coaching, could have a Potts-esque impact on the side.
Potts' journey to the first team
With his father and brother playing for West Ham, and him coming up through the academy, it always felt like a matter of when, not if, Potts would earn his first start for the club.
However, it would be fair to say that it’s perhaps taken a little while longer than most expected, but that is mainly down to him proving himself out on loan over the last two years.
His first move saw him join League One side Wycombe Wanderers for the 23/24 campaign, and to say he did well would be an understatement.
In all, the Barking-born ace made 43 appearances for them across all competitions, in which he scored two goals, provided three assists and was named the Player of the Season.
Then, last year, he joined Championship side Portsmouth, where he made 38 appearances across all competitions, scoring one goal and providing four assists.
Potts’ Loan Record
Season
23/24
24/25
Team
Wycombe
Portsmouth
Appearances
43
38
Goals
2
1
Assists
3
4
All Stats via Transfermarkt
The 22-year-old didn’t win an individual award last season, but he clearly impressed enough to go on the Hammers’ pre-season tour in the summer, and then finally, after a few appearances off the bench, make his first competitive start for the club against the Magpies.
Overall, while it’s taken a while to happen, it’s now undeniable that Potts is one of West Ham’s most exciting players, but there is another underused gem in the squad who could be just as good with the proper coaching.
The West Gem who could be another Potts
West Ham are blessed with several genuinely exciting youngsters in the academy at the moment, like Preston Fearon and Josh Landers.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
However, there is another young gem in the first team squad who possesses the raw ability to have an impact similar to the one Potts has had of late: Luis Guilherme.
The 19-year-old gem joined the club from Palmeiras last summer, and while he hasn’t exactly hit the ground running since then, he remains a hugely exciting talent.
For example, one of his significant strengths is his ability to play all over the pitch. While he is primarily a winger, he has also spent time playing as a ten, up top, as a second striker, and out on the left.
This ability to play where the manager needs him is just one of the reasons why he could have a real impact on the Hammers this season, and the second is his mercurial style of play.
Described as a “complete” and “electric” attacker with “the world at his feet by respected analyst Ben Mattinson, the youngster is someone who can, at his best, get the fans on their feet, and considering the atmosphere at the London Stadium this season, that sounds like something Nuno could do with.
Moreover, he is not just some one-trick pony either, with Mattinson pointing out that while “shooting from distance is one of Guilherme’s strengths”, he can also “turn past players with ease” thanks to his “elite ball manipulation.”
In more good news for the manager, the teen phenom could also perfectly fit into the counter-attacking style that worked so well at Nottingham Forest, as according to Mattinson, he is a player who “thrives on transitions.”
Ultimately, it’s true that West Ham fans have not seen him at his best, but if Nuno can get the best out of him, then he could have another player capable of impacting the side as much as Potts.
West Ham's "supreme" star is going to be their biggest talent since Kudus
The incredible talent will become more important to West Ham than Kudus ever was.
أعلن الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم “يويفا”، عن الفائز بجائزة رجل مباراة ليفربول وإنتر ميلان في دوري أبطال أوروبا.
والتقى ليفربول وإنتر ميلان على ملعب “جوزيبي مياتزا” ضمن مباريات الجولة السادسة لمرحلة الدوري في دوري الأبطال.
وتمكن ليفربول من تحقيق الفوز على حساب إنتر ميلان بهدف دون مقابل، من ضربة جزاء سجلها دومينيك سوبوسلاي في الدقيقة 88.
وحصل على جائزة رجل مباراة ليفربول وإنتر ميلان، ريان جرافينبرخ لاعب الريدز، بعد أدائه خلال المواجهة.
اقرأ أيضًا | مباريات ليفربول المتبقية في دوري أبطال أوروبا بعد الفوز على إنتر ميلان
وقالت مجموعة المراقبين الفنيين في الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم: “كان تمركزه الدفاعي منضبطًا وذكيًا للغاية، غطى وحمى المساحات حول وأمام قلبي الدفاع، أثناء الاستحواذ على الكرة، بدأ الهجمات باللعب في وضعية نصف الدوران والتمرير للأمام عبر الخطوط في المناطق الضيقة”.
ورفع ليفربول رصيده إلى النقطة 12 في المركز الثامن بترتيب دوري أبطال أوروبا، وتجمد رصيد إنتر ميلان عند 12 نقطة أيضًا ويتواجد في المركز الخامس.
He was rewarded for being aggressive yet conventional in a match-turning spell against SRH
Matt Roller17-Apr-20251:02
How Jacks’ part-time offspin found success
The old art of orthodox right-arm offspin is on its deathbed in the IPL. R Ashwin, once its standard-bearer, was dropped by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) this week after spending six games predominantly bowling carrom balls, and Washington Sundar can hardly get a game for Gujarat Titans (GT). Sunil Narine and Maheesh Theekshana? They are better categorised as mystery spinners. Glenn Maxwell is still going, but tends to spear in darts rather than looking to turn the ball.But on Thursday night at the Wankhede, an improbable saviour emerged. Will Jacks’ spell of 2 for 14 from three overs ensured that Mumbai Indians (MI) hardly missed the legspin of Karn Sharma when he went off injured, and put the brakes on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) just as they looked to accelerate. Perhaps there is a pulse after all: reports of offspin’s demise in the T20 format were an exaggeration.Harbhajan Singh is one of the all-time great offspinners, and a four-time IPL champion. On the eve of this season, he bemoaned what he perceives to be the defensive approach of the modern offspinner: “They are scared of getting hit for sixes… [They] are more interested in conceding less runs than taking wickets. The reason for specialist offspinners disappearing is this mindset.”Related
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Yet Jacks is unlike most occasional spinners in that he actively looks to turn the ball: he has a classical action, tries to get flight and dip, and at 6ft 2in, his height unlocks extra bounce. He only bowls an average of one over per match in T20s, but Surrey have used him as a frontline spinner in the County Championship and he even has a Test-match six-for to his name.Jacks came into this game sweating on his place, after a quiet start to the season with his new franchise. But he was told at training on Wednesday that he should expect to bowl early on against SRH’s left-handed top three: he came on for the seventh over, with Abhishek Sharma – whom he had dropped first ball at slip – and Travis Head riding their luck early on.At last year’s T20 World Cup, England threw Jacks the ball for the second over against Australia in Barbados, and he disappeared for 22 runs as Head ruthlessly targeted a short square boundary, helped by a stiff crosswind. His third ball, tossed up and crunched back down the ground, must have brought back bad memories: “We’ve had a few good battles,” Jacks said after Thursday’s match, grimacing.But it proved to be the only boundary that he conceded, and his second over featured the ball of the night: a slow, flighted offbreak which had Ishan Kishan charging down the pitch and spun sharply – 5.4 degrees – to beat his outside edge. By the time that Ryan Rickelton had whipped the bails off, Jacks was halfway towards Hardik Pandya at mid-off in celebration.0:55
Bangar: Hardik was spot-on with his captaincy
Hardik’s decision to bring Jacks back ahead of his frontline overseas spinner, Mitchell Santner, was immediately vindicated at the start of his third over: Head charged down and picked out long-off, bringing an uncharacteristically sluggish innings to a tame end. Jacks then proved that he can bowl to right-hand batters too, with five precious dots (and a wide) to Heinrich Klaasen.”If you bowl tentatively to people like that, it’s only going to end one way,” Jacks said. “Originally, I thought I was going to bowl in the powerplay; I didn’t, so I had a bit more protection. I knew I could bowl with confidence and use my skills: I’m a tall bowler, I get good turn and bounce, so that’s what I was trying to do.”Jacks is an unlikely candidate to keep the right-arm offspinner relevant, but his words must be heartening for Harbhajan to hear. “Sometimes, I feel like I can be too defensive instead of using what I’m good at,” he said. “It’s very easy to focus on the batters, but you’ve got to remember that you have your skill as well – and you’re there to get them out.”I knew there was going to be a bit of spin assistance, so as long as I wasn’t floating the ball up there and bowling aggressively… That’s what I was trying to do, looking to get them out. As an offspinner to two left-handers, I’m always looking to take wickets and be aggressive: I know they’re always going to come after me as well, being the sixth bowler.”Jacks is a quick offspinner, and bowled between 90.7-100.9kph throughout his spell. But his combination of bounce, drop and turn was match-turning. “He came up against our three left-handers,” Daniel Vettori, the SRH head coach, said. “All those batsmen said it was hard to get down [the pitch] to him, and when he did drop short, it sat in the wicket and was difficult to hit.”His runs with the bat – 36 off 26 from No. 3, after an early reprieve from Head at cover – ensured that he will have plenty more opportunities to bowl his offbreaks this season. In doing so, he has the chance to prove that there is still a role for his secondary skill in this league – and this format.