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Dominic Smith capped a three-run third inning with a two-RBI double and Robbie Ray became the National League's first eight-game winner as the San Francisco Giants salvaged a four-game home split against the San Diego Padres with a 3-2 victory on Thursday afternoon.
Making his second appearance for the Giants after signing as an in-season free agent, Smith had three of San Francisco's six hits, including the biggest with two on and two out in the third.
Down 2-0 after a Manny Machado home run in the top of the inning, the Giants did all their scoring after Dylan Cease (1-5) struck out Daniel Johnson to lead off the third. Walks to Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee and a single by Matt Chapman loaded the bases for Willy Adames, whose sacrifice fly cut the home team's deficit in half.
Following a Chapman steal of second, Smith one-hopped the fence in center field with a ground-rule double, plating both baserunners and giving San Francisco the lead for good.
Coming off his only loss of the season, Ray (8-1) overcame a two-run third to go seven innings, during which he allowed just two runs and four hits while striking out nine against just one walk.
Randy Rodriguez worked a scoreless eighth before Camilo Doval stranded runners at second and third in the ninth by striking out Jake Cronenworth for his eighth save.
Hoping to record a third victory in the series after winning both Monday and Tuesday, the Padres got the jump on Ray when Machado launched his eighth home run of the season in the top of the third. The blast also scored Luis Arraez, who singled.
Arraez had to leave the game in the sixth inning after suffering an apparent leg injury while running to first base on a ground ball.
Cease wound up going five innings, striking out seven. He gave up three runs, five hits and three walks.
Chapman had two hits for the Giants, who gave themselves a shot at a series split with a 6-5 win on Wednesday night. All four games in the set were decided by one run.
Machado and Jose Iglesias collected two hits apiece for the Padres, who out-hit the Giants 7-6.
More must-reads:
- Dream (but realistic) trade targets for every MLB team this offseason
- Three offseason trade targets for Blue Jays to add an impact bat
- The 'World Series single-game K leaders' quiz
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Three wild statistics about the 2025 World Series you may not know
The 2025 World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays will go down as one of the best seven-game Fall Classics in history. Won in extra innings by the Dodgers on Saturday night, this year's World Series had plenty of wild moments and memorable performances. However, there were also some things that happened during this year's World Series that were historic but also didn't make as many headlines as Yoshinobu Yamamoto's MVP pitching or Will Smith's World Series-winning home run. With that in mind, here are three things that will add this year's World Series to the baseball record books. This 2025 World Series was just like ... 1926? Sure, this year's World Series went seven games. However, the pattern of wins between Toronto and Los Angeles was unlike anything seen in the Fall Classic since the St. Louis Cardinals beat the New York Yankees in seven games in 1926. Per Elias, the 2025 World Series was just the second-ever World Series to follow the path of the home team winning Game 1, road team winning Game 2, home team winning Game 3, and the road team winning Games 4 through 7, joining the Cardinals and Yankees 1926. The Dodgers player made headlines and history Los Angeles outfielder Justin Dean was in the middle of one of the most talked about plays of Game 6 when he signaled to the umpires that Addison Barger's hit to left-center in the ninth inning was wedged under the wall. With that signal, the umpires ruled it to be a dead ball, keeping Barger to a double and preventing Myles Straw from scoring from first base (he was held at third with the dead ball call). That decision kept the Los Angeles lead at 3-1, which would be the final as Tyler Glasnow worked his way out of the jam to record the save. Dean being put into the game for defensive purposes happened more than you might have thought during not only the World Series but the entire postseason as well. The 28-year-old Dean appeared in 12 games this postseason but did not register a plate appearance, entering a defensive replacement in center field 10 times and as a pinch-runner twice. His 12 games played during the postseason are the most ever in a single postseason without any plate appearances (among non-pitchers), surpassing the previous record of 10 games without a plate appearance by Clay Bellinger in 2000. Bellinger appeared in 11 games for the Yankees in 2000, getting a hit in his lone plate appearance. Hitting home runs? It's an international thing. Trailing 4-3 in the ninth inning of Game 7, Miguel Rojas of the Dodgers launched a game-tying home run, marking the 10th home run of the World Series hit by an internationally born player. Also joining Rojas as a player born outside the United States to hit a homer during the Fall Classic were Shohei Ohtani (three homers), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (two), Alejandro Kirk (two), Enrique Hernandez (one) and Teoscar Hernandez (one). Per Elias, the 10 home runs are the most in a single World Series by internationally born players, breaking a tie with 2017 and 2019, which had nine each.
Vikings snap count analysis and notable PFF grades from win over Lions
The Vikings got key contributions from all three phases in a 27-24 upset win over the Lions on Sunday at Ford Field. Let's dive into the week's snap counts and take a look at some notable PFF grades to see what stands out. Vikings offensive snap counts vs. Lions (out of 62) LG Donovan Jackson: 62 RG Will Fries: 62 RT Brian O'Neill: 62 LT Christian Darrisaw: 62 C Blake Brandel: 62 QB J.J. McCarthy: 62 WR Justin Jefferson: 59 WR Jordan Addison: 57 TE T.J. Hockenson: 48 RB Jordan Mason: 37 WR Jalen Nailor: 33 TE Nick Vannett: 27 RB Aaron Jones: 26 TE Ben Yurosek: 17 WR Adam Thielen: 4 OL Joe Huber: 2 It was encouraging to see the Vikings' entire offensive line, including Darrisaw and O'Neill, stay healthy throughout 60-plus snaps. At running back, Jones was excellent in the first half and would've comfortably out-snapped Mason on the day if he hadn't left early in the third quarter with a shoulder injury. Initial reports are that Jones avoided a serious injury and has a chance to play next Sunday against Baltimore. Without Josh Oliver or C.J. Ham, the Vikings turned to Vannett and Yurosek as extra run blockers, and both put in solid performances. Four offensive snaps is a season-low for Thielen, who has played just 24 total over the past three games. Top 5 PFF grades on offense (min. 20 snaps) 1. Jones — 76.6 2. Jefferson — 72.8 3. Brandel — 68.0 4. Jackson — 67.4 5. Darrisaw — 65.7 This checks out. The Vikings' offensive line played well, and Jones and Jefferson were the top two weapons for J.J. McCarthy. Speaking of McCarthy, he just missed this list with a 63.5 grade, which feels pretty fair for how he played. Addison and Hockenson are right behind him, grade-wise. Low grades on the day went to Mason and Fries, but both were still above 55. Vikings defensive snap counts vs. Lions (out of 64) LB Blake Cashman: 64 S Josh Metellus: 64 CB Byron Murphy Jr: 64 S Harrison Smith: 64 OLB Jonathan Greenard: 62 CB Isaiah Rodgers: 61 DT Jalen Redmond: 58 LB Eric Wilson: 56 DT Jonathan Allen: 51 OLB Andrew Van Ginkel: 39 DT Javon Hargrave: 39 CB Fabian Moreau: 24 S Theo Jackson: 16 OLB Dallas Turner: 14 LB Ivan Pace Jr: 13 DT Levi Drake Rodriguez: 11 DT Elijah Williams: 4 This was quite the game for Brian Flores and the Vikings' defense, who made things tough on an elite Lions offense for most of the day. From a snap count perspective, the first thing that jumps out is Redmond playing 91 percent of the snaps. He's legitimately established himself as the best defensive tackle on a team that employs former Pro Bowlers in Allen and Hargrave. Cashman and Wilson were outstanding in this game. Allen made an impact. Hargrave was excellent. And the importance of Van Ginkel simply cannot be overstated. He changes everything. He was limited to playing 61 percent of the snaps in his return to action, but that number figures to rise next week. Van Ginkel's return coincided with Turner playing a season-low 14 snaps. It'll be interesting to see if that continues moving forward. Pace is merely a role player behind the Vikings' top two linebackers at this point, but he can still be effective when used as a blitzer. Stepping into the CB3 role in place of Jeff Okudah wasn't Dwight McGlothern, it was the veteran Moreau, who played well. Top 5 PFF grades on defense (min. 20 snaps) 1. Cashman — 90.8 2. Hargrave — 81.4 3. Van Ginkel — 75.1 4. Moreau — 73.4 5. Smith — 67.4 Cashman was simply fantastic in this game, whether it was in run defense or coverage or as a blitzer on the Vikings' many designed pressure looks with their off-ball linebackers. Hargrave and Van Ginkel were also instrumental in Minnesota's run defense. Moreau and Smith tackled well and were important in coverage. Wilson got dinged a bit for some missed tackles and ended up with a 63.5 grade, but when you watch the tape, he was absolutely everywhere. He had six pressures and two sacks, and even when he missed tackles, the fact that he arrived at the play so quickly helped lead to tackles for teammates. He looked like a star in this game. Lower grades on defense went to Redmond, Rodgers, Murphy, and Theo Jackson.
Jerry Jones Says Cowboys Have Made One Trade, Possibly More To Come
Per Jon Machota of The Athletic, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on SiriusXM that they have made a trade. Jones also said they could make a couple of more moves before tomorrow’s 4 P.M. ET deadline. He said the player will be on the field immediately and implied it could be on the defensive side. “Immediately it will have him on the field and it will address some of the things that have been our shortcomings,” Jones said. Jones, 83, bought the team from Bum Bright back in 1989 for $140 million and has raised the value to $10 billion. Since purchasing the team, Jones has operated as owner, team president, and general manager. He replaced HC Tom Landry with Jimmy Johnson, and shortly after, the team won three Super Bowls in 1992, 1993, and 1995, respectively. In 2014, Jones was named the league’s Executive of the Year, and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017.
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Eagles Reportedly Making Right Call With AJ Brown
The Philadelphia Eagles certainly have had an aggressive trade deadline. Philadelphia hasn't been messing around in the slightest and as of writing have acquired Michael Carter II, Jaire Alexander, and Jaelan Phillips. The reigning champs clearly are going all in, which makes all of the wild noise around star receiver AJ Brown even more outlandish. Seemingly all season to this point, there has been speculation about Brown's standing with the Eagles and that only intensified with him not getting the ball as much as expected early on this season. But, still, the noise hasn't made sense. Why would the reigning champs trade a player that gives them a better chance to win away? It hasn't made sense. FOX Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer was asked about the possibility of a trade involving Brown on Sunday and acknowledged that teams have called, but emphatically said a deal isn't happening. "No," Glazer said when asked if Brown is going anywhere. "A couple of teams have asked about him but that is a hard no for AJ Brown. The receivers out there, like Jakobi Meyers, who the (Pittsburgh Steelers) called about earlier of the (Las Vegas Raiders). Rashid Shaheed, Calvin Ridley, those are names." The Eagles are making the right call The Eagles have arguably the most aggressive front office in football. But, there is no way to argue that the Eagles are a better team with Brown not on the roster. Sure, there have been a few social media posts that have raised eyebrows, but that's no reason to trade a guy and fortunately it doesn't sound like the Eagles are thinking that way right now at all. The Eagles are 6-2 and are in first place in the NFC East right now. The closest team to the Eagles in the division right now is the Dallas Cowboys, who are 3-4-1 on the season. If the season were to end today, the Eagles would be the No. 1 seed in the entire NFC. The idea of trading Brown has been odd from the jump, but it sounds like Philadelphia fans don't need to worry about that any longer.
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