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Did Mets' Luis Severino give Yankees extra motivation for Subway Series?
Current New York Mets starting pitcher Luis Severino generated headlines late last week when he revealed he had teased former New York Yankees teammates in a group chat about that club having only "two good hitters" in captain Aaron Judge and All-Star outfielder Juan Soto.
Soto indicated following the Yankees' 9-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday that he and others in the clubhouse need no extra motivation for the two-game Subway Series versus the Mets (51-48) that gets underway in the Bronx on Tuesday night.
"It is what it is," Soto said in reference to Severino's comment, per Robert Sanchez of SNY. "They can think whatever they want. At the end of the day, we trust and believe in every single guy in here and I think we have everything that we need to show them that we can do it."
The Yankees ended June 14 at 50-22 but then limped into the All-Star break at 58-40 before they lost two of three home games to the Rays (50-50). While Soto hit a pair of home runs in Monday's thrashing of Tampa Bay, it's perhaps more noteworthy that three other Yankees players not named Judge also went deep.
"I mean, we did it in the first half," Soto said about the overall success the Yankees enjoyed until the official start of summer. "We dominated most of the first half so I think when a team does that I don’t think it’s only about one or two players — it takes every single guy in the lineup and our relievers, bullpen, everything. So I think it’s not only a two-player team, it’s a really good team right now."
Severino acknowledged last week that his words in the group chat were about a "friendly competition with players I’ve already played with," and the truth of the matter is that the Yankees already had something to prove heading into Tuesday night considering they suffered a two-game sweep at the Mets last month.
Severino won't face his former club on either Tuesday or Wednesday.
"We’re just gonna try to win games," Soto added during his comments. "Whatever happened in the past is in the past. We’re focused on what’s gonna happen in this series, we’re gonna try to win that series and keep it rolling."
The Yankees began Tuesday trailing the first-place Baltimore Orioles (60-39) by a game-and-a-half in the American League East standings.
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Calls Mount for Aaron Boone to Be Fired After Fifth Straight Yankees Loss
The New York Yankees continue to play like one of the worst teams in Major League Baseball. Despite their American League, MVP candidate, Aaron Judge, being reinstated from the injured list on Tuesday, the Yankees struggled mightily -- again. The Yankees took on the Texas rangers in the second game of a three-game-series, on the road. Judge was slotted into the No. 3 slot in the batting order, as the designated hitter, and Will Warren took the mound against the Rangers, Nathan Eovaldi. Warren was solid, giving up just three hits and issuing three walks while striking out five batters in five innings pitched. Trade deadline acquisition, Camilo Doval, and Luke Weaver held down the bullpen, keeping this game scoreless as it headed into the eighth inning. Then, Yankees manager, Aaron Boone, did the inexplicable. He brought struggling reliever, Devin Williams, into a 0-0 game, despite blowing two consecutive saves and giving up earned runs in three consecutive appearances. In the least surprising outcome ever, Williams loaded the bases before giving up a two-run single to Rowdy Tellez. The Yankees freefall continues, as they have an 18-29 record since June 12. The only team in the AL with a worse record over that timeframe is the Minnesota Twins (16-29). With the frustration seemingly at an All-Time high amongst Yankees fans, they've descended upon social media, and calls are mounting for Boone to be fired. Within minutes of the 2-0 Rangers win over the Yankees going final on Tuesday night, "Aaron Boone" and "Devin Williams" were both trending on X. And "#FireBoone" was popping up everywhere. The Yankees got just two hits on Tuesday and have scored just eight runs over their past four games. To make matters worse, recent trade deadline acquisition, reliever, Jake Bird, was sent down to the Minors prior to Tuesday's game. The Yankees traded away two prospects in exchange for Bird. Time will tell if the Yankees front office will make a change at manager by firing Boone, but it is apparent that Yankees fans overwhelmingly want to see that transpire. The Yankees next game comes on Wednesday afternoon, against the Rangers, when Carlos Rodon will take the mound against Jack Leiter. First pitch is scheduled for 2:35 p.m. EDT.
NFL, ESPN agree to two expansive non-binding agreements
Despite the day belonging to ESPN and its reporters, it was Mark Maske of The Washington Post who broke the news first. Per Maske, the NFL and Disney-owned ESPN have completed the long-rumored deal, giving ESPN NFL Network and certain other media assets (including RedZone and NFL Fantasy) in exchange for 10% equity stake in ESPN. The second non-binding agreement, per Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic, sees the NFL license to ESPN certain NFL content and intellectual property to be used by NFL Network and other assets. “Today’s announcement paves the way for the world’s leading sports media brand and America’s most popular sport to deliver an even more compelling experience for NFL fans, in a way that only ESPN and Disney can,” CEO of The Walt Disney Company Roger Iger said in a statement released by ESPN’s Lily Blum. He continued, “Commissioner (Roger Goodell) and the NFL have built outstanding media assets, and these transactions will add to consumer choice, provide viewers with even greater convenience and quality, and expand the breadth and value proposition of Disney’s streaming ecosystem.” Given ESPN’s streaming abilities — through multiple streaming apps such as ESPN Watch, ESPN+, Hulu and Disney+ — the agreements should make available lots of content exclusive to the NFL and NFL Network available in multiple formats in addition to the usual cable and satellite option. The statement also cites an additional platform in what they’re calling “ESPN’s upcoming direct-to-consumer service.” While YouTube TV still owns the rights to air NFL Sunday Ticket and ABC/ESPN/Disney/NFL Network, FOX, CBS/Paramount/Nickelodeon, NBC/Peacock, Amazon and Netflix all have individual rights to air certain games, ESPN gets “broad rights to the RedZone brand and will distribute the NFL RedZone Channel to pay TV operators for continued inclusion into their sports packages.” Though ESPN gets broad rights to the brand and TV distribution rights, the NFL will continue to own, operate and produce NFL RedZone and retain the rights to distribute it digitally. ESPN’s platforms will now license an additional three NFL games per season (all to air on NFL Network) and will adjust its overall NFL game schedule with four games shifting to NFL Network, as well. The league will continue to own and operate its retained media businesses such as NFL Films, NFL+, NFL.com, the NFL Podcast Network, the NFL FAST Channel and the official sites for all 32 teams. The two parties’ fantasy applications, NFL Fantasy Football and ESPN Fantasy Football, will merge, “creating the official Fantasy season-long game of the NFL and one best-in-class digital experience.” While much of the news is being presented by the parties involved as a shiny new present for NFL fans, there are some perceived negatives to the agreements. While Iger calls the transactions additions “to consumer choice,” in reality this is a step closer to a monopoly. At the moment, existing contracts keep the NFL readily available from several different streamers and television channels, but when those contracts expire, how willing will the NFL be to dole out games to networks other than the one it has a 10% stake in? ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio offered his usual candor in a making another relevant point about ESPN’s reporting responsibilities. When issues such as the ownership collusion case we’ve seen this summer break the NFL news circuit, how critical will ESPN be towards its minority owner? Ultimately, the transactions are still subject to the parties’ negotiation of definitive agreements, various approvals (including those of NFL team owners and federal regulators) and customary closing conditions. There’s still quite a ways to go, but Tuesday’s agreement gives a peek into what the NFL media future will look like.
Kevin Love reportedly has preferred buyout destination
Kevin Love is eyeing a return to his roots. The five-time NBA All-Star big man Love has a preferred destination on the buyout market, Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported on Tuesday. Love would like to end up in Los Angeles. Now 36 years old, Love spent the last two-and-a-half seasons with the Miami Heat. He averaged just 5.3 points and 4.1 rebounds over 10.9 minutes per game in 2024-25 but still managed to shoot 35.8 percent from three on the year. Earlier this summer however, the Heat traded Love to the Utah Jazz as part of a three-team blockbuster deal. Now Love, a 17-year NBA veteran, is pursuing a contract buyout from the rebuilding Jazz. Though he is a native of Lake Oswego, Oregon, Love played his college ball in Los Angeles at UCLA. He also has ties to both L.A. teams — he won an NBA championship with Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James on the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016 and was also coached on that team by Tyronn Lue, who is now head coach of the L.A. Clippers. Both the Lakers and Clippers are currently sitting at 14 guaranteed contracts each. While they still have spots for two-way and Exhibit 10 players, that means the Lakers and Clippers are both down to their final open roster spot. The ex-rebounding leader Love still has some value, though probably more so as a jokester than as a contributing rotation piece. While Love clearly wants a homecoming to Los Angeles, he may have some convincing to do for either the Lakers or the Clippers to give him that final open roster spot.
Fever star makes WNBA history with Caitlin Clark out injured
Kelsey Mitchell has been the driving force for the Indiana Fever of late as Caitlin Clark continues to nurse a re-aggravated groin injury. The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year has been out of commission for an extended period, which has required other players on the roster to step up. On Tuesday against the Los Angeles Sparks, Clark was forced to sit out again, marking the eighth consecutive game that the groin issue has sidelined her. Kelsey Mitchell makes WNBA history Mitchell wasted no time making her mark in Tuesday’s road matchup at Crypto.com Arena. The three-time All-Star made history in the first half by becoming the fourth-fastest guard ever to reach 4,500 career points. This speaks volumes about Mitchell’s consistency in her first three years in the WNBA. She’s been named an All-Star in all three seasons, and the fact that she’s now made history again is a testament to how dangerous she is as a scorer. Mitchell brings so much to the table for the Fever It is worth noting that Mitchell is coming off one of her worst performances of the season, shooting-wise. The 5-foot-8 guard shot just 3-of-16 on Sunday in Indiana’s 78-74 win against the Seattle Storm. Mitchell tallied just nine points after missing all eight of her attempts from beyond the arc. Despite her off night, Mitchell was still able to come up big for the Fever down the stretch. She hit a couple of big shots in crunch time and exhibited her elite playmaking skills to help lead Indiana to a tightly contested victory. Even though she shot the ball poorly against Seattle, Mitchell has still been Indiana’s primary scoring option with Clark on the mend. Throughout Clark’s seven-game absence, Mitchell has stepped it up with averages of 20.1 points on 42.5% shooting, 2.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 29.9 minutes per contest. The 29-year-old, who signed a one-year extension with the Fever in the offseason, has also made 2.7 threes per game on a 36.5% shooting clip. Clark currently has no timetable for her return, which means that the Fever will continue to lean on Mitchell in the interim. It’s an absolute luxury for Indiana to have a player of Mitchell’s caliber to rely on as its cornerstone superstar works her way back from injury.
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