Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Thursday, August 22.

MLB

As fall grows nearer, baseball’s days leading off The Remix are numbered. But for now, let’s enjoy the highlights from America’s Pastime without thinking about touchdowns or three-pointers:

• Stop me if you’ve heard this one before– Aaron Judge hit a home run yesterday. That’s four in three games for Judge, who continues to be the best hitter in baseball. New York beat Cleveland 6-0.

• Paul Skenes and the Pirates were dominant in a 7-0 win over the Reds. Skenes struck out nine in six innings, plus he picked off Elly De La Cruz at first base.

• The Atlanta Braves took two out of three from the Phillies, winning the final game yesterday 3-2. Braves closer Raisel Iglesias recorded the save, and continued his impressive streak of zero earned runs since June 16.

GOLF

Keegan Bradley leads at -6 after one round at the BMW Championship. Last week’s winner, Hideki Matsuyama, continued his strong play and is just one shot behind. 32 members of the 50 person field are within six strokes of the leader.

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

The Washington Commanders traded wide receiver Jahan Dotson to the Philadelphia Eagles. The young wideout is a good change-of-scenery candidate, as Washington had struggled to find a good role for him during their rebuild. As for the Eagles, they’ve added a talented piece to an already strong receiving core.

The Seattle Mariners have fired head coach Scott Servais, naming Dan Wilson as his replacement. After starting the year well, the Mariners are 20-33 since June 18. Not an ideal time for a change in leadership, but I guess things can’t get much worse.

Earlier this week, Jayson Heyward hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the eighth inning to win the game for the Dodgers. Yesterday, Heyward was designated for assignment and is no longer a member of the team. A tough break for the veteran outfielder.

Stephen “Pommel Horse Guy” Nedoroscik will be a contestant on the next season of Dancing With the Stars. DWS can’t be a harder competition than the Olympics, right?

You remember Jacob DeGrom? Well after a long recovery, he’s finally on his way back. DeGrom pitched a rehab start last night for the Rangers Double-A team in Frisco, his first live-action in over a year. It went pretty well, as the former Cy Young winner struck out three in two innings.

POWER RANKINGS

Welcome to the first day of The Remix College Football Preview! “Week Zero” begins tomorrow, as a few teams get a head start on opening the season (check out this weekend’s big games, below).

The Remix will be previewing each of the Power Four conferences– plus the “best of the rest”– over the next five issues. Remember, this is the first year of the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff. No one really knows what to expect with the new postseason format. With that in mind, let’s discuss the ACC:

TIER FIVE: Anything Can Happen

Probably destined for the bottom of the conference, but the beauty of college football is anything can happen. Road games and rivalries and upsets, oh my!

17. Stanford | 16. Duke | 15. Pitt | 14. Cal

Stanford and Cal, welcome to the ACC! I anticipate some tough sledding ahead (and lots of airplane miles) for the two new additions, although Cal running back Jaydn Ott is the real deal. Meanwhile, Pitt is rebuilding and Duke is gearing up for basketball.

TIER FOUR: Goal is a Bowl

A six-win season is nothing to hang your head about. Even in the new landscape of expanded playoffs, a bowl game is an accomplishment.

13. Wake Forest | 12. Boston College | 11. Virginia | 10. Syracuse

Academically, these four are a powerhouse. On the football field in 2024? It feels right to place them smack dab in the middle of the conference. Of any team in the sport, I may be too low on Syracuse– they have a new head coach and an experienced QB in Kyle McCord, who transferred from Ohio State.

TIER THREE: If Everything Goes Right…

Due to a tough schedule or questions at key positions, the path to a conference championship is very narrow. Still, this is a tier of teams to keep an eye on…

9. SMU | 8. Louisville | 7. UNC | 6. Georgia Tech

SMU went 11-1 in last year in the American Athletic Conference. The ACC schedule should be tougher, but we really don’t know how the Mustangs will adapt to the challenge. My ACC bold prediction: Louisville, UNC, and Georgia Tech will each upset one school ranked ahead of them on this list and lose to one school ranked behind them. Another prediction that isn’t as bold: Georgia Tech QB Haynes King will have a breakout season.

TIER TWO: Dark Horse

There is one team in each conference I am highlighting as a Dark Horse. Under the radar for whatever reason, I like this squad to surprise some people.

5. Virginia Tech

The Hokies have three things going for them: they return a large number of talented players from last year’s team, the fans create an incredible home atmosphere, and maybe most important, they play a reasonable schedule (Clemson at home, just one ranked road matchup). Watch out for the Hokies.

TIER ONE: CFB Playoff Contenders

The favorites to win the conference and make the College Football Playoff

4. NC State | 3. Miami | 2. Florida State | 1. Clemson

Clemson is once again the most talented, most experienced, and best-coached team in the conference. Florida State and Miami will challenge Clemson with their similar talent and depth, while NC State’s new transfer QB Grayson McCall could be a difference maker for the Wolfpack. But if Clemson QB Cade Klubnik can improve on an up-and-down freshman season, it’s going to be mighty tough to take down the Tigers.

PLAY OF THE DAY

Is this the most casual home-run robbery you’ve ever seen? Garrett Mitchell made a nice grab in a losing effort for the Milwaukee Brewers:

Surprise! Two plays of the day today… see if you can explain how Blue Jays infielder Ernie Clement hit this pitch for a home run:

That’s the second-highest pitch hit for a homer since tracking began in 2008. Way to go Ernie!

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

MLB: Giants @ Mariners, 10:10 PM

• The Giants are 65-64 and four games out of a playoff spot. The Mariners are 64-64, five and a half games out of a playoff spot, and fired their head coach yesterday. This series might be each team’s last chance to make a run to the postseason.

THIS WEEKEND’S BIG GAMES

GOLF: BMW Championship, Friday-Sunday on NBC/Golf Channel/Peacock

• Tony Finau is tied for 10th right now, five shots back of the lead at -1. There’s no logic behind this pick, but I think he’s going to win. We’ll find out soon if I’m right!

WNBA: Fever @ Lynx, 8 PM on NBA TV

• You have to tune in, right? What’s Caitlin Clark going to do next?

MLB: Cardinals @ Twins, 7:10 PM Saturday; Phillies @ Royals, 2:10 PM Sunday

• In addition to the Giants and Mariners series, these are the two most interesting games this weekend. Tomorrow, Sonny Gray makes his return to Minnesota in a must-win game for St. Louis. On Sunday, the Phillies and Royals match up in an unlikely but very exciting potential World Series preview.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: It’s baaaaack! Four games on the schedule for Saturday, and you already know we’re highlighting all of them:

• (10) Florida State vs Georgia Tech in Dublin, Ireland, Noon on ESPN

  • A pretty important ACC duel kicks off the new season

• Montana State @ New Mexico, 4 PM on FS1

• SMU @ Nevada, 8 PM on CBS Sports

• Delaware State @ Hawaii, Midnight

  • Hawaii is favored by 40.5 points!

Thanks for another great week of The Remix. Have a great weekend!