Good Morning! Today is Monday, October 14th. Here’s what happened in the world of sports over the weekend.

MLB

Saturday was the final game of the division series, as the Guardians hosted the Tigers for a winner-take-all game five. Tarik Skubal was dealing for Detroit, continuing his stretch of dominant performances on the mound. Despite an injured hamstring, Kerry Carpenter came off the bench to deliver a pinch-hit RBI double. It looked like the Tigers might continue their dream run. Cleveland, however, had other plans:

Trade deadline acquisition Lane Thomas broke the game open with one huge swing. From there, the Guardians bullpen took over. Emmanuel Clase completed a two-inning save, as Cleveland beat Detroit 7-3. They head to New York to take on to the Yankees in the ALCS.

Very quickly, since we’ve already moved on to the next round– on Friday night, the Dodgers eliminated the Padres in game five of the NLDS. LA won 2-0, with solo home runs by Kiké Hernandez and Teoscar Hernandez (no relation). The downfall of San Diego? They failed to score a run after the 2nd inning of game three. And now, to the NLCS…

Game one of the National League Championship Series was last night in Los Angeles. The New York Mets flew in with their hit songs and hot lineup, ready to keep the OMG vibes going. And the Dodgers were ready for the challenge. LA pounced on Kodai Senga early, as Max Muncy drove home two runs with a bases-loaded single in the first inning. That was all Jack Flaherty needed– the LA native and Dodgers starter allowed just two hits through seven innings. By the time Mookie Betts cleared the bases on a three-run double in the 8th, the game was already out of reach. Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers cruised to a 9-0 game one victory. They’ve also tied the MLB postseason record with 33 consecutive scoreless innings. In other words, the number one seed in the postseason looks the part.

NFL

Your favorite daily newsletter + an interception returned for a touchdown = The Remix Six. Here we go:

• The day began in London, where Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears showed they’re starting to figure things out. Chicago crushed the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars 35-16– Williams had the best performance of his young career, with four touchdowns in the win.

• Speaking of the number one pick, there were rookie QBs all over the field yesterday. Spencer Rattler made his debut for the New Orleans Saints– he looked decent despite a crazy high-scoring loss, 51-27 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bo Nix and the Broncos battled back late, but fell 23-16 to the Los Angeles Chargers. And Drake Maye… well, he played the whole game for the Patriots, who lost 41-21 to the Houston Texans.

• There was one last rookie QB in action yesterday– Jayden Daniels. Daniels and the Washington Commanders took on Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in a highly-anticipated clash of dual-threat quarterbacks. Imagine having both of them on your fantasy football team! The veteran got the best of the rookie in this one, as Baltimore showed off all aspects of their versatile offense (Derrick Henry is still really, really good) in a 30-23 win.

• It was a not-so-happy birthday for Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones. Dallas got absolutely embarrassed at home by the Detroit Lions, failing to score a touchdown and losing 47-9. The Lions defense forced five turnovers while the offense was so dominant they started running trick plays to offensive lineman. It’s hard to look at this touchdown pass (below) from Jared Goff to Sam LaPorta and think these two teams belong in the same league. The only negative for Detroit– star defensive end Aidan Hutchinson left the game with a broken leg. Wishing him the best on a speedy recovery.

• Another team to keep an eye on– the Green Bay Packers. Jordan Love looks to be fully healthy and the Packers are rounding into form. Green Bay dismantled the Arizona Cardinals 34-13 yesterday. Watch out for the cheeseheads.

• Finally we come to Sunday Night Football, where the Cincinnati Bengals escaped New York with a 17-7 win over the Giants. The story of this one: New York missed two field goals and failed to convert two fourth-and-shorts. Quarterback Daniel Jones is now 1-14 in primetime games.

NCAA

Saturday was a pretty great day for college football:

• (2) Oregon hosted a huge Big Ten game against (3) Ohio State. The Ducks rallied for a 32-31 victory in the game of the week– we don’t have room for all the amazing highlights from this one, but you gotta see this accidental onside kick.

• (1) Texas crushed (18) Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry. The Longhorns are legit as the top-ranked team in the nation, but hit helped their cause when every ball bounced their way.

• Drama in the Big 10- (23) Illinois gave up a huge lead but survived in overtime against Purdue. Meanwhile, (4) Penn State emerged with their own OT victory after a thriller at USC. Shoutout to the play of the week– is that guy a tight end or a center? Or both?

• Not to be outdone, the SEC gave us their own dramatic endings. (7) Alabama barely survived South Carolina, despite one of the wackiest final endings you’ll see all season. (13) LSU knocked off (9) Ole Miss in overtime after tying the game with 27 seconds left in regulation. And (8) Tennessee overcame a slow start to beat Florida in overtime, too.

WNBA

Desperately needing a win, the stars of the New York Liberty showed out in game two. Breanna Stewart filled the box score with 21 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and SEVEN steals. Sabrina Ionescu added 15 points and five assists of her own, while Betnijah Laney-Hamilton knocked down four threes as part of a 20 point night. New York beat the Lynx 80-66. Now this series heads to Minnesota, all square at one game apiece.

NHL

Utah! Loves! Hockey! The UHC is undefeated through three games, winning another game in overtime this weekend. The Jets, Stars, Flames, and Golden Knights are the only other undefeated teams (the Lightning have only played once, so I’m not counting them yet).

On the flip side of the standings, we find the six winless teams (who have played more than one game). Those unfortunate few are the Canucks, Sharks, Predators, Avalanche, Islanders, and, most surprising, everyone’s preseason Stanley Cup favorite, the Oilers. Good thing it’s still early…

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Cameron and Cayden Boozer are twins and five star recruits in the class of 2025. You may recognize the last name– their dad Carlos Boozer was a two-time NBA all-star, a productive power forward best known for his time on the Jazz and the Bulls. Over the weekend, the Boozer twins announced their commitment to play basketball their father’s alma mater, Duke. I know, that’s a lot of startling information to take in. Carlos Boozer has a son? Twins that are both super good at basketball? Duke is seriously getting more top recruits? You have a year to prepare. Good luck.

Ruth Chepngetich set the new world record at the Chicago Marathon yesterday, winning the race with a time of 2:09:56. I’m going to say that one more time: Ruth Chepngetich set the marathon world record with a time of 2:09:56. That’s faster than an entire baseball game. Or the runtime of the average Marvel movie.

The US men’s national team won their friendly against Panama on Saturday– take a look at the beginning of the Pochettino era:

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

NHL: Six games on the ice tonight– here are my three favorites on today’s schedule:

• Florida Panthers @ Boston Bruins, 1 PM

• Utah Hockey Club @ New Jersey Devils, 1 PM

• Pittsburgh Penguins @ Montreal Canadiens, 7:30 PM

MLB: October baseball rolls along…

• NLCS GAME TWO: Mets @ Dodgers, 4:08 PM on Fox/FS1

  • Sean Manaea vs LAD bullpen game

• ALCS GAME ONE: Guardians @ Yankees, 7:38 PM on TBS

  • Alex Cobb vs Carlos Rodon

NHL: Bills @ Jets, 8:15 on ABC

• The sports world is all about New York today, as these AFC East rivals follow the playoff baseball games with a primetime matchup of their own.

“I’m living in a movie, and I want to make sure the ending is pretty good, and I want to be able to rewatch it.” –Yankees closer Luke Weaver