Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Thursday, October 10.

MLB

Thursday was all about the American League, with two Game Fours in the midwest. First up were the Detroit Tigers, trying to close out the Cleveland Guardians at home. Superstar Jose Ramirez delivered the first big blow of this one, giving Cleveland a 2-1 lead in the fifth on a solo home run. But as they’ve done all season, the Gritty Tigs fought back. It was 3-2 Detroit with two outs in the 7th… and that’s when Thursday became Fry-day. Guardians catcher David Fry smashed a two-run homer to take a 4-3 lead. And he followed that up with a textbook squeeze play in his next at-bat, adding a key insurance run. The Guardians are dragging Detroit back to Cleveland for a deciding game five, winning a back-and-forth battle last night 5-4.

In the other ALDS series, New York had their ace Gerrit Cole on the mound to send the Kansas City Royals packing. And boy did he deliver. Cole pitched seven innings, allowing six hits and just one run. Giancarlo Stanton continued his hot streak with another RBI, and the Yankees controlled this game from start to finish. The unsung hero of this team is the bullpen, as they gave up no earned runs (and just one unearned) in all four games against Kansas City. The Yankees won game four 3-1, and advanced to their 19th American League Championship Series.

NFL

After a slow start, Thursday Night Football has been pretty fun lately, with another entertaining game last night in Seattle. Here’s what happened on the gridiron:

• The 49ers got off to a big lead early. Rookie Malik Mustapha (from Wake Forest) intercepted Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith, Brock Purdy connected with Deebo Sameul on a 76-yard touchdown pass, and at halftime, the score was 16-3.

• But the Seahawks made a comeback. Laviska Shenault brought his team back to life with this 97-yard kick return for a touchdown.

• Seattle narrowed the lead to one possession, but the stout San Francisco defense made enough big plays to close this game out. George Kittle caught two touchdowns to lead the way as the 49ers beat the Seahawks 36-24.

WNBA

Game one of the WNBA finals was the sports event of the day. This was an incredible basketball game between the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx– if you haven’t watched these playoffs yet, I recommend tuning in. Here’s what happened at the Barclays Center on Thursday:

• We pickup the action in the 4th quarter… The number one seed Liberty led by 15 points with just over five minutes remaining. They had yet to lose a home game the entire postseason. And the Lynx came storming back. Minnesota closed out the 4th quarter on a 18-3 run, highlighted by this four-point play to take the lead with 5.5 seconds left:

• Despite the comeback, Liberty star Breanna Stewart had a chance to win the game in regulation for New York. Stewie was fouled on a layup with less than a second remaining… and she missed the second free throw! This thriller was going to overtime.

• Courtney Williams, Napheesa Collier, and the rest of the Lynx led for the majority of OT. Collier’s turnaround jump shot with 8.8 seconds made it 95-93 Minnesota– Stewart had one last chance to tie it, but her layup at the buzzer wouldn’t go down. Minnesota stole game one from New York, becoming the first team in WNBA playoff history to overcome a 15 point deficit in the final five minutes. And this series is just getting started…

NHL

We’ve got some highlights from last night’s action on the ice!

• The Utah Hockey Club remains undefeated– Dylan Guenther scored a game-winning goal in overtime as UHC beat the New York Islanders 5-4.

• Penguins legend Evgeni Malkin recorded his 800th career assist, and Pittsburgh beat the Detroit Red Wings 6-3.

• 2024 first-round pick Macklin Celebrini made his pro hockey debut last night for the San Jose Sharks, and very quickly scored his first NHL goal! The St. Louis Blues spoiled the Celebr-ation, however, coming back from down 4-1 to beat San Jose 5-4 in overtime.

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Rafael Nadal announced his plan to retire after he competes for Spain in the Davis Cup in November. One of the greatest tennis players and individual competitors of all-time, Rafa won 22 Grand Slams, including a record 14 at the French Open. No athlete in history has dominated an event like Nadal in Paris– his career record on the red clay is a mind-boggling 112-4. And Nadal’s rivalry with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic defined 20 years of men’s tennis. The Big Three changed how the game was played and inspired generations of tennis fans across the globe– ask anyone who watched Nadal play, and they can instantly picture the Spainard whipping his left arm over his shoulder, hitting topspin forehands like a matador. While injuries hampered the 38-year old during the later stages of his career, there is no questioning the great legacy of the King of Clay.

Continuing with the theme of retirement, Danny Green announced his decision to end his NBA career. A national champion at UNC in 2009, Green was one of the best three-point specialists of the 2010s. He was also a key member of championship teams for the Spurs, Raptors, and Lakers. Congratulations to Green on a great career.

Are you in the market for a baseball team? If you have one or two billion dollars, you may be able to purchase the Minnesota Twins. Just three other MLB teams have ownership groups with a longer tenure than Minnesota, but the Pohlad family have decided it’s time to move on.

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

MLB: Padres @ Dodgers, 8:08 PM on Fox

• Yu Darvish takes the mound for San Diego against LA’s Yoshinobu Yamamoto– this will be the first game in postseason history with two Japanese starters. Not to mention all that’s at stake, with a spot in the NLCS on th eline. You’re gonna want to watch this one.

NCAA FOOTBALL: (16) Utah @ Arizona State, 10:30 PM on ESPN

• A nice little teaser before Saturday’s stacked college football slate. The Utes have a tough test against the Sun Devils, who are off to a 4-1 start.

SATURDAY’S BIG GAMES

NCAA FOOTBALL: Don’t ask me who’s going to win these incredible college football matchups– just enjoy the show:

• The Red River Rivalry at the Texas State Fair in Dallas! (1) Texas @ (18) Oklahoma, 3:30 PM on ABC

• (4) Penn State @ USC, 3:30 PM on CBS

• (2) Ohio State @ (3) Oregon, 7:30 PM on NBC

• (9) Ole Miss @ (13) LSU, 7:30 PM on ABC

• (18) Kansas State @ Colorado, 8:15 PM on ESPN

MLB: Tigers @ Guardians, 8:08 PM on TBS/Max

• Mr. Unhittable Tarik Skubal starts for Detroit, as the Tigers take on the Cleveland Guardians in a winner-take-all game five.

SOCCER: USA v Panama, 6 PM

• Just a friendly match, but this is Mauricio Pochettino’s first game in charge of the USMNT. A lot of eyeballs will be on this one.

SUNDAY’S BIG GAMES

NFL: If Saturday’s schedule somehow wasn’t enough, then maybe you’ll enjoy what week six in the NFL has to offer:

• Jaguars @ Bears in London, 9:30 AM on NFL Network

• Commanders @ Ravens, 1 PM on CBS

• Buccaneers @ Saints, 1 PM on Fox

• Lions @ Cowboys, 4:25 PM on Fox

• Bengals @ Giants, 8:20 PM on NBC

WNBA: Lynx @ Liberty, 3 PM on ABC

• Game two in New York, as the Liberty try to even this best-of-five series.

MLB: Mets @ Dodgers OR Padres @ Mets, 8:15 PM on Fox

• One thing is for certain this weekend: the Mets will play a team from California on Sunday in game one of the National League Championship Series.

”Losing is not my enemy. Fear of losing is my enemy.” –Rafael Nadal 

Have a great weekend! See you on Monday.