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NEW YORK CITY’S MLB TEAMS
If they can make it here, they can make it … a Subway Series World Series? Maybe? The Yankees and Mets won their respective Championship Series games Monday, with the Yankees taking a 1-0 series lead over the Guardians and the Mets tying their series with the Dodgers 1-1.
The Bronx Bombers took an early lead on Juan Soto‘s solo home run, added on thanks to some shoddy Guardians pitching and catching, got a Giancarlo Stanton solo shot and held on (despite a wild obstruction play) for a 5-2 win. It was ugly all around for Cleveland, which gave up three runs thanks to four Joey Cantillo wild pitches.
Carlos Rodón, meanwhile, had the Guardians swinging wildly: nine strikeouts and 25 swings and misses, the most by a Yankees pitcher in a playoff game in the pitch tracking era (since 2008). That plus Stanton’s continued postseason excellence proved to be a winning combination.
On the other side of the country, the Dodgers entered Game 2 on a historic pitching streak: 33 straight scoreless innings. It took the Mets one batter to change that as Francisco Lindor led off the game with a home run. The big blow was Mark Vientos’ second-inning grand slam, and the bullpen held on after a solid Sean Manaea start for a 7-3 win.
The Dodgers intentionally walked Lindor ahead of Vientos, and he “took it personal,” becoming the youngest player in LCS history to hit a grand slam.
Los Angeles posed some late threats, but Phil Maton and Edwin Díaz escaped jams. The Mets head home for three games starting tomorrow.
THE NEW YORK JETS
A team actually based in New York beat a team that calls itself “New York” while playing in New Jersey. They had a new coach, a new play caller and new vibes, but the 2-4 Jets got all-too-familiar results with a messy 23-20 loss to the Bills.
It looked like the Robert Saleh firing and Nathaniel Hackett demotion were paying immediate dividends as the Jets scored on each of its first two possessions. But things fell apart from there:
I loved the Bills’ ability to run the ball — how about rookie Ray Davis with 152 total yards in James Cook‘s stead?! — and Allen’s ability to improvise while still taking care of the ball. He’s up to eight straight games without an interception (including playoffs), the longest streak of his career.
But, man, the Jets missed “a golden opportunity,” in Rodgers’ words. They managed just one touchdown and two field goals on four red zone trips. Buffalo, conversely, had three touchdowns and a field goal on four trips. The Jets are talented, but the miscues are infuriating and extremely costly. A -10 point differential over the three-game losing streak speaks for itself. The little things must be figured out.
After another wild weekend, the top of the CBS Sports 134 has some major changes but a familiar face at No. 1: Texas. Shehan Jeyarajah says the Longhorns made the right choice going with Quinn Ewers at starting quarterback, and it’s hard to argue there. Here’s the top five:
Further down, Arizona State continued its quiet rise with the week’s biggest jump, going from 42nd to 27th with a win over Utah. The Utes, meanwhile, were the week’s biggest faller, going from 20th to 38th, and with Cam Rising‘s season over, things don’t look good. (Yes, he could return for an eighth year.)
Here’s the entire 134, and here are Brandon Marcello’s Power Rankings.
Penn State fans, you might wonder why your team didn’t gain ground despite a comeback at USC. John Talty has the answer: The Nittany Lions look like a CFP lock but not a true national title contender.
We’re inside three weeks until the 2024-25 college basketball season begins, and we’re celebrating appropriately.
Let’s start with the CBS Sports Preseason All-America teams, as voted on by CBS Sports and 247Sports staff and CBS and CBS Sports Network broadcasters. The first team is …
Big shout-out to Kyle Boone for the analysis. You can also see our second- and third-team selections here.
Unsurprisingly, those players’ teams are well-represented in the preseason AP Top 25. Here’s the top five:
No Duke, though? The Blue Devils are ranked seventh, and Cameron Salerno says that’s too low.
The women’s preseason top 25 comes out today, and ahead of that release, Isabel Gonzalez ranked her top 10 players in the sport. Here’s the top five:
Isabel also has offseason winners and losers.
🏒 Wild at Blues, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ ALCS Game 2: Guardians at Yankees, 7:38 p.m. on TBS/truTV
🏒 Flyers at Oilers, 10 p.m. on ESPN
⚽ Mexico vs. USMNT, 10:30 p.m. on TNT