Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly hit back-to-back homers, helping the Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres 3-1 on Tuesday in Game 1 of their NL Wild Card Series.
Chicago also got a perfect performance from its bullpen in the franchise's first playoff win since the 2017 National League Championship Series. The Cubs were swept by Miami in the wild-card round in 2020 during their last postseason appearance.
Game 2 of the best-of-three series is back at Wrigley Field on Wednesday afternoon.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill tore multiple ligaments in his knee - including his ACL - in Monday night's win over the New York Jets, a source told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
Hill will have season-ending surgery Tuesday, though there is no guarantee he will be ready for the 2026 campaign either due to the possibility of needing future procedures, Rapoport adds.
The wideout posted a message thanking fans for their prayers and support prior to his surgery.
The Minnesota Wild signed franchise player Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year extension with an average annual value of $17 million, the team announced Tuesday.
It's the largest contract in NHL history in total money and AAV.
Kaprizov is in the final year of a contract with a $9-million AAV. The extension begins in 2026-27 and will keep Kaprizov off the market through his age-36 season.
Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos finally justified their head coach's talking them up all offseason.
Nix threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to atone for his end zone interception and the Broncos snapped a two-game skid by sending the Cincinnati Bengals to their second straight blowout loss, 28-3 Monday night.
The Bengals (2-2) never crossed midfield after an opening-drive field goal for a 3-0 lead as Denver's defense limited Cincinnati to a mere 159 yards of offense — to the Broncos' 512 — and two third-down conversions all night.
Bruce Bochy will not return as manager of the Texas Rangers after a three-year stint that began with the franchise's first World Series championship in 2023 before missing the playoffs and not having a winning record in both seasons since then.
The Rangers announced Monday night that the team and Bochy mutually agreed to end his managerial tenure in Texas. Bochy has been offered a front office role to stay in an advisory capacity.
The move came a day after the Rangers finished 81-81. That was the first .500 record ever for the franchise that began as the Washington Senators in 1961 before moving to Texas in 1972, and a first for Bochy in 28 seasons overall managing San Diego, San Francisco and Texas.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill left Monday's game against the New York Jets after suffering a gruesome leg injury.
Hill hurt himself in the third quarter after making a catch and getting tackled near the sideline. The Dolphins said the veteran wideout sustained a knee injury and has been taken to a local hospital for imaging, evaluation, and observation.
He smiled and waved at the fans while leaving the game on a cart.
The Pittsburgh Pirates extended the contract of manager Don Kelly, they announced Monday.
Terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Kelly, 45, was promoted to manager May 8 after the franchise fired longtime skipper Derek Shelton following a 12-26 start. Although the Pirates still finished last in the NL Central, they showed a marked improvement after the managerial change, going 59-65 under Kelly. The Pirates were one game below .500 during the second half and ended 2025 with a winning record at home.
The San Francisco Giants fired manager Bob Melvin after two seasons with the club, they announced Monday.
"After careful evaluation, we determined that making a change in leadership was in the best interest of the team," Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey said in a statement. "The last couple of months have been both disappointing and frustrating for all of us, and we did not perform up to our standards. We now turn our focus to identifying a new leader to guide us forward."
San Francisco chose to let Melvin go less than three months after picking up the 2026 club option on his contract.
The Minnesota Twins fired longtime manager Rocco Baldelli, the team announced Monday.
The Twins dismissed Baldelli after losing 92 games in 2025 - their worst record since 2016 and a sharp decline from their division-title season two years prior.
"This game is ultimately measured by results, and over the past two seasons, we did not reach the goals we set. I take personal responsibility for that," Twins president of baseball and business operations Derek Falvey said in a statement.
New York Giants owner John Mara announced Monday he was recently diagnosed with cancer.
Mara said in a statement released by the team that he has been following a treatment plan recommended by doctors. He did not disclose what form of cancer he has and asked for privacy on the matter.
Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg will miss six-to-eight weeks with a broken wrist, head coach Scott Arniel announced Monday.
Samberg left Saturday's preseason game against the Calgary Flames after taking a hit from Ryan Lomberg.
Nikolaj Ehlers knows what awaits.
The forward was a sought-after free agent who chose to sign with the Carolina Hurricanes, a team that has made seven straight postseason trips while becoming a perennial Eastern Conference contender for the Stanley Cup. And that brings a spotlight on his transition with a team still trying to punch its way through to the Cup final for the first time since 2006.
There will be October baseball in Cincinnati.
The Reds completed a thrilling late-September run to clinch the final NL postseason spot Sunday following the New York Mets' 4-0 loss to the Miami Marlins.
LiAfter 162 games, the Toronto Blue Jays are a first-place team.
Toronto survived a late-season slump to hold off the New York Yankees and clinch both the AL East title and the AL's No. 1 seed with a 13-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday.
The AL East title is the Blue Jays' seventh division crown and their first since 2015.
Catcher Alejandro Kirk led the way by crushing two home runs, including a first-inning grand slam, and notching a career-high six RBIs to ensure there would be a celebration in Toronto.
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson left Sunday's 37-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs late in the third quarter due to a hamstring injury.
Jackson was listed as questionable to return but didn't take the field again after exiting with Baltimore trailing 30-13.
When Jackson sustained the injury is unclear, but the two-time NFL MVP was sacked on third down during his last drive before exiting the matchup.
Patrick Mahomes threw for 270 yards and four touchdowns while outdueling Lamar Jackson, who left in the second half with a right hamstring injury, and the Kansas City Chiefs routed the beat-up Baltimore Ravens 37-20 on Sunday.
Xavier Worthy returned from a shoulder injury to catch five passes for 83 yards, igniting a Chiefs offense that had been struggling to find its footing without the speedster and his suspended teammate, Rashee Rice, early in the season.
The Chiefs (2-2) built a 20-10 halftime lead against Baltimore before cruising to their seventh win in the past eight meetings. The most recent time the Ravens (1-3) beat them was September 2021, and their previous win in Kansas City was on Oct. 7, 2021.
Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner returned to the lineup for the first time in three weeks when he strained his right hamstring and was set to clinch his second career NL batting crown.
Turner was activated off the injured list ahead of Sunday's regular-season finale against Minnesota for the NL East champion Phillies and will bat leadoff. Turner is the only player in the National League batting above .300 headed into baseball's final day of the season.
In a corresponding move, right-hander Max Lazar was optioned to the rookie-level Florida Complex League Phillies.
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers was carted off in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Chargers after appearing to suffer a knee injury.
Nabers came down grabbing his right knee after going up for a pass from Jaxson Dart.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are signing goaltender Anthony Stolarz to a four-year extension with a $3.75-million cap hit, reports TSN's Chris Johnston.
Stolarz went 21-8-3 in his first campaign with the Maple Leafs last season and posted a .926 save percentage with a 2.14 goals-against average. He played a career-high 34 games, marking the first time in his career he appeared in over 30 contests. Stolarz finished fifth in Vezina Trophy voting.
Ty Simpson passed for 276 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score as No. 17 Alabama held on late to beat No. 5 Georgia 24-21 on Saturday night and hand the Bulldogs their first home loss in six years.
Alabama (3-1, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) has won three straight since opening the season with a 31-17 loss at Florida State.
The American League playoff field is set.
The Cleveland Guardians beat the Texas Rangers 3-2 on Saturday to clinch a postseason berth for the second straight year, completing their remarkable late-season turnaround. C.J. Kayfus sent the Guardians to October the hard way, taking a walk-off hit-by-pitch to score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth.
After flirting with disaster all month, the Detroit Tigers are heading to October.
The Tigers clinched a playoff spot Saturday after they beat the Boston Red Sox 2-1 at Fenway Park.
Europe grabbed a 5.5-2.5 lead over Team USA to open the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black on Friday, marking its first lead after Day 1 on American soil since 2004.
The Europeans built a 3-1 advantage in the morning foursomes session before winning the afternoon session 2.5-1.5 to capture all the early momentum at the highly anticipated international showdown.
The Atlanta Braves claimed and optioned pitcher Alek Manoah on Friday, three days after the former All-Star and 2022 AL Cy Young finalist was designated for assignment by the Toronto Blue Jays.
To make room on the 40-man roster, the Braves transferred second baseman Ozzie Albies to the 60-day injured list. Albies broke a bone in his left hand on Monday in a game against the Washington Nationals, ending his season.
Manoah was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays to make room on Toronto's 40-man roster for Anthony Santander to come off the 60-day injured list.
Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov underwent knee surgery Friday and was given a recovery timeline of seven-to-nine months, the team announced.
The timeline will force him to miss the Olympics in February and could keep him out the entire regular season.
James Reimer is back where it all began.
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed the veteran goalie to a professional tryout Friday, the team announced.
Reimer was a fourth-round pick by the Maple Leafs in 2006 and spent the first six seasons of his NHL career in Toronto.
The Los Angeles Lakers extended head coach JJ Redick's contract ahead of the 2025-26 season, general manager Rob Pelinka announced Thursday.
"(The extension) makes it clear that he's the basketball leader in terms of our coaching and on-court performance," Pelinka said, according to Mark Medina of Sports Central LA.
The terms of Redick's new deal have yet to be announced.
Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka addressed LeBron James' future, reiterating that he hopes the NBA's all-time scoring leader remains with the franchise for the rest of his legendary career.
"We would love if LeBron's story would be to retire as a Laker," Pelinka told reporters Thursday.
James, 40, has one year left on his contract with the Lakers after exercising his option ahead of his 23rd NBA season. It's unclear how many more years he'll play in the Association.
The Seattle Seahawks could have been shell-shocked, giving up a 14-point lead during the latter half of the fourth quarter and turning their comfortable advantage into a tie game with 33 seconds left.
It looked like they might need overtime to make amends.
Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Jason Myers had other ideas.
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch says Brandon Aiyuk is still a ways away from returning despite the wide receiver not suffering any setbacks in his recovery from a torn ACL.
"There's different levels with the ACL, (and) Brandon had a significant injury," Lynch told KNBR on Thursday.
"We'll be a better team when Brandon's out there, so we look forward to that day, but it's not close. When we have some more info on that, we'll be forthright with it."
Head coach Paul Maurice said Barkov will be evaluated, with Florida expecting an update on its leader Friday.
"It's beyond our control," Maurice said, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. "We have to learn to win hockey games without good players. If that's the adversity or the test that we face this year, then that's what we're going to do. I'm not a doctor, so whatever the report is won't affect how we handle the next days."
Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes joined exclusive company after tossing six shutout innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday.
Skenes finished his sophomore campaign with a 1.97 ERA, becoming the first qualified pitcher to complete a season with an ERA under 2.00 since Justin Verlander in 2022.
Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn will undergo surgery for a collapsed lung and be re-evaluated in four weeks, the team announced Thursday.
He sustained the injury in Tuesday's exhibition game against the Minnesota Wild. The Stars begin their regular season Oct. 9 against the Winnipeg Jets.
Benn signed a one-year, $1-million contract with the Stars in June to stick with the club for a 17th season. The Stars selected Benn in the fifth round of the 2007 draft.
The Cleveland Guardians' September miracle continued Wednesday, as they beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 to take sole possession of first place in the AL Central for the first time since April 22.
The Guardians have already clinched the tiebreaker against the Tigers.
The Guardians were 15 1/2 games out of first place July 8. If they hold on to win the division, it will mark the largest deficit ever overcome to win either a division title or league pennant. The previous record was a 15-game deficit overcome by the 1914 NL champion Boston Braves.
The New York Yankees defeated the Chicago White Sox 8-1 and moved into a first-place tie with the Blue Jays in the American League East after Toronto lost to the Boston Red Sox 7-1.
The Yankees trailed the Blue Jays by five games for the division lead on Sept. 16, but made up ground after Toronto lost six of its last seven games.
Toronto owns the tiebreaker over New York if the two clubs finish the season with identical records.
The New York Giants will start rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart for the rest of the season, beginning Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers, head coach Brian Daboll confirmed Wednesday.
"We're going with Jaxson," Daboll said, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "We had a private conversation, it was my decision." Daboll added that he expects Russell Wilson to serve as Dart's backup for the rest of the season, according to Fox Sports' Ralph Vacchiano.
New York traded up in the first round to select Dart 25th overall in the 2025 draft out of Ole Miss. He's played six offensive snaps this year, but Sunday will be his first career start.
The Seattle Mariners are heading to the postseason for the first time since 2022 after a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday.
With Seattle trailing 3-1 and the bases loaded in the eighth inning at T-Mobile Park, Josh Naylor hit a bases-clearing double off Victor Vodnik to put the Mariners on top for good.
Scotty Bowman and Ron Francis headline the Pittsburgh Penguins' Hall of Fame class of 2025.
Bowman, the NHL's all-time winningest coach, and Francis, the league's fifth all-time leading scorer, were both important members of the Pittsburgh teams of the early 1990s that claimed the franchise's first two Stanley Cups.
The duo, both of whom are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, will be joined by forward Kevin Stevens and former coach/general manager Eddie Johnston during an on-ice ceremony when the Penguins host Columbus on Oct. 25.
Robot umpires are getting called up to the big leagues next season.
Major League Baseball's 11-man competition committee on Tuesday approved use of the Automated Ball/Strike System in the major leagues in 2026.
Human plate umpires will still call balls and strikes, but teams can challenge two calls per game and get additional appeals in extra innings. Challenges must be made by a pitcher, catcher or batter - signaled by tapping their helmet or cap - and a team retains its challenge if successful. Reviews will be shown as digital graphics on outfield videoboards.
The Edmonton Oilers signed winger Vasily Podkolzin to a three-year extension carrying an average annual value of $2.95 million, the team announced Tuesday.
Podkolzin has one year left on his current contract with a $1-million cap hit. The new deal kicks in next season.
The 24-year-old notched eight goals and 16 assists in 82 games last season before adding 10 points in 22 playoff appearances. He also racked up 211 hits in the regular season and posted strong defensive metrics.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are bracing for wide receiver Mike Evans to miss two-to-three weeks with a hamstring injury, sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
Evans suffered the ailment in Sunday's win over the New York Jets. An MRI revealed the injury isn't as serious as the one that sidelined him for three contests last season, but the wideout will miss some time, Fowler adds.
Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry was frustrated after his fourth-quarter fumble during Monday night's loss to the Detroit Lions.
"I'm at a loss for words," Henry said, according to ESPN's Jamison Hensley. "This sucks right now. I ain't going to lie to y'all."
The costly mistake occurred with just over eight minutes left. Lions star pass-rusher Aidan Hutchinson punched the ball out of Henry's hands on the first play of the drive, leading to a Detroit field goal that extended their lead to 31-24. Baltimore ultimately lost the contest 38-30.
New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. is expected to miss two-to-four weeks with a dislocated shoulder, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Tracy suffered the injury in New York's loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night. He took a hit near the sideline in the first quarter and was attended to by the training staff before being escorted to the locker room. He missed the rest of the game.
The 25-year-old has recorded 22 carries for 68 yards this season. Tracy was drafted in the fifth round in 2024 and led the Giants in rushing attempts (192), rushing yards (839), and rushing scores (5) last campaign.
Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll is taking a leave of absence to attend to a personal family matter, the team announced Tuesday.
The Maple Leafs didn't provide a timeline for his potential return.
Woll went 27-14-1 with a .909 save percentage while appearing in a career-high 42 games with Toronto last season.
The San Diego Padres are postseason bound once again.
San Diego booked its ticket after beating the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4 in 11 innings on Monday at Petco Park.
The Padres are enjoying their most successful stretch in franchise history, having appeared in the postseason four times over the last six seasons. It's just the second time the franchise clinched a playoff spot in back-to-back years (2005-06).
Punishing all night — and tricky when they had to be - the Detroit Lions battered the Baltimore Ravens with a performance that epitomized everything they've become under coach Dan Campbell.
Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery ran for two touchdowns apiece, and the Lions bullied their way to a 38-30 win over Baltimore on Monday night. Detroit sacked Lamar Jackson seven times and outrushed the Ravens 224 yards to 85.
Defenseman Alex Pietrangelo has not ruled out playing again for the Golden Knights — even this season — hoping to avoid surgery as he goes through rehabilitation on his injured hip.
Vegas placed him on long-term injured reserve earlier this year, which gave the Golden Knights room under the salary cap to sign prized sign-and-trade acquisition Mitch Marner.
At the time, it was announced that Pietrangelo would undergo surgery for bilateral femur reconstruction that most certainly would have ended any hopes of playing this season. Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon even doubted Pietrangelo would play again.