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⚾ Five things to know Thursday
- Justin Verlander announces his retirement. Verlander announced that he will retire after the 2026 MLB season. The Tigers pitcher is a 10-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young winner and two-time World Series winner, and will retire as the greatest pitcher of a loaded generation, writes Matt Snyder.
- Alyssa Thomas highlights the list of WNBA All-Star snubs. Thomas is putting up 14.4 points, 6.9 rebounds, a league-leading 8.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game on 51.5% shooting, basically the same line she put up last season, a year where she finished third in MVP voting. It’s no surprise Thomas headlines the list of WNBA All-Star snubs.
- A near no-no for Toronto. Blue Jays starter Dylan Cease took a no-hitter into the ninth inning of Toronto’s 10-0 win over the Giants on Wednesday, but missed out on the second no-hitter of his career when Heliot Ramos drilled a single to kick off the final frame … Meanwhile, two other managers — four days apart — pulled their starters while they were within grasping a perfect game. What’s going on with that?
- The latest Power 18 golf rankings. Wyndham Clark is in at No. 4 in the latest Power 18 golf rankings, riding the wave of winning his second U.S. Open title. Meanwhile, Bryson DeChambeau is off the list entirely.
- Erling Haaland and Norway’s World Cup charge. As they prepare for their World Cup quarterfinal match with England, Norway is charging up our World Cup power rankings, moving two spots to No. 5. We also have a look at Norway’s inspiring run, and the impact of Haaland and manager Ståle Solbakken.
👊 Do not miss this: Getting ready for Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway at UFC 329
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On Saturday, Conor McGregor will make his long-awaited return to the UFC Octagon when he faces old rival Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 329. McGregor is the biggest star in UFC history, but he’s been out of action since suffering a broken leg while fighting Dustin Poirier in 2021. He will make his long-awaited return against a fellow legend in Holloway, a former featherweight and “Baddest Motherf—er” champion and one of the most popular fighters in the sport. The two met in 2013, with McGregor getting a decision win before either ascended to the heights they would eventually reach.
McGregor is a betting underdog, but he certainly has paths to victory, as we broke down by looking at the three biggest keys to the Irish megastar securing a victory. In the build to Saturday’s fight, McGregor also took a bit of time to fire some shots at his biggest rival, saying Khabib Nurmagomedov has “done nothing” to be considered among the best fighters in UFC history.
As for Holloway, Brian Campbell spoke to the former featherweight king to discuss the importance of the fight.
- Campbell: “‘A lot of people keep talking about how if Conor can somehow pull it off, he has two title shots [lightweight and/or BMF] waiting for him,’ Holloway said. ‘It takes two to tango. That means that if I go out and do my thing, I have two title shots waiting for me. It’s a huge legacy fight, especially with all of the eyes. You guys all saw the presales and how fast it went. You all saw the [ticket] prices.
‘We have other big events like the World Cup going on and still, people are talking more about Holloway-McGregor II. At the end of the day, it’s a great position to be in.'”
Also read: UFC 329: Paddy Pimblett says it’s crazy that he’s getting more respect for a loss than his previous win streak
🏈 The 10 strangest Heisman votes ever cast
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The Heisman Trophy vote is more interesting in some years than others. Some college football seasons see runaway winners, while others feature a competitive field where the winner truly feels up in the air. Interestingly, some years see truly bizarre, borderline inexcusable first-place votes cast.
With that in mind, Cody Nagel dug through the votes to see if he could identify the 10 strangest first-place votes cast in Heisman history. Interestingly, 2005 saw two entries on the list for a season where Reggie Bush was clearly the deserving winner. But let’s take a look at what happened in 2019, when Tua Tagovailoa received a lone first-place vote.
- Nagel: “The year is an important context here. Tagovailoa was the Heisman runner-up in 2018, and there was a real argument he’d have contended for the trophy outright had he played a full season in 2019. However, he missed three games because of injury. He was on pace to blow past his 2018 numbers, so there’s a case there perhaps, until you consider who actually won in 2019.
“Joe Burrow garnered the second-most first-place votes (841) and the largest margin of victory (1,846 points) in Heisman history. Even if you projected Tagovailoa’s pace to match the 15 games Burrow played, he’s still behind what the LSU quarterback did in that historic offense.”
👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest
📺 What we’re watching Thursday
🎾 Wimbledon: Women’s semifinals, 8:30 a.m. on ESPN
⛳ Scottish Open, 11 a.m. on Golf Channel
⚾ Yankees at Rays, 1:10 p.m. on MLB.tv
⚾ Red Sox at White Sox, 2:10 p.m. on MLB.tv
⚽ World Cup quarterfinal: France vs. Morocco, 4 p.m. on FOX
⚾ Cubs at Orioles, 6:35 p.m. on MLB.tv
🏀 Storm at Dream, 8 p.m. on Prime Video
⚾ Angels at Rangers, 8:05 p.m. on MLB.tv
⚾ Rockies at Giants, 9:45 p.m. on MLB.tv
🏀 Fever at Mercury, 10 p.m. on Prime Video
