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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
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.'"
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🏈 The 10 strangest Heisman votes ever cast
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
- Shohei Ohtani hit his 300th career MLB home run Tuesday night. How long will it take the Dodgers' superstar to join the 500 club, if he can get there at all?
- Lionel Messi leads the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot odds as he and Argentina head to the quarterfinals.
- Phillies ace Zack Wheeler is not happy about being snubbed as an All-Star pick, saying, "I feel like I've earned it."
- Who will win the 2026 Scottish Open? We have a look at the odds and trends for the upcoming tournament.
- Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire admitted that the Red Raiders should have taken a different path after the fallout from the school attempting to play Brendan Sorsby.
- Kyler Murray and Garrett Wilson are among the NFL veterans who could experience a resurgence in the upcoming season.
- Which NFL teams have best set up their starting quarterback for success?
- Colorado coach Deion Sanders says that he's back to the "old him" after bladder cancer that kept him away from his team for months last offseason.
- Blackhawks star Connor Bedard will miss four months after suffering a shoulder injury.
- Here's a look at the latest MLB trade rumors, with a special focus on the Astros and Cubs.
- We have a look at the best, worst and wildest hauls in the college basketball transfer portal.
- Just why, exactly, did so many teams participate in the trade that sent Khris Middleton to the Wizards?
- Willson Contreras and Jac Caglianone have joined the Home Run Derby field, leaving four spots open.
- Mariska Hargitay pitching LeBron James to come to the Knicks? That's just one wild idea in our look at who should pitch James signing with their team.
- Find out which teams are crushing it and which are falling flat with our WNBA midseason grades.
- In the middle of an unexpectedly good season, the AL Central first-place White Sox hold the No. 1 pick in the upcoming MLB Draft. Here are seven players they could grab with that pick.
📺 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
