Sports
Juan Soto sends the Yankees to the World Series for the first time in 15 years
The New York Yankees are going to the World Series for the first time since Obama’s first year in office.
Juan Soto hit a three-run home run on Saturday to bring the American League pennant back to the Bronx for the first time since 2009. The 25-year-old superstar outfielder worked seven pitches against Cleveland Guardians pitcher Hunter Gaddis, and with two strikes, he smashed a high fastball into deep center field. He watched it with an unsteady face as it left his bat, seeing just how far it was going to go.
And then it landed over the centerfield fence. The Yankees won 5-2 in Game 5 of the American League Championship series to clinch a 4-1 series victory.
New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto celebrates after hitting a three run home run during the tenth inning against the Cleveland Guardians during game five of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. (David Dermer-Imagn Images)
The crowd in Cleveland was three quarters stunned silent, and one quarter ruthless Yankees chants. Those traveling Yankees fans kept the Progressive Field crowd loud and rowdy long after the final out, as chants of “Let’s Go Yankees!” echoed across an otherwise silent city, into the distance of Ohio’s Lake Erie.
For Cleveland, it is another chapter in an infamous list of heartbreaking moments and a continued trend of October defeat to the evil empire.
Cleveland has now lost four postseason series to the Yankees dating back to 2017, Aaron Judge’s rookie season. That year, Cleveland was coming off its own American League pennant, a 102-win season and had the longest winning streak in American League history under its belt. But then with a 2-0 series lead in the ALDS, Cleveland let the wild card Yankees win three straight.
The team hasn’t been the same team since. The Yankees beat Cleveland again in the 2020 wild card series, the 2022 divisional series, and have now denied the city a World Series appearance. The franchise literally hasn’t been the same, branding wise, as it was forced to change its name in that time as well.
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Giancarlo Stanton #27 of the New York Yankees reacts after hitting a three-run home run in the sixth inning against the Cleveland Guardians during Game Four of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field on October 18, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
But for the Yankees, Saturday’s win marks just another step in a high-stakes mission to claim their 28th championship.
Soto, the hero of the night, was traded for last offseason with just one year left on his contract. Soto has proven to transform the power of the Yankees lineup this year, batting alongside Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. But the Yankees and general manager Brian Cashman knew they had to win it this year to make the trade worth it.
There’s no guarantee Soto will be back.
He could command the richest contract in MLB history this upcoming offseason. He could have commanded that kind of contract even before hitting the signature home run on Saturday. Now, the price could be even higher. His agent is the infamous baseball super negotiator Scott Boras, who has a history of yielding oversized contracts for his star clients.
There will be a lot of seats at the table for Soto’s services in the winter, and the bidding war will be steep.
But before that, Soto and the Yankees have a World Series to play. They must now await the winner of the National League Championship series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets.
The New York Yankees celebrates after beating the Cleveland Guardians during game five of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images (SScott Galvin-Imagn Images)
The Dodgers lead the series 3-2, and could punch their ticket to their 12th World Series against the Yankees in their storied shared history with one more win at home. The Mets would need to win two in a row on the road to face their hometown rival in the first Subway Series since 2000.
No matter who the Yankees play, the expectation will be the same. But they’ll hope that this time, they actually live up to the expectation of the Yankee brand for the first time in far too long.
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Sports
Conor McGregor’s long-awaited Octagon return cut short by apparent knee injury seconds into UFC 329
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Nearly five years after his last walk to the Octagon, Conor McGregor made his long-awaited UFC return Saturday night against fellow MMA star Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 329 in Las Vegas.
McGregor opened aggressively, attempting a running kick before throwing a head kick moments later. He appeared to slip on both tries. Holloway quickly capitalized after the second, taking top position and landing a right hand before McGregor was able to work his way back to his feet.
Moments later, McGregor hit the canvas again after trying to throw a kick with his right leg, which appeared to buckle underneath him.
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Conor McGregor of Ireland participates in the walkout before facing Max Holloway of the United States in their welterweight bout during UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Ian Maule/Getty Images)
The official inside the Octagon waved off the fight moments later, giving Holloway a TKO victory.
During the broadcast, UFC CEO Dana White pointed to a first-round replay that appeared to show the moment McGregor suffered the injury. The apparent injury was not to the same leg McGregor broke during his 2021 fight against Dustin Poirier, which led to a lengthy absence from the Octagon.
The loss extended McGregor’s long winless drought, with his last UFC victory coming by first-round TKO against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in January 2020.
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McGregor earned a unanimous decision over Holloway in a featherweight clash in 2013, when neither was an MMA megastar. In the blink of an eye, McGregor’s star rose.
Conor McGregor and Max Holloway face off during the UFC 329 ceremonial weigh-in at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 10, 2026. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
On Wednesday, he admitted he got caught up in his own stardom after winning UFC belts in two weight classes and becoming one of the biggest names in combat sports.
“I launched an Irish whiskey,” McGregor said. “I didn’t drink heavily, if at all, at that time of my life. I was an athlete at the top of my game. Next thing you know, thousands upon thousands of bottles (are) in my garage.
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“‘Sell this, Conor.’ OK, I’d leave my property with two bottles under my arm, and that was it. I was caught. And I wasn’t used to it. And that’s it. God gave me these lessons. That’s it. I was trapped and caught, and it is what it is.”
Conor McGregor jumps into the air for a kick as he fights Max Holloway in a welterweight bout at UFC 329 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (John Locher/AP)
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Easier said than done, perhaps, as the controversial former champion has been embroiled in multiple controversies and legal issues over the past several years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
LAS VEGAS — The door opened for Arthur Kaluma to show his worth for the Lakers in the NBA Summer League on Saturday night.
He did so in a big way.
Kaluma had 34 points and five rebounds during the Lakers’ 91-70 win over the Dallas Mavericks at the Thomas & Mack Center.
He was 11 for 16 from the field and six for 10 from three-point range.
With Lakers rookie guard Cameron Carr unable to play because of a right thumb contusion, Kaluma took over the scoring role. Carr, the 24th pick in the NBA draft, is averaging 17 points per game.
“Cam doesn’t play tonight, so he gets a little bit more minutes, gets a couple more touches,” said Lakers Summer League coach Ty Abbott about Kaluma. “But he’s done a really good job of making the most of it when he doesn’t have actions run for him. So the way that he’s been able to stay ready, find windows for himself has kept him in a rhythm. So, on a night like tonight, when we can run some actions for him, he knocks them down and just plays out of his mind. It was great.”
Kaluma said he was “a little nervous” but his three-point shooting said otherwise.
“When [teammate] Jon Elmore came down and he pitched it back to me for a three … I just knew when it came off my hand it was cash,” Kaluma said. “So I said, ‘Yeah, I’m hot.’ It went on from there.”
Late in the fourth quarter, Kaluma lined up a three-pointer, setting his feet and scoring from 29 feet out. He flashed three fingers and smiled. His teammates on the bench stood and cheered, as did the fans.
“We have such a great group of guys this year at Summer League and going through this it’s hard to get that camaraderie with a group,” Kaluma said. “But I feel like everybody wants to see everybody succeed and I felt that tonight. I’m not going to lie to you. They tell me to shoot the ball. I passed up a couple of shots and they were mad at me the other day.”
Kaluma played for the South Bay Lakers in the G League last season. He averaged 14.6 points per game, 4.9 rebounds and shot 55% from the field, 37% from three-point range.
“The G can get grimey, you know what I’m saying? It’s a time where everybody is trying to fight for a position and there is a certain hunger that you have to have in order to be successful in the G,” Kaluma said. “And I feel like that drive that I had my first year in it pushed me into this summer to really get better and work on my game and come here and have the opportunity to perform.”
Kaluma wasn’t alone in helping the Lakers improve to 2-0 in Summer League play.
Adou Thiero ran the court, took a lob pass from Chris Mañon and threw down a two-handed dunk. He had another solid outing with 15 points and four rebounds. He shot just four for 12 from the field, but was a plus-15.
But the night belonged to Kaluma.
“I pride myself on the defensive end,” he said. “I know I got hot offensively, but the shot was just falling today, you know what I’m saying? My game is three-and-D. I lock-up on defense and I know I can hit open shots. I just got hot today and I’m not going to try to let it get to my head.”
Sports
Golf star records lowest round in LPGA major history with astounding performance at Evian Championship
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There are good days on the golf course, and then there is what Haeran Ryu just did on Saturday.
Ryu, 25, recorded the lowest round in LPGA major history on Saturday with an 11-under 60 at the Evian Championship. With the South Korean golfer’s historic round, she holds a three-stroke lead.
Ryu’s round comes just two weeks after winning her first major at the Women’s PGA Championship. On the 18th hole, Ryu left a 30-foot eagle putt a few inches short, and instead settled for a birdie.
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Haeran Ryu of South Korea reacts on the 18th green after the third round of The Amundi Evian Championship at Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France, on July 11, 2026. (Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
She said after the round that she had no idea what she had done until she counted up her scorecard.
“But after the putt and I counted my score with my caddie,” she said. “Oh my God, it’s 11-under par today. It was so amazing. My caddie says, ‘Yep.’ I’m so happy right now.”
If Ryu had made the eagle putt on the 18th hole, she would have been just the second player to shoot a 59 in LPGA history.
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Haeran Ryu of South Korea celebrates a birdie on the 15th green during the third round of The Amundi Evian Championship at Evian Resort Golf Club on July 11, 2026, in Evian-les-Bains, France. (Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
Her 60 broke the record for the lowest round in an LPGA major by one shot. Leona Maguire and Jeungeun Lee6 in 2021, and Hyo Joo Kim in 2014, each shot 61 at the Evian Championship, which was designated as an LPGA major in 2013.
The lowest round in a men’s major is 62, which is shared by four players — Branden Grace at Royal Birkdale in the 2017 British Open, Xander Schauffele and Rickie Fowler in the 2023 U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club, and Schauffele and Shane Lowry in the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla.
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Haeran Ryu of South Korea and Lottie Woad of England interact after their round on the 18th green during the third round of the Amundi Evian Championship at Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France, on July 11, 2026. (Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)
Ryu hopes her historic third round can help propel her to a second major win in three weeks.
“That is amazing, amazing dream,” Ryu said. “So I just want that one to come true, but we have one more day.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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