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Fantasy baseball waiver wire: Marte return, trends and more
Noelvi Marte is running out of chances. But he is getting another one. And Fantasy players should take note, yet again.
Sure, Marte’s time in the majors has mostly been marked by failure. The former top prospect is hitting just .249 with a .679 OPS in 202 games across parts of four seasons, including a brief stint with the Reds at the beginning of the season, where he struck out 10 times in 11 games while hitting .138 before being sent promptly back to Triple-A. His lack of a real defensive home could be overcome with some consistency with the bat, but he’s just never forced his way into the team’s long-term plans.
But man, is there still a lot of talent here. We’ve seen it in brief spurts in the majors, including when he put up an .837 OPS with a 30-homer pace in July and August of last season. And we’ve definitely seen it in the minors, where he was hitting .369/.409/.575 after his demotion to Triple-A, with eight homers and nine steals in 40 games.
And the Reds really need Marte to figure it out this time. They sent the struggling TJ Friedl down to Triple-A Wednesday to make room for Marte on their roster, and it looks like that sets him up to play center field in the bigs for the first time ever. It’s asking a lot of the converted infielder, who hadn’t even played the outfield until last summer. It’ll be a high-wire act for sure, and it might be asking too much of Marte to play the most difficult position in the outfield while also trying to establish himself as a real-deal big-leaguer.
But if he proves up to the challenge, there is still obvious difference-making ability here for Fantasy. He remains a premium athlete with at least plus raw power, and he was putting it on display in Triple-A, ranking in the 75th percentile or better in pretty much every power metric. He was also striking out just 15% of the time despite pretty poor swing decisions, and if he can continue to be aggressive without putting himself in too many holes against MLB pitching, he has a chance to be a 20-20 guy, at least.
Let’s hope the Reds really give him a chance this time — he wasn’t in the lineup Wednesday, but should be out there soon. They should. It might be one of the last chances he really gets, but this is a team that wants to make the playoffs and needs a big boost in their outfield and in the lineup, especially with Elly De La Cruz nursing a hamstring injury. If he hits the ground running this time, Marte should be a fixture in the Reds lineup the rest of the way; if he doesn’t, it might be time for a change of scenery, and at least the Reds will know where they need to shop when the deadline gets here.
Either way, he’s getting the opportunity and remains a very talented player. For those of us in categories leagues, Marte is worth taking the chance on, just like it’s worth the Reds giving him another chance. Let’s see what he can do with it this time.
Now, here’s what else you need to know about from Wednesday’s action around MLB:
Thursday’s top waiver-wire targets
Here’s who we’re looking to add coming out of Wednesday’s action:
Sam Antonacci, 2B, White Sox (54%) – I think Antonacci is just a good hitter. He makes a ton of contact, and while he doesn’t have huge power, he isn’t a total slap hitter either, as he showed with a pair of doubles amid his four-hit game Wednesday. With merely average pop and a spray-it-to-all-fields approach, Antonacci isn’t likely to be much of an over-the-threat power hitter, but the batting average is real – he’s hitting .291, and his .310 xBA suggests it isn’t a fluke – and he might be a 30-steal guy who gets to a 90-run pace now that he’s cemented in the leadoff spot. It all looks a lot like what we were hoping Luke Keaschall could be before the season, and it might not be much different than what someone like Nico Hoerner gives us.
Troy Melton, SP, Tigers (41%) – You certainly can’t argue with the results, as Melton has gone at least seven innings in consecutive starts and has allowed just four runs in 20.2 innings total since coming off the IL after his eight-inning, two-run outing Wednesday. He still isn’t missing enough bats, though, and that’s the main thing keeping me from fully embracing him as a breakout right now. The biggest issue right now is the four-seam fastball, which looked like an above-average swing and miss pitch as a rookie but has generated a whiff on just about 14% of swings so far, a pretty poor rate. You can live with it if he keeps managing hard contact like he has, but I’m not as excited as I would have expected to be about Melton at this point – and the fact that his velocity was down another tick on his four-seamer (now nearly 2 mph down from last year) doesn’t help his case, either. It’s still fine to add him for a matchup against the Twins next week, but I’m keeping my expectations in check for now.
Mick Abel, SP, Twins (47%) – Hey, remember him? Abel put together a couple of excellent starts in a row in April, peaking with a 10-strikeout gem against the Red Sox on April 14, and we haven’t seen him since. He went on the IL with right elbow inflammation after that start and has had a fitful process coming back, but is on the right track now; he’ll throw a live batting practice session Thursday, and if that goes well, he could be cleared to go on a rehab assignment. We’re probably still a few weeks away from seeing Abel back in the majors, but if you’ve got an IL spot to play with, he’s a viable target in all leagues, just in case that early-season apparent breakout turns out to be legit.
Kyle Manzardo, 1B, Guardians (23%) – Manzardo has been a pretty big disappointment this season, but that may be starting to change. He started his eighth straight game Tuesday, and he homered for the second straight, going 3 for 4 as the Guardians edged the Yankees. It’s his fifth homer in his past 13 games, though his strikeout rate is also spiking in that stretch, which is concerning. Still, Manzardo nearly got to 30 homers last season, and I still think that kind of upside is here, especially since he’s been hitting lefties better this season. He probably only matters as a corner infielder right now, but for a cheap injection of power, he’s pretty interesting.
Stephen Kolek, SP, Royals (48%) – Kolek has had a bit of an up-and-down season, but he’s been very good in two of his past three starts, sandwiched around a pretty rough one. Wednesday saw him strike out a season-high eight batters, in large part thanks to a slider that generated seven whiffs on 12 swings. Kolek generally doesn’t miss a lot of bats, though leaning into that slider more could help change that, as it has a 40% whiff rate for the season; he upped his usage of the pitch from 11% to 20% in this one. That’s an interesting wrinkle for a guy with excellent control, and if he can inch up even closer to average in his strikeout rate, Kolek might be pretty useful for Fantasy.
Wednesday’s standouts
Bo Bichette, SS, Mets – We’ve had a few false starts from Bichette this season, including a two-game stretch in mid-May where he homered three times, had five hits, and looked like he was finally turning it on. He followed that up with 14 straight games without an extra-base hit – a streak that is still alive. Which is to say, I have no idea if Bichette’s four-hit game Wednesday against the Mariners is going to be another failure to launch or the actual start of his turnaround. But I will continue to say this much: I do think the turnaround is coming at some point. Bichette’s expected wOBA over the past 100 plate appearances is .358, actually slightly better than last season’s mark, so I just don’t buy that his skill set has totally collapsed. I’m still buying Bichette stock.
Chase Burns, Reds vs. KC: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K – At this point, the only real question for Burns is whether the Reds are likely to limit his workload at some point this season. Well, there are also questions about whether he’ll stay healthy (which exists for every pitcher), as well as about how he’ll hold up as his innings continue to pile up (a question with no real answer until we see it). But as for the workload, I don’t really think it’s likely to be too much of an issue – teams tend to prefer to limit young pitchers from jumping more than around 50 innings from one season to the next, and Burns only got to 111, including the postseason. Burns is on pace for around 170 innings if he ends up making 30 starts, so even allowing for some wiggle room, I do think we’re likely to see some kind of limitations for Burns at some point, especially since the Reds still very much have to plan for him pitching in the postseason. But I don’t think that means we’re going to see him shut down or pulled from the rotation, or anything like that. Some outings where he’s pulled from starts after five innings if the Reds have an early lead? Or perhaps a skipped start or two once Hunter Greene is healthy? Yeah, I could see that. It won’t likely change Burns’ outlook much, but it is one potential limitation he could be facing the rest of the way that some of the other pitchers in the top 20 of the rankings won’t.
Gerrit Cole, Yankees vs. CLE: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K – We’re three starts in, and it’s kind of been all over the place for Cole. His first start saw him allow just two hits over six shutout innings, but with just two strikeouts; then he tossed 6.2 shutout innings in his next one with 10 strikeouts; and then there was this one. This is his first truly bad start, but it’s also now the second time in three with two strikeouts, and he generated just three swinging strikes Wednesday. I don’t really have a good explanation for why Cole hasn’t been consistently missing bats, because his stuff certainly doesn’t seem much worse than it did when he pitched in 2024 and had a 25% strikeout rate. I’m inclined to just chalk it up as one of those weird things that happens in a small sample size, especially since both of his low-strikeout games came against teams that rank in the bottom five in strikeout rate, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned. Which is a bummer given how good he was two starts ago. I just don’t know who Cole is yet, as he comes back from Tommy John surgery.
George Kirby, Mariners, vs. NYM: 4 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – We’re going on more than a year of Kirby’s control taking a step back, and while that was a reasonable tradeoff when it came with a career-best strikeout rate, it’s harder to be excited about Kirby when he has both a career-worst walk rate and a career-worst strikeout rate. His four-seamer has lost some of the run he added to it last season, but hasn’t gained back any of the ride he had prior to 2024, leaving it somewhere in the middle, and less effective as a swing-and-miss pitch than ever before. Kirby has never been a huge bat-misser, but you could live with that when he was limiting walks at a historic rate. Now? Well, he hasn’t looked like a top-15 starting pitcher in a while, and I’m not sure I have a ton of confidence in him getting back to that level.
Logan Webb, Giants @MIL: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K – Webb diversified his arsenal a bit more in this one, and it helped keep the Brewers off balance. He can be a frustrating pitcher over the course of the season because he’s constantly tinkering and seemingly losing the feel for certain pitches, so there’s always an element of experimentation involved with Webb. But the end result is usually a ton of volume and good enough ratios, and I still tend to think that’s where we’ll end up here in the long run, despite how frustrating things have been for him this season. This was a good first step to getting back on track, though we’d certainly still like to see him missing more bats.
Max Meyer, Marlins @WAS: 7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K – When you have a big-time breakout like Meyer, who finally stumbles, I always want to see how they respond. Meyer was tagged for five earned runs in his previous start, but he bounced back in a big way against a Nationals offense that hasn’t exactly been pushovers lately. What’s worth noting here is that Meyer’s slider still wasn’t at its best in this one, just like in the previous outing, but the sweeper was able to pick up the slack this time around. It’s hard to envision a version of Meyer who succeeds without his slider at its best in the long run, so I imagine getting that pitch back to being his best swing-and-miss weapon will be a focus between starts. It’s nice to see him find some success without it, but that probably won’t be sustainable.
Taj Bradley, Twins vs. CHW: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 5 K – You have to wonder if Bradley just isn’t 100% right, as he has given up eight runs in 8.2 innings since going on the IL with a pec injury. Or maybe that is wishful thinking, because the alternative is we’re starting to see him regress after looking like a breakout through the first month-plus of the season. Bradley’s velocity was fine Wednesday, but he just couldn’t throw strikes consistently enough. The good news is he still generated 15 swinging strikes, so the stuff is still causing hitters some issues, a good sign. I’m not panicking yet, but Bradley’s issue has always been consistency, and I am worried he just ran hot for a month and is still the same frustrating guy he’s always been. Another poor start and we’ll have to really start to worry.
Spencer Arrighetti, Astros vs. PIT: 4 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 K – If Arrighetti isn’t going to miss bats, I don’t really see what there is to get excited about. Sure, it’s a 1.94 ERA even after this bad start, but with a now below-average strikeout rate and terrible control, just like last season. He’s been surviving off weak contact so far this season, but that’s not something I have a ton of faith in Arrighetti sustaining, so I think this is just the start of his regression. If anyone is buying, I’d be trying to sell Arrighetti right now, because I do not think he’s even a top-75 SP right now.
Nick Martinez, Rays vs. DET: 4 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 1 K – Even against good matchups, sometimes these things blow up in your face. Martinez has been remarkably useful all season long, but we have enough of a track record here to know it wasn’t going to last – he’s a good pitcher in spurts, but it rarely lasts. His 2.29 ERA and 1.19 WHIP are still good, but the lack of strikeouts and 4.15 xERA limit how much you can truly rely on it. He could be useful against the Red Sox next week, but with the Dodgers likely looming after that, Martinez doesn’t look like the kind of pitcher you need to keep around.
Walbert Urena, Angels vs. COL: 6 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K – This was a pretty solid start, but the limitations are still hard to miss. Urena throws hard, but he doesn’t miss many bats with his fastballs, typically leaving his changeup as his only reliable swing-and-miss pitch. That can work for him some days, but his iffy command and control make it hard to depend on. Urena kind of has the Jose Soriano starter kit, but he either needs the sweeper to take a step forward as a swing-and-miss offering or for his control to level up before he can be viewed as much more than interesting.
Andrew Alvarez, SP, Nationals vs. MIA: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – There was some pretty interesting stuff going on with Alvarez in this one. Not enough to make him worth adding in all formats, or even in most 15-team mixed leagues. But Alvarez missed a good amount of bats Wednesday, including 10 whiffs on his slider and curveball on 27 swings, carrying over trends we saw from him in his time in the bullpen. Those are legitimate swing-and-miss pitches for Alvarez, but the fastballs have been a lot less effective, and it’s hard to survive against major-league hitters throwing breaking balls 65% of the time or more. So Alvarez is more of a name to watch right now, especially since we haven’t seen him finish even five innings yet. But there are some interesting skills to keep an eye on here, certainly.
The PGA Tour continues to head towards the FedEx Cup Playoffs as just two more events remain in the regular-season portion of the schedule. Up next is the 2026 Rocket Classic, which tees off on Thursday from Detroit Golf Club. A few big names such as Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are taking the week off, but it’s still a strong 2026 Rocket Classic field headlined by Cameron Young and Xander Schauffele.
Young is the +950 favorite (risk $100 to win $950) in the latest 2026 Rocket Classic odds via FanDuel Sportsbook, following by Schauffele at +1600 and three-time 2026 PGA winner Chris Gotterup at +1800. Jackson Koivun, coming off a win at the 3M Open, joins Si Woo Kim at +2000. Before locking in any 2026 Rocket Classic picks, be sure to see the 2026 Rocket Classic predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
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2026 Rocket Classic predictions
One major surprise the model is calling for at the Rocket Classic 2026: Koivun, who has the fourth-lowest odds in the field after last week’s win, barely cracks the top 10 this week. He’s a golfer to fade. The 23-year-old PGA rookie out of Auburn shot four rounds of 68 or lower, including a 61 on Saturday to surge past Scheffler and others at the 3M Open. It’s been an extremely impressive start overall, but the model isn’t comfortable backing him as one of the favorites quite yet considering he also missed the cut at the John Deere Classic a few weeks back. See who else to fade here.
Another surprise: The model is high on J.J. Spaun at +3000. Spaun has struggled in the majors, but has been very competitive in the other events. He has four top-10 finishes and ranks 20th in the FedEx Cup Playoff standings. He didn’t compete in this event last year, but had two top-10s at it in the prior three years, making him a golfer to target in Rocket Classic best bets this week. See who else to pick here.
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How to make 2026 Rocket Classic picks
The model is also targeting a massive longshot of around +3500 to make a run up the leaderboard. You can only see the model’s picks here.
Who will win the 2026 Rocket Classic, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Check out the 2026 Rocket Classic odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed 17 golf majors, including three in 2025.
2026 Rocket Classic odds, field
Get full 2026 Rocket Classic picks, best bets and predictions here.
(odds via FanDuel and subject to change)
Cameron Young +950
Xander Schauffele +1600
Chris Gotterup +1800
Jackson Koivun +2000
Si Woo Kim +2000
Wyndham Clark +2200
Russell Henley +2500
Jake Knapp +2500
Hideki Matsuyama +2700
Patrick Cantlay +2700
J.J. Spaun +3000
Ben Griffin +3300
Ryan Gerard +3500
Akshay Bhatia +3500
Michael Thorbjornsen +4000
Nicolai Højgaard +4000
Harris English +4000
Rickie Fowler +4000
Keegan Bradley +4500
Michael Brennan +5000
Jacob Bridgeman +5000
Davis Thompson +5500
Eric Cole +6500
Jackson Suber +7000
Aldrich Potgieter +7000
Marco Penge +7000
Corey Conners +7000
Ryo Hisatsune +7000
Doug Ghim +8000
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen +8000
Mac Meissner +8000
Jordan Spieth +8000
Max Greyserman +8000
Ben James +8000
Sungjae Im +8000
Pierceson Coody +8000
Matt Wallace +8000
Denny McCarthy +8000
Jordan Smith +8000
Johnny Keefer +8000
Ben Kohles +8000
Seamus Power +10000
Nico Echavarria +10000
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +10000
Sudarshan Yellamaraju +10000
Samuel Stevens +10000
Michael Kim +10000
Andrew Novak +10000
Harry Hall +10000
Billy Horschel +10000
Nick Taylor +10000
Tony Finau +10000
Emiliano Grillo +10000
Zecheng Dou +12500
Stephan Jaeger +12500
William Mouw +12500
Chandler Phillips +12500
Steven Fisk +12500
Ricky Castillo +12500
Lee Hodges +12500
Jesper Svensson +12500
Mackenzie Hughes +12500
Taylor Moore +12500
Max McGreevy +12500
Chris Kirk +12500
Beau Hossler +12500
Kevin Yu +12500
Keita Nakajima +12500
Zach Bauchou +15000
Rasmus Højgaard +15000
Richard Hoey +15000
Taylor Pendrith +15000
Lucas Glover +15000
Matt McCarty +15000
Kristoffer Ventura +15000
Kevin Roy +15000
John Parry +15000
Matti Schmid +15000
William Jennings +15000
Zac Blair +15000
Patrick Fishburn +17500
A.J. Ewart +17500
Haotong Li +17500
Thorbjørn Olesen +17500
Austin Smotherman +17500
Neal Shipley +22500
Adrien Dumont de Chassart +22500
Garrick Higgo +22500
Chandler Blanchet +25000
Patrick Rodgers +25000
Austin Eckroat +25000
Luke Clanton +25000
Andrew Putnam +25000
Hayden Springer +25000
Chad Ramey +35000
Erik van Rooyen +35000
Alejandro Tosti +35000
Pontus Nyholm +35000
Davis Chatfield +35000
Tom Hoge +35000
Karl Vilips +35000
Cam Davis +35000
Joel Dahmen +35000
Mark Hubbard +35000
Ben Silverman
Brandt Snedeker +50000
Nick Dunlap +50000
Matt Kuchar +50000
Takumi Kanaya +50000
Trace Crowe +50000
Matthieu Pavon +50000
Justin Lower +50000
Davis Riley +75000
Aaron Wise +75000
Lanto Griffin +75000
Vince Whaley +75000
Hank Lebioda +75000
Adrien Saddier +75000
David Lipsky +75000
John VanDerLaan +75000
Webb Simpson +75000
Kevin Streelman +100000
Stefano Mazzoli +100000
Brendon Todd +100000
Jeffrey Kang +100000
Ryan Ruffels +100000
Brad Dalke +100000
Christo Lamprecht +100000
Brian Campbell +100000
Dylan Wu +100000
Kensei Hirata +100000
Joe Highsmith +100000
Marcelo Rozo +100000
Patton Kizzire +100000
Joseph Hooks +100000
Adam Svensson +100000
Danny Walker +100000
Adam Schenk +100000
Brice Garnett +100000
Gordon Sargent +100000
Peter Malnati +100000
Rafael Campos +100000
Patrick Wilkes-Krier +100000
Justin Quiban +100000
Keenan Huskey +100000
Daniel Azallion +100000
Ryan Celano +100000
The 30-man squad flew to Birmingham on Monday before training early evening in the Midlands, with Fermín Lopez continuing his recovery from injury.
The midfielder missed out on Spain’s World Cup success after breaking his foot against Real Betis in May.
Flick’s squad is a mix of senior players, along with others from Barcelona B and the under-19s, including forward Orian Goren who only turned 17 in March.
Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong has travelled despite a knee injury which was expected to keep him out for months.
The 29-year-old damaged the medial collateral ligament in his right knee at the World Cup.
Another surprise inclusion is Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who has been expected to move to Ajax on loan. No deal has been struck so the German goalkeeper has travelled to England and could face Birmingham in Friday’s game.
Barca had a double session on Tuesday and are training on the pitch reserved for the England senior team.
After their trip to St Andrew’s, Barca will take on Preston behind closed doors at St George’s Park next Monday.
Paul Heckingbottom’s side started their pre-season with a 4-1 win against Northern Premier League Premier Division side Bamber Bridge at the start of the month.
Barca also travel to Italy for two 45-minute matches against Nottingham Forest and Udinese in the Friuli Venezia Giulia tournament on 8 August.
Barcelona squad: Ter Stegen, Fort, Balde, Araujo, Cortes, Guille Fernandez, Toni Fernandez, Farinas, Abdelkarim, Tommy, Xavi Espart, Yaakobishvili, Adeyemi, Christensen, Fermin, M Casado, Gerard Martin, Roony, Tunkara, Torrents, Bernal, Gonzalez, Kluivert, Szczesny, Goren, Gistau, Diarra, Pesquer, Rodriguez, De Jong.
Lindsay Park is preparing a strong three-horse contingent for Saturday’s Aurie’s Star Handicap at Flemington. A key feature will be the return of champion jockey Blake Shinn aboard War Machine, marking his first race since a significant fall on Melbourne Cup Day.
Also returning from a winter break is Mark Zahra, who will ride Arkansaw Kid after his recent Royal Ascot campaign. Jye McNeil completes the stable’s representation on Ndola, a horse that recently tasted victory.
The training team at Lindsay Park is aiming to replicate their 2019 success in the Aurie’s Star Handicap, when So Si Bon claimed the Group 3 sprint under David Hayes, Ben Hayes, and Tom Dabernig.
Ben Hayes indicated that jockey Blake Shinn selected War Machine after riding both stablemates in jump-outs at Flemington last Friday. “He rode them both in jump-outs last Friday and I don’t think there’s much between them,” Hayes stated. “He knows War Machine well and he’s going back to his old buddy.”
War Machine has not competed since finishing third in the Newmarket Handicap over the Flemington straight in March. Hayes noted that the gelding has benefited from a longer spell after a demanding preparation that began in April last year.
“He lost his way a bit last preparation,” Hayes commented. “He had a long prep. He went to Queensland, freshened, came back, went to The Everest, came back, but just didn’t come up in the autumn. He had a long break, and he seems to have come back really well. His work at home has been great and seems a happier horse. He’s enjoying his trackwork, so hopefully that converts to some good runs.”
Arkansaw Kid has experienced a different preparation, spending time at Lindsay Park’s Euroa base and Pakenham before recent jump-outs at Traralgon and Flemington. “We changed things around with him to keep him thinking,” Hayes explained. “He’s been in work a long time, so it was like changing stables, without changing stables. I thought his Traralgon jump-out was good, his jump-out on Friday was great and he’s always been a consistent, good horse for the stable and is a horse we all love. He’s good down the straight, he’s won a couple of Bobbie Lewis Qualities, so he knows what he’s doing.”
Ndola enters Saturday’s feature race following a win in the Listed Santa Ana Lane Series Final first-up on July 4, and subsequently defeated War Machine in a jump-out last week. Hayes mentioned the trial was designed to maintain the gelding’s fitness during the four-week break between races.
“He was good fresh when he got away with murder in front and they couldn’t catch him,” Hayes said. “It’s a step up in class and he’s running against some very good horses, but he deserves to be there.”
Check out the latest racing odds at online bookmakers.
Sports
Transfer news LIVE: Liverpool face new Barcola hurdle despite agreement as Vinicius Jr makes Arsenal decision
Why Xabi Alonso has suddenly shifted transfer strategy to sign older players
The surprising pursuit of several players in their 30s this summer shows Chelsea have learnt lessons from a calamitous season dogged by inexperienced and ill-discipline – but will it fix the problem?
Lawrence Ostlere 29 July 2026 08:56
Chelsea finalising move for Danny Welbeck
Danny Welbeck has been granted permission to finalise his move to Chelsea and the 35-year-old striker is set to undergo a medical at Stamford Bridge.
Welbeck emerged as a shock target for Chelsea as they aim to add experience to Xabi Alonso’s squad. He is set to sign a two-year deal after scoring 13 Premier League goals last season.
Jamie Braidwood29 July 2026 08:55
Vinicius Jr set to stay at Real Madrid
Arsenal will have to turn to other transfer targets after it was reported by Sky Sports that Real Madrid do not want to sell Vinicius Jr this summer.
Real Madrid are reportedly confident that the Brazil winger, who emerged as a shock target for the Gunners as they aim to strengthen their attack, will agree a new contract after entering the final year of his deal.
AS also reported that Vinicius, who is out of contract in 2027, will resume talks on a new deal once he returns from his summer holiday.
Real Madrid’s agreement to sign RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande also added to the speculation – but the club want Vinicius to extend his deal, too.
Jamie Braidwood29 July 2026 08:50
Bradley Barcola ‘agrees to join Liverpool’
Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola has agreed to join Liverpool, according to a report in the French sports daily L’Equipe.
It is undoubtedly a boost to Liverpool ahead of potentially facing competition from Premier League rivals Arsenal for the France international, but a deal remains some way off.
That’s because PSG have set a price tag of £140m on the 23-year-old, and do not want to sell – especially as Real Madrid look likely to sign RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande.
As previously reported, PSG are using the Morgan Rogers and Elliot Anderson deals as a benchmark, while Barcola remains under contract with the European champions.
When asked about his targets this summer, Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola said a wide player was top of his list.
Jamie Braidwood29 July 2026 08:49
After Oleksandr Usyk’s title vacation, the heavyweight division is searching for its next standout operator. Two of the frontrunners to be the divisional poster boy are Moses Itauma and Agit Kabayel, and Usyk has predicted how a fight between the undefeated duo would play out.
Usyk was linked to fights with both Itauma and Kabayel whilst reigning as the WBC, WBA and IBF heavyweight world champion, but his decision to vacate all three of those world titles has all but ended any hope of seeing the Ukrainian take on either man.
Instead, it is believed that Usyk will pursue Deontay Wilder for his career finale, dubbed his ‘last dance’, whilst Kabayel has been elevated to WBC heavyweight world champion and Itauma is preparing for an intriguing battle with Filip Hrgovic next month.
Should Itauma be successful against the Croatian, it seems as though a world title shot is almost guaranteed to follow, with Kabayel being confirmed as possible target for later this year.
Speaking on the DAZN broadcast of Anthony Joshua vs. Kristian Prenga on Saturday, Usyk admitted he would favour the 21-year-old to trump Kabayel, nodding his head in agreement with Tony Bellew when asked if Itauma is the one to succeed him as the man to beat.
Kabayel has also recently been mentioned for a potential world title unification against newly-crowned WBA heavyweight champion, Murat Gassiev – a move which could force Itauma to instead fight for the WBO crown against the winner of Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley’s pending rematch.
This year’s F1 championship introduced the biggest rule change in the sport’s history, with new aerodynamic and engine regulations.
While the chassis rules have generally been a hit – even if the cars are a little slower than last year – the new engines most definitely have not.
The nominal 50-50 split between internal combustion and electrical power (more like 53-47 in reality) combined with the architecture of the engines, has left them energy starved.
And when the battery is empty, the cars have only about 540bhp – less power than a Formula 3 car, but with loads more grip.
The need to constantly charge the battery has neutered many of the best corners on many of F1’s greatest tracks, reducing them to what Fernando Alonso has called “charging stations”.
The flip side is the energy starvation has led to some interesting battles, known as “yo-yo racing”, with cars swapping positions repeatedly over a number of laps.
But the drivers point out this is artificial, and that overtakes are often happening simply because one driver suddenly has 350kW (470bhp) more than the other.
As four-time champion Max Verstappen says: “Sometimes people say: ‘Ah yeah, but this was a great race.’ I say: ‘Yeah, but it’s not really realistic the way we are racing.’
“And then you arrive to some tracks and you’re driving on not a lot of horsepower for F1 standards. And it’s a little bit painful, which I could see coming already for years. So, it’s then, of course, not the most exciting.
“At one point I’m also a little bit fed up with repeating myself, because it’s already hard enough just having to drive it.”
The drivers – especially Verstappen and Fernando Alonso, but most of the others, too – were very vocal about this from very early in the season. The sport as a whole recognised there was a problem, and has reacted.
Tweaks to the rules to lessen the problem were made after just three races, and the engine split will be modified to become 60-40 by 2028, with an intermediate step for next year.
That will significantly reduce these issues, but not eradicate them completely.
F1’s governing body the FIA was warned repeatedly in the years leading up to 2026 that this energy starvation issue would happen.
This has left an easy target for FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, to propose a return to naturally aspirated V8 engines for 2031.
It’s an idea with distinctly limited support among F1’s stakeholders. It lacks imagination and analysis, comes with its own set of problems, and is effectively turning the clock back 15 years.
The issue is not hybrid engines or turbos per se; it is the lack of energy recovery possibilities.
It’s a situation F1 forced on itself by removing the MGU-H, which recovered energy from the turbo and exhaust, and not allowing recovery from the front axle.
The sport needs to take a pause, intelligently and rigorously analyse what it wants from its engines in the future.
Then it needs to come up with a package that satisfies the manufacturers, has road-relevance, embraces concerns about the climate crisis, does not create a noise-hazard threat to some of the sport’s most high-profile races, is cheaper, allows the drivers to almost total access to full power, and gives a facility for overtaking.
I’ve now been using Arccos for about four months, and it truly has changed the way that I look at my game. About a month ago, they launched an update to their app, and everything I thought I learned suddenly had a different perspective. Arccos has always explored the “what” in your game; some may even say it’s covered the “why.” But now it’s exploring the “how”.
Let’s dive into the new Arccos app update.
A completely fresh look at your game
The app has expanded. There’s now more information available, more swipes to be had, and more reason than ever to spend time in the app after your round. The new software update has also improved the accuracy of all of their algorithms, including the features integrated with Arccos Air and the Arccos Smart Laser.
;)
Arccos Golf
The biggest change for me has been the amount of information Arccos gives you and how much easier it is to navigate the data now. Right on the home page, you’re given a snapshot of your scoring performance with a quick tap to see a list of your latest scores, a Strokes Gained breakdown for the time period you’ve selected, each with individual breakouts per category, along with a quick plot to see your performance trends. There’s also a “where to focus” section with the top three things you need to work on that also now include an AI recommendation for how to practice getting better (more on this later), as well as a quick snapshot of your career highlights on Arccos and a scoring breakdown for all the holes you’ve tracked.
And all that’s without even swiping into the next screen.
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The hardware behind Arccos Air. Drop it in your pocket. Play your round. Built-in motion sensors and GPS detect every shot automatically — powered by AI trained on 1.5 billion real golf shots. No sensors on your clubs. No phone required. Arccos Air captures everything in the background while you focus on playing. For existing Game Tracking subscribers. Hardware only.New to Arccos? Get Arccos Air with your first year subscription includedDevices may ship with Link Pro branded charging case and packaging. Same hardware, full Air compatibility. Minor cosmetic differences only.
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If you dive into the new performance section, you can see a breakdown of your game in four different categories. My favorite things to look at now are the dispersion charts. I think there’s a lot to be learned by understanding how you miss, and this is something that’s directly impacted my ability to play better golf. I realized with the new app that I have a major tendency within 150 yards to miss short. I was second-guessing my distances quite a lot with my gap wedge and my pitching wedge, and after having talked to some friends that I play with a bunch, I came to the realization that the math I was doing in my head was a critical disservice to my game. Arccos helped me realize that mistake. You can see in the screenshot below the difference between my short game over the last 20 rounds and just the last five.
;)
Arccos Golf
Arccos has now implemented the ‘How’
One of the problems I’ve always had with any stat-tracking software, including Arccos, is that I was never really great at implementing the stats. I knew that I played like junk one day; I didn’t need Arccos to remind me. I knew that I missed six five-foot putts for birdie; I didn’t need Arccos to remind me. I knew that I hit three balls out of bounds on a bad driving day; I didn’t need Arccos to remind me.
There were times when the app was sort of monotonous, just telling me things I already knew and that I was definitely not going to spend time working on because it wasn’t readily apparent to me. That’s now completely changed.
Similar to my above story about realizing bad dispersion patterns, the app now also gives suggestions for the things you’re struggling with. There are not only clear indications of where to focus your improvement, but also specific drills and training tips recommended by AI.
For example, I know I need to work on proximity on my short game in the rough. Arccos reminds me constantly, so now I can click on the ‘How should I practice this?’ option next to the focus area, and it will generate drills for me to work on. For each suggestion, I can open up more details to make sure I am training the suggestion properly. I can like or dislike the recommendation so the AI can learn more about my game, and I can also lock in and start tracking progress in this area of focus so Arccos can keep me honest as I intentionally train in this specific area. If Arccos in the past was the annoying sibling that reminds you you’re bad at things without offering direct assistance, Arccos now is the accountability partner that drags you out of bed for your 5 a.m. run.
They’ve begun unlocking the gear side, and that spells trouble for me
Let’s face it, this is the section of Arccos that I’ve been waiting for, and it’s better than I could have ever imagined. But it leaves us with a few desires as well.
They have completely reimagined the clubs section of the app, and it’s now a usable club comparison tool, with the ability to play on course with different clubs. This is a major factor in my ability to do my job correctly, with clarification and backup for the advice I give our readers and my audience on social media. They’ve made it easier than ever to add clubs with or without sensors as well as swapping clubs in and out of the bag. This has helped me a ton, not only for testing but for figuring out which tools in my golf bag need a permanent home and which can change based on needs or performance over time. I’ve recently been using it to decide which wedges I should put in the bag.
;)
Arccos Golf
There’s also now a comparison tool, which, without being too dramatic, has completely changed my life and my job.
I now have hard data to back up the decisions I make for the clubs that end up in my bag. Take my driver search this year as a perfect example. I got fit into a GTS3 build that I’ve been over the moon about, but then Mitsubishi sent me a new shaft prototype for testing that I ended up throwing in a TaylorMade Qi4D head. With the Arccos app, I am able to compare the two different clubs. At this point, with the Qi4D in the bag for a much longer duration than the Titleist, the data has actually shaken out pretty evenly, but now I’m going to put the Titleist back in the bag to generate some more data and see what trends may come. The biggest difference in the data right now is that although the best ones with the GTS are better, the worst ones with the TaylorMade are better, so it’s really more of a feel decision instead of a performance one. Had you asked me to pick between them without this data … I would have had a very different opinion.
I’ve been very impressed with Arccos since I started using the hardware and software earlier this year, and I’m a big believer in the platform. I love where things are headed, and there’s a lot that I think we could do with Fully Equipped in partnership with the Arccos data. The new club stats buildout is fantastic, and there are ways I am going to experiment with the data to better inform my research and hopefully reach more intelligent, defensible findings when it comes to new equipment.
Bravo here, Arccos, bravo.
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San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted he was at fault for the car crash he was involved in on July 14, which led to numerous injuries that have him limited at training camp.
Shanahan called beat reporters into his office on Monday to clarify that he was the one who caused the accident. The California Highway Patrol database had a “clerical error” attributing the accident to the woman involved in the two-car crash, per ESPN’s Nick Wagoner.
“He took eyes off the road briefly to find his phone which fell between seats and when he looked up he had gone over the line and into an SUV,” Wagoner wrote on X.
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San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan watches from the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, Florida, on Oct. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
Shanahan was in violation of holding and operating a cell phone while driving, but he wasn’t cited for it following the crash.
Reporters who spoke with Shanahan also mentioned him saying he didn’t lose consciousness or have any amnesia after the accident. He also noted he was traveling 20 mph at the time of the crash.
ESPN’s initial report of the crash said the woman didn’t suffer any injuries, but Shanahan sustained broken ribs, a broken nose and broken hand, while also suffering a severe concussion. Additionally, he needed 40 stitches to close cuts on his face.
KYLE SHANAHAN ‘THIS CLOSE’ TO LOSING HIS RIGHT EYE IN HORRIBLE CAR CRASH, NFL ANALYST REVEALS
During a Monday taping of “PFT Live,” Chris Simms, a close friend of Shanahan, revealed the 49ers coach nearly lost his right eye after viewing pictures sent to him by Shanahan’s wife after the crash.
“When you first see it, and it’s fresh, and some of the cuts are still wide open, I mean, it’s jarring,” Simms explained. “It’s jarring.
“He was this close to maybe losing his right eye.”
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan speaks at a news conference after an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in Santa Clara, Calif., Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
Simms pointed to his forehead when he said, “The scar is so big right here.” He also said that Shanahan was feeling emotional about the situation when they were able to connect.
“He was emotional about it because he realized how close it was to being just a complete, you know, utter disaster,” Simms said. “Like, really, it was a disaster anyways. But, when you’re a part of that accident, like I said, he could have lost his right eye. It could have been a lot worse. You know, he’s very concerned about the woman he got in the accident with and how she is and handling that situation. So there’s just a lot there. And I think it was a lot for him to process.”
GM John Lynch said that, “Kyle basically is going to be like in the protocol,” in reference to his concussion. Simms said it is giving him “some issues” he must deal with through the healing process.
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, left, reacts next to defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, middle, during the first half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Santa Clara, California, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
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While Shanahan serves his team on a limited basis, Chris Foerster, the 49ers’ assistant head coach, is acting in his place.
The 49ers open the season against the Los Angeles Rams on Sept. 10 in the first-ever game played in Australia.
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FIFA plan for Kushner-backed $20 billion operation to run World Cup meets fury from Europe’s UEFA
Few things in life are certain beyond death, taxes, and Tadej Pogacar winning the Tour de France. This year’s Grande Boucle went almost entirely as expected, offering few real surprises or diversions from the status quo, as the marauding Slovenian won another five stages en route to his record-equalling fifth title.
His place in the pantheon of greats had already been cemented and there are few superlatives left to describe his grip on the sport. He is now equal with cycling legends in the form of Eddy Merckx, Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain on five wins; his 26 stage wins leave him nine off the record of Mark Cavendish, who will be wishing he’d postponed retirement by another year or two.
There could have been more had Pogacar not opted to babysit young teammate Isaac del Toro to a stage win, third place on the podium, and the best young rider’s jersey too. Pogacar is able to win at will but sometimes seems happier in the role of world’s most powerful domestique; perhaps the only thing holding him back from an unprecedented sixth title is whether he can muster the enthusiasm for it. At 27, he is younger than all of his fellow five-time winners were and will be in his prime for a while yet.
But while the Pogacar era looks set to continue for some time, the post-Pogacar era already looks to be one to savour. Those left cold by the two-time world champion’s iron grip on the sport can set a reminder to tune in in a couple of seasons’ time, or perhaps as early as this autumn’s Vuelta, should Pogacar skip it – as expected – to target a third rainbow jersey.
Because while Pogacar has no real rivals, the rung of grand tour racers below him is in rude health. Much had been made before this Tour of the rapid rise of French 19-year-old Paul Seixas, who won European bronze behind Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel in an attritional race last year and continued his rapid progress this season, coming second to the Slovenian at Strade Bianche and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and winning a WorldTour stage race at the Tour of the Basque Country.
That hype appears justified after he finished fourth in his debut Grand Tour, a rather Pogacar-like result (he came third at the Vuelta a Espana in his first three-week race and was then sent straight to the Tour, after which, the rest is history). Seixas faded in the final week having been just 20 seconds off the podium after stage 16’s individual time trial, but the maturity and composure with which he rode was remarkable. France have had many Grand Tour hopefuls who have never fulfilled that early promise but the Lyonnais teenager looks to have both the climbing pedigree and the racing nous to deliver on it in years to come.
He also looks to be at the start of a fascinating rivalry with del Toro, the 22-year-old Mexican who already has podium places at the Giro d’Italia and Tour to his name. While he remains at UAE Team Emirates-XRG he will only ever be a superdomestique to Pogacar, but on the basis of those two podiums he should be the squad’s leader at any grand tour the Slovenian misses. He was unable to win the mountainous stage 15, towed up the same Plateau de Solaison climb by Pogacar which he mastered solo at the recent Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, where he won the overall, but was a clear third-best over the course of three weeks.
That stage was won by Evenepoel, who in many ways was the breakout star of this Tour despite already being a proven winner and former grand tour champion himself. The Belgian has had to endure plenty of criticism since his 2022 victory at the Vuelta a Espana, with many questioning his capability over three weeks and in the most gruelling mountain passes.
But over the last two seasons he has made himself leaner, a better climber, and a more durable rider, and that was evident here, as he recovered from a patchy first week to cement his best-of-the-rest status in the high mountains in the third; he was nearly three minutes clear of del Toro, despite the Mexican being shepherded along by Pogacar in the closing stages. Evenepoel’s teammate Florian Lipowitz, third at the Tour last year, is another consistent rider who had looked set to challenge for the podium before crashing out in the time trial.
Evenepoel’s much-debated transfer from Soudal-QuickStep to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, in the hopes of making him a real Tour de France challenger, has paid off. The 26-year-old’s outspokenness and strength of character is an additional boon for the sport amid an increasingly sanitised, media-trained peloton.
It would have been fascinating to see how Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard would have handled the challengers in the Alpine final week, having looked far from secure in second place until that point and with Evenepoel in particular steadily improving in both form and confidence. His crash on an innocuous bend on stage 15, having been subjected to a 2am doping test mere hours before, robbed the Tour of an explosive battle for the remaining podium places.
Rumours abound of Vingegaard considering retirement after every demoralising defeat to Pogacar, and just like after last year’s Tour he has a point to prove, with a host of challengers rising up behind him. He responded last year by winning the Vuelta in dominant fashion and backed that up with victory at this year’s Giro.
But while Pogacar remains supreme, an immovable object at the top of the sport, the landscape around him is changing. Vingegaard is the best stage racer after him – but with the rise of Evenepoel, del Toro and Seixas, how long will that last? Cycling is on the cusp of a fascinating new era, and crucially, one which even those bored by Pogacar can look forward to.
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