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MLB Postseason Race Is Heating Up With Two Weeks to Go

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In a way, the first round of the postseason started Monday night in Major League Baseball — no matter that just under two weeks remain in the regular season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees clinched postseason berths, again, and the Chicago White Sox took a big step toward securing theirs after losing at least 100 games for three straight seasons.

The White Sox, who were swooning in September and had lost most of their lead in the American League Central, rebounded with an outsized 7-3 victory against the host Cleveland Guardians in the opener of a three-game series.

The tide turned when Tristan Peters survived an 18-pitch at-bat against Gavin Williams with two outs in the sixth inning. Peters walk sparked a six-run outburst that broke open a scoreless tie.

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Instead of falling out of first place, the White Sox moved 1 1/2 games ahead with 12 to play. They also won the season series from the Guardians, along with the tiebreaker that comes with it. Chicago reduced its magic number to win the division to 10, and nine for a postseason spot.

After losing so many games in recent years, not to mention the two-week dive to open the month, the White Sox probably would take any kind of playoff spot. But they’d rather win the division and be the No. 2 seed in the American League because it comes with a first-round postseason bye.

The White Sox gave themselves about 24 hours to enjoy it, because they still could leave town in second place if the Guardians win the next two. And Cleveland might need to win to just make the postseason. The Guardians have a precarious lead on the final AL Wild Card spot: They’re one game up the Toronto Blue Jays, 1 1/2 on the Texas Rangers, and 2 1/2 on the Houston Astros (if they slide behind the Rangers in the AL West).

The Dodgers and Yankees joined the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays in the postseason field.

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After beating the host Cincinnati Reds 4-1 behind left-hander Tarik Skubal, the Dodgers popped postseason alcohol for the 14th straight season. Their run ties the Atlanta Braves record from 1991-2005 (although there were no playoffs in ’94 because of the players strike). The Dodgers also have a magic number of three to win the AL West.

Despite not having slugger Aaron Judge for a third of the season, the Yankees clinched the playoffs for the third straight year and for the ninth time in 10 seasons after beating the Minnesota Twins 8-3. Because you can’t mention the Yankees without the Boston Red Sox, they have a magic number of six to clinch a playoff spot as the third team from the AL East. They lead the Blue Jays, the first team outside of the field currently, by 7 1/2 games.

After doing a little swooning themselves to start September with a 5-7 record, the Cubs beat the Braves 7-3 to improve their potential postseason position.

The Cubs lead the NL Wild Card pack, but they’re even with the Philadelphia Phillies in the loss column and one game ahead of the San Diego Padres. The Arizona Diamondbacks lurk on the outside, 2 1/2 behind, though the Cubs hold the season-series tiebreaker there.

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The Cubs also still have a chance, in the most nominal way, of winning the NL Central. But the Brewers have a magic number of two and could clinch Tuesday.

The Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins remain alive, but they’re nearly out of time.

At the bottom of the American League barrel, only the Athletics and Los Angeles Angels have been eliminated. Still! The Kansas City Royals, who are 66-84, could have their chances snuffed as soon as Wednesday. Everyone else probably survives (technically) into the final week of the regular season.

Who has it better than literally any AL team?

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NFL Week 2 odds, predictions: Picks, best bets from 10,000 computer simulations

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Even those not on the West Coast could have a little more interest in making Week 2 NFL picks on either the Rams or 49ers. How those teams respond after playing in Australia last week is something that will be highly observed. Both are fortunate to have home games on the Week 2 NFL schedule, with San Fran hosting Miami on Sunday, and L.A. hosting the Giants on Monday. The Niners are 12.5-point favorites for their contest, which is the biggest NFL spread of the young season. Claim the latest Polymarket promo code CBSSPORTS to get a $50 bonus after $10 in trades:

The Week 2 NFL odds also have the Rams as heavy favorites, as they’re giving 7 points to the Giants, with Big Blue getting back-to-back primetime appointments. This pair of matchups are among the six games with a line of at least a touchdown, as the opening week clearly influenced the oddsmakers. All of the updated Week 2 NFL lines are listed below, and SportsLine’s advanced computer model has all the NFL betting advice and NFL predictions you need to make the best Week 2 NFL picks now.

The model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up well over $7,000 for $100 players on betting sites on top-rated NFL picks since its inception. The model enters Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season on a 53-39 run on top-rated picks dating back to 2024. Anybody following its picks at NFL betting sites could have seen strong returns.  

Now, it has turned its attention to the latest Week 2 NFL odds and NFL betting lines and locked in betting picks for every NFL matchup. Head here to see every pick

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Top Week 2 NFL predictions

We can tell you one of the model’s strongest Week 2 NFL picks for the best betting apps is that the Seahawks (-4.5, 41.5) cover at Arizona in a Sunday 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff. Seattle prevailed in the Kickoff Game last Wednesday, and the Seahawks are 6-1 against the spread when having a rest advantage since the start of the 2025 season. Though it’s not like the reigning champs need extra rest versus Arizona as the Seahawks have defeated the Cardinals in nine straight, going 8-1 ATS over this stretch. The Cards were impressive in upsetting the Chargers in Week 1, but the former still showed its flaws as its 111 penalty yards were the second most in Week 1. The Seahawks are forecasted to win by double digits, prevailing versus the spread well over 60% of the time in an A-rated pick. See which other teams to pick here.

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Another one of its Week 2 NFL predictions: the Buccaneers (-8.5, 40.5) cover versus the Browns as Tampa is forecasted to cover in well over 50% of simulations. Perhaps no team looked worse in Week 1 than Cleveland, as the Browns allowed 34 points to Jacksonville, saw Deshaun Watson get sacked five times, and only managed a garbage-time touchdown versus backups. The Bucs disappointed themselves in a loss at Cincy but a return home should help as Cleveland’s 4-14 ATS road mark since 2024 is the worst record in the NFL. The model also has the Over hitting well over 60% of the time. See which other teams to pick here.

How to make Week 2 NFL picks

The model has also made the call on who wins and covers in every other game on the Week 2 NFL schedule and just revealed an underdog that outright wins by a touchdown, potentially giving you a huge payday. You can only get every pick for every game at SportsLine.

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So what Week 2 NFL picks can you make with confidence, and which underdog should you lock in now? Check out the latest NFL odds below, then visit SportsLine to see which teams win and cover the spread, all from a proven computer model that has returned well over $7,000, and find out.

Week 2 NFL betting odds, lines, spreads, scores

Get Week 2 NFL picks at SportsLine

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Sachin Tendulkar’s ODI World Record Broken By Zimbabwe Star Brendan Taylor

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File photo of Sachin Tendulkar© AFP




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Zimbabwean wicketkeeper-batter Brendan Taylor has overtaken legendary India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar to become the holder of the longest ODI career in men’s cricket, according to Cricinfo. Taylor’s ODI career has now spanned 22 years and 148 days, surpassing Tendulkar’s 22 years and 91 days. The Zimbabwean achieved the feat after featuring in the first ODI of the ongoing three-match series against Australia in Harare on Tuesday.

Tendulkar has consequently slipped to second place on the list, while former Sri Lanka cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya occupies third spot with an ODI career spanning 21 years and 184 days.

Tendulkar, however, continues to hold the record for the most runs in ODI cricket, with 18,426, as well as the most appearances in the format, having played 463 matches.

Taylor, 40, made his ODI debut in April 2004 against Sri Lanka and went on to establish himself as one of Zimbabwe’s leading batters. Before Tuesday’s match, he had amassed 11 ODI centuries — a national record — in 207 appearances, with 6,704 runs to his name.

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Taylor retired from international cricket in 2021. Four months later, in January 2022, he revealed that corruptors had attempted to lure him into fixing matches in 2019 by offering him cocaine and subsequently blackmailing him. Although Taylor stressed that he had never fixed a match, he admitted that he delayed reporting the approach to the ICC because he feared for his family’s safety, according to Cricinfo. He was eventually banned from all forms of cricket for three and a half years.

After completing his suspension, Taylor came out of retirement in 2025 as Zimbabwe began preparing for the 2027 ODI World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Zimbabwe’s neighbours South Africa and Namibia.


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Senators sign Drake Batherson to eight-year contract extension

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Batherson and the Senators agreed to terms on an eight-year contract extension, the team announced Tuesday. It is the largest contract in franchise history and comes with an average annual value of $10.5 million.

“Drake exemplifies what it is to be an Ottawa Senator,” said GM Steve Staios in a statement provided by the team. “He was drafted and developed by our organization and has shown a commitment to wanting to be in Ottawa long term. We view him as a key part of our core group.”