The Boston Red Sox were left for dead this season. Now, they’ve won 18 of 20 and are currently riding their longest winning streak since the lineup included Dom DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky, Bobby Doerr and some lefty named Ted Williams. They are just two shy of the franchise record of 15 straight wins, which was established by a different Williams-led team. 

This past weekend series, the Red Sox toppled the first-place Rays in a four-game sweep. Meanwhile, the second-place Yankees lost two of three. Oh, and the Orioles swept the Astros and have won seven straight games. Things are tightening. 

For much of the season, this division has looked like a two-team race. Maybe, if a third team snuck into contention, it would be the defending American League champion Blue Jays. The Orioles and Red Sox looked like they were coasting into the trade deadline as sellers. 

Maybe that’s still the case, as things can change very quickly in two weeks. Look no further than what has happened here over the last several weeks. 

It’s also entirely possible that all five teams could remain in contention all season here. Perhaps the AL East ends up with all three wild-card teams as the rest of the American League remains mired in mediocrity.

It’s not even that far-fetched. Right now, the Rays have the best AL record with the Yankees second. The Red Sox hold the third wild card. The Orioles are only two games out of a playoff spot. The Red Sox and Orioles would only need to squeeze past the Guardians (who are currently three games ahead of the Orioles) to give the East four of the six playoff teams on this side of the bracket.

Maybe the division race could even get juicy? The Red Sox have trimmed their deficit to just six games, with the Orioles eight back. The Rays looked like a regression candidate heading into the second half and if that coincides with the Yankees’ offensive woes continuing, things really could tighten up here. 

It’s getting fun. 

Biggest Movers

Rk	Teams		Chg Advertisement	Rcrd
1	Dodgers	How’s this for backward? Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw his first career complete game on Sunday. Well, his first in the regular season. He had two in the playoffs last year.	—	63-37
2	Brewers	They lost four of five heading into the break. So what? It’s a group of winners. They come out of the break and sweep the Marlins, including two walk-off wins.	—	62-37
3	Cubs	The most disappointing performers on offense in the first half were probably Alex Bregman and Nico Hoerner. Both appear to be waking up, as Bregman has three homers in his last five games and Hoerner went 8 for 13 over the weekend.	1	56-43
4	Braves	The Braves will hold out hope that all Austin Riley needed was the All-Star break. After a first half in which he hit .207/.288/.329, he’s 6 for 12 with three home runs so far post-break.	2	57-41
5	Rays	I mentioned the Rays as a regression candidate. The most elementary way of showing my work here is they have a +14 run differential and are 56-42. With that run differential they should only be about two games over .500. Obviously there are outliers and it’s not a hard-and-fast rule, but when teams stray this far, it can be a red flag.	2	56-42
6	Yankees	The offense mustered just five runs in three games over the weekend. Maybe it was just the Dodgers? Sure. That was it! The concerns linger …	1	55-44
7	Phillies	The Phillies have won all seven of Jesús Luzardo’s last seven starts. In those outings, he’s 5-0 with a 1.49 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 42 ⅓ innings.	—	55-45
8	White Sox	They still need pitching help, but it’s nice to see Sean Burke go 4-0 with a 1.40 ERA in his last six starts.	—	52-46
9	Pirates	In a six-game stretch wrapping around the All-Star break, the Pirates went 5-1 against the Brewers and Guardians. They’ve also now won three straight Paul Skenes starts after that weird losing streak. Things are looking up!	2	52-48
10	Red Sox	Willson Contreras his hit 22nd home run of the season on Sunday. His career high for a season is 24.	5	50-48
11	Guardians	Through 100 games, the Guardians are on pace to have zero players hit 20 home runs. We don’t see that often these days, but for this franchise, it last happened in 2015 (excepting the 2020 nonsense). The team leader that year was Carlos Santana with 19.	2	52-48
12	Marlins	It’s been tough competition, but the Marlins have lost six straight, a concerning trend with the trade deadline looming.	2	52-48
13	Diamondbacks	The D-backs tied a franchise record Sunday by coming back from a seven-run deficit to win. They’ve now won six of their last seven.	—	51-48
14	Cardinals	They were right on the verge of winning back-to-back series against winning teams, but then blew a seven-run lead Sunday. What a gut punch.	2	51-47
15	Rangers	The Wyatt Langford tear continues. In his last 21 games, he’s 32 for 88 (.364) with four doubles, eight home runs and 20 RBI.	1	50-49
16	Mariners	The Mariners had an Andrés Muñoz problem earlier this season, but he’s now gone 12 straight scoreless outings, converting all seven of his save chances in there with 18 strikeouts against four walks in 12 innings.	—	50-50
17	Nationals	On Dec. 22, the Nationals signed lefty Foster Griffin to a one-year, $5.5 million deal. He had spent the previous three seasons in Japan and had just eight career MLB innings (with a 6.75 ERA) to his name. He’s now an All-Star who is 11-2 with a 2.68 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. What a story.	1	50-50
18	Orioles	The O’s are now 10-3 with a +25 run differential in July. Putting it together at the right time or just a tease job?	2	49-51
19	Tigers	The loss Sunday hurts because the margin of error remains pretty small here, but the Tigers have still won 11 of their last 15.	3	46-53
20	Twins	Without Joe Ryan, the rest of the Twins’ rotation has a 4.80 ERA (league average is 4.21). He’s doing some heavy lifting.	3	49-51
21	Padres	They got the blowout win on Sunday, but the bottom line is they lost a series to a bottom feeder coming out of the break. The Padres now get to deal with the Braves and Marlins before returning home.	2	49-50
22	Astros	Hunter Brown was good in two starts, but then hit the injured list for roughly 2 ½ months. He was fine in his first three starts back. In his last three? Fifteen walks in 14 ⅔ innings along with three home runs allowed have contributed to a 7.98 ERA.	1	47-54
23	Blue Jays	They still haven’t been more than two games over .500 since March. They haven’t been over .500 since April 3, when they were 4-3. They pulled themselves even at 29-29, but then lost four straight. They pulled themselves back to even, again, on June 22, but followed that with six consecutive losses.	—	46-53
24	Reds	Sal Stewart moved to 20 homers and 70 RBI on Sunday. The only Reds rookie to ever get to 25 and 80, respectively, was Hall of Famer Frank Robinson in 1956 (38 HR, 83 RBI).	—	45-53
25	Mets	Starter Clay Holmes was supposed to make a rehab start over the weekend as he looks to return from a broken fibula. Alas, it was rained out, but he’ll still be back soon enough to garner a lot of trade interest, especially given the dearth of sellers and how many teams are looking to buy rotation help. Keep an eye on him.	1	42-58
26	Giants	Buyer beware on Robbie Ray? He has a 2.44 ERA at home and 4.36 on the road. Then again, one disastrous outing is really skewing that road ERA and he’s had some good road outings (such as five scoreless innings in Wrigley or 6 ⅓ scoreless in Truist).	1	42-57
27	Athletics	The A’s have now allowed 23 runs in a game twice this season. The only other teams in history to have that happen (at least 23, that is) are the 1901 Reds and 1923 Red Sox.	—	42-57
28	Rockies	Last week, I mentioned Hunter Goodman’s home run pace relating to the Rockies having never had a 50-homer guy. Well, he hit three on Sunday and his pace is up to 48. This is fun.	—	40-61
29	Royals	The degree to which reliever Lucas Erceg has regressed this season is remarkable.	1	40-60
30	Angels	Given their upside and also inconsistency often on display, I can only conclude that both Reid Detmers and José Soriano should both be rooting for a trade. Both could benefit from a change of scenery in the hopes that their new team can better help them hit their ceiling.	1	39-61

The 23rd edition of the multi-sport event for Commonwealth nations, the Commonwealth Games 2026, is all set to begin on Thursday, July 23, in Glasgow, Scotland.

The 11-day event, running until August 2, will feature athletes from 74 Commonwealth nations and territories competing across a streamlined programme of 10 sports, including six integrated para sports. Glasgow is hosting the Games for the second time after staging the event in 2014, but this edition will be significantly smaller in scale, with competitions taking place across just four venues.

Commonwealth Games 2026: Venues

Unlike previous editions, all competitions will be held within an eight-mile corridor across four major sporting venues in Glasgow.

• 
  Scotstoun Stadium – Athletics and Para Athletics
• 
  SEC Centre – Boxing, Bowls, Para Bowls, Judo, 3×3 Basketball and Wheelchair 3×3 Basketball
• 
  SEC Armadillo – Weightlifting and Para Powerlifting
• 
  OVO Hydro – Netball
• 
  Tollcross International Swimming Centre – Swimming and Para Swimming
• 
  Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome and Arena – Track Cycling, Para Track Cycling and Artistic Gymnastics

Commonwealth Games 2026: Full list of sports

The Glasgow edition of the Commonwealth Games will feature the following sports:

• 
  3×3 Basketball and 3×3 Wheelchair Basketball
• 
  Artistic Gymnastics
• 
  Athletics and Para Athletics
• 
  Bowls and Para Bowls
• 
  Boxing
• 
  Judo
• 
  Netball
• 
  Swimming and Para Swimming
• 
  Track Cycling and Para Track Cycling
• 
  Weightlifting and Para Powerlifting

Commonwealth Games 2026: Full schedule

Commonwealth Games 2026: Full list of players in Indian contingent

India has named a 120-member contingent for Glasgow 2026 across 13 disciplines. Athletics accounts for the largest representation, followed by boxing, judo and weightlifting.

Among the biggest names in the squad are Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, Tokyo Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu, world champion boxer Lovlina Borgohain, swimmer Srihari Nataraj, gymnast Pranati Nayak, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, race walker Priyanka Goswami, high jumper and decathlete Tejaswin Shankar, shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor, and boxer Sachin Siwach.

India will also field athletes in para events, including para athletics, para swimming, para powerlifting, para track cycling and wheelchair 3×3 basketball.

Moreover, Mirabai Chanu and Lovlina Borgohain have been confirmed as India’s flag and baton bearers for the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony on July 23.

Indian contingent for Commonwealth Games 2026:

Why is the Commonwealth Games 2026 reduced to just 10 sports?

The 2026 Commonwealth Games are considerably smaller than previous editions because the original host, the Australian state of Victoria, withdrew in 2023 after projected hosting costs ballooned to around A$6-7 billion.

To ensure the Games survived, Glasgow stepped in as host with a sustainable, low-cost model centred around existing venues rather than new infrastructure. As part of that approach, the sports programme was reduced from the 19 sports featured in Birmingham 2022 to just 10 sports, while competitions are being held across only four venues.

Athletics and swimming remained compulsory sports under Commonwealth Sport regulations, while Scotland selected the remaining sports based on venue availability, cost, athlete participation and commercial viability. Despite the reduced programme, Glasgow 2026 will still award 215 gold medals and feature the largest-ever integrated para sports programme in Commonwealth Games history, with six para sports included. Organisers hope the leaner model will provide a blueprint for making future Commonwealth Games more financially sustainable and attractive to potential host cities.

Commonwealth Games 2026: Live streaming and telecast details

When will the Commonwealth Games 2026 begin?

The Commonwealth Games 2026 will kick off on Thursday, July 23, with the opening ceremony.

How long will the Commonwealth Games be in 2026?

The Commonwealth Games 2026 will run for 11 days before concluding on August 2 with the closing ceremony.

Which city will be hosting the Commonwealth Games 2026?

The Commonwealth Games 2026 will be hosted in Glasgow, Scotland.

Where to watch the live broadcast of the Commonwealth Games 2026 in India?

The live broadcast of the Commonwealth Games 2026 will be available on Sony Sports Network and Doordarshan (DD National) in India.

Where to watch live streaming of the Commonwealth Games 2026 in India?

The live streaming of the Commonwealth Games 2026 will be available on the SonyLIV app and website in India.

Dmitry Bivol has been linked to a number of opponents since defeating Michael Eifert, but it seems as though there is only one man whom the Russian intends to face – avoiding a fight with a former world champion in the process.

Bivol claimed the undisputed light-heavyweight crown when he avenged his solitary career defeat to Artur Beterbiev with a majority-decision triumph in February 2025, until a 15-month period of inactivity saw him forego his WBC world title.

Upon his return, in May, Bivol shook off the ring rust by fulfilling his IBF mandatory and defending his three remaining world titles against Eifert in Russia, before rumours that the 35-year-old would swerve a trilogy against Beterbiev emerged.

However, in an interview with FightHype, promoter Eddie Hearn denied those suggestions and revealed that it is the Beterbiev fight which Bivol wants most.

“There’s a lot of people saying, ‘Bivol doesn’t want to fight Beterbiev.’ That’s not true at all.”

“Dmitry wants the trilogy. That’s the fight he wants. We’ll start those conversations and see what happens.”

It had been understood that Bivol would instead take on former WBA super-middleweight world champion and current WBO 175lb mandatory challenger Callum Smith – once the Russian had recovered from an elbow surgery which is set to take place later this month.

Yet, Hearn went on to explain that he now expects Smith to rematch Joshua Buatsi in a clash for the vacant WBO light-heavyweight world title, after Bivol has relinquished the belt.

“I think Callum Smith will probably end up boxing Joshua Buatsi for the vacant world title if that’s the route it goes.

 “We’ll see how everything plays out, but Dmitry wants the Beterbiev fight.”

As a result, it seems as though Bivol-Beterbiev III could be back on the cards for later this year, with the WBA and IBF light-heavyweight marbles at stake.

Meanwhile, Smith-Buatsi II could headline a mooted ‘Matchroom vs. Queensberry 2’ bill in either October or November, nearly two years on from their first battle which was won by Smith after a Fight of the Year contender.

Football didn’t have it easy at the 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. 

There were questionable decisions by FIFA, the sport’s governing body, as well as a lot of spectacle and a final in which only one team actually played football.

After a total of 104 games in this biggest-ever World Cup, Spain were deservedly crowned champions, and, for the first time, a country’s men’s and women’s teams are simultaneously world champions.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino described the tournament as the “greatest sporting, social and cultural event in humanity.” 

US President Donald Trump congratulated FIFA on what he called “one of the all-time greatest sporting events in history.”

But was it really? Here’s what will be remembered.

How did viewers receive the biggest Cup yet?

Fears of empty stadiums — especially in the United States, where international football isn’t the No. 1 sport — proved unfounded. According to FIFA, 6,810,966 fans attended the tournament, the first to be co-hosted by three countries. This set a new record for World Cup attendance.

Given that the schedule featured 104 matches, instead of 64 at previous tournaments, record attendance is no surprise. The average match attendance was about 65,000, and, according to FIFA, 99.7% of all available seats were filled. However, many empty seats were visible in stadiums, especially during the group stage.

Hydration breaks draw criticism

Fans criticized the newly introduced hydration breaks. Most coaches, however, supported the breaks — or, at least, did not complain about them.

Uruguay’s now-former coach, Marcelo Bielsa, on the other hand, criticized the additional opportunity to influence the game.

“Playing four halves instead of two changes the culturally shaped perception of football,” he said. “These breaks add nothing to the game, but take a lot away from it.”

Were there any surprises at this World Cup?

World Cup newcomer Cape Verde caused quite a stir. The small African nation held eventual world champions Spain to a 0-0 draw and narrowly lost to defending champions Argentina in extra time in the round of 32.

The Democratic Republic of Congo celebrated a 1-1 draw against Portugal and its superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo. Paraguay knocked Germany out of the tournament in the round of 32. Curacao, the smallest World Cup participant, made history by scoring their first-ever World Cup goal against Germany and earned their first-ever World Cup point against Ecuador.

Price madness at World Cup

This World Cup was expensive. Fans had to dig deep into their pockets for tickets, hotels, parking fees or flights. However, prices inside the stadiums caused additional frustration. In the US, visitors had to pay up to €20 ($22) for a beer, more than €17 for French fries or about €7 for a bottle of water.

In Mexico, too, food and drinks were significantly more expensive than usual. At the Azteca Stadium, where the opening match took place, a beer cost the equivalent of about €15.50 — almost as much as the country’s minimum daily wage.

What role did Trump play at the World Cup?

There was widespread concern that Trump might use the World Cup to advance his political agenda. After all, the US president had repeatedly declared the tournament to be his personal prestige project. Yet Trump didn’t show up at the stadium until the final and largely kept a low profile during the tournament.

Nevertheless, the 80-year-old sparked the biggest scandal of the tournament. After US forward Folarin Balogun was shown a red card, he successfully lobbied FIFA President Infantino to review the automatic ban for the next game.

Balogun was allowed to play in the round-of-16 match against Belgium, but couldn’t stop America from losing to Belgium.

“The current FIFA president has bowed to Donald Trump,” said former FIFA boss Joseph Blatter. However, the criticism of Infantino is reportedly unlikely to jeopardize his potential reelection as FIFA president in March 2027.

How safe was the World Cup?

The war in the Middle East and unrest in Mexico had raised significant security concerns in the run-up to the tournament. While the games in Canada and the US went off largely without a hitch, there were several incidents in Mexico. Fans stormed an already overcrowded fan zone in Guadalajara; after a victory by the co-hosts, a car plowed into a celebrating crowd; and several people died during victory celebrations in Mexico City.

In addition to numerous fans, particularly from African countries, Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entry into the US despite having a valid visa. The authorities cited security concerns over alleged ties to a terrorist organization in his home country as the reason. The Somali FIFA referee is still expected to receive his salary due from the World Cup.

What was the human rights situation like?

Many human rights organizations have given FIFA an extremely poor rating.

“This World Cup has been played against a backdrop of the U.S. government’s abusive immigration crackdown,” said Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch.

She also pointed to a “failure by FIFA to uphold its own human rights standards.”

This seems to contradict any claim of this being the “most inclusive World Cup in history.” 

“FIFA had promised that everyone could feel safe. The truth is different. ICE, for example, has doubled the number of arrests,” said Daniel Norona of Amnesty International USA.

Ronan Evain of the fan organization “Football Supporters Europe” criticized the opaque process for issuing visas to fans, particularly those from non-European countries.

“Our observations have revealed little or no evidence that ticket holders from Africa and Asia actually received visas to enter the US,” Evain said.

What’s next after the World Cup?

For Infantino, further expanding the World Cup from 48 to 64 teams is certainly conceivable. Instead of the current 104, there would then be 128 matches.

“That is definitely an issue that will be examined after this World Cup and discussed within the committees,” the FIFA president told Swiss broadcaster “blue Sport.”

Despite the widespread criticism of Infantino, his position as FIFA president is not in jeopardy. On the contrary: More games mean more money that he can distribute to the member nations. Next year, Infantino is expected to be re-elected to his post for the third time.

If reelected, Infantino would be in charge until 2031, a year after the next World Cup, which is to be spread over three continents. A total of three games will be played in Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina before the tournament moves to Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

This article was originally published in German.

Former MLB reliever Duane Ward, known for helping the Toronto Blue Jays win World Series in the 1990s, has died. He was 62 years old.

The Blue Jays announced Ward’s death on Sunday, saying he died of natural causes while in Toronto.

Ward was in Toronto for the unveiling of a statue outside the Blue Jays’ home Rogers Centre to commemorate the back-to-back World Series championship from 1992 and 1993, which he was a part of.

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Duane Ward of the Toronto Blue Jays winds up to pitch against the Oakland Athletics during a game in Oakland, California. (Getty Images)

The unveiling was set for Saturday, where over two dozen players, coaches and executives were on hand to see it for the first time.

“Duane will be deeply missed by our fans, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to his family,” the Blue Jays said in a statement. “Duane will always be a cherished part of the Blue Jays family, and we will be forever grateful for his contributions to our organization and to baseball in Canada.”

BOBBY COX, LEGENDARY ATLANTA BRAVES MANAGER WHO LED 1995 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS, DEAD AT 84

The Blue Jays also had a tribute for Ward before Sunday’s first pitch against the Chicago White Sox, holding a moment of silence for him after a montage played on the videoboard in center field.

Ward was the top draft choice of the Atlanta Braves out of Farmington High School in New Mexico during the 1982 MLB Draft, but while he made his major league debut with the club, he didn’t last there long.

Ward was traded to the Blue Jays midway through the 1986 season, and he truly found a home north of the border.

He spent parts of nine years with the ballclub, turning into a key reliever that could be relied upon as the Blue Jays proved they had what it took to reach, and win, the World Series in the early 1990s.

A moment of silence was held before the game for former Blue Jays pitcher Duane Ward, who died, as the Toronto Blue Jays played the Chicago White Sox at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, on July 19, 2026. (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star)

Ward’s best season came during the 1993 World Series run, leading the league with 70 games finished and 45 saves, while owning a 2.13 ERA across 71.2 innings (71 games).

Ward also had a dominant 1.95 ERA during the 1992 season, earning himself 12 saves, and 103 strikeouts across 101.1 innings pitched.

In the postseason, Ward was just as exceptional, owning a 1.13 ERA and two saves during his World Series appearances. And though Game 6 of the 1993 World Series will forever be remembered for Joe Carter’s walk-off home run against the Philadelphia Phillies, it was Ward who earned the victory as the pitcher that shut the door to allow that to happen.

“Whether setting the stage in the eighth inning or closing out wins, he will be remembered for the role he played in some of the greatest moments in Blue Jays history,” the team’s statement continued.

Former MLB player Duane Ward throws out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the American League Division Series between the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada. (Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

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After an arm injury forced Ward to miss the entire 1994 season, he pitched in just four games in 1995 before he last saw a big league mound.

In 462 games, Ward earned a career 3.28 ERA with 679 strikeouts over 666.2 innings pitched.

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AEW star Chris Jericho had a guest walk out of his recent podcast with Y2J, addressing the fallout.

The Ayatollah of Rock n Roll sat down with the creative minds behind the upcoming horror classic, ‘Devour,’ to discuss the movie. In a clip released on Instagram, Chris Jericho spoke about the team conducting 4,000 auditions to lock in the final cast and the different species in the movie, like werewolves, minotaurs, demons, zombies, and more.

During the conversation, the artist donning the costume of Mae the Werewolf left the discussion. This came after the former AEW World Champion said the minotaurs looked better than Mae, with the other members saying she is sensitive and might not have taken Jericho’s comments well, leading to the walk-out.

Terrifying chat with the creative minds behind the new batshit crazy, future horror classic @devour_movie on @talkisjericho NOW! Despite having a guest walk off #TalkIsJericho for the FIRST time ever, (who just so happened to be the FIRST Lycanthrope on #TalkIsJericho ever), director @scotthansenfilm, producer #DesireeHansen and star @gus.langley and Mae the werewolf delve deep into the story behind how a movie about a vampire metal band spiraled into a universe filled with werewolves, sirens, warlocks, minotaurs, zombies, demons, Civil War vampires, and total chaos. Hear how they cast the film from nearly 4,000 auditions, why Gus Langley turned down Marvel’s Thunderbolts to finish #DEVOUR, and why #MaeTheWerewolf got insulted and walked off the TIJ set!

Chris Jericho is set to bring back his popular heel persona in AEW

Chris Jericho is currently embroiled in a heated feud with Tommaso Ciampa in AEW. The duo squared off in a huge collision at Beach Break, which Jericho lost. He addressed the same in a promo the following week on Dynamite, saying that he wanted to have one more match against him at AEW Redemption 2026 PPV. However, Jericho revealed that it would be his infamous ‘Painmaker’ persona that would battle Ciampa at the event.

This will be the first time in three years that Jericho will wrestle as the Painmaker in All Elite Wrestling. With the Demo God channeling his most sadistic version, it remains to be seen if Ciampa will be able to get past him at the Redemption PPV.