Author: rincon

Two-way star Shohei Ohtani won his fourth MVP award in a unanimous vote for the National League honor on Thursday and New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge earned the American League accolade for the third time.

Ohtani won the MVP for the third straight year, his second in the NL with the Los Angeles Dodgers after two in the AL with the Los Angeles Angels. All four have been unanimous.

Judge became the Yankees’ fourth three-time winner, edging Seattle’s Cal Raleigh with 17 first-place votes to 13 for the switch-hitting catcher. The vote was the closest for an MVP since the Angels’ Mike Trout topped Houston’s Alex Bregman by 17-13 in 2019.

Ohtani became just the second player to win at least four MVP awards, trailing only seven by Barry Bonds.

The 31-year-old Ohtani is the first to win in each league twice after getting the AL honor in 2021 and 2023. He signed with the crosstown Dodgers the following offseason and won NL MVP in 2024 during his first season in Chavez Ravine. He’s also won the World Series in both his seasons with the Dodgers.

Ohtani won all four of his MVPs in unanimous fashion with all 30 first-place votes.

Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber finished second with 23 second-place votes while New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto was third with four.

Ohtani hit .282 and led the NL with a 1.014 OPS. He also had 55 homers, 102 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.

The right-hander returned to pitching in June after missing 1 1/2 seasons on the mound because of an elbow injury. He struck out 62 batters over 47 innings, slowly increasing his workload while preparing for the postseason.

Ohtani continued to shine in October with arguably the greatest individual game in MLB history. He hit three homers at the plate while striking out 10 over six dominant innings on Oct. 17, leading the Dodgers over the Milwaukee Brewers to finish an NL Championship Series sweep.

Schwarber — who earned a $50,000 bonus for finishing second — was a finalist for the Phillies after hitting an NL-best 56 homers and leading the big leagues with 132 RBIs. The three-time All-Star played in all 162 games, anchoring a lineup that won 96 games.

Soto overcame a slow start to the season to have his typically stellar offensive output. The four-time All-Star — who signed a $765 million, 15-year deal last December — had 43 homers, 105 RBIs and an NL-best 38 stolen bases. He received a $150,000 bouns for finishing third in the MVP voting.

Judge, who won the AL award in 2022 and 2024, joined Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle as three-time MVPs with the Yankees. The 33-year-old outfielder led the majors with a .331 batting average and 1.144 OPS while hitting 53 homers.

The prior winner of back-to-back AL MVPs was Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera in 2012 and 2013.

Raleigh led the big leagues with 60 homers, the most for a player primarily a catcher. He started 119 games behind the plate and another 38 at designated hitter.

The 28-year-old also had a career-high 125 RBIs, leading the Mariners to one of their best seasons in franchise history.

Cleveland’s José Ramírez finished third.

Arizona’s Geraldo Perdomo finished fourth in the NL voting, earning him $2.5 million annual salary increases in 2028 and 2029 along with the price of Arizona’s 2030 club option.

Reporting by The Associated Press. 

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Cleveland Guardians star pitcher Emmanuel Clase was arrested Thursday at John F. Kennedy Airport on charges accusing him of taking bribes to help gamblers win bets on his pitches.

Clase, 27, was taken into custody after arriving on a morning flight from his native Dominican Republic, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

The three-time All-Star and two-time American League Reliever of the Year is expected to appear in Brooklyn federal court later Thursday for his arraignment.

His Guardians’ teammate Luis Ortiz, who was also implicated in the alleged scheme, pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

The two pitchers have been on non-disciplinary paid leave since July, when MLB began investigating what it said was unusually high in-game betting activity when they pitched.

According to prosecutors, the two accepted thousands of dollars in bribes to help two unnamed gamblers in their native Dominican Republic win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of their pitches.

They allege that Clase, who is on the fourth season of a $20 million, five-year contract, began providing the bettors with information about his pitches in 2023, but didn’t ask for payoffs until earlier this year.

Prosecutors say Clase often threw the rigged pitches on the first pitch of an at-bat, making sure to throw the ball in the dirt and well outside the strike zone in order to assure the umpire called it a ball rather than a strike.

During an April game against the Boston Red Sox, Clase even spoke to one of the betters by phone just before taking the mound, prosecutors contend. Minutes later, the bettor and his associates won $11,000 on a wager that Clase would toss a certain pitch slower than 97.95 mph (157.63 kph).

Prosecutors say Clase recruited Ortiz to join the scheme earlier this year and sometimes provided money to the gamblers to fund the bets.

Michael Ferrara, one of Clase’s lawyers, has said the Guardians’ all-time saves leader maintains his innocence.

“Emmanuel Clase has devoted his life to baseball and doing everything in his power to help his team win,” Ferrara said in a statement Wednesday.

Chris Georgalis, a lawyer for Ortiz, has also denied the charges, saying payments between his client and individuals in the Dominican Republic were for legal activities.

Clase and Ortiz are each charged with wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery. The top charges carry a potential punishment of up to 20 years in prison.

Following the pitchers’ indictments, Major League Baseball announced new limits on betting on individual pitches.

The charges against Clase and Ortiz are the latest gambling scandals to roil American professional sports following the landmark 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that legalized sports betting in most states.

Last month, more than 30 people, including Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, were arrested in a gambling sweep that involved leaked inside information about NBA athletes and rigged poker games backed by Mafia families.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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The family of the late San Diego Padres owner Peter Seidler is exploring the possibility of selling the franchise.

The Padres announced the Seidler family’s decision to examine a sale Thursday. The club has hired BDT & MSD Partners, which served as an adviser on similar discussions in recent years to MLB’s Chicago White Sox and the NBA’s Boston Celtics.

John Seidler, who became the Padres’ chairman after his brother’s death in November 2023, said his family is “evaluating our future with the Padres, including a potential sale of the franchise.”

“We will undertake this process with integrity and professionalism in a way that honors Peter’s legacy and love for the Padres and lays the foundation for the franchise’s long-term success,” John Seidler added in a statement. “During the process and as we prepare for the 2026 season, the Padres will continue to focus on their players, employees, fans and community while putting every resource into winning a World Series championship. We remain fully committed to this team, its fans, and the San Diego community.”

Peter Seidler was part of a group that purchased the Padres for $800 million in 2012, and he became the team’s primary owner in November 2020 after buying out Ron Fowler’s majority stake. He quickly endeared himself to Padres fans with his aggressive spending in an attempt to win San Diego’s first major professional sports championship.

After the two-time cancer survivor died two years ago, his wife, Sheel, sued her brothers-in-law Matthew and Robert in an attempt to prevent John Seidler from becoming the team’s control person. Sheel Seidler alleged Peter Seidler wanted her to succeed him, but Matthew Seidler said Sheel Seidler’s claims were “entirely untrue, and we will vigorously defend ourselves against them.”

Peter Seidler, a grandson of former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley, built the foundation for the longest sustained stretch of winning in Padres history.

San Diego has made the postseason four times in the past six years, winning at least 90 games in each of the last two seasons with an exciting roster built around stars Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado. The Padres continued to win despite reducing their payroll in 2024 following Peter Seidler’s death, with general manager A.J. Preller maintaining the aggressive mindset encouraged by Peter Seidler with a series of ambitious moves.

The Padres won 90 games this year before losing a tense three-game wild-card series to the Chicago Cubs. Earlier this week, Preller introduced former Padres reliever Craig Stammen as the club’s new manager.

The Padres’ large, loyal fan base and their home, the well-regarded Petco Park, would be significant assets for a potential new owner. The club has set a franchise record for home attendance in each of the past three seasons while drawing more than 3 million fans for the first three times in team history, capped by 3,437,201 in 2025 — a record average of 42,435 per game.

The San Diego metropolitan area is among the top 20 largest markets in the U.S., yet the Padres were the only major professional sports team in town between the departure of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers in 2017 and the arrival of MLS‘s expansion San Diego FC this season.

Not every consideration of a potential sale leads to an actual sale in MLB.

Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno explored a sale of his franchise for several months in late 2022 before deciding to keep the team. Last August, the Pohlad family took the Minnesota Twins off the market and instead took on two limited partnership groups.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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A proposal to build a gondola from downtown Los Angeles to Dodger Stadium hit some turbulence this week when the City Council voted overwhelmingly to urge transportation officials to ground the project. 

The estimated $500 million aerial tramway would connect fans between the stadium about a mile away to Union Station, the heart of Los Angeles’ rail system. Supporters say the gondola would help fans of the World Series champions avoid nightmarish traffic, but critics point to a study that found it would do little to keep cars off the roads.

In a 12-1 vote, council members on Wednesday approved a resolution to advise the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to kill the project. 

Mayor Karen Bass must sign off for it to take effect, and the mayor has previously voted in favor of the project as a Metro board member. Her office didn’t immediately reply to an email Thursday asking if she will OK the council’s resolution.

A full council vote to approve the project is expected next year, but this week’s action is a sign that developers could face an uphill battle getting it built.

Backers say the gondola would be relatively inexpensive, it won’t cost taxpayers any money, it’s better for the environment than cars and aerial tramways are safe and quiet. They estimate that each ride would take about five minutes and that the system could move at least 5,000 people an hour in each direction.

When the gondola was first proposed in 2018, Aerial Rapid Transit Technologies, a company founded by former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, said it would pay for a portion of the project. The firm said it would seek private financing for the remainder.

But the nonprofit group Stop The Gondola says McCourt hasn’t released a full financial plan, so it is still unclear whether taxpayers could ultimately get hit with bills for building it or ongoing maintenance and operations.

The group says neighborhoods, many of them lower-income, between the train station and the stadium will be stuck with the “eyesores” of huge towers that support the cables that run the large gondola cabins. And there are concerns that construction could clog up traffic along the route for years.

Research from the UCLA Mobility Lab at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that the gondola could end up carrying fewer passengers than supporters claim and have little or no impact on reducing auto traffic. In fact, researchers said, many fans could simply drive downtown to get on the gondola, rather than taking public transportation.

The ultimate goal is to get people to take Metro buses and trains to Union Station. But that’s a tough proposition in sprawling, car-centric Los Angeles, where many people live in areas far beyond the bus and rail networks.

The Dodgers have called the gondola an “innovative project” that would improve the fan experience.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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In September, McAllen, Texas teen Ximena was recognized as Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s 2025-2026 National Youth of the Year. This puts her in a spokesperson role for millions of Club Kids, won her a $50,000 scholarship to help support her as her life after high school begins, as well as a brand new car and — along with the other five finalists — a robust shopping experience provided by Kohl’s. 

The most memorable part of it all, though, might be that Ximena was able to attend Game 2 of the World Series and meet a few MLB legends, thanks to FOX broadcasting the Fall Classic and their role as a partner with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America for this award.

“Getting to go to the World Series in general is just a really amazing opportunity,” Ximena said, “but getting to deliver the ball is even crazier.”

Ximena, who has been a member of the Boys & Girls Club of America for nine years, recounted her incredible experience attending the World Series, delivering the ball to the mound and meeting FOX MLB analysts and baseball legends David Ortiz, Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez — who, along with CEO of FOX Sports, Eric Shanks, is a co-chair of the National Youth of the Year leadership committee — while speaking with the FOX affiliate in Rio Grande Valley. 

“It was actually A-Rod, and David Ortiz and Derek Jeter, all of these amazing people, they presented [this award] to me from FOX,” she said. “It was a really good opportunity, it was an amazing experience. I wasn’t expecting it, but just to hear that more kids after me will be able to get scholarships because of FOX Studios and FOX production is really amazing, so I’m really happy about that.”

Ximena, who became a youth leader in McAllen through the Clubs’ “Think, Learn, Create, Change” advocacy program and even presented to the U.S. Congress as part of her volunteer work for BGCA, is referring to how the Boys & Girls Clubs scholarship system works in practice — it’s not meant to “just” benefit the winner of the annual award. 

Now that Ximena has been named Boys & Girls Clubs National Youth of the Year, FOX Sports Gamechanger Fund will set up a scholarship in Ximena’s name, allowing future Boys & Girls Club members to receive the same opportunities that she herself did. In fact, Ximena was a recipient of funds from the FOX Sports’ inaugural World Series Scholarship created in the name of 2023-2024 winner Alejandra, who was in the same Boys and Girls Club in McAllen, Texas — the idea is to give future members opportunities they might not otherwise have, and Ximena is proof of that idea working as it should.

“It’s really exciting — the more opportunities for kids and their impact through the Boys and Girls Club, and through partnerships like FOX,” Ximena said.

As Ximena said of the award to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America upon receiving the honors in September, this is about more than just the award, the car and a trip to the World Series, however. 

“Being named National Youth of the Year is an incredible honor,” she said. “My Boys & Girls Club wasn’t just a second home; it was the place where I found my voice, built confidence, and learned to advocate for my community. This recognition shows what’s possible when young people are supported and given opportunities to thrive. I’m proud to represent why America Needs Club Kids, because when we’re empowered to reach our full potential, we can change the world.”

The FOX Sports World Series Scholarship recognizes the accomplishments of Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s National Youth of the Year, the teen ambassador for more than 3.5 million Boys & Girls Club youth across the country, and is granted to future Youth of the Year representatives of their hometown Club — honoring their legacy for years to come.

FOX Sports has been a longtime supporter of Boys & Girls Clubs at the local, regional and national levels and has made the Clubs a featured beneficiary of the Gamechanger Fund since its inception in 2020 at Super Bowl LIV in Miami. Presented to Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade, the Gamechanger Fund equipped the club’s youth to explore future careers in television, digital and social media production and enabled the organization to provide needed upgrades to its four teen centers. 

At Super Bowl LVII in Arizona in 2023 and Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans in 2025, the Gamechanger Fund addressed local Clubs’ civilian and U.S. military-connected youth population’s life and workforce preparation needs while also granting the FOX Sports Super Bowl Scholarships to Arizona’s and Louisiana’s representatives for the Youth of the Year and Military Youth of the Year programs.

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So, does Paul Skenes want to play for the New York Yankees?

A Wednesday report from NJ.com detailed how a player on the Pittsburgh Pirates – who is, of course, teammates with Skenes – said that the superstar right-hander is “hoping for a trade” and has repeatedly expressed wanting “to play for the Yankees.” The report also stated that Skenes has “no confidence the Pirates ever are going to win.”

“I’m on the Pirates. My goal is to win with the Pirates. I love the city of Pittsburgh. The fans are hungry to have a winner in Pittsburgh, and I want to be a part of the group that did that. I don’t know where that came from,” Skenes said on Wednesday night about the report regarding his interest in playing for the Yankees.

“The goal is to win. I don’t know the reporter that reported it. I don’t know the player who supposedly said that, but the goal is to win, and the goal is to win in Pittsburgh.”

Earlier this week, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said that Skenes “is going to be a Pirate in 2026.”

Skenes, whom the Pirates selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, is under team control through 2029. The starting pitcher for the National League in each of his first two MLB seasons, Skenes recorded a 1.97 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 7.7 wins above replacement and 216 strikeouts in 187.2 innings pitched (32 starts) last season, helping him win the 2025 NL Cy Young Award.

The Pirates are coming off a 71-91 campaign. They haven’t had a winning record since 2018, haven’t made the playoffs since 2015 and haven’t won a playoff series since the 2013 NL Wild Card Game. Meanwhile, the Yankees are coming off a 94-68 season and have made the playoffs in eight of the last nine seasons. 

Prior to Yoshinobu Yamamoto signing a $325 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2023, the Yankees held the record for the largest contract given to a starting pitcher, as they signed Gerrit Cole to a nine-year, $324 million deal in 2019.

Maybe Skenes and the Yankees will someday break that record together.

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How could arguably the best starting pitcher in MLB be available in a trade?

With now-two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal one year away from free agency and the superstar left-hander and Detroit Tigers reportedly having a nine-figure gap in extension talks, there’s an at least greater-than-zero percent chance that a trade could happen this offseason.

Of course, any potential trade offer for Skubal – even with the risk of losing him for nothing in free agency – is going to cost a team multiple top prospects and emerging young MLB players. But if Skubal is attainable for the king’s ransom, teams will be making the call. Here are three best trade fits for Skubal should Detroit entertain such a move.

As great of a season as the Blue Jays had before disaster struck in Games 6 and 7 of the 2025 World Series, that campaign came with a starting rotation that was 20th in MLB in ERA (4.34). Acquiring Skubal would take this roster to the next level from a talent standpoint.

Kevin Gausman was great in both the 2025 regular season and postseason for Toronto; Trey Yesavage was a breakout star in the postseason; having a healthy Shane Bieber and Chris Bassitt (if re-signed) will be crucial for the Blue Jays in 2026. Add Skubal to the mix and Toronto has an elite starting staff that will help them fend off the New York Yankees – who finished with the same number of wins as the Blue Jays (94) – Boston Red Sox and potentially resurgent Baltimore Orioles for the American League East in 2026.

Skubal, who dominates with his changeup, four-seamer and sinker, would provide an elite pitcher in his prime who throws gas to be the backbone of Toronto’s pitching staff. Skubal’s theoretical arrival also takes some of the pressure off both Bassitt and Bieber to be 100% during the season and Yesavage to build on his 2025 postseason. The Blue Jays could make a trade proposal for Skubal that includes left-hander Ricky Tiedemann, right-hander Gage Stanifer and shortstop and 2023 first-round pick Arjun Nimmala.

Why isn’t Toronto higher on the Skubal list? Despite their inconsistencies on the hill, the Blue Jays still managed to be two outs away from winning the World Series, and there are two other teams who came nowhere close to that potential feat. Plus, Detroit would likely require Yesavage to be part of any trade involving Skubal.

One year ago, Chicago’s starting rotation was a strength. Last season, it was a mixed bag, and adding a top-of-the-rotation pitcher is of the essence this offseason. 

Matthew Boyd was tremendous for the Cubs last season, and Cade Horton (2.67 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 23 appearances/22 starts) was spectacular in his first stretch as an MLB starting pitcher. At the same time, left-hander Shota Imanaga and midseason pickup Michael Soroka are free agents, and even if Justin Steele (UCL surgery) makes a full recovery, another arm is needed on the rotation front. How about a trade for the best left-hander in the sport?

Skubal recorded a 2.21 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 241 strikeouts in 195.1 innings pitched (31 starts) in the regular season, which he followed up by posting an absurd 1.74 ERA, 0.68 WHIP and 36 strikeouts in 20.2 innings pitched in the postseason (three starts). He’s exactly what the Cubs, who were one win away from advancing to the National League Championship Series, need: an ace.

Skubal would put the Cubs in the Milwaukee Brewers‘ ballpark when it comes to winning the NL Central. Chicago can headline a trade package for Skubal around outfielder and 2025 first-round pick Ethan Conrad, catcher Moises Ballesteros and right-hander Jaxon Wiggins. There just happens to be a team in the Northeast that needs to make a rotation splash that much more than Chicago.

If Skubal can be had, the Mets make the most sense for a trade.

A benefit to New York’s historic spending under owner Steve Cohen since the 2021-22 offseason is that there have been few blockbuster trades, outside of Francisco Lindor. Rather the Mets’ biggest moves have been signings – Juan Soto, Max Scherzer, Starling Marte and re-signing Brandon Nimmo. In other words, because the Mets have primarily done their damage on the free-agent market, they can afford to trade from the top of their farm system (e.g. a trade offer based on infielders Mark Vientos and Luisangel Acuna and right-hander Jonah Tong, among others) for a player worth doing so like Skubal.

The Mets have a top-10 offense from a talent standpoint, but their starting rotation overperformed in the first half of 2025, and it caught up to them down the stretch. David Peterson has the potential to be a plausible, top-of-the-rotation arm; when healthy, Kodai Senga is a dominant force; Clay Holmes held his own in his first starter as a starting pitcher; maybe young right-hander Nolan McLean becomes a fixture in 2026? But New York, which finished the 2025 season with a 4.13 starting rotation ERA – 18th in MLB – doesn’t have a bonafide, proven ace on its staff, a void that Skubal would fill up and overflow. 

If Skubal, who will be 29 at the start of the 2026 MLB season, anchors New York’s rotation and its club bounces back from a cataclysmic collapse – they missed the playoffs with just 83 wins despite being firmly in playoff position for the entire season against the backdrop of a $342 million payroll – the Mets are the best team in the NL East and the biggest threat to the Los Angeles Dodgers winning a third straight NL pennant.

This is a move that would make the Mets a legitimate World Series contender – and they most definitely have the coin to make Skubal the highest-paid pitcher in MLB history the following offseason.

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Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal won his second straight American League Cy Young Award on Wednesday, joining elite company after another spectacular season in which the left-hander helped propel Detroit to a playoff berth.

The 28-year-old Skubal became the 12th player to win baseball’s top pitching honor in consecutive years, joining a group that includes Hall of Famers Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez.

Jacob deGrom was the previous pitcher to win consecutive Cy Youngs, pulling off the feat with the New York Mets in 2018 and 2019. Martinez was the last American League pitcher to do it, in 1999 and 2000.

Skubal posted a 13-6 record with an American League-leading 2.21 ERA and 240 strikeouts in 195 1/3 innings for the Tigers during the regular season, then went 1-0 with a 1.74 ERA in three playoff starts for Detroit, which was eliminated by Seattle in the Division Series.

Skubal received 26 of 30 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. The other four went to runner-up Garrett Crochet of the Boston Red Sox. Crochet led the American League in innings (205 1/3) and strikeouts (255). Hunter Brown of the Houston Astros came in third.

A year after taking a massive step forward by winning the pitching Triple Crown in the American League on his way to being a unanimous Cy Young Award winner, Skubal backed it up by serving as the anchor for the Tigers during a volatile season in which Detroit squandered a 15 1/2-game lead in the AL Central and was caught by Cleveland down the stretch.

The Tigers got a bit of revenge in the wild-card round, beating the division-champion Guardians in three games thanks in large part to a 14-strikeout gem by Skubal in the series opener.

Skubal’s historic run comes with him set to enter free agency after the 2026 season. Considering the massive contract Skubal could command on the open market, it’s uncertain whether he’ll stay with the Tigers beyond next season.

Reporting by The Associated Press. 

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The Oklahoma City Spark are one of two teams that have been added to the Athletes Unlimited Softball League.

Another new team, the Cascade, will join the defending champion Talons, Bandits, Blaze and Volts to round out the six-team league for the 2026 season, the league announced Wednesday.

Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said the move for the Spark further establishes Oklahoma City as a softball hotbed. The city hosts the annual Women’s College World Series and will be the site for the sport during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“The AUSL is putting the right pieces in place to represent the next evolution of professional softball, and the Spark have worked hard to build that foundation in OKC,” Holt said in a statement. “It makes sense for OKC, this team and this league to come together to take professional softball to the next level. I commend everyone involved for getting us to this day, and I’m excited to see where it leads.”

The Spark are the only team attached to a city so far. The league used a touring model in its first season this year, but will be city based next year.

Spark leadership will remain with the team. Founder Tina Floyd will be the team’s executive director. Destinee McElroy will be the chief operating officer. Amber Flores will remain head coach and former Oregon State head coach and UCLA assistant Kirk Walker will be the general manager. Walker was associate coach for the Talons last season.

The Spark, who operated independently last season, have existed for three years. Floyd said she’s been looking for this kind of fit since she started the team.

“We both align,” she said. “Our mission, our core values and what we want for these athletes is in complete alignment, and that’s something that I’ve been searching for these three years that we have played — to make sure that our ladies are playing a professional game with people that are in it for the right reasons.”

Floyd said the Spark likely will draw heavily from nearby college programs. The powerhouse Oklahoma and Oklahoma State college programs play within roughly an hour of downtown Oklahoma City.

While the Spark name will not change, the contracts of those who played for the team last season will expire, so there will be a new roster. Current players will be eligible for the AUSL’s allocation draft on Dec. 1. The expansion draft will be the same day.

AUSL commissioner Kim Ng, who took on that role in April of this year, believes the expansion is another step towards the goal of helping Team USA bring home Olympic gold.

“These players, not only will they be playing against just incredible quality, but now they’ll be getting all of these repetitions prior to ’28, and Team USA will be able to build off of that,” she said. “So we’re incredibly excited.”

In March, Major League Baseball made a “strategic investment” north of 20% in Athletes Unlimited. “This is something we’re really excited about,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred told The Associated Press. “We studied the space hard. We think it’s a real opportunity and we’re excited to be involved.”

Manfred stated that MLB’s “goal is to get a softball league into the same position of stability that the WNBA has found,” per The Athletic. Expansion of the league would seemingly play a key role in achieving that goal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Want a potent, left-handed hitter with postseason experience who’s also great with the glove? If so, then you’re in luck, because outfielder Kyle Tucker is a free agent.

The soon-to-be 29-year-old Tucker is among the best all-around players in the sport. He has a long, powerful swing from the left side, seldom strikes out and is a terrific right fielder.

After acquiring him from the Houston Astros last fall, one figures that the Chicago Cubs will try to keep Tucker in the Windy City. At the same time, Tucker will likely have a dozen, if not more, teams trying to lock him down on a long-term deal. Here are three best fits for Tucker should he depart Chicago.

Cleveland needs power wherever it can get it, and Tucker would be a substantial pickup for its sake.

At the moment, the Guardians’ outfield rotation is choppy. Steven Kwan is a steady, Gold Glover in left field, but Lane Thomas is a free agent; Jhonkensy Noel and David Fry are coming off injury-plagued seasons; Angel Martinez has had his moments but still hit just .224 last season. Tucker would provide Cleveland with its new everyday right fielder, likely moving former first-rounder Chase DeLauter to center field when he’s a full-time member of the Guardians’ roster.

With the bat, Tucker would add an elite hitter to an offense that was last in MLB in hits (1,199), 29th in on-base percentage (.296), tied for 28th in slugging percentage (.373) and 28th outright in runs (643) last season. Moreover, Tucker would give manager Stephen Vogt somebody who can do major damage in his lineup outside of Jose Ramirez. Tucker’s a proven, well-rounded hitter with reputable plate discipline who’s battle-tested in postseason play. He’s precisely what Cleveland needs.

The hindrance in Cleveland’s way of potentially signing Tucker? The Guardians, who have been in the bottom-third of MLB in payroll in each of the last five years, have never dished out a nine-figure contract that begins with the No. 2, with a five-year, $124 million extension given to the previously mentioned Ramirez in 2022 being the largest total contract in franchise history.

A team that’s been more than willing to throw nine-figure contracts at players? The Rangers – e.g. Corey Seager, Jacob deGrom and Marcus Semien – who would benefit greatly from Tucker’s theoretical arrival.

The Rangers’ offense needs help across the board, as they were 26th in slugging percentage (.381), 24th in hits (1,275) and 22nd in runs (684) last season. Left fielder Wyatt Langford is coming into his own, but Adolis Garcia‘s offensive production has dipped over the past two years, and Texas received scattered production from its outfield rotation in 2025.

Tucker would provide an element of stability and arguably give new manager Skip Schumaker his new best all-around player. deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and Jack Leiter, among others, headlined a Texas starting rotation that posted the best ERA in baseball last season (3.41). With a mere mid-level offensive attack, the Rangers can contend with the Seattle Mariners and Astros for the American League West.

Now, Tucker’s arrival would likely mean that Garcia would have to move from right field to center field, but the latter has 130 MLB starts at the position under his belt and the opportunity to add a proven hitter of Tucker’s caliber is difficult for Texas to pass up on.

Tucker could lift Texas back into playoff contention. There’s just a team that’s more desperate than the Rangers.

On June 15, the Giants acquired star third baseman Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox. Six weeks later, they were sellers at the MLB trade deadline. In other words, San Francisco has flip-flopped on a dime of late, but it has shown more willingness to operate as a contender than a rebuilding team, also exemplified by giving Willy Adames a $182 million contract last offseason. Tucker should be the next major addition to the Giants’ depth chart.

Outside of Heliot Ramos, who has become one of the faces of San Francisco’s operation, the Giants’ outfield is severely lacking in production. Tucker would take over in right field, with Ramos in left, Jung Hoo Lee in center and Drew Gilbert, a 2022 first-round pick who was acquired as part of San Francisco’s return from the New York Mets for reliever Tyler Rogers, as the team’s fourth outfielder.

Throw Tucker in a lineup that includes Devers, Adames and Matt Chapman and the Giants have something cooking in the batter’s box. They’ve already gone down the rabbit hole of making substantial investments in the aforementioned hitters; they might as well keep going.

On that note, the Giants’ division, the NL West, includes the back-to-back World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers, a perennial playoff contender in the San Diego Padres and the competitive Arizona Diamondbacks; San Francisco is closer in talent to those teams than the Colorado Rockies, who won just 43 games in 2025, and adding Tucker would make it reasonable to place playoff expectations on the Giants in 2026.

The Giants need the star bat, and Tucker presumably wants the bag. This is a match.

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