Bugaluu :: Sports

Chase Meidroth was “thrown out” at second base on his leadoff double in the eighth, when upon Zapruder analysis of the tape in New York it was determined the flap of his floppy pants broke contact with the bag for 0.5 second. Rally: Killed

As if serving only to keep the upstart White Sox sober, checking any overconfidence stoked by a second half that wasn’t as miserable as the first, the Washington Nationals proved themselves the superior team in a 6-5 win on Saturday, and in the series so far.

The nasty Nats turned a gamelong two-run deficit into a 5-4 lead in the seventh inning, as once more the South Side pen served notice it was not ready for prime time. Bulk pitcher Sean Burke was brilliant in his 4 1/3 innings, striking out 10 and sailing through a stretch of five straight Ks late in his outing.

Departing with a 4-2 lead as the pitcher of record, Burke’s likely win was wiped off of the board almost immediately when stable righty Steven Wilson came in to start the seventh and surrendered two more hits (sharp single, Jacob Young homer) than he did outs.

Bradon Eisert was summoned to hold the 4-4 margin still — and immediately failed in that endeavor by juicing an underwhelming fastball center-cut and waist-high to James Wood:

The two teams traded runs late, arriving at the 6-5 final soon enough, but not without some brief and unnecessary drama.

The White Sox were hosed in the eighth when Chase Meidroth answered WDC’s home run barrage with a leadoff double but was called out for a microscopic moment of losing contact with the bag. Not running past or oversliding, mind you, but for a hiccup. This is not a sound use of replay, MLB — and I’d say the same if the call was against a Nats player sneezing off of the bag into White Sox arms. If the naked eye can’t catch the runner’s flub, let’s not give the yielding team the chance to Zapruder it.

Another Kyle Teel passed ball — yes, his EIGHTH in just 492 innings behind the plate — set the stage for Wood to pad the Nats lead with an insurance single off of the seasonlong slumping southpaw Cam Booser.

With the rain that initially delayed the game 40 minutes now puddling the infield and down 6-4 into last bats, the White Sox rallied thanks to singles from Edgar Quero and Lenyn Sosa, along with a wild pitch. Newcomer Derrick Hill had an impressive if not overwhelming at-bat, in protection mode at 1-2 but poking a ground ball to second base that due both to infield muck and Hill’s wheels turned into an infield hit and moved the tying run to third. Alas, Meidroth went down 0-2 on inside pitches and then poofed a half-swing at a 100 mph fastball in his eyes to end it.

Way back when the field was still largely dry, the South Siders had been shut down for the first two innings by sub-mediocre starter Jake Irvin, but when you’re facing a starter with an ERA aspiring to 6.00, shutdowns should not be permanent.

The White Sox whiz kids, Teel and Colson Montgomery, saw fit to break the spell. After a Teel single, Colson showed off his whip-smart bat speed once more:

Not wanting to be left behind in any sort of Youth Movement forward, Brooks Baldwin clocked one out after a Miguel Vargas walk and steal, and the Good Guys went up, 4-0:

Alas, Burke could not sustain the good fortune, serving up a gopher ball after Baldwin (you’re back out of the Youth Movement, Brooks) booted a ball with one out in the Nats half. Here’s the sequence, for you masochists (and you know you all are):

That was Burke’s only burp in the game, though, as he melted through the Nats, 10 of his first 13 outs coming via K. And even when a Josh Bell double broke the spell, Burke tidied up and finished Wash off with two more Ks to escape.

The White Sox fell to an astoundingly-poor 15-36 in one-run games. It’s tempting to tab a wheezing pen for the full weight of that record, as blown saves and full meltdowns make the ledes of game recaps. But don’t you dare give the White Sox Wiffle offense a not-guilty verdict, as the lineup both pre- and post-rookies onslaught has been peppered with some of the most consistently flaccid hitters this franchise has ever seen.

The loss drops the White Sox to 59-102, tying them with the malodorous 1932 team for third-most losses in franchise history. The White Sox now have lost 324 games since Opening Day 2023, giving them the outright 11th-worst stretch of 486 (aka three seasons ) in major league history; if studied strictly from Opening day to final game, the White Sox in all likelihood possess the fourth-worst three-season record of the modern (1961-on) era.

​https://www.southsidesox.com/chicago-white-sox-scores-and-standings/117046/tepid-offense-leaky-pen-pave-way-to-washington-win-in-battle-of-the-flaccid 

Lane Kiffin hilariously trolls Brian Kelly and LSU following win
originally appeared on The Sporting News

Lane Kiffin has struck again. Kiffin is keeping all the receipts. From his comments this week, “take the over” in response to his daughter posing up with her boyfriend Whit Weeks, to him confronting comments from Brian Kelly. He’s not holding back, especially when his team is dominant. 

pic.twitter.com/TKqjCCrPPp

— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) September 27, 2025

Kiffin’s family gained media attention when Landry Kiffin posted a picture with her boyfriend, Whit Weeks. Kiffin hilariously commented on X to take the over. After Ole Miss defeated LSU, Kiffin said he wants to talk with Weeks. “I’m looking for Whit right now to see if we covered the over,” Kiffin said postgame with ESPN’s Molly McGrath.

Teams usually publish an opponent team outlook for their staff and players. Kiffin held Kelly accountable for his words on social media shortly after the game ended, trolling him with a quote from Kelly, confident that LSU would leave Oxford with the win. LSU will enjoy a bye week before hosting South Carolina on October 11. Ole Miss will also enjoy a bye week and on October 11, face off against Washington State.

MORE COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS:

Virginia knocks off No. 9 Florida State 46-38 double overtime thrillerMike Norvell buyout, contract details as Florida State Seminoles coachDangerous field storm follows Virginia upset of Florida StateDabo Swinney out at Clemson? Insider reveals if his job is in jeopardyWhy Mike Gundy fired off ‘I’m a man, I’m 40’ rant as Oklahoma State coach

​https://www.sportingnews.com/us/ncaa-football/ole-miss/news/lane-kiffin-hilariously-trolls-brian-kelly-and-lsu-following-win/29aad11f2d204aef83ab787f 

We talking ‘bout practice — in the park.

The Brooklyn Nets hosted their annual preseason event this afternoon at Potomac Playground in Brooklyn. Despite PITP being a longstanding tradition for the team, this year’s get-together carried a fresh energy.

With the team having all five of its rookies in attendance today, several players experienced the Bed-Stuy fan fest for the first time. Veterans Terance Mann and Michael Porter Jr., who the team acquired via trades this summer, also added to that. This is a fresh team, with a fresh season on the horizon, and it felt that way.

“On behalf of the team and myself, welcome to this beautiful event,” Jordi Fernández said. “We’re excited for this 2025-26 season, these guys here, coaching staff, everybody around, support staff, medical performance, have been working really, really hard, and we’re working hard to represent our fans, support this community, and show the whole world what ‘The Brooklyn Way’ is.”

Fernandez wasn’t alone in shouting out the late great Notorious B.I.G. In fact, the coach’s words weren’t even the half of it. Perhaps the biggest story surrounding the Nets over the past week has been their decision to bring back their Coogi uniforms inspired by the rap legend’s wardrobe. The Nets had the design everywhere they could put it.

Ziaire Williams, gearing up for his second season in Brooklyn, sure as hell didn’t mind.

“We were excited,” Williams said, recalling the team’s reaction to the uniform announcement. “These are super fly. I love them. We’re gonna look fly on the court with these. I can’t wait for our first game.”

Williams and Dariq Whitehead were first out of the tunnel as the team introduced, but Cam Thomas drew the loudest cheers. Nic Claxton, however, was a close second.

This is merely an eye-test, but attendance seemed low compared to last year. However, the crowd did include Kenny Lofton Jr., who bounced around the league on two-way contracts before playing overseas last year. Could be nothing, could be something.

Speaking of international hoops, losing the worldwide pull that Ben Simmons and Cui Yongxi carry might’ve contributed to fewer fans showing up today. Fanbo Zeng generated a decent amount of noise once being introduced, but didn’t have Chinese media hot on his tail like Yongxi did last year.

Shrunken or not, the crowd was well satisfied. The rookies were especially active signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, doing so outside the park after the event technically concluded. Kobe Bufkin even found a follower all the way from the ATL.

Danny Wolf, who also spoke with the media during the event, shared a similar sentiment.

“I’ve done community events, but nothing has compared to this,” Wolf said. “It’s a really well put together event. It’s always cool to get involved in the community like this.”

The abundance of youth at Brooklyn’s training camp hasn’t stunted conviction or hype, even in the eyes of the team’s veterans.

“They look great man, they look confident, holding up well, and learning a lot,” Williams said of the Flatbush Five. “As a rookie, everything’s being thrown at you all at one time. They’re handling it pretty well.”

“It’s different,” Wolf added. “I mean, obviously it’s all that I know, because it’s my first year — but [the team] just has that young feel to it. Still have that veteran leadership but guys are excited to be around each other.”

Once rejoining everyone on the blacktop, Wolf, Williams, and the rest of the team played a few rounds of knockout with the kids in attendance. They also participated in a shoot around. After that, players and their younger, far shorter teammates, did a jersey giveaway.

Contrary to the event name, no actual practice was held today, not that anyone expected to see full speed drills or hear Fernández’s whistle. But for those wondering, Egor Dëmin and Drake Powell did move around well, even if just waltzing about and taking occasional jumpers. Both have been limited in training camp. Sean Marks revealed last week that Dëmin has a torn plantar fascia.

Other than that, all was quiet on the Brooklyn front on this warm September afternoon. Maiya the Don performed. Fans enjoyed cotton candy, popcorn, and had the chance to purchase custom graffiti-like t-shirts, which conjured up a line that could’ve stretched over to Throop Ave.

I talked to a handful of fans waiting for the subway on my way home. One father told me they went to Potomac Park “for his son,” who’s an avid Michael Porter Jr. fan. That seems to be where everyone’s head is at right now — concentrating on the kids. And while that’s led to the abundance of question marks centering around the team ahead into this pivotal season in the rebuild, it’s also what’s led to more optimism we’ve seen in some time.

Both were felt this afternoon in this intro to the 2025-26 campaign. The Nets won’t be a perfect team this year, but they are in a perfect position to inspire, amaze, or perplex further. Here’s to starting one of those, at least. Here we go.

​https://www.netsdaily.com/nets-news/99367/brooklyn-nets-host-practice-in-the-park-2025 

Utah Utes players celebrate after defeating West Virginia Mountaineers, Saturday, Sept, 27, 2025, in Morgantown, W.Va.
|
William Wotring

MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Rain drizzled for much of the game during Utah’s first-ever trip to Morgantown, and the Utes’ offense poured on the points in a 48-14 win over West Virginia Saturday.

After a dismal offensive showing a week ago against a Texas Tech team that looks like the class of the Big 12 Conference, quarterback Devon Dampier and the Utes looked more like they did in the first weeks of the season against West Virginia.

Dampier threw for 237 yards and a career-high four touchdowns with an interception in Utah’s blowout win, the Utes’ first conference victory of the season.

“I would say just my pocket movement, our (offensive) line, we got the best in the country, so they hold a lot of time for me and instead of taking those running lanes, I was able to make a lot more plays just sitting in the pocket today,” Dampier said of the downfield passing game.

“So that was a little bit of emphasis, but yeah, we play whatever the defense gives.”

As usual, receiver Ryan Davis was Dampier’s go-to target, hauling in seven receptions for 107 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Dallen Bentley added 59 yards and a score in the win.

“Proud of our team for the response from last week,” Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said. “Tough loss last week. Disappointing loss, and (we) talked about not letting that be a detractor for this week and being able to flush it and move on and not have a hangover, so to speak, and I think they did exactly just that.”

After being stifled last Saturday, Utah’s rushing attack was back to its usual efficacy against the Mountaineers, rushing for 242 yards behind the one-two punch of Wayshawn Parker and NaQuari Rogers.

The Utes were powered by an offensive line that looked much better, providing Dampier with ample time in the pocket and clearing lanes for Utah’s running backs.

The success in the ground game helped key success for Dampier in the passing game.

“When we’re running the ball like we were capable of, that’s when things open up for us,” Whittingham said.

Dampier was never sacked by West Virginia.

From the very start of the game, Utah’s offense looked night-and-day different from last Saturday’s performance. The Utes scored touchdowns on four of five first-half drives, essentially putting the game to bed at halftime.

The first completed pass of the contest, to tight end Dallen Bentley, went for 20 yards. The Utes didn’t have a completed pass of 15 or more yards against Texas Tech, but had six against West Virginia.

“We know that that was something that hurt us in the last week and we needed to be able to push the ball down the field better,” Whittingham said.

“We did that this week. Receivers stepped up, answered the challenge. I thought we had a good scheme going in and the right dose of run and pass, play action off the run game and tight ends were a factor. Again, Dallen Bentley continues to play good football for us. JJ Buchanan had a really nice touchdown grab, that first one. Ryan Davis has been good every game, and so yeah, the throw game really was in much higher gear this week than weeks past.”

Utah was able to get into a rhythm from the first drive — something it never did against Texas Tech — and go uptempo more often, which worked to success against the Mountaineers.

But they were also able to slow down the tempo when needed, something that Whittingham says makes the offense less predictable.

“I think it’s good to mix it in. I don’t think it’s going to be a staple of ours ever where we’re uptempo constantly, and as a defensive coordinator, I know that it’s tougher when you play a team that mixes up tempos,” Whittingham said.

“If they always go slow or always go fast, that’s the easiest guys to defend. Those teams that mix it up are the ones that are more difficult to defend.”

Both teams were snakebitten by injuries. The Utes had previously lost receiver Daidren Zipperer, tight end Hunter Andrews and safety Rabbit Evans for the season, and defensive end Paul Fitzgerald and starting defensive tackle Aliki Vimahi were out for the West Virginia game.

During the win, safety Nate Ritchie suffered an injury and left the stadium on crutches, while two-way player Jackson Bennee and defensive tackle Dallas Vakalahi left the game with injuries.

Meanwhile, the Mountaineers were missing starting quarterback Nicco Marchiol, their top two rushers (Tye Edwards and Jahiem White) and contributing receiver Jaden Bray.

WVU’s backup quarterback, Jaylen Henderson, never posed a threat through the air, passing for just 22 yards before being replaced by Khalil Wilkins in the early third quarter.

Utah knew West Virginia was going to run and bottled up the Mountaineers, allowing just 73 first-half rushing yards before softening up a little bit in the second half.

“Defense had a really good effort,” Whittingham said.

With an injured team in their first year of a rebuild under coach Rich Rodriguez, the Mountaineers were simply outmatched by Utah, though they assured there would not be a home shutout with a 39-yard touchdown pass from Wilkins to Cam Vaughn in the third quarter.

With a 1-1 record in Big 12 play — playing perhaps the best and worst teams in the conference in their first two games — there’s still lots to learn about this Utah team.

The Utes did well to bounce back and take care of business with a dominant victory over West Virginia, but Whittingham won’t let his team get too high after the victory over the injury-ridden, rebuilding Mountaineers.

The Utes get a very well-timed bye week to rest and then prepare for a key conference showdown against Arizona State.

“You don’t want to sit on a loss ever, but to sit on it for two weeks is double the torture. It’s really big to be able to end that almost first half of the season on a positive and get some guys healed up hopefully and gives us momentum into the next contest,” Whittingham said.

From Utah’s first series of the game, it was clear that this game was going to go much differently than the last one.

Dampier’s passes were on target and Utah’s run game was rolling on the Utes’ first drive.

The uptempo offense was on display on Utah’s 12-play, 73-yard opening series, which was capped off by a seven-yard JJ Buchanan touchdown.

Dampier’s ball placement was good, but Buchanan’s grab was even better, even with a Mountaineer defender committing defensive pass interference.

The next two drives for the Utes ended in the end zone, too. NaQuari Rogers and Jackson Bennee both had big runs on the second series of the game, and Dampier got into the end zone on a seven-yard keeper that featured some good blocking.

Utah went up 21-0 on a 32-yard touchdown pass from Dampier to Davis. Dampier had plenty of time in the pocket, went through his progressions and found an open Davis for the Utes’ third score of the day.

Perhaps the most impressive drive of the afternoon was the final one of the first half. Backed up to their own three-yard line, Utah went 97 yards in 15 plays, converting three third downs along the way.

Dampier went six for seven on the drive, which culminated in a two-yard pass to Bentley in the end zone.

At halftime, it was 28-0 Utah, and the West Virginia student section headed for the exits.

The only negative for the Utes in the first half — aside from the rash of injuries — was an interception thrown by Dampier. The Ute quarterback looked to have Tobias Merriweather open, but the ball hung in the air too long and it was easily intercepted by cornerback Nick Taylor.

Utah will enjoy the bye week before hosting Arizona State at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Oct. 11.

​https://www.deseret.com/sports/2025/09/27/utah-utes-at-west-virginia-analysis-devon-dampier/ 

With our Miami Dolphins set to take on the New York Jets at home this coming Monday evening, I asked the normal pre-game questions.

Which Jets player(s) would you steal to be placed on the current Dolphins roster and why? Also, what is your prediction or are your predictions for the upcoming Monday evening game between our Phins and the Jets?

Below are some of your thougths and answers:

Dolfan88 sounds cranky, but we still love you, Bill.

Don’t know who is on the jests and don’t care. Don’t want them!

heatforlife wonders why Bill doesn’t want Fireman Joe Ed back.

fireman joe ?

SuperG! reminds us of a time when Ed was making better fandom choices for himself.

Fireman Ed. He started as a Dolphins fan and switched to be a Jests fan when he was 10 years old.

finfanfromsiam is with Bill!

PA phinphan doesn’t want any Jets players, but we all want some damn secondary help.

Not that I want any Jests on the Dolphins, to me, the obvious choice would be Gardner.

Some choose violence. glen55 prefers sarcasm.

Gardner would have a decent chance of starting for the Fins if he really worked at it.

SlayerNation1 wants to bring JT’s kid home and sees Miami finally pulling one out. If only we could sign every former Dolphins player currently playing in the NFL, it would be a significant upgrade for the roster.

Take JT’s Son for immediate upgrade to TE.

MIA 27 – NYJ 24 OT , or maybe the reverse

I can see the Jets winning, but ultimately settled on MIA eking out the win which they will rue in the end as NYJ beat them out in drafting position based in this game. NYJ draft Sellers who, in two to three seasons, becomes Josh Allen 2.0 in the division.

Waller, first catch fumbles. He hasn’t had an NFL pop in nearly 2 calendar years and is injured and doubtful He really wants to play.

Louie the lobster also wants an upgrade at corner but does not see the PHins winning this one.

Gardner

23-24 Jets

If the Patsies can beat us at home, so can the Jets.

heatforlife, in response to Louie, is not a fan of Gadner, but I would argue he’s still an upgrade at this point.

he holds every play

I find it frustrating when things reach this point with our Miami Dolphins, where hope for the current season has largely vanished among the vast majority of fans. At the same time, this organization should not expect anything else from a long-time, emotionally battered fan base. Anyway… Please join us tomorrow for an early morning game thread featuring the Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers from Dublin, Ireland, followed by all our usual live threads for games throughout the day and Sunday Night Football. Also, please join us on Monday night to follow and discuss the game live with your fellow Phins fans.

​https://www.thephinsider.com/miami-dolphins-news/109294/your-jets-dolphins-predictions-players-you-would-steal 

The San Diego Padres clinched a postseason berth with a walk-off extra-innings win over the Milwaukee Brewers at Petco Park, Monday and the Friar Faithful were left to wait and wonder to see how Padres Manager Mike Shildt would address his lineup for the remainder of the regular season.

San Diego ran out a skeleton crew of a roster for the next game with Manny Machado, Jake Cronenworth, Jackson Merrill and Fernando Tatis Jr. (illness) getting the day off. It appeared the Padres were going to begin resting players to prepare for the postseason. With that being said, San Diego still had homefield advantage to play for and the Padres still had a chance to host the Wild Card Series until the Chicago Cubs clinched homefield with a win over the St. Louis Cardinals, Saturday.

The San Diego lineup resembled more of the lineup the Friar Faithful have become accustomed to in the final game of the series with Milwaukee and the first game of the series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. It seemed Shildt was in agreement with Padres fans that they should continue to play their starters in an effort to improve their seeding. With the Cubs clinching prior to the start of the second game against the Diamondbacks, Shildt was able to take the foot off the proverbial gas and allow Machado to get some extra rest.

San Diego has two games to play and with nothing to gain, it will be interesting to see how soon the stars get off their feet depending on the game situation. Of course, Shildt still has the chance to reach 90 wins for the season, as has been the case each season he’s managed, if San Diego can sweep Arizona, but I don’t think he will chase wins at the cost of resting for the postseason.

​https://www.gaslampball.com/san-diego-padres-analysis-commentary/50424/padres-reacts-survey-results-padres-come-up-short-in-quest-for-homefield-in-wild-card-series