Sports
Bobby Witt Jr. vs. Aaron Judge Puts Spotlight on Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees ALDS Series
The MVP chase we didn’t know we needed is now the playoff series we can’t wait to watch as a contrast in styles is about to commence.
When Bobby Witt Jr. and the Kansas City Royals meet Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees in the American League Division Series, there is so much to savor—at face value and below the surface.
The Royals have scratched and clawed their way back to relevance this season, earning a wild-card spot with a plus-91 run differential that was tied for second best in the American League.
The Yankees have assumed their spot back atop the American League heap, earning a No. 1 seed on their side of the bracket and returning to their Evil Empire identity, although it never really went away.
If Witt was charging toward superstar status when he signed an 11-year, $288.8-million contract extension in February, he has fully arrived now. If there was any thought the Royals were getting ahead of themselves after Witt showed a strong rookie campaign and one high-level season last year, those concerns are long gone.
Witt charged into the MVP conversation not only by hitting 32 home runs with 31 stolen bases and Gold Glove-worthy defense at shortstop; he was the main reason Kansas City was able to charge back to the playoffs after losing 106 games last season. The Royals have not reached the postseason since their 2015 title.
Yet, the reality is that Judge will be the American League MVP for the second time in three seasons on the back of a 58-homer, 144-RBI, 1.159-OPS season that was every bit as good as his 2022 season, minus the AL home-run record.
The Yankees were among the top MLB teams all season thanks to an offense that led baseball with 237 home runs and was tops in the AL with 815 runs scored and a .762 OPS. And while they are always viewed as an annual team to beat, New York will operate with something to prove after just three playoff victories over the previous three seasons.
Earlier this season, the Yankees won five of the seven games between the teams, including a four-game series at Kansas City in June when New York won three times.
Witt did not hit a home run against the Yankees this season, but he batted .367 with an .887 OPS. Judge hit one home run in six games against the Royals with a .250 batting average and a .708 OPS.
As far as the playoffs are concerned, Witt has established some momentum by helping the Royals to a 2-0 wild-card sweep against the Baltimore Orioles. Kansas City managed to pull off the two victories with just three total runs and Witt drove in one during each game.
“It’s pretty special to see what this team has done this year from what happened last year, and so now we’ve just got to keep doing it,” Witt said after the Royals advanced.
Judge has helped put the Yankees in the favorite role in the series, with home-field advantage to go along with it. But in the new era of expanded playoffs and three wild-card teams, division winners have been at something of a disadvantage.
The Royals and Detroit Tigers already have advanced to the division series with wild-card series wins on the road. Last season, a pair of wild-card teams in the Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks played in the World Series. And in 2022, the wild-card Philadelphia Phillies, the lowest seed in the National League, were a World Series participant.
It sets up a scenario where Judge will get his MVP when the season ends, but Witt could end up getting what he would have preferred anyway if the Royals can advance past the Yankees and into the American League Champion Series.
“We’ve just got to take things one day at a time, one step at a time like we’ve been doing,” Witt said. “It’s unbelievable doing it for (Royals) fans, so I can’t wait to play a game (at home), but first we’ll go to New York.”
Sports
Report: A's sign LHP Dallas Keuchel to minor league deal
Jul 7, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Dallas Keuchel (60) throws during the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images The Athletics signed former American League Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel to a minor league contract, ESPN reported Saturday.
The 38-year-old left-hander, a two-time All-Star, last pitched in the majors for the Milwaukee Brewers on July 13, 2024.
He has 13 years of major league experience, most prominently with the Houston Astros (2012-18). In 2015, he went 20-8 with a 2.48 ERA and 216 strikeouts, en route to winning the AL Cy Young Award.
The veteran will now attempt another comeback with the Athletics. Per ESPN, he will report to Triple-A Las Vegas.
With the Astros, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers, Minnesota Twins and Brewers, Keuchel is 103-92 with a 4.04 ERA and 1,254 strikeouts in 282 games (267 starts).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Magomed Ankalaev puts away Bogdan Guskov at UFC Abu Dhabi
Oct 4, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, UNITED STATES; Magomed Ankalaev (red gloves) reacts after the fight against Alex Pereira (blue gloves) during UFC 320 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images After a slow-paced, grueling affair that drew boos from the Etihad Arena crowd, No. 1-ranked former UFC light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev finally put away No. 9 Bogdan Guskov with fifth-round ground-and-pound at 2:41 to cap off Saturday’s UFC Fight Night event in Abu Dhabi.
The main event was a slog for the first 15 minutes. The opening frame saw very little action, and the second round was largely uneventful aside from Ankalaev (22-2-1, 1 NC MMA) securing a clinch and landing a few knees. The lack of output continued into the third, prompting the restless Abu Dhabi crowd to loudly voice their frustration and shower both men with boos as they returned to their corners.
Ankalaev shifted gears in the championship rounds, immediately taking Guskov (18-4-1 MMA) to the mat to open the fourth. He worked his way to full mount before settling into half guard, eventually threatening with a rear-naked choke that Guskov managed to defend to survive the frame.
Guskov, who landed just 42 strikes throughout the entire fight, nearly pulled off a miracle head-in-arm choke early in the fifth round. Ankalaev calmly escaped the sudden submission threat and eventually took Guskov’s back. Despite a brief reversal from Guskov in a desperate scramble, Ankalaev regained top position and unleashed a vicious barrage of ground-and-pound to force the stoppage.
The victory gave Ankalaev his 13th UFC win, the most among active light heavyweights.
“I want to say thank you to Bogdan (Guskov) for coming in here and saving the fight,” Ankalaev said. “I feel good. Thank you.”
Watching the grueling affair cageside was reigning UFC light heavyweight champion Carlos Ulberg, who is currently sidelined recovering from a torn ACL. With the stoppage victory, Ankalaev likely solidified his position as the next challenger for Ulberg once the champion is cleared to return to the Octagon.
Flyweight Ramazan Temirov (20-3 MMA) secured his 12th consecutive victory in spectacular fashion, thoroughly dominating former title challenger Steve Erceg (14-5 MMA) en route to a first-round knockout.
Temirov set the tone early with a spinning back attack to begin the bout. Later in the frame, he unleashed a barrage of punches before putting the finishing touches on the performance. The final sequence began with a right hand before Temirov dropped and flatlined Erceg with a single punch to end things at the 4:21 mark.
Following the spectacular finish, Temirov used his post-fight interview to call out reigning UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van for a future title fight.
“I’m ready for everyone,” Temirov said. “Whoever is champion, I’m ready.”
Lightweight Magomed Zaynukov (9-0 MMA) leaned on highly effective striking and mixed combinations to secure a unanimous decision victory (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) over Damian Rzepecki (10-1 MMA). After a slow-paced opening frame, Zaynukov found his rhythm and dictated the action down the stretch, opening noticeable cuts over Rzepecki’s nose and eyes to cruise to the win.
Heavyweight Rizvan Kuniev (14-3-1 MMA) wore down an incredibly game Tyrell Fortune (18-4 MMA), ultimately securing a TKO victory with a devastating knee to the head at the 1:12 mark of the third round. Kuniev nearly finished the bout in both the first and second frames with a barrage of knees and elbows, but Fortune showed immense toughness, surviving the early onslaught and continuing to fight despite a severely compromised right rib.
In the main card opener, Abubakar Vagaev (25-4 MMA) leaned on a balanced attack of striking and timely takedowns to secure a unanimous decision victory (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over Saygid Izagakhmaev (22-4 MMA).
Saturday’s main card was unexpectedly reduced from six fights to five just three hours before the event began. The UFC announced that Islam Dulatov was forced to withdraw from his scheduled welterweight bout against Wellington Turman due to an illness, prompting a last-minute cancellation.
Heavyweight Valter Walker (16-1 MMA) made history on Saturday’s preliminary card, securing his fifth consecutive submission victory to tie former middleweight title challenger Demian Maia for the longest submission streak in modern UFC history. Walker finished Thomas Petersen (11-5 MMA) via first-round calf slicer — an incredibly rare finish that marks only the fourth of its kind ever successfully executed inside the Octagon.
Saturday marked the UFC’s 23rd event in Abu Dhabi since 2010. The promotion also announced during the broadcast that it will make its 24th trip to the United Arab Emirates on Oct. 24 for UFC 333.
The UFC returns to action next Saturday, kicking off August with a trip to Serbia for UFC Fight Night.
–Field Level Media
Sports
WTA roundup: Anna Bondar goes overtime, reaches Hamburg final
May 25, 2026; Paris, France; Anna Bondar of Hungary reacts during her first round match against Elina Svitolina of Ukraine on day two at Stade Roland Garros. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images No. 4 seed Anna Bondar of Hungary outlasted Elina Avanesyan of Armenia 7-6 (3), 4-6, 7-6 (2) in a three-hour, 29-minute match on Saturday to advance to the final of the MSC Hamburg Ladies Open in Germany.
Bondar will face fifth-seeded Tamara Korpatsch of Germany, who advanced in her semifinal match when Mayar Sherif of Egypt retired in the second set with an injury. Bondar reached the final at Hamburg for the second consecutive year.
Bondar was down 5-3 in the opening set against Avanesyan before rallying then taking the final four points of the tiebreaker for the set. Bondar also lost serve to fall behind 2-0 in the deciding set then won the first five points of the tiebreaker to advance.
Korpatsch dominated the opening set 6-1 then went up 2-0 in the second set before Sherif was forced to bow out. Sherif was coming off her first title in four years at the Iasi Open in Romania.
Prague Open
Lilli Tagger of Austria pulled off an upset of No. 2 seed Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and earned her way into the final with a 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-6 (4) semifinal victory.
Both semifinalists from the Czech Republic fell in their home country with No. 5 seed Tereza Valentova losing 7-6 (4), 6-3 to No. 8 seed Daria Snigur of Ukraine.
After losing the opening set, Tagger rallied by breaking Krejcikova’s serve to go up 4-2 in the second set. She broke serve again in the fourth game of the final set then won the final three points in the tiebreaker to win the match.
Snigur and Valentova each broke serve twice in the opening set before Snigur won the final four points of the tiebreaker. Snigur then broke Valentova’s serve twice in the second set, including once to take a 5-3 lead before serving for the match.
–Field Level Media
Ryan Gosling to star in MCUs Ghost Rider film
Report: A's sign LHP Dallas Keuchel to minor league deal
