Sports
Columbus rallies to beat rival Cincinnati
Columbus Crew offense Jamal Thiaré (19) heads the ball into the goal against the FC Cincinnati in the first half of the match at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field on July 25, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio. Daniel Gazdag’s first-half penalty kick and Patrick Schulte’s four saves led the host Columbus Crew to a 2-1 comeback win over FC Cincinnati in the latest Hell Is Real derby on Saturday.
The Crew (5-8-4, 19 points) had one win in their previous six matches while Cincinnati (6-6-5, 23 points) had a three-match point streak end.
The rivalry got heated in the final minute and Cincinnati’s Gerado Valenzuela was red-carded after a scuffle broke out and the melee continued post-match in the Cincinnati tunnel.
Kevin Denkey staked Cincinnati a ninth-minute lead before the Crew rallied on scores from Jamal Thiare in the 42nd and a penalty kick by Gazdag in the sixth minute of first-half stoppage time.
Columbus overcame an early deficit to take the 2-1 halftime lead on Gazdag’s second penalty kick in as many matches.
The Crew settled down after the Denkey score and Thiare found the equalizer off a corner kick by Dylan Chambost.
Thiare made a run to the middle of the box, got position on Miles Robinson and used a header for his first Crew goal after being acquired in a trade in February from Atlanta United, where he played the past three seasons.
At the 45-minute mark, Schulte made a critical stop with his right arm on a shot by Evander at the left post. The Crew followed with Max Arfsten drawing a foul at the end line from Matt Miazga that was upheld after a review.
Gazdag calmly scored from the spot for the 27th time in 28 tries in his MLS career with the Crew and the Philadelphia Union.
Cincinnati has allowed 42 goals after giving up 40 last season in 34 regular-season matches.
Denkey broke a tie with Evander for the club goal lead with his 11th but he couldn’t have done it with Evander and some poor defending by Mo Farsi.
Pavel Bucha attacked the right flank before sending a cross to the 6-yard box. Farsi tried to high kick the pass but whiffed and the ball went to Evander for a slick centering pass to Denkey, who did not miss.
Evander has a seven-match goal contribution streak (eight goals, seven assists).
This was the first meeting since Cincinnati won a best-of-three series in the 2025 playoffs.
– Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope joining 76ers after Grizzlies buyout
Feb 11, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (3) in the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is set to reunite with former teammate LeBron James after agreeing to a buyout with the Memphis Grizzlies and planning to sign a one-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, ESPN reported on Saturday.
Caldwell-Pope, 33, who played with James on the 2020 NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, must clear waivers before signing with Philadelphia.
Per the report, the Grizzlies and Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul — Caldwell-Pope’s agent — finalized the buyout on Saturday, a day after Sixers agreed to sign James to a two-year, $8 million deal.
Caldwell-Pope, who also won an NBA title with the Denver Nuggets in 2023, missed the last 31 games of the 2025-26 season after surgery to fix a misalignment on his right pinkie finger. He finished with averages of 8.4 points, 2.7 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 21.3 minutes in 51 games.
A 13-year veteran selected eighth overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 2013 NBA Draft, Caldwell-Pope has averaged 11.0 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 29.2 minutes with the Pistons, Lakers, Washington Wizards, Nuggets, Orlando Magic and Grizzlies in 963 games (784 starts).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Trey McBride says Cardinals fans not so bad after all
Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride speaks to the press during training camp at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on July 25, 2026. Arizona tight end Trey McBride made some waves with criticism of the Cardinals’ fan base earlier this offseason. On Saturday, he attempted to walk back some of his earlier remarks following training camp practice.
In a June appearance on Will Compton and Taylor Lewan’s podcast “Bussin’ with the Boys,” McBride noted that a significant portion of Arizona’s population is transplants, and he criticized the Cardinals’ fan base for being too focused on other teams.
“Living in Arizona, no one’s from Arizona,” McBride had said. “Everyone has kinda moved in from another state, so they’re all fans of their own teams, so now you have the Arizona that sits there and there’s no Arizona fans in Arizona.
“So, it’s a tough deal. Hopefully, we start winning some games and we can bring some of those fans back.”
Saturday, possibly because of some backlash, McBride was singing a different tune.
“Yeah, I probably shouldn’t have said that,” McBride said. “It came out wrong, and obviously the fanbase is great. We have a tremendous fanbase. Arizona’s been here, loyal fans to all the sports teams here, and we’re very lucky to have a lot of these guys, and we’re going to have a great season.
“I love it here in Arizona, and I hope they love me too, but it’s a special place. The fans are great, and I’m excited for this year to give them something to be proud of.”
In 2025, McBride signed what was the richest deal for a tight end in NFL history, re-signing with the Cardinals for four years and $76 million.
He backed that figure up last fall, posting career highs with 126 receptions for 1,239 yards and 11 touchdowns, leading the Cardinals in each category while earning his second straight Pro Bowl berth and being named first-team All-Pro.
A second-round draft pick in 2022, the 26-year-old has exceeded 1,000 yards receiving in each of the last two seasons.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Ty France drives in 3 as Padres sustain Marlins losing streak
Jul 25, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; San Diego Padres first baseman Ty France (25) hits a two-run single against the Miami Marlins during the third inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Ty France drove in three runs to help the visiting San Diego Padres hand the Miami Marlins their franchise-record tying 11th straight loss, 7-2, in the middle game of their three-game series on Saturday.
The Marlins have dropped 11 in a row three other times in team history, most recently in June of 2011.
Jackson Merrill had two doubles, a single and scored two runs, and Jake Cronenworth had a single, two walks, an RBI and two runs scored for the Padres, who improved to 4-5 coming out of the All-Star break.
Randy Vasquez was used as an opener for San Diego and went 2 2/3 innings, allowing one run and one hit with no strikeouts and two walks.
JP Sears (3-3), who was originally scheduled to start, followed with 3 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the win.
Esteury Ruiz had two hits and scored twice for Miami.
Marlins right-hander Eury Perez (5-8) went seven innings, allowing three runs and seven hits. He struck out two and walked one on a season-high 104 pitches.
Perez walked Cronenworth with two outs in the third. Manny Machado followed with a check-swing double just inside the right-field line, putting runners on second and third. France then lined a two-run single to left, scoring both runners for a 2-0 lead.
Ruiz was hit by a pitch to start the bottom half of the third and he took third on a single by Jakob Marsee. Otto Lopez followed with a sacrifice fly to right to cut it to 2-1.
Merrill went the other way for a double to start the seventh, moved to third on a flyout and scored on a sacrifice fly by Gavin Sheets to extend the lead to 3-1.
Cronenworth walked again to start the eighth and immediately stole second off left-hander Dax Fulton. France stepped to the plate with one out and grounded an RBI single up the middle to make it 4-1.
The Padres loaded the bases later in the inning off Fulton and pinch-hitter Jase Bowen lined the first pitch he saw into right field for a two-run single, extending the lead to 6-1.
Kyle Stowers delivered an RBI single in the eighth to cut it to 6-2, but Lopez was thrown out going from first to third for the second out.
San Diego got the run back in the ninth on an RBI single by Cronenworth to make it 7-2.
–Field Level Media
Report: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope joining 76ers after Grizzlies buyout
Trey McBride says Cardinals fans not so bad after all
