Sports
Jeremy Doku's desire to take leave from Belgian team for baby draws critics
June 15, 2026; Seattle, Washington, U.S.; Belgium’s Jeremy Doku in action with Egypt’s Ahmed Fatouh and Egypt’s Marawan Attia. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images Jeremy Doku, a starting winger on Belgium’s World Cup team, wants to be with his wife when she gives birth to their first child.
The only problem is that if Belgium make it out of group play and the knockout round, he would need to return to his country and potentially miss a key match. The expected due date for his wife, Shireen, falls in the second week of July when the quarterfinals are scheduled.
The 24-year-old Doku has drawn criticism for his family-over-nation stand.
Doku, who plays for Manchester City, is resolute in wanting to be with his wife but can’t drown out the critics.
“If you ask me what I want, my answer is that nobody wants to miss the birth of their first child. But I also know that football involves many other considerations,” Doku told Reuters. “I know the federation supports its players and understands their situations. We’ll see what we can do.”
Speaking Friday, television sports journalist France Pierron made it clear there is only one thing to do: Stay where he is.
“The World Cup is an incredible joy. There are hundreds of footballers who would kill to be in your shoes. It might never happen again in your life,” she said, as translated from French text posted to the Facebook page of L’Equipe D, a sports media company in France.
“
You’re living out a childhood dream, yet you’re going to walk away from it all to attend the birth of your child — a disgusting moment, if you’ll pardon the expression, where the dad is completely useless.
There are guys who took out loans just to see the match, and you’re not going — all just to cut an umbilical cord.”
The post drew hundreds of comments from both women and men, an overwhelming majority taking the side of Doku. One of them was Brahim Asloum, a retired boxer who won the light flyweight gold medal representing France at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
“A baby is your entire life. A World Cup is over when it is over,” he wrote.
At the World Cup, Belgium are in Group G with New Zealand, Iran and Egypt. All four teams have played one match thus far, each posting a draw.
Belgium tied Egypt at 1-1 on Monday in their opener. Doku started the match and played 85 minutes in his second World Cup appearance for his country.
Belgium will complete the group stage with matches against Iran on Sunday in Inglewood, Calif., and New Zealand on Friday in Vancouver.
The quarterfinals are set for July 9-11, the semifinals for July 14 and the World Cup Final for July 19.
–Field Level Media
Sports
A's storm back from 7-run deficit to edge Angels in 10th
Jun 19, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto (9) celebrates with first baseman Nolan Schanuel (18) after hitting a home run against the Athletics during the fourth inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images Jonah Heim drilled a pinch-hit, tying two-run homer in the ninth inning and Nick Kurtz drew a bases-loaded walk in the 10th as the Athletics rallied from seven runs down to post a wild 12-11 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night at West Sacramento, Calif.
Heim’s homer came off Sam Bachman with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. Jacob Wilson homered and drove in three runs and Lawrence Butler and Max Muncy also went deep for the Athletics.
Jose Siri and Logan O’Hoppe each slammed three-run homers as the Angels tied their season best with five blasts. Denzer Guzman added a two-run homer and Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel hit solo shots as the Angels lost for the fifth time in six games.
Butler started the 10th as the runner on second and Henry Bolte walked off Kirby Yates (0-3). Butler and Bolte then executed a double steal. One out later, Yates hit Gelof in the helmet to load the bases.
Samy Natera Jr. entered to face Kurtz and walked him on five pitches.
Elvis Alvarado (3-1) gave up one hit in two scoreless frames for the A’s.
O’Hoppe and Oswald Peraza each had three hits for Los Angeles. The Angels also hit five homers during a 7-1 road victory over the New York Yankees on April 14.
The Angels fell to 7-for-23 in save opportunities.
Zack Gelof had one hit to extend his career-best hitting streak to 23, the top active run in the majors.
Tyler Soderstrom had three hits, including a one-out double in the ninth. Bachman then retired Wilson before Heim drilled the tying homer.
The Angels recovered from a four-run deficit and scored the next 11 runs, including seven in the fourth inning.
Christian Moore hit a sacrifice fly to get Los Angeles on the board in the fourth before Guzman delivered a two-run homer. Siri later slugged a three-run shot to make it 6-4.
Justin Sterner entered and Neto ripped his second pitch over the wall.
O’Hoppe came up with two on and two outs in the fifth and homered to make it 10-4.
Schanuel delivered a one-out homer in the sixth for a seven-run advantage.
The A’s tallied in the sixth when Gelof hit a broken-bat single off Mitch Farris to score Butler.
Wilson hit a two-run blast in the seventh to pull the A’s within 11-7.
One inning later, Muncy hit a two-run blast off Chase Silseth.
Jose Soriano gave up four runs and six hits over five innings for Los Angeles.
Springs gave up six runs and four hits in 3 2/3 innings.
Earlier, Butler sent a fastball over the fence in the second inning to put the A’s ahead.
In the third, Shea Langeliers and Wilson had RBI doubles and Carlos Cortes’ infield out plated another to make it 4-0.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Shohei Ohtani misses game, away from Dodgers awaiting birth of child
May 31, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) swings for a single during the eighth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images For the second Friday in a row, the Dodgers held Shohei Ohtani out of the lineup.
But it wasn’t knee inflammation sidelining him this time.
Prior to their game against Baltimore in Los Angeles — a game the Dodgers won on a walk-off 6-5 — the Dodgers announced their star is away from the team on paternity leave as he and his wife expect the birth of their second child.
However, the Dodgers announced Ohtani “is expected to be back at some point this weekend” and he was not placed on the paternity list. (Being placed on the paternity list requires a player to miss at least one game but no more than three before being taken off the list.)
Ohtani was the starting pitcher in the Dodgers’ previous game, getting the win in a 5-4 victory over Tampa Bay on Wednesday. He is not expected to be back on the mound until the middle of next week.
Kyle Tucker took Ohtani’s usual leadoff spot in the lineup while rookie Ryan Ward served as the designated hitter. Tucker went 1-for-4 with a run scored while Ward was 0-for-3 with a pair of walks and scored the winning run.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope exercising option to stay in Memphis
Feb 9, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (3) between plays against the Golden State Warriors during the first quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images After missing out on nearly half of last season, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope reportedly is giving it another go in Memphis.
The two-time NBA champion swingman will exercise his $21.6 million player option for next season and remain with the Grizzlies, ESPN reported Friday.
Caldwell-Pope, 33, missed 31 games last season, including the final 29 after undergoing surgery on his right pinky finger in February. He was averaging 8.4 points, 2.7 assists and 2.5 rebounds when he was shut down.
The Grizzlies acquired Caldwell-Pope last offseason in the trade that sent Desmond Bane to Orlando. He played one season with the Magic after signing a three-year, $66 million contract prior to the 2024-25 season.
Drafted eighth overall by Detroit in 2013, the former Georgia star has played with six clubs over his 13 NBA seasons. After four seasons with the Pistons, he played four with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning his first NBA title in the 2019-20 season. Following a season with the Washington Wizards, he won his second championship in 2023 during a two-season stint with the Denver Nuggets prior to joining the Magic.
Caldwell-Pope is a career 36.5% shooter from 3-point range but has seen his percentage drop from 40.6% in his second season with the Nuggets to 34.2% in 2024-25 and then 31.6% last season. He has averaged 11 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists over his career.
–Field Level Media
A's storm back from 7-run deficit to edge Angels in 10th
Shohei Ohtani misses game, away from Dodgers awaiting birth of child
