Sports
Red Sox eye record win streak in doubleheader vs. Orioles
Jul 17, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Jake Bennett (64) pitches during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images The Boston Red Sox will have an opportunity to make history when they play two games against the visiting Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday.
Boston, which has won 14 consecutive games, had a chance to tie the club record for consecutive victories when it was scheduled to play Baltimore on Tuesday, but that game was postponed by rain and rescheduled as part of a day-night doubleheader. If the Red Sox win both games Wednesday, they will break the team record of 15 consecutive victories set in 1946 (April 25-May 10).
“You try not to (think about it), but I want it,” Boston third baseman Caleb Durbin said. “I can’t speak for anyone else because we haven’t really talked about it, but shoot, yeah, I want to make history here.
“A lot of really good ballclubs that have come through here, too. When it’s all said and done — and hopefully it’s not done for a little while — we’ll look back on it and look at how cool of a run it was.”
Boston’s 14-game winning streak is the longest in Major League Baseball this season and is tied for the longest winning streak in the American League since Seattle won 14 in a row in 2022.
“It would mean a lot, for sure,” Boston first baseman Willson Contreras said. “We are trying to play the same way every day. We are thriving and trying to win as much as we can because we know we have to take advantage of anything.
“We are relentless. We are resilient. We’re looking forward to keep going this way. … If it happens it would be great for us and we’ll have to celebrate that. If it doesn’t, we have to keep going.”
The Orioles are thin at the catching position. Rookie Samuel Basallo didn’t play in Monday’s loss to Boston because of a sore right shoulder, and he wasn’t scheduled to start Tuesday’s game. Adley Rutschman, Baltimore’s starting catcher, was placed on the 10-day injured list Monday with wrist inflammation.
“(Basallo is) dealing with it, maintaining it,” Baltimore manager Craig Albernaz said in his pregame media conference Tuesday. “He’s feeling a little bit better today. We’re very hopeful with him. We’re going to support him and make sure he gets the treatment he needs and see where he’s at each day.”
Boston will send left-hander rookie Jake Bennett (5-3, 2.35 ERA) to the mound in Game 1 on Wednesday. It’ll be his first career appearance against the Orioles.
Right-hander Dean Kremer (1-2, 4.15) is scheduled to start for Baltimore. Kremer is 3-4 with a 5.04 ERA in 10 career starts against Boston.
Righty Kyle Bradish (6-9, 3.61) is slated to start the nightcap for Baltimore, per MLB.com. In 10 starts against Boston, Bradish is 1-6 with a 6.75 ERA. He is coming off an impressive 6-1 home win over the Kansas City Royals, giving up just one run on two hits over 6 2/3 innings on July 11.
Boston had not named a Game 2 starter as of late Tuesday night.
Following Monday’s 6-5 victory, Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy said lefty Ranger Suarez (4-3, 3.15 ERA) would be activated and start Tuesday’s game, but that plan was scrapped and the team planned to start rookie lefty Eduardo Rivera on Tuesday instead.
Suarez hasn’t pitched since July 5 because of a groin strain, but Tracy said the All-Star could be activated and start Wednesday’s second game.
“We’ve just gotta wait and see how he feels tomorrow,” Tracy said.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Duke-Michigan game canceled over broadcast dispute
Mar 29, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer talks to a referee against the UConn Huskies in the first half during an Elite Eight game of the East Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images A blockbuster nonconference game between national champion Michigan and Duke, scheduled for Dec. 21, has been canceled, multiple outlets reported Friday.
The game was set to be played at Madison Square Garden and streamed on Prime Video as part of a three-game agreement with the Blue Devils. Instead, Duke will meet Texas Tech in New York, with the game remaining on Prime.
The Michigan-Duke matchup had been a question mark for about three months, with the Big Ten — backed by Fox Sports — contending it owned the broadcast rights, in part based on the game location. ESPN and the Atlantic Coast Conference already had given approval for the transfer to Prime Video, which is taking its first steps into the live streaming of college sports with the Duke games.
An effort to move the game to the Miami Marlins’ stadium — chosen, in part, because the venue is outside of a geographic area that the Big Ten could call neutral territory — did not pan out, forcing the cancellation.
The cancellation and rescheduling had not been announced as of Friday morning by Duke, Michigan or Texas Tech.
Amazon’s first foray into broadcasting live college sports also will feature the Blue Devils’ games against UConn on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas and Gonzaga on Feb. 20 in Detroit.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Panthers place LB Nic Scourton (knee) on season-ending IR
Nov 16, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Carolina Panthers outside linebacker Nic Scourton (11) reacts after a play in the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images Carolina Panthers linebacker Nic Scourton’s season is over before it began.
The Panthers placed Scourton on injured reserve on Friday, one day after he injured his right knee on a wet field during the team’s first practice of training camp.
Multiple media outlets reported Scourton sustained a torn ACL. The Panthers did not confirm as much, however the move to season-ending injured reserve indicates the injury is severe.
Scourton, who is seeking a second opinion, appeared to know the severity of the injury immediately on Thursday in an emotional scene on the field.
Scourton, 21, was in tears and shielded his face from cameras as the cart pulled away from the field. Before the cart departed, the entire team and head coach Dave Canales had a moment with him as practice was halted for the day.
In just his second season, Scourton was penciled in to start on the opposite side of Jaelan Phillips, acquired as a free agent in the offseason. As a rookie, Scourton appeared in 17 games (eight starts) and tallied 47 tackles (seven for loss), a team high-tying five sacks and a forced fumble.
Veteran Patrick Jones II and Princely Umanmielen, in his second season, could see game time in his absence.
Also on Friday, the Panthers signed 2026 UFL Defensive Player of the Year Cam Gill and offensive tackle Derrell Bailey and waived guard Joshua Gray.
Gill, 28, recorded 10 sacks in the regular season for Louisville this spring. He also won Super Bowl LV with Tampa Bay and notched 51 tackles and 2 1/2 sacks in 50 career games with the Buccaneers (2020-21, 2023) and Panthers (2024).
Bailey went undrafted out of Georgia State this season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
WNBA All-Star Weekend Best Bets: Caitlin Clark, Marina Mabrey and More
Jul 19, 2024; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Connecticut Sun player Marina Mabrey participates in the 3-point contest during the WNBA All-Star Skills Night at the Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports The 30th WNBA All-Star Game tips off at the United Center in Chicago at 8:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
Festivities for the league’s pearl-anniversary All-Star weekend begin a little more than a day earlier, though, with the 3-Point Contest highlighting the events set for adjacent Wintrust Arena beginning at 8 tonight.
Well, adjacent in the major-city sense; the venues stand about five miles apart.
As a batch of “W” standouts aims to connect with their surroundings before a growing fanbase, what would be better than wagering on the proceedings?
Caitlin Clark in the 3-Point Contest, you say? Hey, maybe next year.
Odds are via BetMGM.
3-POINT CONTEST
The All-Star host Chicago Sky play their home games at Wintrust but graced the UC twice last season for the first WNBA contests in arena history.
Toronto Tempo guard Marina Mabrey had moved on from the Sky by then but still is no stranger to Wintrust. She even helped Notre Dame capture the NCAA Women’s Tournament Chicago Regional there on the way to a national runner-up finish in 2018-19.
Mabrey enters the All-Star break as the league leader in made 3s (82). She’s about one month removed from drilling nine 3s while tying the league single-game scoring record of 53 points. That came six days after hitting nine more.
Although Mabrey stumbled to a 1-for-8 effort from deep during the Tempo’s first-half finale Monday, expect her to recalibrate her touch in familiar digs to start her first All-Star appearance in style.
Marina Mabrey to reach 3-Point Contest final (+150)
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GAME MVP
Multiple teams shifted games against the Indiana Fever to larger arenas last season to accommodate a clamoring to see Clark, a transcendent star and the top pick in the 2024 Draft.
Injuries kept her from both contests at United Center, however. And no, there weren’t any dustups about the Fever’s injury-report designations.
Saturday marks a showcase event for the league, of course, but it could also serve as a dress rehearsal for Clark ahead of Indiana’s scheduled return to UC on Aug. 8.
Clark has navigated a balky back at times this season but otherwise is enjoying good health. She’s tied for fourth with Mabrey for the league scoring lead (21 points per game) and has the second-highest assists-per-game average at 7.9.
Clark recorded the first 40-point, 10-assist game in “W” history on July 17. See her shoot, pass and rise above the persistent social-media noise to set the tone Saturday night.
Caitlin Clark to win All-Star Game MVP (+600)
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GAME TOTALS
The WNBA All-Star Game shifted from the traditional East vs. West format in 2018. That included the 2022 game at Wintrust, in which a team captained by A’ja Wilson defeated one led by Breanna Stewart 134-112.
The game has featured at least 270 combined points twice in the three seasons since. The outlier came in 2024, when the WNBA stars edged their counterparts from the U.S. Women’s National Team 117-109.
With no Olympic-snub tension attached to Team Cynthia Cooper vs. Team Teresa Witherspoon, all signs point to another scorefest.
All-Star Game over 274.5 points (-114)
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