Major League Soccer players wore Juneteenth-inspired jerseys on Friday to mark the weekend of June 19, the anniversary of the effective end of slavery in the United States.
New York Red Bulls and Nashville SC players were the first to wear the Juneteenth-inspired numbers at the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J., with every MLS team planning to wear them this weekend in a collaborative effort between the league and Black Players for Change (BPC).
The league has also planned a limited-edition jersey auction and the playing of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (often referred to as the Black national anthem) before matches.
The league said in a statement on Thursday: “Major League Soccer today announced plans to recognize Juneteenth — the effective end of slavery in the United States — with a series of initiatives that celebrate freedom.
“The jersey numbers and the limited-edition jersey packaging illustrate the history and importance of Juneteenth and pay homage to Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. The imagery reinforces the message that Black players in MLS are standing tall because they stand on the shoulders of the freedom fighters who came before them.”
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day on which Union forces in Galveston, Texas, delivered the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to the region.
— New York Red Bulls (@NewYorkRedBulls) June 19, 2021
“This leaguewide recognition is a wonderful celebration of freedom made possible by our deep collaboration with Black Players for Change,” said Sola Winley, MLS executive vice president and chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer.
“It was our collective hope to honour this significant moment in American history by celebrating the freedom fighters of our past as well as acknowledging the freedom fighters of today that continue to shine a light on the need for equality, prosperity and freedom for all. In the span of only one year, we have ideated together to take meaningful actions for change both inside and outside of our sport.”
Toronto FC defender and BPC executive director Justin Morrow said: “We helped build this initiative to bridge the gap between generations celebrating Juneteenth and everyone who is still being introduced to this day.
“We hope that these jerseys will help shed light on the historical significance of Juneteenth, which is necessary context for where we are in society today. Understanding Black history is imperative to building a better society.”
Tim Kavanagh is a senior NHL editor for ESPN. He’s a native of upstate New York.
The Sidney Crosby era of Pittsburgh Penguins hockey has been synonymous with success. The Pens missed the playoffs in Sid’s rookie campaign of 2005-06 but have made it every season since, a streak of 16 straight springs with playoff hockey in Western PA. That run has included three Stanley Cups and one loss in the Stanley Cup Final.
Although today’s games are not must-wins for either club, the points have become all too important to squander as the final matchups are played. As it stands now, the Penguins have a 66% chance of making the playoffs, per FiveThirtyEight’s model, compared with 38% for the Panthers.
As we enter the final stretch of the regular season, it’s time to check all the playoff races — along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2023 NHL draft lottery.
Note: All times Eastern. All games not on ESPN, ESPN2, TNT or NHL Network are available via NHL Power Play, which is included in an ESPN+ subscription (local blackout restrictions apply).
Points: 90 Regulation wins: 31 Playoff position: WC1 Games left: 8 Points pace: 100 Next game: vs. LA (Saturday) Playoff chances: >99% Tragic number: N/A
Points: 85 Regulation wins: 28 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 6 Points pace: 92 Next game: vs. ANA (Sunday) Playoff chances: 31% Tragic number: 11
Points: 75 Regulation wins: 22 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 7 Points pace: 82 Next game: vs. LA (Sunday) Playoff chances: <1% Tragic number: 2
Points: 57 Regulation wins: 15 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 7 Points pace: 62 Next game: @ ARI (Saturday) Playoff chances: 0% Tragic number: E
Points: 56 Regulation wins: 13 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 7 Points pace: 61 Next game: @ EDM (Saturday) Playoff chances: 0% Tragic number: E
P — Clinched Presidents’ Trophy; Y — Clinched division; X — Clinched playoff berth; E — Eliminated from playoff contention
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the draw for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process can be found here. Sitting No. 1 on the draft board for this summer is Connor Bedard, who has been lauded as a generational talent.
Major League Baseball says it is investigating a confrontation between Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon and an Athletics fan at Thursday’s season opener in Oakland.
In a 12-second video posted on social media, Rendon grabs the fan by the shirt through the guardrails and accuses the fan of calling him a “b—-.” Rendon continues to challenge the fan as he denies the claim. Rendon then calls the fan a “motherf—er” and takes a swipe, which does not connect, as he lets go of the shirt and proceeds to leave the area.
No video showing what led to the altercation was immediately available.
“We are aware of the video and we are now looking into the matter,” MLB said in a statement.
The Angels said they had no comment on the situation and that Rendon would discuss what happened with reporters before Saturday’s game against Oakland.
Rendon was 0-for-3 in the Angels’ 2-1, Opening Day loss to the Athletics. He missed the majority of 2022 after undergoing right wrist surgery during the season.
Major League Baseball’s new rules didn’t impact scoring significantly in spring training, and oddsmakers began the season without adjusting their numbers on runs scored, while taking a wait-and-see approach to the pitch clock and elimination of the infield shift.
MLB games have averaged 9.1 runs scored over the past five seasons. Last year’s 8.57 runs per game was the lowest since 2015. Spring training games, with the new rules implemented, averaged 10.1 runs, down slightly from last year.
Pitchers have 15 seconds to throw a pitch with the bases empty and 20 seconds with a runner on base. Hitters must be in the batter’s box with eight seconds on the pitch clock. Hitters are allowed one timeout per at-bat to reset the pitch clock. Pitchers are restricted to stepping off the rubber only twice per plate appearance, including for pickoff attempts. The rule resets if a runner advances during the same plate appearance. And larger bases are being used to increase the success rate on steals.
“We don’t really see a direct correlation from the pitch clock to more scoring,” said Randy Blum, who oversees baseball odds for the SuperBook in Las Vegas. “We were not planning on adjusting our totals off that.”
Halvor England, BetMGM’s lead baseball trader, expects the elimination of the traditional shift to increase scoring marginally, but also believes pitchers will have more control over the hitter during an at-bat because of the pitch clock.
“I think it’s going to be a little more offsetting than people realize, almost a wash,” Halvor said. “I don’t anticipate there to be less scoring overall, but on a game-to-game basis, it’s going to be very marginal.”
The bigger bases being used this season, however, are a difference-maker in bookmakers’ and bettors’ eyes. Steals were up notably in success rate and volume — nearly double from last spring training — this year. Bettors expect the trend to continue.
The SuperBook offered a season-long prop on the over/under on most stolen bases by an individual player. Blum said the book opened the total at 50.5, a number that reflected about four to five more stolen bases than if the rule had not been in place. Still, sharp bettors took the over, causing the SuperBook to move the number to 52.5.
“That’s one thing [larger bases] that we did adjust our numbers on based on the rule changes, and it seems to be something that the bettors are taking note of also,” Blum said. “That was not necessarily a prop that in the past would get a lot of attention either way.”
Joe Fortuna, a veteran professional bettor and baseball fan, said he did edge his numbers up on runs scored because of the rule changes and was looking to bet overs early in the season for multiple reasons, including potential pitchers’ fatigue while working with the pitch clock.
“These guys, in April, might be a little bit out of shape, so I don’t know if running 100 mph pitches up there every 15 seconds will make them tire out faster,” Fortuna said. “The different rules all seemed to lean toward hitting to us.”
Fortuna also examined which hitters faced the most infield shifts last season and pointed out left-handed batters like San Diego’s Juan Soto, Texas’ Corey Seager and Kansas City’s Vinnie Pasquantino as ones who could benefit from its elimination.
“The shift is huge to me,” Fortuna said. “We actually bet on Pasquantino to win MVP today at 250-1. He batted .295 last year and faced 93.8% three-man shifts. That was the highest.”
For now, only one day into the season, bettors and bookmakers will be watching closely to see if there are any trends related to the new rule changes, but early on, it’ll be a guessing game.
“There will be some advantage for bettors if they can figure it all out quicker than the market,” Halvor said.