NBA Power Rankings: Can the surging Suns catch the Warriors?
The Golden State Warriors rolled past the Brooklyn Nets 117-99 on Tuesday, cruising to a league-best 15-2 record. And while coach Steve Nash has the Nets trending in the right direction, the loss to the Warriors at home is a reminder of the work still needed to be done.
Stephen Curry dropped 37 points in Brooklyn as he inches closer to the all-time 3-point record. And even when Curry has an off night like Sunday’s 12 points in a 119-104 victory over the Toronto Raptors, the Warriors’ bench is there to pick up the slack.
Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns have won 12 straight games to improve to 13-3 on the season and sit comfortably at No. 2 in the West. They head east to take on the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
The Los Angeles Lakers, meanwhile, finally got LeBron James back in the lineup on Friday, but they still suffered a third straight loss, falling to the Boston Celtics 130-108. And James was assessed a flagrant foul 2 in Sunday’s 121-116 win over the Detroit Pistons after an altercation with Isaiah Stewart.
Can the Suns close the gap on the Warriors? Can the Lakers turn things around? Our experts break down all 30 teams.
Note: Throughout the regular season, our panel (Tim Bontemps, Jamal Collier, Nick Friedell, Andrew Lopez, Tim MacMahon, Dave McMenamin and Ohm Youngmisuk) is ranking all 30 teams from top to bottom, taking stock of which teams are playing the best basketball now and which teams are looking most like title contenders.
1. Golden State Warriors
2021-22 record: 15-2
Previous ranking: 1
The Warriors just keep on rolling at a league-best 15-2 after Sunday’s win over the Raptors. They continue to get contributions up and down the roster, but one thing to keep an eye on is the health of veteran swingman Andre Iguodala. The 37-year-old has missed three straight games because of knee soreness. He has been a steadying presence for a group that benefits a great deal from his leadership on and off the floor. — Friedell
This week: PHI, POR, @LAC
2. Phoenix Suns
2021-22 record: 13-3
Previous ranking: 3
With a win against the Nuggets on Sunday night, the Suns won their 12th game in a row this season — the best mark in the NBA in the early part of the 2021-22 season. The 12-game streak marks the fourth longest in Suns franchise history behind separate 15-game and 17-game streaks in 2006-07 and a 14-game streak in 1992. — Lopez
This week: @SA, @CLE, @NY, @BKN
3. Brooklyn Nets
2021-22 record: 12-5
Previous ranking: 2
While garnering little attention, Brooklyn continues to churn out wins, as the Nets are now victors in 10 of their past 12 after Saturday’s win in Detroit without Kevin Durant. But Tuesday’s blowout loss at home to the Warriors is a reminder that, despite their win total, the Nets still are not at the level they expect themselves to reach this season. — Bontemps
This week: @CLE, @BOS, PHX
4. Chicago Bulls
2021-22 record: 12-5
Previous ranking: 7
DeMar DeRozan (126) and Zach LaVine (111) rank first and second, respectively, in the NBA in total points scored during the fourth quarter this season. Their excellence during the final period is one of the main reasons the Bulls begin the week tied for the best record in the Eastern Conference. — Collier
This week: IND, @HOU, @ORL, MIA
5. Utah Jazz
2021-22 record: 11-5
Previous ranking: 8
The Utah bench, featuring the top two finishers in last season’s Sixth Man of the Year voting, got significantly deeper and more experienced with Rudy Gay. After missing the first month while recovering from heel surgery, Gay starred in his Jazz debut, scoring 20 points on 5-of-6 from 3 in 18 minutes during Thursday’s win over the Raptors. — MacMahon
This week: MEM, @OKC, NO, NO
6. Miami Heat
2021-22 record: 11-6
Previous ranking: 6
Miami has won four of its past five and is doing so behind the All-Star play of Jimmy Butler. The talented swingman is averaging 25 points a game this month and has driven a talented Heat squad back toward the top of the East. Butler has an interesting homecoming on Saturday against DeMar DeRozan and the surging Bulls in Chicago. — Friedell
This week: @DET, @MIN, @CHI
7. Washington Wizards
2021-22 record: 11-5
Previous ranking: 4
For only the second time this season, the Wizards lost two games in a row when they dropped games at Charlotte and Miami. But Washington rebounded with a three-point win against the Heat on Saturday and have a rematch against Charlotte on Monday. Washington’s defense remains a surprising strength. The Wizards have held opponents to 100 points or fewer in seven of their past eight games. We will find out more about Washington in this next week as it embarks on a four-game road swing during a stretch in which the Wizards play seven of 10 games on the road. — Youngmisuk
This week: CHA, @NO, @OKC, @DAL
8. Denver Nuggets
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 5
Nikola Jokic was on a tear with 35 points/16 rebounds and 30 points/10 rebounds in consecutive games only to see Denver lose to Dallas and Philadelphia. Making matters much worse is that Jokic injured a wrist and has missed the past two games. With and without Jokic, Denver has now lost four straight games and Michael Malone’s team is in dire need of getting healthier. Jamal Murray (ACL) and Michael Porter Jr. (back) remain out indefinitely. And now it remains to be seen when Jokic is able to return. Sunday’s blowout loss at Phoenix started a torturous stretch in which the Nuggets play nine of 10 games on the road, including seven straight away from Denver. — Youngmisuk
This week: @POR, MIL
9. Milwaukee Bucks
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 14
The Bucks started to look more like themselves this week, winning three games in a row for the first time this season as their starting lineup starts to find some stability. Khris Middleton returned from his absence after testing positive for COVID-19. Bobby Portis posted back-to-back double-doubles and Jrue Holiday has started to find his footing defensively. Meanwhile, Giannis Antetokounmpo has been consistently dominant, averaging 27.8 points, 12.2 rebounds and 5.8 assists this month. — Collier
This week: ORL, DET, @DEN, @IND
10. Dallas Mavericks
2021-22 record: 9-7
Previous ranking: 9
The Mavs are 0-3 since Luka Doncic went down with left knee and ankle sprains, failing to crack triple digits in two of those three losses. The silver lining: Kristaps Porzingis has continued to score efficiently, averaging 25.3 points on .523/.405/.920 shooting splits over the past six games. There is hope that Doncic, who was ruled out of Sunday’s loss after a pregame workout, will be able to return for Tuesday’s rematch against the Clippers. — MacMahon
This week: @LAC, WAS
11. Philadelphia 76ers
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 10
Things have predictably been rough for Philadelphia without Joel Embiid, as the 76ers have dropped six of seven since he left the lineup after testing positive for COVID-19 two weeks ago. Philadelphia has always been a team heavily reliant on its superstar center, but that is especially true as the Ben Simmons saga continues to play out with no clear end in sight. — Bontemps
This week: @SAC, @GS, MIN
12. LA Clippers
2021-22 record: 10-7
Previous ranking: 12
The Clippers had a road trip to forget with double-digit losses at Memphis and New Orleans. The loss to the Pelicans was so ugly that the Clippers scored a total of 26 points in the second half. Just as LA got Serge Ibaka (back) back from a G League stint as he makes his way back into the fold, the Clippers lost Nicolas Batum (health and safety protocols) on Sunday, possibly for multiple days. With Kawhi Leonard and Marcus Morris Sr. out, Paul George has been carrying the load and it will remain a heavy lift for the foreseeable future. — Youngmisuk
This week: DAL, DET, GS
13. Charlotte Hornets
2021-22 record: 10-8
Previous ranking: 16
Charlotte had its five-game winning streak snapped on Saturday in Atlanta — but there are still plenty of good signs for the young team. At the top of the list is the play of Miles Bridges, who had 35 points in Saturday’s loss and is averaging 21.6 points a game this year. The Hornets have an interesting measuring stick game against Bradley Beal and the hot Wizards on Monday. — Friedell
This week: @WAS, @ORL, MIN, @HOU
14. New York Knicks
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 15
Sunday night’s loss in Chicago began a stretch for the Knicks that sees them play six of seven games against teams in playoff contention. With things already on edge in Gotham following an up-and-down start to the season, the panic meter could take a big jump up if the next couple of weeks go poorly — especially as so many teams around them in the East keep winning. — Bontemps
This week: LAL, PHX, @ATL
15. Boston Celtics
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 19
Just when it seemed like things were falling apart in Boston, the Celtics have rattled off seven wins in their past 10 games, moving them back over .500 again. Long term, Boston has to figure out how to surround Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown with more talent to return to championship contention. In the short term, a strong defense — with just enough offense — should be enough to keep them in the mix for a top-six spot in the suddenly deep Eastern Conference. — Bontemps
This week: HOU, BKN, @SA, @TOR
16. Los Angeles Lakers
2021-22 record: 9-9
Previous ranking: 11
With LeBron James out — ejected for the second time in his 19-year career after striking Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart in the face — Russell Westbrook put up 15 of his 26 points and six of his 10 assists in the fourth quarter to help the Lakers storm back and beat the Pistons. “Just showed that will that Russell is famous for,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. Could this be the moment that gets Westbrook on track with the Lakers? — McMenamin
This week: @NY, @IND, SAC, DET
17. Portland Trail Blazers
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 20
Damian Lillard was out for only a game and the Blazers were happy to have their star back. Lillard helped Portland to its best week with three wins over the Raptors, Bulls and Sixers. Lillard scored 39 in the win over the Sixers and now Portland is above .500. Coach Chauncey Billups’ team will have a chance to atone for a 29-point loss to Denver with a rematch against the Nuggets on Tuesday before going on a three-game road swing. — Youngmisuk
This week: DEN, @SAC, @GS
18. Atlanta Hawks
2021-22 record: 8-9
Previous ranking: 21
Seems like the cure for Atlanta’s early-season woes was simply playing at home. Atlanta has rattled off four consecutive wins after dropping six in a row. The Hawks are tied with Washington for the best home record in the Eastern Conference this season (7-1). — Lopez
This week: OKC, @SA, @MEM, NY
19. Cleveland Cavaliers
2021-22 record: 9-8
Previous ranking: 13
It’s been a tough stretch to be a Cleveland fan. As bad as it is getting outscored 36-8 in the fourth quarter on Thursday in a loss to the Warriors, sometimes you tip your hat to greatness, as Steph Curry scored 20 of his 40 in the final frame. The tougher pill to swallow came Friday, when news broke that Collin Sexton would miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. — McMenamin
This week: BKN, PHX, ORL
20. Toronto Raptors
2021-22 record: 8-10
Previous ranking: 17
Toronto’s season so far has been a series of runs. The Raptors lost three of their first four games, only to win their next five in a row. They’ve since followed that up by losing seven of their past nine, including Sunday night’s loss to the league-leading Warriors. The surprising part? The Raptors are a top-10 offensive team and a bottom-10 defensive team. Before the season, it would’ve been expected to have been the reverse. — Bontemps
This week: @MEM, @IND, BOS
21. Memphis Grizzlies
2021-22 record: 8-8
Previous ranking: 18
The 138-95 loss to the Timberwolves on Saturday was the third time the Grizzlies have been blown out by at least 25 points this month. As a result, only five teams have worse average point differentials than Memphis (minus-5.1). The Grizzlies have to fix their defense, which ranks last in the league (113.8 points allowed per 100 possessions). — MacMahon
This week: @UTAH, TOR, ATL, SAC
22. Indiana Pacers
2021-22 record: 7-11
Previous ranking: 22
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle benched his starters during the second half of a game against Charlotte on Friday night, sending a message to his team during a three-game losing skid. A matchup with the Pelicans the next night provided the perfect remedy to snap the losing streak, but Indiana faces a tough schedule this week — Bulls, Lakers, Raptors and Bucks — to try and get back on the right track. — Collier
This week: @CHI, LAL, TOR, MIL
23. Minnesota Timberwolves
2021-22 record: 7-9
Previous ranking: 25
The Timberwolves put together one of their most dominant performances in years to cruise to a 43-point victory against the Memphis Grizzlies and enter this week on a three-game winning streak. Despite an up-and-down season overall, Minnesota is holding on because of its defense, which is 11th in efficiency, fifth in steals and third in blocks. — Collier
This week: @NO, MIA, @CHA, @PHI
24. Oklahoma City Thunder
2021-22 record: 6-10
Previous ranking: 23
Forward Darius Bazley has started every game this season, but the 21-year-old former first-round pick isn’t making much of a case that he should be considered part of the Thunder’s long-term core. Bazley is shooting only 37.1% from the floor and 28.1% from 3-point range, slight dips from last season’s poor percentages. But 19-year-old former first-rounder Aleksej Pokusevski (34.9% from the floor, 20.5% on 3s) isn’t exactly pushing for more playing time. — MacMahon
This week: @ATL, UTAH, WAS
25. Sacramento Kings
2021-22 record: 6-11
Previous ranking: 24
Quite the eventful weekend for Sacramento. A courtside fan lost their lunch onto the floor on Saturday and then Luke Walton lost his job on Sunday, marking the first coaching casualty of the 2021-22 season. Alvin Gentry was named the interim coach, the sixth team for which he’s been the head guy. Larry Brown (nine teams) holds the record. Gentry will have his work cut out for him, taking over a team that’s lost seven out of eight. — McMenamin
This week: PHI, POR, @LAL, @MEM
26. San Antonio Spurs
2021-22 record: 4-11
Previous ranking: 26
It was a light week of work for San Antonio, which had only two games in a seven-day span. Both of the games last week were losses, dropping the Spurs to 4-11 this season. That mark is the second-worst 15-game start in San Antonio franchise history, behind only the 2-13 start in 1996-97. That season, Gregg Popovich replaced head coach Bob Hill after 18 games. — Lopez
This week: PHX, ATL, BOS
27. Detroit Pistons
2021-22 record: 4-12
Previous ranking: 28
After missing the start of the season with an injury, Pistons rookie Cade Cunningham appears to be finding his footing on the floor. In four games last week, he averaged 18.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists, and became the youngest player in Detroit history with a triple-double on Sunday against the Lakers. — Collier
This week: MIA, @MIL, @LAC, @LAL
28. Orlando Magic
2021-22 record: 4-13
Previous ranking: 27
The Magic have lost five of six, but they did have another strong moment on Wednesday in their second win of the season at Madison Square Garden. Mo Bamba had 12 rebounds in that win and is averaging 9.4 rebounds a game this season. The Magic have plenty of room for improvement, but Bamba has had some nice numbers early in the year. — Friedell
This week: @MIL, CHA, CHI, @CLE
29. New Orleans Pelicans
2021-22 record: 3-15
Previous ranking: 30
Without Zion Williamson for the entire season and Brandon Ingram for seven games, the Pelicans’ offense has struggled. In 18 games this season, the Pelicans have scored fewer than 100 points nine times already. In 72 games last season, they scored fewer than 100 only seven times. — Lopez
This week: MIN, WAS, @UTAH, @UTAH
30. Houston Rockets
2021-22 record: 1-15
Previous ranking: 29
Houston has lost 14 in a row, the second-longest losing streak in the league over the past two seasons, ranking behind only the Rockets’ 20-game drought last season. Only four of the losses during the current streak have come by single-digit margins. “That’s a team learning, growing and fighting to the point where we got to five minutes and we had an opportunity,” coach Stephen Silas said after Saturday’s 106-99 road loss to the Knicks. “It hasn’t been like that.” — MacMahon
This week: @BOS, CHI, CHA
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Legacy Motor Club on Wednesday sued the broker who helped negotiate its purchase of a charter from Rick Ware Racing, accusing him of tortious interference for now trying to buy Ware’s NASCAR team.
Legacy alleged in its filing in North Carolina Superior Court that T.J. Puchyr, acting as a consultant for the Cup Series team owned by seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, violated the state Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act by using “insider knowledge and position of trust to interfere with Legacy’s Agreement with RWR.”
Legacy also accused Puchyr of making public personal attacks against Johnson when he announced last month his plans to purchase Ware’s race team.
The dispute began not long after Legacy entered into agreement for Johnson and his partners at Knighthead Capital Management to purchase one of Ware’s two charters. Legacy says the deal is for next season, when it plans to expand to three full-time Cup cars.
RWR maintains the deal was for 2027 because it already is under contract with RFK Racing to lease that organization a charter next season. Ware says he didn’t read the contract closely when he signed it to note that it read 2026, and that honoring the RFK contract and selling a second charter to Legacy next year would put the NASCAR team out of business.
Legacy in April sued Ware, but as that fight is playing out, it claims Puchyr struck a deal to buy RWR. Puchyr is a cofounder of Spire Motorsports and now acts as a motorsports consultant.
“Mr. Puchyr was well aware of the parties’ dispute. He knew of the charter purchase agreement between Legacy and RWR that he helped broker,” the suit contends. “Despite Mr. Puchyr’s insider knowledge of the contract, his obligations under his consulting agreement with Legacy, Legacy’s contractual right to a charter … Mr. Puchyr recently announced that he intends to purchase both of RWR’s charters for himself.”
The latest filing is part of two active lawsuits surrounding charters, which are at the heart of NASCAR’s business model. Having one is vital to a team’s survival.
23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports are locked into a prolonged suit with NASCAR over antitrust allegations against the most popular motorsports series in the United States. 23XI, co-owned by retired NBA great Michael Jordan, and Front Row, owned by entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, last September refused to sign the charter agreements offered by NASCAR after more than two years of contentious negotiations on extensions.
The two were the only holdouts out of 15 organizations to refuse the extensions. They instead sued and are awaiting a federal judge’s decision on if they will be stripped of their six combined charters as the case heads toward a Dec. 1 trial date.
NASCAR has said it has asked multiple times for settlement proposals but heard nothing. NASCAR also has no intention of renegotiating the charter agreements held by 30 other teams.
Johnson, despite his own legal fight, said last weekend that he supported a settlement in the antitrust case.
“I would love to see a settlement of some kind,” Johnson said. “I really don’t think that getting into a knock-down, drag-out lawsuit is good for anybody.”
-
Jorge Castillo
ATLANTA — The 2025 MLB All-Star Game featured the two best pitchers in the world on the mound to start for their respective leagues and the two best position players in the opposing lineups. It included the first automatic ball-strike system challenges in All-Star Game history, a rousing six-run comeback, a memorable appearance for a future first-ballot Hall of Famer and a beautiful tribute to the late Hank Aaron just miles from where he surpassed Babe Ruth on the career home run list.
But the exhibition, a remarkable show played at Truist Park on a muggy Tuesday night, will be remembered for how it ended.
When it was over, nearly four hours after the first pitch, the National League outlasted the American League behind Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber in an unprecedented Home Run Derby-style swing-off, with a 4-3 homer edge after the score was tied at 6-6 through nine innings.
Schwarber pulverized three home runs on three swings in the swing-off after going 0-for-2 with a walk during the nine innings, becoming the first position player to win All-Star Game MVP without recording a hit in the game.
The American League leads the National League in the All-Star Game, with a record of 48 wins, 44 losses and 2 ties.
Officially, the result, just the Senior Circuit’s second victory in the past 12 matchups, didn’t have a winning or losing pitcher of record. Unofficially, it was one of the most enthralling endings to any marquee baseball game, exhibition or not.
“It’s like wiffle ball in the backyard,” AL manager Aaron Boone said.
The tiebreaker, a baseball version of a hockey shootout, was established in 2022. On Monday, both managers — Boone and the NL’s Dave Roberts — were required to submit their list of participants and alternates to MLB should the game need the swing-off after nine innings. Knowing starters usually shower and leave the ballpark well before the end of the game, the managers opted for reserves.
The exercise again appeared to be unnecessary once the NL took a 6-0 lead — fueled by New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso‘s three-run homer — into the seventh inning. But the AL scored four runs in the seventh and tied the game when down to its last out in the ninth to send the 95th All-Star Game to the swing-off.
“Dave asked yesterday, ‘If there’s a tie, would you do it?'” said Schwarber, the only member of the Phillies who participated in this year’s All-Star festivities. “I said, ‘Absolutely,’ not thinking that we were going to end up in a tie when you say yes. And then as the game’s going, you’re looking at the score, you’re not really thinking the game’s going to end in a tie.”
But even that process prompted brief confusion. Roberts originally selected Schwarber, Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez and Alonso, a two-time Home Run Derby champion. But Suarez, who was hit on his left hand by a pitch in the eighth inning, was scratched after being announced and replaced by Miami Marlins outfielder Kyle Stowers.
Boone countered with Athletics designated hitter Brent Rooker, Seattle Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena and Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda.
Los Angeles Dodgers third-base coach Dino Ebel threw for the NL. New York Yankees first-base coach Travis Chapman assumed the pressure-packed duty for the AL.
Finally, the rules: Each player was granted three swings and an unlimited number of pitches to take them.
Rooker, the only participant to also take part in Monday’s Home Run Derby, led off with two homers. Stowers followed with one. Arozarena then extended the AL’s lead to 3-1, setting the stage for Schwarber.
Schwarber, a man seemingly built to smash baseballs over the wall, has never won a Home Run Derby. He lost in the finals in 2018 and failed to advance out of the first round in 2022; he hasn’t entered another one since. On Tuesday, however, he did not falter.
The three-time All-Star, after building some drama with a delayed emergence from the NL dugout, crushed three home runs, drawing louder and louder reactions with each one. The first was a 428-foot laser that traveled 107 mph to straightaway center. Next, he cracked a 461-foot, 109 mph moon shot to right field. He finished the spree with a 382-foot dinger, dropping down to one knee as the ball soared into the right-field seats and eliciting a rambunctious reaction from his temporary teammates.
“I think the first swing was kind of the big one,” Schwarber said. “I was just really trying to hit a line drive versus trying to hit the home run. Usually, that tends to work out, especially in games.”
The pressure shifted to Aranda. Needing one homer to tie, Aranda lifted a fly ball to the warning track before clanking a ball off the top of the brick wall in right field. His last swing produced a weak fly ball to left field, giving the NL the win at eight minutes to midnight.
“First time in history we got to do this,” Roberts said, “and I think it played pretty well tonight.”
By then, the early talk of the night was old news.
This year’s exhibition was the first game at the major league level outside of spring training to feature the automated ball-strike system, an expected precursor to MLB implementing the arrangement for all games beginning next season.
The rules on Tuesday were the same as the ABS challenge rules introduced during spring training. Each team received two challenges for the game. Only the pitcher, catcher or batter could request a challenge, and the request needed to be immediate without help from the dugout or other players on the field.
Five pitches were challenged Tuesday. The first was an 0-2 changeup that AL starter Tarik Skubal threw to San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado that plate umpire Dan Iassogna called a ball in the first inning. Skubal and his catcher, Cal Raleigh of the Mariners, didn’t agree and challenged the pitch to make history. The call was overturned, ending Machado’s at-bat with a strikeout.
“I wasn’t even going to use them,” Skubal said. “But I felt like that was a strike, and you want that in an 0-2 count.”
Skubal became the first Detroit Tigers pitcher to start an All-Star Game since Max Scherzer in 2013. Opposite him was the other Cy Young favorite.
A year after starting the All-Star Game for the NL with 11 career outings on his résumé, Pittsburgh Pirates sensation Paul Skenes received the nod again to become the 10th pitcher to start consecutive All-Star Games and the first to accomplish the feat in his first two seasons. Last year, in Texas, Skenes walked one batter in his scoreless inning, a blip that he said “pissed me off” and pushed him to attack hitters for his All-Star Game encore.
“I was throwing every pitch as hard as I could,” Skenes said, “hoping that it landed in the strike zone.”
The result: two strikeouts on 100 mph fastballs to Tigers teammates Gleyber Torres and Riley Greene to open the contest. Skenes admittedly reached back seeking to strike out the side, but Yankees slugger Aaron Judge grounded out on another 100 mph pitch to conclude Skenes’ night.
“That’s what the All-Star Game’s for,” Skenes said. “Every hitter’s trying to hit a home run. We’re trying to strike everybody out.”
In a fitting transition, 11-time All-Star Clayton Kershaw relieved Skenes, 14 years his junior, in the second inning.
Raleigh, Tuesday’s Home Run Derby champion, welcomed the Dodgers’ Kershaw with a 101.9 mph line drive that Chicago Cubs left-fielder Kyle Tucker snagged with a sliding catch. Kershaw then struck out the Toronto Blue Jays‘ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. looking at an 87 mph slider on his sixth pitch, prompting Roberts to emerge from the NL dugout to take the ball from Kershaw and end what could have been the final All-Star Game appearance of his Hall of Fame career.
A legend selection for the game by commissioner Rob Manfred, Kershaw delivered a pregame speech in the NL clubhouse.
“We have the best All-Star Game of any sport,” said Kershaw, who on July 2 became the 20th pitcher to record 3,000 career strikeouts. “We do have the best product. So to be here, to realize your responsibility in the sport, is important. And we have Shohei [Ohtani] here. We have Aaron Judge here. We have all these guys that represent the game really, really well, so we get to showcase that and be part of that is important. I just said I was super honored to be a part of it.”
In the end, Kershaw was part of something never seen before.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike