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PHILADELPHIA — New York Mets right-hander Kodai Senga will start Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies after missing the past two months with a calf injury.

Senga, who is 31 and was the Mets’ best pitcher last season, hasn’t thrown since July 29, when he left his only outing of the season with a calf strain after 5⅓ innings. Shoulder and triceps injuries had sidelined Senga for the season’s first four months.

Senga and Mets manager Carlos Mendoza were coy when asked how deep into the game Senga could pitch. Senga said Mendoza and Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner would decide.

“I’m ready for whatever,” Senga said. “If they say 10 pitches, I’m all-in for 10 pitches. If they say 200, I’m in for 200.”

Senga’s return is a welcome sight for the Mets after a run to the division series that depleted their pitching. New York played a doubleheader Monday — clinching a playoff spot in the first game — and followed with games the next three days in Milwaukee. The final one, a dramatic 4-2 come-from-behind win punctuated with Pete Alonso‘s three-run ninth-inning home run, continued a magical run from a team that in early June was 24-35.

Senga had hoped to return toward the end of the regular season but was shut down after triceps tightness ended his Sept. 22 minor league rehabilitation start. He continued working at the Mets’ Florida complex and said he was told Wednesday that if the Mets beat the Brewers and he was healthy, he would start Game 1.

“We’ve been through it a whole year with him,” Mendoza said. “And the times that he goes out there and faces hitters or throws a lot of bullpens and he’s not feeling right, he’s always letting us know that. And that wasn’t the case in this situation. He was the one that approached us, and he wanted to know what we were thinking in case, you know, we were here in the division series or potential NLCS.”

Senga has worked into pitching shape with live batting-practice sessions, and in the last one, Mendoza said, “He threw a lot.”

In his first season with the Mets, Senga was one of the best pitchers in baseball, putting up a 2.99 ERA over 166⅓ innings and striking out 202. His vaunted “ghost fork,” a devastating split-fingered fastball, was among the best swing-and-miss pitches in the game last season.

New York is banking on that version of Senga returning and will need it — former Mets and Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, a postseason standout, is scheduled to oppose him in Game 1, adding to the degree of difficulty already inherent in going from live BP to more than 40,000 fans screaming at Citizens Bank Park.

“You can get your stuff right in the bullpen, you can kind of get all that dialed in,” said Mets starter David Peterson, who recorded the save in the wild-card-clinching win and could piggyback with Senga in Game 1. “But I think we’ve been playing a lot of high-leverage games for quite a while now, and so I think just coming back into an atmosphere like that, getting back up to game speed, is something that’s going to be a challenge when you’re coming back like that.

“But I have no doubt of the work he’s put in and the way he’s gotten himself prepared, he’s ready for the challenge.”

Senga said that before he was ready to start, he needed to “get my physical and mental state up and ready” — and that once he did, his previous communication with the team eased the path toward a return.

“If I thought it was difficult, I wouldn’t be ready,” Senga said. “So I’m ready for [Game 1]. And however much I can control my body and control how the game goes is going to be big.”

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Trump plan cuts funding for brain injury research

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Trump plan cuts funding for brain injury research

The Trump administration’s 2026 fiscal budget request to Congress eliminates major federal funding for traumatic brain injury (TBI) research and education, potentially undercutting efforts to address head injuries in sports, particularly at the high school and youth levels.

The White House’s proposed budget, released Friday, includes eliminating the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention umbrella agency responsible for TBI research, including the $8.25 million marked for brain injury research and public education about the dangers of concussions. The CDC is facing $3.59 billion in budget cuts.

Although the president proposes the federal budget, it is up to Congress to approve a final budget bill, so the TBI program could be restored or moved to a different agency. The White House did not respond to an ESPN request for comment.

The budget proposal comes after the CDC on April 1 placed all five staffers devoted to administering the government’s main traumatic brain injury program on paid administrative leave, CDC employees told ESPN. Paid administrative leave means the workers are still government employees.

The budget cuts would “roll back decades of progress,” said Dr. Owen Perlman, a brain injury specialist and board member of the Brain Injury Association of America.

Among the items targeted is Heads Up, a concussion-prevention program for youth and high school coaches, athletic trainers and other sports officials. The CDC staffers put on leave administered the program. Forty-five states participate in the program to varying degrees, a CDC official said, asking not to be identified.

Staffers interviewed by ESPN declined to speak on the record, citing fears of administration retribution.

“We’re really worried about the hundreds of thousands of coaches who have to take this training,” the CDC official said. “This is really built in, and we’ve lost the whole team” behind the program.

Some Heads Up training is part of coaches’ and other sports officials’ state compliance requirements. The CDC official said hundreds of email queries are arriving every week asking how to comply as the federal program shuts down. The Heads Up website says more than 10 million people have participated in its online training programs.

Congress first approved TBI research funding in 1996. Legislation to keep the program going expired at the end of 2024, and a House bill to renew it has yet to advance out of committee.

In a 2018 CDC survey, 12% of adult respondents reported experiencing a head injury in the previous 12 months, including but not limited to sports-related activities. A follow-up study was being prepared when the staffers were placed on leave. The research data was part of a program to measure TBI prevalence and boost prevention, care and recovery efforts.

The Heads Up website remained active Monday but offered no clues regarding the program’s endangered status.

“In the last month, I don’t think the public has felt an impact,” a laid-off CDC employee said. “But when those websites, trainings and materials get pulled down or when they can’t be updated, I think that’s when the public will feel it.”

In the proposed White House budget, the National Institutes of Health would retain an institute devoted to overall brain research, although the name would slightly change. The institute focuses on medical issues such as stroke and migraines, and it’s unclear whether TBI programs would be absorbed into it.

Hospitals and universities conducting TBI research funded by the CDC are bracing for potential funding cutbacks.

“We might not [get] the next year of renewal or the next wave of funding. And that’s sad and scary and impactful for all kinds of people, including myself in this project,” said Christine Baugh, an assistant professor at the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine who is studying how parents decide whether to let their children play contact sports and whether brain-injury awareness campaigns influence their decisions.

On April 23, the National Academy of Sciences received orders to cancel work on two TBI workshops, one of which analyzed the risks of repeated head impacts on children. Both workshops had already been held. One of the workshop organizers, Dr. Fred Rivara, a pediatrics professor at the University of Washington, told ESPN that the cancellation affected funding for publishing the information, and he called the potential cuts “tragic.”

“That’s a perfect example of how this change in, or devastation of, funding at the CDC is impacting people,” Rivara said. “They want to know, for sports: What about these repetitive impacts? Are they bad for kids? It’s a perfect example of the impact of this.”

Traumatic brain injuries have lifelong repercussions on a person’s physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioral health, Perlman said.

Even though some states fund TBI-treatment programs independently of the federal government, concerns are growing about a domino effect if Congress fails to renew funding.

“For many people with concussions or certainly moderate or severe brain injuries, there’s no endpoint,” Perlman said. “It’s a lifetime problem, and there needs to be lifetime funding for it.”

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Stanley Cup playoff picks: Who wins every second-round series?

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Stanley Cup playoff picks: Who wins every second-round series?

The first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs is complete. Eight of the teams that made the postseason bracket have moved on, and eight others have been eliminated.

Before the second-round series begin, ESPN’s experts have identified their picks for each matchup. Which four teams will move on to the conference finals?

More: Full schedule
Betting intel

Atlantic Division

John Buccigross: Panthers in seven
Ryan Callahan: Panthers in six
Cassie Campbell-Pascall: Panthers in six
Sachin Chandan: Panthers in six
Meghan Chayka: Panthers in six
Ryan S. Clark: Panthers in seven
Linda Cohn: Panthers in six
Rachel Doerrie: Panthers in six
Ray Ferraro: Panthers in six
Emily Kaplan: Panthers in seven
Tim Kavanagh: Maple Leafs in six
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Panthers in six
Steve Levy: Panthers in six
Vince Masi: Panthers in six
Victoria Matiash: Panthers in six
Sean McDonough: Panthers in six
Mark Messier: Panthers in six
AJ Mleczko: Panthers in six
Arda Öcal: Maple Leafs in six
Kristen Shilton: Maple Leafs in seven
John Thoering: Panthers in six
Bob Wischusen: Panthers in six
Greg Wyshynski: Panthers in six

Consensus prediction: Panthers (20 of 23 picks)


Metropolitan Division

John Buccigross: Capitals in seven
Ryan Callahan: Capitals in seven
Cassie Campbell-Pascall: Capitals in six
Sachin Chandan: Capitals in six
Meghan Chayka: Hurricanes in six
Ryan S. Clark: Capitals in seven
Linda Cohn: Capitals in six
Rachel Doerrie: Capitals in six
Ray Ferraro: Capitals in seven
Emily Kaplan: Capitals in seven
Tim Kavanagh: Capitals in six
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Hurricanes in seven
Steve Levy: Capitals in five
Vince Masi: Hurricanes in six
Victoria Matiash: Hurricanes in six
Sean McDonough: Capitals in seven
Mark Messier: Hurricanes in six
AJ Mleczko: Hurricanes in five
Mike Monaco: Hurricanes in six
Arda Öcal: Capitals in six
Kristen Shilton: Hurricanes in six
John Thoering: Capitals in seven
Bob Wischusen: Capitals in seven
Greg Wyshynski: Capitals in seven

Consensus prediction: Capitals (16 of 24 picks)


Central Division

John Buccigross: Stars in seven
Ryan Callahan: Stars in five
Sachin Chandan: Stars in six
Ryan S. Clark: Stars in seven
Linda Cohn: Jets in seven
Rachel Doerrie: Stars in six
Ray Ferraro: Stars in six
Emily Kaplan: Stars in six
Tim Kavanagh: Stars in seven
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Stars in six
Steve Levy: Stars in seven
Vince Masi: Jets in seven
Victoria Matiash: Jets in seven
Sean McDonough: Stars in six
Mark Messier: Stars in six
Mike Monaco: Stars in six
Arda Öcal: Stars in six
Kristen Shilton: Stars in six
John Thoering: Stars in seven
Bob Wischusen: Jets in seven
Greg Wyshynski: Stars in six

Consensus prediction: Stars (17 of 21 picks)


Pacific Division

John Buccigross: Oilers in seven
Ryan Callahan: Golden Knights in six
Cassie Campbell-Pascall: Oilers in seven
Sachin Chandan: Oilers in seven
Meghan Chayka: Golden Knights in seven
Ryan S. Clark: Golden Knights in seven
Linda Cohn: Oilers in seven
Rachel Doerrie: Golden Knights in seven
Ray Ferraro: Golden Knights in seven
Emily Kaplan: Golden Knights in seven
Tim Kavanagh: Golden Knights in six
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Golden Knights in six
Steve Levy: Golden Knights in seven
Vince Masi: Oilers in six
Victoria Matiash: Golden Knights in six
Sean McDonough: Golden Knights in seven
Mark Messier: Oilers in seven
AJ Mleczko: Golden Knights in six
Mike Monaco: Oilers in six
Arda Öcal: Oilers in six
Kristen Shilton: Oilers in seven
John Thoering: Golden Knights in seven
Bob Wischusen: Golden Knights in seven
Greg Wyshynski: Oilers in seven

Consensus prediction: Golden Knights (14 of 24 picks)

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Kings GM Blake out after another 1st-round exit

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Kings GM Blake out after another 1st-round exit

The Los Angeles Kings will not bring back Rob Blake, the team’s general manager and vice president of hockey operations, after a fourth straight first-round playoff exit.

Blake didn’t have a contract beyond the 2024-25 season. The status of coach Jim Hiller, who has two years left on his contract after Blake elevated him to head coach this season, will be in the hands of the next general manager.

Blake, 55, was elevated to the job in April 2017 after serving as assistant general manager under Dean Lombardi beginning in 2013-14, the last time the Kings won the Stanley Cup.

In eight seasons as GM, Blake’s teams made the Stanley Cup playoffs five times. However, Los Angeles failed to advance past the first round each time, getting swept by the Vegas Golden Knights in 2018 and then being eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers for four straight postseasons, including the Kings’ Game 6 elimination last week.

The Kings had a .557 points percentage in the standings during his eight seasons as general manager, as Blake attempted to bridge the team’s two Stanley Cup championships in 2012 and 2014 to the next wave of stars like 22-year-old forward Quinton Byfield.

“On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Rob for his dedication to the LA Kings and the passion he brought to his role,” Kings team president Luc Robitaille said in a statement. “Reaching this understanding wasn’t easy and I appreciate Rob’s partnership in always working toward what is best for the Kings. Rob deserves a great deal of credit and respect for elevating us to where we are today. He has been an important part of the Kings and will always be appreciated for what he has meant to this franchise.”

Blake’s tenure with the Kings saw them take big swings in acquiring key players, sometimes at a significant cost. In 2022, he shipped defenseman Brock Faber, a runner-up for rookie of the year last season, to the Minnesota Wild for winger Kevin Fiala, who tied with Adrian Kempe for the lead in goals this season for Los Angeles. He signed veteran forwards such as Phillip Danault and Warren Foegele as free agents and swung trades for players such as winger Viktor Arvidsson and defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov.

His most notorious trade was the one that sent three roster players to Winnipeg for center Pierre-Luc Dubois in 2023 and getting him on an 8-year, $68 million contract as the potential successor to franchise center Anze Kopitar. But Dubois was a one-and-done bust in Los Angeles and was flipped to the Washington Capitals for goalie Darcy Kuemper last offseason. Blake saved face on that one: Kuemper is a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top regular-season goaltender. Blake also traded away franchise goalie Jonathan Quick and young defenseman Sean Durzi, now a steady hand for the Utah Hockey Club. Blake also traded draft assets to dump the contract of goalie Cal Petersen, whom the GM signed to a regrettable 3-year, $15 million deal.

In moving on from Blake, the Kings are also parting ways with a franchise icon. He spent 14 seasons of his Hall of Fame career with Los Angeles, and his No. 4 is retired with the team.

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