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DESTIN, Fla. — In a significant pivot from the highly publicized push for automatic qualifiers in the next iteration of the College Football Playoff, the SEC on Tuesday took a heightened interest in a 16-team model that would include the five highest-ranked conference champions and 11 at-large bids.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said he talked with the league’s football coaches at length about the alternative model.

“They talked about — I’ll call it a 5+11 model — and our own ability to earn those berths,” Sankey said at the conclusion of the second day of spring meetings. “… At the coaching level, the question is, why wouldn’t that be fine? Why wouldn’t we do that? We talked about 16 with them. So, good conversation, not a destination, but the first time I’ve had the ability to go really in depth with ideas with them.”

Sankey, the other FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua need to determine the playoff format for 2026 and beyond by Dec. 1. It’s a deadline Sankey said isn’t ideal for the SEC’s timing to determine if it wants to stay with eight conference games or change to nine.

There’s a disconnect between the league’s athletic directors and coaches, which appeared Tuesday in public comments. Florida AD Scott Stricklin and Texas A&M AD Trev Alberts were both adamant about wanting automatic qualifiers, which would go along with the league adopting a nine-game league schedule.

But coaches such as Ole Miss‘ Lane Kiffin said they’d prefer a model with the 16 best teams. Georgia‘s Kirby Smart said he wanted a model that would include the most SEC teams possible, pointing to the SEC’s other sports and their ability to flood the postseason because of strength of schedule.

In the meeting room, sources told ESPN, it appeared that the athletic directors were focused on nine SEC games and a model with four automatic qualifiers. The coaches voiced strongly that they wanted a model with five automatic qualifiers and 11 at-larges, with a preference to stay at an eight-game league schedule.

The coaching perspective hints at potential roadblocks for playoff expansion, as there’s sentiment that other leagues wouldn’t want the playoff to grow — especially all the way from 12 to 16 teams — if the SEC didn’t go to a nine-game conference schedule.

When asked Tuesday how confident he was that the CFP management committee could come to an agreement on the future format by the Dec. 1 deadline, Sankey referred to a recent conversation he had with former SEC commissioner Roy Kramer. Sankey said he takes comfort in the fact past commissioners were able to disagree and “always figure a way out.”

“There’s a responsibility to figure that out,” Sankey said. “We might get mad at the moment, mad at different times. We’ve been able to work together. Different people, but [Kramer’s] description gives me great comfort.”

Sankey said he needs to make a scheduling decision in 2026 but declined to give a specific date.

“So when I express frustration about delays that are happening for decisions not made, those manifest themselves both in that room. We didn’t spend time on the question what’s the criteria [for selection] look like in this new era. We just kind of sat around and it affects the timing of other decisions. We can control our scheduling decision. We can’t control every other element around this.”

Sankey said he has built some flexibility on the deadline but added that he believes the schedule decision can be made independent of CFP format and the concept of play-in games.

“You can make decisions about what you can control, then you can have influence over other decisions you don’t control — you participate in,” he said. “But the timing is not what I would have designed from an optimal standpoint.”

Stricklin said he can’t support a nine-game league schedule without guaranteed playoff access for the SEC.

“That’s hard for me,” he said. “… There’s not a sport that our league competes in where less than half of our members are not in the postseason except for one, and it happens to be the one we all pay the most attention to. Last year three of our 16 teams were in the playoff. I think that’s a problem systemically with the structure of what we’re trying to do.”

Not everyone in the SEC is sold on automatic qualifiers — for anyone. Kiffin said he was in favor of the 16 best teams because after seeing all of the data and analytics about who would be left out in multiple models, “There’s still flaws in every system.”

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Padres slugger Machado gets 2,000th career hit

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Padres slugger Machado gets 2,000th career hit

SAN DIEGO — Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres got his 2,000th career hit Monday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a sharp single off the glove of diving shortstop Geraldo Perdomo.

The milestone hit came off Arizona starter Zac Gallen leading off the fourth inning. Machado received a standing ovation from the crowd at Petco Park, where he has been a fan favorite since he joined the Padres as a free agent in 2019.

The All-Star slugger singled to left field in the first inning for his 1,999th hit and then hit a solo home run in the eighth for his 2,0001st hit. The three-hit performance wasn’t enough to lift San Diego, however, as it fell 6-3.

Machado became the fifth active player and 297th all time to reach the milestone. He is the 12th player to have 350 homers and 2,000 hits by his age-32 season or younger.

“Literally, hat’s off. It’s quite an accomplishment,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said after the loss on 97.3 The Fan. “To have done it, as soon as he’s done it in his career, speaks volumes. … I’m so happy for him. He’s earned it all.”

Machado made his debut with Baltimore in 2012 and had 977 hits with the Orioles before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 18, 2018. He had 73 hits with the Dodgers before signing as a free agent with the Padres on Feb. 21, 2019.

He has 950 hits with the Padres, which ranks fifth on the franchise list. Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn had 3,141 in his 20-season career.

Machado was voted the starting third baseman for the National League All-Star team this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: Who is the slugger to beat?

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: Who is the slugger to beat?

The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is starting to take shape.

Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. become the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He has since been followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals and Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins.

As the entrants are announced, we’ll add them to the running list below — and break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.

Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more


2025 home runs: 9 | Longest: 467 feet

Why he could win: Acuna has been crushing it since he returned to the lineup May 23 after knee surgery. Indeed, his numbers are even better than during his MVP season in 2023. It should help that he’ll be hitting in front of his home fans in Atlanta: Todd Frazier in Cincinnati in 2015 and Bryce Harper with the Nationals in 2018 rode the loud support to Derby titles. Acuna’s raw power should also translate well to the Derby: Among players with at least 500 at-bats since 2023, he has the longest average home run distance in the majors.

Why he might not: Will he run into Pete Alonso again? Acuna competed in the 2019 and 2022 contests, losing both times to Alonso by a single home run (in the semifinals in 2019 and in the first round in 2022). The home-field advantage can also perhaps be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first with 41 home runs but then tired out in the second round.


2025 home runs: 35 | Longest: 440 feet

Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, with 32 home runs, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.

Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.


2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 451 feet

Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.

Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.


2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet

Why he can win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.

Why he won’t: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.

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Pham homer ends Pirates’ 30-inning scoreless run

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Pham homer ends Pirates' 30-inning scoreless run

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Pittsburgh Pirates are back on the board after Tommy Pham‘s two-run home run in the third inning at Kansas City on Monday night ended a 30-inning scoreless streak.

The Pirates had been shut out in all three games at Seattle during their previous series.

However, they tallied another loss against the Royals, losing 9-3.

The scoreless streak included Sunday’s 1-0 loss to the Mariners in which Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes threw 10 strikeouts in five scoreless innings before the Pirates gave up a run in the bottom of the sixth.

Before beginning this nine-game trip with the sweep by the Mariners, the Pirates had blanked the St. Louis Cardinals in three consecutive home games. Their streak of playing in six straight shutouts matched the longest in major league history.

Pham, a 12-year veteran who is in his first season with the Pirates, bookended the scoreless skid with RBIs. He drove in a seventh-inning run with a groundout Wednesday during the 5-0 victory over the Cardinals.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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