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Trick or treat.

On Monday night, we had to choose. Something sweet to consume or something clever that someone comes up with, maybe even something we’ve never seen before?

On Sunday evening at Martinsville Speedway, we weren’t forced to pick one or the other. We got it all at once. And that led to a rush that not even the biggest bag of sugar and chocolate could possibly supply. A surge of WTH adrenaline that felt so good it managed to accomplish what most believe to be impossible. For a couple of hours on an autumn Sunday, NASCAR enjoyed more buzz than the NFL. All thanks to Ross Chastain, who topped the field with the most reality-defying move seen from a Cup Series machine at NASCAR’s oldest racetrack.

In case you’ve been asleep or have had all your social media feeds muted, here’s what happened. Chastain, running behind Denny Hamlin on the final lap of the final race before the NASCAR Championship Four will fight for the title at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, knew that he had to beat Hamlin if he wanted to be included in that season finale quartet. So, the 29-year-old dropped the hammer like Cole Trickle, only it was for real. In a tactic that he later admitted was taken from EA Sports NASCAR Chase for the Cup 2005 on his Nintendo GameCube, he ran his No. 1 Chevy so high that the racecar rode the wall like one of those mechanical rabbits running on a rail at the dog track.

He pulled off what has since been recognized as perhaps the fastest race lap ever recorded at Martinsville, dot-dot-dotting his way around that wall a full two seconds faster than race winner Christopher Bell. He rocketed from 10th to fifth, edged Hamlin at the line and made the cut to be among the title contenders — alongside Bell, Joey Logano and Chase Elliott — one week from now.

Hamlin was stunned. Chastain was stoked. The internet was on fire.

If I’m being completely honest, though, it was a slightly different fire than I expected. Not from everyone. Judging by the texts and phone calls that I received from friends who never pay any attention to motorsports, especially in the fall, the awesomeness of Chastain’s move struck a chord and a funny bone with many.

That chorus of wows and WTHs from those who wouldn’t know a sparkplug from a wall plug is perhaps why I was a little taken aback by the comments that came from those who live with high-octane fuel in their bloodstream year-round.

Logano was not impressed. “It was awesome, it was cool. It happened for the first time. There’s no rule against it. There needs to be a rule against this one because I don’t know if you want the whole field riding the wall coming to the checkered flag.”

Neither was Kyle Larson, a guy who has spent his entire career running inches off the wall, but not up against it, at least not in a stock car. Well, OK, he did once, at Darlington one year ago and even brought that up on Sunday at Martinsville, saying that it was “embarrassing.”

Not surprisingly, Twitter tended to agree with the two former champions. Twitter usually agrees with the former champions. At least during those rare instances where NASCAR Twitter agrees with anyone.

But do we really believe that, because Chastain did what he did in a desperate moment to try to win a championship, now every single time that the checkered flag is shown that everyone is suddenly going to start riding the top of the outside wall like Tony Hawk on a city park guardrail?

Sure, we had never seen a moment exactly like this one. But we did see Carl Edwards unsuccessfully bang off of the wall at Kansas Speedway in 2008 to try to defeat the man who continually kept him from winning a championship, Jimmie Johnson. It didn’t work, but everyone laughed about it after the fact, once everyone was done applauding the guts that Edwards had shown, as ill-advised as his decision making may have been.

NASCAR old-timers still say that the greatest finish in the sanctioning body’s history, across all divisions, was when NASCAR Hall of Famer Richie Evans crossed the finish line with his right side tires all the way atop the wall and his Modified machine looking like Joey Chitwood at the state fair.

So, let’s think about this. Had the move we saw Sunday been executed by the likes of Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough, Tim Richmond or any other sacred demigod of stock car racing, would so many people have been so offended? Because it was Chastain, who not so long ago was best known for being sponsored by watermelons, were people quick to dismiss the move as reckless as opposed to a badass move by a much more worthy legend?

If Chastain had attempted the “Pass in the Grass” in the 1987 NASCAR All-Star race instead of Earnhardt, would it have led to new rules instead of creating paintings of a moment that people still have hanging in their living rooms? If it had been Chastain who dive-bombed his way through the corkscrew at Laguna Seca in 1996 to beat Bryan Herta instead of Alex Zanardi, a driver who was praised for his willingness to win at all costs, would it have been declared “embarrassing?”

I’m not naive. I’ve been doing this for a while now. I understand that the rules are different for the stars versus the other guys. But I’ve also been doing this long enough to remember that there were a handful of people, including his rivals, who called out Earnhardt for what he did at Charlotte Motor Speedway. And yes, they don’t like to admit it now, but there were plenty of people in the Champ Car paddock who voiced their displeasure over what Zanardi did in the corkscrew.

I’ve also noticed that we still remember those moments because no one has attempted anything like them since. In other words, a moment is not a trend.

Every racer and every fan has the right to express concerns, especially when they are tied to safety. But it is also no coincidence that most of the people in the garage who speak up are also the ones who just lost. Whether that be Bill Elliott talking about Earnhardt in 1987 or guys who’ve been eliminated from the 2022 NASCAR playoffs speaking of Chastain.

What may or may not come from this we have yet to see. We might not see for a while. But please, I am begging you as a fellow race fan, take a moment … heck, take every night this week and keep watching Chastain’s move from Martinsville, over and over and over again. Enjoy it.

Because no matter who you are or who your favorite driver might be, that moment was amazing. Awesome. Unreal. The reason that we watch motorsports. To be amazed. To be wowed. And to be reminded of why they sell T-shirts with race car drivers’ faces on them.

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Cubs blow lead in 10-run 8th, storm back in thriller

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Cubs blow lead in 10-run 8th, storm back in thriller

CHICAGO — Kyle Tucker had the fans on their feet, roaring and pumping their fists as he rounded the bases after hitting the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning. His screaming line drive cleared the right-field wall with plenty of room to spare.

The Chicago Cubs went from giving up 10 runs in the eighth to scoring six in the bottom half and beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-11 on Friday in one of the wildest games on record.

The two teams combined for 21 runs in the seventh and eighth innings, with the Cubs scoring 11 runs and the D-backs plating 10. It was the first nine-inning game in MLB history in which both teams scored 10 or more runs from the seventh inning on, and the third game overall, according to ESPN Research.

“That’s kind of baseball,” Tucker said. “There’s a lot of ups and downs in this game, especially with how many games we play.”

There haven’t been many games like this, though.

The Cubs are just the seventh team in at least the past 125 seasons to allow 10 or more runs in an inning and win. They are also the fifth team to give up 10 or more runs and score six or more in the same inning.

The 16 combined runs in the eighth were the most in an inning at Wrigley Field, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“If you’ve seen that one, you’ve been around for a while,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said with a laugh. “It was crazy. You know, we gave up 10 runs in an inning and we won. So it was a wild game, but we kept going, and, you know, there’s 27 outs in a game and this kind of proves it, and you’re just happy to get out with a win.”

On a warm day with the ball carrying, Carson Kelly homered twice. Ian Happ belted a grand slam and Seiya Suzuki went deep, helping the Cubs open a weekend series on a winning note.

“You’ve seen it early — having some tough losses, coming back winning the next day,” Happ said. “Losing the first game of the series, winning the series. Little things like that. Today’s a great example of professional hitters going out there and continuing to have really good at-bats.”

The way things transpired in the final two innings was something to see.

Kelly hit a two-run homer in the second against Corbin Burnes, and Happ came through with his grand slam against Ryne Nelson as part of a five-run seventh. But just when it looked as if the Cubs were in control with a 7-1 lead, things took a wild turn in the eighth.

Eugenio Suarez cut it to 7-5 with a grand slam against Porter Hodge, Geraldo Perdomo singled in a run and Randal Grichuk put Arizona on top by one with a two-run double. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a three-run homer, making it 11-7.

The crowd of more than 39,000 let the Cubs hear it, but their team regrouped in the bottom half. Bryce Jarvis hit Nico Hoerner leading off and walked Pete Crow-Armstrong before Kelly drove a three-run homer to center. Tucker, the Cubs’ prized offseason addition, came through after Happ singled with one out. Suzuki followed with his drive against Joe Mantiply to give the Cubs a 13-11 lead.

Arizona, which had won five straight, became just the third team over the past 50 seasons to lose a game in which it had a 10-run inning at any point, according to ESPN Research.

“You just got to stay locked in,” Kelly said. “Obviously, you don’t want to … give up 10 in an inning. Obviously, you don’t want to do that. I think the biggest thing is coming back, regrouping and continuing to fight.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Chisholm suspended 1 game for conduct, tweet

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Chisholm suspended 1 game for conduct, tweet

Major League Baseball suspended New York Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. for one game and fined him an undisclosed amount, the result of his actions during Thursday night’s win against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Chisholm was ejected in the seventh inning by plate umpire John Bacon for arguing after a called third strike on a full-count pitch from Mason Montgomery that appeared low.

Minutes later, he posted on his X account, “Not even f—ing close!!!!!” then deleted the post.

“I didn’t think before I had anything that I said was ejectable but after probably,” Chisholm said after the game. “I’m a competitor, so when I go out there and I feel like I’m right and you’re saying something to me that I think doesn’t make sense, I’m going to get fired up and be upset.

“I lost my emotions. I lost my cool. I got to be better than that. … I’m definitely mad at myself for losing my cool.”

Michael Hill, the league’s senior vice president for on-field operations, said Friday’s discipline was for Chisholm’s “conduct, including his violation of Major League Baseball’s Social Media Policy for Major League Players.”

MLB regulations ban the use of electronic devices during games. The social media policy prohibits “displaying or transmitting content that questions the impartiality of or otherwise denigrates a major league umpire.”

Chisholm did appeal the decision, allowing him to play in Friday night’s 1-0 win against the Rays. He started at second base and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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First-time father-to-be Ohtani away from Dodgers

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First-time father-to-be Ohtani away from Dodgers

ARLINGTON, Texas — Shohei Ohtani is away from the Los Angeles Dodgers for the birth of the two-way superstar’s first child.

Manager Dave Roberts said before the Dodgers’ series opener Friday night against the Rangers that Ohtani was with his wife and going on MLB’s paternity list.

“He and Mamiko are expecting at some point. That’s all I know,” Roberts said. “I don’t know when he’s going to come back and I don’t know when they’re going to have the baby, but obviously they’re together in anticipation.”

The 30-year-old Ohtani posted on his Instagram account in late December that he and his 28-year-old wife, a former professional basketball player from his native Japan, were expecting a baby in 2025.

“Can’t wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!” said the Dec. 28 post that included a photo showing the couple’s beloved dog, Decoy, as well as a pink ruffled onesie along with baby shoes and a sonogram that was covered by a baby emoji.

Ohtani can miss up to three games while on paternity leave. The Dodgers have a three-game series in Texas before an off day Monday, then play the Cubs in Chicago on Tuesday.

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