|
| |
Happy Friday 🙌
Can you believe it’s almost the end of October? Spooky season is sports season. It’s a monster weekend schedule-slammer ahead. Plenty of soccer, racing, football, basketball and hockey await, but we’re starting with a World Series dream matchup. The word “historic” feels like an underwhelming descriptor. It’s Dodgers vs. Yankees in Game 1 tonight (8:00 pm ET, FOX).
Letter Rip! |
|
|
The stars align next Monday (Oct. 28) for the 2024 Sports Equinox. All five major pro sports will be in action on the same day — NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and MLS. To celebrate, we’re giving away two (2) $100 gift cards to Dick’s Sporting Goods. One will go to the winner of our Sports Equinox Mega Parlay (below). The other will be selected via random drawing for anyone who refers a friend to The Sportsletter between now and Monday night. Take a shot at greatness!
Ways to Enter |
|
|
The World Series Primer 🏆 |
Photo: Daniel Shirey / Getty Images
|
Dodgers-Yankees Promises to be Historic Matchup in the 2024 Fall Classic (Game 1: Tonight, 8:00 pm ET, FOX)
The wait is over. The dust has settled on the ALCS and NLCS celebrations. Those champagne goggles are but a distant memory. After five days off, and endless hype, the 2024 World Series is about to begin between arguably baseball’s two most iconic franchises. Both likely MVP winners are involved, and a long list of superstar supporting cast members are sure to make this thing memorable. Let’s set the stage for the Fall Classic before Game 1 tonight in Los Angeles (8:00 pm ET, FOX).
World Series History (NYY vs. LAD)
Tonight marks the first time the Dodgers and Yankees will meet in the World Series since 1981. The Dodgers won that meeting in six games (4-2), but they’ve only won two titles since (’88 & 2020). The Yankees have won five championships since that ’81 matchup (’96, ’98, ’99, 2000 & 2009), and they’re MLB’s all-time winningest team with 27 titles. The Yankees and Dodgers actually met 11 times in the World Series during a 40-year span in the mid-20th century (1941-1981). Rivalry renewed?
🥊 An MVP Fight: Judge vs. Ohtani
This series also features Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani — the top two home run hitters in the big leagues this season, as well as the top two over the last four seasons. They’re also (soon to be) the NL/AL MVPs. And unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know what they did this season. They were both 1-2 in home runs, RBIs and OPS while each batting above .310. Judge led each category (1st), but Ohtani (2nd) also made history with 59 stolen bases for baseball's first 50-HR, 50-SB season. Here’s a stat breakdown of the MVPs:
- Aaron Judge (NYY): 58 HRs (1st) | 144 RBIs (1st) | .322 Avg. | 1.159 OPS (1st)
- Shohei Ohtani (LAD): 54 HRs (2nd) | 130 RBIs (2nd) | .310 Avg. | 1.036 OPS (2nd)
Beyond MVPs: Team Comparisons 📊
One major theme of offense vs. defense will play out over the next seven games. The Dodgers have the offensive advantage with better stats from the plate, but it’s the Yankees’ pitching staff — led by ace Gerrit Cole — that has the edge from the mound. Judge and Ohtani may be regular season MVPs, but neither have been perfect in October. Judge is batting just .161 while Ohtani has struck out 17 times. The Fall Classic outcome will depend on the supporting casts, but it’s hard to call them “support” when these are Hall of Fame players. Giancarlo Stanton (Yankees) leads the October home run count (5). Mookie Betts (Dodgers) is right on his heels (4).
All in all, there are five former MVPs in these lineups: Judge, Ohtani, Stanton, Betts, and Freddie Freeman. That's the most ever in any World Series matchup. Defensive Advantage - ↑ Yankees (Rank: 7th) — 3.74 ERA
- ↓ Dodgers (Rank: 13th) — 3.90 ERA
Offensive Advantage - ↑ Dodgers (Rank: 2nd) — 5.20 Run Avg.
- ↓ Yankees (Rank: 3rd) — 5.03 Run Avg.
An east coast vs. west coast showdown for the ages is about to begin. Game 1 tonight in Los Angeles features Gerrit Cole vs. Jack Flaherty. Get ya popcorn! 🍿
MLB World Series 🏆 G1: Yankees at Dodgers (Tonight, 8:00 pm, FOX) Pitchers: Gerrit Cole (NYY) vs. Jack Flaherty (LAD) Read More SI: World Series Roundtable: Expert Predictions, MVP Picks, X-Factors
Yahoo! Sports: Tickets for Dodgers-Yankees World Series Among Most Expensive Ever
ESPN: Ohtani vs. Judge: MLB’s 2 Best Players Facing Off in the World Series is Once-in-a-Generation Event |
|
|
Rams Roll With Reloaded Receivers |
Photo: Ric Tapia / Getty Images |
Rams Shock Vikings (30-20) With Healthy Receivers, Matthew Stafford’s 4 TDs in Highlight-Heavy Thursday Night Football
Pick ‘em players are lucky we didn’t have this one in the Week 8 slate. The Vikings were one of two teams to start the season 5-0. The Rams were just 1-4 through their first five games, but a healthy receiver corps makes a big difference. Matthew Stafford tossed four touchdowns on Thursday Night Football in Los Angeles with both Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua back in the lineup. That’s more TDs than Stafford threw in the first five games of the season (3), but it was WR3 Damarcus Robinson who caught two TDs. L.A. and Minnesota went back and forth in a tight game until the Rams scored a late TD and ripped down QB Sam Darnold for a game-ending safety. A facemask penalty was missed on that last play, but the Rams are now 3-4 and surging before the trade deadline. The Vikings (5-2) dropped their second straight.
QB Comparison M. Stafford (LAR): 25/34, 279 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT
S. Darnold (MIN): 18/25, 240 yards, 2 TDs Top Performers
RB K. Williams (LAR): 28 touches, 116 yards, 1 TD WR J. Jefferson (MIN): 8 catches, 115 yards WR P. Nacua (LAR): 9 touches, 111 yards RB A. Jones (MIN): 21 touches, 95 yards WR C. Kupp (LAR): 5 catches, 51 yards, 1 TD
Watch: Stafford, Rams Upset Vikings on Thursday Night Football (30-20) |
|
|
🏀 The NBA Cup Court Designs
When the NBA's second annual NBA Cup, formerly known as the In-Season Tournament, tips off on Nov. 12, the games will once again be played on distinctive, fully painted courts. Here’s a look at all 30 court designs. (CBS Sports)
🏁 The Championship 4 Playoff Picture
Joey Logano’s victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last weekend made him the first driver to advance to the Championship 4. The next two races at Homestead-Miami and Martinsville will lock in the other three title-eligible drivers. (NBC Sports) 🏈 College Football Playoff Bubble Watch
Oregon is now No. 1 after Texas lost to Georgia. Which lost to Alabama. Which lost to Tennessee. Which means… Hello Indiana?! Ahh, the 12-team College Football Playoff has opened the door to so many possibilities. Here’s a snapshot. (ESPN+) |
|
|
The Playoff Must-Watch List |
Playoffs?! Yeah, lots of playoffs. It's another huge sports weekend to finish out October. We've broken the weekend must-watch list into two sections: Playoffs and Regular Season. Bring the drama...
⚾️ MLB (World Series) G1: Yankees at Dodgers (Fri. 8:00 pm, FOX)
G2: Yankees at Dodgers (Sat. 8:00 pm, FOX) ⚽️ MLS Cup Playoffs (1st Round) Inter Miami vs. Atlanta Utd. (Fri. 8:30 pm, AppTV) LA Galaxy vs. Colorado Rapids (Sat. 11:00 pm, AppTV)
Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC (Sun. 7:30 pm, AppTV) LAFC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps (Sun. 9:45 pm, AppTV)
🏁 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Homestead-Miami Speedway (Sun. 2:30 pm, NBC) |
The Weekend Must-Watch List |
🏈 College Football (Saturday) Nebraska at #4 Ohio State (Noon, FOX)
#12 Notre Dame at #24 Navy (Noon, ABC) #20 Illinois at #1 Oregon (3:30 pm, CBS) #21 Missouri at #15 Alabama (3:30 pm, ABC) #5 Texas at #25 Vanderbilt (4:15 pm, SECN) Florida State at #6 Miami (7:00 pm, ESPN)
#3 Penn State at Wisconsin (7:30 pm, NBC) #8 LSU at #14 Texas A&M (7:30 pm, ABC)
Full College Football Schedule
🏈 NFL Week 8 (Sunday) Eagles at Bengals (1:00 pm, CBS)
Falcons at Bucs (1:00 pm, FOX) Colts at Texans (1:00 pm, CBS) Bills at Seahawks (4:05 pm, FOX) Bears at Commanders (4:25 pm, CBS) Cowboys at 49ers (8:20 pm, NBC)
Full NFL Week 8 Schedule
Other Schedules 🏀 NBA Regular Season 🏒 NHL Regular Season
🥊 UFC 308: I. Topuria vs. M. Holloway (Sat. PPV) *All Times ET |
|
|
Did Someone Forward You This Email? Subscribe Here
Feedback? Contact Our Editor: Jeff@TheSportsletter.com
*Sponsorship Has No Influence on Editorial Content* Not Loving The Letter? Unsubscribe Copyright © 2024 The Sportsletter
717 Market Street, San Francisco, CA, 94103 |
|
|
|
