The Sportsletter - Playoffs, Play Ball!

BY JEFF YODER

OCT. 4, 2021  |  SUBSCRIBE  |  BROWSER VIEW

Welcome Back 👋

Playoff baseball began two days early with four teams fighting for the final two Wild Card spots in the American League. And guess what… We’ve got Yankees-Red Sox coming in an epic AL Wild Card showdown. The Giants captured the NL West, and October’s path to the World Series is official.

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MLB

October is Set!

Image: MLB.com

Giants Win, Yankees & Red Sox Grab AL Wild Cards — The MLB Playoff Bracket is Officially Set After Drama on Final Day of Regular Season

Here. We. Go. The final day of the regular season brought plenty of drama with four teams aiming for the last two Wild Card spots in the American League. All four teams alive in the Wild Card race — Red Sox, Yankees, Blue Jays and Mariners — won their Sunday games, but it’s the Red Sox and Yankees who secured the bids. Both Boston and New York won in dramatic fashion. The Yankees got a walk-off single from Aaron Judge to beat the Rays (1-0) while the Red Sox overcame a 5-1 deficit to beat the Nationals (7-5).

The NL West race also saw the Giants edge the Dodgers for the No. 1 overall seed. Los Angeles, with 106 wins, will end up hosting the Wild Card matchup against the Cardinals. Thirty teams entered in March, but only 10 remain in October. Here’s a look at this week’s MLB Playoff schedule.

MLB Playoff Schedule

AL Wild Card

#5 Yankees at #4 Red Sox (Tues. 8:08 pm ET, ESPN)

Pitchers: G. Cole (NYY) vs. N. Eovaldi (BOS)

NL Wild Card

#5 Cardinals at #4 Dodgers (Wed. 8:10 pm ET, TBS)

Pitchers: A. Wainwright (STL) vs. TBD (LAD)

ALDS: Begins Thursday (Oct. 7)

NLDS: Begins Friday (Oct. 8)

October has arrived. It’s do-or-die time, baseball fans.

Additional Storylines

ESPN: 2021 MLB Playoffs — What We Can’t Wait to See in October

MLB: Rafael Devers’ Heroics Clinch Top Wild Card Spot for Red Sox

Yahoo!: Yankees Win in Walk-Off Fashion to Stroll Into Playoffs

CBS Sports: Giants Clinch NL West With 107th Win to End Dodgers Streak of 8 Division Titles

NFL

Brady vs. Belichick & The Best of Week 4

Photo: Boston Globe / Getty Images

Brady Escapes Foxborough On Top, Murray Leads Cardinals to 4-0 Start, Dueling OT Wins in the Big Apple & More From Week 4 in the NFL

Are you not entertained? Week 4 in the NFL didn’t fall short. Tom Brady led the Bucs over the Patriots (19-17) in his emotional return to Gillette Stadium after a last-minute Patriots field goal clanked off the upright. Kyler Murray carved up the Rams (37-20) to lead the Cardinals to the first 4-0 start in the league. Only the Raiders (3-0) are still undefeated before tonight’s Monday Night Football clash. And both the Jets and Giants won overtime games on the same day for the first team ever. Week 4 was wild from coast to coast, but we've got one more game tonight.

Here’s our quick look at the top performances from Week 4 in the NFL.

Top Performers

QB P. Mahomes (KC): 24/30, 278 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT

QB M. Ryan (ATL): 25/42, 283 yards, 4 TDs

RB E. Elliot (DAL): 20 car. 143 yards, 1 TD

RB D. Henry (TEN): 33 car. 157 yards, 1 TD

WR T. Hill (KC): 11 rec. 186 yards, 3 TDs

WR D. Moore (CAR): 8 rec. 113 yards, 2 TDs

WR D. Samuel (SF): 8 rec. 156 yards, 2 TDs

WR C. Patterson (ATL): 5 rec. 82 yards, 3 TDs

The Last Unbeatens

Raiders (3-0) & Cardinals (4-0)

Week 4 Scores & Highlights

Bengals def. Jaguars (24-21) | Jets def. Titans (27-24, OT) | Chiefs def. Eagles (42-30) | Cowboys def. Panthers (36-28) | Giants def. Saints (27-21) | Browns def. Vikings (14-7) | Bears def. Lions (24-14) | Bills def. Texans (40-0) | Colts def. Dolphins (27-17) | Washington def. Falcons (34-30) | Seahawks def. 49ers (28-21) | Cardinals def. Rams (37-20) | Packers def. Steelers (27-17) | Ravens def. Broncos (23-7) | Buccaneers def. Patriots (19-17)

Monday Night Football

Raiders at Chargers (8:15 pm ET, ESPN)

Additional Storylines

SI: Cardinals Undefeated Record Proves Beauty of NFL Anomalies

B/R: It’s Trey Lance Time in San Francisco After Jimmy Garoppolo’s Injury

ESPN: Chiefs HC Andy Reid Becomes First Coach to Win 100 Games With 2 Teams

USA Today: Tom Brady Breaks NFL’s All-Time Passing Yards Record in Return to Foxborough

CFB

College Football's Two-Horse Race

Photo: Todd Kirkland / Getty Images

Top-10 Shakeup Leaves #1 Alabama and #2 Georgia in a League of Their Own

Mayhem in college football’s top-10 has arrived again. Saturday brought stunning upsets for No. 3 Oregon and No. 10 Florida while No. 7 Cincinnati knocked No. 9 Notre Dame out of the top-10. And with all the noise around teams 3-10, there’s a clear and obvious two-horse race building as the calendar turns to October. Alabama and Georgia were both blowout winners against formidable opponents, and the SEC juggernauts appear to be in a league of their own. Here’s the latest look at the AP Top-25 following Week 5.

AP Top-10

1. Alabama (5-0) | —

2. Georgia (5-0) | —

3. Iowa (5-0) | ↑2

4. Penn State (5-0) | —

5. Cincinnati (4-0) | ↑2

6. Oklahoma (5-0) | —

7. Ohio State (4-1) | ↑4

8. Oregon (4-1) | ↓5

9. Michigan (5-0) | ↑5

10. BYU (5-0) | ↑3

Full AP Top-25

College Football Scores & Highlights

#1 Alabama def. #12 Ole Miss (42-21)

#2 Georgia def. #8 Arkansas (37-0)

Stanford def. #3 Oregon (31-24, OT)

#7 Cincinnati def. #9 Notre Dame (24-13)

Kentucky def. #10 Florida (20-13)

Mississippi State def. #15 Texas A&M (26-22)

#19 Oklahoma State def. #21 Baylor (24-14)

Additional Storylines

SI: Stanford Upsets No. 3 Oregon in OT, Leaving Pac-12 With No Unbeaten Teams

CBS Sports: No. 7 Cincinnati Makes Playoff Statement in Upending No. 9 Notre Dame

Sporting News: College Football Playoff Picture for Week 6: Alabama, Georgia and Everyone Else

WNBA HIGHLIGHTS

Low Seeds Take Over WNBA Semis

#6 Sky Top #1 Sun (86-83)

The Chicago Sky took down the WNBA’s top-seed once again in Game 3 on Sunday thanks to a 26-point performance from Kahleah Cooper. Candace Parker saved the game with a block against Alyssa Thomas’s 3-pointer in the final seconds. (CHI Leads Series 2-1)

#5 Mercury Blow Out #2 Aces (87-60)

Another blowout courtesy of the Phoenix Mercury has pushed the Las Vegas Aces to the brink of elimination. The Mercury ran away with Game 3 by 27 points thanks to a stout defense. Vegas shot just 30.9% from the floor and 14.3% from deep. Brianna Turner (23) and Brittney Griner (18) combined for 41 points. (PHX Leads Series 2-1)

THE STORYLINES

🏀  NBAPA’s Vax Decisions End at Tipoff

Some players have cited personal reasons to explain why they’ve declined COVID vaccines. But when the games begin, their decisions cross over from personal choices to a matter of public health. (The Ringer)

🥊  Tyson Fury vs. Deontay Wilder 3

Tyson Fury will defend the WBC heavyweight championship against Deontay Wilder on Oct. 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Their third fight is almost three years in the making, and along the way, their teams, other fighters and the legal system have all played a part. (ESPN)

📰 THE HEADLINES

San Diego Padres Fire Manager Jayce Tingler After Disappointing 2021 Season

(CBS Sports)

Rain Postpones NASCAR Playoff Race at Talladega to Monday

(Sporting News)

Golden Knights’ Goaltender Robin Lehner Accuses NHL Teams of Giving Out Prescription Drugs

(Bleacher Report)

Former NASCAR Driver John Wes Townley Killed in Double Shooting

(USA Today)

Ex-NBA Player Lazar Hayward Arrested for Submitting Fake COVID-19 Documents

(Yahoo! Sports)

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