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Giancarlo Stanton's latest strikeout was a big one, as it put him in an exclusive club.

In the bottom of the sixth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday night, the New York Yankees' designated hitter fell behind 1-2 against reliever Garrett Cleavinger. Then, Stanton swung and missed at an 86 mph slider to record his first strikeout of the game. It was also the 2,000th of his career.

With that swing and miss, Stanton became the eighth player in Major League Baseball history to record 2,000 strikeouts as a hitter. The others are Reggie Jackson (2,597), Jim Thome (2,548), Adam Dunn (2,379), Sammy Sosa (2,306), Alex Rodriguez (2,287), Miguel Cabrera (2,105) and Andres Galarraga (2,003).

That's some fairly lofty company. Jackson and Thome are Hall of Famers, while Cabrera will be in when he's eligible. If not for performance-enhancing drug scandals, Sosa and Rodriguez would be in as well. Only Dunn and Galarraga aren't Hall of Fame-level players.

While it's a dubious club to enter, Stanton is in some pretty great company.

Entering Wednesday night's action, the 35-year-old is slashing .275/.351/.510, with seven home runs and 20 RBIs in 30 games played. Injuries to both of his elbows have cost Stanton most of this season.

Test cricket, when your front men are scoring runs, is bliss. And that is what India will be searching for in Mumbai

Alagappan Muthu29-Oct-20241:16

Manjrekar: India will hope Rohit, Kohli fire in Australia

This is an anomaly, and it is at the heart of everything that has gone down in this series. A visiting batter is the top-scorer. There really aren’t very many times that has happened in Test cricket played in India.Keeping to events in this century, there was Alastair Cook’s merciless grind in 2012-13. Steven Smith’s extraordinary skill in 2016-17. Hashim Amla’s wristy goodness in 2009-10, dismissed just once while scoring 490 runs. Andy Flower’s sweep-shot masterclass in 2000-01. Matthew Hayden’s sweep-shot masterclass in 2000-01. This is not an exhaustive list, but it does highlight a very useful point. Only one of these five performances went on to help their team win the series.India’s batters found ways to match most of the others. Cheteshwar Pujara was hot on Smith’s heels. Rahul Dravid was only 108 runs off Flower despite playing one fewer innings. And VVS Laxman made 2000-01 all about himself with just one trip to the crease. A significant part of their dominance at home came down to their ability to pile on some serious runs, the kind that simply overwhelmed oppositions. England, in 2016-17, began three of the five Tests with first-innings totals of 400 or more. They drew one and lost two – by an innings.Related

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• Nothing's changed, India say, but the evidence suggests otherwise

• Bittersweet for India, as one of cricket's great winning streaks ends

• 'Too much expectation' – Rohit unfazed by Ashwin, Jadeja's returns

Often enough, these runs came from their top four – from players with an enormous amount of experience, and the stubbornness that comes with it. This time, however, India’s closest representative to Rachin Ravindra on top of the leaderboard is a man who hadn’t played any international cricket prior to this year.Sarfaraz Khan’s biggest contribution, though – his 150, which forms a lion’s share of his total 170 runs – did come from higher up in the batting line-up. In fact, he braved the challenge of walking out earlier than he normally does in first-class cricket, and came good. That innings is doing a lot of legwork in carrying the average of the top four batters for India up to 31.75. Take that away, and in 15 innings, they have contributed 358 runs at an average of 23.87, including three ducks.New Zealand’s Nos. 1-4, meanwhile, are averaging 49, and even if you take Ravindra’s century out, it stands a healthy 37 because Devon Conway has two half-centuries; Tom Latham, in Pune, produced some of the most high-quality defensive batting seen in the second innings in India in the modern era; and Will Young, who came in to replace Kane Williamson, perhaps the only irreplaceable player in the team, has offered solidity. Among India’s top four, only Yashasvi Jaiswal has faced more balls than Young’s 222. Among his own top four, only Latham has faced fewer (210).Test cricket, when your front men are scoring runs, is bliss. And that is what India will be searching for in Mumbai. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who have home bases here, left Pune early. It was understandable. There was nothing more for them there. Just unhealthy reminders of what they had lost: 18 straight series wins, a run unlike any other in the history of the game, and a run to which they had been significant contributors.India need the Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli of old now•BCCIKohli, in particular, has produced absolute gems in dire batting conditions. He made 248 runs in Visakhapatnam from eight years ago, but 81 of those stand separate – as an example of just how devastating his focus is. The ball that turned big couldn’t beat him. The ball that went straight couldn’t catch him off guard. The ball that kept low was whipped to the boundary. There was a 44 against Australia in Delhi just last year, when he was in control of roughly nine out of 10 balls in conditions where the others could only dream of such a thing. His judgment of length was scary quick, and the decisions that they led to elevated batting into art. In this series, he has been bowled to a Mitchell Santner full toss and caught off a non-turning Glenn Phillips offbreak. It has continued a worrying trend in both his and his team-mates’ batting against spin.Rohit has been a lightning rod for India’s defeats. His comments at the post-match press conference in Pune – particularly where he tried to defend the options that he and his team chose – have not gone down well. On social media, people have likened him to Erik Ten Hag, the Manchester United manager who had a habit of telling the media that he was happy with his team’s performance even after losses and pointing to past victories to explain their progress. Ten Hag was sacked on Monday. Rohit’s situation is slightly more secure, but it hasn’t escaped notice that he has led India to four losses in 15 home Tests. His predecessor lost two in 31.Reducing a player to just their numbers can be a bit unforgiving. Worse, it tends to paint an incomplete picture. In this case, it ignores how well Rohit led the team against England earlier this year when they went 0-1 down, and lost first-choice picks to injury and other complications. All of a sudden, there was a whole bunch of new(ish) faces in the team, and nearly all of them had a hand in turning that series scoreline to read 4-1. One of them, Jaiswal, is shaping up to be a world-beater. Rohit lifted his own performance levels as well, scoring two centuries and a fifty. India need that Rohit and that Kohli now. They need their two best batters to regain their old aura.

The fast bowler hasn’t played much Test cricket for New Zealand, but he’s making 2024 his best year in the format

Ashish Pant17-Oct-20244:49

46 all out: decoding India’s batting collapse

Matt Henry paused for a moment right after taking his first wicket against India in Bengaluru. As his team-mates rushed to congratulate Devon Conway for taking a one-handed screamer at mid-off to dismiss Sarfaraz Khan, Henry looked down, hands on his knees, and laughed. His luckless morning had ended.Before that wicket, Henry had bowled 27 balls, off which he induced 14 false shots from India’s batters and beat them five times. He had an extremely close lbw appeal turned down against Rohit Sharma, who survived the review because of the umpire’s call.At the other end, he had watched Tim Southee bowl Rohit between bat and pad with a wobble-seam delivery and William O’Rourke strike with his sixth ball on Indian soil. So when the ball nestled in Conway’s outstretched right hand, it was a well-deserved reward for a bowler who had conceded only six runs in 4.3 overs before then.While Henry has impressed in different conditions, he is most effective when it’s gloomy overhead and the ball nips around. Overcast skies. India. Henry. Remember Manchester 2019?Related

• Stats – India plumb new lows on their way to 46 all out

• Pant stays off the field after picking up knee injury while keeping

• Rohit Sharma 'hurting' after misjudging Bengaluru pitch

• India's counterattacking instincts backfire like never before

But unlike the limited-overs formats, Henry doesn’t play much Test cricket for New Zealand. This is only his 26th appearance since his debut in 2015. He hasn’t played a Test since the second week of March this year, but he showed no signs of rust in Bengaluru.His first delivery was on a good length outside off and beat Rohit’s uncertain poke. A few balls later Henry squared him up, and then was visibly frustrated at the lbw appeal not going his way in the fourth over. He beat Yashasvi Jaiswal frequently too, with movement away from the left-hander. And even though he didn’t get either opener, Henry was eventually rewarded five times over.Henry is New Zealand’s leading wicket-taker this year: 28 at an average of 14.46 in nine innings. Trent Boult giving up his central contract has given Henry more chances recently and 2024 is his best year in Test cricket by a distance, even though he missed New Zealand’s previous series in Sri Lanka because they played only two specialist quicks – Southee and O’Rourke.It took Henry 28 balls to strike in Bengaluru, and he returned later to ensure there was no lower-middle-order revival from India that has been the bane of so many visiting teams in recent years. Extra bounce had Ravindra Jadeja lobbing a leading edge to point last ball before lunch. R Ashwin nicked one that nipped away to gully first ball after lunch. Three deliveries later Rishabh Pant edged one that moved away from him to slip. Seam, swing, and control at a brisk pace – Henry’s bread and butter – sent India crashing towards their lowest total at home in Test cricket.Matt Henry picked up his fourth five-wicket haul, and his 100th Test wicket•AFP/Getty Images”The conditions this morning, we talked about being relentless with the ball, and being patient, and I think that was probably something that we looked to do, and thankfully it came off,” Henry said after the second day’s play.He and O’Rourke were level on four wickets each with India nine down, and it was Henry who finished with a five-for to complete 100 wickets in Test cricket – joint-second fastest to the milestone for New Zealand.”It’s a pretty special achievement to get a five-for in India, they’re pretty tough to get, but I think more importantly we’ve put our team in a good position leading into the Test match,” Henry said after finishing with figures of 13.2-3-15-5.As Henry led New Zealand off the field, with the ball held high, he was followed by his Canterbury team-mate O’Rourke, whose 4 for 22 included the wickets of Virat Kohli, Jaiswal, and KL Rahul. At 6’4″, 23-year-old O’Rourke has had a rousing start to his career: 23 wickets in eight innings with two five-fors and two four-wicket hauls. On Thursday, he rattled India with his ability to extract extra bounce from the Bengaluru pitch.”His height’s the X-factor right there, isn’t it?” Henry said. “He gets a lot of bounce, he’s very tall and he uses that height at the crease as well, so as you see, he gets a lot of steep bounce off quite a full length as well, making it really uncomfortable, especially with the ball coming into the right-handers.”I think something that is great about William O’Rourke is that he keeps his pace up as well, he keeps coming in for the team, and he’s done that for Canterbury, and there’s no surprise that he’ll do the same when he came up to New Zealand, and he’s just had a fantastic start, and I’m absolutely stoked for him.”By the time the play ended, with India dismantled for 46 and New Zealand 134 ahead with seven wickets in hand, Henry’s smile had grown into the broadest of beams, having played the starring role in one of their best days in recent memory.

Following the Chicago Cubs' 3-0 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday afternoon, Cubs pitcher Daniel Palencia and Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras exchanged words in a brief moment of tension.

After the game, Contreras offered an apology to the Cubs for his actions.

"My reaction was bad," Contreras admitted, speaking to the media. He later added, "I apologize to the Chicago Cubs. I'm not trying to fight them. I'm not trying to fight anybody. I just [reacted] to the heat of the moment."

Contreras played the first seven years of his career with the Cubs.

The catcher had reached first base after being hit in the hand by one of Palencia's pitches in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Cubs challenged the HBP call, which was upheld. Contreras offered an explanation of what happened between him and Palencia:

"The heat of the moment, the heat of the game. I got hit in the hand… And I just turned around [after the game ended] and I said 'Just throw strikes.' That's it," Contreras said. "It looks bad," he continued. "If you're a fan and you're watching the game, it looks bad."

Palencia also chalked up the incident to the heat of the moment.

"The only thing I didn't appreciate was the way he turned around. But once again, it's just the heat of the game. He came out with good stuff," Contreras said.

Asked about a seeming increase in hit-by-pitches this year for Contreras, he admitted it's, "not fun."

"I know they're not trying to hit me but it's not fun when you're getting hit in your hand."

Benfica and Norway international footballer Andreas Schjelderup has admitted on social media that he expects to be convicted for sharing an illegal video involving minors, an offence that occurred two years ago. The 21-year-old Norwegian revealed in an Instagram post that he made a "stupid mistake" when he was 19.

• Norway international facing prosecution

  Schjelderup has explained that he forwarded the video to a friend without fully realising its contents, and deleted it immediately after being informed of its illegal nature. He has also confirmed that Danish police contacted him earlier this year regarding the incident and he has cooperated fully. Benfica president Rui Costa has expressed the club's support for Schjelderup, noting his remorse. The news broke shortly after Schjelderup was named in Norway's squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

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• AFP
  

  Benfica player offers explanation

  In a lengthy social media statement, Schjelderup said: "Hello, everyone. I want to be honest with you about a stupid mistake I did around two years ago. At the time, I was 19 years old, and now I have to face the consequences of this mistake. I take full responsibility for what happened and what I've done, but it is important to me that you know the context of the episode. I was living in Denmark at the time. I received a short video and forwarded it to my friend a few seconds later, without thinking clearly.

  "We have always sent memes to each other, like many teenagers do. When I received this video and forwarded it, as we usually do, without thinking that this one was different. I only saw the first few seconds and not what the video developed into. My friend, after having seen it a few seconds later, reminded me directly that it was, of course, illegal to send, so I deleted it immediately. In the moment, I unfortunately didn't think about the consequences and how it could be illegal to share. I should have realised the seriousness of sending it, but I didn't at the time."

• Schjelderup expecting suspended sentence

  Schjelderup continued: "My only explanation is that I was really shocked over seeing, what appeared to be two young men, in an old quality video and sent it to a friend without thinking. My intention was never to spread anything or to harm those involved. It was a stupid mistake one-time mistake that I deeply regret. When the Danish police contacted me this year about what happened, I told them the truth and I have cooperated throughout the entire process. I was charged for this offence which I probably will be convicted for in the near future and most likely receive a suspended sentence.

  "There are no excuses from my side. What I did in Denmark at that time was illegal and not okay. I will take full responsibility for it, and I hope my mistake can mean others don't make the same mistake after hearing or reading about my story."

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• Getty Images
  

  Apology for actions

  Schjelderup added: "I would like to apologise first and foremost to those affected by the video. Then, to my friends, family, employers, country, and all the fans I have disappointed. Right now, I wish I could go back in time and change my mistake. I have never done anything illegal before, or been involved with the police, so I have been in shock for a long time while this has been going on.

  "But here we are. I screwed up and I am ready to face the consequences. The offence I will be convicted for, does not reflect on who I am as a person and what I stand for. I am truly sorry for my mistake and embarrassed to be in this situation. Everyone who knows me, also knows what I stand for, so I understand this will be a shock for many people. I also know, this will be an unneeded disturbance to the national team of Norway before some of the most important games in our history. My intention was to share this after the games to avoid that, but unfortunately, that is not possible anymore.

  "And to everyone: Please do not watch or spread videos with harmful or offensive content. It is illegal. I want to apologise again and hope that you will forgive me. And I will do anything in my power to make things right again."

Celtic are currently searching for their next permanent head coach after they were rocked by the resignation of Brendan Rodgers last month.

The former Hoops boss decided to move on from Parkhead after a 3-1 defeat to Hearts that left his side eight points adrift of first place in the Scottish Premiership at the time.

As shown in the graphic above, the Northern Irish head coach enjoyed a largely successful second spell with the Glasgow giants, winning four trophies in two full seasons.

Martin O’Neill has been in interim charge of the Hoops since Rodgers moved on from Parkhead, and one manager who has been linked with the permanent role is Lee Carsley.

The latest on Lee Carsley to Celtic

It was recently reported that the Scottish giants are eyeing up the England U21 head coach as a potential replacement for Rodgers in the coming weeks.

Manager Focus

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Celtic are said to be long-term admirers of the Irish tactician, who has won two U21 European Championship titles, and that he is one of the names under contention for the job.

However, it was also claimed that Carsley is not one of the frontrunners for the vacant position at this moment in time, which does not suggest that he is likely to arrive in Glasgow in the next few days.

The Hoops board, however, should push to bring the England U21 boss to Parkhead because he could unearth the club’s own version of Chelsea superstar Cole Palmer.

Celtic have their own Cole Palmer in the making

One of Carsley’s biggest selling points is that he has worked with and developed some of England’s finest talents. Per Transfermarkt, he has coached Cole Palmer, Jadon Sancho, Noni Madueke, Phil Foden, Morgan Gibbs-White, and Conor Gallagher. Just to name a few.

Palmer delivered five goals and five assists in 17 matches as an attacking midfield player for the head coach at England U21 level, per Transfermarkt, and he has scored 45 goals in 101 games for Chelsea so far.

Celtic could unearth their own version of the England international in Arne Engels, who could take his game to the next level under Carsley, who was hailed as “refreshing” by midfielder Declan Rice

The England U21 manager typically plays a 4-2-3-1 system, per Transfermarkt, rather than a 4-3-3, which would allow the Belgium international to push on and play as a number ten, providing him with more opportunities to showcase his quality in the final third.

Engels, with ten goals and 13 assists in 52 matches, showed glimpses of his attacking quality in the 2024/25 campaign for Celtic, but he has yet to find the back of the net in the current campaign.

As you can see in the table above, the former Augsburg central midfielder excelled among his positional peers as an attacking force in the Scottish Premiership last season.

These statistics suggest that Engels can provide a regular threat at the top end of the pitch as an outstanding contributor, just as Palmer has for Chelsea, with 45 goals and 29 assists in 101 matches, per Transfermarkt.

Engels, who assisted the winning goal against Sturm Graz in the clip above, has the potential to thrive as a natural number ten in Carsley’s 4-2-3-1 set-up.

He is also a young player, aged 22, who has time ahead of him to develop and improve, which is the profile of player that the manager has been used to working with throughout his time with England’s U21s.

Better than Ange: Celtic reach out to hire "tactically unbeatable" manager

Celtic are moving ahead with their pursuit of a new manager after Brendan Rodgers’ resignation.

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Matt Dawson

Nov 1, 2025

Therefore, appointing Carsley, who has shown that he can win trophies with England’s youth team, could help them to turn Engels into their own version of Cole Palmer in the number ten position, because of his attacking potential.

MLB has used PitchCom since 2022 so pitchers and catchers can transmit calls instead of visually giving signs. The transmitters have helped with the pitch clock, too, since pitchers now have less time to shake off signs. But have you ever heard what the system sounds like in a player's ear?

Well, SNY and New York Mets field reporter Steve Gelbs gave us a walkthrough on Thursday night of the sounds that are passed directly into the ears of MLB stars as calls are made. The default English setting sounds like a generic, almost Siri-like voice spewing pitch types and locations. You can watch the fun segment and hear it for yourself below:

Gelbs mentioned there are default Spanish sounds, too, which includes all pitches and calls except for "sweeper" because, well, there isn't a Spanish word for sweeper.

The device is customizable allowing you to record your own calls or in other languages, which some players and clubs have had fun with before. This isn't the first time we've seen a PitchCom demo at the MLB level as the Colorado Rockies went through how they use the devices last season.

Still, it's a great inside baseball segment that probably helped a lot of fans figure out why pitchers are always messing with their hats or covering their ears with their gloves.

One mystery still stands, though—who is the mysterious PitchCom voice? Gelbs asked that question and didn't get a clear answer, but he did provide a prime suspect—the PitchCom founder, which could either be John Hankins or Craig Filicetti.

Legspinner Afy Fletcher looks ahead to WI vs England

ESPNcricinfo staff21-May-2025Afy Fletcher, the West Indies legspinner, talks to Valkerie Baynes and Firdose Moonda about her long career, the unique challenges faced by cricketers in the Caribbean and how her side can overcome their World Cup Qualifying disappointment during the tour of England.