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️ Scottie wins again: Scottie Scheffler capped his unbelievable year with a ninth victory, dominating the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas by six strokes over Tom Kim.
Paul passes Kidd: Chris Paul passed Jason Kidd for second on the NBA’s all-time assist leaderboard (12,099) on Sunday. Only John Stockton (15,806) has more.
️ Welcome to Cooperstown: Dick Allen and Dave Parker were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday by the 16-member Classic Era committee.
Back on top: Lando Norris won Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in the F1 season finale to clinch McLaren’s first constructors’ title (team championship) since 1998.
️ Messi wins MVP: Lionel Messi was named MLS MVP despite missing half the season. He received 38.4% of the vote, edging out Columbus forward Cucho Hernández (33.7%).
After one season in the Bronx, Juan Soto is headed to Queens.
Record-breaking contract: Soto, 26, agreed to a 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets on Sunday, the richest contract in the history of sports.
For context: Soto will earn
Until the year 2040. And he may end up making even more than that.
A changing of the guard: Soto is a Met because their owner Steve Cohen (~$21.3 billion net worth) is a much, much richer man than Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner (~$1.5 billion net worth), whose best offer was reportedly 16 years, $760 million around $4 million less per year than the final deal.
From Yahoo Sports’ Jake Mintz:
For decades the Yankees have operated as a behemoth, an unimpeachable, untouchable financial juggernaut atop the baseball world. It’s a track record of economic superiority that stretches all the way back to Babe Ruth.
Now they aren’t even the top dogs in their own city. Suddenly, the Mets, long a baseball punch line for their frugality under old ownership and their propensity for wonky controversy, are all grown up.
They’re not just sitting at the adult table but commanding it with ungodly gobs of money. Cohen once spent $244 million on a pair of statues; Soto is pocket change for him.
Steinbrenner, whose fortune comes directly from the success of the Yankees, simply cannot operate in that hemisphere. And if he had outbid Cohen’s offer, surely Cohen would have re-upped the ante.
That dynamic signifies a significant changing of the guard, both in the Big Apple and across MLB. The Mets and Dodgers are in a financial league of their own. The Yankees are a level below.
Such a statement would’ve sounded preposterous 15 years ago, when the Mets were run by the stingy Wilpon family and the Dodgers were bankrupt by a clueless owner.
But times have most certainly changed, and the Yankees, now Soto-less, must find a way to adapt to this new, unforgiving reality.
The last word: “This is a seminal moment in the history of New York baseball,” said SNY’s Andy Martino. “Last night, the Mets were a joke on ‘Saturday Night Live.’ They were joking, ‘Oh, Soto will go to the Mets to help out a charitable cause.’ Well this is no joke.”
Nearly seven years in the making, the 12-team College Football Playoff made its debut on Sunday with the reveal of the final rankings.
Four teams got byes:
First-round matchups: We kick things off on Friday, Dec. 20, with an in-state duel between the Fighting Irish and Hoosiers. Three more games follow on Saturday, Dec. 21.
No clear favorite: Oregon (13-0) is the only undefeated team in college football and opens with the best odds to win it all (+325 at BetMGM). But Georgia (+350), Texas (+375) and Ohio State (+450) aren’t far behind.
Story coming tomorrow Is the 12-team playoff already broken? One easy way to fix it.
Inglewood Puka Nacua (12 catches, 178 total yards, 2 TD) and the Rams held off the Bills, 44-42, in the highest-scoring game of the season. Josh Allen’s 51.88 fantasy points (342 pass yds, 3 TD; 82 rush yds, 3 TD) are the most by a QB in Yahoo Fantasy history and he lost.
Kansas City The Chiefs beat the Chargers, 19-17, on a walk-off FG that doinked off the upright to clinch their ninth straight AFC West title and win their 15th consecutive one-score game dating back to last December.
Miami The Dolphins beat the Jets, 32-26 (OT), on a walk-off TD to officially eliminate New York from the playoffs. Fun fact: 32-26 is the 1,089th unique final score in NFL history.
Minneapolis Sam Darnold’s career day (22-28, 347 yards, 5 TD) in the Vikings’ 42-21 rout of the Falcons vindicated Minnesota’s decision to move on from Kirk Cousins, who had two INTs in the loss and failed to throw a TD for the fourth straight game.
Elsewhere The Eagles clinched a playoff berth with a 22-16 win over the Panthers; the Titans (10-6 loss to Jaguars) and Browns (27-14 loss to Steelers) were both eliminated.
Sunday recap: Winners and losers
The Los Angeles Galaxy beat the New York Red Bulls, 2-1, on Saturday to win their record sixth MLS Cup and lift the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy, named after their owner.
A return to glory: The Galaxy spent nearly two decades at the top of MLS, reaching nine of the first 19 MLS Cup Finals. Then came the dark years.
That was then, this is now The Galaxy and Red Bulls (then called the MetroStars) were two of MLS’ 10 founding clubs when the league debuted in 1996. Now there are 29 teams, and San Diego FC will debut as the 30th next season.
Consider how much has changed: In 1996, all 10 MLS teams played in football stadiums. This season, 21 of 29 teams played in soccer-specific stadiums, including six that have opened since 2020.
40 years ago today, Rams running back Eric Dickerson broke O.J. Simpson’s NFL single-season rushing record (2,003 yards). He’d end the year with 2,105 yards, which is still the most ever.
A game ahead of schedule: Dickerson, who had 1,792 yards entering this Week 15 matchup with the Oilers, had everything planned out: He’d get about 100 yards against Houston and then break the record in the season finale, a nationally-televised game with Simpson himself in the booth.
The 2,000-yard club:
What to watch: Saquon Barkley (1,623 yards through 13 games) is currently on pace to break Dickerson’s record. Aiding him, of course, is the addition of a 17th game. Dickerson had only 16 games (and Simpson had only 14).
North Carolina and Wake Forest face off tonight (7pm ET, ESPNU) in Cary, North Carolina, for the NCAA women’s soccer national championship.
David vs. Goliath: This is the first title game appearance for the Demon Deacons and the 28th (!!!) for the Tar Heels, who are seeking their 22nd national championship.* No other team has more than four.
More to watch:
*National championships by school: UNC (21), FSU (4), Stanford (3), Notre Dame (3), Santa Clara (2), USC (2), Portland (2), UCLA (2), Penn State (1), Florida (1), George Mason (1).
It’s official: The Jets will miss the playoffs for the 14th consecutive season, which is the longest active drought in the “Big Four” leagues (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL).
Question: Which team has the second-longest active playoff drought?
Hint: They are one of two “Big Four” teams in their city.
Answer at the bottom.
Watch all 13.
Trivia answer: Buffalo Sabres (13 seasons)
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