🏒 Y! Sports AM: Blockbuster brewing?

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🏒 Y! Sports AM: Blockbuster brewing?

Wed, November 4, 2026 at 12:11 PM UTC ·

10 min read

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🚨 HEADLINES

💔 Tragic losses:Pennsylvania native Rachel Apa, 24, died after collapsing during Sunday's NYC Marathon, reportedly from rhabdomyolysis; Spanish striker Jesús de Miguel, 30, died Tuesday after a brutal in-game collision with the opposing goalkeeper on Monday.

⚾️ MLB proposes delay:In the first major labor development of the offseason , MLB has proposed phasing in a salary cap and floor (one of its biggest demands) in 2028, rather than 2027. That could make it easier for teams to sign free agents this month ahead of an expected lockout.

🏀 Game 7 makes history:The Valkyries' title-clinching win over the Dream drew 3.3 million viewers on Halloween night, making it the most-watched WNBA playoff game ever and the fourth-most watched game in the history of the league.

⚽️ Champions League roundup:PSG crushed Villarreal, 6-0, in Tuesday's league phase action to stay perfect; Lamine Yamal became the competition's highest-scoring teenager ever (14 goals) in Barcelona's win over Aston Villa; Manchester United stormed back to beat Roma, 3-2, and win their first match in almost two months.

⚾️ Seattle's new skipper:The Mariners are hiring Cubs' director of player development Jason Kanzler as their next manager . Kanzler, 36, has no managerial experience at any level and will be the second-youngest skipper in the bigs, behind only Washington's Blake Butera, 34.

See what else is trending on Yahoo Sports .

🏒 A TRADE OF GRETZKY PROPORTIONS?

It's not every day that arguably the best offensive player in a sport becomes available. But that could soon be the case in professional hockey, after Lightning superstar Nikita Kucherov requested a trade from the only NHL team he's ever known.

Why it's a big deal:Kucherov has won two Stanley Cups and made 12 playoff appearances in 13 seasons with Tampa Bay. But he's more than just a winner: He's also arguably the NHL's most dangerous scorer — yes, even with Connor McDavid in the league . In fact, since the start of the 2023-24 season, it's Kucherov, not McDavid, who leads the league with 415 points.

So why does he want out?Probably money — though Kucherov claims it's more about "poor communication and respect" in his interactions with the Bolts' front office. The Russian is in the final season of an eight-year, $76 million contract, and extension talks have reportedly broken down.

Tampa Bay's response: Not so fast. "We unequivocally have no intention of trading Nikita," Lightning GM Julien BriseBois said in a statement .
Another wrinkle:Kucherov has a partial no-trade clause, allowing him to submit a list of 10 approved destinations for any potential deal.

How historic would a trade be?Almost unprecedented. Going back to the start of the NHL's Expansion Era in 1967, the only player who changed teams after a more productive 3-year stretch is literally Wayne Gretzky. Using Adjusted Points , which makes it possible to compare eras, Kucherov's 386-point total from 2024-26 would rank second among players in new sweaters, trailing only Gretzky's 452 before his blockbuster trade to Los Angeles.

(Amazingly, Gretzky also makes the list for his subsequent move from St. Louis to New York. The Great One wasn't content with just one appearance in our chart.)

Bottom line:If the Lightning do end up dealing their all-time points leader, it would be one of the biggest blockbusters in NHL history, at least in terms of recent scoring firepower — even if Kucherov (age 33 this season) is a bit older than Gretzky was (28) in his first season as a King.

🏈 RANKINGS TODAY, CHAOS TOMORROW

The College Football Playoff Selection Committee released its first rankings on Tuesday, providing — as always — plenty of controversy and fodder for debate.

The biggest surprise?Notre Dame landed at No. 11, a whopping seven spots below its No. 4 ranking in the AP poll. "They don't have that signature win right now," said CFP chair Hunter Yurachek. That could change on Saturday, as could a lot of other résumés.

Other teams that came in below their AP poll ranking include No. 8 UCLA (-3), No. 9 BYU (-2), No. 15 Texas Tech (-2), No. 16 Wake Forest (-2), No. 20 USC (-2) and No. 25 Boise State (-5).
On the flip side, No. 4 Indiana (+2), No. 5 Alabama (+4), No. 6 Kentucky (+2), No. 7 Texas (+3), No. 10 Ole Miss (+2), No. 13 Tennessee (+3) and No. 23 Oregon (+4) were among those who did better in the CFP.

Coming up:If you're confused, annoyed or frustrated with the first set of CFP rankings, we have good news for you: Week 10 is going to provide a lot of clarity.

No. 1 Miami at No. 11 Notre Dame
No. 2 Georgia at No. 10 Ole Miss
No. 3 Utah vs. No. 9 BYU
No. 5 Alabama at No. 14 LSU
No. 6 Kentucky vs. No. 13 Tennessee
No. 7 Texas visits No. 18 Missouri

Looking ahead:There's a very real chance that every two-loss team in the CFP's Top 10 (Alabama, Texas, Ole Miss) has three losses by Saturday night. Or, if you're a fan of chaos, we could have an even bigger morass of two-loss teams.

🎾 THE LUCKIEST NO. 1 IN TENNIS

Alexander Zverev officially took his spot atop the ATP rankings on Monday, becoming the 30th man ever to ascend to No. 1 in the world. The catch? He's kind of not having a great season.

Ok, let's back up:That's not quite fair. The lanky German — who at 29 is the second-oldest man to debut at No. 1 — has had a season most players could only dream of, going 65-17 while winning his first two Grand Slams (French Open, US Open) and topping the money list with $15.1 million in on-court earnings.

Yes, but:He's accomplished this largely in the absence of the actual two best players in the world, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who both missed extended periods of time with injuries. And when he did face the "Big Two" this season, he went 0-6.

Zverev is also an unimpressive 3-3 against other players ranked inside the Top 10, with his latest defeat coming against No. 8 Alex de Minaur last week.
He captured zero titles in 2026 outside of the aforementioned slams — and when you look at his path at those two majors, you see that he benefited from a literal luck of the draw.

Consider this:Here are the world rankings of the players Zverev beat en route to his titles in Paris and New York, listed in descending order: 106, 95, 90, 89, 70, 52, 50, 43, 29, 28, 27, 22, 14 (Flavio Cobolli, French Open Final) , 9 (Ben Shelton, US Open Final) .

Exclusive club:While 30 men have now assumed the tennis throne, just eight have done so in the last 22 years thanks to the historic dominance of the "Big Three" (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic) and "Big Two" (Sinner, Alcaraz). Since February 2004, the "Big Five" have held the top spot for an astonishing 1,108 of a possible 1,166 weeks (95%). Andy Murray (41 weeks), Daniil Medvedev (16) and now Zverev are the only others to reach No. 1 in that time.

⚾️ MLB OFFSEASON: TOP FREE AGENTS

Buckle up, friends: A very odd free-agent season is coming. With the sport hurtling toward an elongated work stoppage and labor battle, the next few months project to be disjointed, chaotic and boring all at the same time.

From Yahoo Sports' Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman:

When the existing collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, MLB will lurch into a transactional dead period. As team owners and the MLBPA bargain over the game's future, general managers, agents and players will, for the most part, be twiddling their thumbs and waiting around.

That oncoming storm should precipitate a flurry of moves in the days and hours leading up to that Dec. 1 deadline, which is how things went five years ago during the 2021-22 lockout.

This free agent class, however, is notably light on top-tier talent. That's particularly true on the position-player side, where, for the first time in a decade, no hitter is expected to receive a nine-figure contract.

Still, there are a bevy of corner outfielders and more everyday second basemen than we can ever remember seeing on the open market. There's also a lot of starting pitching; 12 hurlers who started a postseason game in 2026 are set to become free agents.

Top 10 free agents:

SP Tarik Skubal (LAD)
SP Freddy Peralta (TB)
OF Seiya Suzuki (CHC)
OF Randy Arozarena (SEA)
SP Michael King (SD)
3B Teruaki Sato (Japan)
RP Adrian Morejón (SD)
SP Trevor Rogers (BAL)
1B Jake Bauers (MIL)
C Ryan Jeffers (MIN)

Trade targets?The lack of impact bats available in free agency could spark a friskier than normal trade market , though the lockout will surely stunt that to a certain degree. Nobody really knows how the labor showdown is going to play out.

Full rankings: Top 50 free agents

📺 WATCHLIST: WEDNESDAY, NOV. 4

🏀 NBA on ESPN

The second-place Pistons host the first-place 76ers in the first leg of tonight's doubleheader (7pm ET) . Then it's off to San Antonio, where the current title favorites host the Mavericks (9:30pm) .

Scoring leaders:Each of these teams has a player among the NBA's top 15 scorers , led by Philadelphia's Tyrese Maxey (29.1 ppg), who ranks third. The rest: San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama (25.7), Dallas' Cooper Flagg (25.2) and Detroit's Cade Cunningham (23.7).

More to watch:

🏒 NHL:Blackhawks at Panthers (7:30pm, TNT) ; Sharks at Kings (10pm, TNT) … Chicago (lost 3 straight), Florida (L1), San Jose (L2) and Los Angeles (L1) could all use a win.
⚽️ Champions League:Dortmund vs. Real Betis (3pm, Paramount+) … One of nine games across Europe today as Matchday 4 comes to a close.
🎾 ATP:Paris Masters (7am, Tennis) … Second-round matches for Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic and more.

Got plans tonight? Gametime is the best place to score last-minute tickets to the events in your city. Get tickets now!

⚾ KNOW YOUR HISTORY

17 years ago today (Nov. 4, 2009), the Yankees won their record-extending 27th World Series , which remains their most recent championship.

Question:Who did the Yankees beat in that World Series?

Answer at the bottom.

🏈 THE BEST MARKETING MONEY CAN'T BUY

From Dylan Dittrich, author of the Yahoo Sports Biz newsletter:

After reportedly racking up nearly $36,000 in fines for wearing cleats with an unauthorized Caddix logo, Caleb Williams took the field on Monday night in a blacked-out, logo-less pair.

Cool off:Williams is not endorsed by Caddix, choosing to wear the brand because he believes in the science behind its injury-reduction claims. Though both Caddix CEO Jack Rasmussen and longtime Caddix-wearer Joe Flacco offered to pay his fines, Williams voiced a desire to "calm things down" and minimize media distractions with the blacked-out pair.

Bottom line:The continued attention remains better than any marketing Caddix could ever buy.

Trivia answer:Phillies

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