The West Indies captain was left to reflect on another Test defeat but one that offered signs of hope

Nagraj Gollapudi at Lord's21-May-2012At the end of it all Darren Sammy had to search mentally for the appropriate word to sum up his team’s performance after the five-wicket defeat at Lord’s? Does he go ahead and call it a minor victory considering West Indies started the final day with a chance? Or should he be modest and admit that they had not progressed much from the finishing point at the end of the home Test series against Australia? Sammy settled for “pleased” with a lot of room for improvement.”We were quite pleased. We were told there were no fifth-day tickets printed. We took the game to the fifth day,” Sammy said. “The team continued to show the never-say-die attitude which we promised to bring out here in England. And we had some good performances from some of the players. We’ll take that these positives into the next Test.”The defeat was not unexpected, but what was definitely not expected was West Indies putting up such a determined show and making England work hard for the victory. Barring Shivnarine Chanderpaul, suggested the pre-series coverage, no other West Indies player could stand the stern test in England. Yet, some of them did: Marlon Samuels, Denesh Ramdin and Adrian Barath with the bat and Kemar Roach with ball inspired confidence in team-mates with their contributions.The downplaying of West Indies’ chances before the series was nothing new for Sammy who said his team had become used to such a billing. “For the last ten years they have been saying that about us. We in the dressing room have our own confidence that once we go out and execute, if we bowl in a disciplined fashion, we create problems. We got the last seven wickets [in the first innings] for 130-odd runs. So we could do it. It is about doing it consistently enough. And when you are playing against the No.1 team you have to be at your best all the time.”They produced a strong fightback on the third morning when England lost their last seven wickets for 154. However, they were guilty of letting key moments slip away from them: a couple of examples of letting England off the hook were immediately after removing Alastair Cook on the second morning and then losing three wickets in suicidal fashion on the stroke of tea on the third day.Another important turning point that could be added to the list of faults was Sammy losing his head in the final hour of play on Sunday when West Indies were steadily building a strong lead with Ramdin looking solid at the other end. Sammy had put some pressure back on England with an attacking innings before becoming Stuart Broad’s 10th wicket of the match. He admitted his mistake and suggested the outcome could have been different had he not played impulsively.”I think I let the team down in that department,” he said. “I was striking the ball quite well when the field was spread. If I had batted for the rest of the evening it would definitely have been 250-plus. That could have been the difference.”Kemar Roach gave England a fright but he needed more support•Getty ImagesLuckily, Roach made sure West Indies’ spirit were not be dampened before they went to sleep on the penultimate evening by grabbing two key wickets and raising prospects of an unimaginable victory push. On the final morning, Sammy acknowledge, West Indies were excited. Their hopes rested on the four-pronged pace attack and when England were 57 for 4 West Indies’ hearts started beating faster.”I like watching these guys, standing at slips, running in and knowing that anytime an edge could come my way. Today it just felt right,” Sammy said. He had pouched Jonathan Trott, the first wicket to fall in the morning, brilliantly to his left at second slip, when Trott was beaten by the movement from Roach.However, Roach needed support Fidel Edwards did not turn up at Lord’s. He started the morning with four wides and remained muted for the rest of the session. Shannon Gabriel, the debutant, once again built his rhythm, bowling purposefully on the off stump and managed to remove the dangerous Kevin Pietersen. But back spasms restricted him to only five overs.”Our pacers have been doing a good job for us throughout the last year or two,” Sammy said. “A few more wickets between Fidel and Roach could have been a different story.”Again, though, the problem for West Indies, despite all their fight, was a lack of runs especially in the first innings. The West Indies players need to start reading situations well and adapting quickly. A major talking point during this Test was whether Chanderpaul should bat higher to strengthen the fragile and inexperienced top order.At the end of the day’s play on Sunday, after he had made 91, Chanderpaul was blunt in his disagreement with such a suggestion. According to him young batsmen do not learn anything batting at No. 5 or 6 and to gain experience they need to play at the top which is something Sammy agreed with.”Shiv is quite an experienced players so if he says something he has a lot of reasoning for saying it,” he said. “He has done an excellent job for us at No. 5 and he continues to do that. I more want our batsmen to take a page out of his book instead of saying where should he bat. Right now what needs to happen is our batsmen have to stand up and bat, and set a platform so when he comes in he could play his game and we all can bat around him.”

Rory Hamilton-Brown would love to get a chance to play for England. But for the time being nothing can distract him from his club’s fortunes

Alan Gardner26-Apr-2012Controlling the controllables is one of the mantras of the modern sportsman. In this respect, Rory Hamilton-Brown is very much like his peers – he would love to play for England but is happy for his form to do the talking; winning the Championship would be “a dream come true”, though he will make sure his Surrey side takes things one game at a time. But there is one aspect that is more difficult to govern, even for a talented young cricketer, and that is what people think about you.Having been brought back to Surrey, where he came through the youth system, after a high-profile pursuit by the coach, Chris Adams, to become club captain at just 22 years of age – the youngest in 138 years – Hamilton-Brown, perhaps naturally, made headlines. Not all of them were favourable, with questions raised about his age and inexperience, as well as assumptions about his background. He hasn’t been seen with a newspaper since; he jokes that if he had read everything that was written about him, he might have “ended up on Beachy Head or something”.”I made a promise to myself,” he says of his decision to ignore the write-ups. “To start with, there was a lot of negative stuff. It hurts you a bit because I hadn’t really done anything; I hadn’t shown to be good enough, I hadn’t shown not to be good enough. Obviously with a double-barrelled surname, the media were very interested in that… Because there was a lot of negative, I just felt if I confide with people that care about me within the dressing room – Adams, Ian Salisbury, my father, my mother – and those people are telling me whether I’m doing well or not, I think that’s all you can ask for.”Two years on, Hamilton-Brown is still the youngest captain on the county circuit, though his credentials are no longer in doubt. Leading Surrey back into Division One and securing the county’s first trophy since 2003 has seen to that, and it is for his batting that he now wishes to spark discussion. Following a first season of what he calls “survival”, balancing the captaincy with his role in the side as a batsman, in 2011, Hamilton-Brown scored more than 1000 Championship runs, the first time he had passed the batting benchmark. As the likes of James Taylor, Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler entered the reckoning for England, Hamilton-Brown admits to disappointment at being overlooked by the selectors.”As the captaincy’s gone on, a lot of the stuff has become a little bit easier, you can do a few things on autopilot,” he says. “I knew that I wouldn’t reap initial rewards. I thought that it might put my England ambitions back a year or so, but it was a dream of mine to captain the club I’ve grown up playing for, and it’s always been a dream to play for England. I felt that with having the pressures of captaincy, if I could come through that and turn into the cricketer I wanted to be, coupled with being a good leader, that would help me ultimately.”I was disappointed not to be involved at the end of last year. The first year, quite rightly, I had a very good one-day year but my four-day cricket wasn’t quite up to scratch, but then last year I felt, on top of being captain, gaining promotion, winning a trophy and my performances with the bat, I thought it may have been recognised – but it wasn’t. That’s when I go back to keeping my performances on the board for Surrey, and hopefully at some point it’ll get picked up.

“Last year I felt, on top of being captain, gaining promotion, winning a trophy and my performances with the bat, I thought it may have been recognised – but it wasn’t. That’s when I go back to keeping my performances on the board for Surrey”Hamilton-Brown on being ignored by England’s selectors

“I have a belief that if I get my game right, I’ll be good enough. I want to play when I’m ready, if and when I’m good enough. There’s no rush. The rush for me is to put in performances so that people start talking about it.”With his broad shoulders and quasi-mullet of blond hair, as well as the beginnings of a fair beard, there is something leonine about Hamilton-Brown, even beyond his first name. Far from roaring into the room, however, his first words are to apologise for being late, having caught the train in from his mum’s, where he had been to see his younger brother and sister.The sense of family is not far away at The Oval, either, with Hamilton-Brown praising the influence of first-team coach Salisbury, and describing Adams as being “like a father figure”. They were team-mates at Sussex, where Hamilton-Brown spent two seasons rebuilding his career after asking to be released by Surrey in 2007. And Adams was dogged in his pursuit of a player he described at the time as having a “super tactical brain”.Hamilton-Brown says he thinks “very deeply” about the game, to the point where some of his decisions catch even Adams by surprise. He has also shown a willingness to put the team before his own cause, with his move to open the batting – in only his second full season in four-day cricket – prompted by a lack of a natural alternative in the squad.Though he has now returned to the middle order, he believes the experiment did him good in the long run. “I just feel more adept at either situation now, coming in at 120 for 3 or 20 for 3. I feel comfortable, that’s where I’ve done it for a long period of time and had success doing it. It’s just that inner belief that you can do it. But also, it’s nice to walk in at 120 for 3 and the shine’s gone off.”In three Championship matches so far, Hamilton-Brown has 284 runs at 47.33, despite the early season difficulties bemoaned by his team-mate Mark Ramprakash (Hamilton-Brown, for his part, says he prefers results pitches to dead tracks). With questions over the make-up of England’s middle order, his time may not be long in coming, five years after he captained his country at Under-19 level. His response, however, is immediate when asked if he would prefer an England call-up or a Championship winner’s medal with Surrey.”Championship title, no doubt. It would be a dream come true to have a Championship title, but that’s a long way off. It means so much. There’s been so much put in by everyone in this group, Chris Adams, Ian Salisbury, those sorts of guys to start with. There’s been a lot of time and effort. There’s also been a lot of heartache for the last few years at the club, a lot of tough days – so it would be absolutely unbelievable if something like that happened.”Hamilton-Brown led Surrey to the 40-over title in 2011•Getty ImagesHamilton-Brown spent the winter playing cricket in Zimbabwe and New Zealand, where he worked on his offspin – he is keen to maintain his reputation as an allrounder, particularly in one-day cricket, to enhance his international prospects – but he currently has no desire to broaden his horizons further by seeking involvement in the IPL.”It’s not an ambition of mine at the minute because I want to be playing for England and I feel that the runs you score in the first six or seven weeks of the season can sometimes be the most important, because it’s the toughest time,” he says. “For me the ambition is to play for England. I got asked to go into the auction the last couple of years but I’ve not got any interest in it.”Despite being born just down the road from Lord’s, for the time being it is England’s other London ground that is his focus. “Surrey is the bubble I’m involved in. I’m not involved in an England bubble. This club is something that’s very close to my heart and I feel like we’ve been given the opportunity to take a top club from the bottom and potentially make it a successful side for a long period of time. And that’s very exciting.”

Desire to play best six batters may prompt team to push Labuschagne up to open the batting against West Indies

Alex Malcolm10-Dec-20231:30

Bailey: ‘Ultimately, Warner is in our best XI’

Australia’s selectors are unlikely to pull any surprises for the first Test of the home summer, against Pakistan on Thursday, but the conversation around who will replace David Warner once he retires continues to bubble away. Head coach Andrew McDonald once again hinted that they could lean towards picking the best six batters in a reshaped order rather than a specialist opener whenever a decision needs to be made.Despite a lot of external noise around the potential debut of express pace bowler Lance Morris, the home side looks set to make only one change from the last Test XI they fielded in the fifth Ashes Test at the Oval with Nathan Lyon returning from injury in place of Todd Murphy.Mitchell Marsh is set to remain at No. 6 while the big three quicks in Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins all looked in fine fettle at Australia’s first training session since being crowned ODI World Cup champions in Ahmedabad three weeks ago.McDonald did not name the XI that would face Pakistan at Perth Stadium but said “it will look the same as it did before” after the quicks had returned in very good shape from a long World Cup campaign. Lyon is also a welcome return after the head coach noted he was a “huge loss” for the final three Tests of the Ashes series that had “destabilised” Australia’s attack.

The hunt for Warner’s successor

In the absence of any selection debates in the lead-up to the first Test of the home summer, speculation continues to mount over how Australia’s batting line-up will shape up once Warner finishes. He has been guaranteed the first game against Pakistan and it seems very likely that he will play all three to get his desired Sydney Test send-off.Australia coach Andrew McDonald and captain Pat Cummins want to field their best available XI•Getty ImagesMcDonald reaffirmed the selection panel’s stated position that they would continue to pick the best Test XI for the here and now in the World Test Championship era, with future building not part of any current discussions. Still, there is continued interest over who ends up replacing Warner, prompting McDonald to double down on his previous statement on that a desire to pick the best six Test batters in the same side, which could include both Marsh and Cameron Green, might trump the need to blood in a new specialist opener.Related

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“I think it feels as though anytime that you mention that you want to put your best six batters into the Test team, then there’s always speculation about who’s going to open and when Davey goes,” McDonald said.”We’ve got time to make that decision. Davey’s playing the first Test match and we’ll go from there. Until we have to make the decision, then it’ll continue to bubble away and the speculation will be there.”I think for us, it’s gathering information and making a decision when we need to make the decision. So that’s as simple as it gets. We’ve got no firm views on it at the moment.”It appears that part of the selectors thinking surrounding replacing Warner with Green rather than a specialist opener and then reshuffling the order to have either Marnus Labuschagne or Marsh open the batting is linked in with Australia’s fast bowling stocks. In any case, it seems unlikely that a decision will need to be made until the new year when West Indies arrive for a two-Test series in late January.The Prime Minister’s XI tour match against Pakistan did offer a lot of information to that end, but it was not the selection “bat-off” that some may have hoped it would be.”They all showed what they can do,” McDonald said. “We know that they’re all quality players. I thought Cameron Green was impressive again. Matt Renshaw clearly got a hundred, and a couple of starts to the other boys as well, a half-century and 49 to Cameron Bancroft and Marcus Harris. We know they can play. They’ve got good numbers in Sheffield Shield cricket and I think if we were to go down that path and choose one of them, I think they would do a really good job.”Lance Morris ramps it up in training•Getty Images

Morris closing in on Test bow

Despite a stated policy of selecting for the here and now, Morris remains an enticing prospect. He bowled a rapid spell in the centre-wicket practice at the WACA ground in Perth on Sunday, ruffling Labuschagne and Marsh at times with Marsh walking off wide-eyed at the pace he’d just faced.There is, however, an understanding that Morris has played almost all of his Sheffield Shield cricket for Western Australia as part of a five-man bowling attack with four fast bowlers and a spinner sharing the load so he could be used in short bursts as a strike weapon. His history of back stress fractures is also a factor in that thinking. In light of all that, Morris is only set to play for Australia this summer if one of the main three quicks, particularly Starc, misses a match through injury or soreness.Meanwhile, Marsh usurping Green as the team’s allrounder has created a headache for the selectors. While Marsh can bowl some very useful overs and will bowl throughout the home season, he cannot be banked upon for the same number of overs and the same bowling impact as Green given Marsh’s recent injury history. The Ashes series was the first time Marsh had played back-to-back first-class matches in four years. He experienced soreness that kept him off the field in the Old Trafford Test and meant he didn’t bowl at all during the subsequent eight-match white-ball tour of South Africa.If Morris were to play in Australia’s Test XI at some stage this summer or moving forward, it appears there would be a clear preference for Green to play in the same side, and if Marsh is entrenched on batting form, the selectors would need to find Green another place in the top six.For the moment, Green will carry the drinks in Perth as Australia remain wary of a Pakistan side that arrives down under in a state of never-ending flux. McDonald was unsure whether the positive new Test brand, the Pakistan Way, that had been unfurled in Sri Lanka in the middle of the year, would be replicated under a new captain and coach against the World Test Champions in a country where they have not won a Test match since 1995.”I think the last series they played, they played a more up-tempo brand,” McDonald said. “They’ll try and put more pressure on the bowling unit. So I think we’ll see a little bit of that. But like anything, if we execute well with the ball, it’s going to be difficult to be able to maintain that over long periods of time. So we’re not sure the way that they’ll play. They’ll signal their intent from the first ball once we get out there. We’ll see what happens.”

RB Leipzig chief Oliver Mintzlaff has admitted that Timo Werner is "not an easy person" to manage, revealing that all of his previous coaches have struggled with the striker. However, he defended the forward's character amid his current exile under new manager Ole Werner, while the former Chelsea man reportedly eyes a move to MLS to join Inter Miami.

Mintzlaff offers blunt assessment

Werner finds himself completely frozen out of the first-team picture this season. The striker, who remains the club's all-time leading goalscorer, has failed to secure any significant minutes in the current campaign, leading to intense speculation regarding his future. Amidst this backdrop, Oliver Mintzlaff, the CEO of Corporate Projects and Investments at Red Bull, has offered a candid insight into the player's personality and his standing within the club.

Speaking to the , Mintzlaff addressed the awkward situation surrounding the 29-year-old. While expressing sympathy for Werner's lack of game time, the club chief conceded that the forward requires a specific type of management that can be taxing for the coaching staff. He admitted that even the managers who extracted the best football from Werner found him difficult to handle at times.

"I have a special, close, and good relationship with Timo Werner. Therefore, I'm probably not entirely objective," Mintzlaff stated. "I would have thought there might have been a way to give him a few minutes, especially since he had a decent preseason. But that's the coach's decision, that's what performance decides.

"Timo Werner is certainly not an easy person, undoubtedly not an easy character, but an extremely fine guy to whom we owe a great deal. Every coach has had his problems with Timo Werner, whether Ralf Rangnick or Julian Nagelsmann, but they've all played him."

AdvertisementAFPStruggles under Ole Werner

While Rangnick and Nagelsmann navigated the complexities of Timo Werner's character to unlock his prolific goal-scoring ability, current head coach Ole Werner has seemingly decided that the output no longer justifies the effort. Since taking charge in the summer, the new manager has been ruthless in his team selection, leaving the club legend watching from the sidelines.

The 2025-26 campaign has been particularly brutal for the former Chelsea forward. Despite being fit and available, he has played just one minute of competitive football this term, watching on as Leipzig compete in the Bundesliga and the Champions League. The "decent preseason" alluded to by Mintzlaff has not translated into competitive opportunities, signalling a complete breakdown in trust between the player and the current technical staff. It is a far cry from his first spell at the club, where his electric pace and finishing made him one of the most feared attackers in European football.

Failed MLS move and the Messi dream

Werner's isolation has inevitably led to him seeking an exit route, a process that began in earnest during the summer transfer window. It has been reported that the striker is keen to leave European football behind for a fresh start in the United States. However, a potential move to Major League Soccer (MLS) collapsed in the summer, leaving him in limbo in Saxony.

According to recent reports, Werner turned down a concrete approach from the New York Red Bulls. The rejection was reportedly due to the salary on offer, with the German on a healthy package in Leipzig. Instead, the striker has set his sights on a glamorous switch to Inter Miami.

Werner is reportedly enamoured with the idea of partnering Lionel Messi in Florida. The prospect of linking up with the Argentine legend and fellow former Barcelona star Luis Suarez appeals to Werner as the ideal environment to rediscover his love for the game. However, facilitating such a move is complex given the MLS salary cap regulations and Inter Miami's star-studded roster.

AFPWhat next for the Leipzig legend?

For now, Werner remains an RB Leipzig player, albeit in name only on matchdays. His contract runs until the summer of 2026, presenting a financial headache for the Bundesliga club who are paying significant wages to a player who is not contributing on the pitch. Mintzlaff's comments highlight the respect the hierarchy still holds for Werner's past achievements, but they also underscore the reality that his time at the top level with Leipzig appears to be over.

With the January transfer window approaching, all parties will be eager to find a resolution. Whether Inter Miami can make the finances work, or if Werner will have to lower his sights to another MLS franchise or a different European club, remains to be seen. Until then, the "not easy character" must continue to train, waiting for an opportunity that Ole Werner seems unwilling to grant.

The 36-year-old pulls the cord on his Big Bash League career, with his manager citing the tournament’s new extended format as the primary reason

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2018Mitchell Johnson will never again appear on an Australian ground as a player after calling time on his Big Bash League career. His manager revealed the extended nature of the upcoming BBL season’s schedule was the primary reason behind the decision.The tournament’s new format features 14 games in a home-and-away league system, which his manager Sam Halvorsen says “is just too much for someone who turns 37 at the end of the summer.” Johnson led the Perth Scorchers bowling attack for the past two seasons.There was, however, no statement on Johnson’s availability for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League although he had recently signed up for the T10 League in UAE, slated for December.Johnson played 19 games for the Scorchers, taking 20 wickets at an average of 22.75 and economy rate of 6.14. His last game for the Scorchers was their semi-final loss to Hobart Hurricanes earlier this year. In BBL 2016-17, Johnson’s three-wicket haul (4-2-3-3) in the semi-final against Melbourne Stars and figures of 1 for 13 in the final against the Sydney Sixers secured Scorchers’ third championship title. He had finished the season as Scorchers’ highest wicket-taker with 13 wickets from nine and an economy rate of 5.91.Earlier this year, Johnson had pulled out of his commitments with Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League. He retired from international and first-class cricket in November 2015, with a career haul of 590 international wickets and 465 first-class scalps.

Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale and Detroit Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal each won their first Cy Young award on Wednesday night but they weren't the only pitchers getting votes. Five different pitchers garnered exactly one vote from members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Each voting media member ranks their top five pitchers in each league. First-place votes are worth seven points, second are worth four, third are worth three, fourth are worth two points and fifth place votes are worth one.

Sale won the National League Cy Young with 198 points after getting 26 first-place votes and four second-place votes.

There were 13 NL pitchers to receive points and three that garnered a single vote as each received one point. Braves righty Reynaldo Lopez, New York Mets lefty Sean Manaea, and Philadelphia Phillies righty Aaron Nola all earned a single fifth-place vote.

Skubal got all 30 first-place votes to win the American League Cy Young unanimously with 210 points.

In the American League, nine players earned points, and two received a single vote. Texas Rangers closer Kirby Yates earned one fourth-place vote for two points, while Houston Astros starter Yusei Kikuchi earned one point for a single fifth-place vote.

The 2024 season saw a number of Major League Baseball stars break out in surprising fashion. Some came out of nowhere, while others were former top prospects no one expected much from once the initial hype wore off.

Let’s use some advanced metrics to examine five breakout stars from 2024 and look at whether their success is a mirage or can be maintained moving forward.

LF Jurickson Profar, Atlanta Braves

Profar exploded last season for the San Diego Padres, having the kind of season at 31 years old that many predicted when he was the consensus top prospect in baseball in his teens. The outfielder earned his first All-Star berth and a Silver Slugger award as he recorded career bests in batting average (.280), on-base percentage (.380), slugging percentage (.459), home runs (24), RBIs (85), walks (76) and runs (94). It was a brilliant season on a $1 million contract that he parlayed into a three-year, $42 million deal with the Atlanta Braves.

Profar had long owned one of the best eyes in the game with tremendous plate discipline, but something flipped last season that led to him driving the ball more. His average exit velocity jumped from 86.5 in 2023 to 91.1 in '24, moving from the ninth percentile to the 80th. As a result, his xSLG jumped from .349 to .444 and his xwOBA rose from .306 to .364. It's a simple equation—if you hit the ball harder, you're more likely to get on base and show more power. It's worth noting Profar's BABIP was also a career-high .302, which could mean some of his success was due to a bit of luck.

Profar's highest average exit velocity before his breakout campaign was 87.5 in 2022, so last year was a total outlier. The Braves believe he’ll maintain his refined approach and lower-half adjustments to his swing, according to . He'll be one to watch this season to see if he can back up the numbers he piled up in '24. He's certainly always been talented enough to produce this way.

SP Luis Gil, New York Yankees

Gil had just seven MLB starts under his belt heading into last year after spending most of 2022 and ’23 recovering from Tommy John surgery, so it would’ve been optimistic to project a full season’s worth of starts in the Yankees' rotation. But he went on to be named the American League Rookie of the Year, going 15–7 with a 3.50 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP and 171 strikeouts in 151 2/3 innings.

Gil's fastball velocity (96.6 mph) was sixth among starters with at least 150 innings pitched and had a 28.5% whiff rate, quite an effective mark for a heater. His hard slider is his best pitch (31.5% whiff rate), but his changeup isn’t too shabby, either, clocking in as one of the fastest in the majors at 91.6 mph. The downside to his stellar campaign was his 12.1% walk rate, which caused him to lead the majors with 77 free passes in a reflection of his command issues. Perhaps most concerning was an xFIP of 4.36, suggesting he got help from good fielding or luck to keep his ERA down. When you factor in an average exit velocity in the 35th percentile and an opposing chase rate in the 15th percentile, his future looks shakier than the surface numbers would suggest.

The Yankees are fortunate in that Gil is part of a rotation that includes Gerrit Cole, Max Fried and Carlos Rodón, taking some pressure off the 26-year-old. A lat strain suffered during spring training will likely keep him on the injured list until May, but once he recovers he's likely to pitch more like a middle- or back-end starter than an All-Star.

The New York Yankees played—and won—on Opening Day with heavy hearts after the death of former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner's 14-year-old son Miller, who tragically passed away after falling ill on a family vacation in Costa Rica.

Prior to the national anthem on Thursday, the Yankees honored Gardner's son with a moment of silence. After the Yankees' 4-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, team captain Aaron Judge spoke to reporters and shared some heartfelt thoughts about how much Gardner means to him and the organization, adding that the former outfielder's family has been "on his mind."

"I got a lot of phone calls, texts from other guys that when we were young guys coming up—'What do we do? Do we reach out? What's going on?'" Judge said. "Just because of the way that Brett impacted all of our lives. He may not have been the big superstar with all the All-Stars and MVPs and this and that.

"But this guy was a leader of all of us. A second dad to some guys. He poured everything into every single guy. If you were having a tough time, he was always there for you to be someone to lean on, someone to joke on. His family—they've all been on my mind."

During the game, Judge also appeared to make a special tribute to Gardner when the Yankees fans affectionately known as the "Bleacher Creatures", chanted his name during the traditional roll call in the top of the first inning. When Gardner played for the Yankees, he would acknowledge the fans' chants with a flex move.

Over the last few years, Judge has been honoring Gardner by imitating the flex move when he's been in center field, the position Gardner played when he first made it to the big leagues with the Yankees.

On Thursday, Judge again paid tribute to Gardner with the move, this time from right field.

Gardner's son Miller passed away on the morning of March 21 after he had eaten at a restaurant and had fallen ill. Authorities in Costa Rica continue to investigate his death, but possible asphyxiation was ruled out as of Tuesday.

"We have so many questions and so few answers at this point,” Brett and Jessica Gardner said in a statement Sunday. "Miller was a beloved son and brother and we cannot yet comprehend our life without his infectious smile. He loved football, baseball, golf, hunting, fishing, his family and his friends. He lived life to the fullest every single day."

Bryce Harper is on a heater. The Philadelphia Phillies' star slugger hit his third home run in four games Friday when he clobbered a ball to the second deck at Citizens Bank Park against Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara.

On an 0-2 count in the bottom of the first inning, Harper turned on a cutter he received up-and-in for a no-doubt homer. The ball sailed 418 feet for a two-run shot, also scoring Phillies shortstop Trea Turner.

Harper was able to watch the ball leave the park as he knew it was gone immediately after making contact. The 89-mph cutter had an 106-mph exit velocity off the two-time National League MVP's bat.

And he did it while rocking an awesome gingerbread shinguard:

The hot stretch started on Tuesday as Harper hit a two-run home run against the San Francisco Giants in a 6-4 win for the Phillies. He followed it up with another two-run shot the next day. Harper has four homers thus far through his 2025 campaign, with three coming in the last four days.

Earlier this week, Turner helped Harper reveal the gender of his fourth baby with wife Kayla. Turner handed Harper a custom bat that lined up with the new baby's gender. Harper then took a bright blue twig to the plate, letting everyone know him and Kayla are expecting a boy.

The eight-time All-Star is slashing .261/.400/.464 through 19 games to start the year as the Phillies sit in second place in the NL East with an 11-8 record.

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider returned to the mound Tuesday after a lengthy stay on the injured list, but things didn't go all too well for him in his first start since April 16.

Strider surrendered four earned runs, six hits and one walk while striking out three batters across 4 1/3 innings during the team's 5–3 defeat against the Washington Nationals. He didn't have his best stuff throughout his outing, and he acknowledged as much after the game.

During his postgame media address, Strider candidly reflected on his outing, taking ownership for his lackluster performance and how that impacted his team.

"I don't enjoy failing, and certainly not at the expense of the team. We sent a pretty good guy [Bryce Elder] down [to Triple A] that was supposed to pitch in my spot. That's not lost on me. It's kind of the nature of the game. I think it's important to have that perspective when the goal is to win. That takes 26 guys. The guy who's starting on the mound is a big component in coming out and winning every day, so if I can't be better, I don't need to be out there. I think everybody has that mentality at any position. I'm going to have to work to be better," Strider said, via Justin Toscano of

"I certainly want to play, but I take no joy in not giving us a chance. If I don't feel like I can provide for the team, then I don't take much pleasure in losing games for us," he added.

Strider enjoyed a sensational 2023 season, during which he finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting and made the All-Star team. That season, he struck out a league-best 281 batters and owned a 3.86 ERA. Injuries have derailed him a bit of late, however, keeping him sidelined for all but nine innings of the 2024 season and again impacting him at the start of the '25 campaign.

Considering his dominance in previous years, Strider knows he's not living up to expectations on the mound, and offered some rather harsh self-assessment of his performance.

Strider's next scheduled start is slated for Sunday, May 25 against the San Diego Padres.