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  Alden GonzalezOct 20, 2025, 01:10 PM ET

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  ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.

Albert Pujols is no longer a candidate to be the manager of the Los Angeles Angels, sources confirmed to ESPN on Monday.

Pujols, though, is scheduled to interview for the San Diego Padres’ managerial vacancy on Wednesday, a source told ESPN. The Baltimore Orioles have also previously reached out with interest, though an interview has not been scheduled, a source said.

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The Padres became one of eight teams in search of a new manager after Mike Shildt announced he would retire from his role, joining the Angels, Orioles, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Washington Nationals, Colorado Rockies and Minnesota Twins.

Pujols, 45, is held in high regard by the Padres’ two most influential players — Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr.

Pujols is currently a special assistant for the Angels, as part of a 10-year, $10 million contract that was triggered after he retired in 2022. He interviewed with Angels general manager Perry Minasian in St. Louis on Oct. 9, but the two sides are no longer in talks, which was first reported by the New York Post.

The Angels have since granted permission to the Padres to interview Pujols, which was first reported by The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Pujols has expressed strong interest in managing at the big league level for years and led a Dominican winter ball team, the Leones del Escogido, to a championship in January. Pujols was previously named manager for his native Dominican Republic in next year’s World Baseball Classic, though he would likely rescind that role if he lands a big league job this offseason.

The Angels declined the 2026 option on manager Ron Washington’s contract after the regular season.

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Sei Young Kim led the BMW Ladies Championship at the end of first, second and third rounds this week at Pine Beach Golf Links in South Korea, but in the final round the nerves set in.

The 32-year-old South Korean pro hadn’t won a tournament since 2020, but she was in position to end the drought on Sunday — and then she missed a makable birdie putt on the first hole and three-putted for bogey on the third.

“I was very nervous from the very beginning, since it has been a while since I played in the last group, I wasn’t sure whether this was real. So I really was questioning myself,” Kim said. “… My father always told me when I’m nervous, ‘Don’t back off’ and I tried to remember that mindset.”

Kim didn’t make another bogey and made birdies on 5, 6, 7 and 9. She added two more on 14 and 15 to sign for a five-under 67 and cruised to the finish line. At 24 under, she beat runner-up Nasa Hataoka by four. Celine Boutier and A Lim Kim tied for third at 18 under.

It’s Kim’s 13th career victory, and she’s now a record 27th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season.

“I think it shows how strong the LPGA Tour is at the moment,” Kim said.

Back in 2019, Kim won three times, including the CME Group Tour Championship. She won twice more in 2020, highlighted by her only major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in October 2020 (which pushed her to No. 2 in the world). A month later she won the Annika but hasn’t lifted another trophy since.

As the drought continued, her confidence dwindled.

“There wasn’t any victory for the past five years. I was worried that this was going to get longer,” she said. “I just wanted to try hard, whether it takes five years or 10 years. I think it’s very important that you find the momentum and keep on that track, and keeping on the right track is I think one of the biggest lessons that I have learned. I want to take this momentum to have more wins in my career going forward.”

Kim started the day with a four-shot lead over Yealimi Noh and Hataoka, but Noh played the final 14 holes in even par after she was two under in the first four. Hataoka was one under after 11 and then birdied four of her last five, and while that late surge was good enough for runner-up honors, it wasn’t near enough to scare Kim.

“I think it took me more than 10 years to win in front of my family and friends,” Kim said. “It means so much to me. It is a tournament that I really wanted to win, and I find that I can’t express my words to all of it. I really had good energy from all the fans.”

Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill enjoying popcorn during the rain break Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar lost his cool in the commentary box after seeing Rohit Sharma munching on popcorn with captain Shubman Gill during the rain break in the first ODI at Perth.”Arey bhai usse popcorn mat de (Don’t let him eat popcorn),” Nayar said in commentary.Before the start of the match, Nayar had opened up on Rohit Sharmaâ€s remarkable fitness transformation, revealing the thought process behind the India skipperâ€s 11-kilo weight loss and his vision for the 2027 World Cup.“I think thereâ€s been a lot of talk about the weight loss,†Nayar told JioHotstar before the match.“The initial parts were obviously about getting fitter, getting leaner. I spoke about this before. There was this spitting image of him walking out of the airport after his holiday in the UK. So that was something he wanted to change. He wanted to come back.“The outlook was obviously the 2027 World Cup — to be fitter, stronger, lighter, and more agile. And the skill has always been there. The fitness has only amplified the skill. Itâ€s helped him move faster. His agility is the best itâ€s ever been.“Heâ€s excited. Heâ€s keen. He knows thereâ€s a bit of pressure and talk around whether heâ€ll reach the 2027 World Cup. The first statement was his weight. Hopefully, the second statement will be the runs he scores with the bat.â€

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Do you think Rohit Sharmaâ€s weight loss will positively impact his performance in the upcoming matches?

However, Rohitâ€s return didnâ€t go as planned. He scored only eight runs off 14 balls before Josh Hazlewood dismissed him.India were struggling at 52 for four in 16.4 overs when rain once again halted play.

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If you happen to be enjoying this month’s bout of FIFA World Cup qualifiers and other international fixtures, then make the most of it as this is the final October international break to take place as we know it.

This is the result of a big change to FIFA’s match windows from next season, which was unanimously approved by the FIFA Council in 2023 as part of a wider reform of the men’s and women’s international competition itinerary.

As such, Tuesday’s friendly between Mexico and Ecuador will be the final match that is played in an October international break in its present form.

– 2026 World Cup: Who has qualified, and how the rest can make it
– The evolution of the World Cup ball as 2026’s Trionda is unveiled
– Celebrating the Olimpico, one of soccer’s most audacious goals

From next year, FIFA will alter the international match calendar, doing away with the existing two-week international breaks in both September and October. Instead those two breaks will be rolled into one compact three-week break that will take place across those two months.

The new regular international match schedule will consist of three standard nine-day (i.e. two-match) breaks in March, June and November as well as a new, expanded 16-day break beginning in late September and running into early October. This extended break will allow time for nations to play as many as four fixtures, should they wish.

However, these changes don’t go far enough for Arsène Wenger, FIFA’s chief of global football development. Speaking in 2021, the former Arsenal manager revealed that he wanted to drastically reduce the current system of five international breaks without reducing the number of games.

Wenger’s idea — which he himself admitted was a “gamble” — was to stage two breaks (in October and March) or even just one (in October) for a month in total in a bid to reduce workload on players and alleviate the “chaos” and “congestion” in the modern game.

All well and good, you might think — although, were a player to be injured during the month in question, they wouldn’t have a chance to play international football again for many months, maybe all year.

FIFA’s decision to merge the September and October breaks will be good news for fans who tired of having the club season broken up three times in as many months right at the start of the season. However, the effect of having to go three entire weeks without seeing their team play will not be fully known until it becomes reality next year. At that point, some may learn a lesson in being careful what you wish for.

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WWE invaded the RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia on Saturday for the seventh Crown Jewel PLE, and John Cena’s final trip Down Under as an active Superstar. The wrestling world continues to debate the history-making event, and Dave Meltzer is receiving backlash for his remarks on a certain match.

Stephanie Vaquer and Tiffany Stratton did battle for the first-time-ever at WWE Crown Jewel III on Saturday night. Representing RAW, the current Women’s World Champion defeated the current Women’s Champion of SmackDown in just over 10 minutes to be crowned the second-ever Women’s Crown Jewel Champion.

The Women’s Crown Jewel Championship match aired as the second match of the night, right after Bronson Reed pulled off a big upset shocker in defeating Roman Reigns in their 21-minute Clash In Paris rematch, held under Australian Street Fight rules. The finish saw fans cheer in anticipation for Vaquer to hit the Devil’s Kiss, but Stratton countered as the back-and-forth continued. Vaquer finally nailed The Devil’s Kiss, and ended up blocking the Prettiest Moonsault Ever for the win.

WWE officials booked Vaquer vs. Stratton as the shortest match by far at Crown Jewel 2025, and that has been a hot topic of discussion during today’s fan debates on the match. The opener went 21 minutes, John Cena vs. AJ Styles ended at just over 27 minutes, The Kabuki Warriors’ loss to IYO SKY and Rhea Ripley went just under 20 minutes, and the main event went almost 30 minutes as World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins of RAW dethrone Undisputed Champion Cody Rhodes of SmackDown, who became the inaugural Crown Jewel Champion last year.

Dave Meltzer Blasts Stephanie Vaquer vs. Tiffany Stratton At WWE Crown Jewel

Tiffany Stratton vs. Stephanie Vaquer was discussed by Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer on the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, and Meltzer could not get past the crowd reactions. He declared this to be the worst bout on the five-match WWE Crown Jewel card.

“No heat. There was no heat until The Devil’s Kiss, [the crowd] popped for The Devil’s Kiss, [the crowd] popped for nothing else, and then they went right for the finish from The Devil’s Kiss. I thought it was… very underwhelming. The crowd was… they had to follow a match the crowd was very, very hot for, and from what I was told, this was the match that the people kind of took as the bathroom break match. … Yeah, the match was there. I was underwhelmed by it, I thought it was easily the worst match on the show, but yeah… just, no heat,” Dave Meltzer said.

Alvarez disagreed for the most part, noting that Stratton is “hit or miss” most of the time, but he thought the WWE Women’s Champion was mostly hitting here at Crown Jewel. Alvarez said this was far from the match of the night, but it was fine. Meltzer chimed in again.

“It was fine, it was just there. I didn’t think either of them did anything particularly wrong. It just was 10 minutes, it didn’t really have time to build and the crowd wasn’t into it, so… other than the one move, which they were really into, they really popped the crowd with that move but that move will always be over, but as far as moves go, they were fine, everything was fine there. It never got exciting,” Dave Meltzer said.

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Few young openers have begun their Test careers in such a thumping fashion as Indiaâ€s Yashasvi Jaiswal has done.

The young left-handed pocket dynamo has gone from strength to strength in quick time, already putting his name alongside some of the legends of world cricket at a young age, while threatening the records of past greats.

After ending the five-Test series in England on a high, with a 118 at The Oval, Jaiswal has slammed a brilliant unbeaten century on day 1 of the second Test against the West Indies in Delhi.

In good batting conditions at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, skipper Shubman Gill won the toss and elected to bat first.

While KL Rahul, centurion from the Ahmedabad Test, failed to convert his start into a substantial score, getting out on 38, his opening partner, Jaiswal, who himself had failed to convert his start into a substantial score in Ahmedabad, scoring 36, bedded in for the long haul in Delhi.

Jaiswal batted the entire day 1 and remained unbeaten on 173 runs, scored off 253 balls at a healthy strike rate of 68. The southpaw cut, pulled, drove, swept, lofted, and showed his full range of shots around the ground in ransacking 22 fours.

Jaiswalâ€s 173* is now the fourth-most amount of runs an India opener has scored on day 1 of a Test match. He is on the third spot as well, with his 179 against England last year in Vizag.

Jaiswal eyes century records of Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir as Indiaâ€s Test openers

Meanwhile, this was Yashasvi Jaiswalâ€s 7th Test century, to go with 12 fifties, in what is only his 26th Test match. This hundred has now put him on level with Shikhar Dhawan for centuries by Indiaâ€s openers in Test cricket, and now Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir are in his sight.

As Indiaâ€s Test openers, Rohit and Gambhir hit 9 Test centuries in 38 and 57 Tests, respectively.

Let us check the list of India openers with the most Test centuries:

1. Sunil Gavaskar – 33
2. Virender Sehwag – 22
3. Murali Vijay – 12
4. KL Rahul – 10
5. Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma – 9
6. Navjot Singh Sidhu – 8
7. Yashavi Jaiswal, Shikhar Dhawan – 7

Jaiswal is currently averaging 53, which is the highest by any batsman on the above list.

And he has done all of this while heâ€s still not turned 24 years old. Only three batsmen in Test cricketâ€s history have scored more Test centuries than Jaiswalâ€s 7 before turning 24: Don Bradman: 12 centuries; Sachin Tendulkar: 11 centuries; and Garry Sobers: 9 centuries. Jaiswal is sitting in the most elite company in Test cricket.

Meanwhile, at stumps on day 1 in Delhi, India are 318/2, with Jaiswal and Gill at the crease. Earlier, Sai Sudharsan notched up his second Test fifty but fell 13 runs short of what would have been his maiden Test hundred.

Get the Latest Cricket Updates at IceCric.News. Also, Follow Our Social Media for live updates on Facebook and Instagram.

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Besides competing in the WWE ring, Drew McIntyre is also making waves in Hollywood. Kevin Nash believes a former WWE star is helping him make his mark in Hollywood.

McIntyre recently landed a role in the upcoming Highlander reboot. McIntyre will star alongside Henry Cavill, who plays the role of Connor McLeod. McIntyre will portray his brother, Angus MacLeod.

During a recent conversation on Kliq This, Kevin Nash spoke about McIntyre and his forthcoming role in the Highlander movie. Nash responded to a fanâ€s comment about being unhappy with McIntyreâ€s position in WWE and how the movie allowed him to take a break from TV. Nash mentioned the reunion of Batista and McIntyre in the film and noted that this isnâ€t a coincidence. This is why he believes that Batista could be helping Drew McIntyre get more opportunities and action in Hollywood.

“Thatâ€s the second film that him and Batista have been together in. So I think Daveâ€s helping Drew get some action,†Nash said (H/T: WrestlingInc).

Prior to the Highlander reboot, Batista and Drew McIntyre shared the screen in 2024â€s The Killerâ€s Game. As far as his WWE career goes, Drew McIntyre last competed at last monthâ€s Wrestlepalooza event, where he unsuccessfully challenged Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Since then, he started a feud with Jacob Fatu on WWE SmackDown.

Read More:Santos Escobar Re-Signs With WWE — Report

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SUNRISE, Fla. — NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman isn’t the biggest fan of taking a nearly three-week break in the middle of the season so players can participate in the Milan-Cortina Olympics.

That said, he obviously sees the value.

Bettman spoke at the season-opening game Tuesday between the Florida Panthers — who raised their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship banner — and the Chicago Blackhawks. He made clear again that he knows what having NHL players back on the Olympic stage can do for the game.

“I think it’s going to be great,” Bettman said between the first and second periods. “It’s important to our players. That’s why we’re doing it. Listen, there are lots of reasons that I’m never thrilled about taking a couple of week break in the season. Changes a lot of things.

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“But on balance, I think it’ll be worth it, A) for the exposure, B) for the fan engagement, but C) and most importantly, this is and has always been very important to our players. And that’s why we’re doing this.”

The NHL got tons of exposure and engagement during last season’s 4 Nations Face-Off event, and the Olympics are obviously going to be bigger than that tournament.

“We came off of 4 Nations on a high,” Bettman said. “It shows you what our players can do representing hockey and what we think is the best best-on-best in international competition.”

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Last week, we covered five NHL players who are likely to take steps back this season. This time, we will take a look at five players who could be poised for breakout years.

After losing Vladislav Gavrikov to the New York Rangers in the off-season, the Kings have big skates to fill on their blue line. Gavrikov played around 23 hard minutes per game, and the 22-year-old Clarke will get a shot to fill them.

Clarke, who led all Kings defencemen last season with 28 assists and 33 points, is known more for his offensive skill set; he averaged 21.5 possession-driving plays per 20 minutes at 5-on-5 last season — seventh most out of 214 qualified defencemen (minimum 500 minutes at 5-on-5). Clarke also has an accurate shot, hitting the net on 53.7 per cent of his total attempts at 5-on-5. That ranked second at the position behind Philadelphiaâ€s Rasmus Ristolainen (57.4 per cent).

The question for Clarke, who played 16:17 per game last season, is whether he can perform at that level while possibly handling tougher assignments. Kings coach Jim Hiller recently lavished praise on Clarke for how much progress he has made defensively over the past year, which bodes well for the young defender.

The departure of John Gibson after 12 seasons in Anaheim means Dostal, 25, is the unquestioned starter in SoCal.

Dostal, who signed a five-year deal in July that carries a $6.5 million cap hit, did not turn heads with his traditional numbers last season (3.10 goals-against average, .903 save percentage in 54 games). But he shared the league lead with nine steals, which occur when the total of goals saved above expected (GSAE) is larger than the final score differential. For example, Dostal saved 5.2 goals above expected in Anaheimâ€s 2-1 shootout win against Los Angeles on Feb. 8. (That was also the single-highest GSAE recorded by any goaltender in a game last season.)

Dostal, who will represent Czechia at the 2026 Winter Olympics, played behind the leagueâ€s worst defence last season. He faced 27.2 scoring chances per 60 minutes — most among the 62 goaltenders who played at least 1,000 minutes. If the Ducks can improve there, Dostal has major breakout potential.

Nazar, 21, showed signs of that down the stretch last season, when he produced five goals and nine points in his final eight games (not to mention his 12 points in 10 games for Team USA at the IIHF World Championship). He is at his best when attacking with speed, ranking 11th in rush scoring chances and 13th in offensive-zone carry-ins per 20 minutes at 5-on-5 last season among 378 qualified forwards (minimum 500 minutes). Five of Nazarâ€s 12 goals in 2024-25 came off the rush.

The Sharks†roster is filled with potential breakout candidates, including Smith, who finished sixth in Calder Trophy voting last season. Smith, 20, picked up steam in the second half of his rookie year, posting 30 of his 45 points over his final 34 games.

Smith, who will primarily play wing this season, developed strong chemistry with No. 1 centre Macklin Celebrini. San Jose outscored opponents 18-17 and generated 52.4 per cent of the expected goals at 5-on-5 last season when Celebrini and Smith were on the ice simultaneously. The Sharks, by contrast, had a 40.3 XGF% and were outscored by 47 goals at 5-on-5 when Celebrini and Smith were off the ice. (The young forwards are expected to open the season on the same line.)

Playmaking was Smithâ€s most impressive attribute. He completed 51.2 per cent of his slot passes at 5-on-5 — 13th out of nearly 230 forwards who had at least 100 slot-pass attempts last season.

The silver lining for the Hurricanes after striking out with Mikko Rantanen is that they ended up with Stankoven, whom they see as a core part of their future. Carolina signed the 22-year-old forward to an eight-year, $48 million contract over the summer.

Stankoven, listed at 5-foot-8 and 165 pounds, plays much bigger than his size. He led all forwards last season in total rebound scoring chances at 5-on-5 and ranked tied for eighth in offensive-rebound recoveries. Stankovenâ€s feistiness is a perfect fit for the Hurricanes†forecheck-heavy attack.

Hurricanes coach Rod Brindâ€Amour has tapped Stankoven, who had 10 goals and 17 points in 34 games (including playoffs) for Carolina, as the teamâ€s second-line centre. That comes with increased offensive opportunities, which should lead to Stankoven topping his career-high 38 points from last season.

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Australiaâ€s womenâ€s tennis No 1 has put her career on hold for the rest of the year stating “mentally and emotionally I am at breaking pointâ€.

Daria Kasatkina, who switched nationality from Russia to Australia earlier this year, immediately becoming national No 1, blamed the “emotional and mental stress†related to that change, the strain of not seeing her family and the relentless schedule of the tennis circuit.

“Iâ€ve been far from fine for a long time and, truth be told, my results and performances show that,†she wrote on social media.

“Truth is, Iâ€ve hit a wall and canâ€t continue. I need a break. A break from the monotonous daily grind of life on the tour, the suitcases, the results, the pressure, the same faces (sorry, girls), everything that comes with this life.

“Thereâ€s only so much I can deal with and take as an individual women, all whilst competing with the best female athletes in the world.â€

“If this makes me weak, then so be it, Iâ€m weak. However, I know I am strong and will get stronger by being away, recharging, regrouping and reenergising. Itâ€s time I listened to myself for a change, my mind, my heart and my body.â€

Kasatkina opted to switch nationality after leaving Russia fearing for her safety having criticised their anti-LGBTQ+ laws and the war on Ukraine. Initially living in Dubai she moved to Melbourne and became a permanent Australian resident in March.

She subsequently became engaged to longtime girlfriend Natalia Zabiiako, a former Olympic figure skater, who won a silver medal for Russia at the 2018 Winter Olympics having earlier competed for her native Estonia.

Kasatkina said she had not been able to see her father who remains in Russia, for four years

A French Open semi-finalist in 2022 Kasatkina has finished the last four calendar years ranked in the top ten but is currently 19th after a modest season in which she won 19 and lost 21 matches. She will almost certainly be out of the top 20 by the time the Australian Open comes around.

The 28-year-old said she will be back in 2026, “energised and ready to rockâ€, and the build-up to her home grand slam is presumably a return target.

Australiaâ€s current No 2 is Maya Joint, ranked 35th globally.

Kasatkina is the third leading female player to end their season early following Paula Badosa and Elina Svitolina while there has also been a spate of players retiring mid-match recently.

The Womenâ€s Tennis Association (WTA) has made it mandatory for leading players to participate in a minimum 20 events including the four grand slams, 10 WTA 1,000 events and six 500-level tournaments.

But world No 2 Iga Swiatek said last month, “Itâ€s just impossible to squeeze it in the schedule. Maybe I will have to choose some tournaments and skip them, even though they are mandatory.

“We have to be smart about it – not really unfortunately care about the rules and just think whatâ€s healthy for us.â€

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