Yahoo Sports AM: What to watch as MLB’s second half begins

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🚨 Headlines

🚴‍♂️ The Tour’s final weekend: Tadej Pogačar has all but wrapped up his third Tour de France title, leading two-time defending champ Jonas Vingegaard by 3 minutes, 11 seconds with three stages left. The race ends on Sunday in a time trial for the first time since 1989.

🏈 A new era: ESPN unveiled its “SEC on ABC” graphics package that will debut this fall, as the days of SEC football on CBS come to an end after nearly 30 years.

🏀 Russ on the move: The Clippers traded Russell Westbrook to the Jazz, where he’s expected to agree to a buyout and eventually join the Nuggets.

⚽️ USMNT tumbles: The U.S. men’s national team fell five spots to No. 16 in FIFA’s latest world rankings — their lowest in two years — after their disappointing showing at Copa América.

⚾️ Mark your calendar: The 2025 MLB season will open with a two-game series in Japan featuring four of the country’s biggest stars as Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s Dodgers will take on Seiya Suzuki and Shōta Imanaga’s Cubs.

⚾️ Bring on the second half

With the All-Star break in the rearview, there’s nothing but two-and-a-half months of uninterrupted baseball on the horizon. Here are 10 things to watch as the season’s second half gets underway.

1. The NL’s crowded Wild Card race: Nine teams are locked in a battle for three spots, and though the Braves have a 3.5-game lead at the top, the other eight (Cardinals, Mets, D-Backs, Padres, Pirates, Giants, Reds, Cubs) are separated by just four games. You better believe this is going to come down to the final week.

2. O’s or Yankees? Baltimore has a one-game lead in the heated divisional race, and both teams are powered by AL MVP favorites in Gunnar Henderson and Aaron Judge, who could threaten to hit 60 homers for the second time in three years (on pace for 57).

3. Can Seattle break through? Speaking of competitive divisions, the Mariners have seen their 10-game lead over the Astros shrink to just one as they seek their first AL West title since 2001.

4. Philly’s special: The MLB-best Phils (62-34) are on pace for a franchise-record 105 wins. After reaching the NLCS (or better) two years in a row as a wild card, they’ll try to do so this season as a frontrunner.

5. Ending the droughts: The Royals (52-45) and Pirates (48-48) have each missed the playoffs eight seasons in a row, tied for the second-longest active drought in the league, but both are within two games of a wild card spot.

6. Chasing Fernando: Paul Skenes is basically a shoo-in for the Rookie of the Year at this point. The question now is whether the fireballer with a 1.90 ERA and the third-most WAR among NL pitchers can join Fernando Valenzuela in 1981 as the only rookies to win Cy Young.

7. Ohtani’s worth every penny: Here are Shohei Ohtani’s numbers in his first 94 games since signing a $700 million deal with the Dodgers: .316 AVG (2nd in NL), 29 HR (1st), 69 RBI (3rd), 23 SB (3rd), 1.036 OPS (1st). Third MVP incoming?

8. The Elly show: Reds SS Elly De La Cruz has quickly become one of the most exciting players in the game, and with 46 stolen bases he could threaten to become the first player with 80 steals in a season since 1988 (on pace for 77).

9. Farewell, Oakland: The A’s time in Oakland is up at the end of the season, as they’ll head to their temporary home in Sacramento next year before moving to Vegas in 2028.

10. Who’s winning it all? The Dodgers are currently World Series favorites (+333 at BetMGM), followed by the Phillies (+450), Yankees (+550), Orioles (+600), Braves (+900), Guardians (+1600), Astros (+1600) and Twins (+1600).

What to watch: Here are five players who should be moved before the trade deadline, which is less than two weeks away on July 30.

MLB links: Standings | Stats | Fantasy weekend preview

⛳️ The Open’s surprising Round 1 leader

Daniel Brown had made just two starts on the PGA Tour before teeing it up at Royal Troon on Thursday, but that didn’t stop him from carding a 6-under 65 to take the solo lead on the first day of The Open Championship.

Who is this guy? The 29-year-old Englishman plays on the European Tour where he won his first event as a rookie last season. He’s struggled recently, though, missing the cut in seven straight starts before having a solid outing at last week’s Scottish Open (his second PGA Tour start).

• On Thursday at Troon, he was one of just three players to card a bogey-free round, including birdies in two of his last three holes to pass Shane Lowry atop the leaderboard.

• And at No. 272 in the world, he’s the lowest-ranked golfer to lead a major after the first round since 2016.

More from Round 1:

• The leaderboard: Brown (-6), Lowry (-5) and Justin Thomas (-3) led the way ahead of seven golfers at 2-under.

• The favorite: Scottie Scheffler shot a 1-under 70 to put him right in the mix at five shots off the lead, a key number given the last 24 Open winners have been within five after Round 1.

• Rory and Bryson: The U.S. Open’s top-two finishers struggled mightily, as Bryson DeChambeau (+5) and Rory McIlroy (+7) both have work to do to make the cut.

• More of the same for Tiger: Woods tallied six bogeys, two doubles and two birdies to finish at +8, and his final event of the season is going to finish with a third consecutive missed cut.

Live updates: Round 2 is underway.

🎓 How SEC coaches will pay their football players

This year’s SEC media days, a four-day extravaganza that ended Thursday, were dominated by talk of the historic concept permitting schools to directly pay their athletes via revenue sharing. And in the SEC, most of the ~$20 million distributed annually to athletes will go to the sport that generates most of the revenue: football.

From Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger:

Within the third-floor convention space of the Omni Hotel, SEC banners cover the walls during the conference’s annual media days.

Plastered on one is the league’s iconic pinwheel of school logos. On another is a reminder of the SEC membership count: “Now, 16 strong,” it says. And on a third surface, the largest and most elaborate wallpaper stretches from floor to ceiling displaying the league’s trademark slogan.

It just means more.

While the catchphrase is mostly rooted in the conference’s passionate fan bases, in the impending era of athlete revenue sharing, it holds a most fitting significance: It means more money, a lot more.

In fact, according to estimates from many of the conference’s head football coaches, SEC schools are expected to spend as much as one-quarter of a billion dollars annually as a league on their football players, or about $15 million per school a year.

“Do the math,” Florida coach Billy Napier told Yahoo Sports. “We’re talking $20 million (in allotted revenue sharing). In most athletic departments, football is 70-75% of the revenue. That’s $12.5-15 million. That’s the number we anticipate.”

LSU coach Brian Kelly describes his expected football roster budget: “I’d say between $14-17 million.” Can every school afford such a price tag? “Everybody in the SEC,” he said with a smile.

Keep reading.

🏁 F1 is set up for an exciting second half

The second half of the Formula One season begins on Sunday, and for the first time in recent memory the driver and constructor champions don’t look like a foregone conclusion.

Where it stands: Two-time defending champion Red Bull lead the way (373 points), but it’s looking like a legitimate four-team race as Ferrari (302), McLaren (295) and Mercedes (221) are in shouting distance with 12 of 24 races still to come.

1. Red Bull: Max Verstappen remains atop the driver standings with seven wins, but teammate Sergio Pérez is fading, having missed the podium in seven straight races.

2. Ferrari: Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are in third and fourth, but Leclerc — like Pérez — has struggled with his form in the past month, opening the door for McLaren and Mercedes.

3. McLaren: Lando Norris’ breakout season has him sitting in second with seven podiums and his first win, while Oscar Piastri has leveled up in his second F1 campaign, failing to score points just once.

4. Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are surging with four podiums in their last four races, including two straight wins and Hamilton’s first victory in three years.

Can anyone catch Max? Verstappen completely dominated F1 in 2022 and 2023, winning 34 of 44 races, but he’s showing signs of mortality this year, yielding more balanced standings. To wit, twice as many drivers have won a race halfway through this season (six) than in all of last season (three). If Norris’ breakout continues, he could catch the three-time defending champ.

📆 July 19, 1996: The Atlanta Games

28 years ago today, the Olympics opened in Atlanta, marking the last time the Summer Games were held in the United States.

A memorable (and tragic) Olympics: These Games are best remembered for Michael Johnson’s golden-spiked dominance, Kerri Strug’s heroic vault on an injured ankle and, tragically, the bombing at Centennial Olympic Park, which left two dead and injured over 100.

More on this day:

• 🚴‍♂️ 1903: Maurice Garin won the inaugural Tour de France, which featured just six (very long) stages and 21 finishers.

• ⚾️ 1910: Cy Young won his 500th game, becoming the only pitcher in MLB history to reach that milestone — and it isn’t even close*.

*A league of his own: Young’s 511 career wins are nearly 100 more than Walter Johnson in second place (417), and they’re the only two who’ve even reached 400.

📺 Watchlist: WNBA All-Star weekend

WNBA All-Star weekend begins tonight in Phoenix with the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest (9pm ET, ESPN) before tomorrow night’s main event (8:30pm, ABC) — a pre-Olympics exhibition between the U.S. Women’s National Team and the WNBA All-Stars*.

• Team USA: A’ja Wilson (Aces), Breanna Stewart (Liberty), Sabrina Ionescu (Liberty), Diana Taurasi (Mercury), Kelsey Plum (Aces), Brittney Griner (Mercury), Napheesa Collier (Lynx), Kahleah Copper (Mercury), Chelsea Gray (Aces), Jewell Loyd (Storm), Alyssa Thomas (Sun), Jackie Young (Aces)

• WNBA All-Stars: Caitlin Clark (Fever), Angel Reese (Sky), Arike Ogunbowale (Wings), Aliyah Boston (Fever), DeWanna Bonner (Sun), Allisha Gray (Dream), Dearica Hamby (Sparks), Brionna Jones (Sun), Jonquel Jones (Liberty), Kayla McBride (Lynx), Kelsey Mitchell (Fever), Nneka Ogwumike (Storm)

More to watch:

• ⛳️ PGA: The Open Championship (Fri-Sun, NBC/USA/Peacock)

• 🚴‍♂️ Tour de France: Stages 19-21 (Fri-Sun, NBC/Peacock) … The race ends on Sunday.

• ⚾️ MLB: Tigers at Blue Jays (Fri. 7pm, Apple); Padres at Guardians (Fri. 7pm, Apple); Brewers at Twins (Sun. 1pm, Roku); Red Sox at Dodgers (Sun. 7pm, ESPN)

• ⚾️ Hall of Fame: Induction Ceremony (Sun. 1:30pm, MLB) … Adrián Beltré, Joe Mauer, Todd Helton and Jim Leyland comprise the Class of 2024.

• ⚽️ MLS: Sporting KC vs. St. Louis (Sat. 8:30pm, FS1); LA Galaxy vs. Portland (Sat. 10:45pm, FS1) … 12 additional games on Apple.

• ⚽️ NWSL: 10 games (Fri-Sun, CBSSN/Paramount+) … The inaugural NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup kicks off, featuring all 14 NWSL teams and six from the Mexican league.

• 🏀 Exhibition: Team USA vs. South Sudan (Sat. 3pm, Fox)

• 🏁 F1: Hungarian GP (Sun. 9am, ESPN)

• 🏁 NASCAR: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Sun. 2:30pm, NBC)

• 🏁 IndyCar: Streets of Toronto (Sun. 1pm, Peacock)

• 🥍 PLL: Week 6 (Fri-Sat, ABC/ESPN+)

• 🏀 NBA Summer League: 23 games (Fri-Sun, ESPN/NBA)

• 🏀 The Basketball Tournament: Rounds of 64 and 32 (Fri-Sun, free stream) … The 11th annual tournament with a $1 million winner-take-all prize tips off.

• 🏀 BIG3: Week 6 (Sat. 4pm, CBS)

*Another upset? Team WNBA upset Team USA in this event three years ago before the Tokyo Games, so don’t hand this one to the Olympians just yet.

🚴‍♂️ Tour de France trivia

Lance Armstrong won a record seven consecutive Tours de France before he was stripped of all his titles for doping.

Question: Which years did he “win” those seven races?

Answer at the bottom.

🏀 Is A’ja Wilson already the GOAT?

As A’ja Wilson prepares for her second Olympics and heads into the All-Star break hurtling toward a third WNBA MVP award as she leads the league in points (27.2), rebounds (12) and blocks per game (2.9), it’s fair to ask: Is she already the GOAT?

From Yahoo Sports’ Cassandra Negley:

Becky Hammon has long been clear on her feelings about A’ja Wilson, but nothing was more to the point than when she took the mic at the Las Vegas Aces’ second championship parade.

“I played against all the GOATs,” said Hammon, the Aces’ head coach and former franchise player. “Imma put it out there. This is going to be the GOAT of the GOATs.”

Keep reading.

Trivia answer: 1999-2005

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