The first pitch before the Washington Nationals’ game Thursday was a full circle moment for two Little League World Series opponents.

The pitcher: Mo’ne Davis, one of the biggest viral sensations in the tournament’s history. The catcher: Nationals outfielder Robert Hassell III, who faced Davis in 2014. And struck out against her. On his birthday.

There were no hard feelings.

To be fair to Hassell, he also got a hit off Davis when his Nashville team faced her Philadelphia team, but that was one of only two hits she allowed in an eight-strikeout shutout. That game made her the first female pitcher to earn a win in LLWS history.

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Hassell even pops up by name in the old “SportsCenter” highlight reel, complete with narration by Stuart Scott and a tweet from Kevin Durant.

Hassell was drafted in the first round of the MLB Draft six years later. He spoke about the experience earlier this year and remained impressed, noting he still follows her on Instagram:

“It was crazy. She struck me out, it was on my birthday. Then I got a base hit off her. But yeah, the whole crowd screaming her name, we’re really young, it was crazy, but it was really fun … She was really good.”

For her part, Davis remembered her coach pointing out Hassell as a dangerous hitter when asked about him Thursday:

“I remember before the game, going over the lineup with out coach, he’s like, ‘Yeah, so, they have this kid named Robert, we have to watch out for him. He’s a really good hitter, he might be their best hitter, so just be careful, he bats at the top of the lineup.’ I’m like, ‘Alright, OK.’

“He stands close to the plate, I was like, ‘Alright, I gotta really lock in here.’ I don’t want to hit him, get him on base, give them any type of momentum. I was really feeling everything that game. I ended up striking him out which was pretty cool, so I have bragging rights right now. He can’t get his redemption back from me.”

Now 24 years old, Davis was at Nationals Park in connection to the tryouts for the Women’s Pro Baseball League scheduled to take place at the same stadium next week. Since the 2014 LLWS, she has released a memoir, played softball at Hampton University and graduated from Columbia University with a master’s in sports management.

As for Hassell, his bat made him a top 100 prospect in the minor leagues. He was among the many young players the San Diego Padres sent to Washington in the blockbuster Juan Soto trade in 2022. He made his MLB debut this season and entered Thursday slashing .250/.264/.356 with two homers in 106 plate appearances.

Aaron Nola is scheduled to be activated from the injured list and start for the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday against the Washington Nationals. 

With Nola’s return, manager Rob Thomson told reporters on Thursday that the Phillies will go with a six-man rotation for at least one turn. 

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Jesús Luzardo started the series opener on Thursday with Zack Wheeler scheduled for Friday and Taijuan Walker — who Thomson said was the No. 6 starter — going on Saturday. After Nola starts on Sunday, the rest of the rotation will line up with Ranger Suárez starting against the Seattle Mariners on Monday, followed by Cristopher Sánchez on Tuesday. 

Thomson’s decision might look smarter after Luzardo gave up three runs on four hits and three walks in Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Nationals. Suárez has also struggled recently, allowing five or more runs in three of his past five starts. In Thomson’s view, the starters’ workload is wearing them down. 

“Just getting some of these guys some extra rest because we’ve been grinding on them pretty hard all year,” Thomson said, via the Associated Press. “The one downside to it is you’ve got to take somebody out of your bullpen, so you’re a little short there but we’ll just have to figure it out.”

Philadelphia leads MLB with 687 1/3 innings from its starting pitchers. Sánchez tops Phillies starters with 150 2/3 innings, while Wheeler has logged 144 2/3 frames. After Thursday’s start, Luzardo is at 139 innings, followed by Suárez with 112 1/3. 

Nola returning to the rotation should help relieve some of those innings. However, he may take a while before he can build up a higher workload. Nola hasn’t pitched for the Phillies since May 14 after suffering a sprained right ankle that he initially tried to pitch through before going on the IL. That may be why he compiled a 6.16 ERA and 1-7 record before being sidelined. 

In his three rehab starts, Nola collected a 2.19 ERA in 12 1/3 innings with 17 strikeouts — including 11 in his final appearance. 

At 69-52, the Phillies go into the weekend with a five-game lead over the New York Mets (64-57) for first place in the NL East. The Mets lost to the Atlanta Braves on Thursday, 4-3.

The leaks were all true. The NBA officially announced its opening night and Christmas Day matchups Tuesday, and they won’t come as a surprise to those who have been paying attention.

The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder will kick off the 2025-26 NBA season on opening night in a matchup against Kevin Durant’s Houston Rockets on Oct. 21. That game will take place at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Later that night, the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors will square off to open their seasons.

In addition to the notable matchups and players involved in the opening-night festivities, history will also be made once the Lakers get underway. Once LeBron James takes the court, he’ll pass Vince Carter for the most seasons played in NBA history. James, 40, is set to start his 23rd NBA season.

All four of those teams will also play on Christmas Day, which features a full, five-game slate. Here’s the complete league schedule for Dec. 25:

• Cleveland Cavaliers vs. New York Knicks at 12 p.m. ET

• San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder at 2:30 p.m. ET

• Dallas Mavericks vs. Golden State Warriors at 5:00 p.m. ET

• Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers at 8:00 p.m. ET

• Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Denver Nuggets at 10:30 p.m. ET

NBA fans paying close attention to the news shouldn’t be surprised by those matchups, which were leaked by ESPN’s Shams Charania on Friday. In addition to those games, however, the NBA also revealed a four-game slate on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and confirmed a few more marquee early-season matchups.

On Thursday, the league unveiled the entire 2025-26 NBA schedule, with links for every single team’s schedule and every single date during the year. 

Prior to Thursday, the league slowly rolled out opening night games, Christmas games and a few other marquee games during the 2025-26 NBA season.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day gets four-game slate

The NBA has scheduled games on Martin Luther King Jr. Day since it became a holiday in 1986. The Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks will kick off a four-game slate on MLK Day this season. The contest will start at 1 p.m. ET.

They will be followed by the Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers at 2:30 p.m. ET, the Mavericks and Knicks at 5 p.m. ET and the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons at 8 p.m. ET.

NBA confirms early marquee matchups, Cooper Flagg’s first game

Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg will kick off his NBA career with a historic matchup. His first game will come against the San Antonio Spurs, which held the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

It will mark just the second time in league history that the No. 1 overall pick will face the No. 2 overall pick to open the season. Flagg, who the Mavericks selected No. 1 overall, will take on Dylan Harper, who went No. 2 overall, on Oct. 22 on ESPN.

The Cavaliers and Knicks will also play on ESPN on Oct. 22. 

The following day, the Thunder and Indiana Pacers will square off on the network. They’ll be followed by the Nuggets and Warriors. 

Peacock will stream games on Mondays throughout the NBA regular season. The league announced the first set of those games Tuesday, which will start with the Cavaliers and Pistons on Oct. 27. That contest will begin at 7 p.m. ET.

The Nuggets and Timberwolves will meet at 9:30 p.m. ET later that evening.

NBA Cup games announced

On Wednesday, the league announced 15 group play for the Emirates NBA Cup. Those contests will be spread across multiple days between Oct. 31 and Nov. 28.

Those games will air on either Prime Video, NBC and Peacock or ESPN.

How to watch NBA games during the 2025-26 season?

The NBA released a nifty guide for fans wondering where they can find nationally-televised games throughout the 2025-26 NBA season.

Games will be spread across ABC, NBC and Peacock, ESPN and Amazon Prime during the season.

The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history.

Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA — a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego.

 To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the 18th of 29 players who wore the No. 20 jersey for the Warriors.

That player would be Golden State guard alum Brian Shaw. After ending his college career at UC Santa Barbara, Shaw was picked up with the 24th overall selection of the 1988 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics.

The Oakland, California native also played abroad, for the Miami Heat, and Orlando Magic before he was traded t the Dubs in 1997. His stay with the team would span just 39 games before he’d be dealt again, this time to the Philadelphia 76ers in 1998.

During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Shaw wore only jersey No. 20 and put up 6.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game.

All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors jersey history – No. 20 – Brian Shaw (1997-98)

They say if you have two quarterbacks, you have none. Does the same apply to play-callers? If so, Auburn still might be in good hands because it sounds like they have three.

There has never been a more appropriately used phrase than “only at Auburn.” This situations is so mystifying that I initially thought it was fake. Nope, Hugh Freeze really is letting it fly in his third season on The Plains.

Freeze rose to prominence at Ole Miss because of his ability to recruit top-notch talent (by any means necessary) and call plays. In recent years, he hasn’t always acted as his team’s offensive coordinator. Last year, he described the offensive play-calling as a “collaborative effort.”

What the hell does that mean? Thankfully, the folks at AL.com asked offensive coordinator Derrick Nix how the Auburn offensive braintrust works.

“I try to do a good job on first-and-10, drive-starters. (Quarterbacks coach) Kent Austin does our third downs,” Nix told AL.com. “Head coach has the authority to overrule anything we say or do.”

So Auburn has a first-down play-caller, a third-down play-caller, and a head coach who is “heavily involved” and can veto any decision. That’s the sign of a healthy, streamlined operation. Fortunately, Lane Kiffin was willing to ask the question we all wanted to know.

Hugh Freeze had an opportunity to address the situation following Auburn’s practice on Thursday and he didn’t provide much more clarity.

“Derrick Nix is the offensive coordinator, and he does all of the planning, scripting in charge of the gameplan. There’s no staff that’s not a collaboration on the plan,” said the Auburn head coach. “I offensively or defensively reserve the right to say on the call sheet, ‘I don’t really like that one right here.’ But he does a great job for us. Kent kind of leads the third down plan, but other than that, Nix kinda leads the charge and has the play-calling duties, with me reserving the right to say, ‘Hey.’”

Take all of the humor out of this situation for just a moment. I know that’s hard to do because this is hilarious, but let’s not make jokes for just a second.

At his first SEC Media Days appearance, Freeze acknowledged that Auburn was undergoing a significant rebuild, but after 2-3 high school recruiting classes, they should be able to have it rocking and rolling. That time is now. Over his first two seasons, Auburn is 6-7 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, with losses to Cal, New Mexico State, and Vanderbilt.

Auburn fans were surprisingly willing to give him a little leash in the beginning. That’s no longer the case. He’s built a roster that should be a winner. Keldric Faulk is one of the best EDGE players in all of college football. Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton are arguably the best 1-2 punch at wide receiver in the SEC. The talent is there, but can Freeze successfully create a modern offense on The Plains?

He’s trying to do it with one of the most convoluted play-calling methods in the history of college football. This strategy can take the blame off the head coach’s shoulders, but there’s no way it can operate efficiently. There are too many voices talking into the headset.

This is just another reason why Auburn is the most fascinating team in college football in 2025. If it works, they have enough talent to be in the CFP. If it doesn’t, prepare for a firework show, and not the good kind either, one that looks like this.

They say if you have two quarterbacks, you have none. Does the same apply to play-callers? If so, Auburn still might be in good hands because it sounds like they have three.

There has never been a more appropriately used phrase than “only at Auburn.” This situations is so mystifying that I initially thought it was fake. Nope, Hugh Freeze really is letting it fly in his third season on The Plains.

Freeze rose to prominence at Ole Miss because of his ability to recruit top-notch talent (by any means necessary) and call plays. In recent years, he hasn’t always acted as his team’s offensive coordinator. Last year, he described the offensive play-calling as a “collaborative effort.”

What the hell does that mean? Thankfully, the folks at AL.com asked offensive coordinator Derrick Nix how the Auburn offensive braintrust works.

“I try to do a good job on first-and-10, drive-starters. (Quarterbacks coach) Kent Austin does our third downs,” Nix told AL.com. “Head coach has the authority to overrule anything we say or do.”

So Auburn has a first-down play-caller, a third-down play-caller, and a head coach who is “heavily involved” and can veto any decision. That’s the sign of a healthy, streamlined operation. Fortunately, Lane Kiffin was willing to ask the question we all wanted to know.

Hugh Freeze had an opportunity to address the situation following Auburn’s practice on Thursday and he didn’t provide much more clarity.

“Derrick Nix is the offensive coordinator, and he does all of the planning, scripting in charge of the gameplan. There’s no staff that’s not a collaboration on the plan,” said the Auburn head coach. “I offensively or defensively reserve the right to say on the call sheet, ‘I don’t really like that one right here.’ But he does a great job for us. Kent kind of leads the third down plan, but other than that, Nix kinda leads the charge and has the play-calling duties, with me reserving the right to say, ‘Hey.’”

Take all of the humor out of this situation for just a moment. I know that’s hard to do because this is hilarious, but let’s not make jokes for just a second.

At his first SEC Media Days appearance, Freeze acknowledged that Auburn was undergoing a significant rebuild, but after 2-3 high school recruiting classes, they should be able to have it rocking and rolling. That time is now. Over his first two seasons, Auburn is 6-7 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, with losses to Cal, New Mexico State, and Vanderbilt.

Auburn fans were surprisingly willing to give him a little leash in the beginning. That’s no longer the case. He’s built a roster that should be a winner. Keldric Faulk is one of the best EDGE players in all of college football. Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton are arguably the best 1-2 punch at wide receiver in the SEC. The talent is there, but can Freeze successfully create a modern offense on The Plains?

He’s trying to do it with one of the most convoluted play-calling methods in the history of college football. This strategy can take the blame off the head coach’s shoulders, but there’s no way it can operate efficiently. There are too many voices talking into the headset.

This is just another reason why Auburn is the most fascinating team in college football in 2025. If it works, they have enough talent to be in the CFP. If it doesn’t, prepare for a firework show, and not the good kind either, one that looks like this.

They say if you have two quarterbacks, you have none. Does the same apply to play-callers? If so, Auburn still might be in good hands because it sounds like they have three.

There has never been a more appropriately used phrase than “only at Auburn.” This situations is so mystifying that I initially thought it was fake. Nope, Hugh Freeze really is letting it fly in his third season on The Plains.

Freeze rose to prominence at Ole Miss because of his ability to recruit top-notch talent (by any means necessary) and call plays. In recent years, he hasn’t always acted as his team’s offensive coordinator. Last year, he described the offensive play-calling as a “collaborative effort.”

What the hell does that mean? Thankfully, the folks at AL.com asked offensive coordinator Derrick Nix how the Auburn offensive braintrust works.

“I try to do a good job on first-and-10, drive-starters. (Quarterbacks coach) Kent Austin does our third downs,” Nix told AL.com. “Head coach has the authority to overrule anything we say or do.”

So Auburn has a first-down play-caller, a third-down play-caller, and a head coach who is “heavily involved” and can veto any decision. That’s the sign of a healthy, streamlined operation. Fortunately, Lane Kiffin was willing to ask the question we all wanted to know.

Hugh Freeze had an opportunity to address the situation following Auburn’s practice on Thursday and he didn’t provide much more clarity.

“Derrick Nix is the offensive coordinator, and he does all of the planning, scripting in charge of the gameplan. There’s no staff that’s not a collaboration on the plan,” said the Auburn head coach. “I offensively or defensively reserve the right to say on the call sheet, ‘I don’t really like that one right here.’ But he does a great job for us. Kent kind of leads the third down plan, but other than that, Nix kinda leads the charge and has the play-calling duties, with me reserving the right to say, ‘Hey.’”

Take all of the humor out of this situation for just a moment. I know that’s hard to do because this is hilarious, but let’s not make jokes for just a second.

At his first SEC Media Days appearance, Freeze acknowledged that Auburn was undergoing a significant rebuild, but after 2-3 high school recruiting classes, they should be able to have it rocking and rolling. That time is now. Over his first two seasons, Auburn is 6-7 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, with losses to Cal, New Mexico State, and Vanderbilt.

Auburn fans were surprisingly willing to give him a little leash in the beginning. That’s no longer the case. He’s built a roster that should be a winner. Keldric Faulk is one of the best EDGE players in all of college football. Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton are arguably the best 1-2 punch at wide receiver in the SEC. The talent is there, but can Freeze successfully create a modern offense on The Plains?

He’s trying to do it with one of the most convoluted play-calling methods in the history of college football. This strategy can take the blame off the head coach’s shoulders, but there’s no way it can operate efficiently. There are too many voices talking into the headset.

This is just another reason why Auburn is the most fascinating team in college football in 2025. If it works, they have enough talent to be in the CFP. If it doesn’t, prepare for a firework show, and not the good kind either, one that looks like this.

They say if you have two quarterbacks, you have none. Does the same apply to play-callers? If so, Auburn still might be in good hands because it sounds like they have three.

There has never been a more appropriately used phrase than “only at Auburn.” This situations is so mystifying that I initially thought it was fake. Nope, Hugh Freeze really is letting it fly in his third season on The Plains.

Freeze rose to prominence at Ole Miss because of his ability to recruit top-notch talent (by any means necessary) and call plays. In recent years, he hasn’t always acted as his team’s offensive coordinator. Last year, he described the offensive play-calling as a “collaborative effort.”

What the hell does that mean? Thankfully, the folks at AL.com asked offensive coordinator Derrick Nix how the Auburn offensive braintrust works.

“I try to do a good job on first-and-10, drive-starters. (Quarterbacks coach) Kent Austin does our third downs,” Nix told AL.com. “Head coach has the authority to overrule anything we say or do.”

So Auburn has a first-down play-caller, a third-down play-caller, and a head coach who is “heavily involved” and can veto any decision. That’s the sign of a healthy, streamlined operation. Fortunately, Lane Kiffin was willing to ask the question we all wanted to know.

Hugh Freeze had an opportunity to address the situation following Auburn’s practice on Thursday and he didn’t provide much more clarity.

“Derrick Nix is the offensive coordinator, and he does all of the planning, scripting in charge of the gameplan. There’s no staff that’s not a collaboration on the plan,” said the Auburn head coach. “I offensively or defensively reserve the right to say on the call sheet, ‘I don’t really like that one right here.’ But he does a great job for us. Kent kind of leads the third down plan, but other than that, Nix kinda leads the charge and has the play-calling duties, with me reserving the right to say, ‘Hey.’”

Take all of the humor out of this situation for just a moment. I know that’s hard to do because this is hilarious, but let’s not make jokes for just a second.

At his first SEC Media Days appearance, Freeze acknowledged that Auburn was undergoing a significant rebuild, but after 2-3 high school recruiting classes, they should be able to have it rocking and rolling. That time is now. Over his first two seasons, Auburn is 6-7 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, with losses to Cal, New Mexico State, and Vanderbilt.

Auburn fans were surprisingly willing to give him a little leash in the beginning. That’s no longer the case. He’s built a roster that should be a winner. Keldric Faulk is one of the best EDGE players in all of college football. Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton are arguably the best 1-2 punch at wide receiver in the SEC. The talent is there, but can Freeze successfully create a modern offense on The Plains?

He’s trying to do it with one of the most convoluted play-calling methods in the history of college football. This strategy can take the blame off the head coach’s shoulders, but there’s no way it can operate efficiently. There are too many voices talking into the headset.

This is just another reason why Auburn is the most fascinating team in college football in 2025. If it works, they have enough talent to be in the CFP. If it doesn’t, prepare for a firework show, and not the good kind either, one that looks like this.