Fantasy football drafts will be here before you know it. (I've had a couple already, in fact.) So let's focus on the names at the top of the draft list -- and some reasons for taking each of them first overall. Spoiler: You'll be happy with any of the top four here. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

Who should be No. 1 pick in fantasy football drafts? Ranking top 5 options

Getting to draft first overall in fantasy football can be both a blessing and a curse. Here are five candidates to consider with the top pick.

usatoday.com

With time running out and MLB's Aug. 3 trade deadline looming, here's my assessment of how all 30 teams fall on the buy/sell spectrum. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

MLB trade deadline buyers and sellers: Where all 30 teams stand as time runs out

The MLB deadline deals have been few so far, but expect negotiations to hit a fever pitch soon.

usatoday.com

Max Scherzer and a spirited crowd at #Nationals Park seemed to recognize the same thing: Any time he can climb a mound in the big leagues, it should not be taken for granted. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

A birthday worth savoring: Max Scherzer, 42, makes appreciative return to mound

On Monday, July 27, Max Scherzer celebrated his 42nd birthday by returning to a major league mound for the first time in six weeks.

usatoday.com

Great to see. He was so good here. Glad the fans got one more opportunity to show their appreciation.

Toronto Blue Jays@bluejaysbot.bsky.social · last wk.

One more ovation in DC for Mad Max 💙

Keeping track of what's happening at the #MLB All-Star Futures Game, with some notes on the top prospects as the game progresses. www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

MLB All-Star Futures Game: Top prospects showcase their talents

Catch a glimpse of MLB's next generation of stars – before they hit the big time – in the annual All-Star Futures Game.

usatoday.com

Can't like every person in America sue over this?! I grew up in these incredible deserts. Y'all have no idea the majestic spaces they will destroy in these areas.

charjaebug@jael.bsky.social · 4w ago

Trump to sign order as soon as Monday to dismantle Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments www.abc4.com/news/politic...

Really, Chief Justice Roberts? Thanks a lot.

Kyle Griffin@kylegriffin1.bsky.social · 4w ago

BREAKING: The Trump White House just ousted all three sitting members of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission — hamstringing the bipartisan agency ahead of the midterms. The EAC helps state and local officials run elections, including by certifying election equipment.

Probably old news now, but I have to say last night during the England-Mexico World Cup match, Bluesky was the place to be for sports fans. It was the most engaged I've seen the site during a live event since I joined. Thanks to everyone for the lively (and often hilarious) discussion.

A little late to the viewing party, but caught the moon , Venus and Jupiter (?) in the sky over Manassas. @capitalweather.com

Scott Pelley is a rock star in the world of television news. The two-minute clip from his NY Times interview where this starts says everything about his unimpeachable credentials and the essential role journalism has in a democracy. Incredibly powerful. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePqd...

Scott Pelley on His Firing and the ‘Massacre’ at ‘60 Minutes’ | The Interview

YouTube video by The Interview

youtube.com

Wouldn't it be nice ...

Subscribe to Radio Free America (link in bio)@kleinman.bsky.social · 2mo ago

For a year the gerrymandering wars have begged the question, what would a fair map of all 435 congressional districts look like? Well wonder no longer, I provided a nationwide map at @heartlandsignal.bsky.social heartlandsignal.com/2026/06/09/w...

For a year the gerrymandering wars have begged the question, what would a fair map of all 435 congressional districts look like? Well wonder no longer, I provided a nationwide map at @heartlandsignal.bsky.social heartlandsignal.com/2026/06/09/w...

What Congress would look like without gerrymandering - Heartland Signal

What would fair Congressional districts look like nationwide? More representative, more competitive, and closer to guaranteeing that whichever party wins the popular vote wins the House.

heartlandsignal.com

Jason Benetti: “like when Ric Flair was kinda bored”

How fun will it be when Cristopher Sanchez's scoreless streak ends on a Fernando Tatis home run?

so, this is deeply, deeply horrifying thedreydossier.substack.com/p/i-found-a-...

I found a second vote.gov — and it's registered to the White House

There is a moment in every investigation where the thing you have been looking for finds you instead.

thedreydossier.substack.com

Probably easy to figure out who this is ... but all that green is just beautiful.

This is the student journalist who won the Mike Wallace Scholarship at tonight's Emmy Awards in NYC. @status.news reports 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley presented the award & responded to these comments saying “I know that Mike Wallace is looking down at you with pride at this very moment"

Acyn@acyn.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Campos: While I want to thank CBS news for funding this generous gift towards my education, I want to acknowledge how the recent direction of the outlet stains the legacy of Mike Wallace, the namesake of this scholarship.

Guess we have a pretty good idea who'll be the NL starting pitcher for this year's All-Star Game in Philadelphia ...

MLB@mlbbot.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Cristopher Sánchez finishes off a scoreless MONTH 😳 He joins Orel Hershiser (Sept. 1988) as the only two pitchers to go an entire calendar month without allowing a run since 1913 (min. 30 IP)!

This piece by Susan Saulny is one of the best pieces I've ever read on race and America because it's so personal. I promise it will be worth your time. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/15/u...

A Family Secret No More

nytimes.com

May the last of the 50 states now be the first one in this endeavor.

The American Prospect@prospect.org · 3mo ago

A supermajority of the American people loathe Citizens United. The idea that states can use their corporate-creating powers to curtail the corporate domination of politics is something new. buff.ly/XZSY4cZ

This is getting ridiculous. If we want players to make great plays, we can't have them running into these hazards and getting hurt.

Erica Block@ericablockparty.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Should outfield walls be less dangerous? Corbin Carroll just tweaked his wrist on the OF screen in Arizona Earlier Brandon Lockridge ran into exposed concrete in Milwaukee's OF, where wall padding doesn't extend to the ground Jasson Dominguez is on the IL b/c of Yankee Stadium's chain link fence

The shift didn't really change anything? You don't say. From back in 2023, posted free. Get tomorrow's baseball conversations today by subscribing. www.joesheehan.com/2026/05/joe-...

Amazing. As they came down the stretch, the horse with the red cap jockey (far left) somehow won the Kentucky Derby. Video (from bsky.app/profile/cjze...): bsky.app/profile/cjze...

CJ Fogler@cjzero.bsky.social · 3mo ago

What a finish - Golden Tempo wins the Kentucky Derby

"Why are all the journalists laid off now" this is why. Pretty simple.

Some really thought-provoking stuff here.

Garrett M. Graff@vermontgmg.bsky.social · 3mo ago

The White House bunker has never been intended to be a place a president would actually run a crisis from long-term. Why is Trump evidently trying to change that now & build a super-bunker? There's no scenario I can think of where this makes sense—except one: www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/the-troubl...

There should be a rule against hitting someone's 1st MLB pitch for a home run. 🧑‍⚖️

Today for @baseballprospectus.com I conducted some vital research, creating a taxonomy of TOOTBLANs. It's time for us to properly categorize the baserunning error, so we can both count them, and shame them, properly.

A Glossary of Bad Baserunning | Baseball Prospectus

Putting the TOOTBLAN back where it belongs.

baseballprospectus.com

what’s funny about this is that tarantino wrote this “ezekiel 25:17“ for the film. it isn‘t actually in the bible. publicwitness.wordandway.org/p/hegseth-bo...

Hegseth Borrows Violent Prayer from ‘Pulp Fiction’ to Bless Iran War at April Pentagon Worship Service

For the second month in a row, Pete Hegseth, who likes to call himself “secretary of war,” read a violent prayer — that echoes a scene in the Quentin Tarantino film Pulp Fiction — during a worship ser...

publicwitness.wordandway.org

Rory McIlroy Struggling To Fit Big Check Into Mobile Deposit Photo

this is one of the more famous Things People Do in the world of Behavioral Economics and the research conclusion is that you can't explain it to people because anyone who can understand it already doesn't do it because they already realized it themselves

Brian Floyd@brianmfloyd.bsky.social · 4mo ago

this is a thing that makes people feel like they’re saving money on gas when they’re spending an hour to break even at best. it’s a math problem that they’re failing www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...