Red Sox Get Major Bullpen Boost Before Doubleheader Against Yankees originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox received an important reinforcement at exactly the right time.
Boston announced Saturday that right-handed reliever Garrett Whitlock was reinstated from the 15-day injured list. He will serve as the club's 27 players for its day-night doubleheader against the New York Yankees. Whitlock had been sidelined since Aug. 10 because of right elbow inflammation. He threw live batting practice Wednesday and came through the session without any issues, clearing the way for his return at Yankee Stadium. The timing could hardly be better for interim manager Chad Tracy.
Boston must cover at least 18 innings Saturday, with Game 1 beginning at 1:05 p.m. ET and the nightcap scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET. Even the deepest bullpen can be stretched during a doubleheader, especially when the second game comes only a few hours after the first ends. Whitlock gives Tracy another proven late-inning option and reduces the likelihood that one of Boston's lower-leverage relievers will be forced into a critical spot.
The Red Sox are also calling up Raymond Burgos as the final player on the roster for the doubleheader.

#tracy #bullpen

Caitlin Clark may have been putting up monster numbers as of late, but for veteran sports **** yst Jason Whitlock, she's still far from her teammate, Kelsey Mitchell, when it comes to the MVP race.
In a video posted on X on Monday, Whitlock talked about how Clark struggles to perform against stronger teams and how she stat pads against the weaker ones and even compared her to Mitchell, who performs well regardless of who they face.
"Kelsey Mitchell plays her best against the best," Whitlock said. "Mitchell is flatlined – 25 a night against Las Vegas, against New York, against whoever shows up with length. Clark's numbers crater the moment real defense steps on the floor."
He added in the caption of the video, "This weekend summed up this season for Caitlin Clark: Folding under pressure versus a contender on Friday and a masterpiece versus one of the league's bottom feeders last night. You don't get that inconsistency with Kelsey Mitchell.
Whitlock's comments echoed what Sophie Cunningham said to NBC sideline reporter Ashley ShahAhmadi after she referred to Mitchell as the MVP.

#clark #whitlock #best

Cam Ward entered the NFL with the arm talent and improvisational ability that made comparisons with Patrick Mahomes easy to understand. Jason Whitlock thinks those comparisons may now be doing the Tennessee ****** ans quarterback more harm than good.
Whitlock argued that Ward's best path in Year 2 is not chasing spectacular off-script plays. Instead, he believes the 2025 No. 1 overall pick needs to play more like Brock Purdy, take easier throws, and get more comfortable operating within structure.
"If Cam Ward is going to make it in the NFL, he will have to stop trying to be Patrick Mahomes and adopt more of Brock Purdy's game instead," Whitlockwrote on X.
During the accompanying discussion, Whitlock agreed with former ****** ans scouting director Blake Beddingfield's recent argument that Tennessee needs Ward to become more of a game manager.
"The problem with Cam is he does not paint within the numbers enough," Whitlock said. "Take the dump down. Take the check down. Take the eight-yard hitch."

#patrick #instead

A series of shootings in Michigan left five people plus a suspect dead Friday, police said, following an extensive search around two homes and a wooded area.
Officers responded just before noon to reports of a shooting at a home in Missaukee County, about 170 miles (270 kilometers) northwest of Detroit, and found three people dead and another in critical condition, Michigan State Police said in a statement. The wounded person was taken to a hospital.
Suspect Chad Hickman, 39, fled before they arrived at the home, according to police. As officers conducted a large-scale search for him, they found a fourth person dead at another home.
In a post on the social platform X, police warned that Hickman was armed and dangerous and told community members not to approach him.
Hickman's vehicle was later found in a wooded area near Whitlock Lake, and that led authorities to his body as well as that of another dead person.

#person #people

Red Sox Bullpen Takes Another Major Hit With Justin Slaten Injury originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox bullpen suffered another significant loss at the worst possible time.
Boston is placing right-handed reliever Justin Slaten on the injured list with elbow soreness, according to The Boston Globe's Alex Speier. Left-hander Raymond Burgos will be recalled from Triple-A Worcester to fill Slaten's roster spot.
The move comes only three days after the Red Sox placed setup man Garrett Whitlock on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation.
Boston now has lost two of its most trusted right-handed relievers in less than one week, leaving interim manager Chad Tracy with a much different late-inning picture behind closer Aroldis Chapman.

#slaten #nesn #handed #list

Stephanie White's pregame conference drew a scathing take from Jason Whitlock.
Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White dedicated her entire pregame conference vs. the New York Liberty to clearing the air about the earlier Sophie Cunningham-DiJonai Carrington controversy.
White went off at people who doubted her support for Cunningham and blamed it on her not watching the replay of the hard foul.
During the press conference, White used some harsh words, and this led to a brutal callout from ****** yst Jason Whitlock.
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

#indiana

Last Saturday, Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington elbowed Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham in the face while attempting a chase-down block. Carrington was ******* sed a Flagrant 2 and ejected from the game.
After the Fever beat the Sky, Fever head coach Stephanie White commented on the controversial play.
"I mean, look, it was a hard foul," White said at her postgame press conference. "I don't think that DiJonai intentionally came out to get her across the neck like she did, but it did happen, and I thought it was the right call. But one of the things about [Carrington] is that she's gonna play her ******* off, man. She's gonna compete. ******* ody's gonna go walking in for a layup. I don't oppose the hard foul, but I also don't think she intentionally went for the neck."
Before returning home to Indiana to become the Fever's head coach in November 2024, White was head coach of the Connecticut Sun for the 2023 and '24 WNBA seasons, winning the 2023 WNBA Coach of the Year award. She coached Carrington on the Sun for those two years. So, if anyone not named DiJonai Carrington has the authority to speak on her playing style, it's White.
But, as with all matters of the WNBA, people who otherwise don't care about women's basketball latched onto this and blew it out of proportion. Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith publicly called for White's job. Beckwith wasn't alone in criticizing White, as the likes of Linda Cohn and Jason Whitlock joined the chorus.

#carrington #indiana

Lake Mary Little League got their revenge game against Clayton, North Carolina, in the 2026 Little League Softball World Series. A win today will put Florida into the championship game.
The Lake Mary All-Stars got their LLSWS started with blowout wins of 14-0 and 15-0 in seven combined innings against Washington and Italy. But they were flummoxed by North Carolina in a 5-2 loss. The pitching tandem of Chloe Cheek, Brynn Fieser and Riley Tolan has been scored upon in just one inning, the five-run fifth that put Clayton on to the semifinals.
Florida won a rematch with Washington by a more modest score of 5-0, a game delayed more than an hour by lightning in the area. Fieser opened the scoring with a third-inning double, and Kaylee Whitlock pulled off a safety squeeze and scored in a four-run fourth to put it away.
Watch Little League Softball World Series on Fubo
Now Florida must win a grudge match against a North Carolina team that's been just as dominant during the weeklong tournament. If they win, Lake Mary will play Sunday, Aug. 9, for the city's second Little League World Series ******* le in three years (the baseball team won it all in 2024).

#little #lake #Florida #game

Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell's win for Eastern Conference Player of the Month for July 2026 led to Jason Whitlock having only one word in response.
Mitchell averaged 27.2 points on 49.5% from the field and 46.1% from three over 10 games in July, leading the Fever to an 8-2 record with Caitlin Clark by her side.
Clark was among the leading contenders to win the award for the month, with many surprised that Mitchell won it despite Clark winning two Player of the Week awards.
Veteran media personality Jason Whitlock shared his reaction to Mitchell beating out Clark for that award with a one-word response, supporting Mitchell after her first-ever Player of the Month win.
"Awesome."

#clark #month #response

Jason Whitlock questions Caitlin Clark's behavior amid MVP-caliber Fever season originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Caitlin Clark has put together one of the strongest seasons in the WNBA, but her performance has not silenced every critic. Former ESPN and Fox Sports personality Jason Whitlock offered a sharp **** sment of the Indiana Fever guard's behavior, calling Clark a "whiner" while questioning whether she has shown enough emotional maturity on the court.
Whitlock's comments came despite Clark averaging 21.6 points, 8.0 **** ists and 4.1 rebounds per game. The former No. 1 overall pick has helped Indiana emerge as one of the league's top teams after the Fever missed the playoffs during her rookie season.
Clark has also entered the MVP conversation, although Whitlock believes she must earn the honor strictly through her performance.
Whitlock acknowledged that Clark has improved her shot selection this season and said he hopes she wins MVP. However, he also criticized her reactions to officials and other moments of frustration.

#behavior

Cam Newton doesn't sound like a man nursing a grudge.
Hours after ESPN cut ties with him in the same round of layoffs that ended Ryan Clark's 11-year run at the network, the former Carolina Panthers quarterback framed his brief run at First Take as something closer to an internship than a second career.
"Working alongside some of the most talented journalists and sports individuals that cover sports was something that got me to realize I have a newfound respect for the skill," Newton said. "You can't make me hate ESPN. What I've learned, it was an internship. I am a former athlete that did not study journalism, so now when you see how production actually works, you'll be a fool not to take your notes."
Newton signed a multi-year deal with ESPN last August to expand his role on First Take, stepping into the seat vacated after Shannon Sharpe's departure amid a ***** ual ***** ault lawsuit and settlement. From there, Newton became a fixture alongside Stephen A. Smith through the football season, a run that included a manufactured feud with New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye and widely criticized comments about women's value being tied to how many children they have. Criticism even came from colleagues within ESPN after he had Stephen A. Smith's arch-enemy, Jason Whitlock, on his podcast. In response, Smith stated that there were a number of reasons why Newton's First Take presence could be questioned, but that he was still supportive of his appearances on the program.
And yet, Newton's time with ESPN and First Take is now surprisingly over before the beginning of the 2026 football season, as he was one of several names caught in a wave tied to the network's absorption of NFL Network, a list that also included Karl Ravech, Charles Davis, Tom Pelissero, and Clark, who learned of his firing while on-air.

#espn #newton #first #year

Jason Whitlock is throwing barbs at ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith over Smith's post on X regarding the death of Nolan Wells.
Wells' body was found two days after he disappeared while on a Fourth of July boating trip to Horn Island. Wells, 18, was taking a boat trip with some friends but never returned with them.
The circumstances around Wells' death have led his parents to seek a clarification about them. Wells' funeral was held on Monday. When Smith posted on X about this, Whitlock wasn't far behind in calling him out.
On Tuesday afternoon on X, Smith posted the following: "This is a very sad day. Nolan Wells was laid to rest today. My heart goes out to his family and loved ones. But it ain't over. We need to find out what happened to that young man…"

#smith #death

NEW YORK (AP) — The Boston Red Sox, grounded for nearly 24 hours due to a pair of mechanical issues on their team plane, finally arrived at Citi Field on Friday afternoon, a little more than two hours before the scheduled first pitch of their series opener against the New York Mets.
The Red Sox got to the ballpark at 5:05 p.m. EDT, and the start of the game was pushed back by 35 minutes to 7:50 p.m.
"We're here," reliever Garrett Whitlock said, sitting in the dugout and sporting a tired smile.
The Red Sox expected to depart from Chicago on Thursday night, a few hours after they beat the White Sox 2-1 for their sixth straight win. But pitcher Peyton Tolle said the "tug" — which tows the planes around the runway — was malfunctioning.
The Red Sox remained on the tarmac until after midnight, at which point they went to a pair of hotels in Chicago. The team returned to the aircraft Friday morning but was delayed again by what interim manager Chad Tracy described as issues with "switches or light bulbs in the ****** pit."

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Jarren Duran and Willson Contreras homered, and five Boston pitchers combined to give up two runs over 6 1/3 innings in relief of injured starter Ranger Suarez to lead the Red Sox to a 7-5 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday night.
Boston’s eighth victory in 10 games completed a three-game sweep of the Angels, who have lost six straight and 12 of 19 since June 14.
Suarez, named to the American League All-Star team Saturday, exited with two outs in the third because of left adductor tightness, an injury he sustained when he jumped for Jo Adell’s chopper over the mound.
The left-hander was followed by Greg Weissert (1-2), Tyron Guerrero and Garrett Whitlock, who combined for 4 1/3 hitless innings. Justin Slaten gave up a run in the eighth, and Aroldis Chapman allowed a solo homer to Zach Neto in the ninth before earning his 18th save.
The Angels scored twice in the first on Jorge Soler’s grounder and Adell’s RBI single. Boston tied it 2-all in the second on Duran’s 13th homer, a two-run shot to right-center off starter Ryan Johnson (1-4).

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Jarren Duran and Willson Contreras homered, and five Boston pitchers combined to give up two runs over 6 1/3 innings in relief of injured starter Ranger Suarez to lead the Red Sox to a 7-5 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday night.
Boston’s eighth victory in 10 games completed a three-game sweep of the Angels, who have lost six straight and 12 of 19 since June 14.
Suarez, named to the American League All-Star team Saturday, exited with two outs in the third because of left adductor tightness, an injury he sustained when he jumped for Jo Adell’s chopper over the mound.
The left-hander was followed by Greg Weissert (1-2), Tyron Guerrero and Garrett Whitlock, who combined for 4 1/3 hitless innings. Justin Slaten gave up a run in the eighth, and Aroldis Chapman allowed a solo homer to Zach Neto in the ninth before earning his 18th save.
The Angels scored twice in the first on Jorge Soler’s grounder and Adell’s RBI single. Boston tied it 2-all in the second on Duran’s 13th homer, a two-run shot to right-center off starter Ryan Johnson (1-4).

Jason Whitlock is back with another of his rants on social media in relation to Caitlin Clark. The Indiana Fever guard was out of the team’s win over the short-handed Los Angeles Sparks 111-87 on Saturday due to the recurring back injury that has been bugging her since the start of the season. However, when Fever coach Stephanie White addressed the media before the team’s practice on Tuesday, she was surprisingly minimal on the superstar’s availability.
The Fever’s season has not been smooth thus far, with the team at 11-8. A lot of that gap has been attributed to Clark’s shooting woes and the difficulty of adjusting to White’s system.
Surprisingly, the media asked just one question about Clark’s status and whether she would practice with the team. White responded:
“Oh, no, she’s gonna be doing an individual workout today.”
Whitlock was not happy with the conversation about the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year and wrote on X:

Caitlin Clark’s latest WNBA behavior debate has drawn comparisons to an old Dallas Wings clip, but Jason Whitlock used that footage to highlight a different expectation for Clark.
The conversation started after a fan pointed to a 2022 incident involving Arike Ogunbowale, who was then with the Dallas Wings.
The clip showed a frustrated player reaction from a different WNBA moment, but Whitlock did not treat it as a reason to excuse Clark. Instead, he argued that Clark was supposed to represent something different.
Responding on X, Whitlock said his issue was not whether other WNBA players had lost control before.
“Love ya, man. But if we thought CC was gonna behave like everyone else in the WNBA, we wouldn’t have jumped on board,” Whitlock tweeted.

Victor Wembanyama’s first NBA Finals run changed the way some commentators talked about him, and Jason Whitlock turned that shift into a direct attack on Gregg Popovich.
The San Antonio Spurs star entered the postseason with the profile of the league’s next clean superstar. By the end of the run against the New York Knicks, his physical play, visible frustration, and post-series reaction had become part of a much harsher debate.
Whitlock went further than most by blaming the Spurs’ longtime coach for what he sees in Wembanyama now.
In comments shared by Jason Whitlock on X, the commentator said Popovich had shaped Wembanyama into something far different from the image many fans once embraced.
“I blame Gregg Popovich for what Victor Wembanyama has become. Victim Wembanyama,” Whitlock said. “I want you to look at this collection of lowlights that Wembanyama put together during this postseason that totally transformed his reputation.”

Before the last two games, the Red Sox actually had a little thing going on the road where they won 10 out of 13 away from Fenway Park. After loses to the Yankees and Rays on Sunday and Monday though, they need to win tonight to keep any chance of a winning road trip alive.
On the mound to help them do that is Payton Tolle, who is coming off an excellent outing of six shutout innings against Baltimore. He’ll face off against Nick Martinez, who somehow has a 2.29 ERA this year in his age 35 season for the Rays after spending the bulk of his baseball career bouncing around between teams, starting and reliving roles, and even continents (he pitched in ******* an for four years between 2018 and 2021).
If the Red Sox do manage to get a lead against him, they’ll have a little extra help in the late innings to hold things down as Garrett Whitlock is back in the bullpen:
Here’s today’s full lineups as we wait to see what new horrors this building has in store for us.
RED SOX

Red Sox reportedly taking trade calls on three relievers, including Aroldis Chapman originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox are 27-35 in the regular season, and while it's a poor record, they're still in the hunt for the postseason.
But, if things go south from now until the August 3 trade deadline, Craig Breslow and the Red Sox might not have any other choice but to sell some of their ****** ets this summer. If they do, the bullpen is one area to watch.
Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic is reporting that the Red Sox have already fielded trade calls on three relievers, one of which being superstar closer Aroldis Chapman.
"The Red Sox are shopping Wong in particular, according to a league source, and have also fielded calls on relievers Aroldis Chapman, Justin Slaten and Garrett Whitlock," McCaffrey writes.