⚾️ Cy Young Award Winners Announced, Steelers vs Browns TNF Preview, + More!

Morning Blitzers,

Start the day off with some good vibes. Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal celebrated his 28th birthday yesterday. It was a good day for Skubal who was also unanimously voted the AL Cy Young winner on the same day. To make the day even better his wife got him a brand new car and he was drenched in Champagne by his friends. For anyone wondering what I would like for my next birthday, I’ll refer you to this video below. I’m thinking silver for my new car color though.

WTF Stat: Tonight we get to watch two of the biggest surprise teams of the year. The Steelers were a surprise in a good way, while the Browns have been one of the biggest disappointments, here is a look at how Super Bowl odds have changed:

⚾️ Chris Sale and Tarik Skubal won the 2024 Cy Young Awards, marking their first such honors. Sale finished 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA and 225 strikeouts. He led the NL in wins, ERA, and strikeouts, earning 26 of 30 first-place votes. This marks the Braves' eighth Cy Young Award, the first since Tom Glavine in 1998. Skubal won unanimously, finishing 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts. He became the Tigers' first Cy Young winner since Max Scherzer in 2013.

🏀 Geno Auriemma, head coach of UConn’s women’s basketball team, became the winningest coach in NCAA history, earning his 1,217th career victory last night, surpassing Tara VanDerveer’s record. Auriemma's Huskies defeated Fairleigh Dickinson 85-41, marking the milestone in front of over 60 former players and a sellout crowd. The win is part of Auriemma's storied career, which includes 11 national titles, 23 Final Fours, and a record .882 win percentage.

🏈New York Jets owner Woody Johnson reportedly proposed benching QB Aaron Rodgers during an internal meeting on September 30, after the team's disappointing 2-2 start, which included a loss to the Denver Broncos. This suggestion created significant tension within the organization, with some sources indicating it was said provocatively, while others believed Johnson was serious about the idea.

Thursday Night Football Preview

Game: Steelers (8-2) @ Eagles (2-8) at 8:15 EST

Why we’re watching: You can throw out the record for theses AFC North games. They’re always physical slug fests that end up closer than they should be. You look at these two teams records and you think the spread should be at least 7 points, instead Vegas is also predicting a close game, spread is -3.5. The other obvious reason we’re watching is because of the man, the myth, the legend: QB Jamesis Winston. You never know what you’re going to get from Winston, but we do know he’s going to sling the football around (40+ passes in his three starts and he’s averaging 321 yards passing/game).

If Prime knew what they were doing, they’d have a streaming option just of Winston mic’d up, get on it Bezos!

Key Matchup: Browns offensive line versus T.J. Watt, Cameron Heyward and company. The Browns offensive line has let up the most sacks (46) in the NFL. Now, some of that was due to the fact that QB Deshaun Watson was racking them up when he was in there. But Winston has taken 11 in three games so he’s hasn’t been much better. Watt’s sack total (7.5) has been a little bit slower than usual this season, but he has 17 sacks in 12 games against the Browns in his career, so my guess is he has this game circled.

TNF Prop Bets: Jean (4-6) - Jameis Winston +213.5 yards passing — Keith (6-4) - Russell “The Muscle” Wilson +182.5 yards passing

D-Man’s Pick (7-4 TNF): Browns +3.5 - I don’t mean to dump on Mike Tomlin but he’s never won a Thursday Night game on the road in the division. I’m not sure he’s won a Thursday night game at all. Also, AFC North battles tend to be tight. And they’re coming off an emotional division win, whereas the Browns basically quit in the 3rd quarter in last weeks game. It seems foolish, but I’ll take the points.

Top NBA Scores

• Knicks 138, Suns 122: Jalen Brunson scored 36 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns added 34 as the Knicks got their fourth consecutive win. The Knicks were dominant from the start, hitting their first eight shots, including four 3-pointers, and led 44-28 after the first quarter. Brunson was red-hot, scoring 23 points on 8-of-9 shooting in the first half. Despite a brief third-quarter rally by the Suns, the Knicks came out victorious.

• Clippers 104, Magic 93: James Harden led the LA Clippers to a 104-93 victory over the Orlando Magic, scoring 24 points, including 11 of 12 free throws, and adding 7 rebounds and 5 assists. The Clippers extended their home win streak to six games. Amir Coffey contributed 18 points, while Ivica Zubac added 17 points and 12 rebounds. The Magic's six-game win streak ended, despite five players scoring in double figures.

• Bucks 122, Bulls 106: Giannis Antetokounmpo had another impressive performance, scoring 41 points, along with 9 rebounds and 8 assists. This win marked the Bucks' fourth in their last five games after a tough 2-8 start to the season. Brook Lopez contributed 21 points, while Damian Lillard had 20 points and 10 assists.

• Grizzlies 117, 76ers 111: Jaren Jackson Jr.'s 25 points led the way, while Desmond Bane contributed 21 points and 10 rebounds. The Grizzlies set a season-high with 19 made 3-pointers in the win. Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins became the franchise's winningest coach, surpassing Lionel Hollins with 215 career wins. Joel Embiid played well scoring 35 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, but Philadelphia fell to its fifth consecutive loss. Tyrese Maxey and Paul George struggled, combining for only 10 points.

See full NBA scoreboard here, and standings here.

Top NHL Scores

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• Maple Leafs 3, Golden Knights 0: Fraser Minten scored his first NHL goal, while William Nylander added his 13th of the season early in the third period on the power play. Joseph Woll earned his first shutout of the season, stopping all 31 shots he faced. The victory came at a cost as the Leafs lost forward Matthew Knies on a high hit, which, unsurprisingly, started a scrum.

• Sabres 1, Kings 0: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen recorded 24 saves, earning his first shutout of the season in his return from a two-game injury absence. Jason Zucker scored the game's only goal, 38 seconds into the third period on a power play, redirecting a shot from Rasmus Dahlin. Dahlin extended his point streak to seven games with the assist.

• Hurricanes 4, Flyers 1: Tied 1-1 headed into the 3rd period, the Hurricanes took control. Sebastian Aho scored early in the third, just 1:03 into the period, Carolina then added two more goals within 55 seconds—Jordan Staal and Jack Roslovic each scored to extend the lead.

See full NHL scoreboard here, and standings here.

On this day in 1934, the New York Yankees bought six players from the San Francisco Seals, a semi-pro baseball team. One of those players was Joe DiMaggio. Good investment. DiMaggio would become a 13x All-Star, 3x MVP, and help the Yankees with 9 World Series.

Yesterday’s Trivia Time Answer

Which active NBA player has the most points per game in their career?

C) Luka Dončić - 28.7 PPG through the first seven years of his career. He’s still only 25!

Check back tomorrow for the answer to today's trivia question and more info!