In today's edition: NL wins All-Star Game, Arch Manning's moment has arrived, Behind the Lens, previewing the ESPYS, and more.
Yahoo Sports AM is our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it every weekday morning.
⚾️ NL wins All-Star Game in swing-off
Monday night's Home Run Derby was so much fun that MLB decided to hold another one on Tuesday.
ICYMI: The NL won the 95th Midsummer Classic, 7-6, after Kyle Schwarber powered the senior circuit to victory in the first-ever All-Star Game swing-off — essentially a tie-breaking home run derby.
The game probably should have never reached that point, with the NL taking a commanding 6-0 lead after Pete Alonso and Corbin Carroll's sixth-inning homers.
But the AL clawed back with six runs in the final three frames to trigger the swing-off, giving Atlanta's Truist Park its second home run derby in as many nights.
How it worked: Three batters per team, three swings per batter, most total home runs wins. The lineups were predetermined by the managers, who were limited to picking reserves because many starters had left the ballpark early.
Game notes:
Hank Aaron tribute: MLB and the Braves put on a spectacular Hank Aaron tribute, celebrating his then record-breaking 715th home run (it was, after all, July 15, or 7/15) with a three-minute light show.
Skubal wins first challenge: AL starter Tarik Skubal won the first-ever All-Star Game challenge to strike out Manny Machado. The ABS challenge system, new this year, was used four more times throughout the game.
Mic'd up legend: Clayton Kershaw had a blast in his 11th All-Star appearance, chatting with the booth while throwing pitches in the second inning.
Is the NL back? After years of AL dominance (they won 21 of 25 games from 1997-2022), the NL has now won two of the past three All-Star Games. They trail the all-time series, 48-45-2.
🎧 Fresh pod:All-Star week recap(Baseball Bar-B-Cast, Yahoo Sports)
🏈 Arch Manning's moment has arrived
Texas QB Arch Manning was the star of the show at SEC media days, which served as the unofficial public kickoff to his crowning as the Longhorns starter.
From Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger:
A few days ago, Arch Manning phoned his father, Cooper, with a question about his appearance here at SEC media days. "Hey Dad," Arch asked, "What am I wearing?"
And so, last weekend, as any dad would, Cooper flew to Austin, connected with an acquaintance in the clothing industry and the two of them put together the wardrobe ensemble that the 21-year-old Texas QB showed off on Tuesday.
Cooper refers to the outfit as one befitting a "Southern gentleman" — a navy jacket over an orange-and-white striped shirt, matching striped tie, khaki slacks, a brown belt and, for a dash of a different color, a light blue pocket square and blue suede shoes.
Twinkling on his left lapel, a golden Longhorns pin. "I don't know that it's really a suit," Arch said with a smile. The Arch Suit was born.
In the biggest media moment of his career — more than 1,000 reporters, radio personalities and TV journalists were in attendance — Arch, infamously an avoider of the spotlight, spun through this media carwash like a seasoned veteran of such events.
He smiled, laughed, cracked jokes, even teased reporters and spoke not like the most highly billed first-year starter in the country but a humbled kid just play'n ball.
"Talk is cheap," he said. "I gotta go prove it." That starts on Aug. 30, when Arch and the Longhorns play at defending national champion Ohio State. "Gonna be a fun one," quipped Arch.
It's been a long road here, real long, longer than maybe anyone expected, including him and his father. Not only was Arch one of the most highly billed high school QBs ever, but he's the latest member of what is arguably the greatest football family in the sport's history.
In 30 months in Austin, he's started two games, attempted 95 passes and tossed nine touchdowns. Finally, his day has arrived — well, six weeks from now.
Maybe this will be worth the wait. But it wasn't easy — no, not at all, especially for a kid who has started since his little league days.
It was so "tough," Arch said, that he began as a freshman playing pickup basketball games to satisfy his "competitive fire." In fact, he used to vent to teammates and staff during those bench-warming days.
Did dad get frustrated too? "I've always liked when things didn't go perfectly for my children because I thought it builds character," Cooper said in an interview with Yahoo Sports this week.
"If they're complaining about something either they are going to fix it themselves, overcome it or make an adjustment. Mom and dad coming to the rescue is only when it's really bad. Let them deal and overcome."
In many ways, Arch is like any other kid, his dad says. He attended college with other priorities than just football. He wanted to meet new people, experience new things and learn (they do still go to school — Arch is majoring in communications and leadership).
In an age of more player movement than ever, Arch stands as the outlier. He's also taller, thicker, smarter and just more mature than the kid who enrolled in January of 2023.
It's been a weird ride to this point. He can remember walking to class as a freshman two years ago having to take photos with fellow students. Always the shy one, he'd phone his mom as a way to look busy.
"I hadn't even played," he said. But after all of that, he's finally made it, on full display at the SEC's annual informal kickoff to the season.
📊 By the numbers
💔 114 years old
Fauja Singh, the man believed to be the world's oldest marathon runner, died Monday in Punjab, India, after being hit by a car. He was 114.
🏈 $250.4 million
On Monday, the Jets signed fourth-year WR Garrett Wilson to a four-year, $130 million extension that makes him one of the NFL's highest-paid wideouts. On Tuesday, they signed fourth-year CB Sauce Gardner to a three-year, $120.4 million extension that makes him the highest-paid CB of all time.
Related: The Chiefs signed Trey Smith to a four-year, $92 million extension on Tuesday, making him the highest-paid guard of all time.
⚽️ 461,582 fans
The Women's Euros quarterfinals kick off in Geneva today following a group stage that saw a tournament-record 461,582 fans attend 24 matches.
📸 Behind the lens: Club World Cup
With the Club World Cup in the rearview, we spoke with Getty Images photographers about their favorite off-the-field shots.
Steph Chambers:
I have never seen fans like the Urawa Red Diamonds supporters. They cheer so loudly and in perfect unison. It's intimidating.
I wanted to capture their energy in a unique way, so I went up top to an overlook area that looks directly down at their section and waited for a chant where they were using their arms in sync.
The extra element of the Japanese flag made the image more graphic and compelling. It was a sea of red.
Carmen Mandato:
Some of my favorite images came out of the tunnel, a space that FIFA grants our team special access to. It's quiet there.
Removed from the chaos of the pitch, it becomes a rare, in-between moment where players gather themselves before stepping into the spotlight.
As they line up, you can see it all start to shift— focus, nerves, resolve —each player processing what's ahead in their own way. There's a compelling intensity that settles into their expressions.
Hector Vivas:
For me, this photo of the trophy lift is a summary of what these weeks of work have been like — teamwork.
I took this photo with a remote camera in a unique location thanks to the access we have as FIFA photographers. I placed the camera inside the field in front of the awards ceremony, achieving a different angle of the celebration, with a ground-level perspective.
Our work often receives credit only to the person taking the photograph. But this shot wouldn't have been possible without my teammates who secured access, accompanied me with the right tools, and ensured the image reached our editing team as quickly as possible.
Photo gallery:Best of the Club World Cup
📺 Watchlist: Wednesday, July 16
🎙️ The ESPYS | 8pm ET, ABC
The 33rd annual ESPY Awards are tonight in Los Angeles, where comedian Shane Gillis is hosting and dozens of athletes and sports figures will be honored for their performance, careers and more.
The nominees:22 awards will be given out, headlined by the following three:
Best male athlete: Josh Allen (Bills), Saquon Barkley (Eagles), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder), Shohei Ohtani (Dodgers)
Best female athlete: Simone Biles (Gymnast), Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (Track & Field), Gabby Thomas (Track & Field), A'ja Wilson (Aces)
Best team: Panthers (NHL), Dodgers (MLB), Liberty (WNBA), Ohio State (NCAAF), Thunder (NBA), Eagles (NFL), North Carolina (Women's Lacrosse), USWNT (Soccer), UConn (Women's Basketball)
Special honorees: As they do each year, the ESPYS will also present three awards for courage, perseverance and service.
Arthur Ashe Award for Courage: To NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson, for his fight to establish free agency as president of the NBPA from 1965-74.
Jimmy V Award for Perseverance: To Penn State women's volleyball coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley, for leading the Nittany Lions to the national championship while battling breast cancer.
Pat Tillman Award for Service: To David Walters and Erin Regan, former athletes who were among the 7,500 first responders that fought the devastating wildfires in Southern California earlier this year.
More to watch:
🏀 WNBA: Fever at Liberty (7:30pm, CBSSN) … First-place New York (14-6) hosts sixth-place Indiana (11-10).
⚽️ Women's Euros: Norway vs. Italy (3pm, Fox) … Quarterfinals.
🚴 Tour de France: Stage 11 (7:15am, Peacock) … Following the first of two scheduled rest days, riders will travel 97 miles through Toulouse.
⚽️ MLS: Cincinnati vs. Miami (7:30pm, Apple) … A matchup of the last two Supporters' Shield winners (best record).
🏈 NFL trivia
The Buccaneers are celebrating their 50th season this fall by bringing back their original 1976 white road uniforms for their home opener.
Question: Which franchise began play alongside the Bucs in 1976?
Answer at the bottom.
⛳️ Flashback: Rory's 61 at Portrush
The 153rd Open Championship tees off tomorrow at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, where Rory McIlroy once shot a course-record 61 as a 16-year-old amateur.
Rory: "I remember every shot from that round like it was yesterday," McIlroy said of his historic outing back on July 12, 2005. "It was the first time I ever played 18 holes without a bogey."
Trivia answer: Seahawks
We hope you enjoyed this edition of Yahoo Sports AM, our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.
Category: General Sports
