Circuit Competition: MLB Drops the Dial

We're less than a month away from the MLB All-Star Game and the spectacular Home Run Derby that goes along with it.
And speaking of the Home Run Derby, there will be some changes for the 2026 edition. According to Evan Drelich and Johny Flores Jr. of The Athletic, MLB is set to return to a system based on swings rather than a clock—for the first time since 2014.
News: The Home Run Derby is ditching the clock. MLB is using a “swings” system in this year's derby. The derby has ha

As a sign that the 2026 Major League Baseball season is fast approaching, we're already less than a month away from the All-Star Game, and things will be moving quickly in the coming weeks.
So without further ado, here's the latest edition of Passion MLB's power rankings. Last week's rankings are shown in parentheses.
1 – Los Angeles Dodgers (2)
2 – Atlanta Braves (1)
3 – Milwaukee Brewers (3)
4 – New York Yankees (4)
He's available and would solve two problems. https://t

Lil Nas X is doing so well! Great to see him again.View this post on InstagramA post shared by MONTERO (@lilnasx)
I’ve had plenty of smoke for the women in Hollywood taking up for AI, including Reese Witherspoon and Gwyneth Paltrow, so it’s only fair that Martin Scorsese gets the same attention. I wonder what his longtime collaborators, like editor Thelma Schoonmaker, think about this.View this post on InstagramA post shared by Black Forest Labs (@bfl.ai)
The Summer I Turned Pretty i

Moments into the opening tune on Hillsboro’s A Party In Your Name album, it’s crystal clear that the Vancouver band has found exactly where ’90s emo and ’80s “shoegaze” meet.HotGirlTM layers atmospheric guitars and screaming violin over Oliver Hollingshead’s leaden kick drum for a sonic assault. Then, Nima Walker’s plaintive lead vocals land on top, asking for attention from someone who clearly isn’t listening.By the song’s end, the wa

Where and when are Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce getting married? Two of the biggest gossip questions consuming the ecosystem for months. It wasn’t June 13 in Rhode Island – even though Us Weekly boldly proclaimed it on the cover of the magazine, and have not been clowned enough for it. It could be July 3 in New York City at Madison Square Garden, which TMZ was the first to report, but there seems to be a lot of skepticism about whether or not that will actually happen since –

Spoilers for Widow’s Bay season 1There are hungry places in the world; places that devour, yet humanity cannot resist infringing upon the maw of something dark and terrible we do not understand. It is summer, people will insist on swimming in Lake Lanier. Every spring, thousands line up to climb Mount Everest. You’ll be fine, hubris whispers, it won’t get you. Curses aren’t real. You’re the special one who will make it. The hungry place merely waits, jaws wide, assu

The Expos will never completely fade away, since the collective memory of Quebecers will continue to keep them alive through various events.
Perry Gee is, of course, leading the charge in this regard. He's doing everything he can to ensure the Expos aren't forgotten in the city.There are only a few spots left to play with our #Expos All-Stars team this summer!3 spots remaining for the games in Pierrefonds and Prévost.2 spots remaining for the game in Saint-Jean-de-Matha.
For a $250 donati

Madison Square Garden has been the epicenter for gossip for the last several weeks. MSG’s primary resident, of course, is the Knicks. Then there’s all the speculation about whether or not it will be Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding venue… but for the last two nights, MSG became the temple of a pop culture priestess, her name is Rosalía.I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again – her album, Lux, is a masterpiece, one of the best albums of the

Ivan Demidov had a strong first season in the National League.
We've seen his talent, and we've seen that he has the offensive tools to become a very dangerous player in a few years. And now, people are already talking about his next contract… because he's likely to command a pretty hefty price tag.
Keep in mind that the young player will be eligible to sign a contract extension starting July 1. 
But there are two questions that come up often when discussing his next deal.1. How many

With the Spider-Man: Brand New Day press tour underway, it’s time for a new trailer…which already leaked online. Sony is having a really hard time keeping Brand New Day under wraps, the first trailer leaked during the holidays, and now the second trailer leaked, too. (This is on Sony, they handle the Spider-Man assets, not Marvel.) I mean, silver lining style, it is an indicator of how anticipated this movie is that no one wants to wait for it. Brand New Day is expected to be one of

Dear Gossips,By the time you’re reading this, the Knicks parade will be happening in NYC. The ticker-tape parade was invented in New York City, it’s become a New York City tradition, along the Canyon of Heroes, and today the city’s basketball team will be celebrated by its citizens, the first time in franchise history since there were no parades in the 70s for their previous championships.Viewing areas were already full hours before the parade kicked off with people camping out

The Canadiens said they wanted to handle the Brendan Gallagher situation with respect.
That's only natural, because we all know just how highly regarded the veteran is within the Montreal organization.
And that's also why the Habs are willing to do whatever it takes to allow him to continue his career elsewhere.
There's a scenario in which Gally is traded by the Canadiens (and there's a lot of talk about the Canucks being logical candidates), but there's also another scenario in which Kent Hughe

It’s both a big year and a challenging one for the Vancouver International Jazz Festival.While celebrations are in order for the centennials of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, as well the death of jazz greats such as Sonny Rollins, organizers have faced several hurdles when preparing for the local event’s 41st year.The major challenge has been going up against the World Cup and the FIFA Fan Fest, which take place from June 19 to July 5, dates that coincide with the jazz festival.&ldq

This season, Shohei Ohtani is definitely back as a starting pitcher. We saw him return last year starting in the middle of the season, but that was mostly in a limited role.
But in 2026, he has truly returned to his role as a starting pitcher.
And even though Ohtani doesn't necessarily go deep into his starts, he's had an excellent start to the season. In his first 10 starts of the season, he allowed just five earned runs.
Except that over his last two starts, things have been a lot tougher for

Mike Babcock’s return to the NHL is now on the verge of becoming a reality.
According to the latest reports, Bettman's league executives have decided to give Babcock the green light to return to the National Hockey League.
As a result, the Edmonton Oilers are now free to hire him.
This decision brings an end to a saga that has been dragging on for several weeks. When Babcock's name began circulating in Edmonton, many wondered whether the league or the Players' Association would oppose his

The stadium is sold out, and excitement is at an all-time high for the Montreal Alouettes.
The organization has just made a major splash in the Canadian Football League (CFL) trade market by bringing back the formidable American returner Mario Alford. The special teams specialist has signed a one-year deal with the Quebec franchise, marking a reunion that fans have been eagerly awaiting.
Alford isn't stepping into unfamiliar territory. Between 2019 and 2022, the dynamic 5’8″, 180-pou

If you dig a little deeper, you can find clues pointing to Samuel Montembeault's return to Montreal this fall.
But be careful: clues don't tell the whole story. After all, right now, the most likely scenario is still that Kent Hughes will trade the Quebec native.
Keep in mind that Edmonton is a logical destination, as my colleague Maxime Truman has already pointed out. According to my sources, the Oilers are reportedly very interested in Samuel Montembeault.
Note: The Oilers aren't the only team

Today is June 18. The draft is eight days away, and the free-agent market opens in less than two weeks. Man, time sure flies when the Canadiens make it to the conference finals…
There's one important date, however, that very few people are talking about right now across the NHL: June 29. That's 11 days from now.
Teams have until 5:00 p.m. on June 29 to submit a qualifying offer to their restricted free agents (RFAs), regardless of whether they're eligible for arbitration. If they fail to

The Panthers want to keep Sergei Bobrovsky. A.J. Greer does, too, by the way.
Will Bill Zito be able to work his magic and keep the players he wants? After all, last year he managed to do just that with Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett, and Brad Marchand at the last minute.
It was seen as a stroke of genius.
One thing that particularly helped the Panthers' GM was giving Marchand a very long-term contract to reduce the veteran's salary cap impact ($5.25 million).
The former Bruin had agreed to a six-yea

The word going around the NHL right now is that the Panthers won't be able to sign A.J. Greer before July 1. He could therefore become an unrestricted free agent.
Does that mean his time in Florida is definitely over? Not necessarily.
In fact, as Pierre LeBrun (@TheAthletic) notes in a rumor roundup, it's possible that once free agency opens, the Panthers will reach out to him. Greer would like to stay, but the Panthers need to free up cap space. NEW Rumblings for @TheAthletic
: Only 8 pending U

Everyone is eager to see what changes will be made to the Canadiens’ roster this summer.
Defensively, the overhaul shouldn't be massive. After all, the team's cornerstones are in place with a strong top-3: Lane Hutson, Noah Dobson, and Mike Matheson.
These guys aren't going anywhere.
We know the Canadiens are looking to sign a high-caliber right-handed defenseman to play in the top four, likely on the right side of Lane Hutson—who, as we've mentioned before, is a defenseman who deser

In the latest episode of the Passion MLB podcast, Pascal Harvey, Charles-Alexis Brisebois, and Sébastien Berrouard chatted about the Toronto Blue Jays' injured players, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s sleep, and the San Francisco Giants' potential fire sale—to name just a few topics.
Enjoy the episode!We'd like to remind you that anyone who wants to listen to us live can do so every Wednesday at 8 p.m. on Facebook, X, and YouTube. We record live to answer everyone's questions.
However, thos

Mike Trout Is Happy in Anaheim
Same old story.
Mike Trout is healthy, hitting well, and happy to stay with the Angels https://t.co/fC7k6ta2R8
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) June 17, 2026
A strange decision by the Mariners
All six starters have agreed to pitch in relief once in a while, taking turns.
The Mariners are introducing a piggyback plan through the All-Star break, where all of their starting pitchers will rotate through and have one piggyback outing.
The decision among all six s

When you look at the state of the autonomous vehicle market, you realize that July 1 isn't likely to be a day full of surprises. Big names are few and far between… and they aren't exactly selling a lot of dreams.
Alex Tuch is all well and good, but you know…
Another big name on the market is Darren Raddysh. The Lightning defenseman just tallied 22 goals and 70 points in 73 games, and you have to wonder if the Lightning will want to pay him following his big season, which came a bit

For the past few months, Matthew Knies has been making headlines in Montreal. We've learned that the Leafs forward could very well have ended up with the Habs last March… and that a trade between the two clubs was finalized just one minute too late.
We'll never know what the 2025–26 Habs could have accomplished with Knies, hehe.
The question was whether Kent Hughes would try again this summer. The Maple Leafs have since changed GMs, but Knies is apparently still available.
In fact,

Well, well.
While it wasn't clear how the Blue Jays would make room for Shane Bieber's potential return, the team has just announced that Max Scherzer is back on the injured list.
He was placed there (retroactive to June 14) due to back pain.
To take his place, Chad Dallas has been recalled. He won't be the starter tonight (MadMax was supposed to be) since Braydon Fisher will act as the opener… but we can expect Dallas to eat some innings in his second career start and for Spencer Miles t

Tom Holland and Zendaya are on the press circuit for Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Today, they’re in Amsterdam. Zendaya looks like she’s got a parade to lead (compliment), Tom looks happy to be there (compliment).
I never, ever get tired of these two because of their palpable joy around each other. Even if they weren’t a superstar couple, you believe the friendship is real because you can SEE it. They don’t just love each other, they LIKE each other. It’s the whole rea

Jesperi Kotkaniemi is officially a Stanley Cup champion. The Finnish player hoisted the Stanley Cup following his Hurricanes' victory in the Finals on Sunday night.
And he took the opportunity to post a photo on his Instagram account… while disabling comments.
The problem is that KK didn't play a single game in the playoffs. The former Canadiens player appeared in 42 regular-season games… but he mostly spent a lot of time as a backup in Carolina.
That said, we know he's under contr

We independently select everything we recommend. Buying through us may earn us a commission, which supports our work. Victoria’s Abigail’s Hotel has been named the seventh best hotel in the world, and the No. 1 best hotel in Canada , according to TripAdvisor’s 2026 Travelers’ Choice Awards: Best of the Best Hotels website.The 1930s Tudor mansion, adult-only, 30 room property was also last year’s top Canadian hotel on the list.“We are proud and honoured to shar

Four months after a teaser in which everyone collectively rejected the look of NuShrek, the teaser for Shrek 5 is here and bullying didn’t work this time, Shrek still looks different. The teaser, er, teases a new adventure with Shrek and Donkey, the teaser also shows off Princess Fiona and Fergus and Farkle, Shrek and Fiona’s son. Their triplet sister, Felicia, voiced by Zendaya, is not seen in the teaser. So if you’re here wondering if we get a taste of Zendaya in the Shrek-ve