Cubs vs. Padres: Let’s Set the Stage for the Series

Last year, the Red Sox and the Yankees faced off in the “best of the rest” series, as did the Padres and the Cubs.
And this year, history is repeating itself. Either the Yankees or the Red Sox will face the Eastern Division champion, and either the Cubs or the Padres will once again face the Brewers.
The difference? This year, the Padres will have home-field advantage against the Cubs. On Saturday night, that series was confirmed.
Who will have the advantage between the Cubs and the

Manuel Arnaut is head of editorial content at Vogue Arabia and posted this callout about a brand delaying a start time for a celebrity. He could be referring to Rihanna arriving late to the Matières Fécales show. That’s a choice the designer and production team made, to wait.
Some designers (like Marc Jacobs and Giorgio Armani) were known to start on time, even if VIP guests were not in their seats. I understand Arnaut’s point because editors and buyers are working at f

Every week since the start of this season, we've ranked the 30 Major League Baseball teams based on their performance. And just because the regular season is over doesn't mean we have to stop.
So without further ado, here's the very latest edition of Passion MLB's power rankings—the playoff edition this time around.
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
Honor where honor is due: the two-time World Series champions deserve the top spot on this list, even though they're entering the postseason as the secon

Jacob Elordi has been Kendall Jenner’s plus one at the recent fashion weeks. Kendall closed the Bottega Veneta show in Milan the other day. In the fashion community, this is a flex. It’s the positioning, being the final model down the runway, but it’s also the house. Bottega Veneta is now Louise Trotter, who was coming into the creative director position last year after it was vacated by Matthieu Blazy who took Bottega to a whole new level before he left for Chanel.Louise&rsquo

Kirill Marchenko is currently in Toronto. He arrived last night.
Will the Russian be able to start his season at the same time as the others—that is, tonight against the Montreal Canadiens? It's hard to say.
Right now, we know the Maple Leafs are still waiting to see if he'll get his work visa in time. But aside from that, he's ready and available to help his team.As of 11:15 a.m., there's “still no” update on Marchenko's visa, according to his agent Dan Milstein. We'll be foll

Here we go. The Canadiens' regular season kicks off in just a few hours in Toronto. Florian Xhekaj and Adam Engstrom have made the big team, but it would be surprising to see them in uniform tonight against the Maple Leafs. Martin St-Louis is likely to rely on experience and should start the season with the players who gave him so much last year, especially in the playoffs.
That said, the two non-starters will still be rewarded on their paychecks.
As long as they remain with the Canadiens, Flori

Of course I know Céline Dion isn’t Paris, officially, but for the last several weeks, she’s become the symbol of the city – and I don’t think the city would object to this. Céline has brought so many people to Paris for her residency. She has brought music to the streets and joy to the block. Her exuberance is infectious and undeniable, and we need it more than ever.Last night Céline was the best surprise at the L’Oréal Paris show to kick

The big question heading into the Wild Card Series between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox was whether Aaron Judge, who is currently injured, would be in the Bombers' lineup or not.
And now we've just gotten the answer: Judge isn't on the Yankees' roster for their Wild Card Series, according to Jack Curry of the YES Network.
Aaron Judge is not on the Yankees' Wild Card roster. We predicted this on our postseason preview show. https://t.co/OUY4oAdFNH
— JackCurryYES (@JackCurryYE

Kirill Marchenko is in the news right now because of the trade between the Maple Leafs and the Blue Jackets. That's perfectly normal, of course.
But in reality, he's been in the news for the past few months.
Everyone knew he wanted to leave and didn't want to sign a new contract in Columbus. That alone was already a hot topic of conversation in the NHL.
But it went deeper than that.
His (former) coach's comments about him—regarding his desire to have players who wanted to be in the city&md

The Canadiens let Kirill Marchenko slip away. And for the next seven years, he'll be in their division.
We can all agree that the #1 reason the Russian is in Toronto is because the Maple Leafs had a player of Matthew Knies' caliber to trade.
The Habs would have gotten him if the 2026 trade deadline had been pushed back by a minute—ah, never mind.
All that to say that the Canadiens were in the mix. They wanted to land the Blue Jackets player, but they didn't have the resources to make it ha

Dear Gossips,Trigger warning for sexual assault.Jane Doe’s lawsuit against Cornell University and the men now known as the Cornell 7, who allegedly drugged and raped her for several hours in a frat house, and were in the group chats bragging about it and encouraging others to participate, was filed a couple of weeks ago and steadily picking up awareness.
Then, this past weekend, Florence Pugh brought even more attention to it when she posted about Jane Doe’s trauma on Instagram and t

With more than 160 feature films to pick from, this year’s Vancouver International Film Festivalhas something for everyone.The festival , which runs from Oct. 1-11, includes a few buzzy films destined for awards season chatter. This year’s titles include: the VIFF opener The Debut from director Jesse Eisenberg; Cannes Palme d’Or winner Fjord, directed by Cristian Mungiu; Mike Leigh’s Tender Loving Care; Wild Horse Nine from Martin McDonagh; Cannes Best Director winner Pa

Samuel Montembeault will serve as Jakub Dobes' backup at the start of the season.
We didn't expect to be writing this a few months ago, but the situation has changed. Kent Hughes's inability to find a trade partner for the Quebec native and the goalie's strong play have turned the tables.
And here we are.
We agree that, in the long run, this doesn't change Jacob Fowler's potential. The young man was the Canadiens' No. 2 goaltender in the playoffs, and we know that, eventually, the Habs see him a

Right now, there's only one official opening among Major League Baseball managers: Seattle. We'll see if any others open up.
If there's one name that just won't go away as a candidate to manage the Mariners, it's Torey Lovullo. The current Diamondbacks manager has been mentioned by several people.
Jim Bowden, in a podcast on Foul Territory, says that Jerry Dipoto knew him in Boston and has a lot of respect for him.
And since few believe he'll keep his job as manager in Arizona, he remains an opt

Kirill Marchenko is now, for better or worse, tied to the Maple Leafs.
The Toronto team chose to trade the only top-tier player who could truly adapt to playoff hockey for a highly talented player who will earn a higher salary.
Will it pay off? Because right now, it's the Blue Jackets (the team that was in trouble, as we recall) who are being praised by just about everyone.
There's a good chance we'll see Kirill Marchenko face off against the Canadiens tonight—he's likely just arrived in t

Things are getting seriously complicated for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who will have to do without their starting quarterback, Baker Mayfield, for at least three weeks.
The veteran dislocated his right thumb—his throwing hand—during Sunday's 23-16 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
The injury occurred in the final minutes of the game. On a fourth-down play with 13 yards to go, Mayfield was hit by linebacker Blake Cashman as he attempted to throw the ball. His pass was intercepted by Andr

The Montreal Alouettes have decided to give French a special place within their organization.
For several weeks now, the players have been participating in workshops designed to familiarize them more with the language and certain aspects of Quebec culture.
These French sessions take place every week, usually the day before games, and last between 20 and 30 minutes. The goal is, in particular, to help players better understand certain expressions used in Quebec, while working on their pronunciati

The Minnesota Vikings received a major update regarding Justin Jefferson after their star player left Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers due to an ankle injury.
Justin Jefferson was injured in the first quarter of the game after catching a pass from Kyler Murray. The wide receiver was quickly evaluated in the medical tent before returning to the sidelines. However, he was unable to return to the field and was ultimately ruled out for the remainder of the game. (Vikings⁠
)
The s

On Saturday, it was reported that the Canadiens had received offers for Kirby Dach, but that no trade had been finalized.
Among the teams interested were the Edmonton Oilers. It appears the Oilers are on the hunt for a center prospect, as they've once again been shopping around.
According to information shared by Elliott Friedman on his “32 Thoughts” podcast, Edmonton reportedly contacted the Kraken about Shane Wright.Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast about the Oilers: &ld

Even though Kirill Marchenko was traded, the stories about him just keep coming.
And this time, it involves the Canadiens.
Appearing on the Real Kyper & Bourne podcast on Monday, Elliotte Friedman revealed that the Russian was set to sign a contract with the Canadiens this summer.Ultimately, the deal worked out so that he ended up with the Maple Leafs because of the return requested by the Blue Jackets, who had the final say in the decision.
What's interesting is that Friedman wondered wheth

The Blue Jays are going to have their work cut out for them this winter. After all, the team absolutely has to be better in 2027.
And to do that, we can all agree that the offense will have to be better.
The team has money and will need to invest to bring players to the city. Whether through trades or free agency, it's going to take an investment.
But who might be a target?Mitch Bannon, who covers the Blue Jays for The Athletic, says he expects the Toronto Blue Jays to show interest in Kirill Ma

The Kirill Marchenko saga has finally come to an end following the trade that sent him to Toronto, but now other stories about him are quietly resurfacing.
About ten days ago, we reported that two players had shown up at the Blue Jackets' training camp out of shape. That had really riled up head coach Rick Bowness.
One of those two players is reportedly Marchenko. That's what former NHL goaltender Andrew Raycroft revealed on NHL Radio on Monday.Andrew Raycroft just said on NHL Radio that Kirill

That's today's big news in the National League. Kirill Marchenko has (finally) been traded.
The Russian is now a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs: Matthew Knies is heading in the opposite direction… and is now part of the Columbus Blue Jackets organization.
Marchenko in the City of Kings makes sense. Especially considering that the guy was invisible in '25–'26 when his team needed him…
Last season, the Blue Jackets were just a few points away from a playoff spot and needed t

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has had a reputation as a power hitter since the start of his career. But is he really one? The question arises, especially after his disastrous season that just ended yesterday. 
Former Blue Jays player Josh Donaldson weighed in on the issue, and for him, the answer is obvious. It's a resounding no! To back up his stance, he highlighted Vlad Jr.'s statistics from recent seasons. 9 home runs in 2026.
23 home runs in 2025.
30 home runs in 2024. 
26 home runs i

The Canadian Football League (CFL) has imposed two fines on Mathieu Betts for actions that occurred during the Week 15 game between the British Columbia Lions and the Montreal Alouettes.
The penalties were announced on September 26, nearly two weeks after the Lions' 48-29 victory. (the Canadian Football
League⁠)
The British Columbia defensive lineman was penalized for two separate incidents that occurred during the game. The first fine was for an unnecessary roughness penalty against Montr

It’s done.
Kirill Marchenko is now a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization.
The player, who was in the final year of his current contract, has signed a contract extension with the Leafs. And we now know the details of the deal.
Basically, Marchenko will earn $12.5 million per season starting next summer… through the end of the 2032–33 season. His contract extension is valid for six years.Kirill Marchenko signs a six-year extension with the #Leafs worth $12.5M AAV, acc

Is Aaron Judge out?
Right now, that's how it looks, according to Joel Sherman.“I would be very surprised if he (Judge) is on this roster.”Pinstripe Post Wild Card Series Preview with @Joelsherman1.YouTubehttps://t.co/F5XToMRCP8 pic.twitter.com/3t1nL8kMnD
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) September 28, 2026Nothing has been decided yet regarding Giancarlo Stanton.Aaron Boone said they haven't decided yet whether Giancarlo Stanton will be on the wild-card roster.
— Chri

This morning at practice, it became clear that Florian Xhekaj probably won't play tomorrow night in Toronto. Even with Oliver Kapanen out, Xhekaj is likely to be in the press box rather than on the ice.
Adam Engström is also likely to be there with him.
Of course, it's interesting to see the team leaving young players in the stands. You'd think that since they're already up there, the Habs would be better off putting them in the game to see what they're made of.
And Martin St-Louis, who was

Has it only been four years since Gisele Bündchen and Tom Brady announced their divorce? It seems like a lifetime ago, definitely more than four years. Maybe because Gisele bounced from that relationship and doesn’t seem to have ever looked back – and, culturally, no one is missing it, since Tom Brady immediately became the poster model for Divorced Men, living up to every stereotype, to the point where it seems like “divorced” has always been his identity.There&rsqu

Vancouver pop sister duo Tegan and Sara are back with new music.On Sept. 25, the twin Quin sisters released the video for Our Year, their first new single since 2022’s Crybaby.The single is a collaboration with fellow Vancouver-based artist Lights and Vancouver producer Felix Cartal.The video for the single, directed by Vancouver’s Kyle S. Lee, was shot in the city and highlights locations including Kits Beach, H.R. MacMillan Space Centre and the City Centre Motel Hotel.The artists