Passion MLB Roster Update: Week 16

Here we are! The unofficial midseason mark is now behind us as the All-Star break draws to a close.
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 (1)
2 – Milwaukee Brewers (2)
3 – Tampa Bay Rays (4)
4 – Atlanta Braves (3)
5 – New York Yankees (7)
The next few days will be decisive. https://t.co/Qjb8bwl2r4 https://t.co/SOg3soLlMq
— Passion MLB (@passion_m

The Odyssey opens today, which means Monday we get to switch into Spider-Man: Brand New Day mode. Tom Holland and Zendaya get to switch modes, too, but first they’re out for dinner in New York.
Tom Holland, please explain how you’re wearing a sweatshirt in a heatwave, young man.Tom Holland and Zendaya together in New York, July 16, 2026 And the return of Z’s short hair!They’re about to have a very big weekend, as The Odyssey will no doubt have a monster opening weeke

Happy Birthday MacKenzie! It’s a milestone and for me it’s been so fun, so I’m wishing the same for you. Heather tells me that as best friends the two of you have been talking sh-t together here for 15 years. So this one is from our whole team: may this new decade be even better than the last, filled with joy and laughter, good vibes only, good gossip only, and most importantly may you be wealthy in love and friendship, and healthy in body and spirit! 

Dear Gossips,The men’s World Cup final is Sunday, between Spain and Argentina, it promises to be a great game, with Lionel Messi in his third World Cup finals. It’s been a great tournament for Messi, but also for soccer, and yes, here I am calling it soccer because historically, soccer has not been popular, as a televised sport, in the US. But the 2026 World Cup is smashing ratings records left and right, in English and Spanish language broadcasts, which has people wondering if socce

That's it: we now know when the Canadiens will play their 84 games in 2026–2027. We don't yet know where we'll be able to watch them… but that's another story.
What stands out right off the bat is that the Canadiens have 10 back-to-back game series on their schedule. Ten times, they'll be playing on less rest than the night before.
That's part of the game… and only three teams have fewer such back-to-backs than the Habs.
But what's a big advantage for the Habs is that on 19 o

The Mets are at the bottom of the National League standings. What a terrible baseball team…
Naturally, we're wondering what David Stearns will do at the trade deadline. How aggressive will he be in his selling strategy?
After all, when I was wondering about his intentions, I wasn't implying that he was going to buy. I was simply wondering how aggressively he would sell.
And according to Chelsea Janes (SNY), not only are virtually all of the team's players on the trading block, but Stearns

In recent weeks, Pat Verbeek (GM in Anaheim) has told anyone who would listen that there was no point in making a hostile offer to Leo Carlsson: he was going to match any offer.
Daniel Brière (Flyers) took a chance anyway, offering the Ducks' center $18 million per year over five years. Carlsson accepted the Flyers' offer via a hostile bid.
And of course, as we know, the Ducks matched the offer, even though it was higher than what they had planned to offer. Carlsson will therefore remain

The NHL unveiled its full schedule for the upcoming season on Thursday. We put together a summary of the key dates on that schedule earlier today, but one aspect of the new schedule has raised eyebrows for many people.
Several teams will play games in the middle of the afternoon on certain Mondays.
This is reportedly a way to make the games accessible to people in Europe, a group the NHL hopes to add to its fan base.NHL says it scheduled some more Monday afternoon games this season so they can b

Fourth-line players always have special stories to tell. They experience the game in a very different way from the star players.
This time, it's a story involving Mathieu Perreault, who played 25 games with the Canadiens during the 2021–22 season.
In a YouTube video from Kevin Poulin's channel Les Boys au Green, Laurent Dauphin revealed that Perreault was often frustrated by offside calls caused by his linemate Jesse Ylonen.
 
View this post on Instagram
 
A post shared by Kevin

In Montreal, Canadiens fans love talented players, but above all, they love players who perform with pride and heart.
That's certainly true of L.J. Mooney, who stood out at the Canadiens' most recent development camp. His high level of play and his tenacity didn't go unnoticed by Michael Hage.
Hage was wearing a microphone during an intrasquad game at camp, and after a collision with Mooney, he admitted to the bench that playing against him is “annoying.”Hage didn't seem frustrated,

August 3 is the trade deadline. And we can all agree that, between now and then, there are several teams to keep an eye on.
Here are five of them. But there are obviously more….
1. San Diego Padres
The San Diego team is currently 3.5 games out of a playoff spot. We know that A.J. Preller loves to make bold moves in the trade market… and that might be exactly what's needed to boost the team's anemic offense.
The next few weeks will tell.
2. Miami Marlins
The Marlins are in a playoff

Since the Canadiens' season ended, we haven't really heard anything from Juraj Slafkovsky.
The young Canadiens player has returned home to train for the upcoming season… and there's a video circulating of him in training.
It's worth a quick look on this summer day. 
In the video in question, we see Slaf showing off his moves. He's on the ice with a coach and Erik Cernak, the Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman (who's also from Slovakia).
And even though this video doesn't tell the whole s

Kent Hughes wrapped up a major deal today.
Kirby Dach has signed a one-year contract with the Canadiens. The player will earn $3.6 million next season.
This clears things up a bit, too. Kirby Dach signs his contract with the Canadiens → https://t.co/1errUfqrHy
— DansLesCoulisses (@DLCoulisses) July 16, 2026With Dach's contract, the Canadiens are now just under $9.8 million ($9,783,924) under the salary cap.
And Kent Hughes's work isn't done yet… because he currently has 21

All right. It’s done.
The Canadiens just announced that the team has agreed to the terms of a one-season contract with forward Kirby Dach.
Dach will earn $3.6 million in the 2026–27 season. The matter is now settled. The Canadiens have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with forward Kirby Dach.
The Canadiens have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with forward Kirby Dach.#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/5fz1cEvVZG
— Montreal Canadiens (@CanadiensMTL) July 16, 2026Basicall

Is Luke Weaver asking for it?
Possibly, yes.
Luke Weaver could be the best reliever on the market if Mason Miller stays put pic.twitter.com/IprTerB7ZB
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) July 16, 2026
Will José Soriano be in the same boat?
The Angels should ask for a high price for José Soriano, says @ByRobertMurray pic.twitter.com/a7z7Ov4skr
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) July 16, 2026
Payton Tolle got married
Great news.
Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle gets married

Anya Taylor-Joy’s new miniseries, Lucky, debuted the first two episodes on Apple TV+ yesterday. You know I’m watching this series because it co-stars my forever love Timothy Olyphant, but Lucky has not captured me the way Widow’s Bay did. I will watch Lucky, yes, but my more immediate priority is re-watching Widow’s Bay and examining every background detail for more island lore. The paintings tell the story!Anyway, back to ATJ. She is hitting the press circuit hard to pro

Claude Lemieux passed away at the end of May.
His death shocked the hockey world… he passed away just three days after carrying the torch for a Canadiens playoff game in Montreal.
And today, details regarding his death have emerged.
According to TMZ, Lemieux's family noticed that he was acting strangely.
His wife confronted him because she suspected he had started drinking again, even though he had been sober for over 12 years. Lemieux admitted to her that she was right, and his wife then

The ESPY Awards, the most prestigious participation trophy in the world, were last night, bringing out superstar athletes across many disciplines and countries, but most especially Olympic standouts, gold medalists Simone Biles, Alysa Liu, and Eileen Gu.
I’m going to start with Eileen Gu, because she wore Guo Pei, who designed Rihanna’s iconic golden omelet Met Gala cloak, and Guo Pei is one of those designers I wish we saw more of in the west. Her designs are sumptuous and theatrica

The Cincinnati Reds just pulled off a great move.
They've convinced Chase Burns, one of MLB's top young players, to delay free agency by two years.
Instead of becoming a free agent after the 2031 season, Burns has agreed to a contract that keeps him with the Ohio-based team through the end of the 2033 season.
The deal, which begins in 2027, will pay him $105 million over seven years. Jon Morosi was the first to report the news, noting that this is a record amount for a young player with less tha

On June 29, the Montreal Canadiens traded Brendan Gallagher to the Vancouver Canucks.
The news wasn't exactly a huge surprise because we knew it was coming. 
It's going to feel strange to see him play for a team other than the Habs. Even though he's already wearing the Canucks' colors while training at the CN Complex in Brossard…Will Montembeault still be with the Habs on September 29 in Toronto? #gohabsgo pic.twitter.com/t60iyo440m
— DansLesCoulisses (@DLCoulisses) July 16, 20

NEW RELEASES1. Heartstopper: Volume 6 , by Alice Oseman. 2. We Were Forbidden , by Jacqueline Harpman.3. Flesh: A Novel , by David Szalay. 4. I Survived The Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941: The Graphic Novel , by Lauren Tarshis, Peter Wartman. 5. Unico: Lost (Volume 3) , by Osamu Tezuka, Samuel Sattin, Gurihiru. 6. We Are Busy Being Alive: Fictions , by Rishi Midha. 7. The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts: A Novel , by Robert Thorogood. 8. Country People: A Novel,by Daniel Mason. 9. Sleepless ,

Billy Bragg remembers the first time he played the Vancouver Folk Music Festival as an early career highlight in 1987.While his first three albums were regularly played on the University of B.C.’s CiTR radio, the greater public hadn’t caught up to the singer’s rising star as a punk folk firebrand.By the end of that first weekend, Bragg built a devoted fan base that crossed generations of festivalgoers. When he returned in 1989, meeting the legendary Pete Seeger and performing

1.A False and Fatal Claim: A Lane Winslow Mystery — Iona Whishaw (Touchwood Editions).3. The Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street: A Memoir— Wiley Wei-Chium Ho(Douglas and McIntyre).3. Unceded: Understanding British Columbia’s Colonial Past and Why It Matters Now — George M. Abbott, foreword by Steven Point (UBC Press).4. Dead Bees Still Sting: Tales of Life at the Edge of Nature— Susan Cormier (Greystone Books).5. Fiddlehead Forest — Jana Curll (Greystone Boo

The 2026 Canadian Football League season is already beginning to show some trends after six weeks of play.
While several teams are still trying to find their identity, three teams appear to have pulled ahead with identical 4-1 records: the Edmonton Elks, the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and the Montreal Alouettes.
In the East, the situation is particularly interesting, as Montreal currently appears to be dominating the division. Meanwhile, the other contenders are grappling with several uncertainti

Surrey Fusion Fest When: July 18-19Where: Holland Park, 13428 Old Yale Rd, SurreyInfo:surreyfusionfestival.caBamboo poles clap together as dancers dart between them, their footwork timed to the beat. It’s one of the signature moments audiences can expect when Anahaw Filipino Canadian Performing Arts Society of B.C. takes the stage at Surrey Fusion Festival.The Vancouver-based troupe will present a 20-minute showcase of traditional Filipino dances from across the archipelago, from the famou

OK Taika Waititi joined Rita Ora at The Descendants: Wicked Wonderland premiere, they are fine.View this post on InstagramA post shared by RITA ORA (@ritaora)
I saw the Julia Garner/Mark Foster split news on Instagram before I saw it on TMZ. Julia is 32, a very in-demand actress and has her starter marriage to a musician out of the way. She is ready for the Madonna biopic.View this post on InstagramA post shared by Apple TV (@appletv)
And if Jennifer Garner, Regina Hall, Chloe Sevigny, D’A

So? Are you looking forward to the Montreal Canadiens' next season?
We've been waiting for July 16 because that's the day the team's schedule for the upcoming season was unveiled.
And there are some important dates to keep in mind.
Basically, keep in mind that the Habs will play 84 games starting this season. The Canadiens' regular-season schedule kicks off on September 29 in Toronto… and wraps up on April 10 against the Sens. Here are the other dates to remember:Home opener at the Bell C

The National Football League (NFL) has just suffered a major setback in court in the case filed by former coach Brian Flores.
A federal judge rejected the league's latest attempt to have the case transferred to arbitration, confirming that the lawsuit will proceed in civil court.
This decision marks another procedural victory for Brian Flores, who is suing the NFL as well as several teams, including the Miami Dolphins, the New York Giants, the Denver Broncos, and the Houston Texans. Former coach

I really, really liked Matt Reeves’ The Batman when it came out in 2022, since then, it has only risen in my estimation. I think it’s one of the best superhero movies ever made, and arguably the best Batman movie ever made. The film, released into the only-just-starting-to-recover theatrical landscape of spring 2022, did okay financially, but again, in the years since, its place in pop culture has only grown. People are super into Matt Reeves’ Batverse, and Robert Pattinson&rsq

Steve Yzerman is no longer the general manager of the Red Wings.
We can all agree that at this point, it's clear the executive isn't all good. His handling of star players (starting with Martin St. Louis in Tampa Bay) has never been perfect.
And that's even though Dylan Larkin certainly isn't entirely blameless either. Sulking because you weren't named captain fast enough for your liking is pretty strange.There's a belief that the rift between Dylan Larkin and Steve Yzerman began after Henrik Ze