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The Flames’ new arena deal, endorsed by the mayor and city council just a week before a (rubber-stamp) vote to be held Tuesday, is a great deal for the Flames and their billionaire ownership, and thus not a good deal for the city of Calgary. It looks even worse after what the council did about 24 hours later.

With his second win in the last three races, Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen used the German Grand Prix to prove once again that he represents the next great era of Formula One. But while the young driver’s performance was impressive, Sebastian Vettel’s unbelievable climb from a 20th place start to a second-place…Read more...

I present to you the New York Yankees’ starting pitching performances of the last week:

The first major injury of training camp belongs to Bengals WR A.J. Green. The seven-time pro bowler landed awkwardly trying to make a catch in 7-on-7 drills on Saturday, and had to be carted off the field. He left the building on crutches, and while the Bengals are hopeful it’s just a sprained ankle, Green will…Read more...

EA’s Madden NFL 20 is currently in early access, meaning a select number of folks are currently able to get a couple hours of gameplay in before the game’s official Aug. 2 release date. In a surprise to absolutely no one, there are some problems with this current iteration of an Electronic Arts-developed game.Read more...

Colombian cyclist Egan Bernal finished Saturday’s penultimate stage of the Tour de France in the yellow jersey, meaning that he is all but guaranteed to be crowned the winner of this year’s race—provided he crosses the finish line in Paris on Sunday.Read more...

Bengals wideout A.J. Green was taken off the field sitting on a cart on Saturday after appearing to injure his left foot during a team training camp practice. As things currently stand, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the injury is likely a sprained ankle, and that the team is “hopeful” for the official…Read more...

Giants receiver Golden Tate released a statement on Saturday, stating that the banned substance the league found in a recent drug test came from a fertility medication that a doctor had prescribed to him. In the message posted on Twitter, Tate says he informed the NFL, his coaches and Giants GM Dave Gettleman about…Read more...

The Mets defeated the Pirates on Friday, 6-3, thanks in part to a three-run homer that Jeff McNeil hit in the bottom of the third inning.Read more...

While out celebrating out celebrating the women’s world championship victory, athletes from Team USA’s men’s and women’s water polo team were injured on Saturday after a balcony they were standing on inside a South Korean nightclub collapsed.Read more...

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The Mariners haven’t really given us a lot to talk about since their red-hot start to the season actually turned out to be nothing more than the sparks that evolved into an absolute tire fire. That streak of mediocrity seemed likely to end starting on Thursday, when Seattle began its series against the team with the…Read more...

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One of Derek Jeter’s first items of business upon taking over ownership of the Marlins in 2017—a priority so important to him that it was carried out before Jeter had officially taken over—was the sacking of virtually every other big baseball name in the upper ranks of the organization. The house-cleaning wiped out…Read more...

Some YouTubers were recently invited to test Giannis Antetokounmpo’s grip strength, and they did not do well. This may come as a shock, but having hands that measure a full foot from tip of thumb to tip of pinkie are an asset when protecting the basketball. You can’t rip that thing.

Marvel Knower, very long blog writer, and friend to all Nick Martin is leaving Splinter (and G/O Media). We’re sending him off with a little taste of his own medicine: a blog about him that is way too long.Read more...

Twenty-five years ago this week, at the now-shuttered federal courthouse in Uniondale for the Eastern District of New York, WWE chief Vincent Kennedy McMahon was acquitted on charges of conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute anabolic steroids. It was a pivotal moment in wrestling history, and the…Read more...

Cleveland Indians pitcher and online edgelord Trevor Bauer is one of the big names to watch ahead of next week’s MLB trade deadline. The team’s on a nice little surge at the moment and is only two games behind the AL Central-leading Twins, but if it shifts into asset collection mode, Bauer is probably the most…Read more...

When Co-Op readers give you Lululemon, make a blog declaring them the winner of this race. The votes are in, and the brand’s T.H.E. Short With Nulux Liner won the gold medal when it comes to running shorts.Read more...

On Tuesday, in what could only be read as a terrible omen for Mueller Day, a rather large cockroach suddenly appeared, out of nowhere, crawling across my desk. I do not have a photo of this because I absolutely DESPISE roaches—especially the big daddies like this one, with very long antennae and beady eyes—so I yelped…Read more...

NFL training camps are underway, and it’s hard not to get excited already. Your favorite team has shown some energy right out of the gate. The roster is full of talent, the depth is there, and there are no weak spots to be found. This might be the season.

The FIBA World Cup has only drawn closer since Monday, and Team USA’s prospects have only gotten drearier. The players’ excuses are starting to increasingly resemble ones that might be used to beg out of a coworker’s birthday party.Read more...

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This is apparently the summer of zany, experimental All-Star games. The WNBA will use its showcase Saturday afternoon to experiment with a couple rule tweaks, one of which is straight out of left field—or, well, straight out of hockey, the most dreaded sport of all.Read more...

Some people are fans of the Tampa Bay Bucs. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the Tampa Bay Bucs. This 2019 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here.

Today’s Stage 19 of the Tour de France was set to be a decisive one, with a 13-kilometer ascent up the Col de l’Iseran, followed up by a winding descent into the Val d’Isere, and capped off with a summit finish into the town of Tignes. It would’ve made for great racing, and in fact it did, until the race was canceled…Read more...

There’s sort of a stereotype of Tesla owners having this elevated sense of self-worth and entitlement since they believe that the fact that they drive a fast, luxurious electric car means they’re saving the world for the rest of us drooling simpletons. Of course, like all stereotypes, this is likely unfair and can’t…Read more...

No quarterback wants to throw an interception, but Jonathon Jennings of the CFL’s Ottawa Redblacks endured a special indignity in Thursday’s game, when he tossed a first-quarter pick to an opponent who was freaking twisted. Jennings’ errant pass was snagged by Calgary Stampeders cornerback Robertson Daniel, and when…Read more...

Greg Olsen is a 12-year NFL veteran and a three-time Pro Bowler. He’s been one of the better tight ends in the league for the duration of his career. Madden 20 acknowledges all this by giving him a 89 overall rating, making Olsen the fifth-best tight end in the game. That makes it all the more strange as to why his …Read more...

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10% off Casper mattresses, an Amazon Fire TV Cube, and a sale on AmazonBasics Fitness lead off Friday’s best deals from around the web.Read more...

Olympic gold medalist Lilly King was tossed from her preliminary heat at the 2019 FINA World Championships when the organization ruled that she performed a non-simultaneous touch on her first turn—that is, she didn’t touch both hands on the wall at the same time. Although the ruling denied her a chance to medal in the…Read more...

In a 16-inning, six-hour game that saw the Orioles beat the Angels 10-8, Baltimore outfielder Stevie Wilkerson was the one to secure his team’s victory. It wasn’t his game-tying RBI double in the eighth inning, but his performance on the mound that sealed his place in baseball history.Read more...

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Clippers owner and shrieking enthusiast Steve Ballmer is riding high these days. His Clippers managed a respectable rebuild without ever going into the tank; Kawhi Leonard jumped ship from a championship squad to join his outfit, and brought Paul George along for the ride; and Thursday he shared with ESPN some fancy…Read more...

Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has already been through several circles of injury hell, and lost roughly a jillion years of his career to a devastating shoulder injury. Right now he’s recovering from a little old calf injury suffered during the spring, but after joining the rest of the world in watching Kevin Durant’s…Read more...

Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka got the start Thursday night in the first game of an important four-game series against the Red Sox. The series probably has more juice for the Red Sox than for the Yankees—the Red Sox sound like they might be a couple bad days away from shifting into seller mode as they sit 11 games…Read more...

The Atlantic League announced Tuesday that their experiment with an automated strike zone will continue for the remainder of the season, starting Thursday night. The system mostly worked; players and managers were happy with it; even the umpire who gave it its inaugural run at the Atlantic League All-Star Game earlier…Read more...

The Aberdeen Ironbirds, a Class-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, defended the Blue Lives Matter flag patch on the back of their jerseys on Wednesday. The team claimed that they aren’t a political statement, but a way to honor two sheriff’s deputies killed in February of 2016.Read more...

On Thursday afternoon, Arsenal players Mesut Özil and Sead Kolašinac were driving through London when a pair of assailants wielding knives attempted to rob them. Video of the event shows Kolašinac outside the car trying to fight off the would-be robbers, while Özil drives off:Read more...

Major League Baseball has wanted to institute an international draft for a long time, but they’ve never succeeded at convincing the Major League Baseball Players Association that they, too, should want an international draft. The reasons owners want an international draft are the same that players wouldn’t, but…Read more...

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Nine years after the death of ex-NBA player Lorenzen Wright, one of his two accused killers has pleaded guilty to his murder. In Shelby County court in Tennessee on Thursday, Sherra Wright—Lorenzen’s ex-wife and mother of his children—agreed to a deal that would see her serve 30 years in prison for facilitation to…Read more...

A softball coach at Bemidji State University in Minnesota has been dismissed from the program after being placed on a leave of absence earlier this year. The reason? According to a Bemidji Pioneer report, Rick Supinski was found by the university to have engaged in inappropriate behavior around the team, including a…Read more...

Some people are fans of the Oakland Raiders. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the Oakland Raiders. This 2019 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here.

American breaststroke specialist Lilly King comfortably won the 100-meter race, her best event, at the 2019 FINA World Championships in Gwangju, but she was denied a chance at the 200-meter gold after she was disqualified from a preliminary heat. She only found out after she won her heat last night.Read more...

Somehow, in wild defiance of everything that has ever given order to the universe, NFL teams will begin playing preseason games in the next week. Straight up full-dress, pads-on football games, one real NFL team against another, the whole thing. Or not quite the whole thing—the recognizable players will play a creaky…Read more...

Argentine boxer Hugo Alfredo “Dinamita” Santillan, 23, died on Thursday in Buenos Aires. According to the World Boxing Council, he died of injuries sustained during his fight against Eduardo Javier Abreu on Saturday.Read more...

Sagging through the dog days, the Dodgers needed a jolt. Luckily, they had an ideal jolter in their clubhouse. Reggie Smith wasn’t the same player he’d been even recently, his damaged shoulder leaving him unable to throw and limiting him to pinch-hitting duty in every one of his 20 appearances through mid-August.…Read more...

Safety Earl Thomas starred in one of the more iconic images from last year’s NFL campaign when he shot a middle finger toward his own sideline and head coach, Pete Carroll, while being carted off the field after breaking his leg. Now, months later, Thomas says he’s still glad he did it.Read more...