Thanks For the Drama, Red Sox

SI writes, “No one thought Boston would actually deal the franchise's homegrown star to the San Francisco Giants in an unexpected June blockbuster, with the slugger set to join former Red Sox players Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts as Fenway Park outcasts in the NL West.”

June 17, 2025

MLB Insider Details the Exact Moment That Led to Red Sox, Rafael Devers Split
SI’s Kristen Wong writes, “The simmering frustration between Rafael Devers and the Boston Red Sox prior to Devers's stunning trade was one of the worst-kept secrets in the league. Still, no one thought Boston would actually deal the franchise's homegrown star to the San Francisco Giants in an unexpected June blockbuster, with the slugger set to join former Red Sox players Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts as Fenway Park outcasts in the NL West.

“In the hours following the trade, ESPN's Buster Olney provided a few interesting details about why the Red Sox decided to move on from Devers…”
^{Front Office Sports}

Many more tongues have been wagging on this controversial move, as shared by SBJ…👇🏼

Devers Trade Stuns, Gives Giants a Needed Big Bat
Devers “gives the Giants their most powerful left-handed bat since Barry Bonds." It’s the “kind of aggressive move that Giants fans have been pining for,” and the kind of blockbuster midseason move “that the previous regime failed to make” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 6/15).

The Giants “have been rebuffed in both trade and free agent negotiations over the past decade,” but now they “don’t have to worry about being used as stalking horses come next winter.” Luring an elite bat to S.F. “has proven almost impossible.” And one “just fell into the Giants’ lap” (USA TODAY, 6/15).

The trade also “made a statement to the fanbase and the rest of baseball: The Giants are done acting like anything less than the single big-league team in the richest metro area in America.” The Giants will “take on every penny of what remains on Devers’ contract” -- $250M through 2033 (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 6/15).
^{Sports Business Journal}

AND NOW, FOR A BIT OF LEVITY…👇🏼

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🎥 👨🏽 ⚾️ 🥴 Watch this group of Boston dads find out about the trade on Father’s Day, first assuming it was a TikTok prank.

Gotham FC Owner Wants to Apply Peloton Instructor Model to NWSL Players
FOS’ Ava Hunt writes, “Before founding Next 3, Carolyn Tisch Blodgett helped turn Peloton instructors into household names. Now, she’s applying that same star-powered strategy to her role as owner of Gotham FC, the NWSL team out of the New York City area. 

“‘Early on we made a bet that the best way to grow the Peloton brand was to grow the instructor’s brand and really grow our platform via them,’ Tisch Blodgett told Front Office Sports on a recent episode of Portfolio Players.”
^{Front Office Sports}

Club World Cup: MetLife Stadium Field Criticised After Hosting First GameMatt Elliott to be named Wendy Hensel's pick as new Hawaii athletic directorMatt Elliott to be named Wendy Hensel's pick as new Hawaii athletic directorMatt Elliott to be named Wendy Hensel's pick as new Hawaii athletic directorMatt Elliott to be named Wendy Hensel's pick as new Hawaii athletic director
The Athletic’s Adam Crafton writes, “The head coaches of both FC Porto and Palmeiras, as well as the Brazilian wonderkid Estevao, criticised the turf at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday night following the draw between the two teams in the Club World Cup. MetLife Stadium will host eight Club World Cup matches this summer, including both semi-finals and the final, before hosting the men’s World Cup final next summer in a tournament which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

“Playing surfaces were a cause for complaint at last summer’s Copa America in the U.S…”
^{The Athletic}

NASCAR Won’t Commit to Returning to Mexico in 2026 But ‘Very Hopeful’ to Be Back
“I would say for us, this is more of a strategic move as a sport to expand our footprint globally and internationally and to a new mass fan base,” [NASCAR senior executive Ben] Kennedy said. “Just being in a country with 90 million people and over 20 million people in the larger Mexico City metro alone, not in and of itself, this is a success.”
^{NBC Sports}

NFL Won’t Replace Exec Brian Rolapp After His Departure for PGA Tour
“We have spent some time planning for this change and are confident we will successfully manage the responsibilities while we align our structure to meet our long-term strategic goals,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in a memo to team presidents announcing Rolapp’s departure.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Jim Knowlton is Retiring as Cal's Athletic Director, Per ESPN Sources
He's been the AD at Cal since 2018 and worked at Air Force prior to that. The news on Knowlton comes amid a new football reporting structure that appeared to diminish his role. General Manager Ron Rivera was hired recently to run football and reports to Chancellor Rich Lyons.
^ESPB

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How College Athlete Buyouts Could Work in the Revenue-Sharing Era
FOS’ Amanda Christovich writes, “The revenue-sharing era is officially set to commence on July 1, after federal judge Claudia Wilken approved the landmark House v. NCAA settlement allowing schools to pay players for the first time in college sports history. Contracts may include a concept familiar both among college coaches and in the pros, according to an FAQ released by the NCAA and power conferences last Friday: player buyouts.”
^{Front Office Sports}

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