“It is just moments where we need to smarten up. Tomorrow is another day.
“We made it a bit easy for them at times. We had too many blips in the circuit.”
England took an early lead in front of a noisy crowd in their first match since February.
But New Zealand, who denied England a medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, fought back and led 15-14 after the first quarter with a score on the buzzer.
New Zealand extended their lead to 33-30 by half-time. Goal shooter Grace Nweke proved near unstoppable and was supported by sisters Kate and Georgia Heffernan, while England made unforced errors.
Thirlby made changes at half-time and her side were reinvigorated for the third period as they stormed back to level at 47-47.
Goal keeper Jaz Brown was impressive on her England debut with crucial steals.
However, the tourists showed their quality in the fourth quarter despite England shooter Eleanor Cardwell coming off the bench for her first appearance since suffering a knee injury which threatened her career.
The second game takes place at the same venue on Sunday and the final match is at AO Arena in Manchester on Wednesday.
Jessilou Morigo-Tanguilan of Plan International Philippines explains how Typhoon Fung-wong has affected millions of people in the Philippines, leaving behind a path of destruction.
Nov. 10 (UPI) — The U.S. Senate plans a series of votes Monday night to try to end the record-long shutdown as House Speaker Mike Johnson called representatives to return to Washington to be there when a bill reaches them.
Earlier, Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota said they were in a “holding pattern.”
Late Monday afternoon, the GOP’s whip office told CNN a vote would begin after 5 p.m. p.m. John Barrasso of Wyoming mobilizec members for key votes. A GOP aide confirmed the plans to CBS News.
On Sept. 19, the House approved short-gap spending legislation along party lines 217-213 that doesn’t include healthcare subsidies next year through the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. Only a majority is needed in the House, but the Senate needs 60 votes in the 100-member chamber.
The Senate is scheduled to go into recess Tuesday for Veterans Day and was seeking to conclude business before then.
Thune said the American people “have suffered for long enough,” and other senators were reasonably optimistic.
“It’s very close,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, who also serves South Dakota. “We’ll work our way through a couple of issues.”
“I’m optimistic, yeah,” Florida Sen. Rick Scott said. “People want to, you know, they want to get — they want to go home.”
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky is the only Republican to vote against past funding bills. He wants hemp farming in the agriculture appropriations bill in exchange for allowing the legislation to move quickly. The Senate plans to vote on the amendment.
“If Rand wants to plant his flag and hold the government shut down for over hemp in Kentucky, take that fight on. I think he’ll lose that one pretty hard,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, noting that another senator wants an amendment to withhold pay from members during government shutdowns.
Monday marked the 41st day of the United States’ longest-running government shutdown, which started Oct. 1. It beat the previous longest shutdown of 35 days, which took place in 2018 and 2019 during President Donald Trump‘s first term.
Despite the pending vote, Johnson further pushed against the Democrats’ battle to extend health insurance subsidies. The Senate would vote separately on the subsidies next month.
“There’ll be long days and long nights here for the foreseeable future to make up for all this lost time that was imposed upon us,” Johnson told reporters.
Senators held a procedural vote Sunday in which seven Democrats and one Independent joined Republicans to narrowly advance a funding measure 60-40.
In exchange for the Democrats’ votes, Republicans agreed to hold a vote in the future on extending Obamacare subsidies.
There are more steps to take before senators hold an official vote on legislation to fund the government through January, including a measure on how long the chamber will debate.
All but a few Democrats have voted 14 times against the House stopgap measure out of concerns over a lack of an extension to the ACA tax credits, set to expire end of December. More than 20 million U.S. citizens currently rely the ACA on for health insurance.
“The American people have now awoken to Trump’s healthcare crisis,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said.
“Healthcare is once again at the forefront of people’s minds,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “People now see that premiums are about to skyrocket. They’re terrified about how they’re going to pay for their insurance.”
The new measure would reverse all shutdown-related job layoffs, guarantee federal worker pay during the shutdown, establish a specific budget process and fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program through September.
Johnson said he will give a 36-hour notice before any House votes, but did not offer a specific timeline.
The speaker, who has kept the lower chamber out of session since late September, indicated that a vote could occur as early as this week.
Any bill passed by both chambers will require a signature by Trump to become law. Trump said he intends to sign the legislation.
“Well, it depends what deal we’re talking about, but if it’s the deal I heard about … they want to change the deal a little bit, but I would say so,” Trump told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in the Oval Office.
“I think, based on everything I’m hearing, they haven’t changed anything, and we have support from enough Democrats, and we’re going to be opening up our country. It’s too bad it was closed, but we’ll be opening up our country very quickly.”
That includes adhering to a provision that would reverse layoffs of federal workers his administration pushed during the shutdown.
In the House, Johnson plans to swear in Adelita Grijalva of Arizona when the members return, according to a CNN source.
Grijalva was elected Sept 23, but Johnson refused to swear her in until Senate Democrats agreed to reopen the government.
Once Grijalva is sworn in, she is expected to become the 218th signature necessary to bypass leadership and force a vote on compelling the release of files in the Jeffrey Epstein sex-abuse case.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Monday that House Democrats would continue to oppose the spending bill that advanced in the Senate this weekend.
“As House Democrats, we know we’re on the right side of this fight, the right side of the American people, and we’re not going to support partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the health care of the American people, and we’re going to continue the fight to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits,” he said at a news conference.
Furloughed federal workers line up as Jose Andres’ World Central Kitchen’s Relief Team sets up a free meal distribution site in Washington, D.C., on Monday. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Fans can’t get enough of Japanese artist Takashi Murakami’s limited edition Dodgers gear, decorated with colorful, cartoon flowers featuring smiling faces in surprisingly un-jockish colors like pastel pink and butter yellow. The merch sold out in a matter of minutes at a pop-up store in March before the two-game season opening in Japan. A second collection was released in April.
Three’s a charm — as always.
On Friday at 1 p.m. a final Murakami collection will go on sale, this time commemorating the Dodgers’ historic World Series Championship. The series of T-shirts and hoodies — decorated in Murakami’s distinctive flowers, and featuring the team name in Japanese Katakana characters — is being presented by the sports and youth culture platforms Fanatics and Complex. The merch can be found on their websites as well as MLBShop online stores, the MLB app, the Dodger Stadium Team Store and the MLB Flagship Store in New York City.
I know friends who spent hours trying to obtain a single Murakami-designed Dodgers baseball cap last spring, so I expect the merch to sell fast. I’d set an alarm for 12:55 p.m. and log in exactly at 1 p.m. if I were hoping to score an item or two.
Dodgers fans are more than fans after their team won in what many are calling a “series for the ages” — they are fanatics. I should know. I wrote a story that mentioned the game, and I referred to the Dodgers being one “point” down to the Toronto Blue Jays. I awoke to an inbox full of letters from readers alerting me to the fact that a “point” in baseball is called a “run.” Some said it not so nicely.
Point taken! I mean, run. Either way, I’ve made much worse mistakes and never gotten so much as a single letter. That’s how I know Dodgers fans are not messing around. Neither is the merchandising machine surrounding the team’s epic win.
I’m arts and culture writer Jessica Gelt, shooting baskets for baseball and scoring touchdowns for a home run. Here’s your arts and culture news this week.
On our radar
Joshua Francique with Alonzo King Lines Ballet.
(RJ Muna)
Alonzo King Lines Ballet Choreographer and California Hall of Fame inductee Alonzo King brings his San Francisco-based contemporary ballet company to Long Beach for an evening of dance immersed in the spiritually rooted, avant-garde jazz stylings of Alice Coltrane, including her seminal album “Journey in Satchidananda.” In addition to this tribute to one of America’s only jazz harpists, the company will present a fresh take on Maurice Ravel’s suite of Mother Goose fairy tales, “Ma mère l’Oye,” which was originally written as a piano duet in 1910. — Jessica Gelt 8 p.m. Saturday. Carpenter Center is located at 6200 E. Atherton St., Long Beach. carpenterarts.org
Pacific Opera Project Daniel-François-Esprit Auber’s funny, tuneful, gang-can’t-shoot-straight, long-out-of-fashion early 19th century comic French opera, “Fra Diavolo” is just the kind of thing on which Pacific Opera Project (POP) has made its irrepressibly wackier-than-thou reputation. While the company performs a range of operas, serious and not-so-serious, here and there (including Descanso Gardens and Forest Lawn), its heart is at the Ebell, a historic Highland Park club, where you sit at tables with wine and hors d’oeuvres, surrounded by dazzling singers, goofy costumes and sets, and the intoxicating hokum that the company’s irrepressible founder and director, Josh Shaw, comes up with. — Mark Swed 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Wednesday and Nov. 14; 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 15 and 16. The Highland Park Ebell, 131 S. Ave. 57. pacificoperaproject.com
A stage version of the horror franchise “Paranormal Activity” comes to the Ahmanson.
(Pamela Raith)
Paranormal Activity The premiere of an original story set in the world of the film franchise, the show seems determined to scare you silly. The theater has caught the horror bug — and why not? Fear knows no bounds. Written by Levi Holloway, whose “Grey House” had a brief Broadway run in 2023, and directed by Felix Barrett, whose immersive “Sleep No More” captivated New York audiences for years, the production sets out to give new meaning to the term stage fright. — Charles McNulty Through Dec. 7, check days and times. Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. centertheatregroup.org
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The week ahead: A curated calendar
FRIDAY
The new play “Border Crisis” at City Garage.
(City Garage)
Border Crisis A new absurdist comedy by playwright Charles A. Duncombe, based on “The House on the Border” by Sławomir Mrożek as translated by Pavel Rybak-Rudzki, about a typical U.S. family that finds itself at the center of an international crisis, has its world premiere. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 4 p.m. Sunday, through Dec. 13. City Garage, Bergamot Station Arts Center, 2525 Michigan Ave. T1, Santa Monica, citygarage.org
Leah Ollman In addition to a reading and book signing, the author will discuss her new publication, “Ensnaring the Moment: On the Intersection of Poetry and Photography,” with poet Rae Armantrout. 6 p.m. Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, 700 Prospect St., La Jolla. mcasd.org
SATURDAY
Katherine Ross, Paul Newman, seated, and Robert Redford in the 1969 movie “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
(20th Century Fox)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid The American Cinematheque’s tribute to Robert Redford continues with the 1969 George Roy Hill-directed western that first paired the late actor with Paul Newman in one of Hollywood’s great buddy movies. 2 p.m. Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. americancinematheque.com
The Butterfly Effect The reopening of a secret cafe where people are rumored to have time traveled is the setting for the latest immersive and interactive audience experience from Last Call Theatre. 8 p.m. Saturday and Nov. 14-15, 20-22, Dec. 4-6. Stella Coffee, 6210 San Vicente Blvd. ticketleap.events
Comic Creators Block Party A full day of signings, meet and greets, live panels, food and vendors featuring some of your favorite writers and artists, including Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Revenge Of Comics, 3420 Eagle Rock Blvd., Suite A. comiccreatorsblockparty.com
iam8bit 20th Anniversary Art Show The creative production company celebrates two decades of innovation with an exhibition heavy on video game and pop culture history. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Studio 8, 614 E. 12th St., Los Angeles. eventbrite.com
Redrawing the Rancho The performance platform homeLA presents a program of interdisciplinary performance, dance and installation work by Nao Bustamante, Eva Aguila, Rosa Rodríguez-Frazier and Victoria Marks that evaluate the legacy of Southern California’s oldest surviving brick structure. the Rowland Mansion, and the complex history behind it. 1-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. John Rowland Mansion and Dibble Roundhouse Museum, 16021 Gale Ave., City of Industry. homela.org
“Sweet Nothings,” 2025. Aluminum and bowling balls. 223⁄4 x 183⁄4 x 221⁄4 in. (57.78 x 47.63 x 56.52 cm) by Kathleen Ryan.
(@ Kathleen Ryan. Courtesy the artist and Karma/Artwork photography by Lance Brewer)
Kathleen Ryan Everyday objects become the stuff of dreams in the exhibition “Souvenir,” featuring nine sculptures rooted in the artist’s use of motifs, techniques and conceptual decisions. Opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, through Dec. 20. Karma, 7351 Santa Monica Blvd. Los Angeles. karmakarma.org
Wild Up L.A.’s transformative new music chamber orchestra and collective was founded 15 years ago by Christopher Rountree with a seemingly limitless collection of inventive ideas for bringing classical music into the 21st century and beyond. This fall it begins a new series at the Nimoy, home of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance, beginning with “What I Call Sound,” a look at the historic influence L.A. jazz has had on new music of all sorts. Given that Wild Up is composed of accomplished improvisers and composers, it is ideally suited to follow the course of the avant-garde jazz scene from Eric Dolphy in the late 1950s to such current leading figures as Anthony Braxton. — Mark Swed 8 p.m. UCLA Nimoy Theater, 1262 Westwood Blvd. cap.ucla.edu
SUNDAY Deep Cuts: Block Printing Across Cultures The exhibition features more than 150 works from around the world exploring the medium as both a means of creative expression and a vehicle for mass production of both images and ideas, extending from the patterned fabrics of India to German Expressionist artists and contemporary makers like Christiane Baumgartner. Also includes the Los Angeles–based Block Shop demonstrating reinterpretations of the ageless art form. Through Sept. 13, 2026. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Resnick Pavilion, 5905 Wilshire Blvd. lacma.org
Burt Lancaster See the Hollywood legend in two very different films and performances: The American Cinematheque screens Luchino Visconti’s 1963 drama “The Leopard,” in which Lancaster stars opposite Claudia Cardinale; at the New Beverly, the actor appears in the delightful 1983 comedy “Local Hero” with Peter Riegert (on a double feature with another Bill Forsyth film, “Housekeeping”). “The Leopard,” 2 p.m. Sunday. Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. americancinematheque.com; “Local Hero,” 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd. thenewbev.com
TUESDAY An Evening with Annie Leibovitz The celebrated photographer discusses her new book, “Women,” which features Louise Bourgeois, Hillary Clinton, Joan Didion, Billie Eilish, Lady Gaga, Michelle Obama, Rihanna, Patti Smith, Elizabeth Taylor, and Serena and Venus Williams. 7 p.m. The Wiltern, 3790 Wilshire Blvd. livenation.com
Recovecos The LA Phil New Music Group, conducted by Raquel Acevedo Klein, explores works by Caribbean and Latin American composers in a program curated by Angélica Negrón and featuring vocalist Lido Pimienta. 8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com
WEDNESDAY
Broadway star Melissa Errico performs Wednesday at the Carpenter Center in Long Beach.
(David Kenas)
Melissa Errico In her new show “The Streisand Effect,” Errico, accompanied by a quartet that includes Streisand’s own 40-year pianist Randy Waldman, performs such favorites as “Send In the Clowns,” “I’d Rather Be Blue,” and “I Never Meant to Hurt You.” 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. Carpenter Center is located at 6200 E. Atherton St., Long Beach. carpenterarts.org
THURSDAY Celebrating 50 years of Laverne & Shirley Producer Bob Boyett presents the Garry Marshall Theatre’s annual fundraiser, which this year marks a half-century since the debut of Marshall’s hit ABC sitcom and welcomes special guest Michael McKean, who had a breakout role on the show as Lenny. The event, which includes dinner and entertainment, also honors actor Yeardly Smith of “The Simpsons.” Tickets are $500-1000. 6:30 p.m. Verse Restaurant, 4212 Lankershim Blvd., Toluca Lake garrymarshalltheatre.org/50years
An Inspector Calls Theatre 40 presents J.B. Priestley’s classic drawing-room mystery about the investigation of a young woman’s death that disrupts an upper-class British family’s engagement party in the industrial north Midlands in 1912. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; also, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 3 and 10; dark on Nov. 27 and 28, through Dec. 14. Beverly Hills High school, Mary Levin Cutler Theatre, 241 S. Moreno Dr. theatre40.org
New Original Works (NOW) The second weekend of REDCAT’s annual festival of experimental performance features a program of works by Gabriela Burdsall; Orin Calcagne and Jenson Titus; and Divya Victor, Carolyn Chen, AMOC (American Modern Opera Company). NOW 2025 continues with additional programming Nov. 20-22. 8 p.m Thursday-Saturday. REDCAT, 631 W. 2nd St., downtown L.A. redcat.org
Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Hollywood, 1992, Silver Gelatin Photograph, Ed. of 25, 20 x 16 inches, by Herb Ritts.
(Fahey/Klein Gallery)
Herb Ritts The exhibition “Allies & Icons” presents the photographer’s portraits of activists, artists and cultural leaders who led the global fight against AIDS, including Elizabeth Taylor, Elton John, Magic Johnson, Madonna, Barbra Streisand, Sharon Stone, Tina Turner, Keith Haring and many others. In celebration of STORIES: The AIDS Monument, which opens Nov. 16 in West Hollywood. Opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Thursday; Regular hours, 1-7 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, through Dec. 21. ONE Gallery, 626 N. Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood. faheykleingallery.com
Culture news and the SoCal scene
The Scourged Back. The scarred back of an African American slave named Gordon who escaped from Mississippi and reached a Union Army camp in Louisiana in 1863. The photograph is one of many targeted for removal by the Trump administration.
(Getty Images)
National treasure “In recent months, a small army of historians, librarians, scientists and other volunteers has fanned out across America’s national parks and museums to photograph and painstakingly archive cultural and intellectual treasures they fear are under threat from President Trump’s war against ‘woke’,” writes Times investigative reporter Jack Dolan in a recent story about the volunteers creating a “citizen’s record” of existing exhibits and more, “in case the administration carries out Trump’s orders to scrub public signs and displays of language he and his allies deem too negative about America’s past.”
Theater beat Times theater critic Charles McNulty reviews a production of “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” at A Noise Within. McNulty deems the script, “arguably the finest work in August Wilson’s 10-play series chronicling the African American experience in the 20th century,” and writes that the new show — set in a Pittsburgh boarding house in 1911 — “seems like a gift from the other side, that mysterious, creative realm where history is spiritualized.”
McNulty also attended Lloyd Suh’s “The Heart Sellers,” at South Coast Repertory, for a production directed by Jennifer Chang, who staged the play’s 2023 world premiere at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre featuring the same two-person cast. The show explores the thorny, timely issue of immigration through the stories of two women — one from the Philippines, the other from South Korea — living in an unnamed mid-sized American city in 1973.
Angela Bassett arrives at the LACMA Art + Film Gala on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, at Los Angeles County Museum of Art in Los Angeles.
(Jordan Strauss / Invision/AP)
LACMA ups and downs The Los Angeles County Museum of Art was in the news again this past week. I attended its celebrity-packed Art + Film gala on Saturday night — and watched the room explode in celebration after the Dodgers won the World Series. The annual event, this year honoring filmmaker Ryan Coogler and artist Mary Corse, raised more than $6.5 million in support of the museum and its programs.
40 authors, 40 dinners I also attended a dinner sponsored by the Library Foundation of Los Angeles featuring historian Rick Atkinson, who won the Pulitzer Prize for history in 2003. Called “Literary Feasts” the biannual event featured 40 authors spread out at 40 dinners hosted at private homes across the city on a single night in order to raise funds for the foundation’s mission in support of the library and its community-driven efforts including adult education and homework support for kids.
Yoko goes solo It doesn’t seem possible, but it’s true: Yoko One, 92, is staging her first solo museum exhibition in Los Angeles. The show, “Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind,” will open at the Broad museum on May 23 and will run through Oct. 11, 2026. The interactive exhibition is organized in collaboration with Tate Modern in London.
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Faustian The Verdi Chorus is launching its 42nd season with a special, two-nights-only performance delving into Goethe’s “Faust.” Audiences can expect operatic renditions of Berlioz’s “La Damnation de Faust,” Gounod’s “Faust,” and Boito’s “Mefistofele.” The concerts will take place at the First Presbyterian Church in Santa Monica on Nov. 15 and 16. Artistic director Anne Marie Ketchum will lead the performances, and it should be noted has been leading the group for all 42 years of its existence. The Verdi Chorus dubs itself, “the only choral group in Southern California that focuses primarily on the dramatic and diverse music for opera chorus.”
Girl dad, the musical My mother’s heart was touched when a father named Matt Braaten — who is also the artistic director of Eagle Rock Theatre Company — wrote to me about a new musical at the theater called, “Daddy Daughter.” The show features Braaten and his 11-year-old daughter, Lily, as they explore the music that has touched her life and informed her childhood to date. “This family-friendly musical comedy celebrates the different stages of Lily’s life through banter and songs, and takes a musical journey from Elmo to Elsa to Elphaba and beyond,” Braaten wrote. I’m getting teary just thinking about it. The show is at 4 p.m. on Sunday Nov. 9, and Sunday Nov. 16.
Strictly Come Dancing’s Vicky Pattison and her professional partner Kai Widdrington topped the leaderboard on Saturday night (November 8) with 39 points
Vicky and Kai(Image: BBC)
Strictly Come Dancing’s Vicky Pattison was over the moon as she achieved her highest score of the series, topping the leaderboard.
On Saturday night (November 8), Vicky and her professional partner Kai Widdrington wowed the audience with a Tango to Taylor Swift’s The Fate Of Ophelia.
The pair ended the night on a high note, achieving their personal best score of the series – an impressive 39 points. Craig Revel Horwood was full of praise, describing the performance as “perfect”, while Anton Du Beke admitted he was “a bit stunned” because it was “that good”.
He enthused: “I thought it was absolutely marvellous. I loved it. Your line is the best line I’ve ever seen. It was immaculate.” Meanwhile, Motsi Mabuse and head judge Shirley Ballas declared it their “dance of the night”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Motsi gushed: “Last week I said you were a contender for the final, and this dance just proved what I meant. You confirmed my intuition. Without a doubt, you are on fire. Whatever is giving you that fire – keep it up. This was for me, till now, the dance of the night.”
After the show, Vicky took to Instagram to share her disbelief, posting a snapshot of the leaderboard with the caption: “This can not be real”. Saturday’s episode marked the halfway point of the series, with nine couples taking to the dance floor.
Hot on their heels in second place were West End star Amber Davies and professional dancer Nikita Kuzmin, who performed a Salsa to You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) by Sylvester.
The duo bagged two perfect 10s, racking up a total of 38 points – their highest in the series, which Craig enthusiastically labelled as: “Ah-mazing”.
Final T20 of the five-match series was abandoned after 4.5 overs as thunderstorm and rain forced players off the field in Brisbane.
Published On 8 Nov 20258 Nov 2025
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India have claimed a 2-1 win in the five-match T20 series against Australia after the final match was abandoned due to rain after just 4.5 overs in Brisbane.
After losing the toss and being sent in to bat on Saturday, India’s openers Abhishek Sharma (23) and Shubman Gill (29) took the score to 52 for no loss before a thunderstorm swept across the Gabba cricket ground, forcing the players from the field.
Gill took the early initiative and pummelled six fours in his 29 not out. Abhishek was dropped by Glenn Maxwell and Ben Dwarshuis on his way to an unbeaten 23.
The sellout crowd at the Gabba hung around optimistically, waiting for play to resume, but the stormy weather persisted, and the match was abandoned some two and a half hours after it started.
The pitch at the Gabba cricket ground remains covered amid heavy rainfall during the fifth T20 match between Australia and India in Brisbane [Darren England/AAP Image via AP]
The opening match in the series in Canberra was also washed out before Australia won the second in Melbourne by four wickets on the back of the bowling of paceman Josh Hazlewood.
Australia withdrew Hazlewood and some other players named in the Ashes squad so they could prepare to face England with the red ball, and India won the third T20 by five wickets in Hobart and the fourth on the Gold Coast by 48 runs.
Abhishek was named Player of the Series for his 163 runs at an average of 40.75.
“The way everybody chipped in in every game and we came back from being one match down, I think credit goes to all the boys; a complete team effort,” India captain Suryakumar Yadav said.
India, who top the ICC rankings in the shortest format, will head home with confidence and plenty of player options, hoping to defend their T20 World Cup title on home soil early next year.
“I thought all in all it was a good series, two teams really going at it,” said Australia captain Mitch Marsh.
“India won the games when it mattered, so congratulations to them.”
The road to becoming the first repeat World Series champion in 25 years was not a smooth one for the Dodgers, who captured their ninth championship in franchise history when they knocked off the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 in 11 innings of a Game 7 for the ages.
After winning nine of their first 10 postseason contests, the Dodgers had to slog through a seven-game World Series that included two extra-inning wins — one in 18 innings — and consecutive losses at home that put their season on the brink.
But in the end, the Dodgers emerged with their second consecutive championship and third in six seasons. How did they make it happen? Here are some moments that galvanized the Dodgers’ run to another World Series triumph.
A great escape, with a wheel man
Mookie Betts broached the idea of running the wheel play as the Dodgers tried to hang on for dear life in Game 2 of the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Ballpark. In a tribute to executing the fundamentals, Max Muncy pounced on a bunt and Betts tagged out the lead runner at third base to help the Dodgers survive the ninth inning and grab a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series.
Ohtani’s iconic performance
A look at the three home runs Shohei Ohtani hit in Game 4 of the NLCS.
Based on the first inning alone, Shohei Ohtani would’ve produced an unforgettable performance in Game 4 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers, striking out three in a row following a leadoff walk as the Dodgers’ starting pitcher and then homering as his team’s leadoff batter to stake himself to an early lead. But Ohtani homered twice more — including a 469-foot blast over the right-field pavilion — and went on to strike out 10 in six innings to help the Dodgers secure their second consecutive NL pennant.
Another complete game by Yamamoto
Yoshinobu Yamamoto had already thrown a complete game in Game 2 of the NLCS, the first one by a Dodgers pitcher since José Lima in 2004. But Yamamoto went into more rarefied air when he threw another one in Game 2 of the World Series in a 5-1 win over the Blue Jays — becoming the first Dodger to throw consecutive postseason complete games since Orel Hershiser in 1988.
Kershaw’s moment
The anguish and heartbreak of Clayton Kershaw‘s postseason history is well known, and the Dodger Stadium crowd braced itself when he entered Game 3 of the World Series with the bases loaded and two outs in the 12th inning. In an eight-pitch battle with the Jays’ Nathan Lukes, Kershaw induced a soft grounder to second baseman Tommy Edman that he had to charge and scoop over with his glove to first baseman Freddie Freeman to escape the jam.
The Will Klein Game
As Game 3 of the World Series dragged into the 15th inning, the Dodgers turned to Will Klein, the last reliever in their bullpen — though Yamamoto was later warming for a potential 19th inning. Klein, acquired by the Dodgers in a minor trade on June 2, threw 72 pitches — the most he’s thrown as a professional — over four scoreless innings to keep the Dodgers in it.
Left fielder Kiké Hernández added another chapter to his October legacy in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 6 with the Dodgers trying to hang on to a 3-1 lead and keep their season alive. With runners on second and third and one out, Hernández played shallow and was in good position to catch a sinking line drive by Andrés Giménez before firing a throw to second baseman Miguel Rojas, who caught it on a bounce to double off the runner at second and force a Game 7.
Miguel Rojas ninth-inning hero
Rojas became the ninth-inning focal point in Game 7 as he came up to bat with the Dodgers trailing 4-3 and two outs away from losing the World Series. Rojas, who had one homer since the All-Star break, worked the count full before hammering a game-tying shot to left. In the bottom of the inning, with the bases loaded and the infield in with one out, Rojas fielded a grounder cleanly and came up firing to force the runner out at home and preserve the tie.
The Catch
One batter later and with the bases still loaded, it was Andy Pages’ turn to be the defensive hero. Inserted mid-inning at center field for his strong arm, Pages found himself using his legs to cover a lot of ground on a deep fly ball to left-center that Hernández was trying to catch over his shoulder before colliding with Pages as the center fielder secured the ball to carry the game into extra innings.
Will Smith, home run hero
As Game 7 entered the 11th inning, it was catcher Will Smith who was in the right place at the right time. Smith, who’d worked his way back into the lineup after suffering a hairline fracture in his right hand in September, turned on a 2-0 slider for his second home run of the series to put the Dodgers in front for the first time in the game.
Yamamoto with the exclamation point
Entering Game 7 during that ninth-inning jam that Rojas and Pages helped him escape, Yamamoto retired the Jays in order in the 10th and then worked around a leadoff double in the 11th, fiedling a sacrifice bunt and then walking a batter before inducing a double play to seal the Dodgers’ repeat championship. For Yamamoto in the World Series, the final tally was three wins, the last coming in relief after throwing 96 pitches the night before in Game 6, and the MVP award.
India claimed a 2-1 win in their T20 series against Australia after the fifth and final match in Brisbane was washed out.
After losing the toss and being asked to bat, openers Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill steered India to 52-0 after 4.5 overs before a thunderstorm forced the players from the field.
Though the storm moved on, heavy rain persisted and the umpires decided no further play was possible.
It is the second match of the series to be washed out after the opener in Canberra on 29 October.
Australia won the second game in Melbourne, but victories in Hobart and the Gold Coast secured the series for the tourists.
India will defend their T20 World Cup title as co-hosts with Sri Lanka in February.
Celebrity real estate agent Chrishell Stause is moving on from Netflix’s “Selling Sunset” after nine seasons on the hit reality TV series.
Stause revealed to Bustle in a story published Friday that she is quitting the popular show, telling the outlet that not even “Jesus Christ himself” or the show’s producing team could persuade her to return. “I’ve gotten to a place where I don’t need the show financially,” the 44-year-old reality star and former “All My Children” actor told Bustle.
“I’m lucky to have other forms of employment, because it’s no longer good for my mental health,” she said.
“Selling Sunset” debuted on Netflix in 2019 and stars the female agents, including Stause, at the Sunset Strip office of the Oppenheim Group, a luxury real estate agency. Over the years, with Stause part of the main cast, the series has documented some of her professional wins and losses as well as her personal struggles, notably her divorce from “This Is Us” actor Justin Hartley in 2019. That divorce was finalized in 2021 and Stause has since remarried to Australian musician G Flip.
As Stause announced her exit to Bustle, she discussed her issues with other members of the “Selling Sunset” circle, namely co-star Emma Hernan and her boyfriend, Blake Davis. She also expressed disapproval with the series’ editing. Netflix did not comment to Bustle about Stause’s comments, but she wished the “Selling” franchise well in its future installments.
“I have no ill will toward the show. The show has given me so many opportunities, and I don’t want to be bitter about it, even though I’m leaving not in the way that I would’ve loved,” she said.
Stause, who appeared earlier this year in NBC’s celebrity competition show “The Traitors,” also talked about growing her family with G Flip and diversifying her friend groups: “I just really love being around accepting, beautiful-hearted people.”
The actor-reality star closes her “Selling Sunset” chapter two days after Netflix aired its Season 9 reunion episode. On Instagram, Stause acknowledged that “the season ended on a bit of a sour note,” but expressed gratitude to the Netflix series and its fans.
“It introduced me to you guys — and I am deeply thankful for your support. There were lots of fun memories I am going to focus on from here on out and you will see me again so it’s not goodbye,” she said Friday in an Instagram story. “Just goodbye for now.”
The BBC has confirmed the start date for the second series of The Night Manager, as a new trailer has been released for the upcoming series.
After nearly ten years of anticipation, BBC viewers were delighted to discover that a fresh instalment of The Night Manager was being developed.
In 2016, the gripping thriller proved hugely successful as it chronicled former soldier Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) working as a hotel night manager who becomes enlisted by British intelligence operative Angela Burr (Olivia Coleman).
The eagerly-awaited second instalment will resume years following the dramatic conclusion, with audiences witnessing Jonathan as a junior MI6 operative managing a discreet surveillance team in London dubbed ‘The Night Owls’.
This week, the BBC unveiled a thrilling trailer for the upcoming series, confirming it will broadcast on January 1.
The preview reveals Jonathan in his fresh position, whilst a narrator directs him to ‘watch, listen and report’. Yet the voice then sternly warns: “You do not hunt down.”
Cutting to Colombia, the MI6 operative must investigate Teddy Dos Santos (Diego Calva), suspected of trafficking weapons into the nation with British Intelligence assistance, reports the Express.
Adopting a fresh identity, Jonathan becomes deeply entangled in a deadly conspiracy. Betrayal appears imminent as he challenges Agent Burr, declaring she ‘lied’ to him, prompting her reply: “I had no choice!”
A montage of rapid-fire sequences follows, featuring heart-stopping pursuit scenes and Jonathan fleeing through a structure as explosions erupt around him.
In a chilling moment, Jonathan is seen being restrained by Teddy as he questions, ‘Who are you, Matthew?Why are you really here?” While a woman’s voice accuses him of ‘playing her’.
The trailer, shared on social media, sparked an immediate reaction from fans, with many expressing their excitement for the show’s return. One fan exclaimed: “Wow wow wow wow.” Another chimed in: “FINALLY!!!!”
Speaking about the series, Tom Hiddleston told the BBC: “The first series of The Night Manager was one of the most creatively fulfilling projects I have ever worked on. “”The depth, range and complexity of Jonathan Pine was, and remains, a thrilling prospect.
I’m so looking forward to reuniting with Simon and Stephen Cornwell, David Farr and Stephen Garrett, and to working with Georgi Banks-Davies to tell the next chapter of our story. I can’t wait.”
The BBC has also confirmed that The Night Manager will be returning for another series following this upcoming one.
Tune into the new series of The Night Manager from 1 January on BBC iPlayer in the UK, and from 11 January on Prime Video where available.
Netflix has released a new four-episode series that follows a serial killer who strikes terror in Italy by targeting couples parked in lovers lanes – and viewers have been urged to check it out
Netflix fans believe the show is underrated (stock image)(Image: NurPhoto, NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Netflix subscribers are being urged to watch a gripping mini-series that will have you hooked from the very first episode. Film enthusiast Eccy Reviews, who shares the latest film and TV recommendations on social media, has told his followers they must watch The Monster of Florence.
The four-part series tells the true story of a “serial killer who strikes terror in Italy by targeting couples parked in lovers lanes, authorities explore a case from 1968 that may be key to identifying The Monster of Florence”. Directed by Leonardo Fasoli and Stefano Sollima, the programme features performances from Francesca Olia, Liliana Bottone, and Marco Bullitta.
Discussing the series, Eccy Reviews said: “You need to stop whatever you’re doing because Netflix just dropped a brand new series and it honestly might be one of the best shows of the year.”.
“It’s based on a true story. Now, trust me when I tell you that the first episode will have you absolutely hooked. It made me binge the entire thing and I honestly can’t recommend it enough.
“It can’t go under the radar. Everyone needs to watch it, everyone needs to talk about it. So make sure to get this show on your watch list and get it watched.”
Responding to his recommendation, one viewer said: “When I say my jaw just kept hitting the floor! This was a lot to take in but I did like it.”
Another commented: “Straight out of a Criminal Minds episode.”
A third wrote: “I always follow your recommendations, I’m starting it now.”
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One viewer shared their thoughts on IMDb, stating: “I’d never heard of these murders until I watched this series.
“It’s well-acted and portrays the changing look and feel of the time periods in which it is set – a 20 year time span – through decor, cars, fashions and background music.
“The treatment of women is absolutely disturbing – not just the horrific murders but also the total misogyny and disrespect that they lived under in some family units.
“Apart from the detectives investigating these crimes – and the innocent victims – I don’t think there is one man featured who has any redeemable qualities.
“It was interesting but at times repetitive in that the same event was shown several times, albeit from different people’s perspective.”
Another viewer chimed in with: “This crime thriller is based on true events. After long time finally a solid psycho murder episode from Italy on Netflix.
“I find it is actually on short supply to see good series or movies from Italy on Netflix. The first episode was for me too slow paced and I thought already to stop.
“But the longer I watched it the more interesting the story got. There are many flashbacks to reconstruct the mystery puzzles and help so the audience to understand what was really going on.
“The atmosphere and filming locations have been wonderfully created from the 60s to the 80s.
“The actors played the characters respectably and I think the director did a great job too.
“If you liked the other two psycho killer series on Netflix Jeffrey Dahmer or Ed Gein this is for you. Final vote: 7/10.”
This article contains some spoilers for the Netflix miniseries “Death by Lightning.”
If politics today make your head spin, wait until you see Netflix’s “Death by Lightning.” The four-part miniseries, premiering Thursday, chronicles one of the more jaw-dropping stretches of post-Civil War American history, when corruption ran rampant, a presidential nominee was drafted at the 11th hour, only to be assassinated early in his term by one of his biggest fans — becoming perhaps the greatest head of state we never really got to have.
And the show answers the burning expletive-laced question posed by its first line: Who is Charles Guiteau?
“I’ve been in a James Garfield rabbit hole for seven years of my life at this point,” says showrunner Mike Makowsky, who adapted Candice Millard’s 2011 chronicle of Garfield and Guiteau, “Destiny of the Republic.” Those who paid attention in history class probably remember that Garfield served briefly as our 20th president in 1881 before being shot and killed. Those who remember more than that are few and far between.
“My own agent half the time refers to him as Andrew Garfield,” says Makowsky. “And I have to confess, I knew very little about Garfield, like most Americans, until I picked up Candice Millard’s remarkable book.”
Realizing he knew little about one of the four American presidents to be assassinated, Makowsky thought, “Since I would desperately like to be on ‘Jeopardy!’ someday, I was like, ‘Let me educate myself.’ I wound up reading the entire book in one sitting.”
“Death by Lightning,” directed by “Captain Fantastic” auteur Matt Ross, boasts a remarkable cast: Betty Gilpin as First Lady Lucretia Garfield; Nick Offerman as Garfield’s successor, a hard-drinking, hard-partying Chester A. Arthur; Michael Shannon as James Garfield, the polymath president, crusader against corruption and noble to a fault; and Matthew Macfadyen as Charles Guiteau, the frustrated office-seeker who shot him.
“I wanted to cast people who were somewhat counterintuitive,” says Ross. “If you read the cast list for this, you might assume Michael Shannon was playing Guiteau because he has played a lot of complicated, for lack of a better word, villains — tough guys, bad guys. And Matthew Macfadyen has played more heroic characters.”
Guiteau is definitely no Darcy from “Pride and Prejudice,” or Tom Wambsgans from “Succession,” for that matter. In the series’ conception of him, he shares more DNA with Martin Scorsese’s unhinged protagonists than he does with Darcy — or, certainly, with Garfield.
The proto-incel with a gun
As portrayed in “Death by Lightning,” Guiteau is a rotten-toothed, scheming, big-dreaming, delusional charlatan and possible sociopath. He’s the proto-incel, and the diametrical opposite to Garfield, whom Makowsky defines as “lawful good,” to borrow the Dungeons & Dragons classification.
“I think the most reductive view of Guiteau is ‘chaotic evil,’ right? But that’s the least interesting rendering of this person,” he says. “What are the societal factors that alienate a man like Guiteau from his fellow human beings? The show is meant to probe into his psyche.”
He was a member of the Oneida community, a religious sect based in New York that practiced communalism, free love and mutual criticism, which is depicted in the series (and yes, they founded the flatware company). But Guiteau couldn’t partake in what Makowsky delicately called the “benefits” of such a society, largely because his delusions of grandeur alienated him from others there. The women reportedly nicknamed him “Charles Gitout.”
“Everyone who encountered him described him as being disagreeable, odd, rude, selfish,” Ross says, explaining the need for an actor who had the opposite qualities. “He’s an extreme example of someone who had no work to be seen for, but was so desperately looking for affirmation and love.”
Charles Guiteau (Matthew Macfadyen) was part of the Oneida community, which practiced communalism and free love, but he wasn’t accepted by its members.
(Larry Horricks/Netflix)
Ross describes Macfadyen as someone who’s empathetic, warm and funny. “I wanted that humanity because the real Guiteau was a deeply disturbed man who was psychologically brutalized by his father to the point he was a non-functioning person.”
Makowsky says as he was reading Millard’s book, he thought of Rupert Pupkin, Robert De Niro’s deranged-fan protagonist in Scorsese’s “King of Comedy.” “This guy showing up, day in and day out, hoping for an audience with his hero [Garfield], being continually rebuffed to the point where something in his brain breaks,” he says of Guiteau. “He felt like a direct historical antecedent to the Rupert Pupkins and Travis Bickles of the world. He fell through the cracks and we lost potentially one of our greatest presidents because of it.”
Makowsky recalls shooting the only dialogue scene between Garfield and Guiteau, when the “greatest fan” finally gets to meet his idol. To Makowsky’s surprise, Macfadyen’s Guiteau “just burst into tears. That wasn’t scripted. It was so overwhelming to him. I think in that moment, more than any other in the series, you feel something for this man.”
Party (hearty) over country
Garfield was succeeded in office by Chester A. Arthur, whom Makowsky calls one of the least likely persons to ever become president. “The man had never held elected office,” he says. “His one political appointment prior to his nomination for vice president was as chief crony of the spoils system of [New York Sen.] Roscoe Conkling’s political machine. The level of corruption was so audacious and insane.”
He’s played with oft-drunken brio by Nick Offerman, whose voice Makowsky says he heard in his head as soon as he started writing the role: “I was like, it has to be Nick Offerman.” He took some liberties with the character and events, including a memorable sequence where Arthur and Guiteau go on a bender. Makowsky says they “probably never had a wild night out in New York, but it was an indelible proposition and I couldn’t resist.”
Nick Offerman plays eventual President Chester A. Arthur, who was closely aligned with New York Sen. Roscoe Conkling (Shea Whigham).
Betty Gilpin portrays First Lady Lucretia Garfield as her husband’s intellectual equal. (Larry Horricks / Netflix)
As to the first lady, “Lucretia Garfield was every bit her husband’s intellectual equal. But she couldn’t vote. There was a ceiling to what a woman in her day could accomplish,” Makowsky says, wistfully musing on what she might have achieved, given the chance. “And Betty [Gilpin] radiates that strength and that acute intelligence.”
Having recently given birth, Gilpin took her family along to Budapest for filming, voraciously researching Lucretia and reading her entire correspondence with her husband. The role gets meatier as the series progresses until she initiates an unforgettable, blistering encounter with Guiteau to button the story.
“Betty jokingly said to me, ‘If you cut that scene, I will kill you.’ I was like, ‘There’s no way that scene is being cut. It’s one of my favorite scenes in the entire show,’” Ross recalls. “Everyone who read it was like, ‘Oh my God, this scene.’ And Betty just knocked it out of the park, take after take after take.”
The forgotten president
Ross says when he first read Makowsky’s scripts, he thought they were “fantastically relevant” and offered a fresh look at American history. “As an American, I’m always trying to figure out what it means to be American,” he says. “The story of Garfield, you couldn’t make it up. He was a hero of working people and the promise of American democracy — having a representational democracy where those in power and the wealthy are not controlling the laws of the land, which could not be more relevant today.”
Makowsky calls Garfield “a poster boy for the American dream,” rising from poverty to the nation’s top office.
“He was a war hero and a Renaissance man that did math theorems while he was in Congress and who could recite Homer from memory,” he says. “This remarkable individual, fiercely intelligent and a brilliant, powerful orator, was far ahead of his time on certain political questions of the day. He was an outspoken proponent for civil rights and universal education and civil service reform.”
In real life, and as depicted in the series, Garfield worked with notable Black leaders like Frederick Douglass and Blanche Bruce, the first Black register of the Treasury, whom he appointed.
“The great tragedy is we were robbed of a potentially generational leader in Garfield,” Makowsky says.
“Death by Lightning” showrunner Mike Makowsky says Americans were robbed of a “potentially generational leader” in James Garfield.
(Larry Horricks / Netflix)
Garfield wasn’t even seeking the nomination when he spoke on behalf of another candidate at the Republican National Convention of 1880, but his speech so moved the delegates that they eventually persuaded him to accept the nomination after more than 30 votes failed to produce another winner. It reminded Makowsky of then-Sen. Barack Obama’s 2004 speech at the Democratic National Convention, where he presented “a strong and confident, optimistic vision for the future of our country.”
Nowadays, such a rise seems less likely. “I don’t know if that would happen today, obviously because of money in politics; no one can run if they don’t have phenomenal backing,” Ross says.
Ross emphasizes the show is “not a history lesson,” drawing a distinction between drama and documentary. At times, “Death by Lightning” plays like a black comedy. Makowsky’s dialogue, while usually honoring what we think of as the formality and vocabulary of the 1880s’ idiom, occasionally veers into hilariously cathartic invective that bracingly reminds us these were living, breathing people with fire in their bellies.
“Ken Burns could make a 10-hour documentary to encapsulate all the nuances of this incredible story,” says Ross. What Makowsky did, Ross says, was contextualize the history through the prism of two very different people, Garfield and Guiteau.
“One is this incredibly admirable American figure I think everyone should know about, the greatest president we never really had. And then the other is a charlatan, a deeply broken, deeply mentally ill man who just kind of wanted to be Instagram-famous, just wanted to be known. You see this moment in history through their eyes, and I thought that was delicious.”
“Death By Lightning,” premiering Thursday on Netflix, introduces itself as “a story about two men the world forgot,” and while it is undoubtedly true that few in 2025 will recognize the name Charles Guiteau, many will know James A. Garfield, given that he was one of only four assassinated American presidents. There are less well remembered presidents, for sure — does the name John Tyler ring a bell? — and assassins better known than Guiteau, but if you’re going to make a docudrama, it does help to choose a story that might be more surprising to viewers and comes with a murder built in. It is also, I would guess intentionally, a tale made for our times, with its themes of civil rights, income inequality, cronyism and corruption.
Indeed, most everything about the Garfield story is dramatic — a tragedy, not merely for the family, but for the nation. For the sense one gets from “Death by Lightning” and from the historical record it fairly represents, is that Garfield, killed after only 200 days in office, might have made a very good chief executive. (The stated source for the series is Candice Millard’s 2011 book “Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President”; Millard is also a voice in the more briefly titled, illuminating “American Experience” documentary “Murder of a President.”)
That the longtime Ohio congressman did not seek but was drafted for the job — a compromise chosen, against his protests, on the 36th ballot at the 1880 Republican National Convention, where he’d given a stirring speech to nominate a fellow Ohioan, Treasury Secretary John Sherman — made him, one might say, especially qualified for the job; unlike some politicians one might name, he was self-effacing and humble and not out for personal gain. But he saw, finally, that he had a chance to “fix all the things that terrify me about this republic,” most especially the ongoing oppression of Black citizens, a major theme of his inauguration speech (with remarks transferred here to a campaign address delivered to a crowd of 50,000 from a balcony overlooking New York’s Madison Square Park). “I would rather be with you and defeated than against you and victorious,” he tells a group of Black veterans gathered on his front porch, from which he conducted his campaign. (Some 20,000 people were said to have visited there during its course.)
Political machinations and complications aside, the narrative, which stretches two years across four episodes, is really fairly simple, even schematic, cutting back and forth between Garfield (Michael Shannon, between tours covering early R.E.M. albums) and Guiteau (Matthew Macfadyen), a drifter with delusions of grandeur, as they approach their historically sealed date with destiny. Garfield is goodness personified; we meet him on his farm, cooking breakfast for the family, planing wood to make a picnic table. (A table we will meet again.) Guiteau goes from one failed project to another, living it up on money stolen from his sister, running out on restaurant checks and rooming house bills, telling lies about himself he might well have thought were true, until he decides that politics is the place to make his mark. Under the impression that he was responsible for Garfield’s election, he believed the new president owed him a job — ambassador to France would be nice — and when none was coming, turned sour. A message from God, and the belief that he would save the republic, set him on a path to murder.
Matthew Macfadyen plays Garfield’s assassin, Charles Guiteau, in the miniseries.
(Larry Horricks / Netflix)
The series largely belongs to them — both actors are terrific, Shannon imbuing Garfield with a gravity leavened with kindness and humor, Macfadyen’s Guiteau, optimistically dedicated to his delusions yet always about to pop. But it’s a loaded cast. The ever-invaluable Betty Gilpin, in her fourth big series this year after “American Primeval,” “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf” and “Hal & Harper,” plays Garfield’s wife, Crete, fully up on the political scene and free with her opinions. Shea Whigham is New York senator and power broker Roscoe Conkling, Garfield’s moral opposite, and the series’ villain, if you excuse Guiteau as mentally ill. (The jury didn’t.). As wise Maine Sen. James Blaine, Bradley Whitford exudes a convincing, quiet authority, honed over those years working in the pretend White House on “The West Wing.” All the men have been whiskered to resemble their historical models.
Where most of them, even Guiteau, remain consistent from beginning to end, it’s Nick Offerman’s Chester A. Arthur who goes on a journey. Conkling’s right hand, in charge of the New York Customs House — which generated a third of the country’s revenues through import fees — he’s offered the position of vice president to appease Conkling, New York being key to winning the election. Arthur begins as a thuggish, cigar-smoking, sausage-eating, drunken clown, until he’s forced, by events, and the possibility of inheriting the presidency, to reckon with himself.
When First Lady Crete Garfield wonders whether there should be a little extra security (or, really, any security at all) around her husband, he responds, “Assassination can no more be guarded against than death by lightning — it’s best not to worry too much about either one,” giving the series its title and clearing up any confusion you may have had about its meaning. Indeed, Guiteau moves in and out of what today would be well guarded rooms with surprising ease, managing encounters (some certainly invented) with Crete, Blaine, a drunken Arthur and Garfield, whom he implores, “Tell me how I can be great, too.”
Created by Mike Makowsky, it isn’t free from theatrical effects, dramatic overreach or obvious statements, but as period pieces go, it’s unusually persuasive, in big and little ways. Only occasionally does one feel taken out of a 19th century reality into a 21st century television series. The effects budget has been spent where it matters, with some detailed evocations of late 19th century Chicago and Washington that don’t scream CGI. The first episode, which recreates the 1880 convention, held at the Interstate Exposition Building in Chicago, aligns perfectly with engravings of the scene and brings it to life, supporting the wheeling and dealing and speechifying in a way that one imagines is close to being there.
Because we know what’s coming, the series can be emotionally taxing, especially as a wounded Garfield lingers through much of the final episode, while being mistreated by his doctor, Willard Bliss (Zeljko Ivanek), who ignores the advice of the younger, better informed Dr. Charles Purvis (Shaun Parkes), the first Black physician to attend to a sitting president; many, including Millard, believe it was the doctor who killed him through a lack of sanitary precautions, and that Garfield might have recovered if he’d just been left alone, an idea the series supports.
But you can’t change history, as much as “Death By Lightning” makes you wish you could.
BBC viewers have been urged to look out for any clues as the broadcaster is reportedly gearing up to announce the return of one of its biggest shows very soon
23:45, 05 Nov 2025Updated 23:45, 05 Nov 2025
Line of Duty could be making a comeback very soon(Image: BBC)
A huge BBC drama is set to announce its comeback within a matter of days. Fans have been waiting on tenterhooks to see if another series will be released, and now the cast have finally aligned their schedules to make it happen.
The BBC are said to be gearing up to confirm Line of Duty will be back on screens for a seventh series. Fans have been urged to keep an eye out for any online announcements that will be followed by TV teaser trailers.
Now, it seems fans won’t have long to wait for an official announcement as a source said: “Although this has been discussed at length since the unsatisfactory ending of series six in 2021, it’s still going to create huge excitement when the Beeb makes the announcement.
“It’s one they’ve been preparing to make for weeks, but they’ve been trying to pick the right moment, since The Celebrity Traitors has been hogging quite a lot of limelight recently.” They added to Sun: “And the BBC very much view Line Of Duty as one of the jewels in its crown that they want to deliver with some fanfare.”
The BBC declined to comment when approached by the Mirror. Back in July, Actor Adrian said: “We’re really excited about getting our hands on a Line of Duty script, to see what happens to us.”
The Ridley star even teased what is to come on the programme, which could air in 2026, as he told The Times: “It is down to the BBC to make an announcement, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed that next year we’ll be working on a new series. No doubt Jed will think of some interesting twists and turns.”
Martin Compston played DS Steve Arnott in the show, which came to an end when his character and his team discovered the identity of “H”. He also shared details on whether viewers can expect more from the series.
“We’re always talking about possibilities and schedules and whatnot,” he said to The Sun. Martin didn’t dare share more and added: “Everybody’s got stuff going on at the minute, so I think anything, unfortunately, would be a way off.”
Before Martin discussed a potential new series, a source told the same publication that Adrian, Vicky McClure and Martin will reunite to film six new episodes. They said at the time: “This is the news Line of Duty fans have been waiting for since the sixth season left them deflated when it aired back in 2021.
“The BBC almost immediately requested more episodes to continue the story, but the success of the show meant Vicky, Martin and Adrian were instantly snapped up for other projects. But after several meetings with Jed [Mercurio, creator and writer] and the production team, they’ve finally managed to clear space in their calendars next year to commit to making the show.”
While last August, Adrian said that he was desperate to get back into character for another series. He told Good Housekeeping: “We all want another series.
“We filmed our last series in lockdown, which meant we didn’t get to do anything other than work, so we’re really keen to get together for one last hurrah.”
The Chicago Cubs’ Kyle Tucker runs the bases after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of Game 4 of their NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers.
(Nam Y. Huh / Associated Press)
The most obvious area of need for next year’s Dodgers will be in the outfield.
Andy Pages will be back, trying to build upon his 27-homer campaign in 2025. Teoscar Hernández will enter the second of his three-year contract, trying to rebound from his injury-plagued struggles this past summer.
But the third spot remains wide open, with Michael Conforto hitting free agency after his dismal performance on a one-year, $17 million deal this past year, and Alex Call having been used in more of a depth role after his arrival of this year’s trade deadline.
Internally, the Dodgers don’t have an immediate plug-and-play option, as top prospects Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Eduardo Quintero and Mike Sirota remain a ways away from the majors.
Thus, don’t be surprised to see the Dodgers linked with big names on either the free-agent or trade market this winter, starting with top free-agent prize Kyle Tucker.
Since the summer, industry speculation has swirled about the Dodgers’ expected pursuit of Tucker this offseason. The four-time All-Star did not finish 2025 well while nursing a couple injuries, but remains one of the premier left-handed bats in the sport, and could command upward of $400-$500 million on a long-term deal — a hefty price tag, but certainly not one beyond the Dodgers’ capabilities.
Free agency will include other notable outfield options. Cody Bellinger is hitting the open market, though a reunion with the Dodgers has always seemed like a long shot. Harrison Bader and Trent Grisham could provide more glove-first alternatives, and have been linked with the Dodgers in the past.
Then there are potential trade candidates, from left fielder Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians to utilityman Brendan Donovan of the St. Louis Cardinals, also players the Dodgers have inquired about in the past.
The Dodgers could construct their 2026 roster in other ways, thanks to the versatility Tommy Edman provides in center field. But another outfield addition remains their most logical priority this winter. And there will be no shortage of possibilities.
The celebration had hardly begun, when Shohei Ohtani first voiced the theme of the day.
“I’m already thinking about the third time,” he said in Japanese, standing atop a double-decker bus in downtown Los Angeles with of thousands of blue-clad, flag-waving, championship-celebrating Dodgers fans lining the streets around him for the team’s 2025 World Series parade.
Turns out, he wasn’t alone.
Two days removed from a dramatic Game 7 victory that made the Dodgers baseball’s first repeat champion in 25 years, the team rolled through the streets of downtown and into a sold-out rally at Dodger Stadium on Monday already thinking about what lies ahead in 2026.
With three titles in the last six seasons, their modern-day dynasty might now be cemented.
But their goal of adding to this “golden era of Dodger baseball,” as top executive Andrew Friedman has repeatedly called it, is far from over.
“All I have to say to you,” owner and chairman Mark Walter told the 52,703 fans at the team’s stadium rally, “is we’ll be back next year.”
“I have a crazy idea for you,” Friedman echoed. “How about we do it again?”
When manager Dave Roberts took the mic, he tripled down on that objective: “What’s better than two? Three! Three-peat! Three-peat! Let’s go.”
When shortstop Mookie Betts, the only active player with four World Series rings, followed him, he quadrupled the expectation: “I got four. Now it’s time to fill the hand all the way up, baby. ‘Three-peat’ ain’t never sounded so sweet. Somebody make that a T-shirt.”
For these history-achieving, legacy-sealing Dodgers, Monday was a reminder of the ultimate end goal — the kind of scene that, as they embark on another short winter, will soon fuel their motivations for another confetti-filled parade this time next year.
“For me, winning a championship, the seminal moment of that is the parade,” Friedman said. “The jubilation of doing it, when you get the final out, whatever game you win it in, is special. That night is special. But to be able to take a breath and then experience a parade, in my mind, that is what has always driven me to want to win.”
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“[To] do this for the city, that’s what it’s all about,” first baseman Freddie Freeman added. “There’s nothing that feels as important as winning a championship. And if so happens to be three in a row, that’s what it is. But that’s what’s gonna drive us to keep going.”
Much of the group had been part of the 2020 title team that was denied such a serenade following that pandemic-altered campaign. They had waited four long years to experience a city-wide celebration. The reception they received was sentimental and unique.
Now, as third baseman Max Muncy said with a devious grin from atop a makeshift stage in the Dodger Stadium outfield, “it’s starting to get a little bit comfortable up here. Let’s keep it going.”
“Losing,” star pitcher and World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto added, in English, in a callback to one of his memorable quotes from this past October, “isn’t an option.”
Doing it won’t be easy.
This year, the Dodgers’ win total went down to 93 in an inconsistent regular season. They had to play in the wild-card round for the first time since the playoffs expanded in 2022. And in the World Series, they faced elimination in Games 6 and 7, narrowly winning both to complete their quest to repeat.
“I borderline still can’t believe we won Game 7,” fan favorite Kiké Hernández said in a bus-top interview.
But, he quickly added, “We’re all winners. Winners win.”
Thus, they also get celebrations like Monday’s.
As it was 367 days earlier, the Dodgers winded down a parade route in front of tens of thousands of fans from Temple Street to Grand Avenue to 7th Street to Figueroa. Both on board the double-decker buses and in the frenzied masses below, elation swirled and beverages flowed.
Once the team arrived at Dodger Stadium, it climbed atop a blue circular riser in the middle of the field — the final symbolic steps of their ascent back to the mountaintop of the sport.
Anthony Anderson introduced them to the crowd, while Ice Cube delivered the trophy in a blue 1957 Chevy Bel-Air.
Familiar scenes, they are hoping become an annual tradition.
“Job in 2024, done. Job in 2025, done,” Freeman said. “Job in 2026? Starts now.”
The Dodgers did take time to recognize their newfound place in baseball history, having become just the sixth MLB franchise to win three titles in the span of six years and the first since the New York Yankees of 1998 to 2000 to win in consecutive years.
Where last year’s parade day felt more like an overdue coronation, this one served to crystallize their legacy.
“Everybody’s been asking questions about a dynasty,” Hernández said. “How about three in six years? How about a back-to-back?”
And, on Monday, all the main characters of this storybook accomplishment got their moment in the sun.
There was, as team broadcaster and rally emcee Joe Davis described him, “the Hall of Fame-bound” Roberts, who now only trails Walter Alston in team history with three World Series rings.
“We talked about last year, wanting to run it back,” he said. “And I’ll tell you right now, this group of guys was never gonna be denied to bring this city another championship.”
There was Game 7 hero Miguel Rojas calling up surprise October closer Roki Sasaki, on his birthday, to dance to his “Bailalo Rocky” entrance song; a request Sasaki sheepishly obliged by pumping his fist to the beat.
Yamamoto, coming off his heroic pitching victories in Games 6 and 7, received some of the day’s loudest ovations.
“We did it together,” he said. “I love the Dodgers. I love Los Angeles.”
Muncy, Ohtani and Blake Snell also all addressed the crowd.
“I’m trying to get used to this,” Snell said.
“I’m ready to get another ring next year,” Ohtani reiterated.
One franchise face who won’t be back for that chase: Clayton Kershaw, who rode into the sunset of retirement by getting one last day at Dodger Stadium, fighting back tears as he thanked the crowd at the end of his illustrious (and also Hall of Fame-bound) 18-year career.
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“Last year, I said I was a Dodger for life. And today, that’s true,” Kershaw said. “And today, I get to say that I’m a champion for life. And that’s never going away.”
Kershaw, of course, is one of the few still around from the club’s dark days of the early 2010s, when money was scarce and playoff appearances were uncertain and parades were only things to dream about — not expect.
As he walks away, however, the team has been totally transformed.
Now, the Dodgers have been to 13 straight postseasons. They’ve set payroll records and bolstered their roster with a wave of star signings. They’ve turned the pursuit of championships into a yearly expectation, proud but unsatisfied with what they’ve achieved to this point.
“I think, definitionally, it’s a dynasty,” said Friedman, the architect of this run with the help of Walter’s deep-pocketed Guggenheim ownership group. “But that to me, in a lot of ways, that kind of caps it if you say, ‘OK, this is what it is.’ For me, it’s still evolving and growing. We want to add to it. We want to continue it, and do everything we can to put it at a level where people after us have a hard time reaching.”
On Monday, they raised that bar another notch higher.
“This parade was the most insane thing I’ve ever witnessed, been a part of,” Kershaw said. “It truly is the most incredible day ever to be able to end your career on.”
On Tuesday, the Dodgers’ long road toward holding another one begins.
“I know they’re gonna get one more next year,” Kershaw told the crowd. “And I’m gonna watch, just like all of you.”
Dodgers fans filled the streets of downtown Los Angeles early Monday morning, to celebrate the Dodgers becoming baseball’s first back-to-back World Series champion in 25 years.
The celebratory parade is commenced at 11 a.m., with the Dodgers traveling on top of double-decker buses through downtown with a final stop at Dodger Stadium.
The 2025 Dodgers team has been a bright spot for many Angelenos during an otherwise tumultuous year for the region, after historic firestorms devastated thousands of homes in January and then widespread immigration sweeps over the summer by the Trump administration.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
Manager Dave Roberts holds the Commissioner’s Trophy during the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration Monday.
(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)
Ramon Ontivros, left, and Michelle Ruiz, both from Redlands, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.
(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)
From left, Mike Soto, Luis Espino, and Francisco Espino, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Mia Nava, 9, waves a flag. “She’s skipping school today and her teachers know her passion.” Said her mom, Jennie Nava.
(Carlin Stiehl/For The Times)
Alex Portugal holds onto a championship belt at Dodger Stadium. Claudia Villar Lee, poses with a model of the World Series trophy around her neck.
(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)
Young fans line the streets of downtown Los Angeles for the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ thrilling 11-inning Saturday win over the Toronto Blue Jays was the most watched World Series game since 2017, according to Nielsen data.
The Fox telecast of the Game 7 contest giving the Dodgers their second consecutive world championship attracted an average of 25. 5 million viewers on Fox.
Viewers watching the Spanish-language telecast on Fox Deportes and Fox Sports streaming platforms brought the audience figure to just under 26 million.
The Dodgers’ 5-4 win delivered the largest audience for a World Series game since the Houston Astros’ Game 7 win over the the team in 2017, which had an audience of 28.3 million.
The figure was 10% over the last decisive game seven World Series game in 2019, when the Washington Nationals defeated the Astros.
The battle on Saturday will go down as one of the most memorable games in World Series history, with a number of spectacular plays in the field and a dramatic go-ahead home run by Dodgers catcher Will Smith.
Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto won his third game of the series with his strong relief outing, earning him the Most Valuable Player Award for the series.
The audience level peaked between 8:30 and 8:45 p.m. Pacific, with 31.5 million viewers tuned in.
The Dodgers became the first Major League Baseball team to win back-to-back championships in 25 years.
TORONTO — Beneath his feet, confetti decorated the turf. Behind him, the video boards congratulated his team on its latest championship.
The Dodgers owner who lives and breathes championships smiled broadly. Magic Johnson always does, of course. This time, he had an impish twinkle in his eye.
“They said we ruined baseball,” Johnson said. “Well, I guess we didn’t.”
If you are not in Los Angeles, you might be screaming in frustration. The team with all the gold makes the rules, and the new rule is that the Dodgers win every year, and now their most famous owner is mocking you?
He is not.
He is, however, issuing a subtle warning to all of baseball’s owners: Don’t let your desperation for a salary cap destroy a sport on the rise — in no small part thanks to the Dodgers.
The NBA was not much more than a minor league 45 years ago. This is crazy to imagine now, but the NBA Finals aired on tape delay, on late-night television, most often at 11:30 p.m. The NBA audience was so small that advertisers would not pay prime-time rates for those commercials, so the games were not broadcast in prime time.
Johnson helped change that. The rivalry between his Lakers and Larry Bird’s Celtics revived the NBA, and then Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls became global sporting icons.
From 1980-88, either the Lakers or the Celtics won the NBA title in every year but one. From 1991-98, the Bulls won six titles.
The Celtics and Lakers and Bulls did not ruin the NBA.
“What the Celtics and Lakers were able to do, and Michael Jordan’s Bulls, was to bring in new fans — fans that were, ‘Oh, I don’t know about the NBA,’” Johnson said, “but the play was so good, and the Celtics and Lakers and Bulls were so dominant, people said, ‘Oh man, I want to watch them.’
“It’s the same thing happening here.”
The NBA leadership could not believe its good fortune. Baseball’s leadership appears intent on lighting its good fortune on fire.
“My phone was blowing up with people who hadn’t watched baseball for a long time,” Johnson said. “They were watching this series.
“This was good for baseball around the world.”
The World Baseball Classic is four months away. The World Series most valuable player, the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto, is from Japan.
So is the Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani, the closest baseball has ever had to its own Jordan. The Dodgers rescued him from purgatory in Anaheim and surrounded him with a star-studded roster, and now he makes more money from pitching products than pitching baseballs. To the Dodgers, he doubles as an All-Star and cash machine.
The league — and all the owners complaining about the Dodgers and their spending — happily profited from this traveling road show. The Dodgers get the same share of international merchandise and broadcast revenue every other team does.
The Dodgers led the major leagues in road attendance, again. The league sent the Dodgers to Seoul last spring and Tokyo this spring, meaning that, for two years running, they were one of the first two teams to report to spring training and one of the last two playing at season’s end. The league’s television partners rushed to book the Dodgers, even for games at times inconvenient to the team.
“MLB put us in every hard situation you can think about,” infielder Miguel Rojas said. “We never complained. We were trying to come through for the fans, for baseball, and everybody should be recognizing what we are doing.”
With the Blue Jays in the World Series, Canadian ratings for the World Series increased tenfold. The Dodgers did not destroy the Jays. They survived them, and barely at that.
The Dodgers have not ruined competition, despite the spotlight.
“They have a great team,” Toronto infielder Ernie Clement said. “There’s no denying it. They’re one of the best teams probably ever put together, and we’ve taken ‘em to seven games, so that’s got to say something about us.”
Toronto manager John Schneider said his team, which won more games than the Dodgers this season, had chances to sweep the World Series.
“People were calling it David versus Goliath,” Schneider said, shaking his head from side to side. “It’s not even… close.”
The Dodgers make a lot of money, pour the money back into the team, and win. They give the people what they want.
“People want the best,” co-owner Todd Boehly said.
Granted, not every team can spend like the Dodgers. Most cannot, and baseball should be able to find ways to share the wealth without risking its tenuous but growing popularity by locking out players in pursuit of a salary cap.
After all, isn’t a compelling product with stars from home and abroad good for baseball?
“You bet,” controlling owner Mark Walter said. “I think they think so, too.”
It was time to go. The parade was 36 hours away, and Johnson had to rest his throat.
“I’m hoarse,” he said. “I’ve never been hoarse.”
So we’ll leave you with one bit of sports trivia, in response to the mistaken notion that a salary cap assures competitive balance: In the Magic, Bird and Jordan years, the ones that lifted the NBA into popular culture, did the NBA have a salary cap?
It did then. It does now. Onto the quest for a three-peat.
Highlights from the Dodgers’ 5-4 win in 11 innings over the Blue Jays in Game 7 of the World Series.
Lowering his head, Yamamoto said to Osamu Yada, “Thank you for everything this year.”
Yamamoto figured his season was over. He’d thrown 96 pitches over six innings, and he half-joked in the postgame news conference that he wanted to cheer on his team rather than pitch again the next day. Manager Dave Roberts had the same thought, saying Yamamoto would be the only pitcher unavailable in Game 7.
The trainer had other ideas.
“Let’s see if you can throw in the bullpen tomorrow,” Yada said.
By just being in the bullpen, Yada said, Yamamoto could provide the Dodgers a psychological edge over the Toronto Blue Jays.
“That’s how I got tricked,” Yamamoto said in Japanese with a laugh.
Yada’s guiding hand transformed Yamamoto into a legend on Saturday night.
When he forced Alejando Kirk to ground into a game-ending double play, Yamamoto removed his cap and raised his arms toward the heavens. Catcher Will Smith rushed the mound and picked him up from the waist.
“I felt a joy I never felt before,” Yamamoto said.
Dodgers catcher Will Smith picks up Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto after the final out of a 5-4 win in 11 innings over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the World Series on Saturday.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Yamamoto pitched a complete game in Game 2. He pitched six more in Game 6. His contributions in Game 7 increased his series total to 17 ⅔ innings, over which he allowed only two runs.
The throwback performance earned him the series’ most valuable player award, as well as universal admiration.
“I really think he’s the No. 1 pitcher in the world,” Shohei Ohtani said in Japanese. “Everyone on the team thinks that, too.”
“I mean, he pitched last night, started,” Freeman said. “He threw the most innings out of our pitchers tonight.”
Freeman pointed out that in addition to pitching in three games, Yamamoto also warmed up to pitch in a fourth. Two days after his complete game in Game 2, he prepared in the bullpen to pitch a potential 19th inning in Game 3. The Dodgers won that game in the 18th inning.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” Freeman said.
President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said of Yamamoto’s Game 7 performance, “For him to have the same stuff that he had the night before is really the greatest accomplishment I’ve ever seen on a major league baseball field.”
Did Friedman think any other pitcher could have done what Yamamoto did in this series?
“No, I don’t,” Friedman said. “In fact, yesterday morning I didn’t necessarily think Yama could either.”
Friedman said he didn’t think much of it when he was notified after Game 6 that Yamamoto was receiving treatment from Yada at the team hotel with the intention of perhaps pitching in Game 7. Friedman was told the next morning that Yamamoto received another round of treatment.
The possibility of Yamamoto pitching in Game 7 became real to Friedman after he performed his trademark javelin-throwing routine and played catch at Rogers Centre. Yamamoto still wasn’t convinced.
Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, left, celebrates with Shohei Ohtani and teammates after a 5-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the World Series at Rogers Centre on Saturday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
“I didn’t think I would pitch,” Yamamoto said. “But I felt good when I practiced, and the next thing I knew, I was on the mound (in the game).”
The superstitious Sonoda wears the same pair of lucky underwear on days Yamamoto pitches. He wore the rabbit-themed boxers for Game 6. Sensing Yamamoto might pitch again, Sonoda wore the same boxers for Game 7.
“Just in case,” Sonoda admitted, “I didn’t wash them.”
Yamamoto had never pitched on consecutive days as a professional, in either the United States or Japan. When was called on to relieve Blake Snell in the ninth inning, he was uncertain of how he would perform.
Inheriting two baserunners from Snell with one out, Yamamoto loaded the bases by plunking Kirk. He forced Dalton Varsho to ground into a force out at home, only to throw a curveball to Ernie Clement that was driven to the wall in left field. Defensive replacement Andy Pages crashed into Kiké Hernández on the warning track but held on to the ball, preventing the Blue Jays from scoring the walk-off run.
Yamamoto pitched a 1-2-3 10th inning and went into the bottom of the 11th with a 5-4 lead, courtesy of a homer by Smith in the top of the inning.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. started the inning by pulling a 96.9-mph fastball for a double and advanced to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Yamamoto walked Addison Barger to place runners on the corners, setting up the game-ending double play by Kirk.
“I really couldn’t believe it,” Yamamoto said. “I was so excited I couldn’t even recall what kind of pitch I threw at the end. When my teammates ran to me, I felt the greatest joy I’ve felt up to this point.”
Clayton Kershaw, whom Yamamoto wanted to send into retirement with another championship, embraced him harder than he’d ever embraced him. Roberts swallowed him an embrace.
Yamamoto was moved to tears.
Overwhelmed by the moment, Yamamoto didn’t sound as if he grasped the magnitude of what he’d just done. In time, he will.
On the night the Dodgers solidified their dynasty, Yamamoto made this World Series his.
