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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Fernando Tatis Jr. #23, Manny Machado #13, and Juan Soto #22 congratulate Nelson Cruz #32 of the San Diego Padres after his solo homerun during the third inning of the MLB World Tour Mexico City Series against the San Francisco Giants at Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium on April 29, 2023 in Mexico City, Mexico.

What An Atmosphere For Baseball!

Ben Tippett

ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN - APRIL 29: Grandmaster Ding Liren (L) of China shakes hands with grandmaster Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia during the 2023 World Chess Championship at the St Regis Astana Hotel on April 29, 2023 in Astana, Kazakhstan. (

Chess

Ding Liren Made A Legendary Move To Become World Chess Champion

Ray Ratto

SUNRISE, FLORIDA - APRIL 10: Eetu Luostarinen #27 of the Florida Panthers tangles with Mark Giordano #55 of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the FLA Live Arena on April 10, 2023 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/NHLI via Getty Images)

No Canadians Allowed In Sunrise

Kelsey McKinney

The Bluesky app can be seen on a smartphone. The service of the Twitter alternative Bluesky can only be used with invitations so far, so that the infrastructure is not overloaded in one go.

Arts And Culture

The Internet Isn’t Meant To Be So Small

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Eating Some Shit Might Be Just What The Grizzlies Need

Israel Daramola

The ‘Succession’ Misery Index: Big, Big Shoes

Lauren Theisen

When Greatness Isn’t Good Enough

DENVER, CO - APRIL 30: Jamie Oleksiak (24) of the Seattle Kraken celebrates with Goaltender Philipp Grubauer (31) after defeating Mikko Rantanen and the Colorado Avalanche winning the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena April 30, 2023. The Avalanche lost 2-1. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)

The Kraken Made The Avs Look Like Old News

Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99

Diana Moskovitz

Monica Aldama attends the Build Series to discuss "Cheer" at Build Studio on January 29, 2020 in New York City. She is sitting down, wearing all black.

Lawsuit: ‘Cheer’ Coach, Navarro College Tried To Cover Up A Cheerleader’s Sexual Assault

Albert Burneko

Steph Curry with the Sacramento crowd behind him

Well, Shit: Steph Curry’s Fourth-Quarter Buckets, Graded For Rudeness

Barry Petchesky

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 30: Matthew Tkachuk #19 of the Florida Panthers celebrates the overtime win against the Boston Bruins in Game Seven of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Garden on April 30, 2023, in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)

Panthers Shock Bruins, Everybody Wins

Bo Bichette #11 of the Toronto Blue Jays hits a three-run home run in the second inning

Say Goodbye To The Baseball!

Nick Castellanos #8 of the Philadelphia Phillies smiles during his postgame interview, wearing both a headset and giant sunglasses

Please Pay Attention To Nick Castellanos

Toronto Maple Leafs fans watch, cheer, react to game 6 of their first round NHL playoffs series against Tampa Bay Lightning on the big screen in Maple Leaf Square outside Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. April 29, 2023.

The Leafs Vanquished One Ghost, But They Have Many More To Go

A screenshot showing Alex Albon's vehicle entering the pit lane, which is blocked by many photographers. On the left is a long graphic showing the race car standings.

Racing

Just My Opinion: Don’t Let People Stand In An Active Pit Lane

Chefector

How To Help Your Kids Learn To Like A Food

John Mulaney Still Goes For The Laugh First

Will Levis waits to be drafted in the green room backstage during the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft at Union Station on April 27, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri.

What Were The Odds Will Levis Would Have To Wait In The Green Room All Night?

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

A wide shot of the Penn Relays at Franklin Field

Track And Field

At Penn Relays, It’s About The Vibe

Patrick Redford

French mountaineer Christophe Profit climbs on the south face of the Rebuffat Peak on the Aiguille du Midi mountain (3 842 m) in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps, on June 2, 2016, during the reconstitution of Gaston Rebuffat and Maurice Baquet's first ascent of the south face of the Aiguille du Midi on July 13, 1956. / AFP / JEAN-PIERRE CLATOT (Photo credit should read JEAN-PIERRE CLATOT/AFP via Getty Images)

The Great Outdoors

Legendary Mountaineer Christophe Profit On Trial For Removing Safety Equipment On Mont Blanc

Soraya Roberts

Beef. Steven Yeun as Danny in episode 102 of Beef.

Steven Yeun Knows What To Do With How He Looks

A goldfish with a very strange computer-like implant coming out of its forehead, rather like a hat.

Creaturefector

Do You Like My Hat?

Lori Teresa Yearwood is a trauma-aware and trauma-sensitive journalist currently covering the U.S. housing crisis for The Economic Hardship Reporting Project. A former reporter for the Miami Herald, the St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Syracuse Newspapers, she has always written stories about people from populations that have been marginalized.

Lori Teresa Yearwood

How Are You Coping With That?

Evicted, Homeless, And Working Full-Time

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 27: in Game Five of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on April 27, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Jets Are Piss And Rick Bowness Is Pissed

Trae Young prepares to inbound the ball, defended by Marcus Smart.