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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

Kathryn Xu

Emmanuel Clase #48 of the Cleveland Guardians celebrates the team's 8-6 win over the Athletics.

What’s One Rigged Pitch?

Luis Paez-Pumar

Brian Brobbey of Sunderland AFC scores a late equalizing goal for Sunderland during the Premier League match between Sunderland and Arsenal at the Stadium Of Light in Sunderland, England, on November 8, 2025.

Soccer

Sunderland Doesn’t Need To Die To Get To Heaven

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Donald Trump smiles woodenly from the owner's box at the Nov. 9 Commanders game.

Booooooo! Boooooooo!!!

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Paul Skenes #30 of the Pittsburgh Pirates throws during a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on September 24, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Crosswords

The Crossword, Nov. 10: What’s In A Name?

Tom Ley

Emmanuel Clase #48 of the Cleveland Guardians reacts after striking out Patrick Bailey #14 of the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the ninth inning to end the game at Oracle Park on June 18, 2025 in San Francisco, California. The Guardians won the game 4-2

Gambling

Emmanuel Clase And Luis Ortiz Indicted For Elaborate Pitch-Rigging Scheme

Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

Fox Sports play-by-play announcer Gus Johnson before a college basketball game between the St. John's Red Storm and the Connecticut Huskies at Madison Square Garden on February 23, 2025 in New York City.

College Football

At Last, Gus Johnson Meets An Octave He Cannot Defeat

U.S. President Donald J. Trump (R) talks with Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris before a state dinner at the Lusail Palace on May 14, 2025, in Doha, Qatar. The visit underscores the strategic partnership between the United States and Qatar, focusing on regional security and economic collaboration.

Report: Donald Trump Trying To Slap His Awful Name On The Commanders’ New Stadium

U.S. President Donald Trump departs Air Force One on October 30, 2025 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. Trump is returning to Washington following a high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, alongside securing trade deals with ASEAN, Japanese and South Korean partners on his week-long Asian tour.

Politics

If You’re Stuck At An Airport Right Now, It’s Because Trump Fucked You

Samer Kalaf

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt speaks onstage ADL's Never Is Now event in New York.

The ADL Is Having A Mamdani Meltdown

Ray Ratto

Chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta of the Cleveland Browns stands on the field prior to a game on December 17, 2017 against the Baltimore Ravens.

November Is When The Colorado Rockies Do Their Best Work

Jae Towle Vieira [they/them] works as a producer for Normal Gossip. Their fiction has been published in The Normal School, New England Review, Carve Magazine, Passages North, Fairy Tale Review, and elsewhere.

Jae Towle Vieira

Arts And Culture

Here Is What Reading To My Child Has Done To My Brain

Israel Daramola

We Got Our First Peek At What The Playoff Committee Values

Head coach Sean Payton of the Denver Broncos speaks to Bo Nix (10) after a failed third-down conversion during the third quarter of Denver's awful, awful game against the Raiders on November 6, 2025.

Bad Football! No!

Patrick Redford

Stephen A. Smith playing solitaire on his phone during the NBA Finals

Stephen A. Smith And Other ESPNers Partner With Obscenely Scuzzy Mobile Casino

Lauren Theisen

A general view of the Enterprise Center during a game between the St. Louis Blues and the Edmonton Oilers

How To Watch Hockey

Andrew Cuomo delivers a concession speech on Election Night.

Let’s Check In With People Who Threatened To Leave Zohran Mamdani’s NYC

David Roth

A screenshot of Matt Damon getting bad news from Paddy Considine in The Bourne Supremacy. The Distraction logo is at lower left.

Podcasts

Pretending To Be Someone Else In An Uber, With Rohan Nadkarni

FBI and Border Patrol officers arrest Sean Charles Dunn, after he allegedly assaulted law enforcement with a sandwich, along the U Street corridor during a federal law enforcement deployment to the nation's capital on August 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump ordered an increased presence of federal law enforcement to Washington, DC in an effort to curb crime.

Life's Rich Pageant

If The Sub Didn’t Split, You Must Acquit

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

Marshawn Kneeland #94 of the Dallas Cowboys looks on from the sideline during the national anthem prior to an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at AT&T Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Arlington, Texas. He is wearing his Cowboys jersey and his helmet is off.

Cowboys Defensive End Marshawn Kneeland Dies By Suicide At Age 24

No! Don't even think about setting a screen

A Deep Dive Into The Architect Of The Miami Heat’s Weird New Offense, With Rohan Nadkarni

Kareem Hunt #29 of the Kansas City Chiefs runs with the ball against Cole Bishop #24 of the Buffalo Bills during the game at Highmark Stadium on November 2, 2025 in Orchard Park, New York.

Jamboroo

And Now, Rude Midseason Notes For Every NFL Team

Carlos Forbs of Club Brugge celebrates after scoring the team's first goal against Wojciech Szczesny of FC Barcelona and Alejandro Balde of FC Barcelona during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD4 match between Club Brugge KV and FC Barcelona at Jan Breydelstadion on November 5, 2025 in Bruges, Belgium.