In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

There were plenty of predictions to go around yesterday across the NFL and MLB, with our model focusing in on two of those predictions in our Featured Matchups. Those predictions went 2-0 overall, and you can see how each of the models performed below.

Money Line Predictions: 0-1

Over/Under Predictions: 1-0

Spread Predictions: 0-1

Featured Matchup: 1-0

Money Line Predictions: 7-5

Over/Under Predictions: 7-5

Run Line Predictions: 5-7

Featured Matchup: 1-0

🤕Aaron Rodgers feared to be out for remainder of season. Aaron Rodgers' debut with the New York Jets was short-lived, lasting only four snaps after he injured his achilles. The injury came after Bills edge rusher Leonard Floyd sacked Rodgers, resulting in Zach Wilson entering and completing the game. Rodgers will undergo an MRI to confirm the extent of the injury, leaving his availability, and the Jets’ Super Bowl hopes uncertain.

🚨 Chris Jones ends holdout, will play in Week 2. Defensive tackle Chris Jones ended his holdout and signed a new one-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs, with Chiefs general manager Brett Veach praising his leadership and contribution to the team's success. Jones is set to return to play this Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars, having stayed in shape during his holdout. The new deal includes incentives that could surpass his previous $19.5 million salary for the season, as he sought an upgraded contract during the final year of his previous four-year, $80 million deal with the Chiefs.

🤕 Cameron Heyward to miss several weeks. Six-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Cameron Heyward sustained a groin injury during their season-opening loss to the San Francisco 49ers, which may lead to his extended absence. While placing Heyward on injured reserve for four weeks is a possibility, it's not definite, and a decision on potential surgery is pending a second opinion. In response to Heyward's injury, the Steelers will look to various linemen, including rookies Keeanu Benton and DeMarvin Leal, to step up in his absence.

There are 17 MLB games set to take place throughout this afternoon and evening. However, due to gaps in the season data and our model excluding the second game of doubleheaders, our model has predictions for 14 of today’s matchups.

Washington Nationals @ Pittsburgh Pirates

Model Predicts- Pirates ML, OVER 9, Nationals +1.5

The Washington Nationals and Pittsburgh Pirates will play the second game of their four-game series on Tuesday night at PNC Park.

Washington got the best of Pittsburgh in Game 1, taking home a 6-2 victory on the back of a stellar performance form Patrick Corbin. However, the Nationals and just 3-7 in their last ten games, while Pittsburgh is a mediocre 5-5 in that same stretch.

Neither one of these teams in particularly good, but our model is leaning toward Pittsburgh to win in a high-scoring contest. Let’s dive into why that is and see our model’s best bet for this matchup.

Washington Nationals

• Rough start to September

  • 3-6 overall since September 1st

• Pitching staff shoulders much of blame

  • Group owns 4th highest ERA (4.97) and 2nd highest FIP (5.16) since start of month (FanGraphs)

  • Generating 41.2% ground ball rate this month, showing that opponents are elevating the baseball

• Offense hasn’t given its pitchers an help though

  • Have posted 89 wRC+ since September 1st

  • Making contact though. Own 18.3% strikeout rate, and .268 BABIP signals some bad luck

• Joan Adon (2-1 record, 5.56 ERA) will get start on mound. Owns 6.30 ERA and 1.70 WHIP in last two starts, and for season has posted a sub-par 47.1% Hard Hit Rate and 37.5% ground ball rate

Pittsburgh Pirates

• Have yet to officially name starting pitcher, but looks like Bailey Falter (1-8 record, 4.65 ERA) will be on the mound as a bulk reliever

  • Began season on Phillies, traded to Pittsburgh at trade deadline

• Falter has worked behind an opener for last two starts

  • Pitched 7.1 innings total, allowed just one run

• However, Falter is one of the worst pitchers in the MLB by many metrics

  • Pitching to contact- ranks in bottom 14% in strikeout rate (17.8%) and Whiff rate (18.3%)

  • Ranks in bottom 40% in Barrel rate (8.5%) and ground ball rate (40.6%), which has made him susceptible to home runs

What’s the Play?

Neither of today’s bulk pitchers have been reliable on the mound, despite a handful of decent starts. As a result, we agree with the model on the over in this spot.

Adon has only reached the sixth inning once since becoming a full-time big league pitcher, which is often times bad news given what is behind him. Washington owns one of the worst bullpens in the MLB this season, a group that has posted a 5.12 ERA, 5.03 FIP, and surrendered 84 home runs, the most in the league.

Pittsburgh has a much more reliable bullpen, but Falter struggles mightily to keep the baseball inside the ballpark, allowing 1.63 homers per nine innings.

There appears to be some light rain in the forecast tonight in Pittsburgh, but both pitcher’s vulnerability to the deep ball gives the over a chance here.

The Play: Over 9 (-120)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Tampa Bay Rays- 89-56 overall this season, 39-31 as the away team, 4-0 in last four games

• Milwaukee Brewers- 80-63 overall this season, 41-28 as the home team

• San Francisco Giants- 74-70 overall this season, 42-31 as the home team

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Toronto Blue Jays- Under is 76-60-8 this season, 38-26-5 as the home team

• New York Mets- Under is 81-57-5 this season, 44-22-3 as the home team

• Oakland Athletics- Over is 74-62-8 this season, 40-28-5 as the away team

Run Line Trends ➕➖

• Houston Astros- Run line is 74-71 this season, 7-4 when favored against Oakland

Various injuries around the league. See full injury report at MLB.com.

💥 Matt Olson reaches 50 home runs. In a rare achievement for the National League, Atlanta Braves' first baseman Matt Olson launched his 49th and 50th home runs of the season during a doubleheader against the Philadelphia Phillies. Olson became the first NL player to reach the 50-home run milestone since Pete Alonso's rookie record of 53 in 2019. Olson's 50th home run represented a significant career high, surpassing his previous best of 39 homers with the Oakland Athletics in 2021.

🎉 Julio Rodriguez joins 30/30 club. Julio Rodríguez made history on Monday night with his 10th-inning home run against the Angels, becoming the fourth MLB player aged 22 or younger to join the 30/30 club. Rodríguez's two-run shot in the 10th inning tied the game at 5-5, solidifying his 30 home runs and 36 stolen bases, making him the second youngest Mariner to achieve this milestone after Alex Rodriguez. He ended the night with four hits, totaling six such games this season, just one short of MLB leader Luis Arraez from the Miami Marlins.

😬 Dodgers remove Julio Urías’ locker and murals from stadium. In preparation for their upcoming homestand, the Los Angeles Dodgers have removed Julio Urías' locker from the clubhouse and concealed two murals depicting the World Series-winning pitcher at Dodger Stadium. This move comes after Urías' second arrest related to domestic violence incidents in four years, and he is set to appear in court on September 27. Manager Dave Roberts suggested that these actions indicate the team's intention to move on from Urías, who has been with the Dodgers since 2016 and played a pivotal role in their 2020 World Series victory. This move comes after Urías' second arrest related to domestic violence incidents in four years, and he is set to appear in court on September 27.

🚔 Kevin Porter Jr. arrested in NYC. Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr. was arrested in New York City and charged with assault and strangulation following an altercation with his girlfriend, former WNBA player Kysre Gondrezick. The incident reportedly occurred when Porter returned to their hotel room late at night, and Gondrezick locked the door, leading to a confrontation that resulted in her being assaulted. The NBA is currently gathering more information about the situation, but this isn't the first time Porter has faced legal issues, with previous accusations in 2020 including assaulting a woman in Cleveland.

🥇 NBA stars ready for Paris Olympics. Numerous NBA superstars, including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Stephen Curry, are showing strong interest in representing USA Basketball at the 2024 Paris Olympics, sources revealed. Curry, particularly, has expressed his desire to play under his Golden State Warriors coach, Steve Kerr. Several players from the 2021 gold-medal-winning team in Tokyo, like Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker, and Draymond Green, who didn't participate in the recent FIBA World Cup, are also being considered, while Chris Paul and Kevin Durant are contemplating another Olympic run.

💪 Quinn Hughes named Canucks captain. Vancouver Canucks' young defenseman, Quinn Hughes, has been named the team's 15th captain, becoming the franchise's first full-time defenseman captain since Kevin McCarthy held the role from 1979 to 1982. The decision was made after Hughes demonstrated leadership qualities, mixing well with teammates and addressing challenges candidly, according to Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet. Despite the understated press conference, the team is embracing a new leadership era as it turns the page from past traditions, with Hughes being the second-youngest NHL captain.

Today’s trivia requires you to dig into multiple pockets of your brain, testing your knowledge of recent events as well as those that happened decades ago.

See how many of the below questions you can get correct. Answers are provided at the end of the newsletter.

Question #1- One NBA franchise has ended two different seasons with 10 or fewer wins. Can you name the franchise?

Question #2- Marc Bulger owns the NFL record for most passing yards by a rookie in. a single game, which was set in a matchup against the San Diego Chargers in 2002. How many yards did Bulger throw for in the game?

Question #3- Seven different NBA players haves scored at least 70 points in a single game, with two surpassing the mark last season. Can you name those two players?

Anyone know what has happened on September 12th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On September 12th…

1993- Toronto Blue Jays infielder and designated hitter Paul Molitor records his first 100 RBI season in his MLB career. It was the first time that Molitor reached the 100 RBI milestone in a season, making him the oldest player in MLB history to do so. He would finish the 1993 season with 111 RBIs, and would record 113 a few years later in 1996.

2004- The Detroit Lions defeat the Chicago Bears by a score of 20-16. The win came in Lovie Smith’s debut as Lions head coach, and it snapped an NFL record 24-game losing streak for Detroit. However, the wins were few and far between for the rest of the season, with Detroit ending the year at 6-10.

2005- NHL legend Mark Messier announces that he will retire form the NHL. Messier played in the NHL for 25 years prior to his retirement, suiting up for the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks in that time. He would end his stellar career with 1,887 points, the third-most all-time behind only Jarmoir Jagr and Wayne Gretzky.

1. Philadelphia 76ers

2. 453 yards

3. Donovan Mitchell and Damian Lillard