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Morning Edition

January 30, 2025

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The Dodgers earn—and spend—so much money that even Yankees ownership is taken aback. Just how big an edge does it give them?

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Dodgers Flex Power With $100M Donation, Record Player Spending [[link removed]]

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The accelerating financial might of the Dodgers is once again on full display, for good and potentially bad.

The charitable foundation of the defending World Series champion [[link removed]], along with owner Mark Walter’s family foundation, co-owner Magic Johnson, and LA28 Olympics chair Casey Wasserman, announced this week a collective $100 million donation [[link removed]] for relief from the devastating wildfires in Southern California. The sum, a seed funding designed to “jump-start” other giving, far surpasses a prior, $8 million collective donation for wildfire relief involving all of the Los Angeles–area pro teams, including the Dodgers.

“This process and this journey we’re about to start with LA Rises is not about the next month or the next year,” Wasserman said of the new philanthropic effort. “This is about what L.A. is going to be like for the next 50 or 100 years.”

Spending Issues

Meanwhile, the Dodgers’ highly aggressive spending [[link removed]] this offseason is raising more worries among other MLB clubs—even those also among the sport’s fiscal behemoths [[link removed]]. The Dodgers’ moves this season include acquiring pitchers Blake Snell [[link removed]] and Roki Sasaki [[link removed]], retaining star outfielder Teoscar Hernández, and most recently adding relievers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates.

As a result, the Dodgers’ luxury-tax payroll for 2025 currently stands at $382.6 million [[link removed]]—more than $80 million beyond any other team and more than six times the comparable figure for the Marlins.

Such a situation is rather troubling, said Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner.

“It’s difficult for most of us owners to be able to do the kind of things that they’re doing,” Steinbrenner said on the YES Network. “Now, we’ll see if it pays off. They still have to have a season relatively injury-free for it to work out for them, and it’s a long season, as you know, and once you get to the postseason, anything can happen.”

Still, Steinbrenner insisted the Yankees are better than they were at this point in 2024, even with the recent loss of free agent Juan Soto [[link removed]], thanks to an aggressive reshaping of the club [[link removed]].

“Some people may disagree with me—but some people will agree with me—I think we have a better team right now than we did a year ago today,” he said.

Caitlin Clark Rejects 3-Point Contest, Heightening NBA All-Star Issues [[link removed]]

The Indianapolis Star

The NBA will have to wait another year to capitalize on Caitlin Clark’s star power at All-Star weekend.

The WNBA star has decided not to participate in a special three-point shootout [[link removed]] at this year’s NBA All-Star weekend, according to ESPN senior NBA insider Shams Charania. ESPN reported in November that the NBA is trying to revamp last year’s shooting challenge between Steph Curry and Sabrina Ionescu by adding Clark and Mavericks wing Klay Thompson [[link removed]] this year.

Clark’s representatives at Excel Sports told ESPN that she would like the 2025 WNBA All-Star three-point contest to be her first. She also decided not to participate in last year’s WNBA event during her rookie season.

Her decision is a blow for the NBA as it looks to improve on dwindling viewership for its All-Star showcase. Last year’s All-Star Saturday Night drew 4.57 million viewers—up 31% from the previous year—but still just the third-least-watched version of the event in history. Sunday’s game averaged 5.4 million viewers last year, up 17.6% versus 2023, but still the second-least-watched game [[link removed]].

Last year’s Saturday festivities were boosted by the duel of Steph Curry and Sabrina Ionescu [[link removed]], the first time the league pitted an NBA and WNBA star head-to-head in a shooting contest during All-Star weekend. Viewership peaked at 5.4 million during the window of their shootout.

Clark’s participation would have helped soften the blow of the underwhelming group of participants for the Slam Dunk Contest—often All-Star Saturday’s main event—the NBA announced Monday.

The field features back-to-back champion Mac McClung, Andre Jackson Jr., and rookies Matas Buzelis and Stephon Castle. While McClung has impressed over the last two years, there is a clear lack of star power in the field. (None of the participants have played more than 100 NBA games.)

Silver Stays Hopeful

As for the Sunday showcase, the NBA has tweaked the format for the second year in a row as it hopes players will give more effort on the court. This year will be the first tournament-style format [[link removed]], with four teams competing for a $1.8 million prize pool.

Commissioner Adam Silver, who has been forthcoming about the All-Star Game’s issues [[link removed]] in recent years, said at a press conference in Paris last week [[link removed]] that he “hasn’t given up” on making the All-Star Game more competitive.

“We went back to the drawing board, we had direct conversations with many of the players, many of the perennial All-Stars to talk about what it is that we could put together from a competitive standpoint. And I’m optimistic this year that we landed on a formula that will work,” Silver said.

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It measures how efficiently your body uses oxygen during exercise, linking it to endurance, fitness capacity, and long-term health. Improving your VO2 max can boost performance, support heart health [[link removed]], and help you stay strong over time.

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Shedeur Sanders Sits Out Shrine Bowl Practices, Sparking Speculation [[link removed]]

Shrine Bowl

It’s the week for college football all-star games, as hundreds of hopeful NFL Draft prospects showcase their talents at the East-West Shrine Bowl in Dallas [[link removed]] and the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala.

Practices have been underway all week, but perhaps the most notable player at either game has not taken the field: Shedeur Sanders, the former Colorado quarterback who could be selected No. 1 in April’s draft.

Sanders is at the Shrine Bowl, but he won’t play in Thursday night’s game at AT&T Stadium on NFL Network, and opted to not practice this week, either. That’s been a point of contention for some, with varying reports about why Sanders wasn’t taking the field.

Eric Galko, the Shrine Bowl’s director of football operations and player personnel, isn’t bothered by the noise. “We don’t pressure guys to play if they don’t feel comfortable, if they don’t feel healthy, or for whatever reason it may be,” he tells Front Office Sports. “We want guys to practice, and certainly it looks great. But we’re not going to pressure guys.”

Notably, Sanders said he is unsure whether he will throw at next month’s NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Colorado hasn’t released a date for its pro day, which will likely be held in March.

Game-Time Decision?

One of the theories for Sanders sticking to the sidelines this week was the Titans, Browns, and Giants—who own the first three picks in the NFL Draft— asked Sanders not to practice [[link removed]], according to Yahoo Sports.

Another one suggested Sanders agreed to show up in Dallas in exchange for the Shrine Bowl also inviting some of his Colorado teammates (there are seven total there) who otherwise wouldn’t have been there. “He was there basically as a deal made with the East-West Shrine game to help get a lot of their late-round/free-agent prospects from Colorado to be a part of that bowl, and give them an opportunity,” Todd McShay, the former ESPN NFL Draft analyst, said on a recent episode of his podcast at The Ringer [[link removed]].

Galko refutes both of those notions, saying he was informed about a week before Shrine Bowl practices began that Sanders was considering not taking the field. “There was no deal made,” he says.

“It would have been great if he practiced, for sure,” Galko adds. “But him not practicing does not mean that it was all preordained. That was a new development and we still support Shedeur. I think I understand why he made his decision, and we’re still happy he’s here.”

Rory McIlroy Suggests a Scarcity Model for Golf Like the NFL [[link removed]]

Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

YouTube golf has exploded in recent years, as content creators have captured a new audience interested in the more casual side of the sport [[link removed]]. At the same time, professional golf’s TV ratings are struggling.

Rory McIlroy, the No. 3–ranked golfer in the world, is well aware of the disconnect.

“YouTube is like golf entertainment adjacent, whatever,” McIlroy said ahead of this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. “Those guys are killing it. They found a niche and it’s really cool and it serves a purpose for a lot of people. But look, I would much rather sit down and watch real golfers play real tournaments and that’s just my opinion. That to me is more entertaining.”

Outside of the four major championships, the PGA Tour’s final-round Sunday broadcasts averaged 2.2 million viewers in 2024 [[link removed]], according to Nielsen ratings, which is down 19% from 2023.

The PGA Tour recently launched what it calls a “creator council” with top content creator individuals and groups with a stated goal of developing “shared strategies for content development and fan engagement.” The tour has also expanded last year’s Creator Classic—which featured 16 YouTubers in a nine-hole match ahead of the Tour Championship—into a three-event creator series this year.

The hope is that fans of said content creators will show a stronger interest in PGA Tour content and most importantly live tournaments.

But golf fans potentially being more interested in content creators than the pros isn’t the only problem in McIlroy’s mind.

“I can see when the golf consumer might get a little fatigued of everything that’s sort of available to them,” he said. “So, to scale it back a little bit and maybe have a little more scarcity in some of the stuff that we do, like the NFL, I think might not be a bad thing.”

Men’s pro golf in the U.S. is a crowded landscape right now, between the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and the newly launched TGL, the indoor team league cofounded by McIlroy and Tiger Woods [[link removed]].

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Where Golf Meets The Big Game

As the Big Game takes to the Big Easy this February, Front Office Sports and Excel Sports Management are partnering to gather the biggest names in sports, entertainment, and media for an unforgettable day out on the golf course on Friday, Feb. 7.

Excel Sports Management, the operators of “The Match” and The Netflix Cup, and Front Office Sports, will cohost The Breakfast Ball [[link removed]] presented by Polestar, with official partners Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers and Tommy John.

The Breakfast Ball is an ultra-high-end Celebrity Pro-Am golf tournament that will be a can’t-miss event for companies and brands looking to entertain in the lead-up to the game.

Learn more about the event or request to attend here [[link removed]].

Conversation Starters Bills fans raised more than $144,000 for Ravens tight end Mark Andrews’s charity after his drop in the divisional round. Ravens fans have returned the favor [[link removed]] by raising money for Buffalo tight end Dalton Kincaid’s charity after his drop in the AFC championship. The Hawai‘i women’s basketball team debuted a fan-designed uniform Saturday against UC Irvine. Check it out [[link removed]]. Logan and Jake Paul have announced they will face each other in a boxing match March 27 [[link removed]]. The fight will be streamed on Max. Editors’ Picks Unrivaled’s Fingerprints Are All Over WNBA Free Agency [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]Many big trades and deals have been struck with players in Miami. Why College Football Coaches Are Investing in Federal Lobbying [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]One issue coaches have been vocal about: the transfer portal. Women’s College Soccer Star Picks Upstart USL Super League Over NWSL [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]The new league began its inaugural season in August. Question of the Day

Would you like to watch Caitlin Clark battle NBA stars in a three-point contest?

YES [[link removed]] NO [[link removed]]

Wednesday’s result: 74% of respondents think the Kings will deal De’Aaron Fox before the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 6.

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