Gio

@barstoolsports “Miss Peaches. What a dog. The best dog. Tremendous dog. Ask anyone, I know dogs. That dog in you…Miss Peaches.”

Yes, those photos you’ve seen are real. More than 18 years ago, a baby named Lamine Yamal and his mom Sheila met Lionel Messi at a UNICEF fundraising photoshoot. Today, their achievements on the pitch inspire millions. Off the pitch, both Messi and Lamine Yamal use their voices and platforms as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassadors to support and advocate for children around the world. The goal? That every child survives, thrives, and fulfils their potential. We are proud to have them on our team. Credit: Joan Monfort

@Nicocantor1 Simulation papa

This is a prophecy so mindblowingly absurd. The odds of today’s reality unfolding exactly this way are infinitesimal. They are meeting for the first time on the football pitch in a World Cup final. Lamine Yamal. Back then the picture had little meaning. A young Barcelona kid doing a calendar shoot. A mom whose baby won a draw to be in that shoot and got paired up with Messi. Messi is now the best player of all time, now at 39 still playing and his team’s superstar. The prodigy that is next in line at Barcelona to take the throne at the club Messi made global is that month-old baby. He is the face of this new Spain generation in the final. Passing of the torch moment. Whatever the result. This is too crazy to be true.

Attack is the best form of defense. ♟️

95 SOUTH, 305 WHATS GOOD!! CULTURE!!🌴🔥#LOSUNDERDOG

Marlins select SS Jacob Lombard with No. 14 overall pick. • Hit .477 with 9 HR as high school senior • 60-grade power, 65-grade run

Is this the greatest sports call of all time?

In Germany, a talented 14-year-old earns his club money. In America, his parents pay the club $15,000 a year. That single inversion explains why "we will not" is the most accurate line ever written about US soccer. FIFA built a global system for this. Training compensation and solidarity payments send a cut of every transfer fee back to the clubs that developed the player, from age 12 onward. Develop one future pro and your academy gets paid for a decade. Barcelona's La Masia, Ajax, every Bundesliga academy runs on this logic. The kid is the asset. US Soccer refuses to enforce those rules. When Seattle's Crossfire Premier claimed its $60,000 share of DeAndre Yedlin's transfer to Tottenham, it got nothing. Claims on the Dempsey and Bradley transfers died partly because the federation couldn't even produce the youth training records. So American clubs earn zero dollars when a kid turns pro. They earn when a kid enrolls. Which makes the parent the customer, and the product is whatever keeps the parent writing checks: travel tournaments, hotel weekends, $500 showcase events, private training at $100 an hour. Elite pathways run $8,000 to $20,000 a year. A comparable academy spot in Italy costs about 120 euros. Follow the incentive one level deeper and it gets darker. A club dependent on fees can't cut its weakest paying players, so rosters optimize for retention over development. The scouting pool shrinks to families who can afford the cliff, which appears around age 11, exactly when development matters most. The country runs a talent filter sorted by household income instead of ability. Every four years someone proposes fixing this. The proposal always requires the people profiting from the $15,000 model to vote themselves out of business. They will not.

Don’t wanna drink on a Monday but my country needs me

Seven years. It’s hard to put into words what this city has meant to me. When Miami drafted a 19-year-old kid out of Kentucky, they believed in me before I’d proven anything. Together, we experienced just about everything this game has to offer. Two trips to the Finals. Deep playoff runs. Becoming an All-Star. The highest highs, the toughest moments, and every lesson in between. Through every challenge, every expectation, every rumor, and every setback, I always believed in one thing: put your head down, go to work, and represent the name on the front of the jersey the right way. Every time I stepped on the floor, my goal was to help bring another championship to Miami. This city gave me more than a basketball career. It gave me a place to grow up. I became a man here. I became a father here. I built lifelong relationships here. Miami became home. To Spo, Pat, Micky, the entire organization, my teammates, the coaches, trainers, equipment staff, arena staff, and everyone who poured into me over the last seven years—thank you. Thank you for believing in me, pushing me, challenging me, and helping shape the player and person I’ve become. And to the fans… Thank you for riding with me. Through every big shot, every playoff run, every injury, every rumor, and every season—you showed me love I’ll never forget. Whether you cheered for me in the arena, wore my jersey, or simply believed in me, I felt it. I’ll always be grateful for that support. As excited as I am for this next chapter back home in Milwaukee, a part of me will always belong to Miami. Miami didn’t just shape my career. It shaped my life. Thank you for everything. — Tyler

Marlins Claim Otto López From Giants mlbtraderumors.com/2024/04/marlin…

Maximum recognition. Max Meyer has earned his first career All-Star selection.

The best team in baseball in June, by a decent margin, is the Miami Marlins. They're about to go 20-6, have outscored opponents 129-78 this month and have the lowest CBT payroll in MLB. The Marlins' third-highest-paid player is Giancarlo Stanton, who last played for them in 2017.

@HeatvsHaters 🤝🤝

How are we feeling about the Heat signing Tim Hardaway Jr 👀 🔺13.5 PPG 🔺41% 3P 🔺player 80 games (!!) 🔺finished 3rd in 6MOTY voting

This @Marlins team 🔥🔥🔥

The Miami Heat got Giannis Antetokounmpo The Miami Heat need outside shooting So the Miami Heat walked into the second round and drafted Ryan Conwell Quick thread on this second round selection:

The Stallion stands alone. 🐎 Strikeout No. 1,002 makes Sandy Alcantara the franchise strikeout leader.

2004: Shaquille O'Neal 2010: LeBron James and Chris Bosh 2019: Jimmy Butler 2026: Giannis Antetokounmpo Pat Riley has acquired the Heat's next superstar 🔥

🤫🤫🤫

SAY IT WITH ME

Sunday: Panthers get Brady Tkachuk. Monday: Inter Miami's Lionel Messi becomes World Cup goal GOAT, Heat get Giannis Antetokounmpo, a billion Scotsmen go to a Marlins game. A good week so far in these parts.