Brandon Whitfield

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@CA1882 @gracekelly_edu Parting Glass

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@Sean_Davi 50/40/90

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@LADEig Kessler

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@BenVerlander How many that have recorded a hit from both sides?

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@FastbreakHoops5 @RealSMedvedenko

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@wOBAWanKenobi Josh Naylor

[Shams Charania @ShamsCharania]

The NBA is looking into what multiple sources say was a strategy mistake by Kings coach Doug Christie on an intentional foul of Seth Curry while leading the Warriors with over 3 minutes left in Tuesday's game:

[Ben Sasse @BenSasse]

Friends-

This is a tough note to write, but since a bunch of you have started to suspect something, I’ll cut to the chase: Last week I was diagnosed with metastasized, stage-four pancreatic cancer, and am gonna die.

Advanced pancreatic is nasty stuff; it’s a death sentence. But I already had a death sentence before last week too — we all do.

I’m blessed with amazing siblings and half-a-dozen buddies that are genuinely brothers. As one of them put it, “Sure, you’re on the clock, but we’re all on the clock.” Death is a wicked thief, and the bastard pursues us all.

Still, I’ve got less time than I’d prefer. This is hard for someone wired to work and build, but harder still as a husband and a dad. I can’t begin to describe how great my people are. During the past year, as we’d temporarily stepped back from public life and built new family rhythms, Melissa and I have grown even closer — and that on top of three decades of the best friend a man could ever have. Seven months ago, Corrie was commissioned into the Air Force and she’s off at instrument and multi-engine rounds of flight school. Last week, Alex kicked butt graduating from college a semester early even while teaching gen chem, organic, and physics (she’s a freak). This summer, 14-year-old Breck started learning to drive. (Okay, we’ve been driving off-book for six years — but now we’ve got paper to make it street-legal.) I couldn’t be more grateful to constantly get to bear-hug this motley crew of sinners and saints.

There’s not a good time to tell your peeps you’re now marching to the beat of a faster drummer — but the season of advent isn’t the worst. As a Christian, the weeks running up to Christmas are a time to orient our hearts toward the hope of what’s to come.

Not an abstract hope in fanciful human goodness; not hope in vague hallmark-sappy spirituality; not a bootstrapped hope in our own strength (what foolishness is the evaporating-muscle I once prided myself in). Nope — often we lazily say “hope” when what we mean is “optimism.” To be clear, optimism is great, and it’s absolutely necessary, but it’s insufficient. It’s not the kinda thing that holds up when you tell your daughters you’re not going to walk them down the aisle. Nor telling your mom and pops they’re gonna bury their son.

A well-lived life demands more reality — stiffer stuff. That’s why, during advent, even while still walking in darkness, we shout our hope — often properly with a gravelly voice soldiering through tears.

Such is the calling of the pilgrim. Those who know ourselves to need a Physician should dang well look forward to enduring beauty and eventual fulfillment. That is, we hope in a real Deliverer — a rescuing God, born at a real time, in a real place. But the eternal city — with foundations and without cancer — is not yet.

Remembering Isaiah’s prophecies of what’s to come doesn’t dull the pain of current sufferings. But it does put it in eternity’s perspective:
“When we've been there 10,000 years…We've no less days to sing God's praise.”

I’ll have more to say. I’m not going down without a fight. One sub-part of God’s grace is found in the jawdropping advances science has made the past few years in immunotherapy and more. Death and dying aren’t the same — the process of dying is still something to be lived. We’re zealously embracing a lot of gallows humor in our house, and I’ve pledged to do my part to run through the irreverent tape.

But for now, as our family faces the reality of treatments, but more importantly as we celebrate Christmas, we wish you peace: “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned….For to us a son is given” (Isaiah 9).

With great gratitude, and with gravelly-but-hopeful voices,
Ben — and the Sasses

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@TheLakersReview @BannedMacMahon Sounds logical to me. As we’ve seen multiple times in the past handful of years, calf strains are a precursor to a torn Achilles. He can’t afford to lose AD to serious injury like that so he’s being as cautious as possible. Firing Nico was necessary, but DAL is not a lost cause.

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

@ProFootball2025 @camlittlegoat @AlbertBreer I think it’s clear the last sentence is false. If you break a record, you’re getting tested.

[Ned Colletti @realnedcolletti]

Good morning LA!

No adequate words to define a most incredible World Series…and outcome.

Still a quote from Dave Roberts regarding Miguel Rojas seems to fit Miggy and the team perfectly,

“A player the game honored,”Roberts said, “because he honors the game.”

[Codify @CodifyBaseball]

ONE OF THE GREATEST GAMES IN BASEBALL HISTORY

[Noah Camras @noahcamras]

Yoshinobu Yamamoto with the gutsiest pitching performance ever.

World Series G2: 9 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 8 K, W
World Series G6: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 6 K, W
World Series G7: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 K, W

He is the undisputed World Series MVP. He is the best pitcher on the planet.

[Baseball Quotes @BaseballQuotes1]

Entering tonight, Miguel Rojas hadn't gotten a hit in a month

Primarily a role player, he got the start because of his defense

In what might be his final career at bat, he homered in Game 7 of the World Series to tie it in the 9th

What a damn moment

[LakeShowYo @LakeShowYo]

RETWEET IF YOU LOVE YOSHINOBU YAMAMOTO

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

💙🤍

[Talkin' Baseball @TalkinBaseball_]

Clayton Kershaw goes out a champion!

[Brandon Whitfield @bwhitty13]

What an incredible series! Go Dodgers!!!!!💙🤍

[Los Angeles Dodgers @Dodgers]

THE LOS ANGELES DODGERS ARE BACK-TO-BACK WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!

[Darius Soriano @forumbluegold]

YO.

[The Degenerates @degen_betting]

Will Klein postseason legend forever for his performance tonight.

4 scoreless innings, 70+ pitches.

Had never thrown more than 40 in a game before, and had a career ERA above 5.

Bravo man.

[Jacob Brownson @brownsonjacob2]

You will always be remembered, Will Klein.