Good Morning! Today we begin with an ode to the upcoming World Series featuring the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians — starting with a look at how the Cubs got here, seeing as it’s the first time since 1945!

QUIPS FOR THIS WEEK

MLB

As we mentioned in our intro, playoff baseball has been quite a treat thus far, and just like that it’s the World Series! So, how did we get here? What’s on deck?

Well, the Cleveland Indians had a strong American League Championship Series victory over the Toronto Blue Jays — closing out the series in 5 games on October 19th. The Chicago Cubs won the National League Series Championship against the LA Dodgers in 6 games — with a 5-0 victory on October 22nd in Chicago.

The World Series  kicks off Tuesday night in Cleveland at 8:08pm EST on Fox. Then, you basically have a game every night to look forward to until a champion is crowned. Enjoy!

NFL

Let’s talk professional football — this weekend, the New York Football Giants (with the help of 4 interceptions) got a big 17-10 win across the pond against the LA Rams, the Philadelphia Eagles took out the no longer undefeated Minnesota Vikings 21-10, and the New England Patriots got a big win over the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-16.

Oh, and in a game that came down to overtime, the San Diego Chargers topped the Atlanta Falcons 33-30.

Monday Night Football features the Denver Broncos against the Houston Texans at 8:30pm EST on ESPN.

College Football

After 8 weeks, the playoff picture is beginning to emerge in college football and every week becomes more important than the last. This past week, we saw #1 Alabama get a big 33-14 victory over #6 Texas A&M, #2 Ohio State suffer a rough 24-21 loss to unranked Penn State, and #3 Michigan look extra good in a 41-8 win over Illinois.

Needless to say, there was some movement in the rankings, leading to a new Top 5: Alabama, Michigan, Clemson, Washington, Louisville… and at #6, Ohio State.

NBA

After much anticipation, NBA regular season hoops finally kicks off on Tuesday night! Get excited (can you tell we are?!?!) To prepare for the season, check out a few great reads we’ve seen in the recent weeks:

• Kevin Durant talks Golden State in Rolling Stone
• Russell Westbrook is the feature in a great piece in SI’s The Crossover
• Carmelo Anthony talks activism on the cover of ESPN
• Kevin Love and Cleveland are the subject of another SI write-up
• And finally, a piece on JR Smith (aka Swish) in the New Yorker

Other

After yesterday’s Decision Day games, the final MLS Cup playoff spots are all set. In the Western Conference, last year’s winners — the Portland Timbers — were knocked out by the Vancouver Whitecaps. Here are your 12 competitors (6 from each conference):

• Eastern Conference: New York Red Bulls, New York City FC, Toronto FC, Philadelphia Union, D.C. United, Montreal Impact
• Western Conference: FC Dallas, Colorado Rapids, LA Galaxy, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders, Sporting KC

In the Eastern Conference, #1 New York Red Bulls and #2 New York City FC earn a bye to the Conference Semifinals, and in the Western Conference, #1 FC Dallas and #2 Colorado Rapids will proceed directly to the Conference Semifinals as well. Knockout round matches for the other teams start Wednesday — check out the full schedule here.

JUST FOR FUN

Chef Curry!
Good food is a crucial part of the game
Check out all the step(hs) to a successful chicken curry from Ayesha Curry’s recipe book “The Seasoned Life”

 

STORIES FOR INSIGHTS, COOL FACTOR + DEBATE

“This is for Pat”
Candace Parker of the LA Sparks dedicated her first WNBA title to Pat Summitt
She had played for the legendary coach, who passed away in June

Tackling boundaries
Embracing the art of the fluid position in football
As college football programs successfully utilize nontraditional offenses, these ideas – and versatile athletes – infiltrate the NFL

He’s staying
Until 2021, at least
Neymar signed a 5-year contract with Barcelona, but sources say he’ll be paid less than teammate Lionel Messi. Should he stay, or should he get out of Messi’s shadow?