Shemar Stewart is still finding his way with the Cincinnati Bengals after a prolonged holdout that wasn’t resolved until late July. On Wednesday, teammates delivered a pointed message to the first-round rookie defensive end on the need to properly harness his intensity in a practice setting.

Stewart ignited a scuffle during practice when he bumped into quarterback Joe Burrow during a play. Right guard Lucas Patrick confronted the defender, with teammates quickly arriving to separate the two.

Center Ted Karras, a 10th-year who has been a captain for all three of his previous seasons with the Bengals, said the offensive line was ultimately responsible for Burrow’s well-being, noting, ‘We gotta be better up front.’ But he also called for better judgment from the No. 17 overall pick out of Texas A&M.

Asked if he appreciated the edge Stewart brought to the defensive line, Karras said Wednesday, ‘Hell yeah. Just be smarter. … Come on, man. That’s all our hopes and dreams right there.’

Safeguarding Burrow has been a lofty challenge for the Bengals’ maligned offensive line throughout the quarterback’s five-year career. Cincinnati’s offensive front ranked last in ESPN’s pass-block win rate metric in 2024, and the two-time Pro Bowl signal-caller tied for fourth with 48 sacks taken. Burrow missed the final seven games of the 2023 season after suffering a torn ligament in his right wrist.

With receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins re-signed to massive extensions this offseason, the Bengals are once again counting on Burrow to shoulder a heavy load and lead the team back to the playoffs for the first time since 2022.

Stewart, meanwhile, is expected to help revitalize the defensive front and made a strong early impression on teammates.

‘He’s been making some plays out there for us,’ defensive tackle B.J. Hill said earlier in August. ‘He’s a strong, physical, big-time athlete who can do a lot of things for us. Inside or outside. Glad to have him on our side. When he learns this defense, things are going to very explosive for our defense.’

• Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau died on Aug. 29, 2024, when hit by a suspected drunk driver while they were bicycling in New Jersey.
• Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau went on ABC to discuss their grief and a foundation to honor their late husbands.
• The John and Matthew Gaudreau Foundation will help youth hockey initiatives and support hockey families that have faced tragedy.

The widows of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau used the occasion of what would have been Johnny’s 32nd birthday to formally launch a foundation to honor the late hockey players.

But most of the interview with Meredith, Johnny’s wife, and Madeline on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ dealt with the grief they have experienced in the nearly one year since their husbands died on Aug. 29, 2024. The brothers were hit by a suspected drunk driver while they were bicycling in New Jersey. Sean Higgins has pleaded not guilty to charges in the case.

‘Half of me, the best part of me, died that day, too,’ Meredith said. ‘I’m trying to be double now for my kids, even though I’m half of who I was.’

Both women were expecting at the time of their husbands’ deaths. Madeline gave birth to her first child, Tripp, and Meredith her third, Carter.

‘Tripp’s now hitting milestones, so that’s heartbreaking because Matt was super excited to be a dad,’ Madeline said.

The John and Matthew Gaudreau Foundation, first announced in March, will help youth hockey initiatives, support hockey families that have faced tragedy and help other families that have been affected by drunk driving.

‘It was never lost on John and Matty about how expensive it is to maintain hockey as a hobby,’ Meredith said.

The brothers played at Boston College. Older brother Johnny became a seven-time All-Star with the Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets. Matthew played in the American Hockey League and ECHL and retired to coach youth hockey.

The hockey community has kept the players’ names in the forefront. USA Hockey had Johnny Gaudreau’s jersey in the locker rooms at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Columbus fans sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Johnny Gaudreau Jr. at a game in February. The Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings honored the brothers with their outfits as they walked into their Stadium Series game. Meredith announced Blue Jackets first-round selections at the 2025 NHL Draft.

‘My daughter (Noa) is catching on,’ Meredith told ABC. ‘She’s 2 and she asks for him a lot. She says, ‘Daddy’s in heaven’ and I’m starting to explain to her what heaven is really because she wants to go to heaven and she says, ‘I want him to come back’ or ‘let’s call him.”

Madeline said she has been writing notes to Matthew since a couple days after the accident.

‘Lately it’s been like, oh, you know, ‘Tripp has two teeth now, but I know you know this.’ Because it’s hard for me to write and think that Matt isn’t seeing this,’ she said.

The Cleveland Browns have another quarterback injury to deal with.

As Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel are on the mend from hamstring injuries, rookie Shedeur Sanders left practice today with an oblique injury.

He was throwing during the early portion of today’s joint practice with the Philadelphia Eagles and was held out for the rest of the session.

Sanders was expected to get work vs. the Eagles in the Browns’ second preseason game on Saturday, Aug. 16. He started the opening preseason game against the Carolina Panthers in the Browns’ 30-10 victory.

Shedeur Sanders injury update

The Browns listed Sanders as day-to-day. He will not practice on Thursday, Aug. 14 and he is unlikely to play on Saturday vs. the Eagles.

Sanders suffered an oblique injury during the early stages of the Wednesday, Aug. 12 practice and was held out. He did remain on the sidelines for the remainder of the day.

Browns QB depth chart

The Browns are a little bit snakebitten when it comes to the quarterback position at the moment. While there’s nothing serious affecting the room (outside of Deshaun Watson), Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel are nursing soft-tissue injuries and are making their way back.

Here’s how the room stacks up:

• Joe Flacco
• Kenny Pickett
• Shedeur Sanders/Dillon Gabriel
• Deshaun Watson (IR)

This story will be updated with more information when available.

The 2025 Little League World Series kicked off on Wednesday, Aug. 13 with four games across the U.S. and international brackets.

In total, 20 teams will take part in this summer tradition that concludes on Aug. 24, with the final two squads left standing competing for the championship.

Pitcher Luca Pellegrini and Connecticut got the best of Shane Grawe and Texas in the final game of the day. Pellegrini pitched all six innings in the game, allowing just one hit while striking out 11. Grawe held his own against Connecticut, allowing just two hits and an earned run while striking out 11 in five innings pitched.

LLWS 2025 scores, schedule today

United States bracket

Wednesday, Aug. 13

• Game 2: Nevada 16, Illinois 1
• Game 4: Connecticut 1, Texas 0

International Bracket

Wednesday, Aug. 13

• Game 1: Venezuela 5, Puerto Rico 0
• Game 3: Panama 7, Australia 2

Final: Connecticut 1, Texas 0

Luca Pellegrini and Connecticut earned a shutout victory over Texas. Pellegrini threw a strike to record the final out of the game and complete his six-inning, one-hitter.

Connecticut will play Hawai’i on Friday.

Texas’ no-hitter through, Connecticut scores

It may have taken five innings, but we finally saw our first hit of the game. Texas pitcher Shane Grawe allowed his first hit off the bat of Connecticut’s Jimmy Taxiltaridis. Unfortunately, Taxiltaridis would get thrown out at third attempting to advance on a dropped third strike. All hope for a run looked lost for Connecticut, but just one batter later, a single would drive in Dante Madera for the first run of the game. It was a very close play at the plate, but replay showed that Madera was in fact safe, giving Connecticut the all important first run of the contest.

Two no-hitters going on in Williamsport

After three games where the victor put up at least five runs, we’ve got ourselves a good ol’ fashioned pitcher’s duel in the final game of Day 1. Both Connecticut and Texas’ pitchers are both dominating their opponents. Infact, through three-and-a-half innings, neither pitcher has even allowed a hit. There has also only been one error on both sides, making it even more difficult to get on base.

This game may very well come down to which team can break through first. This has the making of a 1-0 if anyone has ever seen one.

FINAL: Panama 7, Australia 2

Panama won this game on the strength of a monster fourth inning, tallying five runs in that frame alone. Australia’s defense certainly played a role in this outcome as well. The Aussies totaled six errors on the day, granting Panama several more opportunities to score than they would have had.

Outside of their defense, Australia had several bright spots. This could be a team to look out for as the tournament progresses. If they can improve their defense, Australia could be one of the most dangerous teams in the loser’s bracket moving forward.

Australia notches second run

Trailing by six in the fifth inning, Australia needed to put together something for any hope at a comeback. Well, they got something. It may just be one run, but come the sixth inning, perhaps that one run could make the difference.

Australia still trails 7-2, but they’ve proven capable of getting to the Panama pitching. We head to the sixth.

Panama puts together massive fourth inning

What was a close game became much more difficult for the Australians. Panama tallied four runs before recording their second out. Panama would add a fifth run on an error from the Australia second baseman.

Despite the crooked number, it actually could have been much worse for Australia, as Panama left two runners on base to end the inning. It took a great play at short and an even better pick at first in order to secure the final out. Australia fans breathed a major sigh of relief after the play.

We head to the bottom of the fourth. Panama leads 7-1.

Panama hits first home run of LLWS

A long finish to the first United States game delayed a lot of fans from watching Panama vs. Australia. In fact, viewers missed the entirety of the first inning, where Panama made a statement, hitting a two-run home run to kick the game off, the first home run of the tournament.

Australia would retaliate, picking up a run of their own in the bottom of the first, but they still trail 2-1, heading into the second inning.

FINAL: Nevada 16, Illinois 1

This was a statement win from Nevada, announcing to every other team that they are here and here to stay. Eighteen hits, sixteen runs. It just wasn’t fair in the sixth inning. Even though Illinois put up a run in the sixth, it was far too little too late.

Nevada advances to face the Northwest region in the second round on Aug. 15.

Nevada explodes before bottom of the sixth

After scoring five runs in the first two innings, Nevada’s offense went silent for the next three. However, needing just three outs left to put away Illinois, the Nevada offense decided to give their pitchers a little more run support. And by a little, we mean eleven runs. If it wasn’t the sixth inning, this inning alone would have triggered the ten-run mercy rule.

The hits just kept on coming. Nevada was not just walking, they were smoking the baseball, putting up extra base hit after extra base hit, constantly driving in runs. At one point, twelve hitters were able to reach base consecutively. Nevada tallied five doubles in the inning.

Nevada pitcher Gallegos didn’t need much help. After all, he was throwing a shutout before getting pulled in the sixth due to the pitch count. However, you can never have too much run support. Nevada heads into the bottom of the sixth up 16-0.

Nevada two-out rally plants four runs

With two outs in the bottom of the second, Nevada put together an outstanding rally, tallying two singles and two walks to bring home their second run in as many innings.

The second run prompted an Illinois pitching change with shortstop Brody Herold heading to the mound. The change didn’t help though. Nevada’s Dustin Gruesel drilled a single to left center field, driving in two more runs and leaving runners on the corner for the top of the order.

Nevada would score one more run to put themselves up by five. Finally, the inning would end on a fly ball to center field, but the massive damage had been done. It’s Illinois’ turn to put up a crooked number. They trail 5-0.

Illinois leaves them loaded

Looking to get that run right back, Illinois was doing well, loading the bases in the bottom of the first with only one out. However, Nevada pitcher Garrett Gallegos came up clutch, racking up two strikeouts to strand the runners on the bases. Nevada maintains their 1-0 lead.

Nevada off to hot start

It didn’t take long for the offense to get going on the American side. A leadoff walk and a single put two runners on with no one out in the top of the first inning.

Illinois had an opportunity to limit the threat. A taylor-made double play ball ended up with an errant throw, putting runners on the corners. Two pitches later, a wild pitch would allow Brooks Fescher to score, and moving Cache Malan to second.

Nevada would not be able to bring Malan home, but the run is already giving them some momentum. As we’ve already seen, one run can be more than enough to win in Williamsport.

FINAL: Venezuela 5, Puerto Rico 0

A dominant pitching performance from Venezuela was the story for this game. The team’s strong pitching was coupled with immaculate defense and timely hitting, granting Venezuela a strong win to start tournament play.

Puerto Rico had several good moments, but could not find a way to cross the plate. Don’t let the final score fool you though. Puerto Rico had nearly as many hits as Venezuela (four to Venezuela’s five). However, their inability to drive in runners when they reached base was the difference in this game.

Venezuela will play next on August 15 against Canada. Puerto Rico, meanwhile, moves to the loser’s bracket. They’ll play on August 16 against the loser between Mexico and Taipei.

Samuel Castillo pulls off immaculate double play

After a leadoff single from Puerto Rico, Venezuela was looking to halt any hope of a comeback. Samuel Castillo did it on his own. With a ball hit sharply down the left field line, Castillo snagged it out of the air diving to his right, then firing across the diamond to double up the runner at first.

Castillo’s leather work was a massive momentum swing, and the momentum was already in Venezuela’s favor. It remains 3-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth.

Puerto Rico keeps runs off the board

The bottom of the fourth inning started off as well as it could for a trailing Puerto Rico team. However, with two outs, a walk and an error put a runner in scoring position, giving Venezuela a chance to extend their 3-0 lead.

It appeared to be an infield hit at first glance, with Puerto Rico curious how they didn’t get an out. However, after some collaboration from the umpires, they decided that the inning was over. Puerto Rico fans breathed a big sigh of relief. They’ll head to the top of the fifth, down 3-0, looking to mount a comeback.

What time is the Little League World Series today?

The first game Wednesday is at 1 p.m. ET with the final game starting at 7 p.m. ET, with Fairfield, Connecticut, taking on Richmond, Texas, to conclude the day.

Little League World Series 2025: TV, time and how to watch

The Little League World Series begins Wednesday with four games across the U.S. and international brackets. Games will be presented across ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+. Viewers can also watch with Fubo, which offers a free trial for new users.

• Times: Coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET with the final game starting at 7 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN
• Streaming: ESPN+ (international games), Fubo

Watch the Little League World Series with Fubo

Previous LLWS champions

Here are the last 20 LLWS champions by year:

• 2024: Lake Mary, Florida
• 2023: El Segundo, California
• 2022: Honolulu, Hawaii
• 2021: Taylor, Michigan
• 2019: River Ridge, Louisiana
• 2018: Honolulu, Hawaii
• 2017: Tokyo-Kitasuna, Japan
• 2016: Maine-Endwell, New York
• 2015: Tokyo-Kitasuna, Japan
• 2014: Seoul, South Korea
• 2013: Musashi-Fuchu, Japan
• 2012: Tokyo-Kitasuna, Japan
• 2011: Huntington Beach, California
• 2010: Edogawa Minami, Japan
• 2009: Chula Vista, California
• 2008: Waipahu, Hawaii
• 2007: Warner Robins, Georgia
• 2006: Columbus, Georgia
• 2005: ‘Ewa Beach, Hawaii
• 2004: Willemstad, Curacao

How does the LLWS work?

The Little League World Series is an annual summer tournament hosted in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, home of the first ever LLWS champions in 1947. The tournament is a double-elimination tournament, meaning each team can lose one game before being eliminated from contention following their second loss.

The tournament is also broken up between United States and international brackets, with the championship always being between the U.S. champs and an international opponent.

Which teams are in the tournament this year?

United States teams:

• Great Lakes Region: Clarendon Hills, Illinois
• Metro Region: Fairfield, Connecticut
• Mid-Atlantic Region: Upper Uwchlan Township, Pennsylvania
• Midwest Region: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
• Mountain Region: Las Vegas, Nevada
• New England Region: Braintree, Massachusetts
• Northwest Region: Bonney Lake, Washington
• Southeast Region: Irmo, South Carolina
• Southwest Region: Richmond, Texas
• West Region: Honolulu, Hawaii

International Teams:

• Asia-Pacific Region: Chinese Taipei
• Australia Region: Brisbane, Queensland
• Canada Region: Vancouver, British Columbia
• Caribbean Region: Santa Cruz, Aruba
• Europe-Africa Region: Brno, Czechia
• Japan Region: Tokyo, Japan
• Latin America Region: Barquisimeto, Venezuela
• Mexico Region: Chihuahua, Mexico
• Panama Region: Arraijan, Panama
• Puerto Rico Region: Yubucoa, Puerto Rico

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