Sports
Jays feel sting of defeat as title slips from grasp
TORONTO — Third baseman Ernie Clement‘s eyes welled up as he spoke to reporters on one end of the clubhouse while tears flowed down the left side of pitcher Max Scherzer‘s face on the other side of the room. Meanwhile, closer Jeff Hoffman‘s voice wavered and cracked as he accepted blame for the Toronto Blue Jays‘ devastating, extra-innings defeat in Saturday’s Game 7 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The postgame emotions of the team were raw and unfiltered.
“It sucks,” Hoffman said after the 5-4 loss. “Supposed to end differently. Was just one pitch. I cost everybody here a World Series ring. It feels pretty s—ty.”
Hoffman was two outs from earning the save, which would have sent a whole country into celebration. Instead, Dodgers second baseman Miguel Rojas took him deep on a 3-2 slider, tying the score. Two innings later, Dodgers catcher Will Smith did the same to starter-turned-reliever Shane Bieber, giving the Dodgers their first lead of the night and the final margin of victory.
“Hung a slider to a great guy who hits sliders well,” Bieber said. “He was looking for it. I didn’t execute. This one stings. It’s going to sting for a while. This game is not for the faint of heart.”
Scherzer said Saturday’s loss was all the more heartbreaking because of the camaraderie within the team.
“I’m 41 years old and I never thought I could love baseball this much,” Scherzer said while wiping away tears. “My love for the game was so strong because of their love for the game.
“That loss is so tough because you’re so close to everybody. This team had that closeness, had that camaraderie. We had that passion not only for the game but for each other.”
Scherzer, 41, pitched 4⅓ innings in Game 7, giving up just one run on four hits before leaving to a standing ovation. He vowed that he hadn’t thrown his last pitch in the big leagues but said he wasn’t in the right state of mind to expand on his future plans.
Scherzer departed the game with a 3-1 lead, thanks to a Bo Bichette three-run homer in the third. Like Scherzer, Bichette is a free agent but afterward maintained his desire to stay in Toronto.
“I want to be here, but I just lost a Game 7,” Bichette said, waving off any further questions about his future. “I hit that homer, but the game wasn’t over at that point.”
The Jays kept their lead all the way until the ninth, when Hoffman gave it up to Rojas. The crowd fell silent, hoping the bottom of the inning would produce a winning play. Vladimir Guerrero Jr.‘s blast to center field gave them a moment of hope, but even the Jays star knew it wasn’t going out.
“People that know me know I stand at home plate and watch them go out,” Guerrero said through the team interpreter. “I knew it wasn’t going anywhere.”
After it was all over, Guerrero went to each locker to deliver a message to his teammates.
“Told them how proud of the job that they did,” he said. “I can’t be any prouder of my teammates and all the things we accomplished this year.”
It was the same message manager John Schneider delivered in what he described as his first team meeting all season. It came after their toughest defeat.
“I said thank you,” Schneider said. “I said thank you probably about 10 times. And that was the main message.”
Perhaps most emotional was Clement. He set a record for most hits in a single postseason with 30, though one more — in the ninth inning with the bases loaded — would have won the series. Instead, he was robbed at the wall by Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages.
Clement said he spent an hour after the game crying and hugging his teammates.
“We gave it everything we had,” Clement said. “When you fall short but you can say you left it all out there, there’s something to be proud of there.
“I would go to war with Jeff Hoffman every day of the week. I want him on the mound. I want Bieber on the mound. Ninety-nine times out of 100 those guys get the job done. Obviously, it just wasn’t our night.”
But it was their season, at least until the very end. After finishing in last place in 2024, the Blue Jays won the AL East and reached Game 7 of the World Series. Although it wasn’t their desired finish, Blue Jays players said the journey was meaningful.
“Everyone in here is pretty devastated,” pitcher Kevin Gausman said. “We’re a really good team. It took them playing perfect and having a great last couple innings to beat us and that’s what happened.”
Said Bieber: “This group is unlike any other I’ve ever been a part of. That’s a sentiment we all kind of feel personally.”
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Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears struck last and delivered the knockout blow in a slugfest against Joe Flacco and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon, 47-42.
Chicago had to fend off a clawing Cincinnati squad that cobbled together a comeback late in the game.
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Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland (84) scores a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in Cincinnati. (Jeff Dean/AP Photo)
The Bears were up 41-27 when D.J. Moore took an end around play to the end zone with 4:53 remaining in the game. Chicago nearly sealed the game when Terrell Edmunds picked off Flacco and ran it back for what was thought to be a touchdown. However, officials determined that Edmunds was down by contact and negated the 96-yard return.
Chicago went three-and-out on its next drive. Flacco then led the Bengals on a four-play, 55-yard drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Noah Fant. The Bengals needed the ball to bounce their way on the onside kick attempt, and it did.
Flacco then needed only six plays to find Andrei Iosivas for the go-ahead score. The momentum was firmly on the Bengals’ side.
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Chicago Bears running back Brittain Brown (38), right, celebrates his touchdown with quarterback Caleb Williams (18) during the second half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in Cincinnati. (Jeff Dean/AP Photo)
Williams got the ball back with less than a minute to play – and it wasn’t looking great. He threw two incompletions before he scampered for 14 yards to extend the drive.
The second-year quarterback threw a dart to rookie tight end Colston Loveland in the middle of the field. Loveland bounced off two defenders and ran for a touchdown. The 58-yard play gave the Bears the lead and eventually the win.
The two teams combined for 1,071 total yards and 89 points on 141 plays.
Williams was 20-of-34 with 280 passing yards, two touchdown passes and a receiving touchdown. Williams actually had two catches in the game.
Bears running back Kyle Monangai, a former Rutgers standout, had 26 carries for 176 yards. Loveland finished with six catches for 118 yards and two touchdown catches.
Flacco had one of the best statistical games of his career. He was 31-of-47 with 470 passing yards, four touchdown passes and two interceptions.
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (5) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in Cincinnati. (Jeff Dean/AP Photo)
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Tee Higgins led the team with seven catches for 121 yards and two touchdowns. Ja’Marr Chase had six catches for 111 yards.
Chicago improved to 5-3 and Cincinnati fell to 3-6.
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The men’s portion of the New York City Marathon came down to the wire on Sunday.
Kenya’s Benson Kipruto crossed the finish line a split second in front of Alexander Mutiso in a photo finish.
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Benson Kipruto and Alexander Mutiso cross the finish line to win first and second place in the men’s elite division of the New York City Marathon, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
The two runners separated themselves from the pack heading into the 24th mile of the event. Mutiso, who is also from Kenya, turned on the jets in the last 50 meters of the race but fell just short of Kipruto.
Kipruto finished with a time of 2:08.09 to win the race. It was the first time he won the New York City Marathon in his career.
The Olympic bronze medalist in the 2024 Paris Games took home first place in the 2024 Tokyo, 2022 Chicago and 2021 Boston Marathons during his career. His time at the New York City Marathon this year fell about six seconds short of his personal best time of 2:02.16.
Benson Kipruto and Alexander Mutiso, both from Kenya, make their way through Central Park during the New York City Marathon, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
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Elsewhere, Hellen Obiri set a course record on the women’s side in the event. She finished with a time of 2:19.51, winning the race for the second time. She pulled away from Sharon Lokedi in the final mile to capture the top prize.
Obiri topped Margaret Okayo’s record, which was a time of 2:22.31 set in 2003.
The 26.2-mile course took runners through all five boroughs of New York, starting in Staten Island and ending in Manhattan’s Central Park. It’s the 49th year the race has toured through the five boroughs.
Hellen Obiri celebrates winning first place in the women’s elite division of the New York City Marathon, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
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The first iteration of the New York City Marathon had 55 finishers, while the 2024 race had 55,642 competitors cross the finish line.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Pakistani runners showcased exceptional endurance and determination on Sunday at the Istanbul Marathon — the only marathon in the world that spans two continents.
As many as twelve Pakistani athletes successfully covered the 42.195-kilometre distance during the event.
Mubariz Bin Rafay emerged as the fastest among them, completing the race in three hours, 21 minutes, and 30 seconds.
He was followed by Mujtaba Ahsan, who clocked three hours and 23 minutes, while Istanbul-based Ismail Khan finished third among Pakistanis in four hours and three minutes.
Geo News Deputy Sports Editor Faizan Lakhani also completed his first marathon, finishing the 42.195-kilometre course in five hours and 13 minutes.
Meanwhile, Sahar Ali Janjua led the pack for Pakistan, completing the distance in four hours and 22 minutes, followed by Hina Malik, who finished in four hours and 49 minutes.
Other Pakistani participants included Omer Rasheed, Zain Ahmad, Kashif Raza, Mehwish Hanif, Sadaf Saad, and Haziq Khalid.
Spectators cheered the Pakistani runners — easily recognisable in their green shirts — as they crossed the Bosphorus Bridge from Asia to Europe.
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