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Fox Sports
20 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
3 Best Trade Destinations For San Diego Padres RHP Dylan Cease
Dylan Cease is a free agent after this season, and the San Diego Padres are fully aware of that reality, as proven by their reportedly fielding trade offers for the 29-year-old right-hander. And if the Padres aren't confident in their ability to re-sign Cease and/or their chances of contending for the National League pennant, there's merit in making a midseason trade. Cease's year-plus stint with the Padres (2024-25) has been bizarre. At his best, Cease is a potent strikeout pitcher who has the stature of an ace. Other times, Cease primarily being a two-pitch pitcher – slider and four-seamer – can catch up to him. For instance, in 2024, Cease posted a 3.47 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 224 strikeouts — two seasons after posting a 2.20 ERA with the Chicago White Sox — whereas this year he boasts a 4.59 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. Put it all together, though, and the right-hander is a top-of-the-rotation-caliber arm who's durable, can pitch deep into games and is in the prime of his career. Cease can move the needle for a contender. Here are the three best trade fits for Cease. 3. Toronto Blue Jays The Blue Jays are playing as well as anybody in the sport, but they could use another quality arm, and that's precisely what Cease would provide. Toronto has a combination of proven veteran starters in Chris Bassitt, Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman and Max Scherzer, while left-hander Eric Lauer is having a career year (2.61 ERA in 16 appearances, 10 starts). At the same time, this is a rotation that combines for a mid-level 4.05 ERA, good for 19th in MLB, and has escaped a lot of trouble this season. Cease would give the Blue Jays a strikeout pitcher who would be part of their playoff rotation. Toronto's offense is humming, its bullpen is holding down the fort and its rotation is respectable. But the rotation is the area of this team that needs improvement if they're going to hold off the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in the AL East and go on a deep playoff run thereafter. Toronto could offer San Diego two out of three of pitching prospects Khal Stephen, Johnny King and Kendry Rojas for Cease. All that said, the Blue Jays could view Cease as a superfluous addition to a veteran staff and acquiring him in the midst of a bumpy season as a move that has more risk to it than clarity, opting to refrain from a trade. 2. New York Mets Cease would immediately become New York's most proven MLB starting pitcher. New York went into spring training with several question marks in its starting rotation, most of which panned out in a positive way to this point. David Pederson has been spectacular; Clay Holmes has impressed in his first season as a starting pitcher; Kodai Senga has been exceptional, but the 32-year-old, fellow right-handers Griffin Canning, Tylor Megill and Frankie Montas and left-hander Sean Manaea have missed extensive time due to injury. Cease gives the Mets a healthy arm. On the impact front, Cease's arrival takes some pressure off Pederson, Holmes and, when healthy, Megill to keep performing at career-high clips. The Mets have found success of late in getting veteran pitchers back on track (e.g. Manaea and Luis Severino); Cease, who would add a strikeout arm to a rotation that's 19th in MLB with 7.91 strikeouts per nine innings, could become their next painting to hang in the Louvre. Yes, the Mets entered Friday tied for the best starting rotation ERA in baseball (2.89). At the same time, they're trying to fend off the Philadelphia Phillies for the NL East and evade the wild-card round. Solidifying the rotation with the idea of their staff potentially regressing to the mean is a prudent play for the Mets and one that shouldn't gut their farm system. The Mets could base a trade package for Cease around pitching prospects and former second-round picks Brandon Sproat and Jonathan Santucci and versatile 2023 draft pick A.J. Ewing. What could stop the Mets from making a move for Cease, though, is their potentially feeling that Senga getting back on the mound gives New York its ace and could instead opt to make another trade to beef up the bullpen after already acquiring left-handed reliever Gregory Soto. 1. Chicago Cubs In 1980, Steve Winwood said that "while you see a chance, take it." The Cubs should take that advice because they have a team that can win the World Series. A rotation enhancement like Cease makes that aspiration more of a reality. The 2024 Cubs were a team whose backbone was starting pitching. This season, Chicago boasts a respectable 3.77 ERA, but that ranks just 13th in the sport. Outside of Matthew Boyd and a healthy Shota Imanaga, their rotation has been a guessing game. Furthermore, Justin Steele is out for the year due to Tommy John surgery and Javier Assad hasn't pitched this season due to an oblique injury. Cease gives Chicago right-handed firepower, adding a punchout artist to a rotation that's just 23rd in MLB with 7.63 strikeouts per nine innings. Cease's arrival would also prevent manager Craig Counsell from having to rely on young arms Cade Horton and Ben Brown to make a jump. Chicago has the best bullpen ERA in the sport (2.45) and a lineup that's flat-out mashing. Its rotation is capable of better performance, but doing nothing to improve that aspect of their club would be a mistake given the continued willingness of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the largest obstacle in the Cubs' way of winning the NL pennant, to push their payroll to extremes for the sake of any marginal roster improvement. Worst-case scenario: the Cubs acquire Cease, they don't win the World Series, and he leaves in free agency. In 2016, the Cubs traded an infield prospect named Gleyber Torres, among other players, to attain star closer Arolids Chapman. Chicago went on to win the World Series and lost Chapman in free agency. If the Cubs could go back in time knowing that Chapman wouldn't re-sign and Torres would become an All-Star middle infielder, they'd make the trade again. These trade deadline moves are about winning the whole thing, not being able to say you almost beat the Dodgers. Chicago could center a Cease trade offer around right-handers Jaxon Wiggins and the rising Ryan Gallagher and infield prospect Pedro Ramirez. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience Major League Baseball San Diego Padres Dylan Cease recommended Item 1 of 3 Get more from the Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Fox News
21 minutes ago
- Fox News
Nick Saban all but shuts down rumors of his return to coaching: 'I enjoy what I am doing'
Rumors about Nick Saban potentially returning to the sideline ran rampant last week, but the seven-time national champion does not appear to be in a rush to get back. Former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy said on his radio show he was told by a source Saban may return in the future, although McElroy didn't believe it himself. In any case, college football fans got their hopes up, and Saban poured cold water on it all in an appearance with "Fox & Friends." "You know, it is amazing to me that that came up in the media, and the media speaks for you and thinks for you," Saban said. Then, he cracked a joke. "I never really had a thought into getting back into coaching until, two days ago, Miss Terry said I had to run the sweeper in the entire downstairs. So, while I was running the sweeper, the thought occurred to me, you know, 'When you were coaching, you had a heck of a lot better job than this.' So, that is the only time I considered it," he said. "I am really happy with what I am doing right now. You know, it is exciting to still be involved in the game. It's exciting for me to work with athletic directors, conference commissioners, people in Congress to preserve the integrity of our game and continue to be able to create opportunities to help young people value for their future that will help them be successful in their life, which is what we always tried to do as a coach." Saban didn't seem to rule it out entirely, but he simply said there is "no opportunity" that appeals to him right now. "I enjoy what I am doing. I did it for 50 years. I loved it. I loved the relationships with the players. I love the competition. But you know it is another station of life now, and I enjoy what I am doing right now and want to continue to do it," he added. "Spend more time with my family, my grandchildren, my children, and it has been really, really good." Saban left the game in 2024, shortly after a loss in the Rose Bowl to eventual national champion Michigan, citing the changing landscape of college athletics.
Forbes
21 minutes ago
- Forbes
Mackage's Latest 'Protect Your Craft' Campaign Stars Dominik Livaković
Soccer player Dominik Livaković stars in the new "Protect Your Craft" campaign from Mackage. Mackage is on the move. The 1999 Canadian-founded brand—initially known for its wool and leather-accented cold-weather outerwear and now a leader in down-filled products—has expanded its market share by offering year-round styles with a focus on design, additional distribution regions, and a pronounced marketing strategy over the past four years. It is due in part to CEO Tanya Golesic, who joined Mackage in 2021 as its first female leader to help expand the outerwear brand into a luxury lifestyle juggernaut. This month, the brand has released the latest star of its "Protect Your Craft" campaign, featuring world-renowned goalkeeper Dominik Livaković, who plays for the Croatian National Team and the Turkish Süper Lig team Fenerbahçe SK. Golesic, a Croatian Canadian, shared the brand's trajectory under her leadership and how she aims to make the luxury label a member of the billion-dollar brand club. "2024 was a super strong year for Mackage, and now 2025 is an off-the-charts year-to-date, and we're just in July. In the past, summer has been a stressful period because we didn't have many products to offer. However, this year we have our first true summer collection, so we didn't experience the typical peaks and valleys that we normally do starting in spring. Now with product evolution and marketing that amplifies the story and continuing to build retail can all help take to a billion dollars," Golesic said via Zoom. As more of the world classifies as having subtropical climates, adding pieces such as shorts, track pants, hoodies, double-faced jerseys and rip-stop fabrics rounds out offerings for different climates and activities, including ath-leisure dressing moments and travel. Mackage CEO Tanya Golesic. The growth comes despite this year presenting challenges, with mercurial movements on tariffs affecting all fashion companies. "It's been a stressful couple of months but working with the COO and team spreading production from three countries to eight. Mostly we are lucky to still work with the same partners. It was a blessing in disguise, though, as changing the way we were always doing things kept us sharp," she added. Marketing initiatives under Golesic have expanded. Its most recent push, 'Protect Your Craft'—which initially launched with footballer Joško Gvardiol and tennis player Donna Vekić'—launched its third installment of the initiative, drawing parallels between the athletes and brands' commitment to performance and craftsmanship with Livaković, known for "unshakable composure and lightning-fast reflexes' according to a brand statement. Vekic's campaign, featuring the tennis star in ripstop styles notably in the sport's ubiquitous green clay color, which launched in May, has garnered significant attention for the brand. "We've hit 1.1 billion impressions on social in four weeks. Every single style that we have marketed over the past 18 months now has turned out to be our best sellers," Golesic noted. The latest campaign, which can be seen on and its social media channels, features the goalie in various outerwear styles from the Pre-Fall 2025 collection, demonstrating his skill out and about in the Big Apple while donning styles such as the Cole, Dominic, Emilio and Ralph and ostensibly demonstrates the newly integrated brand slogan "Aesthetics That Protect." The aesthetics have a lot to do with the appointment of SVP of Design Ludwig Heissmeyer, a twenty-plus-year veteran of design at Carolina Herrera, in 2023. Heissmeyer's elevated New York fashion sense and couture techniques, combined with the technical-focused design team located in Montreal, are checking the 365-day merchandise offerings and the luxury moniker boxes for Mackage. Model Stella Maxwell in Mackage's Pre Fall 2025 collection. "The Montreal design team was like weathermen and women; they understood cold, rain, and wind and focused on technological innovation. Ludwig, whom I met through a friend, garnered a couture discipline in everything from ready-to-wear to bridal and was experienced in accoutrements such as embroideries, lace, hand-stitching, and more," Golesic continued noting that to elevate product and fabrications such as shearling, different leathers and lightweight wools and cashmeres, she needed someone who excelled in craftsmanship. "Ludwig learned a whole new design language, and the Montreal team also learned one. It's a perfect marriage, and the combination of those two dynamics has been one of our two biggest keys to success right now," she added. Adding fashion sense hasn't dimmed the pursuit of technical developments in the slightest, with performance skiwear with avalanche warning sensors built into the garments, also a part of the offering. Sports in general have been an area of brand exposure efforts, as Mackage has also dressed players from the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics during the playoffs. "NBA players really love our leather," the CEO noted. Charlie Hunnam models Mackage's men's Pre-fall collection Celebrity has also been a focus. The latest pre-Fall 2025 collection, which features an introduction of denim offerings in both a fashion and performance interpretation, stars actor Charlie Hunnam and model Stella Maxwell, a brand favorite which has been released in the brand's global markets such as China, Korea, Japan, Europe, and North America via digital, social media, in-store and out-of-home advertising in various regions. Past campaigns featured Alexander Skarsgård. Currently, the brand has stores across Canada, with two in Montreal, a New York store, one in Paris, two in Tokyo, and in China in Beijing with pop-ups in Shanghai and Chengdu. "Probably in the next two years, we will open London, Milan, and Zurich. We have sponsored a Snow Polo team in Switzerland for three years, where we hosted a successful pop-up for three years during the tournament," Golesic noted. A Mackage storefront. With more product launches planned for 2026 and 2027, Golesic is pleased with the progress she and her team has made for the privately owned company. "I'm most proud that Mackage could transform from a small Canadian outerwear brand into a global luxury lifestyle. It's a significant amount of work to transform smaller companies into larger ones. The industry has also recognized Golesic's efforts. She received a prestigious Inspirational Women Leader award from Retail Influencer Network, The DealmakeHers, and The Z Suite in partnership with Women in Retail Leadership Circle in March 2025. "Lots of women downplay their success by citing luck, but truthfully, it's a lot of hard work, but as women, we tend to be reluctant to talk about ourselves or give credit to someone else for putting us where we are. Women are naturally held to higher standards than men. We have to prove ourselves in business and as parents and homemakers. I am not sure you can balance it all because it's a lot of trial and error, as no one teaches you this. When asked what the key to my success is, the answer to that question is my team."
