🏆 Los Angeles Sits Atop The Sports Universe

In a year filled with challenges and uncertainty, L.A. is on top of the sports world. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider: As a World Series filled with tension and spectacle ended with a Dodgers championship, it is Los Angeles that gets to bask in the resultant glow ... we take a look at how Kyler Murray is leading the Arizona Cardinals on a joy ride ... and we highlight Chase Claypool’s heartwarming gesture to a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. After all that 2020 has thrown into our path, every city in America – no, every town, township, suburb and village – should get the joyous uplift of seeing a cherished team win a sports championship. That’s not how it works, sadly, and so, after a World Series filled with tension and spectacle ended with a Dodgers drought-breaker Tuesday night, it is Los Angeles that gets to bask in the resultant glow. Coming just 16 days after the Lakers lifted the Larry O'Brien Trophy, these are heady sports days for the city of Los Angeles. The last time teams from the same city won an NBA title and World Series in the same year was back in 1988, when it was ... the Dodgers and Lakers. The Dodgers’ World Series title comes toward the end of a year that began horribly with the loss of beloved Lakers icon Kobe Bryant in a January helicopter accident that also claimed the life of his daughter and seven others. Such things are cyclical, and while it is sweet serendipity the tandem titles came in the year of Bryant’s passing, it is coincidental, not more. The Lakers’ defeat of the Miami Heat and the Dodgers outmuscling of the Tampa Bay Rays were hard-earned rings but also unusual ones, by necessity. [STORY IMAGE 1] As the Dodgers triumphed, [LeBron James tweeted]( how he’d love a dual celebratory parade but accepted it was likely impossible. “I know we can’t but … I want to celebrate with our Lakers and Dodgers fans,” James wrote. “L.A. is the city of champions.” The reality is that just like the Lakers, the Dodgers’ success was rooted in simplicity. We thought the altered circumstances in sports would lead to surprise results and bizarre happenings and that was kind of the case. Few predicted the Heat making the NBA Finals or the small-budget Rays reaching the reimagined Fall Classic. Yet amid all the uncertainty, quality shined. The Lakers wouldn’t have won it all had they failed to be disciplined and united in the bubble, but they ultimately prevailed because they had two of the world’s best players in James and Anthony Davis. Similarly the Dodgers, who were unrattled by the Game 4 extravagant plot line and were nerveless in Tuesday’s closing moments, are champions because they have baseball’s best roster, helped by the National League’s highest payroll. [STORY IMAGE 2] “We worked so hard,” Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes said. “We have had our hearts broken so many times. There is a ton of emotion.” Anything can happen when a game gets tight and anyone in the majors is capable of a clutch hit, but it sure helps if you have Mookie Betts or Corey Seager stepping up when it counts. Or, when a pitching bounce back is required, you have Clayton Kershaw, prior postseason wobbles notwithstanding. The Rays scrapped and fought and interrupted the narrative, but this was the Dodgers series to throw away and they declined that option. Then, all that pent up frustration could be released and those recent World Series disappointments could be soothed. But this is 2020, which means no time of uplift is complete without an accompanying kick to the backside. Before the seventh inning was done, Major League Baseball received confirmation Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner had tested positive for the novel coronavirus. [STORY IMAGE 3] If anything, Turner’s results served as the ultimate reminder that these are the most unpredictable of days and that there could have been so much more upheaval. What if the Rays had tied things and set up a Game 7? Could it even have taken place? Would the World Series have been paused for a couple of weeks with a single game remaining? Would it have remained frozen in time forever? And so ended a wild postseason and a unique campaign. It was just a few months ago when there were suggestions that any title won during this period would be somehow tainted. No one thinks that now, not after seeing the difficulty level and the struggle and everything that had to be overcome. It’s time for the people of Los Angeles to celebrate, and they should, albeit in a different fashion. [Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti immediately responded to James’ tweet]( by vowing to explore appropriate parade options. “Let’s talk,” he wrote. [STORY IMAGE 4] However, recent news that the title runs of both teams had caused a significant spike in L.A. County COVID cases, due to people meeting in numbers to watch games, casts doubt on the feasibility of such a congregation. Parades are nice, but even in the best of times, they are not really what it is all about. Sports right now are a reflection of our changed perceptions, a testament to the power of perseverance, survival, adaptation and nerve. Yet the Dodgers, like the Lakers, sit today in the position every other team envies, for the most enduring and timeless of reasons. They were the best – and they proved it. [STORY IMAGE 5] Here’s what others have said ... Los Angeles Times Sports Staff: “In a city reeling from the medical and economic devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic, forced to restrict its celebrated freewheeling lifestyle and even robbed of the sacred ritual of a summer at Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers’ World Series victory felt like a vaccine — if only temporary — for 2020’s many miseries.” Alden Gonzalez, ESPN: “The 2020 campaign was unlike any other, with protocols that often sapped joy from the players. The shortest, most unconventional regular season was followed by the longest, most volatile postseason. It was the Dodgers, trapped inside a Dallas bubble for most of October, who conquered it. When it began, they were asked whether winning a championship this year would still be thrilling. By the end of it, many had come around to the thought that it might be even more special.” Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles: “I definitely intend to have the opportunity for Angelenos to celebrate the Lakers and, on their own day, the Dodgers ... Thank you both and the Dodgers and Lakers for the best single month in LA sports history!" [IN OTHER WORDS] - Clayton Kershaw grew up just 20 miles from Globe Life Field, where he celebrated his first World Series title on Tuesday night. [ESPN staff writer Alden Gonzalez]( takes us inside the night Kershaw finally became a world champion – in his hometown. - The Los Angeles Dodgers dominated throughout the pandemic-shortened MLB season and erased its October nightmare by beating the Rays and becoming World Series champions. [Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci]( writes that there’s no need for an asterisk as the Dodgers’ greatness has been confirmed. - Kyler Murray is thriving in Kliff Kingsbury’s fast-paced offense, leading his team to a 5-2 record, including a thrilling overtime win against the Seahawks this past Sunday. [Mike Trainer of the New York Times]( explains how Murray is leading the Arizona Cardinals on a joy ride. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( There is one simple word to describe the video we are featuring in today’s “Internet Is Undefeated” portion of the newsletter … Beautiful! Check out this incredible gesture from Pittsburgh Steelers rookie Chase Claypool, who signed his jersey and shipped it to a die-hard 76-year-old Steelers fan who is battling dementia. The fan has had a challenging time remembering who is on the team each week, so his son created a video, asking members of the Steelers to send a piece of memorabilia to his father to help remind him who is on the team. Claypool saw the video and filmed himself signing his own jersey and going to Fed Ex to ship it himself. This is why the internet is undefeated. Well done, Chase! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Women’s College Volleyball: Georgia at Tennessee (ESPNU, 7 p.m. ET) Phoebe Awoleye and the Georgia Bulldogs go up against Lily Felts and the Tennessee Volunteers. Orlando City SC vs. Atlanta United (FS1, 7:30 p.m. ET) Chris Mueller and Orlando City SC take on Ezequiel Barco and Atlanta United. WWE NXT (USA, 8 p.m. ET) NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar will face off with Jake Atlas in a non-title bout at WWE NXT Halloween Havoc. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers Robby Anderson and Julio Jones 75+ Receiving Yards Each: +100 Quiz Question … DeAndre Hopkins leads the NFL in receiving yards, who is second on the list? If you guessed Robby Anderson, well … you really know your NFL stats. Anderson has been quietly having an outstanding 2020 campaign in his first season in Carolina. He has found an instant connection with Teddy Bridgewater as the two have hooked up for 46 passes for 640 yards through seven games. They lead the Panthers into a Thursday night showdown with Julio Jones and the Atlanta Falcons. As we know, Jones has been among the top receivers in football over the past decade. FOX Bet is offering +100 odds for both Anderson and Jones to record 75-plus receiving yards in this game. Anderson has topped the 75-yard mark in five of the seven games he’s played in this season, and he actually totaled 74 yards in Carolina’s 27-24 loss to the Saints this past weekend. Jones has topped the 75-yard mark in three of the five games he’s played in and now appears healthy after battling an injury earlier in the season. If you’re looking to capitalize on a bet in this week’s Thursday Night Football matchup, this could be your best play. [WHAT THEY SAID] “You don't have to have a World Series ring to be a winner. A winner is somebody who goes out there every day and exhausts himself trying to get something accomplished. Being able to get the most from their ability. That's what characterizes a winner.” — Joe Torre [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2020 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. If you do not wish to receive emails like this in the future, please [unsubscribe](. FOX Sports respects your privacy. Click [here]( to view our Privacy Policy. Fox.com Business & Legal Affairs - Manager Digital Media P.O. Box 900 Beverly Hills, California 90213-0900