MLB's Phantom World Cup Connection

And, farewell to the relief great who stood athwart cheating, whispering "Stop!"

Pregame Pepper

. . . Run, Run, Raffy Dept.—Rafael Devers says his tantrum over Giants manager Tony Vitello trying to lift him for a faster pinch runner Sunday was “a misunderstanding” and he has since apologised to Vitello. The further bad news, by way of Yardbarker’s Clark Dalton: It pads Devers’s reputation for selfishness, and it just might indicate r…