INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- James Harden passed Ray Allen for second on the NBA's all-time 3-pointers list Sunday night against the Utah Jazz.

Harden made two 3-pointers and finished with 20 points, 11 assists and 6 rebounds to help the LA Clippers to a 116-105 victory at Intuit Dome.

"Unbelievable accomplishment," Harden said of the 3-pointer he hit with 6:09 left in the first quarter to move into second in league history. "Just a testament to the amount of work that I've been putting in. As I get older and just chip away at an unbelievable career, [I] start to accomplish things like that. So I don't ever want to take it for granted.

"I just want to give motivation to the youth and every other person that's chasing a dream to play professional basketball or whatever it is. So it's an honor."

As for anyone dreaming of catching all-time leader Stephen Curry, Harden says no one will ever break Curry's record. Harden now has 2,975 career 3-pointers to move past Allen's 2,973. Curry, whose Warriors face Harden and the Clippers on Monday, currently has 3,782 3-pointers in his career.

"I'm one of the most confident guys that we have in this league," Harden said. "But no, I probably won't catch Steph. And I don't think anybody will honestly. ... I don't know man ... he can shoot the s--- out the ball. And granted a lot of these guys are on that list for [being] catch-and-shoot players, so they came off pindowns, they were spot shots or whatnot. Now, where the game has evolved, guys like Steph are coming off pindowns, he's creating off isos, he's coming off pick-and-rolls. So there's so many different variables to be able to shoot the 3, make shots and do it at an efficient high level.

"So, somebody has to have an unbelievable career, shoot the ball well and make a lot of 3s. I mean if it happens, it's going to be when we're not here anymore. So that'll be in there for a minute."

Harden recently cracked in an interview with ESPN's Shams Charania that "Steph don't count" and that he considers himself No. 1 in most 3-pointers made because of how wildly good of a shooter Curry is.

Harden, 35, and Curry, 36, are part of the same 2009 draft class with Harden going No. 3 to Oklahoma City and Curry No. 7 to Golden State.

Together, they have contributed to changing the way the game is played in today's perimeter-oriented style and how creative shooters have become in scoring from beyond the arc.

"To be a scorer, the way he can score at all three levels," Clippers coach Ty Lue said. "And then be second all time in 3-pointers made is crazy and a lot of tough 3s -- off the dribble, step-backs, pocket 3s, pulling up off the dribble and pick-and-rolls and just to see what he's accomplished.

"Being a 2 guard when he came into the league and then transitioned to a point guard his whole career ... that's a crazy stat, a crazy accomplishment and I'm just happy for him."

The Clippers posted a video of Kevin Durant, Harden's former Oklahoma City and Brooklyn teammate, watching footage of him assisting Harden on his first 3-pointer made with the Thunder.

"Congrats on reaching an amazing accomplishment," Durant said in the video. "All the work that you put in has paid off. You inspire so many people around the world with how you play. You have been a great teammate, a great friend."

Harden credited Durant and former teammate Russell Westbrook with creating a foundation for the work ethic he needed to reach this point in his career.

"Longevity man," Harden said of his former Thunder teammates. "They set the blueprint. When I got there, they already had the blueprint of how to work, how to be a professional in this league, and so all I did was just fall right in line.

" ... From that point on, I was so comfortable and confident in myself, to when I got traded to Houston, I just knew I was going to be successful. I learned how to work at a young age. So shoutout to KD, shoutout to Russ and an entire Oklahoma City organization for that ground building that they gave me."

"Inside the NBA," which features the quartet of Ernie Johnson Jr., Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O'Neal, will appear on ESPN and ABC starting with the 2025-26 season via a partnership with TNT Sports and the NBA, it was announced Monday.

Except when the show goes on the road, TNT Sports will continue to independently produce "Inside the NBA" from its Atlanta-based studios over the term of the agreement. Johnson, Barkley, Smith and O'Neal will remain with the show.

The show, which has won 21 Sports Emmy Awards, will appear on ESPN and ABC surrounding high-profile live events, including ESPN's pregame, halftime and postgame coverage of the NBA Finals on ABC, conference finals, NBA playoffs, all ABC games after Jan. 1, Christmas Day, opening week, the final week of the season and other marquee live events.

"Inside the NBA is universally recognized as one of the best and most culturally impactful shows in sports," ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. "We have long admired the immensely talented team and are thrilled to add their chemistry and knowledge to our robust set of NBA studio offerings to super-serve NBA fans like never before. The addition of Inside the NBA further solidifies ESPN as the preeminent destination for sports fans."

The 2025-26 season marks the first of ESPN's 11-year rights extension with the NBA.

As part of the agreement, TNT Sports will also begin showing 13 Big 12 football and 15 men's basketball games next season as part of a sublicense with ESPN. TNT will air two College Football Playoff games beginning this season, also under a sublicense with ESPN.

ESPN will continue to produce "NBA Countdown" and "NBA Today."

"At TNT Sports, we take great pride in our Inside the NBA show and know its success is both a reflection of the iconic talent on set and the incredible people behind the scenes who consistently demonstrate the creativity and craft of our great team," TNT Sports CEO Luis Silberwasser said in a statement. "We are thrilled to continue to produce Inside the NBA for ESPN and ABC, ensuring fans are able to keep enjoying the magic of this show during the NBA season."

The agreement is part of a settlement after Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of TNT Sports, sued the NBA in New York state court in August after the league did not accept the company's matching offer for one of the packages in its new 11-year media rights deal, which will begin with the 2025-26 season.

The settlement gives TNT Sports, Bleacher Report and House of Highlights a global license for NBA content with no rights fee for the next 11 years.

"The opportunity to continue the iconic and Emmy Award-winning 'Inside the NBA' is a huge win for basketball fans everywhere," NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "We look forward to building on our longstanding partnership with TNT Sports and working together to promote NBA content across key WBD and NBA platforms."

"Inside the NBA" started in 1989. Johnson became the host in 1990, while Smith joined full-time in 1998. Barkley came aboard in 2000, followed by O'Neal in 2011. Barkley signed an extension with WBD in August.

Warner Bros. Discovery will also continue its relationship with the league's digital operations, including NBA.com, for five seasons. TNT Sports and the NBA have jointly managed NBA Digital since 2009.

Even though TNT Sports will not be airing games in the United States beginning next season, it does have rights to air a full package of games in select countries, including those in Latin America (excluding Brazil and Mexico) as well as Poland, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden.

Turner Sports has had an NBA package since 1984 and games have aired on TNT since the network launched in 1988. That will end after this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

WITH TWO MINUTES left in the fourth quarter Friday night, Cleveland Cavaliers guard Caris LeVert nailed a 3-pointer from the left corner to give his team a nine-point lead over the Chicago Bulls. Just about everyone in the building realized it was a dagger that all but assured the Cavs their 14th consecutive win to start the season.

But then, in a sudden surge, the Cavs played some of their most intense basketball of the night, moving at full speed, hoisting 3-pointers early in the shot clock, pressing the accelerator in transition and applying pressure defense.

The Bulls, their bench cleared, gave up 13 points in a blurry 80 seconds and suddenly the Cavs were up by 18 -- and celebrating with each addition.

Here's why: Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson played and coached overseas for 15 years. He knows all about the rules for international-style league cups and the importance of scoring margin and total points when it comes to tiebreakers. This was the Cavaliers' first NBA Cup game of the season, and they followed their coach's instructions.

And this little corner of the first month of this season underscores the entire approach of this surprise juggernaut.

These Cavs are not messing around.

They have a vision, a plan and total buy-in from a group of star players all looking to prove something led by a coach with the same mindset. It's an attitude they will take to Boston to face the defending champion Celtics on Tuesday night for the Cavs' biggest test of the young season in what could prove to be the most impactful NBA Cup game of the Eastern Conference group stage. The Cavs will arrive a perfect 15-0 after a 14-point win over the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday night that came with star Donovan Mitchell resting.

"This is rare," Atkinson said. "We just have this incredible chemistry and an incredible understanding and respect for one another. It's beautiful to watch."

THREE DAYS AFTER the Golden State Warriors, themselves off to a surprisingly unexpected 10-2 start, were destroyed by the Cavs, including a jaw-dropping 41-point first-half deficit, Draymond Green took to his podcast for some frank talk.

"I think these Cleveland Cavaliers are serious, and I'm going to tell you why," Green said. "That ball was humming. ... My head was spinning they was moving it so fast. I think this team, they've got something there. ... I like that team."

The Cavs had a drawn-out coaching search in the spring, having round after round of interviews and working internally to get to a consensus with Atkinson and New Orleans Pelicans assistant James Borrego -- veterans with titles as assistants and past experience as head coaches -- as the final two.

Atkinson ultimately got the offer, winning over team leadership with his offensive vision.

Atkinson spent the next two months flying back and forth over the Atlantic, between France and Cleveland and Las Vegas, watching Cavs game film and reviewing stats.

On hot summer nights, in an old barracks where the French national team was training for the Olympics -- Atkinson was on the coaching staff that helped the squad to a silver medal in Paris this summer -- he put the fine points on a plan.

1: Play his roster. Atkinson felt like president of basketball operations Koby Altman, who had made a series of aggressive trades that had landed him Jarrett Allen, LeVert and then, the big one in Mitchell, had built a deeper team than Altman had gotten credit for.

Altman's high first-round picks -- Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Isaac Okoro -- had all hit in one form or another. He'd bolstered the team in free agency with Max Strus and Georges Niang. He'd found rotation players on the scrap heap, such as Dean Wade and Sam Merrill.

Atkinson not only thought all of them could play -- including deep bench guard Ty Jerome, a 2023 free agent pickup who had missed all of the previous year because of injury and whom Atkinson knew from his years in Golden State. So he decided he was going to try to play them. All of them.

2: Unleash the offense. Two years ago, the Cavs ranked, miraculously, eighth in the league in offense, despite being dead last in pace, 24th in 3-pointers attempted and in the bottom half of the league in assist percentage. They ran a low-space, low-speed, old-fashioned offense that worked.

Last season, ravaged by injuries, they slumped to 16th in offense, but their ball movement and pace improved. What if, Atkinson thought, he could get these same players, on the right track already, to improve even more in a few impactful areas?

So all of training camp was spent encouraging speed, quick-decision passing and movement. Pass then move. Move then pass. And whatever you do, do it fast. A lot of guys were going to play. Everyone, including franchise player Mitchell, was going to play less than before. So expend more energy in the minutes.

This was a sales pitch -- and not a hard sell. And there was something else. Over the past two years, Mitchell, Allen, Mobley, Okoro, Strus, LeVert and Niang all signed contracts collectively worth more than $600 million. Garland's $190 million max deal signed in 2022 also kicked in, so the team was largely paid, helping to set a mood for the brand of selflessness Atkinson wanted to install when he came home from Paris.

"This is a selfless team and has been since we got together," Mitchell said. "Kenny has been phenomenal with us on it, and he's continuing to trust us."

Now the Cavs rank No. 1 in the league in offense. They've soared to No. 7 in pace and might go higher; they lead the league in games played and haven't had consecutive off days yet all season, and it has showed in recent games. They are third in total 3-pointers and first in 3-point percentage. They lead the league in its most basic form: baskets.

"They're moving the ball so crazy!" Green said on his podcast.

"I was thrilled when Draymond said that. It's Warriors-esque, you know?" said Atkinson, who was an assistant with the Warriors the past three seasons, including a return to their bench after accepting and then dropping out of the Hornets' coaching vacancy in 2022.

"That type of ball movement is beautiful to watch."

3: A new role for Mobley. A big part of the Cavs' coaching search was listening to candidates' plans to get more from Mobley, who was a defensive star from his first weeks in the league but had underachieved on offense. The conventional wisdom was to get Mobley to stretch the floor with long-range shooting, something he didn't always show a great interest in.

Atkinson, instead, wanted him in a Green-style role, encouraging him to bring the ball up the floor after getting defensive rebounds (Mobley is in the top 25 in the league in the stat). And then secondly, Atkinson envisioned Mobley being a distributor and hub in the half-court offense, just as Green has been with Warriors for a decade-plus. As a result, Mobley's usage rate is up 15% and he's scoring a career-high 18 points per game.

It was part of a larger overall strategy that Atkinson sought to implement. His team had elite perimeter scorers in Mitchell and Garland (both in top 15 of 3-pointers made) and elite interior scorers in Allen and Mobley (both in the top five in dunks). And in between, a series of players who could connect them.

"I knew from the beginning that this was a group that liked each other and enjoyed playing with each other," Atkinson said. "We have good passers and good connectors. I like that word, connectors. Ty [Jerome] is a good connector, Georges Niang is a good connector, Dean Wade is a connector. So you've got your major scorers, but the guys around them can pass the ball. And that's what you're seeing that the ball really moves. We know where to get it. We make quick decisions."

JEROME AND LEVERT are both having the best seasons of their careers in bench roles, and on Sunday, Jerome lit up the Hornets, tying his career high with 24 points while starting in place of Mitchell. Wade can defend both forward spots and centers depending on the matchup. Strus was the Cavs' No. 1 long-range shooter last season, and he hasn't even played yet because of an ankle injury.

The Cavs' depth, their offensive speed and Mobley's continued development have blended together -- giant checkmarks in Atkinson's plan -- in ways that have surpassed even the team's expectations.

Atkinson admitted he doesn't think the Cavs can continue running this hot on offense and expects shooting percentages to cool closer to the mean. But in the same breath, he pointed out that the Cavs' shot quality is outstanding almost every night.

Mitchell, who is on his way to a sixth straight All-Star season, has found himself taking a similar stance.

He has been on three teams that have won 50-plus games in Utah and Cleveland and still hasn't seen the conference finals. He warns his teammates to keep thinking big picture but can't help feeling the moment himself.

"It's great to be part of history. You don't want to take that for granted," Mitchell said. "At the end of the day, though, it's continuing to be this team throughout [the season]. It's great we're winning, the vibes are great. But will we be this team in January, February, March and April? That's been my message."

HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros' home will get a new name on Jan. 1, becoming Daikin Park under an agreement through the 2039 season the team announced Monday.

The stadium opened as Enron Field in 2000 as part of a 30-year, $100 million agreement but the name was removed in March 2002 following Enron Corp.'s bankruptcy filing and the ballpark briefly became Astros Field.

It was renamed Minute Maid Park in June 2002 as part of a deal with The Minute Maid Co., a Houston-based subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Co. Then-Astros owner Drayton McLane said at the time the agreement was for 28 years and for more than $100 million.

The new deal is with Daikin Comfort Technologies North America Inc., a subsidiary of Daikin Industries Ltd., which is based in Japan and is a leading air conditioning company.

Minute Maid will remain an Astros partner through 2029, the team said.

Welcome to MLB Awards Week.

November has become awards season in baseball, which increasingly serves as a way to keep eyeballs on the game before the hot stove season ramps up. So far, we've gotten the Gold Glove Awards, Silver Sluggers, the All-MLB Team and more.

Now it's time for the biggies -- the four major awards determined by Baseball Writers' Association of America voting, which will feature prominently in baseball history books and Hall of Fame résumés of the future. The winners will be announced live on MLB Network, starting at 6 p.m. ET, over the next four nights.

Monday: Jackie Robinson Rookies of the Year

Tuesday: Managers of the Year

Wednesday: Cy Young Awards

Thursday: MVP Awards

I'll be reacting to each night's awards announcement throughout the week, but in the meantime, here are some opening comments, as well as some brief reaction to the honors that have already been doled out.

Below, we list the three finalists in each of the big four categories, with what you need to know before the results are announced, and who our panel of ESPN MLB experts believe should take home the hardware. We'll update each section with news and analysis as the awards are handed out.

Jump to:
MVP: AL | NL
Cy Young: AL | NL
Rookie of the Year: AL | NL
Manager of the Year: AL | NL

American League MVP

Finalists:

Aaron Judge, New York Yankees

Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals

Juan Soto, Yankees

Our pick: Judge (9 votes; unanimous)

Doolittle's take: While the outcome seems like (and almost certainly is) a no-brainer, don't let that make you lose sight of the overall dynamic around this award. In a nutshell: This is one of the greatest MVP races ever, in terms of historically elite performances from players in the same league.

The dominant performances went beyond the finalists. Five AL players posted at least 7.9 bWAR, led by the three MVP finalists, as well as Boston's Jarren Duran and Baltimore's Gunnar Henderson, who both finished with higher bWAR totals than Soto. Only once before has the AL had five players produce at that level in the same season -- way back in 1912.

While Soto was never far out of the picture, this was a high-octane two-player race for most of the season between the mashing dominance of Judge and the five-tool mastery of the dynamic Witt. Judge won the bWAR battle by a good margin (10.8 to 9.4) and seemed to pull away at the end of the season. Even if you don't like to think of this in terms of bWAR, it's hard to look past league-leading totals of 58 homers and 144 RBIs and a third-place .322 batting average, all on the league's best team.

The real drama surrounding this award is tied to that of the NL: Will we have two unanimous MVP picks? If so, that would be just the second time it's happened. The first? Last year, when Shohei Ohtani (then with the Angels) and Ronald Acuna Jr. (Braves) pulled it off.

MVP must-reads:

Aaron Judge is the fastest ever to 300 home runs -- but how many more will he hit?

Better than Bonds in 2001 and Ruth in 1921? How Aaron Judge's season stacks up to the best in MLB history

Only Juan Soto can decide if his future is with the Yankees

Baseball's next superstar? Bobby Witt Jr.'s rise to MLB's top tier

National League MVP

Finalists:

Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers

Francisco Lindor, New York Mets

Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks

Our pick: Ohtani (9 votes; unanimous)

Doolittle's take: When the DH became a part of big league baseball back in the 1970s, those who defended it tended to point out how it would allow older superstars to hang around for a few more years. Thus the default image of the DH was the aging, plodding slugger trying to generate occasional glimpses of what he used to be.

Things have changed. Othani did not don a baseball glove during a game this season and yet established himself as far and away the most dominant player in the National League. The numbers were staggering: .310/.390/.646, 54 homers, 59 stolen bases. He scored 134 runs and drove in 130, even though 57% of his plate appearances came as the Dodgers' leadoff hitter.

As with Judge, the intrigue isn't about whether Ohtani will win, but whether or not he'll be a unanimous pick. And, let's face it, there's not much intrigue about that, either. If Ohtani does it, it'll be the third time he's been a unanimous selection. No one else has done it even twice.

MVP must-reads:

51 HRs AND stolen bases?! How Shohei Ohtani transformed MLB -- again

Breaking down Ohtani's path to 50/50 -- and the historic game that got him there

How Francisco Lindor became the heart and soul of the Mets

American League Cy Young

Finalists:

Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers

Seth Lugo, Kansas City Royals

Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland Guardians

Our pick: Skubal (9 votes; unanimous)

Doolittle's take: Long touted for his upside, Skubal put it all together in 2024, becoming the AL's most dominant and consistent starting pitcher during the regular season, leading the Tigers to a surprise postseason berth.

Skubal became the AL's first full-season winner of the pitching triple crown since another Tiger, Justin Verlander, did it in 2011. (Cleveland's Shane Bieber did it in the shortened 2020 season.) With league-leading totals of 18 wins, 228 strikeouts and a 2.39 ERA, Skubal is well positioned to win his first Cy Young.

Lugo becomes the Royals' rotation representative in the finalist group, honoring one of MLB's breakout units in 2024, though teammate Cole Ragans might have been just as worthy. Entering the season, Lugo had never qualified for an ERA title, but in his first campaign for Kansas City, he threw 206 innings, going 16-9 with a 3.00 ERA.

Clase struggled in the postseason but the voting took place before that, and it recognized his unusually dominant season, good enough to justify his presence in this group despite his role as a short reliever. In 74 outings, featuring 47 saves, Clase allowed just five earned runs. He's still a reliever and, thus, a long shot to win the award, but getting this far says a lot. The last reliever to win a Cy Young Award was the Dodgers' Eric Gagne in 2003.

Cy Young must-read:

It's Tarik Skubal time: With season on the line, Tigers turn to 'best pitcher in the world'

National League Cy Young

Finalists:

Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves

Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates

Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia Phillies

Our pick: Sale (8 votes); Wheeler (1 vote)

Doolittle's take: What an interesting group of finalists this is. Value-wise, it's a close race.

Wheeler is the constant here, as he's enjoying a seven-year run as one of the NL's top starting pitchers. Wheeler is still looking for his first Cy Young and entered the balloting this time around with his best résumé to date. Yet Wheeler is coming up against two pitchers with arguably more compelling -- and very different -- narratives.

Skenes is baseball's ascendant ace. Few pitchers have reached the majors with higher expectations in recent years. He met the hype head on and, if anything, proved to be even better than we thought. With the innings volume of baseball's best starters much less than it used to be, it is possible for an elite run preventer to save runs at a clip that puts him among the league leaders during a partial season. It wasn't Skenes' fault that he wasn't called up until the second week of May. All he did after that was post a 1.96 ERA over 23 starts while displaying a remarkable degree of consistency. There wasn't a true clunker in the bunch.

And yet Sale might have been more dominant if you consider defensive-independent ERA (or FIP), in which Sale's 2.09 bested Skenes' 2.45. Also, like Skubal, Sale (18 wins, 2.38 ERA, 225 strikeouts) became the first pitching triple crown winner of his league since 2011. In Sale's case, he became the first to do it since L.A.'s Clayton Kershaw.

All this from a pitcher who once finished sixth or better in AL Cy Young voting seven straight seasons. He's never won, though, and the last of those seasons was 2018. Sale's days as a premier starter seemed long gone ... and then he did this. That's a good narrative.

Cy Young must-reads:

Did Chris Sale pitch himself into the HOF this year?

Inside Chris Sale's third act: From considering walking away to becoming an MLB superteam's missing piece

The best stuff in baseball? How Paul Skenes is using his pitches to dominate MLB

American League Rookie of the Year

Finalists:

Colton Cowser, Baltimore Orioles

Luis Gil, New York Yankees

Austin Wells, New York Yankees

Our pick: Gil (7 votes); Cowser (1 vote); Cade Smith, Cleveland Guardians (1 write-in vote)

Doolittle's take: There will be longtime fixtures that emerge from this year's AL rookie class. And whoever wins this award will be justifiably proud of his accomplishment. But this hasn't been a great race, as there were probably five or six rookies in the NL who would have been the front-runner in the junior circuit.

Cowser had a very good rookie season but became a finalist more because of volume (561 plate appearances) than anything else. That happens in a season like this, when no obvious favorite emerges.

Wells was a vital contributor to the Yankees' AL East title run. By overtaking Jose Trevino as New York's regular catcher, Wells provided more offense behind the plate than the Yankees have gotten in recent years. During the second half, Wells usually batted cleanup behind the star stack of Soto and Judge in the Yankees' lineup, and New York went 23-15 when he did.

Gil won 15 games with a 117 ERA+ over 29 starts, crucial to a Yankees rotation that faced extended absences from Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt. He also led the AL in walks, so it was a mixed bag.

This is a hard race to call, as it would have been if Oakland's Mason Miller, Texas' Wyatt Langford or Boston's Wilyer Abreu ended up in the final three.

ROY must-read:

Bump in the road or ominous sign: Has Luis Gil hit a wall after his red-hot start?

National League Rookie of the Year

Finalists:

Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates

Jackson Chourio, Milwaukee Brewers

Jackson Merrill, San Diego Padres

Our pick: Skenes (8 votes); Merrill (1 vote)

Doolittle's take: Because Skenes is a Cy Young finalist, you might think he'd be a no-brainer in this category, but you would be wrong. That's how strong this NL rookie class was, both in 2024 performance and long-term potential.

Merrill was developed as a shortstop, but because the Padres needed a center fielder, that's where he ended up playing 155 times. He held his own out on the grass, posting average range metrics while leading the NL in outfield assists. That he was able to do that kept his bat in the lineup every day and, at 21, he hit .292/.326/.500 with 24 homers and 90 RBIs.

Chourio was baseball's youngest player in 2024 and, like Skenes, he met the hype machine full on, getting better and better as the season progressed. A dynamic performer on the outfield corners, Chourio posted a 20/20 season (21 homers, 22 steals) with a 117 OPS+ at age 20. His OPS went from .678 in the first half to .914 in the second, then he hit .455/.500/1.000 against the Mets in the first three playoff games of his career.

There were more dynamic NL rookies than finalist slots -- the work of Masyn Winn, Shota Imanaga and Spencer Schwellenbach come to mind -- but the seasons by Merrill and Chourio are why it's possible Skenes could win the Cy Young Award but not Rookie of the Year.

That's obviously a long shot, and if Skenes were to win both, he'd be the second pitcher to win both ROY and Cy Young honors in the same season, joining the late Fernando Valenzuela, who did it in 1981.

ROY must-reads:

Why Pirates called up Paul Skenes now -- and why he could be MLB's next great ace

Ranking MLB's best rookies: Is Paul Skenes or an outfielder named Jackson No. 1?

American League Manager of the Year

Finalists:

A.J. Hinch, Detroit Tigers

Matt Quatraro, Kansas City Royals

Stephen Vogt, Cleveland Guardians

Our pick: Quatraro (5 votes); Hinch (3 votes); Vogt (1 vote)

Doolittle's take: The AL Central had four solid teams in 2024, three more than most thought the division would have, and the three surprise clubs are represented here as finalists.

All of these managers have compelling cases. Hinch guided the Tigers to their second-half surge even after Detroit subtracted at the trade deadline and had to navigate around a depleted starting rotation. He has finished in the top five of balloting four times but has never won.

Vogt, a first-time manager filling the shoes of Cleveland legend Terry Francona, also had to lean on his bullpen because of rotation issues and did so with aplomb.

Yet it's Quatraro who really stands out, leading a Royals team that lost 106 games in 2023 to the postseason. Kansas City had lineup holes and a constantly evolving bullpen picture, yet Quatraro and his staff found a way to leverage his team's strengths (rotation, defense, Witt) into an October appearance.

National League Manager of the Year

Finalists:

Carlos Mendoza, New York Mets

Pat Murphy, Milwaukee Brewers

Mike Shildt, San Diego Padres

Our pick: Murphy (6 votes); Mendoza (3 votes)

Doolittle's take: Mendoza had a fantastic first season in the Mets' dugout, helping the team overcome a sluggish start and eventually end up facing the Dodgers in the NLCS. He did so with quiet, consistent leadership and that bodes well for his ability to last a long time in one of baseball's most challenging environments.

Shildt, who won the award in 2019 while with the Cardinals, proved to be a feisty presence on a star-laden team with middling expectations that kept rising as the season progressed.

Murphy's season is hard to beat. Handed the reins of a big league team for a full season for the first time at 65, Murphy was able to put his imprint on the young Brewers. This was no small feat given the departure last winter of his one-time protege, Craig Counsell, arguably the face of the franchise.

Milwaukee went young, suffered rotation shortages and had a number of moving parts in its lineup. Behind Murphy, the Brewers changed their style of play to better accentuate the athleticism on the roster, won 93 games and cruised to another NL Central title.

Earlier awards

Executive of the Year: Brewers president Matt Arnold named exec of the year

Doolittle's take: I've written a couple of times this year that I think the Brewers might be the best-run organization in baseball right now, so that speaks to how I view the work of Arnold and his staff. I also have a kind of organizational mash-up metric I track during the season that considers things like injuries, rookie contribution, payroll efficiency, in-season acquisitions and such, and Milwaukee topped that leaderboard.

And yet it's somewhat stunning that Kansas City's J.J. Picollo did not win this honor. He oversaw the team's leap from 106 losses to the playoffs, using free agency to bolster the roster and staying proactive at the trade deadline (and the August waiver period) to provide essential upgrades that put the Royals over the top. It's hard to do a better one-season job as a baseball ops chief than what Picollo did this season.

All-MLB: 2024 All-MLB First and Second Team winners

Doolittle's take: Nobody asked me about these picks, but they read as if they did. I had the same first team. On the second team, I might have opted for Matt Chapman over Manny Machado at third base, but if that's my one note, the selectors did a heck of a job. Or maybe I did.

Gold Gloves: Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. among 14 first-time Gold Glove winners

Doolittle's take: For all the uncertainty in making defensive picks, the consensus defensive metric I used more or less mirrored the Gold Glove selections. I would have taken Chourio or Washington's Jacob Young as one of the NL's outfielders in place of Ian Happ.

LAS VEGAS -- Alex Ovechkin recorded his first hat trick of the season, scoring three goals Sunday night for the Washington Capitals in their 5-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

It was his first hat trick since Dec. 31, 2022, against the Montreal Canadiens and 31st of his career, the sixth most in NHL history. Vegas became the 19th team that Ovechkin scored at least three goals against in a game.

Ovechkin, 39, completed the effort with an empty-net goal with 37 seconds left, and with 866 career goals, he is now just 29 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time NHL goal-scoring record.

"I think we had pretty good opportunities in previous games to do that," Ovechkin said of the empty-netter. "So, finally, we did it."

The hat trick was also his 16th on the road. The only players in NHL history with more are Hall of Fame forwards Mario Lemieux (19), Gretzky (19) and Marcel Dionne (17).

"It's fun to be a part of," Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson said of Ovechkin's chase. "I love being his teammate. He's the face of this franchise, the face of our dressing room. The guy keeps it loose every time, and he's a lot of fun. It's very special to be on his team -- and him knowing my name."

Ovechkin's effort pushed him closer to another, albeit less grand, Gretzky record. According to ESPN Research, with his 176th career multigoal game, he is now 13 shy of Gretzky's NHL milestone of 189.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- After coughing up a fourth-quarter lead to a heated division rival in the closing moments on Sunday afternoon, the San Francisco 49ers were left with an all-too-familiar emotion.

This time, it was the Seattle Seahawks storming down the field to score the winning touchdown with 12 seconds left, turning a sure defeat into a 20-17 victory.

Given the feeling in the pit of the Niners' collective stomach, it might as well have been their Week 3 defeat to the Los Angeles Rams or the Week 5 letdown against the Arizona Cardinals.

"It's infuriating, honestly," linebacker Fred Warner said. "It's not like us. But that's just what we've shown this year, so I guess until we stop doing that, then that's who we are."

What the 49ers are now is a 5-5 team teetering on the brink of a lost season. This loss dropped them to 1-3 in NFC West games and saw defensive end Nick Bosa suffer a hip and oblique injury that kept him out for most of Sunday's second half and could linger into the coming weeks.

All of which would make the Niners' path to a third straight divisional crown, or any playoff berth, substantially tougher.

The frustration Warner shares with his teammates isn't just the record against divisional foes but how San Francisco has attained it. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the 49ers have three divisional losses when leading in the final two minutes of regulation, which is tied for the most such losses by a team in a season since the 1970 merger.

San Francisco's three late-game letdowns have come in just four chances, and they are tied with the 2001 Carolina Panthers, 2000 Los Angeles Chargers, 1996 Baltimore Ravens and 1994 Washington Commanders as the only teams to have that many defeats in those situations on the résumé.

Losing a third game when leading in the fourth quarter also tied the Niners for the most such blown leads by any team this season, joining the Jacksonville Jaguars and Cincinnati Bengals. It all led to coach Kyle Shanahan touching on a similar message to what he has espoused after multiple losses this season (and even some wins).

"We had every opportunity to run away with that and it put it away," Shanahan said. "[We] missed a couple opportunities to do that and ... let people hang around, that's what happens."

Indeed, the 49ers had multiple chances to build a big, perhaps insurmountable, lead against the Seahawks. But a series of self-inflicted mistakes prevented that from happening.

Playing without tight end George Kittle because of a hamstring injury, the Niners were sluggish on offense, finishing with just 277 yards of offense, their lowest output in a game since Week 6 of the 2023 season. Their longest play of the day went for just 22 yards, tied for the second shortest for a game since Shanahan took over in 2017 (19 yards was the longest play in a 2020 loss to Washington).

More maddening for the Niners, however, was their inability to avoid penalties that wiped away multiple scoring chances. San Francisco racked up nine penalties for 54 yards, with seven of those infractions going against the offense. In recent seasons, the Niners have had no trouble overcoming such miscues, but this team hasn't proved capable of the same type of in-game resilience.

"Obviously [in] years past it's like we put that behind us and play the next play," quarterback Brock Purdy said. "Just because we had success the last couple years doesn't mean just because something bad happens to us, we're just magically going to make up for it. We've got to have the chip on our shoulder to go take it every single play, down and game. We've just got to get back to that mindset."

While there are still seven games left in the season for the 49ers to rediscover what has made them successful in recent years, the clock is undoubtedly ticking as they prepare for a difficult two-game stretch that includes trips to Green Bay and Buffalo. That they might have to do it without Bosa only figures to make the task tougher.

Bosa dealt with a right hip pointer and oblique issue all week that he said would make it "close" as to whether he would even play against the Seahawks. Bosa did start the game and had four tackles and 1.5 sacks before leaving early in the second half.

Bosa injured his other hip and oblique when he brought Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith down for a sack with 9:26 left in the third quarter. He stayed on the field for one more play before checking out and did not return. After the game, Bosa said he felt like he was "compensating" for the previously injured hip and oblique and lamented missing Seattle's game-winning drive.

The Seahawks averaged just 3.3 yards per play when Bosa was on the field versus 6.1 yards when he was off it on Sunday. Seattle also scored all 20 of its points with Bosa off the field.

"Brutal," Bosa said. "The most important time in the game for me to be out there, I wasn't able to be. I hate missing time. That's why I pushed through last week. Hopefully it's not too long [to be out]."

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Kansas City Chiefs are no longer unbeaten, but they didn't seem much bothered by that, least of all quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

"The undefeated thing was cool," Mahomes said after the Chiefs took their first loss of the season 30-21 against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. "But that's not our ultimate goal."

The Chiefs won their first nine games but were hardly dominant along the way. Seven of those victories were by one score, and four were not settled until the game's final play.

The loss to the Bills was different and not just in the result. The Bills clearly outplayed the Chiefs, outgaining them by more than 100 yards. The Chiefs led only twice in the game, both times in the first half. But each lead was brief and by just one point.

Mahomes called the loss "fuel" for the rest of the Chiefs' season.

"It's a good football team, so there's nothing to hang your head [about]," Mahomes said. "We feel like we can play better, so we will get back to work and try to use this as a spark so that we can be a better football team in the end.

"I'm hoping that [losing] is a benefit. I'm not going to say I or we relaxed, but at the same time I feel like we were just coming away with these wins at the end of the game. I think it's going to spark us to have more urgency, especially at the start of football games, especially with the offense, and that comes from me and turning the ball over on the first drive. It's something you can't do in big games like this."

The Chiefs had won 15 straight games dating back to last season, including the playoffs. Their last loss came on Christmas of last season when they were beaten by the Las Vegas Raiders. Mahomes said he saw no similarities to Sunday's loss but hoped this defeat would also bring a new long winning streak.

"[The Bills are] a really good football team," he said. "It's going to take your best football to beat great football teams, and we didn't play our best football today and they went out there and beat us. That's how it rolls in the NFL and so all due respect to them that's going to be a good football team that we will probably see [in the playoffs]."

Mahomes was outplayed by Josh Allen, his Buffalo counterpart. Cornerback Trent McDuffie said there were times the Chiefs defended Allen as they intended and still couldn't prevent him from making plays.

"He's one of those people where no matter what happens, he can make his team right," McDuffie said.

Most notable among those plays was Allen's 26-yard touchdown run late in the game that secured the win. A fourth-down stop on that play would have left the Chiefs with two minutes to try for a winning field goal.

"That was a great football play," Mahomes said. "Whenever the play's not there, he does a great job of making plays happen, and that's what he did on that last play."

Buffalo Bills hand Kansas City Chiefs first loss of season

After winning their first nine games in not-so-dominant fashion, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs ran out of magic Sunday, losing 30-21 to the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, New York, the club's first defeat since Dec. 25, 2023.