Russian defenseman Nikolai Goldobin, 29, has been claimed off KHL waivers
by SKA St. Petersburg, the KHL website announced on Monday. He had
been waived by Spartak Moscow, the club for which he’d played the
past two seasons.
Born in
Moscow, Goldobin went overseas at age 16 to play junior hockey for
the OHL’s Sarnia Sting. He became a first-round pick of the San
Jose Sharks in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, selected 27th
overall.
Goldobin
spent most of the 2014-15 season playing in Finland for HIFK Helsinki
before signing with the Sharks late in the season and moving to the
AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.
Between
2015 and 2019, Goldobin played 125 NHL games for the Sharks and
Vancouver Canucks, recording
46 points and 24 penalty minutes. In February 2017, he was traded
from San Jose to Vancouver for Danish winger Jannik Hansen.
Goldobin
has spent the past five seasons in the KHL
playing for CSKA Moscow, Metallurg Magnitogorsk and Spartak,
recording 277 points in 339 regular-season and playoff games.
A perennial powerhouse in the KHL, last season SKA
finished a disappointing seventh in the Western Conference and was
eliminated in the first round of the playoffs despite a star-studded
lineup that included Ivan Demidov, Alexander Nikishin, Mikhail
Grigorenko, Evgeny
Kuznetsov, Arseni Gritsyuk, Nikita
Zaitsev and Tony
DeAngelo.
Heading into 2025-26, only Zaitsev remains from that group. The
team has replaced coach Roman Rotenberg with Igor
Larionov and added center Igor Larionov
Jr. and North Americans Rocco
Grimaldi Trevor Murphy, Brennan
Menell and Joey Blandisi, who have some NHL experience.
The exchange took place after the Miami Heat traded forward Haywood Highsmith to the Brooklyn Nets on Friday. The trade sent Highsmith and a 2032 second-round pick to the Nets in exchange for a protected 2026 second-round pick.
Highsmith was looked at as a key piece to Miami’s future while Butler still was with the team before the Feb. 5 trade to the Warriors, but Green appears to believe the praise, by some, was exaggerated.
Highsmith averaged 24.6 minutes per game last season with the Heat, while scoring only 6.5 PPG.
Butler averaged 17.5 PPG last season, which puts these two in completely different categories.
The Heat reportedly made offers to the Phoenix Suns for now-Houston Rockets forward Kevin Durant this offseason, but Miami team president Pat Riley was unwilling to include young assets like Highsmith.
The complexities of Butler’s relationship with the Heat organization ultimately were unreconcilable in the end, but he seems much more at home now with the Warriors and isn’t too excited to contribute to Green’s social media banter.
Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu, will face each other in the first round of the revamped US Open mixed doubles. The event has been moved to before the main tournament, on 19 and 20 August, with $1m (£750,000) in prize money at stake for the winners of the 16-pair event.
Draper will play with the American Jessica Pegula after their original partners, Paula Badosa and Tommy Paul, withdrew. With both inside the top five in the singles rankings, the pair have been handed the top seeding and will kick off their campaign against the wildcard pair of Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz.
The Athletics are promoting top prospect Leo De Vries to Double-A Midland after the switch-hitting shortstop’s recent hot stretch with High-A Lansing, MLB.com’s Martín Gallegos reported Sunday, citing a source.
A’s are promoting No. 1 prospect Leo De Vries to Double-A Midland, per source.
De Vries was on fire this weekend at High-A Lansing, going 7-for-12 with two homers, two triples and a double over his past three games.
At 18 years old, De Vries slashed .249/.354/.426 with 91 hits, 58 RBI and 10 home runs over 97 games between the Padres’ High-A Fort Wayne affiliate and the Athletics’ High-A Lansing team in 2025. He began his professional career with the Padres organization at just 17 years old in 2024, playing 93 games between Single-A Lake Elsinore and the Arizona Fall League’s Peoria.
"A Leo De Vries hot streak looks different than everybody else's!"
De Vries will be the youngest player at the Double-A level when he debuts for the RockHounds, according to Baseball America, and will be the 19th player to reach Double-A at 18 years old since 2010.
A’s general manager David Forst told Chris Townsend about his expectations for De Vries on “A’s Cast” on Wednesday — and it was quite the foreshadowing.
“I think Leo De Vries has a chance to be a superstar,” Forst said, adding that “there is a learning curve no matter where you are, but I’d like to think he gets his feet wet in Double-A before the end of the year, starts there next year, and then he’s off and running.”
The A’s have liked what they have seen from De Vries and look forward to seeing him — the equivalent of a high school senior — get his feet wet at yet another big-boy level.
Its Monday, August 18 and the Brewers (78-45) are in Chicago to take on the Cubs (70-53) in the first of a day / night doubleheader. Sitting eight games behind the Brewers, it is a crucial series for the Cubs' division title hopes...assuming there is still a flicker of hope there.
Freddy Peralta is slated to take the mound for Milwaukee against Cade Horton for Chicago.
The Cubs won yesterday 4-3 at Wrigley against the Pirates to take two of three in the weekend series. Dansby Swanson drove in the winning run to secure Sunday's win but far more important for Chicago was the weekend for Pete Crow-Armstrong. At one time an MVP candidate, the centerfielder broke out of an extended slump (3-41 previously in August) with five hits in eight official at bats in the three games.
The Brewers saw their 14-game winning streak snapped yesterday by the Reds, 3-2, in ten innings. Cincinnati tied the game at two with a run in the ninth and walked it off at The Great American Ballpark in the tenth on an Austin Hays' single. Jose Quintana allowed a single run over 6.1 innings in another strong start for Milwaukee.
Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game details & how to watch Brewers at Cubs
Date: Monday, August 18, 2025
Time: 6:20PM EST
Site: Wrigley Field
City: Chicago, IL
Network/Streaming: FDSNWI, MARQ, MLBN
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the Brewers at the Cubs
The latest odds as of Monday:
Moneyline: Brewers (+101), Cubs (-121)
Spread: Cubs -1.5
Total: 8.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Brewers at Cubs
Pitching matchup for August 18, 2025: Freddy Peralta vs. Cade Horton
Brewers: Freddy Peralta, (14-5, 2.90 ERA) Last outing: August 12 vs. Pittsburgh - 0.00 ERA, 0 Earned Runs Allowed, 3 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 7 Strikeouts
Cubs: Cade Horton, (7-3, 3.07 ERA) Last outing: August 13 at Toronto - 1.59 ERA, 1 Earned Runs Allowed, 1 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 8 Strikeouts
Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Brewers at Cubs
Christian Yelich was 0-8 in the final 2 games against the Reds but is 21-59 (.356) in August
Freddy Peralta has struck out 7 in each of his last 2 starts and at least 6 in 6 of his last 8 starts
Kyle Tucker is 2-21 (.095) over his last 6 games
Cade Horton struck out 8 hitters in his last start after having struck out even six just three times in his 16 starts this season
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Brewers and the Cubs
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Monday's game between the Brewers and the Cubs:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Milwaukee Brewers at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 8.0.
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A few days ago, former Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price was honoured when a statue of the netminder in action, carved in wood with a chainsaw, was gifted to the city of Williams Lake by the district of Chetwynd.
The work of art, titled “The Goalie,” depicts the Habs goaltender in action with his glove hand extended. The unveiling took place at the Cariboo Memorial Recreation Complex. While Price himself was unable to attend, his parents, Linda and Jerry Price, were in attendance to speak on his behalf.
Through his father, the Canadiens’ winningest goaltender said that for someone who doesn’t like to be the center of attention, it feels funny to have a statue of themselves, but also expressed how proud he was to be from the Cariboo Chilcotin and acknowledged the fact that the people helped to shape the man he became.
Chief Kukpi7 Willie Sellers, who was also in attendance, mentioned that watching Price play in the finals when he was in junior hockey was one of his fondest hockey memories. He also credits Price for inspiring him to pick up the pads again, even if it wasn’t at the same level as the Canadiens’ netminder.
Jeffrey Samudsocky of JMS Wood Sculpture is the artist who gave life to the statue, and this is one of the many statues that the District of Chetwynd has donated to other communities as a recognition of their partnership and to encourage collaboration.
There’s no denying that Price has been an inspiration to many First Nation youth during his NHL career, not only because of his performance on the ice but also because of the way he handled adversity. He fought his way through many injuries and setbacks to come back to play and wasn’t afraid to seek help from the NHL and NHLPA Player Assistance program when he felt he needed it because of substance abuse.
Unfortunately, after overcoming all that and winning the Bill Masterton Trophy, the all-star netminder only went on to play five more NHL games, winning the last one of his career, a 10-2 triumph over a watered-down version of the Florida Panthers who were resting some players in the previous game of the regular season.
Carey Price has been immortalized with a chainsaw-carved wood statue in Williams Lake, BC where he played minor hockey 🔥👏
Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia celebrates after the final out of the Dodgers' 5-4 series-sweeping win over the San Diego Padres on Sunday at Dodger Stadium. (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Slammed Diego.
Those pesky rivals from down south staggered away from their weekend stay at Dodger Stadium Sunday with spirits bruised, egos bloodied and Manny Machado flattened.
Canned Diego.
Arriving here shortly after stealing first place, little brother spent the next three days giving it back to a Dodger team that met the moment while the Padres recoiled from it.
Fanned Diego.
It was a sweeping sweep of a sweep, the Dodgers winning their third consecutive game from the Padres Sunday by a 5-4 margin that does not begin to elucidate the difference between these two teams.
The Dodgers now lead the National League West by two games, but it feels like 20. Both teams have 38 games remaining in the season, including three next weekend in San Diego, but any sort of real challenge by the Padres feels fabricated.
The Dodgers are the deeper team. The Dodgers are the more focused team. The Dodgers are the better team.
The final weekend blow was an eighth-inning, game-winning drive into the left-field pavilion by Mookie Betts, but this series wasn’t nearly that close.
The Dodgers did everything right, and the Padres did everything dumb.
The Dodgers charged, and the Padres choked.
“Didn't play as well as we'd like to have, and the series didn't go like we wanted it to,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “But ... this team is more than in a great place.”
That would nonetheless currently be second place, which, after this weekend, seems like an appropriate spot.
Meanwhile, for one of the few stretches in this curious summer, the Dodgers behaved like the first-place tenants they are.
“I don’t think anyone in that clubhouse doubted our abilities and how good we can be,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “Honestly, it was just good to play a really good series, start to finish.”
Truly, from start to finish. The injury-prone Dodgers starters allowed just three runs in 17 innings, the much-maligned Dodger bullpen finished with just three allowed runs in 10 innings, and the Padres were bad enough that nothing else mattered.
On Friday, Machado gave the Dodgers a run when he botched a bunt, and later hastily popped out on the first pitch in the eighth inning with two out and the tying and go-ahead runs on base.
On Saturday, the Padres were thrown out attempting to steal three times in the first two innings while center fielder Jackson Merrill added to the madness by dropping a fly ball that cost them two runs.
Then on Sunday, the Padres outhit the Dodgers 10-6 but couldn’t get out of their own way long enough to ever pose a real threat.
In the third inning, Freddy Fermín ran into an out on a single to right-center, Andy Pages nailing him by a mile. Then, with a runner on third and two out, Machado swung at the second pitch and grounded out to first.
Two innings later, Machado stranded two more runners with a groundout, but his humiliation was just beginning. In the seventh, Machado threw his bat and walked toward first on a strike call. After sheepishly returning to home plate amid a taunting roar from the hostile Dodger Stadium crowd, he flied out with a runner on second.
San Diego's Manny Machado reacts to a called strike in the seventh inning Sunday against the Dodgers. (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Machado wasn’t done yet. Appropriately, he was the final out of the game, swinging wildly at an Alex Vesia fastball for a strikeout on a foul tip that left the former Dodger one for 12 for the weekend.
“We can blink, and I'm pretty confident within a week or so, we'll be talking and be like, 'Man, Manny's got eight RBIs in the last five days,' so we're not concerned about it,” said Shildt, who claimed his star was stung by bad calls by home plate umpire Jeremie Rehak. “Unfortunately, some pitches that are outside the strike zone got called on him. Which, again, is unfortunate when they're not trying to throw strikes all the time to him. They're taking their chances and to get rewarded on balls that are outside the zone is a little frustrating.”
Before the series, in the wake of four consecutive dispiriting losses, Roberts called on his team to show more focus and urgency. Their final answer, on a day they could have easily shrugged off after winning the first two games of the series, came quickly and dramatically.
Tyler Glasnow, pitching in his biggest game as a Dodger, struck out three in the top of the first en route to eight strikeouts in five innings.
Freddie Freeman, right, celebrates with Shohei Ohtani after hitting a three-run home run in the first inning Sunday against the Padres. (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Then, in the bottom of the first against the Padres’ Yu Darvish, Shohei Ohtani singled, Betts walked and Freddie Freeman blasted a home run over the right-center field fence. One out later, Pages homered to left and the tone had been set.
“I think we all know who we are in here, in this team and how good we can be,” said Freeman. “We just gotta play good baseball like we did this weekend ... we know who we are inside. And gotta keep it going.”
Roberts was as good as any of them, doing a masterful job all weekend handling his outmanned bullpen, succeeding again Sunday by listening to his most reliable reliever.
After finishing up an eighth inning during which the Padres tied the game on a Jose Iglesias grounder, Vesia was promptly told he was done for the day, as Justin Wrobleski was scheduled to pitch the ninth.
But Vesia had a better idea. He told Roberts he wanted the ball if the Dodgers took the lead in the eighth, and when Betts homered, Vesia was ready.
“So I told Doc, I walked up to him and said, 'Hey, like, if we're up, I want it.'" Vesia recalled. “He was like, 'OK, you got it.' Sure enough, Mook, bang, homers. Sweet, let's go.”
Sweet indeed. Vesia’s hitless ninth was symbolic of a bullpen that spent the weekend making every big pitch ... while the Padres missed every big pitch.
“It's the dawg, right?” said Vesia. “We still have that. That doesn't just go away. Every single one of us, we're leaning on each other. And we know as a group how good we are.”
“They’re a very experienced team,” Şengün explained. “They fouled a lot. In the playoffs, they don’t call it. But they were the ones crying all series about fouls not being called.”
Physicality was at an extreme all series, but the foul differential actually was in favor of the Rockets. The Warriors had 150 fouls throughout the series, while the Rockets were called for only 124.
The Turkish All-Star also praised his head coach for the discipline he instills in his players.
“When it comes to us, we’re not really allowed to complain,” Şengün added. “It’s more of an internal thing. Ime Udoka doesn’t allow it. He loses his mind if we complain.”
The series was decided in a pivotal Game 7, in which Golden State blew out Houston 103-89. Buddy Hield had his best game as a Warrior, scoring 33 points along with nine 3-pointers.
Both teams ended that game with 14 personal fouls. Şengün went on to mention how the two teams matched up.
“The Warriors were probably the one team that would have gave us the most trouble, and we drew them,” Şengün stated.
Houston revamped this offseason by trading for Kevin Durant, which makes for an even more entertaining matchup next season, where the physical play will remain a constant.
Lowe, 30, was designated for assignment by the Washington Nationals earlier this month and went unclaimed on waivers.
The Red Sox have been searching for first base help since losing Triston Casas to a season-ending knee injury in May. Abraham Toro and Romy González have mostly split the role — Toro facing right-handers and González facing left-handers. Lowe could conceivably fill Toro’s spot with his recent struggles at the plate (.163 batting average in August).
The lefty-hitting Lowe has the credentials to make him an appealing flyer — Silver Slugger in 2022, Gold Glove and World Series champion with the Texas Rangers in 2023. But he showed serious regression in D.C. this season, posting career lows in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. Lowe hit .216 with 16 home runs and 68 RBIs in 119 games.
Before 2025, Lowe played for the Tampa Bay Rays (2019-2020) and Rangers (2021-2024). He was traded to Washington last December.
The Nationals will pay Lowe most of the remainder of his $10.3-million salary this season, with the Red Sox picking up the prorated portion of the league minimum. Lowe is arbitration-eligible this winter, so Boston can either bring him back in 2026 for more than his 2025 salary or non-tender him to free agency.
The newest team in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) is the Shanghai Dragons.
The franchise is entering its first season under the Dragons name, but the club itself isn’t brand new. Previously known as Kunlun Red Star, the team spent eight seasons in the KHL before announcing a rebrand.
During their time as Kunlun, the club reached the postseason only once, in their inaugural 2016-17 season, where they lost in the Conference Quarterfinals. They have not returned to the playoffs since.
The Dragons plan to move their home games back to China in the future, but for now, they are building their roster and will play out of St. Petersburg, Russia.
Their roster features one former New Jersey Devil, one Devils draft pick who never signed, and several other players with NHL ties.
Nikita Popugaev: Drafted 98th overall by the Devils in 2017, Popugaev never signed with the team and has spent most of his career overseas. Now 26, he announced he will be suiting up for the Dragons this season.
Nick Merkley: Selected 30th overall in the 2015 NHL Draft, Merkley played four games with the Devils in 2019-20 and 27 games in 2020-21. He registered two points in his first season and 10 points in his second. The 27-year-old now joins the Dragons as another Devils connection.
Austin Wong: Drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in 2018, Wong was never signed but will be making history as part of the Dragons’ inaugural roster. The 24-year-old forward brings additional North American experience.
In addition to players, the Dragons hired a familiar NHL face behind the bench: Gerard Gallant, former head coach of the New York Rangers. Gallant, who has also coached the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, and Vegas Golden Knights, will lead the Dragons as their first-ever head coach.
As of now, the roster includes:
5 Canadian players
4 American players
4 Russian players
1 Slovakian player
Collectively, the roster of 14 skaters brings 387 NHL games of experience.
The Shanghai Dragons will look to end the franchise’s playoff drought and make their first postseason appearance since 2016, this time under a new name, new leadership, and a roster built on international and NHL experience.
Kyle Walker has World Cup in his sights, Nottingham Forest remain potent in attack and James Trafford delights the Manchester City fans
It has been a constant in the last two seasons: Manchester United are doing OK in a game, resembling something approaching a football team, then out of nowhere all their good work is ruined by goalkeeping incompetence somehow predictable and unpredictable. And that was exactly what happened against Arsenal, United starting fairly well, only to concede a corner and fall behind in inexcusably soft circumstances. Usually, André Onana is the man responsible, but in his absence, Altay Bayindir seized the mantle with alacrity. We can be absolutely certain that Ruben Amorim has already told his bosses he must have a new keeper and, though they have already spent heavily, the position must be addressed as a matter of urgency because if it is not, this will continue happening and they might soon be facing questions about whether a new manager is necessary. It is pointless building a swish new house only for the owners to knowingly leave the back door open, get burgled and sack the builder. Daniel Harris
Manager insists club ‘belongs in the Premier League’ and has been building a taller, tougher side to keep them there
The trampoline man. It sounds like a promising title for a novel, film or even a song but it is a label Daniel Farke remains desperate to avoid. To the Leeds head coach, the term “trampoline manager” carries no hint of glamour, let alone romance.
Farke knows that, after winning three promotions to the Premier League, the first two with Norwich, and enduring two immediate relegations, he could do without his latest bounce into the big time prefacing a swift tumble back to the Championship. No matter that there are persuasive mitigating factors for those two relegations with Norwich – mainly involving a severe shortage of money. Mud sticks.
Midfielder rejects interest from both Adelaide clubs to stay with Saints
Two-year deal secures 22-year-old’s immediate future at Moorabbin
Breakout star Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera will stay at St Kilda on a bumper two-year deal after rejecting huge interest from Adelaide and Port Adelaide. Wanganeen-Milera has become the AFL’s first player to earn $2m per season in signing through to the end of 2027, in a huge boost to the Saints.
The 22-year-old had been cagey on his future, the most hotly-anticipated contract call this year, amid his breakout season, but has ultimately turned his back on monster long-term offers from both Adelaide clubs.
Ex-Canuck Nikita Tryamkin Signs 3-Year Contract Extension In KHL
Russian defenseman Nikita Tryamkin, 30, has signed a three-year
contract extension with Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg that will run
through the end of the 2027-28 season, the
KHL club announced recently.
Alexander Burmistrov & Adam Clendening Latest To Sign With Chinese KHL Team
Ever since a major rebranding a week ago, the
Shanghai Dragons have hired a high-profile head coach and signed 14
new players, including several ex-NHLers. On Saturday, five new
signings were announced,
including Russian center Alexander Burmistrov and the
re-signing of American defenseman Adam
Clendening.
Rocco Grimaldi Will Play For Igor Larionov In KHL
American forward Rocco Grimaldi, 32, has signed a two-year contract
with SKA St. Petersburg, the KHL announced on Wednesday.
