The New York Times Sports News

A big man with a bigger personality, David Ortiz led the Red Sox to three World Series titles. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens failed to gain election on their final writers’ ballot.

Nadal beat Denis Shapovalov to reach the semifinals, then rejected his opponent’s complaints about unfairness, saying, “I think he’s wrong.”

Fabrizio Romano has turned rumors into an industry. But is he an observer of soccer’s multibillion-dollar transfer market, or a participant in it?

David Ortiz could be voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, but there will be trends worth noting even if he, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and others fall short.

Jimmy Garoppolo screened his way back to a conference championship, the Bengals’ defensive front outshone its stars, and only Kansas City benefited from home-field advantage.

The star-studded Rams will face Tom Brady and the defending champions in Tampa. The later game will pit the Bills against the Kansas City team, in a rematch of last season’s A.F.C. championship game.

Rodgers, though likely to win his second straight M.V.P. award, now must contemplate his future with the Green Bay Packers much sooner than he had hoped.

The N.F.L.’s divisional round has two games on Saturday, with the Cincinnati Bengals playing the Tennessee Titans (CBS) and the Green Bay Packers hosting the San Francisco 49ers at 8:15 p.m. Eastern time (Fox).

From Beijing’s unexpected bid through the coronavirus pandemic, China has managed to fulfill its promises and cow its critics.

At 35 years old, getting through the first week dropping only one set gives the 20-time Grand Slam champion “energy in my pocket.” Aging tennis stars take note.

The unseeded American Amanda Anisimova eliminated the four-time Grand Slam champion, who expressed pride in her effort and said, “I can’t be sad about that.”

The organizing body in college sports also adopted new rules for transgender athletes to mirror other elite sports in the United States.

The No. 2 seed looked shaky in her opening service game in the second round but pushed through, indicative of the women’s game: unpredictable and deep in talent.

Alcaraz is one of the most exciting next-generation talents in sports, and is the youngest player in the men’s draw at the Australian Open. He faces Matteo Berrettini in the third round.

The former Super Bowl champion has always had a way with words. It has turned him into a trusted adviser to N.F.L. and college football players who want to use their “wittys to get up out that siti.”

In his 18 seasons as Steelers quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger’s success eclipsed the sexual assault allegations he faced. They tarnish consideration of his legacy.

After a tumultuous year and a four-month layoff during which she questioned what she wanted from tennis, Osaka is back on the court. “I’m not sure if this is going to work out well.”

Matthew Stafford and Odell Beckham Jr., prolific stars with little postseason notoriety, propelled the Rams to a wild-card round victory over the Cardinals on Monday.

Sebastian Korda’s father and sisters have won in Australia. Now, Korda has recorded his first Australian Open win.

The 49ers and Jimmy Garoppolo managed their game plan just well enough to upset the Cowboys, but blowouts around the rest of the wild-card matchups showed the folly of playoff expansion.

Early blowouts between the Bills and Patriots and Buccaneers and Eagles indicate the folly of playoff expansion.

After Novak Djokovic’s immigration troubles, he is gone, but don’t worry: Plenty of other stars and story lines are ready for the spotlight.

Paced by Allen’s five touchdown passes, the Bills did not punt, attempt a field goal, or even turn the ball over against the rival Patriots.

Novak Djokovic, the tennis superstar who has refused to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, is hoping to remain in the country long enough to compete for another Australian Open championship.

The Las Vegas Raiders will face the Cincinnati Bengals and the New England Patriots will visit the Buffalo Bills.

The Las Vegas Raiders will face the Cincinnati Bengals and the New England Patriots will visit the Buffalo Bills.

The English soccer club Chester F.C. postponed a game after Welsh health officials claimed authority over its home. In an era when once loose British borders are stratifying, a curiosity may become a crisis.

Thursday brought no resolution in the star’s duel with the government, even as the tournament’s draw placed him (for now) at the top of the bracket.

The postseason’s first weekend will see the third matchup between the Patriots and the Bills, and for the Cardinals and the Rams.

The retirement of Keith Hernandez’s No. 17 continues a recent trend of recognizing the players most crucial to the team’s glory years.

At 17, Genevieve Beacom became the first woman to play in Australia’s top professional baseball league. She hopes her next stop is college ball in the United States.

Only one of these teams will prove us wrong.

If a tennis star knew he was positive for the coronavirus, why did he keep making public appearances without a mask?

The Bulldogs’ defense frustrated Bryce Young, Alabama’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, to win the program’s first championship since the 1980 season and end a skid against the Crimson Tide.

Recent huddles among the sport’s leaders have shown how much television drives their thinking.

In an odd game in which a tie could have sent both teams to the playoffs, the Raiders outlasted the Chargers in overtime, eliminating their division rival.

The Colts laid an egg against the Jaguars, leaving the door open for Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers to sneak into the playoffs.

A team-by-team guide to the N.F.L. postseason in the final weekend of the regular season, updated to include the results of Saturday’s games.

The Colts, Steelers, Ravens, Raiders and Chargers all have shots at the A.F.C.’s wild-card berths, while the 49ers and Rams matchup will determine the N.F.C.’s final postseason team.

Bell was named to the U.S. Olympic team, along with Karen Chen, who finished second at nationals, and Alysa Liu, who withdrew on Friday after a positive coronavirus test.

It’s the final week of the regular season, and Philadelphia, Dallas and Kansas City are jockeying for playoff positions.

A month from the Beijing Olympics, the comeback the American skier was certain that she had in her has arrived just in time.

The tennis star is the latest target of a public outcry against vaccine skeptics and stars wanting special treatment. Denied entry to Australia, he awaits a hearing Monday on his deportation.

Christine Grant, the Title IX pioneer who died in December, often lamented the historically poor treatment of female athletes, asking incredulously, “Can you imagine that?”

The No. 1 men’s tennis player was told to leave the country following a 10-hour standoff with government officials at a Melbourne airport, ending his chance to defend his Australian Open title.

The No. 1 men’s tennis player was denied immediate entry in a dispute about the validity of his visa and questions about the vaccine medical exemption he received to play in the Australian Open.

Eric Dickerson talks about why some former players hate the N.F.L., his assumption that he has C.T.E., and why his single-season rushing record isn’t his most unbreakable.

The N.F.L.’s final-week schedule usually builds to a Sunday night crescendo. But with only one true elimination game, Week 18’s bloat should feel anticlimactic.

Travis Bell and Joe Sisson were close friends and rising stars in bobsled before crashes derailed their careers. Two decades later, one of them wonders why he thrived and his friend is gone.

The famed sportswear brand Le Coq Sportif is hoping to reinvent itself, and its hometown, by outfitting its country’s teams at the Beijing and Paris Olympics.