JUSTIN VERLANDER

After a few weeks of suspense, Justin Verlander is staying in Houston. The two-time Cy Young Award winner signed a one-year deal with a player option for a second year to stay with the Astros on Wednesday. He has not pitched since Opening Day of 2020 due to an elbow injury that eventually led to Tommy John surgery.

MLB writer R.J. Anderson ranked Verlander the No. 17 free agent on the market. This new deal is a a significant contract for someone approaching 40 who hasn’t pitched in well over a year, writes our MLB expert Mike Axisa:

• Axisa: “By all accounts his rehab has gone well and Verlander will be ready to pitch come spring training. The Astros know Verlander’s medicals better than anyone and obviously they felt comfortable re-signing him … Verlander is a future Hall of Famer and could return to that level right away in 2022, though Tommy John surgery comes with risk, especially at age 39.”

Honorable mentions:

• Speaking of Cy Young Award winners, there were two first-time winners last night: the Brewers’ Corbin Burnes (NL) and the Blue Jays’ Robbie Ray (AL). Burnes just barely beat out the Phillies‘ Zack Wheeler to become Milwaukee’s third-ever Cy Young winner. It wasn’t nearly as close for Ray, who took home 29 of the 30 first-place votes. It’s the fifth time the award has gone to a Blue Jay.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a season-high 47 points on 18-23 shooting as the Bucks beat the Lakers, 109-102. It was just the third time ever a Bucks player has scored at least 45 points on 75% shooting and Giannis is now responsible for two of those three (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is responsible for the other one.)
• New Jersey sportsbooks set a new United States record, with $1.3 billion (yes, BILLION) of wagers taken in during the month of October. That’s a 62% increase, year-over-year, from October 2020.

And not such a good morning for…

MATTHEW STAFFORD AND KELLY STAFFORD

On Monday, Matthew Stafford wasn’t the only Stafford flinging throws wildly at Levi’s Stadium. On a night where the Rams’ quarterback threw two interceptions, his wife, Kelly, threw a pretzel at a 49ers fan.

She has since apologized on Instagram, posting in part, “I’m an idiot!” and, “I knew I was wrong.”

It couldn’t have been easy to watch the 49ers dominate en route to a 31-10 win, but come on! Throwing a pretzel?! And it’s not as if Kelly Stafford hasn’t been subject to some bad football before: Her husband played for the Lions for a dozen years. I’ve been to Levi’s Stadium before, and those pretzels are pretty tasty, too. What a waste of a perfectly good (not to mention an absolute classic) mid-game snack!

Eventually security stepped in and ushered Mrs. Stafford and her friends to other seats. Luckily for both Staffords, the Rams have a much-needed bye week ahead. Hopefully they both improve their decision making.

The top football recruit of 2023 is … Arch Manning! 🥇

Well, 247Sports has updated its 2023 class rankings and a familiar name (or last name, at least) is the top dog. That’s right, Arch Manning — son of Cooper, nephew of Peyton and Eli, grandson of Archie — is officially atop the recruiting rankings.

Arch Manning is a quarterback at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, the same high school that produced not only Cooper, Peyton and Eli, but also Odell Beckham Jr. His all-around skillset was a big reason for the jump, writes 247Sports recruiting analyst Gabe Brooks:

• Brooks: “Manning owns physical traits that give him a high physical ceiling that accompanies perhaps the highest floor of the quarterback group. … Manning’s awareness and instincts are exceptional, and his singular quarterback pedigree means the best is yet to come for the latest Manning quarterback to arrive on the national scene.”

Despite the top ranking, Manning has not committed to where he is going to play college football yet.

Make sure you’re 100% ready for Week 11 🏈