As footage from the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrating their World Series championship continues to flood social media timelines, United States’ track and field Olympian Noah Lyles caught a stray from outfielder Kike Hernandez.

Lyles famously made headlines when he questioned the validity of American sports, labeling a team the “world champions” annually in respective leagues that played exclusively in the States. After clinching the 2024 title over the New York Yankees, Hernandez had a unique response, per Dodgers writer Blake Harris’ X, formerly Twitter.

“World Series champions. Suck it, Noah Lyles,” Hernandez said

Lyles’ comments were made two months after the NBA Finals in 2023, when he questioned the legitimacy of the title “world champions” during a press conference at the World Championships ahead of the 2024 Olympics, per NPR.org’s Manuela Lopez.

“You know the thing that hurts me the most is that I have to watch the NBA Finals, and they have “world champion” on their head,” Lyles said. “World champion of what? The United States?
“Don’t get me wrong. I love the U.S., at times, but that ain’t the world. That is not the world. We are the world. We have almost every country out here fighting, thriving, putting on their flag to show that they are represented. There ain’t no flags in the NBA.”
Either way, the Dodgers captured their eighth World Series title, and there’s yet to be any word about changing MLB’s official title for its annual championship team or any of the other major American sports, for that matter.

Mookie Betts’ pep talk with Freddie Freeman ahead of clutch RBI

Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates with first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) in the locker room after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees in game four to win the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium
Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers World Sereis MVP first baseman Freddie Freeman talked to Mookie Betts before the clutch RBI sacrifice fly that put Los Angeles up for good in the eighth inning.

Betts’ heroics sealed an incredible comeback from the New York Yankees’ 5-0 lead, beating New York 7-6 in Game 5, as the celebration between Kike Hernandez and his Dodgers teammates commenced.

After the win, Betts described his mindset ahead of the at-bat and revealed he spoke with his teammate, Freeman, before so, per Fox Sports: MLB’s X, formerly Twitter.
“At that point I was just… don’t strike out. Put one in play right there; you never know what’s going to happen. I had a little talk with Freddie [Freeman] right before that because I didn’t know what to do. Freddie just said, ‘Trust your gut.’ So I went up there and just put it in play,” Betts said.
Betts earned his third World Series title, second in five seasons with the Dodgers.