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In a historic night at loanDepot Park in Miami, Team Venezuela shocked the world by defeating the United States 3-2 to capture their first-ever World Baseball Classic title. The atmosphere was electric as the "Vinotinto" proved that they are a global powerhouse, holding a star-studded U.S. lineup—featuring names like Aaron Judge and Bryce Harper—to just three hits the entire game. Game Highlights: Early Lead: Venezuela took a 2-0 lead early on, thanks to a sacrifice fly by Maikel Garcia and a solo blast by Wilyer Abreu. The Harper Heroics: Just when it looked like Venezuela would cruise to victory, Bryce Harper crushed a game-tying, two-run home run in the bottom of the 8th, sending the Miami crowd into a frenzy. The Winning Blow: Venezuela didn't flinch. In the top of the 9th, Eugenio Suárez delivered a clutch RBI double to regain the lead. The Final Out: Young flamethrower Daniel Palencia slammed the door in the bottom of the 9th, striking out Roman Anthony with a 100 mph fastball to seal the championship.

For years, college sports made everyone rich except the players themselves. It was unfair, and reverting to the bad old days would be the real disaster. Maybe it's because March Madness is upon us, but in recent days our leaders in Washington, D.C., have taken a surprising amount of time from more pressing concerns—Iran war, anyone?—to kvetch about the state of college sports. To put it bluntly, they're not very happy about it. At a big meeting at the White House on March 6, which included athletic directors, conference commissioners, and several famous ex-football coaches (Nick Saban and Urban Meyer among them), President Donald Trump decried the fact that a 9-0 Supreme Court ruling in 2021 made it possible, for the first time ever, for college athletes to be paid for their "name, image, and likeness." Some star athletes, like Texas Tech's new quarterback Brendan Sorsby, are now getting millions of dollars. (Sorsby has a $5 million deal.) "A lot of really bad things are happening," Trump said, claiming that rising athletic costs were going to put some schools into bankruptcy if something wasn't done. "Everybody was happy" with the old system, he added, "and now you've got yourself a mess."