Boston Celtics sign ex-Toronto Raptor Chris Boucher to one-year deal
Boucher is no stranger to the Celtics, as the vet has squared off many times with the green and white over the course of his eight-year career. And if C's fans forgot about the time Boucher dropped 30 points in 35 minutes against Boston in March 2021, it's clear Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens did not.
The 6-foot-9 big man spent much of his early life in Canada before helping the nation win its first NBA title in 2019. In fact, Boucher was the last member of that championship team to leave the Raptors, surviving various retooling periods.
Now, Boucher has a chance to move forward with the Celtics, who needed more size after losing former starting center Kristaps Porzingis and 7-footer Luke Kornet. Although Boucher is 32 years old and far from his prime, he'll have the opportunity for real minutes off the bench with the undermanned Celts'.
He will be able to join Boston's roster without pushing the team back over the second apron thanks to the Celtics having dealt reserve forward Georges Niang into the Utah Jazz' cap space shortly before making this move.
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New York Times
7 hours ago
- New York Times
Red Sox takeaways: Bullpen concerns, Wilyer Abreu's injury, more
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Boston's bullpen entered Sunday with a 3.38 ERA, best in the American League and third in the majors. But beyond Chapman, Garrett Whitlock (who allowed a run in the eighth on Sunday) and Justin Wilson, there are some concerns in the bullpen. Weissert has been solid overall and entered Sunday having given up just one run since July 2. But with a heavy workload early in the year, Weissert's innings have been managed a bit by manager Alex Cora over the last two months to help him maintain his effectiveness. Weissert leads the team with 56 appearances. Matz, meanwhile, had not given up a run since arriving via trade two weeks ago, but is more of a multi-inning reliever than a high-leverage setup man, a role he was forced into on Sunday. Jordan Hicks should have given the Red Sox depth in that department, but he is still searching for consistency. The Red Sox may see some relief help arriving soon in the form of Justin Slaten, who is ramping up after being out since June 1 with a shoulder/neck injury. He threw his third bullpen on Friday and is scheduled for a live batting practice session on Monday. If all goes well, his next step would be another live BP or a rehab assignment. The Red Sox have been surging of late, but tough losses like Sunday's highlight the need to keep up their winning pace. Had Boston (68-57) held on for a win, it would have pulled within four games of the Blue Jays (73-52) for first in the American League East and fortified its wild-card position. The loss also wasted another solid start from Crochet, who allowed one run on three hits and a walk, striking out eight in seven innings. Advertisement 'It's difficult to lose a game like that and even more with where we are in the standings right now,' Wilyer Abreu said. Abreu gave the Red Sox the lead with a two-run homer in the fourth inning on Sunday and scored on a sacrifice fly from Abraham Toro in the seventh. But in the next half inning, he exited the game with right calf tightness. The right fielder, who leads the team with 22 homers, said it cramped up as he was tagging up from third to score. 'It's a little bit tight,' he said. 'Right now, I'm day-to-day to see how I wake up tomorrow. Hopefully be ready, take probably two or three days and be ready for New York.' Abreu didn't think an IL stint would be necessary, but losing him for more than a few days would be an obvious blow to the offense. In his last 16 games, he's hitting .300 with an .860 OPS. Prior to the trade deadline, we reported that the Red Sox planned to give outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia playing time at first base in Triple-A Worcester. Garcia has done pre-game work at first over the last two weeks for the WooSox, but played in his first game at the position on Sunday, making a nice pick on one play. Nice pick from Jhostynxon Garcia for an inning ending double play. — Ian Cundall (@IanCundall) August 17, 2025 Garcia is hitting .308 with a .945 OPS in Worcester, but there's little room for him in the big league outfield at the moment. Expanding his defensive versatility might give him a better path to the majors. Meanwhile, Kristian Campbell has continued to excel in Worcester, hitting .323 with a .943 OPS in 26 games since the All-Star break. But when asked this weekend about Campbell's progress, Cora was evasive. 'I've been watching the at-bats,' Cora said. 'He's producing, but there's still work to do.' Advertisement Cora admitted the reality of Campbell's situation: He needs to get better at facing big-league pitching, but he's not seeing big-league pitching in Triple A. 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Now that Marcelo Mayer is officially out for the year with wrist surgery, perhaps the Red Sox will find time for Campbell on the roster at second base, but that remains to be seen. Kutter Crawford spoke with reporters on Friday for the first time since season-ending wrist surgery on July 2. Crawford posted a 4.36 ERA over 33 starts last season, but hasn't played at all in 2025, beginning the year on the IL with a knee injury that he suffered last season and reaggravated just before spring training. As he was working his way back from the knee injury, Crawford described injuring his wrist while doing some routine maintenance around his house. 'It's been tough,' he said. 'I was really close to starting a rehab assignment before I had this incident with the wrist the day before my last live BP. Advertisement 'I was outside, kind of moving some stuff and when I went to move something, it got hung up and it turned my wrist the other way, and I kind of felt a subtle pop,' he said. Crawford took time off from throwing and tried to return to the mound, but still experienced pain. He'd torn the subsheath that holds the tendon in place in his wrist. Over the past six weeks, Crawford has been in the early stages of rehab and noted that with the rest, his knee feels as good as it's felt in 'three or four years.' He's hopeful that issue is behind him and he can focus on his wrist recovery. The plan is to begin throwing in October so that he can be ready by the start of spring training. 'I take pride in being healthy and available and just grabbing the ball every fifth day and competing to the best of my ability,' he said. 'It's been frustrating not being able to go out there and compete and go to battle with my teammates.' (Photo of Wilyer Abreu scoring in the seventh inning, after which he left the game: Bob DeChiara / Imagn Images) Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Newsweek
9 hours ago
- Newsweek
Aliyah Boston Breaks Caitlin Clark's Franchise Record in Historic Fever Comeback
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Despite losing teammate Sophie Cunningham to a worrying knee injury in the second quarter and star guard Caitlin Clark still on the mend from a nagging groin injury that's kept her out for the last month, Sunday was a monumental day for two Indiana Fever stars. Kelsey Mitchell knocked down a career-high 38 points to lead Indiana a 21-point comeback victory over the Connecticut Sun — the largest come-from-behind win in Fever history — and Aliyah Boston also wrote her name in the team's record books. Trailing by 21 points early in the third quarter, the Fever were desperate for some offense. Enter Mitchell. More WNBA: Fever Lose Sophie Cunningham to Concerning Injury vs Sun The 29-year-old guard scored 34 of her 38 points after halftime, including a key and-1 with just 44.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter to tie the game up. After Tina Charles put Connecticut ahead again, Boston hit 16-foot jumper to tie it again and send the game to overtime. Mitchell scored 10 of Indiana's 15 points in the extra period to seal the comeback win (Lexie Hull hit a 3-pointer and which teammate Caitlin Clark believes put her firmly in the MVP conversation. More WNBA: Caitlin Clark Makes Bold WNBA MVP Declaration After Fever-Sun Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever talks with Aliyah Boston #7 against the Chicago Sky during the fourth quarter in the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 01, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever talks with Aliyah Boston #7 against the Chicago Sky during the fourth quarter in the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 01, 2024 in Indianapolis, while Mitchell's impressive performance deserved celebration, so too did Boston's. The Fever announced after the game that Boston, a former No. 1 overall pick, had passed Clark for the most single-season double-doubles in team history. "AB, the double-double machine 💪. Congrats to Aliyah Boston on becoming the new franchise leader for most double-doubles in a single season with 15 & counting!" the Fever wrote on X. More WNBA: Kelsey Plum Breaks Silence After Backlash Over Viral Caitlin Clark Diss AB, the double-double machine 💪 congrats to Aliyah Boston on becoming the new franchise leader for most double-doubles in a single season with 15 & counting! — Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) August 17, 2025 Boston came close to breaking Clark's record last season, which is also when Clark set the record herself, missing out by just one game. It's also not the first record Boston has broken in her WNBA career. She also set the Fever franchise record for single-season rebounds last season as well. Boston's WNBA resume includes three WNBA All-Star selections, three Rookie of the Month honors, two Player of the Week honors, a Rookie of the Year win, and an All-Rookie Team selection. More WNBA: Sophie Cunningham Could Receive Another WNBA Fine After Latest Remarks More WNBA: Angel Reese Sends Cryptic 3-Word Message Before Sky vs Sun More WNBA: Fever Coach Stephanie White Gives Major Caitlin Clark Injury Update More WNBA: A'ja Wilson Becomes First WNBA Player to Accomplish Rare Feat
CBS News
10 hours ago
- CBS News
Marlins stun Red Sox with three runs in ninth to avoid sweep at Fenway Park
Dane Myers and Jakob Marsee homered in Miami's three-run ninth inning and the Marlins beat the Boston Red Sox 5-3 on Sunday to end a three-game losing streak. Myers hit the second pitch from Greg Weissert (4-4) into Boston's bullpen to tie it, and Marsee sent a pitch from Steven Matz into the seats in right. Tyler Phillips (2-1) worked a scoreless inning, and Anthony Bender got the final three outs for his fourth save. Eric Wagaman also homered for the Marlins. Boston's Wilyer Abreu had a two-run homer that popped out of the glove of right fielder Myers when he crashed into the fence. The Red Sox wasted a solid start by ace Garrett Crochet. Crochet rebounded from his worst start of the season, giving up three hits, with eight strikeouts and a walk one over seven innings. He was tagged for five runs in four innings in a loss Monday at Houston. Miami's Joey Wiemer struck out swinging three times in his major league debut. Myers went back on Abreu's fly, turned and looked like he was ready to make a nice over-the-shoulder grab, but it popped out and over. Crochet is four away from his second straight season reaching 200 strikeouts. Marlins: RHP Eury Pérez (5-3, 3.58 ERA) was set to face St. Louis at home Monday night. LHP Matthew Liberatore (6-10, 4-08) was slated to start for the Cardinals. Red Sox: RHP Dustin May (7-8, 4.67) was scheduled to start the opener of a two-game home series against Baltimore on Monday night. LHP Trevor Rogers (5-2, 1.43) was set to pitch for the Orioles..
