Major League Baseball’s 2026 schedule release sneaked up on us, which can happen when the sport purposefully misses an opportunity for self-promotion. Nobody thinks MLB can stage a schedule release comparable to the NFL’s, but having it come out on a Tuesday afternoon without a heads-up for fans misses an opportunity.

Instead of an online press release, couldn’t baseball have found TV time to publicize the best games on Opening Day and July 4th? Or — I can’t believe I’m saying this — the dates of the first Red Sox-Yankees series? Anything that might create more curiosity than a ho-hum news drop.

Future watch: I saw it pointed out again that Virginia could be a surprise football team this year because of its unusually weak schedule. No excuses then. But if things go awry, the soft sked will help make Tony Elliott’s seat even warmer.

Frequent flyers: One of the bottom-feeders on UVA’s schedule is Stanford, which visits Charlottesville in September. It’s one of three East Coast trips the Northern Californians will make this season while playing in five time zones (including Hawaii). As if Stanford in the ACC isn’t strange enough.

Lingering rancor: Lest you doubt that his former Patriots bosses live rent-free in Bill Belichick’s head, North Carolina’s coach says of his college coaching experience, “There’s no owner, there’s no owner’s son.”

Overboard: Excitable Mel Kiper Jr., talking on ESPN about Saturday’s Texas-Ohio State game, said, “Forty-eight years I’ve been covering college football … never remember a game as anticipated as this one.” Mel’s memory is different than mine. College football offers up a Game of the Century every few years.

Scalped: That will be the last time Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz falls asleep in the barber’s chair.

The next crusade: Legal scholar Richard Dayhard, the man who removed cigarette advertising from TV, is turning his sights on sports online gambling. Not a moment too soon. Like tobacco, online betting is a public health hazard that puts people on a pathway to addiction. Besides, the ads are really annoying.

Today’s world: The size of Shedeur Sanders’ Instagram following (twice as large, for instance, as that of the Commanders’ Jayden Daniels) provides a clue as to why media from all corners – electronic, print and social – won’t stop their blah-blah-blahing over the Browns’ fifth-round pick. It’s all about the clicks.

From the bench: Speaking of the Browns’ quarterback situation — and dysfunction — Deshaun Watson will be collecting $2.7 million each week while on the Physically Unable to Perform list.

No “statue” of limitations: For the longest time, it was honor enough for sports figures to be remembered by their teams with banners hanging in arenas. But next year, former coach Pat Riley will become the seventh Lakers great to get his own statue. Iconography is a growth business in the 21st century.

Aging gracefully: Sister Jean, who became a national celebrity during Loyola Chicago’s 2018 Final Four run, recently turned 106. She remains the chaplain for the men’s basketball team.

Public assistance: It was noted this week that Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula owns a $100 million yacht. Yet, the cost of the team’s new stadium, opening in 2026, is being covered by $850 million in taxpayer money. Stubborn facts like this might have people wondering why NFL tycoons can’t pay for their own stadiums.

Bob Molinaro is a former Virginian-Pilot sports columnist. His Weekly Briefing runs Fridays in The Pilot and Daily Press. He can be reached at bob5molinaro@gmail.com and via Twitter@BobMolinaro.

https://www.pilotonline.com/2025/08/28/bob-molinaro-mlb-could-learn-from-nfls-self-promotion/