Addison Barger launched the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history, Alejandro Kirk added a two-run homer in a nine-run sixth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays overwhelmed the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers 11-4 in Game 1. Daulton Varsho started Toronto’s comeback from a 2-0 deficit with a two-run drive in the fourth off Blake Snell. The longball barrage was fitting as the Fall Classic returned to Toronto for the first time since 1993, when Blue Jays slugger Joe Carter hit the second walk-off homer to end a World Series. Shohei Ohtani hit his first Series home run for the heavily favored Dodgers, seeking to become the first repeat champion since the New York Yankees took three titles in a row from 1998-2000.

More anti-abortion pregnancy centers have been offering medical services such as testing for sexually transmitted infections. With coming changes to Medicaid, more women are expected to be uninsured or lack access to clinics. And more could seek care from the organizations, which generally provide free services and don't bill insurance. In some states, they get taxpayer dollars. Critics of the centers say they lack accountability, don't provide birth control and offering only limited ultrasounds that can't be used for diagnosing fetal anomalies. One battle over the centers is heading to the Supreme Court in coming months.

Russia has grappled with a shrinking and aging population for decades, with President Vladimir Putin viewing it as a threat to national security. Yet despite efforts like cash incentives and family-friendly policies, the number of deaths now outpaces births. Economic uncertainty, restrictions on immigration and the war in Ukraine are making the crisis worse. Desperate to reverse the trend, Russian authorities are also rolling out a wave of restrictive laws, such as banning "child-free propaganda" and limiting access to abortions. Putin has said that he wants to see a return to a time when women had "seven, eight, and even more children.”

Luka Doncic scored 49 points and became the fourth player in NBA history to begin a season with back-to-back 40-point performances, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a 128-110 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Doncic followed his 43-point performance in an opening-night loss to Golden State with his highest-scoring effort yet in a Lakers jersey, going 14 for 23 with five 3-pointers while adding 11 rebounds and eight assists. Anthony Edwards scored 31 points and Julius Randle had 26 for Minnesota, which couldn’t slow the Lakers’ offense in a rematch of last season’s first-round playoff series won in five games by the Wolves.

Donald Trump has seized a central role on the global stage, leaving European allies on the sidelines. European governments have struggled to influence Trump's policies on Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war. Geopolitical risk expert Lindsay Newman says Trump's agenda disproves the idea that "America First" means isolationism. European efforts to bolster U.S. support for Ukraine got a boost this week when Trump imposed sanctions on Russian oil and gas. But Trump continues to express frustration with Kyiv and has not managed to secure a ceasefire. European leaders also have had little impact on Trump's Gaza peace plan, though they're expected to play a role in reconstruction.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has expressed shock over the arrests of Portland coach Chauncey Billups and Miami guard Terry Rozier on gambling-related charges. Speaking on Friday night during Amazon Prime Video's first broadcast, Silver said he was deeply disturbed by the indictments. The arrests, which happened on Thursday, involve nearly three dozen people, including Billups and Rozier. Rozier is accused of conspiring to help associates win bets based on his performance. Billups faces charges related to rigged poker games. Silver apologized to fans, noting the situation has overshadowed the league's opening week.

A long-hidden Picasso portrait of muse Dora Maar has sold for 32 million euros at an auction in Paris. The vividly hued portrait had remained out of view for more than eight decades in a family collection. Auctioneer Christophe Lucien called Friday's sale to a buyer in the room “an enormous success." Painted in July 1943, “Bust of a Woman with a Flowered Hat (Dora Maar)” depicts Maar in a brightly colored floral hat. She had been the artist’s muse for about seven years, and the relationship was coming to a painful close. The work was purchased in 1944 and had not been on the market since.

The Pentagon has confirmed it's accepted an anonymous $130 million gift to help pay members of the military during the government shutdown. The announcement Friday raises ethical questions after President Donald Trump had said a friend offered the gift to defray any shortfalls. While large and unusual, the gift amounts to a small contribution toward the billions needed to cover service member paychecks. The Trump administration told Congress last week that it used $6.5 billion to make payroll. The next payday is coming within the week, and it's unclear if the administration will again move money around to ensure the military does not go without compensation.

The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.

Target is eliminating about 1,800 corporate positions in an effort to streamline decision-making and accelerate initiatives to rebuild the flagging discount retailer’s customer base. A company spokesperson said on Thursday that about 1,000 employees are expected to receive layoff notices next week, and the company also plans to eliminate about 800 vacant jobs. The cuts represent about 8% of Target’s corporate workforce globally, although the spokesperson says the majority of the affected employees work at the company’s Minneapolis headquarters. The veteran executive who is set to become Target’s next CEO on Feb. 1 announced the downsizing in a note to personnel.

Demonstrators in the San Francisco area protested the arrival of U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at a U.S. Coast Guard base on Thursday, as President Donald Trump planned to surge federal forces into the city on Saturday to quell…

Palestinian families are facing a grisly search through corpses for lost loved ones, with Israel returning bodies to Gaza as part of a ceasefire deal. Over the past 10 days, 195 Palestinian bodies have been released by Israel as part of an exchange of the dead, with Hamas gradually returning remains of 28 hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war. Families have flocked to Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, searching for the missing. Israel gave no identification for the bodies and doesn’t allow DNA testing material into Gaza. The bodies are decomposed and damaged. It’s up to families to recognize relatives. The Israeli military says all bodies returned are those of combatants. But some families say those they've identified were never fighters.

Authorities plan to give an update on the massive blast in Tennessee that killed 16 people earlier this month at an explosives plant. The briefing Friday will delve into the painstaking investigation of the Oct. 10 explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems. Authorities say the cause of the explosion hasn't been determined. The company's complex straddles the Hickman and Humphreys county line in unincorporated Bucksnort, about 60 miles southwest of Nashville. One of the victims' families has already filed a lawsuit, and others are expected to follow suit. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has positively identified 14 of the 16 victims using rapid DNA testing.

The leader of Canada’s most populous province posted remarks by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan on social media on Friday showing Reagan opposed tariffs, hours after President Donald Trump announced he’s ending “all trade negotiations” with Canada because of a television ad that Trump said mis-states Reagan’s opposition to tariffs. Ontario Premier Doug Ford didn’t back down and says Canada and the U.S. are friends, neighbors and allies and Reagan knew that both are stronger together. Trump doubled down on his criticism of the Ontario ads again on Friday and accused Canada of trying to influence an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court ruling on his global tariff regime.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says another U.S. strike in the Caribbean targeted an alleged drug-running boat operated by the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang, killing six people. It's the 10th strike on a vessel suspected of carrying drugs. The death toll of the Trump administration's campaign against drug cartels is up to at least 46 people. Hegseth warns the drug smugglers the U.S. will hunt them down and kill them. The pace of the strikes has quickened in recent days from one every few weeks in September when they began to three this week. Two of the strikes this week were carried out in the eastern Pacific Ocean.