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Emma Baccellieri

@emmabaccellieri.bsky.social
17K followers 665 following 1.2K posts

Writing about sports @washingtonsun.com // Previously: Sports Illustrated // emmabaccellieri@washsun.com

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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Baseball… it’s good
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
The Mystics lingered in the locker room after their loss on Wednesday. It was time to leave the building. But they weren’t ready to leave each other. So they all went to Georgia Amoore’s place to keep talking. On the end of the road for one very close team:
washingtonsun.com
After Their Playoff Loss, the Mystics Gathered for a Late-Night ‘Last Hoorah’
“It was just wanting to have one more moment with the same girls,” before they all dispersed for the offseason.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Thank you so much for reading! I'm really excited to follow the team this year and think we have some great stuff planned at the Sun — stay tuned ☀️
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Don’t have specific numbers but they’re being paid as full-time staff! (Some teams are functionally treating them as a member of the equipment crew and paying them similarly to those guys)
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
What do you look for in a full-time EBUG under the new NHL CBA? On how the Capitals found their guy:
washingtonsun.com
Meet the Capitals’ First-Ever Full-Time Emergency Backup Goalie
The NHL now requires that every team have a full-time, traveling emergency backup goalie. Connor Leslie was up for the challenge.
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The Washington Sun @washingtonsun.com · 01/10/2026
The Washington Sun is creating The Washington Sun Magazine, a monthly print publication featuring some of the most compelling journalism produced by The Sun’s newsroom, with an emphasis on longform storytelling, essays and local news.
washingtonsun.com
The Washington Sun launches The Washington Sun Magazine
The Sun will work with Washingtonian to distribute an initial six-month run of a monthly print publication.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen have shared everything in their time on the Mystics. On what they shared last night:
washingtonsun.com
The Mystics' Season Is Over, But They're Just Getting Started
Washington, which lost to Atlanta Wednesday to be eliminated from the WNBA playoffs, feels very optimistic about the future.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Shakira Austin finished just a few votes shy of Jessica Shepard for the WNBA’s Most Improved Player award:
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Ok but the real takeaway here is that nothing can kill the SI (digital) cover curse
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
omg hahaha (and ty for sharing!!!)
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
On what Betnijah Laney-Hamilton has given the Mystics and what they have given her. (*And* on the question of whether there's an age limit on being a Young Ho: “Honestly, yes, and she is past that limit," says Cotie McMahon. "But she’s still considered a Young Ho.”)
washingtonsun.com
Betnijah Laney-Hamilton Is Right at Home With the WNBA’s Youngest Team
The Mystics’ midseason addition brings valuable playoff experience to a roster that has almost none.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
From last night in Atlanta: “This is our first time here. Not that that’s an excuse, but now we know what it looks like. We have a taste for it.”
washingtonsun.com
In Their Game 1 Loss, the Mystics Acted Their Age
The team made plenty of youthful mistakes in a 92-77 loss to the Dream, setting up a do-or-die Game 2 in Washington.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
The Dream are the only WNBA team without a mascot (sad!) but they've brought Harry the Hawk out tonight in a Dream jersey.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Dude I gave mine away last year and regret it!!
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
And the winner of the Mystics’ half-court contest at the end of shootaround is… special guest participant Elena Delle Donne. Team went crazy when her shot went in. (Including Georgia Amoore handing her jersey to EDD: “Suit up tonight!”)
Mystics players celebrating at half-court in an empty gym
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
thanks, Terry!
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
greenwell i love your confidence
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Coming into the season, we didn’t have anything to lose, but we knew everything that we wanted to accomplish. And we’re here. We’re accomplishing it all.”
washingtonsun.com
The Mystics Are Back in the Playoffs. Now They Want More.
They’ll be the No. 5 seed, set for a matchup with Atlanta, when the WNBA playoffs start on Sunday.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Before I left Sports Illustrated last month, I did one last magazine story: I profiled Cheryl Reeve.
si.com
Cheryl Reeve Has Already Cemented Her Legacy, But She’s Nowhere Near Finished
Hall of Famer. Four-time WNBA title winner. Winningest coach in league history. Olympic champ. And the Lynx boss is hunting for more.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
100%. I couldn't fit any of it in this story about the Spirit moms, but as I wrote / reported, I was thinking about her... I spoke with her about her experience five years ago for this other story. Just a totally different environment now!
That loneliness of being the only mother on a team rang true a few years later for Jessica McDonald, too. McDonald was 23, coming off of successful youth and college runs, when she got pregnant in 2011. She was rehabbing a knee injury at the time and, combined with the new child, she assumed her playing career was over. As a fallback, she threw herself into a job as an assistant coach for the men’s squad at Phoenix College in Arizona, practicing with the team into the eighth month of her pregnancy … and then soon again after giving birth. All along, she never imagined she would ever seriously play again—but when her new son, Jeremiah, was seven months old she had an opportunity to play a short season in Australia, which turned into an offer for the inaugural NWSL season … which proved a tough long-term proposition. In those early days of the league, McDonald says, she made between $13,000 and $15,000 per year, leaving little to nothing for childcare.

“There were days where my son was sitting in a stroller at training because I couldn’t afford anybody to come watch him,” she recalls. “It was very up-and-down. I was very grateful to pursue my career ... but at the same time I’m like: Am I even being a good parent?”

McDonald was traded to five teams in four years, and often she found herself the only mother on her squad. The few parent-athletes she did encounter across the league tended to be on the national team, with bigger salaries and more resources—“able to afford nannies and babysitters, whereas I couldn’t”—while she was still fighting for a USWNT call-up. “There were a lot of times where I thought I was going to retire,” she says. “I thought for sure five years ago I’d be retired by now because I didn’t know if the pay was worth it."
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Gillian Branstetter @gbbranstetter.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
I'm admittedly not an early child development expert but it does seem the ideal scenario for any baby is being collectively raised by a traveling women's professional soccer team
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
best team in town baby
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Andi Sullivan, Ashley Hatch and Aubrey Kingsbury have been through everything together on the Spirit. Now they have one more big shared experience: First-time motherhood. (With an assist from veteran team mom Casey Krueger.) On the Spirit's team baby boom:
washingtonsun.com
The Spirit’s New Moms Navigate the Season with Babies in Tow
A league policy allows players to have their babies — and in some cases, their spouses — travel with the team.
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Amanda Katz @katzish.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Oh man, this is such a great story about pro soccer babies getting to travel along with their moms! The team refers to them as their “emotional support babies”
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
🥰 (and pls send any tips / story ideas if you have them! will still be doing WBB, between Mystics and Maryland / UVA, but will be writing about a little bit of everything and will happily take any thoughts!)
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Over the winter, Frances Tiafoe spent 6 weeks at his childhood tennis facility in Maryland, hoping to overhaul his game. Occasionally, Tiafoe hit with another pro, a good friend, who has been spending time of his own with someone in D.C... Ben Shelton. For the new @washingtonsun.bsky.social:
washingtonsun.com
To Overhaul His Game, Frances Tiafoe Came Home
Tiafoe’s new routine included some hitting sessions with Ben Shelton, who he’ll face Friday in the U.S. Open semifinals.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Today’s my first day with @notus.com! Stoked to get started here writing about sports in DC + beyond. emmabaccellieri@notus.com for all your tips, releases, etc. Let’s go 🤸🏻‍♀️
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Literally the only reason I know his name!!! I was at that game
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Fascinated by the concept of a local child who owns a Juan Yepez jersey. I would read 1,500 words on this.
Arlington Library post showing Foster Griffin signing a ball for a child in a Juan Yepez jersey
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Defector @defector.com · 19/08/2026
The new Women’s Pro Baseball League offers hope—and frustrations: defector.com/the-new-wome...
defector.com
The New Women's Pro Baseball League Offers Hope—And Frustrations | Defector
For most women who play baseball in the United States, playing America’s pastime in a professional league has been little more than a dream. Yet for a select group of women, that dream is becoming a…
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Jesse Dougherty @jessedougherty.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
In April of 2022, Donovan Casey spent five days with the Nationals but didn't play in a game. Then he never made it back to the majors. Is he a big leaguer? And how has he learned to live with that question rattling around his head? For @notus.com: www.notus.org/sports/washi...
notus.org
He Spent Five Days With the Nats But Never Played. Is He a Big Leaguer?
Donovan Casey made it to the cusp of his lifelong dream. His biggest challenge has been learning to live with that.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
🥹 ❤️
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
thank you for keeping me humble
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
🥹🥹🥹
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
stay tuned 🫡
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Today is my last day at Sports Illustrated. My choice, after 8+ years and a ton of change and so many stories that meant the world to me. (With one more still on the way.) I'll have more on what's next soon but for now — what a gig! Can't believe how lucky I was to have it.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
"...without the express written consent of the Women's Professional Baseball League" 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Gotta say that when I googled "Why do Belgium's kits look like that" I really was not expecting the answer to be "as a homage to Magritte"
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Wonder if they have this on the Jumbotron at MSG rn
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Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
WORLD'S #1 ARCHIPELAGO NOW AND FOREVER
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
I’m so sorry, Nick. He sounds like a truly wonderful person ❤️
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Frankie de la Cretaz @thefrankiedlc.news · 01/07/2026
I'm so excited to announce an event for Out of Your League paid subscribers—I'm gonna be talking about the excellent new book COURT QUEENS with authors @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social & @heyjordanr.bsky.social. You can register here:
thefrankiedlc.news
OOYL special author event: COURT QUEENS
a virtual chat with authors Emma Baccellieri and Jordan Robinson
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Love when you read a headline and just know this one is Dave McKenna
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james herbert @jamesherbert.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Marc Berman covered the Knicks for 23 years. He watched them win the championship at a sports bar in Florida www.cbssports.com/nba/news/mar...
cbssports.com
He covered the Knicks for 23 seasons. He watched them win a title from a bar in Florida
Marc Berman, formerly of the New York Post, is happy that Knicks fans can 'finally rejoice'
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
thank you so much! and 100% — editor had pitched a share for this piece as something like “the only radio call I wanted to hear” and I was like weeeell… not the *only* one…
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Wrote about listening to the games on the radio 🤠
si.com
When the Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup Run Got Stressful, Tripp Tracy’s Radio Call Made It All Worthwhile
After 20 years of heartbreak, no one knew how best to meet the moment of Carolina’s championship run than the local crew who had been through it all.
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
I am so lucky to be alive right now
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Emma Baccellieri @emmabaccellieri.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Game 6 moodboard
Michael Clayton bread guy Sydney Sweeney in Euphoria looking distressedReba McEnrire with a corn dog Pyotr Kochetkov and Andrei Svechnikov taking a selfie in a car
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Dan Devine @yourmandevine.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Incredible read on Jose Alvarado from @jamesherbert.bsky.social: www.cbssports.com/nba/news/kni...
One of Pannone's mentors, the coach/skills trainer/analyst David Thorpe, had taught him that when smaller players are successful, it means they've figured something out that others haven't. That Alvarado had earned such an award at his height, then, suggested he was special. 

Later, Alvarado worked out for the Pelicans, which gave the team a chance to sit down with him. Often, since prospects are coached for these sessions, they are not particularly revealing. Alvarado's, however, made New Orleans' management fall in love with him. The highlight was when, during an exercise with the team's mental performance coach, he was asked, "What's your spirit animal?"

Alvarado stood up from his chair. He beat his chest, let out a scream and said, "Gorilla."
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Sports Illustrated Union @siunion.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
An update from the SI Union:
A navy blue card with a white header, providing an update from the SI Union. The text says: A LITTLE OVER a week ago, Sports Illustrated management laid off nine of our members, including three colleagues who had been with SI for over a decade and our entire golf vertical.
This devastating action came less than a month after we ratified a new contract with SI's current operator, Minute Media. We were pleased to reach a three-year deal that raised wages, improved medical benefits and parental leave, protected against AI's creep into our work, preserved our remote work flexibility and much more.
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