The Sunday edition of NYT Connections Sports Edition arrives with puzzle #573, testing your knowledge of baseball franchises, football positions, and Premier League managers. Today's challenge particularly favors MLB historians and those who can spot sneaky team name wordplay.
What Makes Connections Sports Edition Tick
For newcomers, NYT Connections Sports Edition presents 16 sports-themed words that must be sorted into four thematic groups of four. The twist?
You're limited to four mistakes, and the color-coded difficulty system (yellow being easiest, purple being trickiest) means surface-level connections often mislead.
Connections Sports Edition brings the same addictive puzzle format to the world of athletics, featuring athletes, teams, sports terminology, and legendary moments. The game's genius lies in its red herrings, words that could fit multiple sports categories but belong in only one.
Today's Grid at a Glance
Here are the 16 words staring back at you in puzzle #573:
ROBINS | BLUE JAYS | TIGHT | DODGERS
GUARDIOLA | SUPERBAS | ORIOLES | DEFENSIVE
SLOT | WIDE | EMERY | RAYS
YANKEES | MOYES | BRIDEGROOMS | RUNNING
A seemingly random collection that somehow connects into four perfect categories.
Strategic Hints (No Spoilers Yet)
Yellow Category Nudge: Four teams that battle in the same American League division.
Green Category Clue: These words describe positions on a football field, but you need the first word of each position name.
Blue Category Hint: Current and recent managers who have led Premier League clubs.
Purple Category Teaser: Different names for the same historic MLB franchise across its timeline.
The Full Solutions
Last chance to solve independently: answers below
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Yellow (AL East Teams): BLUE JAYS, ORIOLES, RAYS, YANKEES
These four MLB franchises comprise the American League East division. The Blue Jays (Toronto), Orioles (Baltimore), Rays (Tampa Bay), and Yankees (New York) have been division rivals for decades.
Green (First Words of Football Positions): DEFENSIVE, RUNNING, TIGHT, WIDE
These are the first words of American football positions: defensive back, running back, tight end, and wide receiver. The puzzle cleverly omits the second word, forcing solvers to think about position naming conventions.
Blue (Premier League Managers): EMERY, GUARDIOLA, MOYES, SLOT
Unai Emery (Aston Villa), Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), David Moyes (West Ham), and Arne Slot (Liverpool) are current or recent Premier League managers. Slot's inclusion is particularly timely as he took over Liverpool earlier this year.
Purple (Nicknames for the Dodgers Franchise, Over Time): BRIDEGROOMS, DODGERS, ROBINS, SUPERBAS
The Los Angeles Dodgers have carried multiple nicknames throughout their history. They began as the Brooklyn Bridegrooms (1888-1898), became the Superbas (1899-1910), then the Robins (1914-1931), before settling on Dodgers in 1932.
The Verdict
Puzzle #573 registers as moderate difficulty with a sting in the tail. Yellow falls quickly for anyone who recognizes MLB team names, while green requires deeper football knowledge.
Blue separates the true soccer buffs from casual fans. Purple, predictably, is the streak-ender, requiring serious baseball history knowledge about franchise name evolution.
The real trap lies in "TIGHT" and "WIDE" - they could easily mislead solvers into thinking about football positions (tight end, wide receiver) rather than their actual category. Similarly, "ROBINS" and "SUPERBAS" might appear as bird names or random terms rather than historic Dodgers nicknames.
Reset and Repeat
Tomorrow's puzzle drops at midnight in your timezone. Until then, reflect on today's performance: did you spot the Premier League managers or get tripped up by Dodgers history?
The beauty lies not in perfection but in training your brain to spot these hidden sports connections.
For now, puzzle #573 is solved. See you at midnight for round #574.
