The Monday edition of NYT Connections Sports Edition arrives with puzzle #700, serving up a grid where action language, stadium culture, famous names, and baseball showmanship compete for attention.
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 #700:
ICE CREAM | PARTY ANIMALS | TAILGATERS | NACHOS
BARRY | BURY | BABE | BANANAS
CLOWNS | TENDERS | KNOCK DOWN | DRILL
HANK | DRAIN | FRIES | ALBERT
A seemingly random collection that somehow connects into four perfect categories.
Strategic Hints (No Spoilers Yet)
Yellow Category Nudge: Listen for the language a commentator uses when an attempt ends successfully.
Green Category Clue: Look away from the field and toward the concession stand, where presentation can be part of the fun.
Blue Category Hint: First names can carry plenty of sporting weight when the figures are recognizable enough.
Purple Category Teaser: Think beyond established major leagues and toward teams whose identities are built for showmanship.
The Full Solutions
Last chance to solve independently: answers below
---
---
---
---
---
Yellow (Make A Shot): BURY, DRAIN, DRILL, KNOCK DOWN
BURY, DRAIN, DRILL, and KNOCK DOWN all work as verbs for MAKE A SHOT. Each can describe sending an attempt cleanly through or into its target.
BURY also sits a whisker away from BARRY, creating the grid's sharpest visual decoy, while TENDERS can masquerade as another verb.
Green (Food Served In A Baseball Helmet): FRIES, ICE CREAM, NACHOS, TENDERS
FRIES, ICE CREAM, NACHOS, and TENDERS are FOOD SERVED IN A BASEBALL HELMET, specifically the souvenir-style containers found at ballparks.
TENDERS is the sneaky entry because it reads like an action until the concession theme turns it into chicken tenders.
Blue (Members Of The 700-Hr Club, Familiarly): ALBERT, BABE, BARRY, HANK
BARRY, BABE, HANK, and ALBERT are MEMBERS OF THE 700-HR CLUB, FAMILIARLY. They refer to Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Albert Pujols.
Using familiar first names conceals the statistical link, and the near-match between BARRY and BURY strengthens the misdirection.
Purple (Banana Ball Teams): BANANAS, CLOWNS, PARTY ANIMALS, TAILGATERS
BANANAS, TAILGATERS, PARTY ANIMALS, and CLOWNS are BANANA BALL TEAMS. The trick turns four ordinary plural labels into team identities from the same theatrical baseball format.
TAILGATERS sounds like a crowd description, while PARTY ANIMALS and CLOWNS suggest general entertainment, so the shared league context stays hidden until the reveal.
The Verdict
Yellow is the cleanest first solve because its four verbs share a crisp piece of scoring language.
The real trap runs through BARRY and BURY, with TENDERS adding another action-shaped decoy. Separating those entries clears the path to the food and home-run groups.
Purple is the streak-deciding group because its labels look descriptive until the Banana Ball connection snaps them into place.
Reset and Repeat
Today's standout trick is the shift from ordinary plural labels to Banana Ball team identities. Reset the grid tomorrow and look again for the moment when everyday language becomes a proper name.
For now, puzzle #700 is solved. See you at midnight for the next round.
