On the eve of the New York Yankees American League wild-card game against the Houston Astros, pitcher CC Sabathia issued a written statement that he was checking himself into alcohol rehab.

The Yankees released the statement. Here's part of it:

"Today I am checking myself into an alcohol ...

Updated 5:30 p.m. ET

Extinguishing hope that the cargo ship that went missing near the Bahamas could have survived a Thursday encounter with Hurricane Joaquin, the Coast Guard announced Monday that the ship, El Faro, sank, according to the Associated Press. The Coast Guard also found an unidentified body ...

Remember that Chicago Cubs fan who may or may not have cost his team a crucial out in Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship series against the Marlins?

No? Well, let's take a jaunt down memory lane:

The infamous Steve Bartman incident, a muffed catch followed by outfielder ...

Following last week's announcement that FIFA President Sepp Blatter is facing criminal proceedings in Switzerland for alleged corruption, Coca-Cola and McDonald's, two major FIFA World Cup Sponsors, called for his immediate resignation.

The company released a statement, saying:

"Every day that passes, the image and reputation of FIFA continues ...

Updated 7 p.m. ET

Pope Francis had a private meeting in Washington, D.C., with a gay couple a day before he met with Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, who spent time in jail last month for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Yayo Grassi, Francis' longtime friend from Argentina, ...

NPRreads is a weekly feature on Twitter and on The Two-Way. The premise is simple: Correspondents, editors and producers from our newsroom share the pieces that have kept them reading, using the #NPRreads hashtag. On Fridays, we highlight some of the best stories.

This week, we bring you three ...

Hackers have stolen the personal information of about 15 million T-Mobile customers and potential customers in the U.S., including Social Security numbers, dates of birth and home addresses.

Experian says it notified law enforcement as soon as it discovered the breach, NPR's Laura Sydell reports:

She also says:

"T-Mobile ...

Following the emissions scandal that rocked Volkswagen in late September, the German car company reported less than 1 percent growth in sales for the month.

Reuters reports that Volkswagen sales "increased by just 0.56 percent to 26,141 vehicles, showing the effect of the halt in sales" of the four-cylinder ...

In the latest embarrassment for the Secret Service, agents were found to have improperly accessed, shared and potentially released an unsuccessful 2003 Secret Service job application of Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah, according to a government report.

It says that the agents' actions stemmed from a desire to ...

The NCAA notched a victory on Wednesday when a federal appeals court ruled against requiring colleges to compensate athletes in deferred cash payments, according to the Associated Press.

The decision is the latest to come from the lawsuit filed by former college football and men's basketball players who claim ...

Updated 5:35 p.m. With Oklahoma Delay

Convicted of orchestrating her husband's death in 1997, Kelly Gissendaner was executed in Jackson, Ga., on Tuesday evening, becoming the first woman in 70 years to be put to death in the state.

Gissendaner was set to be executed at 7 p.m., but a ...

Ralph Lauren Corporation announced that Stefan Larsson has been named CEO, starting in November. The 75-year-old founder and face of the fashion mega-house, Ralph Lauren, will continue to "actively drive the company's vision," a company statement read.

Larsson most recently served as the global president of Old Navy, where ...

Updated 6:20 p.m. ET

Southern Methodist University officials are considering an appeal of the NCAA's sanctions against the men's basketball program.

"There are a couple of things that we know we are going to consider, very seriously, appealing," SMU president Gerald Turner said, according to the Dallas ABC affiliate ...

Journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates, puppetry artist Basil Twist and neuroscientist Beth Stevens work in wholly unrelated fields, but they do have at least one thing in common.

Along with 21 others, they are winners of the 2015 "genius" grants from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

"When I first ...

The Senate has voted to advance a bill that would keep the government funded through Dec. 11 and doesn't include any provisions to defund Planned Parenthood.

The bill secured the required 60 cloture votes to limit debate and prevent a filibuster. The Senate is expected to approve the bill itself, ...

There are wardrobe malfunctions and then there's this.

Around mile 10 of the 26.2-mile Berlin marathon on Sunday, elite runner Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya began to have some serious shoe trouble. The neon-yellow insoles of his custom-made Nikes slipped partially out of his shoes; as he crossed the finish line, ...

After five weeks, Banksy's "bemusement park" art exhibit, Dismaland, is closing permanently. What's more, the anonymous artist announced on Dismaland's website that the structures and material from the park will be sent to a refugee camp in France.

The short announcement read, "All the timber and fixtures from Dismaland ...

Updated 9:20 p.m. ET

A senior Obama administration official described Monday's 90-minute meeting between President Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin as "productive," though it left several key issues unresolved.

The official said it was a "business-like back and forth. I think they worked through a lot of different issues. ...

Syrian rebels, armed and trained by U.S. and allied forces, reportedly surrendered equipment to a suspected Al Nusra Front intermediary, the U.S. Central Command said in a statement.

NPR's Tom Bowman reports:

"The Defense Department says a commander of the New Syrian Forces, who had been trained and equipped ...

The ad begins: "A better network as explained by backup quarterback Luke McCown."

Old spaghetti Western-type music fills the background as backup New Orleans Saints quarterback Luke McCown, dressed in full uniform, stands next to train tracks in a field, the sun setting behind him.

"Verizon has backup generators for ...