BOSTON (AP) — Jeremy Swayman and eight of his Boston Bruins teammates traded their hockey sticks for baseball bats on Saturday and took some cuts during batting practice at Fenway Park.
A couple of them even managed to slap a shot over the Green Monster.
“I’m used to stopping it and not hitting it,” Swayman, the Bruins’ goaltender, told The Associated Press. “It’s fun being over the plate and being on offense for once.”
The players batted against a pitching machine before the Red Sox faced the Kansas City Royals in the second of a three-game series.
Forward Morgan Geekie cleared the wall, sending a drive from the right side of the plate over a billboard above the Monster seats and completely out of Fenway. Another right-handed hitter, forward Tanner Jeannot, hit two over the Wall, one bouncing off the cement behind the last row and out of the park.
Who had the best swing?
“I would say Geeks and Jeanno,” Swayman said of the pair. “Both technically sound.”
Nikita Zadorov, a 6-foot-7 defenseman, was trying to shag fly balls with others in the outfield. Swayman, being a goalie, flashed some leather on a few well-struck balls in the outfield. Red Sox left-hander Payton Tolle came out in a back-and-gold Bruins sweater, with his name and No. 70 on the back, to watch near the cage.
As for the left-handed hitting Swayman, he was at a bit of a disadvantage with Fenway’s deep right field beyond the Pesky Pole.
He hit a couple down the right-field line that rolled around the track.
When told he’d have a stand-up double, at least, or maybe a triple with his speed, he went into his goalie stance while answering.
“Yeah, with my lateral speed,” he said, smiling, while crouching slightly and moving sideways.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman smiles after a shutout win against the New Jersey Devils following an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 14, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
VENICE, Italy (AP) — “Woman Unknown,” a drama about Denmark in the aftermath of the Nazi occupation directed by May el-Toukhy, won the prestigious Golden Lion at the 83rd Venice Film Festival on Saturday.
The Maggie Gyllenhaal -led jury announced the winners, which included a best actor prize for John Malkovich for his performance in the dark CIA comedy “Wild Horse Nine.”
Malkovich was not in attendance at the ceremony, but he sent a video message, explaining that he is shooting in Montreal.
“I am humbled to be chosen for this award which has been given to so many wonderful actors,” Malkovich said.
El-Toukhy, who was the only woman to have solely directed a film in the main competition this year, is only the eighth woman to have won the festival's top prize.
“To me personally, ‘Woman Unknown’ is about the female body as a battleground,” el-Toukhy said. “At the same time the film tells the tale of women who are unseen, invisible and voiceless.”
She thanked Gyllenhaal for using her voice to shine a light on unequal opportunities for women in moviemaking.
The film is centered on a young nanny and housemaid who is about to marry her wealthy employer in the immediate aftermath of the war. But she harbors a secret past intimate relationship with a German soldier that threatens to upend her reputation. The lead, Mathilde Arcel, won the festival's best actress prize.
Arcel was visibly emotional accepting the award, which she said was very heavy and decided to place on the floor while she spoke.
“This is my first lead role in a movie and my first time at a film festival,” she said. “I’m extremely honored.”
South Korean auteur Lee Chang-dong’s poetic portrait of class and labor, “Possible Love,” won the Silver Lion grand jury prize. “Possible Love” is Lee’s first film in eight years, following his acclaimed “Burning.”
“NAZA,” a harrowing documentary about military strategies employed in the war in Gaza from Israeli filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, was awarded a special jury prize.
“It is really, really especially important to us that Israelis watch this film,” Abraham said.
The was added to the main competition late — at the request of the filmmakers — and debuted late in the schedule as well, but its impact was felt as it received a record-breaking standing ovation, lasting some 25 minutes, after its premiere.
Shot on the rooftops of Tel Aviv at night in extreme secrecy over three years, “NAZA” features testimony from 24 Israeli military insiders including intelligence officers and soldiers give who insight into the war in Gaza and what they say is the systemic killing of Palestinian civilians.
The jury gave the Silver Lion for directing to Ilya Krzhanovsky for his film “Dau,” a project about the Soviet physicists who built the atomic bomb that has taken over 20 years to make. Krzhanovsky, who renounced his Russian citizenship in protest of the war in Ukraine, dedicated the prize to Ukrainians, including his mother who was born there.
French director Stéphane Brizé’s won the screenplay prize for his corporate drama “A Good Little Soldier.” Malou Khebizi was given the Marcello Mastroianni award for emerging actor for her role in Cédric Kahn’s “A Place to Heal,” which is set in an adolescent psychiatric ward in a public hospital.
Aside from Malkovich's win, the starrier, Hollywood films playing in competition were shut out of the awards, including “Primetime,” “Bunker” and “Ink.”
For more coverage of the 2026 Venice Film Festival, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/venice-film-festival
Jury member Johnnie To, left, presents director Lee Chang-dong the grand jury prize for the film 'Possible Love' during the closing ceremony of the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
John Malkovich poses for photographers at the red carpet for the film 'Wild Horse Nine' during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (Photo by Alessandra Tarantino/Invision/AP)
Director May el-Toukhy poses for photographers after receiving the Golden Lion for best film for 'Woman Unknown' during the closing ceremony of the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Lee Chang-Dong poses for photographers at the closing ceremony red carpet during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
May el-Toukhy, left, and Mathilde Arcel Fock pose for photographers at the closing ceremony red carpet during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Jury president Maggie Gyllenhaal poses for photographers at the closing ceremony red carpet during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Rachel Szor, left, and Yuval Abraham pose for photographers at the closing ceremony red carpet during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Maggie Gyllenhaal speaks to the audience prior to Ellen Burstyn receiving the golden lion for lifetime achievement during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Driector Lee Chang-dong, from left, Sul Kyung-gu, Jeon Do-yeon, Cho Yeo-jeong and Zo In-sung pose for photographers at the red carpet for the film 'Possible Love' during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (Photo by Alessandra Tarantino/Invision/AP)
John Malkovich, left, and Sam Rockwell pose for photographers at the red carpet for the film 'Wild Horse Nine' during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. (Photo by Alessandra Tarantino/Invision/AP)
Directors Yuval Abraham, left, and Rachel Szor pose for photographers at the photo call for the film 'Naza' during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (Photo by Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Robert Pattinson poses for photographers at the red carpet for the film 'Primetime' during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (Photo by Alessandra Tarantino/Invision/AP)
