December 29, 2023 4:44 am
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco failed to show up for a meeting with a prosecutor who is investigating him for an alleged relationship with a minor. Prosecutor Olga Diná Llaverías says the investigation will continue regardless of Franco’s no-show. She waited for the All-Star player and his lawyers at her office, but they didn’t appear. Dominican prosecutors and police showed up on Tuesday at a Franco property in Baní, his hometown about 37 miles southwest of Santo Domingo. They did not find the 22-year-old player to request he appeared for testimony.
December 28, 2023 4:41 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Kris Letang became the first defenseman in NHL history to record five points in a period with five assists in the second for the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 7-0 win over the New York Islanders. Letang had a total of six assists in the game while Jake Guentzel and Evgeni Malkin each scored two goals. Tristan Jarry finished with 21 saves for his fourth shutout of the season. Rickard Rakell, Radim Zohorna and Valtteri Puustinen also scored for Pittsburgh and Marcus Pettersson picked up four assists in the first game back following a three-day NHL holiday break.
December 28, 2023 5:01 am
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Garrett Greene threw for 204 yards and a touchdown, Beanie Bishop Jr. returned a punt 78 yards for a score and West Virginia closed a season in which it exceeded expectations with a 30-10 victory over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Traylon Ray had a 75-yard touchdown reception on the first play from scrimmage for the Mountaineers, who won their final three games to finish 9-4 after being picked to finish last in the Big 12. Selected the game MVP, Greene completed 11 of 22 passes. Jahiem White ran for 50 yards and a touchdown for West Virginia. North Carolina played quarterback Drake Maye andreceiver Tez Walker, who opted out of the game to begin preparing for the NFL draft.
December 28, 2023 4:58 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) — With Caleb Williams watching from the sideline, Miller Moss threw a Holiday Bowl-record six touchdown passes in his first college start and Southern California ended a frustrating season by beating No. 16 Louisville 42-28. Moss took full advantage of the opportunity he was given when Williams opted out. Williams, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner and presumptive first overall pick in the NFL draft, watched from the sideline wearing a white T-shirt with his No. 13 jersey hanging around his neck. Moss was 23 of 33 for 372 yards, with one interception.
December 28, 2023 4:59 am
HOUSTON (AP) — Rashod Owens had a career-high 164 yards receiving with two touchdowns and Brennan Presley tied a school record with 16 receptions and had 152 yards receiving in No. 22 Oklahoma State’s 31-23 victory over Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl on Wednesday night. Ollie Gordon II, the Doak Walker Award winner, added 118 yards rushing to finish the season with 2,062 yards of offense for Oklahoma State (10-4). Alan Bowman had 402 yards passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The Cowboys missed a 47-yard field goal with 17 seconds to go and the Aggies (7-6) had another chance to score. But Marcel Reed’s pass was intercepted near the end zone by Kendal Daniels on the last play of the game.
December 28, 2023 4:58 am
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos are benching quarterback Russell Wilson for their game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Wilson will serve as a backup to Jarrett Stidham. Coach Sean Payton said he made the move because the offense needs a spark. Payton has been vocal about his displeasure over the team’s offensive struggles and two weeks ago had a sideline blowup directed at Wilson. The Broncos could move on from Wilson in the offseason, but it would be costly as they’d have $85 million in dead cap money over the next two years.
December 28, 2023 4:57 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers have finalized their 12-year deal with Yoshinobu Yamamoto. They’ve teamed the prized free-agent right-hander with Shohei Ohtani in their prolific winter spending spree. The 25-year-old Yamamoto was coveted by teams across the majors after he elected to leave the Orix Buffaloes this offseason. The big-budget Dodgers landed him with a mammoth deal after already acquiring Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow this month. Yamamoto has posted spectacular numbers in Japan’s top league in recent years, winning three straight Most Valuable Player awards in the Nippon Pacific League.
December 27, 2023 2:43 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mason Rudolph’s dynamic play against Cincinnati helped keep the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season alive. The longtime backup quarterback could get a chance to do it again when the Steelers visit Seattle on New Year’s Eve. Coach Mike Tomlin says Rudolph will “have the ball” to begin the week and will get the nod against the Seahawks if starter Kenny Pickett’s surgically repaired right ankle is not ready in time. Rudolph threw for 290 yards and two long touchdowns to George Pickens in a win over the Bengals that moved Pittsburgh to 8-7 and kept its faint playoff hopes afloat.
December 27, 2023 4:32 am
PHOENIX (AP) — Jason Bean threw for 449 yards and all six of his touchdown passes to two receivers, and penalty-plagued Kansas outlasted UNLV 49-36 in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. The Jayhawks were flagged 18 times for 210 yards, including four personal fouls. They made up for it with an explosive offense that produced 591 total yards at Chase Field, home of baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Luke Grimm had four catches for 160 yards and three touchdowns. Lawrence Arnold added six catches for 132 yards and three more scores. UNLV’s Jayden Maiava threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions.
December 27, 2023 4:35 am
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Sports betting has spread rapidly across U.S. states in the past five years. But the odds for further expansion may be fading as state legislatures prepare to return to work in 2024. A 2018 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court opened the way for states to legalize sports betting. Since then, a total of 38 have done so. But proposals in some other states have become bogged down by political resistance and competing financial interests from casinos, tribal gaming groups, horse tracks and other gambling operations. California and Texas — the two most populous states — are among the dozen where sports betting still is illegal.
