April 16, 2026 4:30 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Major League Baseball is celebrating Jackie Robinson Day with every player, coach and umpire wearing his No. 42 to mark the 79th anniversary of the infielder breaking the sport’s color barrier. Robinson debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. He went on to win Rookie of the Year honors, become a six-time All-Star and the 1949 National League MVP. He played in six World Series, and won his only championship in 1955 with the Dodgers. The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets gathered at Robinson’s statue in centerfield to reflect on his legacy at Dodger Stadium.
April 16, 2026 4:31 am
The NFL’s process of hiring replacement referees has reached another stage, according to a memo sent to teams. Several replacement officials have completed hiring steps including background checks and will soon progress to undergoing physical exams per a memo sent to teams on Wednesday that was obtained by The Associated Press. Training sessions with NFL officiating supervisors would then begin as early as next month. The league has undertaken these steps because negotiations with the referees’ union have been unsuccessful, two people with knowledge of the discussions told The Associated Press last month. Both people spoke on condition of anonymity because the conversations are private.
April 16, 2026 4:28 am
Five of the eight first-round series in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs are set. The matchups include the bitter cross-Pennsylvania rivalry between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. The first series determined is also the one with the best teams involved, with Minnesota facing Dallas. The rest of the Western Conference still needs to be determined. Elsewhere in the East, top-seeded Carolina plays Ottawa, while Atlantic Division-champion Buffalo takes on Boston and Tampa Bay goes up against Montreal. The Flyers and Penguins are playing in the postseason for a league-record-tying 10th time.
April 15, 2026 4:21 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — CJ Abrams went 3 for 4 with a home run, a double and two RBIs as the Washington Nationals held off the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4. Abrams hit a solo shot down the left-field line in the fourth inning. He also hit the third of three consecutive RBI singles in the first inning. The shortstop is 9 for 17 in his last five games with three home runs and seven RBIs. Mitchell Parker (1-0) struck out five in two scoreless innings of relief as the Nationals won for the fourth time in five games. Gus Varland got the save. Brandon Lowe and Joey Bart hit solo homers for the Pirates.
April 15, 2026 4:21 am
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jimmy Snuggerud scored twice and assisted on both of Dylan Holloway’s goals in the third period as the St. Louis Blues rallied from a three-goal deficit to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 7-5 on Tuesday night. Pittsburgh raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first period despite resting most of its regular players, including Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, with the playoffs looming this weekend. The Blues surged ahead with five consecutive goals in just over 20 minutes, with Holloway and Pavel Buchnevich scoring 44 seconds apart in the third period.
April 15, 2026 4:23 am
NFL reporter Dianna Russini has resigned from The Athletic less than a week after published photos of her and New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel at an Arizona resort prompted an internal investigation at The New York Times-owned sports outlet. The New York Post last week published the photos of Vrabel and Russini at the Sedona hotel and said they were taken before the NFL owners meetings that began in Phoenix on March 29. Russini joined The Athletic in 2023 after nearly a decade at ESPN, where she held various roles, including SportsCenter anchor, NFL analyst and insider. She hosted a podcast for The Athletic and made appearances on their video platform.
April 15, 2026 4:25 am
Sergio Garcia has apologized for his tantrum during the final round of the Masters. Garcia hit a bad tee shot on the second hole and twice slammed his driver into the turf. He also slammed the club against a bench and broke off the head. The Masters had an official issue a code-of-conduct warning to him a few holes later. It’s the first time the conduct policy has been used at the Masters. Garcia says he respects and values everything about the Masters and Augusta National and regrets the way he acted. He says that has no place in golf.
April 14, 2026 4:23 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Paul Skenes allowed one hit in six strong innings and Brandon Lowe homered for the third time in two games, driving in five runs as the Pittsburgh Pirates steamrolled the Washington Nationals 16-5 to begin a four-game series. Skenes struck out six and walked one while improving to 7-1 in his last 11 home starts. The only run he gave up came on a first-inning homer by CJ Abrams. Lowe became the first Pirates player to knock in at least five runs in consecutive games since RBIs became an official statistic in 1920. Spencer Horwitz also homered for Pittsburgh.
April 14, 2026 4:25 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Flyers have clinched a playoff spot for the first time since 2018, defeating the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 in a shootout. Tyson Foerster scored the decisive goal on Monday night, setting up a first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Flyers coach Rick Tocchet and general manager Danny Briere have been instrumental in the team’s rebuild, focusing on young talent like Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras. Fans celebrated the long-awaited return to the playoffs, marking a significant milestone for a franchise with one of the NHL’s longest championship droughts.
April 14, 2026 4:26 am
Famed ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale is facing another battle with cancer. Vitale said Monday that biopsy results had confirmed a diagnosis of melanoma in his lung and liver cavity, which will have him starting immunotherapy. It marks his fifth battle with cancer. That fight sidelined him from the airwaves for two years before his return shortly before March Madness in 2025. In a statement from ESPN, the 86-year-old announcer affectionately known as “Dickie V” says he’s “fully confident I’m going to make it 5 for 5″ in beating cancer.
