August 25, 2022 2:45 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Kyle Wright allowed two hits over seven efficient innings and the Atlanta Braves drilled the sloppy Pittsburgh Pirates 14-2 to complete a three-game sweep. Wright struck out eight and walked one while improving to 16-5, tied for the most wins in the majors. Matt Olson hit his fifth career grand slam, a 420-foot blast that bounced into the Allegheny River. Atlanta has won 14 of 16 to keep the pressure on the NL East-leading New York Mets. Pittsburgh rookie Oneil Cruz ripped the hardest-hit ball since Major League Baseball began measuring exit velocity in 2015 – a 122.4 mph single.
August 25, 2022 3:49 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Every Major League Baseball team will play each other in the same season for the first time next year as the sport switches to its first balanced schedule since 2000. As a result of the format switch agreed to in the March lockout settlement, high-profile games between division rivals such as Yankees-Red Sox, Dodgers-Giants and Cubs-Cardinals will be reduced from 19 and intradivision games will drop from 47% to 32%. A team will host all of the other 29 clubs at least once every two seasons. The season opens March 30 with all teams scheduled.
August 25, 2022 3:50 am
ATLANTA (AP) – The PGA Tour is making its boldest response yet to the rival Saudi-funded league. PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan has announced a plan for the best players to commit to a 20-tournament schedule starting next year. That means they will be competing against one another up to 17 times and maybe more. That involves elevating four additional tournaments that will offer $20 million or more to go along with the tournaments already announced. Monahan says top players will be determined by a new Player Impact Program criteria. The PIP will double in money to $100 million.
August 25, 2022 3:47 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – A federal jury has found that Los Angeles County must pay Kobe Bryant’s widow $16 million for emotional distress caused by deputies and firefighters sharing photos of the bodies of the NBA star and his daughter taken at the site of the 2020 helicopter crash that killed them. The jurors who returned the verdict Wednesday agreed with Vanessa Bryant and her attorneys that her privacy was invaded when they took and shared photos of the remains of Kobe Bryant and their 13-year-old daughter Gianna. Vanessa Bryant tearfully testified during the 11-day trial that news of the photos compounded her grief after losing her husband and daughter. County attorneys argued that the photos were necessary to assess the scene.
August 25, 2022 2:38 am
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Hall of Fame quarterback Len Dawson, who helped the Kansas City Chiefs to a Super Bowl title, died Wednesday. He was 87. The MVP of the Chiefs’ victory over the Vikings in January 1970 entered hospice care on Aug. 12. “Lenny the Cool” went into the Hall of Fame as a player in 1987. He also was inducted as a broadcaster in 2012. Dawson spent several decades working on local TV broadcast while also doing color analysis for NBC and hosting HBO’s iconic “Inside the NFL.”
August 24, 2022 9:43 am
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) – Alabama coach Nick Saban is getting a new eight-year contract worth at least $93.6 million, eclipsing the recent megadeal of Southeastern Conference rival Kirby Smart. The University of Alabama trustees compensation committee approved a one-year extension through Feb. 28, 2030 for the 70-year old Saban, who has led the Crimson Tide to six national titles. Saban’s deal averages out to $11.7 million per year, topping Smart’s $11.25 million pay at defending national champion Georgia. The announcement comes a month after Smart agreed to a 10-year deal worth more than $110 million. The Bulldogs beat Alabama in the national championship game.
August 24, 2022 3:47 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) – Fernando Tatis Jr. apologized privately to his San Diego Padres teammates for testing positive for a performance enhancing-drug, then publicly expressed remorse for the 80-game suspension that will keep him off the field well into next season. The star shortstop says he’s “really sorry for mistakes” and that his dreams have turned into his worst nightmares. He said there’s no one to blame other than himself. He was suspended on Aug. 12 after MLB said he tested positive for Clostebol, an anabolic steroid.
August 24, 2022 3:48 am
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) – Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno says he is exploring the possibility of selling the franchise. Moreno purchased the Angels in 2003, a year after they won the World Series. He has spent aggressively on aging free agent stars like Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton, but the club hasn’t been back to the Fall Classic since he became owner. Los Angeles is set to miss the postseason for the eighth straight year despite featuring AL MVPs Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. Moreno’s announcement comes at a critical moment for the franchise, with Ohtani set to be a free agent after the 2024 season.
August 23, 2022 3:46 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Jake Odorizzi struck out seven and Michael Harris II homered for each of Atlanta’s two runs, helping the Braves gain in the NL East with a 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night. Odorizzi (5-5) allowed one run on four hits in six innings, retiring 14 of his final 15 batters faced. Harris drove in two with his 13th homer of his rookie season, sent 391 feet into the leftfield bleachers off a curveball from Roansy Contreras (3-4). The Braves pulled to within three games of the Mets for first in the NL East.
August 23, 2022 3:49 am
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Marcus Mariota led Atlanta to scores on two of his three drives in the Falcons’ 24-16 loss against mostly New York Jets backups. Mariota strengthened his hold on the starting job by going 6 of 10 for 132 yards and a touchdown to Olamide Zaccheaus before giving way to rookie Desmond Ridder with a 10-0 lead in the second quarter. Ridder went 10 of 13 for 143 yards and leading the Falcons to two field goals in three series. Fourth-stringer Chris Streveler led the Jets on two late touchdown drives to give New York the victory. The Jets’ Bradlee Anae returned a fumble 30 yards for a score.
