August 11, 2021 3:51 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick let his on-field play do the talking during his first two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. This year, the two-time All-Pro intends to be more of a vocal leader. Pittsburgh acquired Fitzpatrick in a trade with Miami in 2019 and he immediately improved the Steelers’ defense with dynamic plays. Fitzpatrick has nine interceptions, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles in less than two seasons with Pittsburgh. He has even drawn comparisons to Hall of Fame Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.
August 11, 2021 3:54 am
UNDATED (AP) -Tony Esposito, a Hall of Fame goaltender who played almost his entire 16-year career with the Chicago Blackhawks, has died following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 78. Esposito debuted with Montreal during the 1968-69 season and appeared in 13 games. He was then taken by the Blackhawks in an intra-league draft, quickly emerging as one of the league’s best goalies. He won the Calder Trophy in 1970 as the NHL’s best rookie as well as the Vezina Trophy given to the top goaltender. He also won the Vezina in 1972 and 1974.
August 10, 2021 3:40 am
(WPXI) – The legendary voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Mike Lange, has announced his retirement from play-by-play duties, but he will remain a part of the Penguins Radio Network. Fans will continue to hear Lange’s voice during radio appearances and various Penguins programming. Lange, known across the sports world for his colorful phrases, or “Lange-isms,” has been a fixture of the team’s radio and television broadcasts since 1974. From 1976 to 2006, he never missed a broadcast. In 2006, he was replaced by Paul Steigerwald for the television side of things, and made the move to work on the team’s radio broadcasts.
August 10, 2021 3:45 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Philadelphia Flyers re-signed goalie Carter Hart to a three-year, $11.9 million contract. The 22-year-old Hart was a restricted free agent, and coming off a season in which he struggled maintaining the starter’s job in his third season with the team. Hart’s numbers plummeted in finishing with a 9-11-5 record. He allowed four or more goals 13 times and missed the final 12 games with a sprained left knee. That was a significant drop-off from his previous season in which Hart went 24-13-3 in helping the Flyers finish fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.
August 10, 2021 3:47 am
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) – A former minor league batboy has filed a lawsuit accusing longtime major league shortstop Omar Vizquel of sexual harassment during Vizquel’s tenure as manager of the Birmingham Barons, an affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. The 25-year-old man filed suit in federal court in Alabama accusing the 11-time Gold Glove winner of exposing himself multiple times and forcing the man to wash his back in the shower in 2019. The suit says the man is autistic and accuses the White Sox and Double-A Birmingham Barons of violating the Americans With Disabilities Act.
August 9, 2021 3:55 am
CINCINNATI (AP) – Tyler Mahle struck out 10, Kyle Farmer delivered another key hit and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-2 for a four-game sweep. Nick Castellanos added a double and scored as playoff-chasing Cincinnati continued its dominance of the Pirates, improving to 9-1 against them this season, including 7-0 at Great American Ball Park. Mahle allowed six hits without walk in seven innings. He pitched seven innings for just the third time this season.
August 9, 2021 3:40 am
CANTON, Ohio (AP) — From bone-rattling tacklers Troy Polamalu, Steve Atwater and Cliff Harris to hard-charging runner Edgerrin James to the pass-catching brilliance of Isaac Bruce and Harold Carmichael, the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2020 has something for everyone. Add in blocking dynamos Steve Hutchinson and Jim Covert, Steel Curtain stalwart safety Donnie Shell and such as leaders as former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and coaches Bill Cowher and Jimmy Johnson. They all entered the hall Saturday night, a year late due to the COVID-19 pandemic, yet just as rewarding. Certainly all 12 men enshrined on this night felt that way. Polamalu had a 12-season career filled with spectacular performances, leadership and, well, winning with the Steelers. The 16th overall draft pick in 2003 from Southern California, he played in three Super Bowls, winning two, and made the NFL’s 2000s Team of the Decade.
August 9, 2021 3:59 am
TOKYO (AP) – The closing ceremony was held at the Tokyo Games on Sunday as the International Olympic Committee now prepares for the Winter Games in just a few months. The United States wound up finishing first in both medals tables despite a few mild disappointments in competition. The Americans picked up 39 gold medals, one more than China and 12 better than Japan. The total medal count for the U.S. was 113, 25 more than China. The Americans also outpaced all countries with 41 silver medals and 33 bronze.
August 9, 2021 3:56 am
Hall of Fame college football coach Bobby Bowden has died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Exuding charm and wit, Bowden led Florida State to two national championships and a dozen conference titles during his 34 seasons with the Seminoles. In all, Bowden had 377 wins during his 40 years in major college coaching. His teams, no stranger to scandal, won national titles in 1993 and 1999 and came close several other times. He was selected for the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006. Bobby Bowden was 91 years old.
August 8, 2021 7:43 am
Bobby Bowden, the folksy Hall of Fame coach who won more than 350 games and built Florida State into one of college football’s great dynasties with two national championships, has died. He was 91. Bobby’s son, Terry, confirmed to The Associated Press that his father died at home surrounded by family early Sunday morning. Florida State also announced the news on social media. Bobby Bowden announced on July 21 he had a terminal illness that Terry Bowden later said was pancreatic cancer. Bobby Bowden had been treated for prostate cancer more than a decade ago. Bowden was hospitalized in October 2020 after testing positive for COVID-19. The test came a few days after he returned to his Tallahassee, Florida, home from a long hospital stay for a leg infection. With Southern charm and wit, Bowden piled up 377 wins during his 40 years as a major college coach, from tiny Samford — his alma mater, then known as Howard College — to West Virginia and finally at Florida State, where he went 315-98-4. The Seminoles were a force during his 34 seasons as coach, winning 12 Atlantic Coast Conference championships and national titles in 1993 and 1999.
