February 13, 2025 4:33 am
Alex Bregman and the Boston Red Sox have agreed to a $120 million, three-year contract, a person familiar with the deal tells The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement was subject to a successful physical. Bregman can opt out after the 2026 and 2027 seasons to become a free agent again. He might need to shift from third base to second with the Red Sox, who already have All-Star slugger Rafael Devers at the hot corner. A two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion during nine years with Houston, the 30-year-old Bregman hit .260 with 26 homers and 75 RBIs in 2024, the final season of a $100 million, five-year contract. He also won his first Gold Glove.
February 13, 2025 4:35 am
The U.S. Education Department is scrapping a policy from the Biden administration that threatened to upend colleges’ plans to pay athletes for their name, image and likeness by making those payments subject to federal Title IX rules. President Donald Trump’s education officials announced the change Wednesday, saying the policy from former President Joe Biden’s final days in office had no legal basis under Title IX, the 1972 law forbidding sex discrimination in education. A Jan. 16 memo from the Biden administration told universities that NIL payments must be treated the same as athletic financial aid such as scholarships. Some say the move is ‘putting women’s sports back 25 years’
February 12, 2025 4:25 am
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Kellen Moore is leaving the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles for his first NFL head coaching job with the New Orleans Saints. The 36-year-old Moore will join a Saints organization that’s been floundering since the retirement of quarterback Drew Brees and departure of Super Bowl-winning coach Sean Payton. The Saints haven’t made the playoffs since the 2020 season. Moore has been an offensive coordinator for six seasons with Dallas, the Los Angeles Charges and the Eagles. The Saints fired third-year coach Dennis Allen this past season with the team at 5-12. Moore oversaw the second-ranked rushing offense in the NFL while playing to the strengths of star running back Saquon Barkley and a big offensive line.
February 12, 2025 4:27 am
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers went through a light workout and most of the usual superstars were out on the field, including National League MVP Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts. It’s been a short offseason for the franchise: The Dodgers hoisted the World Series trophy barely three months ago after beating the New York Yankees in five games. Los Angeles is trying to become the first team to win back-to-back World Series since the New York Yankees won three in a row from 1998-2000. The team’s ownership opened up its pocketbook during the offseason to add talent, signing two-time All-Star Blake Snell, Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki and relievers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates.
February 12, 2025 4:28 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Education has taken another step in advancing the Trump administration’s new transgender policy for sports by asking the NCAA and a key high-school sports organization to restore titles, awards and records it says have been “misappropriated by biological males competing in female categories.” The department sent a letter requesting the changes to the National Federation of State High School Associations and the NCAA. The NCAA changed its participation policy to restrict competition in women’s sports to athletes who were assigned female at birth a day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at banning transgender athletes from women’s and girls sports.
February 10, 2025 2:30 am
The WPIAL Basketball playoff brackets have been released by the League. The 12 brackets include 11 girls teams from Washington & Greene Counties, 10 more on the boys side. Action begins with preliminary games later this week, needed to trim several brackets down to 16 teams, including the 2A boys tournament that starts with 21 teams, six of them from the two-county area. Three other brackets-5A boys, 4A girls, 2A girls-have 17 teams each. The WPIAL championships return to the University of Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center Feb. 27-March 1. The daily schedule for all 21 teams from the two-county area follows. Click for WPIAL Brackets
Thursday, Feb. 13
Boys 2A #20 Beth-Center vs. #13 Winchester Thurston, 5:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 2A #15 Bentworth vs. #18 South Side Area, 7:15 pm at Peters Township WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 2A #12 Jeff-Morgan vs. #21 Springdale, 7:00 pm at Jeff-Morgan
Boys 2A #14 West Greene vs. #19 Brentwood, 7:00 pm at West Greene
Girls 2A #17 Bentworth vs. #16 Apollo-Ridge at Apollo-Ridge
Friday, Feb. 14
Girls 5A #2 Peters Township vs. #15 Fox Chapel, 6:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-FM (95.3) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 3A #10 McGuffey vs. #7 Quaker Valley, 6:45 pm at Quaker Valley WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Monday, Feb. 17
Boys 2A #7 Chartiers-Houston vs. #10 Shenango, 7 pm at Chartiers-Houston
Boys 2A #9 Fort Cherry vs. #8 Union, 6:45 pm at Union WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 1A #7 West Greene vs. #10 Eden Christian, 7 pm at West Greene
Tuesday, Feb. 18
Boys 5A #6 Peters Township vs. #11 Penn Hills, 6:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-FM (95.3) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 3A #15 Charleroi vs. #2 South Allegheny, 7 pm at South Allegheny
Boys 3A #8 McGuffey vs. #9 Shady Side Academy, 7 pm at McGuffey
Boys 3A #14 Waynesburg vs. #3 Mohawk, 7 pm at Mohawk
Girls 2A #9 Beth-Center vs. #8 Laurel, 7 pm at Laurel
Girls 2A #14 Burgettstown vs. #3 Winchester Thurston, 6 pm at Keystone Oaks
Girls 2A #5 Fort Cherry vs. #12 California, 6:45 pm at Fort Cherry WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 2A #6 Chartiers-Houston vs. #11 Brentwood, 7pm at Chartiers-Houston
Girls 2A #15 Carmichaels vs. #2 Aliquippa, 6 pm at Aliquippa
Thursday, Feb. 20
Girls 6A #4 Canon-McMillan vs. #5 Butler, 6 pm at Canon-McMillan
February 11, 2025 4:18 am
BROSSARD, Quebec (AP) — Sidney Crosby says he’s good to go for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off after getting injured in one of Pittsburgh’s final games before the break in the NHL season. Crosby skated between reigning league MVP Nathan MacKinnon and 2023 Stanley Cup winner Mark Stone at practice. Coach Jon Cooper stopped short of saying Crosby was definitely playing in Canada’s tournament opener against Sweden on Wednesday, but all indications are the 37-year-old will be on the ice. Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, who’s behind the bench for the United States, said for obvious reasons he was not a central figure in the decision-making process.
February 11, 2025 4:22 am
Fox Sports is projecting a Super Bowl record average audience of 126 million U.S. viewers across television and streaming platforms for Philadelphia’s 40-22 victory over Kansas City. Sunday night’s game was televised by Fox, Fox Deportes and Telemundo and streamed on Tubi as well as the NFL’s digital platforms. Fox’s projections include Nielsen’s early numbers and streaming data from Tubi and the NFL. Updated and more complete numbers are expected on Tuesday. It would be the second straight year the Super Bowl has reached a record audience. The Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime victory over San Francisco last year averaged 123.7 million on CBS, Nickelodeon, Univision and streaming platforms.
February 10, 2025 4:33 am
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Cooper DeJean, Josh Sweat and the Philadelphia Eagles’ ferocious defense denied Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs a Super Bowl three-peat. It wasn’t even close. DeJean got a pick-6 on his 22nd birthday, Sweat tormented Mahomes and the Eagles routed the Chiefs 40-22 on Sunday to secure the franchise’s second Super Bowl championship. Jalen Hurts threw for two touchdowns and ran for a score on a tush push, and Vic Fangio’s defense was so dominant that the Eagles didn’t need much from Saquon Barkley. With Donald Trump becoming the first president in office to attend a Super Bowl, the Eagles outplayed Kansas City in every facet.
February 10, 2025 4:34 am
Aaron Rodgers is still contemplating whether to continue his playing career. If he does, it appears it won’t be with the New York Jets. The team has told the 41-year-old quarterback it is “moving on from him,” Fox Sports reported Sunday. Rodgers said toward the end of the Jets’ 5-12 season he was undecided on his playing future and wanted to take a mental break. There was also uncertainty as to whether the Jets would even want to move forward with Rodgers. The Jets recently hired general manager Darren Mougey and coach Aaron Glenn, and owner Woody Johnson said at their introductory news conference on Jan. 27 the new regime would have the final say in that decision.
