April 23, 2021 3:52 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes has aggravated his left wrist injury, delaying his potential return to the majors. The team says he tweaked the wrist while taking indoor batting practice against a high-velocity pitching machine in Detroit. The Pirates sent Hayes back to Pittsburgh for further tests. Pittsburgh called up two-time All-Star Todd Frazier to provide depth at both infield spots.
April 23, 2021 3:45 am
DETROIT (AP) – Phillip Evans kept Akil Baddoo’s drive to left field in the park in the seventh inning to help Pittsburgh escape a jam, and the Pirates scored twice in the eighth to beat the Detroit Tigers 4-2. Colin Moran and Erik Gonzalez hit RBI singles with two outs in the eighth. With the score tied at 2, Baddoo nearly put the Tigers ahead, but Evans reached above the fence in left, and the ball bounced off his glove and back into the field of play. Baddoo wound up with a double, and he didn’t end up scoring.
April 22, 2021 3:55 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Penguins forward Kasperi Kapanen is nearing his return from a foot injury that’s sidelined him for nearly a month. Kapanen participated in a full-contact practice and could be back as early as this weekend. The Penguins have played well with Kapanen out to move within a point of Washington and the New York Islanders for first place in the East Division.
April 22, 2021 4:02 am
UNDATED (AP) – NFL owners approved eliminating overtime in preseason games and expanded selection of jersey numbers for receivers, running backs and defensive backs. The league also will allow on-field officials to get certain “objective information” from the replay official and designated members of the officiating department “when clear and obvious video evidence is present.”
The NFL is also exploring changes to the annual NFL scouting combine to improve the professional and medical experience for draft prospects. The combine in Indianapolis was canceled this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, so prospects displayed their talents for scouts, coaches and general managers at their college pro days instead. Teams interviewed players virtually and most medical and psychological testing was done by video. About 150 draft prospects did in-person medical evaluations in Indianapolis earlier this month.
April 22, 2021 3:59 am
NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown has settled a civil lawsuit by former trainer Britney Taylor who accused Brown of sexually assaulting her. Taylor filed the lawsuit in 2019 and lawyers for her and Brown released statements Wednesday revealing the agreement. The civil suit stemmed from what Taylor said occurred in 2017 and 2018, when she said the player sexually assaulted her twice, then raped her. Brown countersued Taylor, claiming defamation. Brown is currently a free agent after winning the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in February. He remains subject to discipline under the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
April 21, 2021 3:54 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Jeff Carter picked up his first goal in Pittsburgh as part of a first-period deluge as the Penguins held on for a 7-6 win over New Jersey. Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist for Pittsburgh, which nearly let a six-goal lead slip away in the third period. The Devils scored six times in the third but couldn’t quite draw even. New Jersey has dropped seven straight games.
April 21, 2021 3:52 am
DETROIT (AP) – Tyler Anderson pitched five solid innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates took the first game of a doubleheader, 3-2 over the Detroit Tigers. Pittsburgh scored all three of its runs in the fourth inning after Michael Fulmer retired the Pirates in order through the first three. Pittsburgh has now won five of its last seven to pull within a game of .500. The Pirates and Tigers were playing a doubleheader because Tuesday night’s game was postponed on a snowy day in the Detroit area. There was still a white dusting on top of the bushes beyond the wall in center field Wednesday, plus some flurries late in the game.
April 21, 2021 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – Infielder Neil Walker announced his retirement at age 35 after 12 major league seasons. Walker hit .231 with no homers and three RBIs in 18 games with Philadelphia this year. Walker hit a career .267 with 149 homers and 609 RBIs for Pittsburgh, the New York Mets, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Miami and the New York Yankees. Primarily a second baseman but also an occasional first baseman and third baseman, he had 12 homers and a career-best 83 RBIs for the Pirates in 2011, and reached his career high of 23 homers in both 2014 and 2016.
April 21, 2021 2:25 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI)- The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed head coach Mike Tomlin to a three-year contract extension, keeping him with the team through at least the 2024 season. Tomlin was hired by the Steelers in 2007. He’ll enter his 15th season with the team in 2021. “I am pleased to announce we have extended Mike Tomlin’s contract through the 2024 season,” Steelers President Art Rooney II said in a statement. “Mike is one of the most successful head coaches in the National Football League, and we are confident in his leadership to continue to lead our team as we work to win another championship.”
April 20, 2021 3:53 am
UNDATED (AP) – Alex Smith has retired after making an improbable comeback from a gruesome broken leg, saying he’s ready to leave the NFL but believing he’s still able to play quarterback. Smith earned AP Comeback Player of the Year honors for getting back on the field last season, two years removed from an injury that required 17 operations. The first player taken in the 2005 draft threw for 35,650 yards and 199 touchdowns in 174 regular-season games.
