May 25, 2020 3:23 am
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) – Brad Keselowski extended Jimmie Johnson’s losing streak to 102 races, holding off the seven-time NASCAR champion in overtime early Monday in the Coca-Cola 600. Keselowski started in the back of the field, worked his way to the front at Charlotte Motor Speedway and gambled in not pitting when caution stopped Chase Elliott from winning with two laps remaining.
May 24, 2020 6:04 am
UNDATED (AP) – The NBA could become a Mickey Mouse operation, although the idea isn’t Goofy. The league is in talks with The Walt Disney Company on a single-site scenario for a resumption of play in Central Florida in late July. It’s the clearest sign yet that the NBA believes the season can continue amid the coronavirus pandemic. The National Basketball Players Association is also part of the talks with Disney. Games would be held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, a massive campus on the Disney property near Orlando. NBA spokesman Mike Bass said the conversations were still “exploratory,” and that the site would be used for practices and housing as well. ESPN is primarily owned by Disney, one of the NBA’s broadcast partners. Space won’t be an issue, even if Major League Soccer – which is also in talks to resume its season at Disney – is there at the same time as the NBA. The entire Disney complex is roughly 40 square miles, with nearly 24,000 hotel rooms owned or operated by Disney.
May 23, 2020 4:29 am
UNDATED (AP) – The New York Jets are giving Joe Flacco a chance to continue his NFL career. Flacco has signed a one-year deal to serve as Sam Darnold’s backup, giving the Jets a veteran presence under center. Flacco led Baltimore to a Super Bowl victory following the 2012 season and spent 11 years with the Ravens before playing for Denver in 2019. He started eight games for the Broncos, completing 65.3 percent of his passes for 1,822 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions before a neck injury caused him to miss the last two months of the season. Flacco has completed 61.9% of his passes for 40,067 yards, 218 touchdowns and 141 interceptions. He was waived by Denver in March with a failed physical designation but is expected to be fully recovered in time for training camp in the summer.
May 22, 2020 3:53 am
CHICAGO (AP) – The Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates are trimming payroll while they await word on the fate of the Major League Baseball season. The Cubs are instituting pay cuts because of the coronavirus crisis, but there will be no furloughs through the end of June. The Pirates announced Thursday they are instituting furloughs for several employees in business operations beginning on June 1. A person with direct knowledge of the situation says the Cubs’ pay cuts were based on compensation. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein and president of business operations Crane Kenney took the highest reductions.
May 22, 2020 3:50 am
Little League has released a set of “best practice” guidelines it believes would allow baseball and softball to be played safely after local authorities give the groups the all-clear to return to play. The recommendations include eliminating all non-essential contact and banning the postgame handshake line in favor of lining up along the respective baselines and tipping your cap to the opponent. All players should wear masks while in the dugout and coaches and volunteers should wear masks and protective medical gloves at all times.
May 21, 2020 3:51 am
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – The Oakland Athletics say they can’t pay their landlord. The head of the agency that oversees the Oakland Coliseum says the A’s have informed him they had “no ability to pay” the annual $1.2 million rent on the facility. Henry Gardner tells the Bay Area News Group that the A’s say they’ve been unable to generate revenue because they haven’t used the Coliseum this season. MLB has been in shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. Gardner says the Coliseum is willing to negotiate and waive some items in the Athletics lease, but, “we can’t just say no rent.”
Gardner is the interim executive director of the Coliseum authority. The A’s have made the payment annually for use of the city- and county-owned baseball stadium. The team could face penalties for failure to pay.
May 20, 2020 3:45 am
UNDATED (AP) – The NHL is still more than a week away from determining a return-to-play format. That word comes from a person familiar with discussions. And what that plan resembles could be complicated further should the U.S. and Canada extend border restrictions to non-essential travel into July. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced border restrictions will stay in effect through June 21. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly tells The Associated Press he’s hopeful the decision to close the border to non-essential travel for another month won’t “have a material impact” on the league’s discussions to restart its season.
May 19, 2020 3:42 am
PHOENIX (AP) – Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Starling Marte announced on social media that his wife Noelia has died of a heart attack. Marte made the announcement on Monday night and wrote that he was “grateful for the expressions of esteem and solidarity in this difficult time.” The 31-year-old Marte has played his entire eight-year big league career with the Pittsburgh Pirates before being traded to the Diamondbacks during the offseason. Both the Pirates and Diamondbacks responded to Marte with condolences on social media.
May 18, 2020 3:44 am
DARLINGTON, S.C. – Kevin Harvick was the winner as NASCAR resumed its Cup schedule following a 10-week layoff. Harvick took the lead from Alex Bowman on a late restart and pulled away over the final 30 laps at Darlington Raceway. Bowman finished second, followed by Kurt Busch, Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin. Harvick is the only drive to finish in the top 10 in each of the Cup Series’ five races this season. He emerged from his car in victory lane wearing a black face mask — what could become NASCAR’s new normal. It was the first Cup race in 71 days since the schedule was halted due to the coronavirus pandemic. The event was run without fans and with an emphasis on masks and social distancing. Roughly 900 people were approved to be inside the gates, all considered essential.
May 17, 2020 7:48 am
UNDATED (AP) – Major League Baseball owners have made their pitch as they try to convince players to accept less pay due to the coronavirus pandemic. MLB has told players their prorated salaries would contribute to an average loss of $640,000 for each game over an 82-game season in empty ballparks. That’s according to a presentation from the commissioner’s office to the union that was obtained by The Associated Press. The 12-page document was dated May 12 and paints a grim picture of a $10 billion industry shuttered by the pandemic. It was an initial step in negotiations aimed at starting the delayed season around the Fourth of July. Some players have publicly balked at the notion of less pay, and the union has called for more transparency in baseball’s financial records. Teams say the proposed method of salvaging a season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic would still cause a $4 billion loss and would give major league players 89% of revenue. The Yankees would have the highest loss at $312 million.
