April 20, 2020 3:39 am
UNDATED (AP) – Sports fans hoping for a fast return to the games they love might need to temper their expectations. Although sports leagues talk publicly about their desire to return to competition before summer, those are best-case scenarios. Behind closed doors, they are hatching different potential plans: all 30 baseball teams playing in Arizona; home run contests to decide tie games; the Stanley Cup being hoisted in an empty arena that neither team calls home; end-of-season soccer standings decided by vote; college football games in spring. Over the past week, The Associated Press interviewed more than 20 policymakers, coaches and players across the globe for their assessments of the situation. They all conceded that sports may not restart for months, if at all this year. Most agree that what’s needed is a drastic ramp-up in testing, a vaccine or some type of improved treatment to make players feel safe to compete. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the infectious disease expert, has suggested that sports could conceivably return with no fans in arenas and constant testing for the players, who would likely need to be quarantined in hotels for weeks or months. Not all players are on board.
April 19, 2020 8:00 am
Socially distanced crews in New York and California are keeping horse racing on television in the U.S. during the coronavirus pandemic. Horse racing is one of the few sports ongoing, albeit in a limited capacity at a handful of empty tracks. But its TV presence has expanded because of the dearth of other options. The New York Racing Association helps produce “America’s Day at the Races” on Fox Sports, TVG has partnered with NBC Sports for a dozen hours of coverage each week and the hope is that the fledgling industry can stay afloat and gain more exposure.
April 18, 2020 4:15 am
(AP) – The NFL will hold a practice remote draft on Monday, three days before the real thing is done in the same way. Commissioner Roger Goodell ordered all team facilities closed in March, and later required club personnel to conduct the draft from their homes. Because of the reliance on free-flowing communication, the league decided to stage a mock draft to ensure that the proceedings next week would go smoothly.
April 18, 2020 4:11 am
UNDATED (AP) – The COVID-19 pandemic is taking a bite out of NBA salaries.NBA players will see 25% of their paychecks taken out starting May 15 in an agreement with the league. The decision was finalized today in a board of governors meeting and was done in concert with the National Basketball Players Association. The cutback in salary has been expected for some time in response to the NBA’s shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The NBA playoffs would have started Saturday. If none of the 259 outstanding regular season games are played, the players would lose about $800 million in gross salary.Commissioner Adam Silver said it remains impossible for the NBA to make any decisions about whether to resume this season and that it is unclear when that will change.
April 16, 2020 3:49 am
UNDATED (AP) – Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred wants his leagues to be in position to take the field whenever government and health officials give the go-ahead. Manfred says he thinks it’s incumbent upon MLB to turn over every stone to try to play the game in 2020 if there’s any way it can in the environment. Among the plans being investigating is basing all 30 teams in the Phoenix area and using the 10 spring training ballparks there, along with the Diamondbacks’ Chase Field and possibly college facilities. Arizona’s governor says his state is willing to host all 30 major league teams when public health concerns allow, which eventually could lead to the start of the baseball season primarily in empty spring training ballparks. Having all teams based in the Phoenix area is among the contingency plans being examined.
April 16, 2020 3:47 am
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) – A federal report says Baseball Hall of Famer Roy Halladay had drugs in his system and was doing extreme acrobatics in his small plane when it crashed into the Gulf of Mexico in 2017, killing him. The National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday that the former Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies star had amphetamine levels about 10 times therapeutic levels in his system along with other drugs that can impair judgement. He was doing a series of maneuvers when the plane suddenly nosedived into the water on Nov. 7, 2017. The report said Halladay had sometimes come within five feet of the water before the crash.
April 15, 2020 3:47 am
The NHL will remain on pause through at least the end of the month. The league on Tuesday announced it was extending its self-quarantine recommendation for players, coaches and staff through April 30. The announcement marks the third time the NHL has pushed back its timetable.
April 15, 2020 2:48 am
Long-time Peters Township baseball coach Joe Maize and three-time state champion Rob Gagliani of Avella were named to the WPIAL Hall of Fame Class of 2021. Maize led the Indians to more than 400 wins in his 35-year career. Peters Township won eight section titles, back-to-back WPIAL championships (2007, 2008) and finished second in the state in 2004 & 2005. Three of Maize’s players went on to reach the Major Leagues–Chris Peters (Pirates), Brian Simmons (White Sox, Blue Jays) and Jordan Jankowski (Astros). Gagliani is the only shooter to win three consecutive WPIAL rifle championships (2007-2009). The Avella marksman also finished in the top 10 in PIAA competition, winning the state title in his senior season. The pair will be inducted into the WPIAL Hall of Fame along with seven other athletes, one additional coach along with one official, a heritage nominee and a Courage Award winner in May, 2021. WPIAL Hall of Fame Announcement
April 12, 2020 7:44 am
TORONTO (AP) — Colby Cave, an excellent teammate whose lone goal for the Edmonton Oilers this season came on an “awesome” rush down the ice, died Saturday after a brain bleed this week. He was 25. The NHL club did not say what caused the bleed. Cave’s agent, Jason Davidson, has said the condition did not appear linked to the coronavirus. “Our Colby was loved dearly by us, his family and friends, the entire hockey community, and many more,” his family said in a statement. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Cave’s “life and hockey career, though too short, were inspiringly emblematic of the best of our game. Undrafted but undaunted, Colby was relentless in the pursuit of his hockey dream,” he added. Cave was placed in a medically induced coma Tuesday at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. He was airlifted to Toronto after being admitted to a hospital in Barrie, Ontario, on Monday. Cave underwent emergency surgery Tuesday to remove a colloid cyst causing pressure on the brain.
April 11, 2020 2:56 am
Wednesday morning, Gov. Tom Wolf announced that Pennsylvania schools would remain closed through the end of the current academic year. They had previously been closed by the governor through April 30th. High school winter championships (basketball and Class 2A Swimming & Diving) were suspended and all spring sports barred from activities under the shutdown. Wednesday afternoon, hopes of completing those championships and playing any part of the spring seasons were dashed when PIAA Executive Director Dr. Robert Lombardi announced the cancellation. “Today’s decision by the PIAA Board of Directors was difficult for everyone. Their thoughts remain on the thousands of student-athletes, coaches, officials and family members affected bythis decision,” Lombardi in a press release. “However, the Board’s position reflects a steadfast priority of keeping our student-athletes, officials and member schools’ staffs and their communities safe, while following the guidelines provided by the Governor, the Department of Health and the Department of Education. We had maintained hope for a continuation of our Winter Championships and an abbreviated Spring season to help bring a sense of normalcy to our communities,” continued Lombardi. “As we navigate through this difficult time we need to remember the lessons that interscholastic athletics has taught us: cooperation, patience, sacrifice, responsibility, respect and perseverance.”
