AP National Sports

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — The head of the baseball players’ association is worried about the sport’s increased commercial deals with sports gambling companies. A BetMGM Retail Sportsbook opened this year at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., and DraftKings is building a sports book scheduled to open next year at

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Major League Baseball is moving ahead with plans for advertising on uniforms next season. The new labor contract agreed to in March allows teams to add uniform and helmet advertising patches. The San Diego Padres in April became the first team to announce a deal

LOS ANGELES (AP) — So let’s say the All-Star Game is tied 3-all after nine innings. Then it goes to that new Home Run Derby tiebreaker, where National League boppers Pete Alonso, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Kyle Schwarber outslug the AL trio. What’s the final score? After a couple of ideas were considered, Major League

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona says the fee to acquire striker Robert Lewandowski could reach 50 million euros. The Spanish club says it will pay Bayern Munich 45 million euros plus 5 million euros in variables for the transfer of the prolific Poland player. The buyout clause for the 33-year-old Lewandowski will be set at

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Major League Baseball says it is unable to let former and current major leaguers who defected from Cuba play for their nation in the World Baseball Classic. The Association of Cuban Professional Baseball Players was formed with the goal of gaining entry to the WBC, which will be played March 8

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The exploration of the sale of the Washington Nationals by the Lerner family remains in the early stages. The family, which has owned the team since 2006, said in April it is exploring a possible sale. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says “they are in the process” and adds “they’ve set up

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tony Clark appears likely to stay on as head of the baseball players’ association. Clark took over as union head in late 2013 following the death of Michael Weiner. Clark led the union during labor negotiations in 2016 and during the deal in March that

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Andrej Sekera has announced his retirement after almost two decades in the NHL. The 36-year-old Slovak defenseman played the past 15 full seasons since making his debut in 2006. Sekera played 888 regular-season and playoff games for Buffalo, Carolina, Los Angeles, Edmonton and Dallas. He was a key member of the

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred is defending the sport’s treatment of minor leaguers, prompting immediate criticism from the players’ advocacy group. Manfred says the sport has made “real strides in the last few years in terms of what minor league players are paid.” A minor league

ATLANTA (AP) — Nick Saban has been vocal about his issues with the status quo in name, image and likeness deals and their use in recruiting. But it’s not like Alabama’s coach and his players haven’t benefited, too. Saban said Crimson Tide players have made more than $3 million in NIL money. “The biggest concern

SEATTLE (AP) — Outfielder Steven Souza Jr. has announced his retirement after playing parts of eight major league seasons. Souza is calling it a career after appearing in six games this season with the Seattle Mariners at age 33. He’s best known for making a spectacular diving catch to preserve Jordan Zimmermann’s no-hitter as a

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred’s preferred location for a new Rays ballpark would be on the Tampa side of the bay rather than in St. Petersburg but says the site alone won’t be a determining factor. Tampa Bay’s lease at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida,

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says the Oakland Athletics need to quickly reach a binding agreement for a new ballpark and that relocation could be considered if a deal isn’t struck for a facility in the Bay Area. He says the condition of the Coliseum is

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit alleging the University of Wisconsin System reinstated former Badgers receiver Quintez Cephus without seeking input from a woman who accused him of sexual assault in 2018. A UW-Madison investigation found that Cephus likely assaulted her and the university expelled him. A jury acquitted him

By JAY COHEN AP Sports Writer CHICAGO (AP) — NASCAR has added its first street course to the Cup schedule with a planned 2023 race through downtown Chicago. The Cup Series will race against the backdrop of Lake Michigan and Grant Park next July 2 in the debut race of a three-year deal with the

HAMBURG, Germany (AP) — Top-seeded players Carlos Alcaraz and Anett Kontaveit have won their first-round matches at the Hamburg European Open. The 19-year-old Alcaraz dropped the first set but recovered to win 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (3) against 259th-ranked German wild card Nicola Kuhn. His second-round opponent will be Filip Krajinovic. Kontaveit started her campaign in

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Serge Ibaka is staying with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks announced Tuesday that they have re-signed the 32-year-old center, who came to Milwaukee as part of a four-team deal at the Feb. 10 trade deadline. Ibaka averaged 7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 17.8 minutes in 19 games with the Bucks this past

MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich has signed Netherlands defender Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus for 67 million euros ($68.6 million) on a five-year deal. Juventus says the fee could increase by 10 million euros ($10.2 million) in conditional payments. It is Bayern’s first major signing since agreeing to sell star striker Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer The Las Vegas Aces have come out of the All-Star break on a roll, winning three road games and scoring more than 100 points in two of victories. The Aces (18-7) have five starters scoring in double figures and are averaging a league-high 91.3 points a game. Chelsea Gray

By GERALD IMRAY AP Sports Writer CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Champion runner Caster Semenya heads into this year’s world championships with virtually no chance to win. On Wednesday in Eugene, Oregon, the 31-year-old, three-time world champion at 800 meters will run instead in the 5,000-meter race. She is not considered a serious medal