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Hyvinkää, Finland The fastest-moving baseball game on earth is played almost 4,000 miles from the nearest major-league stadium. It hums along in rural towns so small that spectators sometimes outnumber local residents, on fields so far north that the only lighting required is the nighttime sun. It is called pesäpallo, an obscure version of baseball that is little known outside the Finnish countryside. And for anyone who has ever grumbled…

Relaxation poured from Ozzie Guillen’s pores Wednesday afternoon as he sat on a couch in the living room of his Bucktown home, reliving some memories from the 2005 World Series championship season. The only tense in the former White Sox manager/shortstop’s peripheral is the present and the future. But he hears his past knocking. “I miss baseball,” he said. Nearly 10 years removed from the miracle on 35th Street season,…

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Jul 7, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar (2) is congratulated by designated hitter Kendrys Morales (25) after scoring against the Tampa Bay Rays in the sixth inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports As Major League Baseball heads into the final weekend before the All-Star game, there are three different windows for daily fantasy baseball players to get into contests today….

Relaxation poured from Ozzie Guillen’s pores Wednesday afternoon as he sat on a couch in the living room of his Bucktown home, reliving some memories from the 2005 World Series championship season. The only tense in the former White Sox manager/shortstop’s peripheral is the present and the future. But he hears his past knocking. “I miss baseball,” he said. Nearly 10 years removed from the miracle on 35th Street season,…

Justin Sullivan—Getty Images Bid to help its struggling advertising business Yahoo is hoping to help its struggling advertising business with a foray into legal online gambling, The Wall Street Journal reported. The tech giant on Wednesday unveiled an updated version of its fantasy-sports app that allows users to bet money each day and each week with friends. There are also larger online tournaments that users can play, and Yahoo will…

0 Shares Print It’s the midway point of the season, however you choose to look at it: mathematical (this past Saturday) or traditional (the upcoming All-Star break). That makes it an ideal time to reflect and perhaps hand out midseason hardware. For today’s edition, though, I’m taking the optimist’s approach to seemingly pessimistic situations: the first half’s fantasy disappointments, but taken from the angle of measuring their bounce-back potential. Robinson…

For a list of all the latest deals, check out the transfers page. Manchester United’s Netherlands striker Robin van Persie, 31, is close to joining Fenerbahce in Turkey after further talks between the clubs. (Daily Mail)  Real Madrid and Porto have agreed a deal which will see Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas, 34, leave the Bernabeu on Friday after 25 years. …

Multiple drivers, most notably Ryan Newman and Joey Logano, spoke in highly critical terms of the dangers inherent in restrictor-plate racing after Austin Dillon’s airborne crash on the final lap of the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Others in the sport have in recent days lobbied NASCAR to make major changes at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway, and some pundits have even suggested abandoning the often-maligned restrictor plates altogether….

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ENLARGE After each milestone for soccer in the U.S., the same question always follows: Has the sport finally “arrived” in the mainstream? Sunday’s 5-2 U.S. victory over Japan in the Women’s World Cup final is the latest example: With 26.7 million U.S. viewers, it became the most-watched soccer game in U.S. history. Experts say the real question for soccer’s growth isn’t whether its premier global matches have drawing power (they…

Mike Hewitt—FIFA/Getty Images The USA team celebrates victory in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 Final between USA and Japan at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver. Christina Asquith and Xanthe Ackerman are journalists with The Fuller Project for International Reporting. The U.S. women’s soccer team should use their stage to demand that all governments support women in soccer Almost 27 million viewers in the U.S. watched…

SPARTA, Ky. – Here comes the rain again. Two days after the Coke Zero 400 ended at 2:41 a.m. because of a three-hour weather delay, a midafternoon shower put another damper on NASCAR’s plans to begin testing new rules at Kentucky Speedway. Sprint Cup teams were scheduled to test at the 1.5-mile oval from 3-8 p.m. with a one-hour break from 5-6, but as of 3 p.m., it still was…

For an article on FiveThirtyEight today, Mike Lopez and Noah Davis charted the relationship between spending and win percentage for every baseball season since 1985. They found that the relationship between money and winning in baseball is as strong now as it’s been any time in the free-agency era. Below you’ll see that relationship for each team in the majors. Each season is one dot in the figure, and the…

facebook twitter googleplus tumblr pinterest Welcome to the free late DFS MLB Playbook for Wednesday, July 8, courtesy of Sporting News partners FantasyAlarm.com. Every day, the experts at FantasyAlarm.com, who won the 2015 FanDuel Playboy Championship, will publish their top daily fantasy baseball plays at each position across various DFS sites in the Playbook. It’s a great place to start your MLB DFS research for the day, but there’s much more behind the…

The Red Sox farm system is stockpiled with future big-league standouts, at least in the eyes of Baseball America. Boston placed five prospects in Baseball America’s midseason Top 50, best in Major League Baseball. Second baseman Yoan Moncada leads the way at No. 11 overall. The 20-year-old from Cuba signed with the Red Sox for a $31.5 million bonus in March. “Scouts who have seen him in Greenville have been…

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Mike Hewitt—FIFA/Getty Images The USA team celebrates victory in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 Final between USA and Japan at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver. Christina Asquith and Xanthe Ackerman are journalists with The Fuller Project for International Reporting. The U.S. women’s soccer team should use their stage to demand that all governments support women in soccer Almost 27 million viewers in the U.S. watched…

Jul 7, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo (44) hits a two run home run during the eighth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals in game one of a baseball doubleheader at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports Wednesdays in summer usually mean a full day of MLB action due to afternoon baseball games.  Today continues that trend with eight teams ready for daytime action while…

It’s a full 15-game slate today for the boys in the big leagues and the men and women playing the big-money daily leagues on draftkings.com. However, there’s a severe-weather warning, and many of the day’s games are in danger of a delay or cancellation. At 7:30 a.m. ET, draftkings.com is listing six games with the little rain icon. Beware the little rain icon! No player is more affected by a…