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The Chicago Cubs’ Kris Bryant celebrating with his teammates after they won the World Series against the Cleveland Indians. The Baseball Writers’ Association of America named him the National League Most Valuable Player for 2016. David J. Phillip/AP hide caption toggle caption David J. Phillip/AP The Chicago Cubs’ Kris Bryant celebrating with his teammates after they won the World Series against the Cleveland Indians. The Baseball Writers’ Association of America…

CHICAGO — Big stuff going down at baseball’s quarterly owners’ meetings at the historic Drake Hotel. There is a new collective bargaining agreement being negotiated with a Dec. 1 deadline, the game’s future in the hands of those at the table. Most folks here seemed a little antsy or curious over its completion and its details. On Wednesday night and Thursday morning, though? The Lords of the Realm pivoted to…

The Purple Mermaids, an under-eight girls’ team, takes part in a New York City soccer league that has “everyone plays” as its motto. The league is not competitive, statistics are not recorded, and no results are logged. The keyword is participation and fun. The team will end its fall season this weekend with a trophy presentation. Each player will receive a plastic trophy after the final game, an award for…

RELATED: What if Edwards had won 2011 title?   While Tony Stewart hasn’t wanted the whole “retirement tour” and the gifts that come along with it like what we saw with Jeff Gordon in 2015, the three-time Sprint Cup Series champion recently received a gift that he couldn’t refuse — and from an unlikely source.   Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Carl Edwards revealed Thursday during the Championship…

Commissioner Rob Manfred says baseball wants to study high-profile positions within the sport to see if certain qualifications predict success, a step that “has everything to do” with minority hiring. Baseball had no Latino managers before Rick Renteria took over the Chicago White Sox last month. Dusty Baker of the Washington Nationals and Dave Roberts from the Los Angeles Dodgers are the only black skippers among the league’s 30 teams….

Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello Ben Margot | AP file Just as sure as the sun will rise in the east, the baseball awards season will lead to people calling for baseball writers to get out of the business of voting on postseason awards. Things were going swimmingly for the Baseball Writers Association of America as it handed out awards in dribbles this week. That is, until last evening when…

Franklin County prosecutors have dismissed charges against a baseball player who was accused of raping a woman in a Downtown hotel while his team was in town for a series with the Columbus Clippers. “Victim does not wish to proceed; cannot prosecute the case without her,” the prosecution wrote in a dismissal entry signed Wednesday by Common Pleas Judge David Young. Elmer S. Reyes, 25, was indicted on two counts…

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Razorback baseball program and head coach Dave Van Horn announced the signing of 19 student-athletes to National Letters of Intent for the 2018 season this week, four coming from Arkansas and one that grew up in the state. Van Horn, who is entering his 15th season at the helm of the Razorbacks, has always succeeded in keeping the best talent in the state at home and…

An 18-year-old man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for last year’s fatal shooting of a baseball prospect in a suburban New York parking lot. The Journal News reports Nashaun Hunter was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to a reduced charge of first-degree manslaughter. Two others have already been sentenced in the shooting. Hunter’s lawyer called the shooting a terrible and tragic mistake. Michael Nolan was declared dead…

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Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email print comment LONDON — Novak Djokovic is a fan of the round-robin format in tennis, and he would even like to see it used at the Olympics and the Davis Cup. Djokovic wins, but with another heated exchange Novak Djokovic certainly seems wound up at the moment and he gave another clear indication of his mindset with an outburst at the chair umpire Thursday in London….

Arsenal’s Champions League semi-final first leg against Villarreal at Highbury was interrupted after an opportunistic squirrel scrambled onto the pitch in the 10th minute of the game. With the game locked at 0-0, Arsenal fans relieved the tension with cries of “There’s only one squirrel, only one squirrel!’ The rodent proved to be a lucky omen as Arsenal secured a crucial one goal first leg lead.

Sophomore striker Gordon Wild has scored 16 goals this season for Maryland, the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament. (Courtesy of Maryland Athletics) Had Gordon Wild gone into the family business, one that dates to the 19th century on his father’s side, he might have been riding a unicycle instead of attempting bicycle kicks or manning the midway instead of collecting passes from the University of Maryland’s midfield….

5:55 PM ET Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email print comment The NHL’s Olympic decision remained unresolved after another meeting Wednesday, though there’s certainly more intrigue to it all now. Donald Fehr, executive director of the NHL Players’ Association, confirmed to reporters in New York on Wednesday that the NHL has offered to sign off on Olympic participation for 2018 in exchange for extending the current CBA. “There have been some suggestions…

5:55 PM ET Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email print comment The NHL’s Olympic decision remained unresolved after another meeting Wednesday, though there’s certainly more intrigue to it all now. Donald Fehr, executive director of the NHL Players’ Association, confirmed to reporters in New York on Wednesday that the NHL has offered to sign off on Olympic participation for 2018 in exchange for extending the current CBA. “There have been some suggestions…

Kate Upton had a point. Her math is off, her facts are off, but she had a point. Sorry, Kate, no writer should be fired for failing to vote for your fiance, Justin Verlander, for the American League Cy Young Award. But, with all due respect to the Baseball Writers Association of America — of which I am a proud member — the omission of Verlander from the ballot by both Tampa…

The Bird name is pretty important at West Ranch. Jake Bird was a standout pitcher who’s now at UCLA. There’s another Bird pitcher beginning to develop. Sophomore Trent Bird doesn’t yet have his older brother’s velocity, but he has a good curveball and could be in position to contribute this spring. West Ranch is looking for a No. 2 pitcher behind ace Tim Josten, a Cal State Fullerton signee. Bird…

It’s time for Bruce Arena to come back. Not to the Galaxy. To the national team. Taking a step back by replacing Jurgen Klinsmann with the former U.S. manager would count as two steps forward at this point. That’s how dysfunctional the team has become under Klinsmann. The problems manifested themselves spectacularly over the last week with defeats that placed the Americans in serious jeopardy of not qualifying for the World Cup in…

Alex Bowman is a remarkable young man. He’s handsome, well-spoken and handles himself like a true professional off the race track. To be put in the situation he was this year filling in for NASCAR’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and to deliver great runs is well, once again, remarkable. My FOX NASCAR partner Jeff Gordon told me that after he had filled in for Dale Jr. at the…

Despite not receiving the most first-place votes, Boston Red Sox right-hander Rick Porcello was named winner of the 2016 AL Cy Young Award on Wednesday night. He received eight first-place votes, while Detroit Tigers righty Justin Verlander received 14. Porcello’s huge edge in second-place votes (18-2) was the key to his win. The five-point gap between Porcello and Verlander was the second-smallest in Cy Young history. Verlander lost to David…