AP Sports

 

 

 

Update on the latest sports:

 

 

MLB-NEWS:

 

Tigers lose Cabrera for the rest of the season

 

UNDATED (AP) – Miguel Cabrera’s season is over, leaving Detroit without its biggest star at a time when there wasn’t much else for Tigers fans to latch onto.

 

Cabrera ruptured his left biceps tendon on a swing during Tuesday night’s 6-4 loss to the Minnesota Twin, just a couple of weeks after the two-time MVP returned from a DL stint due to a right hamstring strain. The 35-year-old will have surgery this week. Manager Ron Gardenhire says the slugger’s status for the 2019 season won’t be known until after the operation. He still has $154 million left on a contract that runs through 2023.

 

Cabrera batted .301 with three homers and 22 RBIs for a team that wasn’t expected to compete in the AL Central.

 

In other MLB news:

 

– Nationals slugger Bryce Harper says he’s “fine” after being hit by a pair of pitches during Tuesday night’s 3-0 loss to the Yankees. Harper fell to the ground in pain after getting plunked on the right elbow by a 90 mph pitch from CC Sabathia (suh-BATH’-ee-uh). He stayed in the game until he was hit on the left foot by Dellin Betances’ 89 mph slider in the eighth inning. Harper had been hit just once previously this season and had not been dinged twice in a game since Aug. 16, 2013, at Atlanta.

 

– The Ohio Supreme Court has heard arguments in a dispute over promotions including bobbleheads and other items offered by the Cincinnati Reds to ticket buyers. At issue is whether the Reds are exempt from paying tax on the purchase of the promotional items. Attorneys for the Reds argue they don’t have to pay tax because they resell the promotional items as part of the ticket package. Ohio law exempts companies from paying tax on items they buy to resell. A decision is not expected for several weeks.

 

MLB-SCHEDULE

 

Mets try to snap a puzzling skid

 

UNDATED (AP) – The Mets try to snap a puzzling skid when Jacob deGrom pitches against Atlanta Wednesday afternoon. DeGrom has a 1.24 ERA in his past four starts, and yet the Mets have lost each of those outings.

 

Only the Marlins and Reds have worse records in the NL than the Mets. As the All-Star Game next month and the July 31 trade deadline approach, general manager Sandy Alderson says he would consider retooling if the Mets’ record doesn’t improve.

 

Elsewhere in the majors:

 

– Angels slugger Mike Trout leads the majors with 23 home runs and he’s gone deep twice each of the last two nights in Seattle, becoming the first player with consecutive multihomer games at Safeco Field. But that hasn’t been enough for the Angels, who lost both times. The Angels again face the first-place Mariners, with left-hander Marco Gonzales on the mound for Seattle. Gonzales has allowed only three earned runs in his past five starts, a span of 33 1/3 innings. Garrett Richards pitches for the Angels. He shut out the Mariners over 6 2/3 innings on May 4 but hasn’t won since.

 

– Gerrit Cole aims to keep up his stellar season when Houston faces Oakland. Cole has won five straight decisions and entered Tuesday leading the AL with 124 strikeouts. He has yet to allow more than three earned runs in a start this season. Paul Blackburn is up for the A’s following a terrific season debut last week against Kansas City.

 

– Kenta Maeda is set to return for the Dodgers against Texas, though most of his usual rotation-mates are still on the disabled list. Maeda has been out with a hip injury since May 29, and he’ll come off the DL a day after rookie right-hander Walker Buehler was added to the list. Buehler, Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill, Hyun-Jin Ryu and Dennis Santana remain on the DL for the Dodgers.

 

WORLD CUP-2026 HOST

 

North American trio beats Morocco to host 2026 World Cup

 

MOSCOW (AP) – North America will host the 2026 World Cup after FIFA voters overwhelmingly opted for the financial and logistical certainty of a United States-led bid over a risky Moroccan proposal for the first 48-team tournament.

 

The soccer showpiece will return to the U.S. for the first time since 1994 after gaining 134 votes, while Morocco got 65 votes at the FIFA Congress in Moscow on Wednesday.

 

The vote by football federations was public, in contrast to secrecy surrounding the ballot by FIFA’s elected board members for the 2018 and 2022 hosts, Russia and Qatar, in 2010.

 

North America is optimistically promising to deliver $14 billion in revenue, while the tournament won’t require major construction work required on the 16 planned stadiums, all of which already exist.

 

The U.S. proposed staging 60 out of the 80 games in 2026, when 16 teams will be added to the tournament, leaving Canada and Mexico with 10 games each. But FIFA President Gianni Infantino suggested the split of games could change.

 

SCHOOL SHOOTING-ESPY AWARDS

 

Coaches killed in Florida shooting to receive ESPY awards

 

MIAMI (AP) – The ESPYs are breaking tradition for this year’s Best Coach Award, awarding it posthumously to three Florida high school coaches who died shielding their students from gunfire.

 

The ESPN network announced Wednesday that family members of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School heroes Aaron Feis, Scott Beigel, and Chris Hixon will receive the award during the show on July 18.

 

The award has previously gone to coaches who have shown extraordinary leadership of their teams – not for heroism off the field. Previous recipients include Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson and New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

 

ESPN’s Vice President Alison Overholt said the men are being honored for “their immeasurable bravery in the face of danger and for their ultimate sacrifice to protect the lives of countless students.”

 

HIGH SCHOOL MASCOT DEBATE

 

Panel opts not to change school’s Redskins team name, mascot

 

CINCINNATI (AP) – In the latest round in a recurring fight, a Cincinnati-area high school whose teams have been called the Redskins for over 80 years will keep that mascot.

 

A committee heard heated debate and decided against recommending any change of the mascot name at Anderson High School.

 

People pushing to change the name argue it’s offensive and inappropriate to use the racial reference. Advocates of keeping the name contend that it is part of school tradition and that changing the branding would be an unnecessary expense of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

 

The clash echoes debate in professional sports over the NFL’s Washington Redskins’ moniker and the Cleveland Indians’ Chief Wahoo logo. The Indians’ logo is being removed from players’ uniforms but not from other merchandise.