AP Sports

MLB bans Tucupita Marcano for life for betting on baseball, four others get one-year suspensions

NEW YORK (AP) — San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano was banned from baseball for life for betting on the sport and four others were suspended for one year by Major League Baseball in the game’s biggest gambling scandal in decades. MLB said Marcano placed 387 baseball bets totaling more than $150,000 in October 2022 and from last July through November with a legal sportsbook. He became the first active player in a century banned for life because of gambling. Oakland Athletics pitcher Michael Kelly was suspended for one year for betting on baseball while in the minor leagues and a three minor leaguers also were banned for one year for betting on big league games: pitchers Jay Groome of San Diego and Andrew Saalfrank of Arizona, and infielder José Rodríguez of Philadelphia.

Ippei Mizuhara, ex-interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani, pleads guilty in sports betting case

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud in a sports betting case. Ippei Mizuhara has admitted that he stole nearly $17 million from the Japanese baseball player to pay off debts. Mizuhara entered the plea Tuesday in federal court in Santa Ana, California. Baseball fans from the U.S. to Japan were shocked when the news broke in March. Mizuhara was initially charged with one count of bank fraud and agreed to a plea deal. Authorities say there was no evidence Ohtani was involved in or aware of Mizuhara’s gambling, and the player is cooperating with investigators.

Caitlin Clark, physical play and questions about fouls dominating discussions around the WNBA

Caitlin Clark has been involved in several physical plays to start her WNBA career and Indiana Fever coach Christie Sides believes some of the fouls against the high-profile rookie have crossed the line. There are no shortage of opinions about what’s happening, ranging from Clark is being targeted because of all the attention accompanying her transition into the league to race being a factor in the physical play. The conversations exploded following the latest non-basketball foul involving Clark. Chicago’s Chennedy Carter sent the top-pick to the floor with a shoulder hit on Saturday. Clark says she now expects to be on the receiving end of a couple of hard fouls a game.

Novak Djokovic withdraws from the French Open with a knee injury and will lose the No. 1 ranking

PARIS (AP) — Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the French Open with an injured knee. The withdrawal ends Djokovic’s title defense and means he will relinquish the No. 1 ranking next week. Djokovic has a torn medial meniscus in his right knee. The extent of the injury was found during an MRI exam on Tuesday, a day after Djokovic was hurt during a fourth-round victory. The 24-time Grand Slam champion was supposed to face two-time French Open runner-up Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Instead, Ruud gets a walkover into the semifinals. No. 2 Jannik Sinner is assured of replacing Djokovic atop the ATP rankings.

Analysis: A year after PGA Tour’s surprise deal with Saudis, still no clarity on where golf is going

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — One year after the PGA Tour announced a proposed deal with the backers of LIV Golf, there still aren’t many answers about where golf is headed and how to repair the fractured landscape with great players on two tours. It remains one of the most stunning developments in golf. Not just making the deal with the Saudis, but keeping the entire membership in the dark. Perhaps the biggest change from a year ago is players now have a majority voice on the board. But what exactly do they want? Where is golf headed, and how does it get put back together?

Coco Gauff and defending champion Iga Swiatek will meet in the French Open semifinals

PARIS (AP) — Coco Gauff and defending champion Iga Swiatek have set up a showdown in the French Open semifinals. Gauff came back to defeat Ons Jabeur 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in Tuesday’s first quarterfinal. Swiatek followed with a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova to stretch her Roland Garros winning streak to 19 matches as she seeks a fourth title in five years in Paris. Swiatek is ranked No. 1 and Gauff is No. 3. Gauff is the reigning U.S. Open champion and made it to the final four at the Australian Open in January. Swiatek has won 10 of their 11 previous meetings.

NASCAR grants Larson a waiver to compete in playoffs after missing Coca-Cola 600 for Indy 500

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR has granted Kyle Larson the waiver he needs to remain eligible to compete in this year’s playoffs despite missing the Coca-Cola 600 because he instead ran the Indianapolis 500. The decision came after nearly nine days of internal NASCAR debate over whether Larson should be punished for choosing to stay in Indianapolis, where rain delayed the May 26 race by four hours. That meant Larson had zero chance of making it back to Charlotte in time to start the Coca-Cola 600. But it was always his intent to race at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Larson did make it to the track, only for the race to be called for rain before he ever turned a lap in his No. 5 Chevrolet.

Grayson Murray is remembered for his kindness during a player ceremony at the Memorial

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — Grayson Murray is on players’ minds at the start of the Memorial. The PGA Tour held a celebration of his life in a garden area at Muirfield Village on Tuesday. Dozens of players in the 72-man field stood solemnly for a series of remembrances. Scottie Scheffler referred to Murray as a sweet man and spoke of the joy Murray had playing a practice round at The Players Championship. Commissioner Jay Monahan says Murray leaves a legacy of being kind to others. Murray died by suicide on May 25 after withdrawing at Colonial. He had struggled with alcohol and mental health issues.

Mbappé declares his ‘immense pleasure’ at joining Real Madrid after unhappy end to PSG career

Kylian Mbappé has declared his “immense pleasure” at finally joining Real Madrid and feels his time at Paris Saint-Germain came to a sad end. Madrid has reached a deal with the France star, bringing together a prolific scorer and a record 15-time Champions League winner. Mbappé says “finally, it’s official, I am going to be a Real Madrid player for the next five years.” Mbappé’s seven years at PSG came to a difficult end. His final season started and ended amid tensions. Mbappé says “some things and some people” made him feel unhappy. He was speaking at a pre-match news conference in Metz where France hosts Luxembourg on Wednesday ahead of the European Championship.

Scottie Scheffler says he’s still trying to move past his arrest even after charges were dropped

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — Scottie Scheffler says he’s trying to move past his arrest during the PGA Championship. Scheffler says even though he knew ahead of time that charges were going to be dropped, that was only the start of trying to process what happened. He was arrested and booked into jail briefly on May 17 before the second round in Louisville, Kentucky. The charges stem from what he calls a misunderstanding as police directed traffic while investigating a fatal traffic accident. Scheffler says the arrest will be a topic for him the rest of the year. And the jail mug shot isn’t going away.