Month: December 2021

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Elijah Riley’s journey back home and through the NFL began with one of the saddest moments of his life. The New York Jets safety was a freshman defensive back at Army five years ago when he received the stunning news that his

SYDNEY (AP) — Australia and New Zealand will each stage 24 games in the group stage when the countries host the Women’s World Cup for the first time in 2023. FIFA has released further details of the schedule after previously announcing that Auckland will stage the opening match on July 20 and the final will

By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams realize the clock is ticking on their bold midseason attempt to transform a good team into a star-studded Super Bowl contender with their losses piling up and their doubters growing louder. Von Miller still thinks the Rams will beat the

WATFORD, England (AP) — Chelsea stayed top of the Premier League with a hard-fought 2-1 win at Watford in a match that was halted for 32 minutes in the first half after a spectator suffered cardiac arrest. Substitute Hakim Ziyech grabbed the winner for the leaders in the 72nd minute. He converted a cross from

NOVI, Mich. (AP) — No criminal charges will be filed in the fireworks-related death of Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks at a Detroit-area home during a July 4 celebration. The Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office said Wednesday the death has officially been ruled accidental, and the case is now closed. The accident occurred Sunday, July

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer DALLAS (AP) — The latest meeting on expanding the College Football Playoff has wrapped up in Dallas without any announcement. Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby says the CFP management committee made good progress but works remains. The next meeting could come in January. CFP Executive Director Bill

By TIM BOOTH AP Sports Writer RENTON, Wash. (AP) — Desperate for depth at running back, the Seattle Seahawks signed 36-year-old Adrian Peterson to their practice squad. There’s no guarantee Peterson will be added to Seattle’s active roster ahead of Sunday’s game against San Francisco, but with Chris Carson out for the season, and Rashaad

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard is out for at least 10 days because of lower abdominal tendinopathy. Lillard missed Tuesday night’s victory over the Detroit Pistons with the condition. An MRI confirmed the diagnosis. Lillard will be evaluated again in 10 days. He will miss at least four upcoming games.

By BERNIE WILSON AP Sports Writer SAN DIEGO (AP) — San Diego State punter Matt Araiza is unquestionably the best player for the No. 19 Aztecs, who will host Utah State in the Mountain West Conference championship game Saturday in Carson, California. Araiza leads all FBS punters with an average of 51.47 yards, putting him

By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The first long-term contract offer to Byron Buxton came from the Minnesota Twins nearly five years ago. They secured the speedy center fielder this week for the next seven seasons with a $100 million deal. Getting it done required ample patience, creativity and respect from both

ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) — Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud is the offensive player of the year and freshman of the year in the Big Ten. Stroud led the nation’s top offense and ranks among the top seven passers in eight categories. His 70.9% completion rate and 351.1 yards per game are on track to be

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Mohamed Salah scored twice as Liverpool piled more pressure on former manager Rafael Benitez with a 4-1 win over local rival Everton in the Premier League. Liverpool broke a scoring record in the process. Jordan Henderson and Diogo Jota were Liverpool’s other scorers in the 239th Merseyside derby as the Reds

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles FC has picked up its short-term contract option on former MLS Most Valuable Player Carlos Vela. Vela was the first player signed by expansion LAFC, and the Mexican forward had one of the most dominant seasons in MLS history in 2019. He scored a record 34 goals and 49

LONDON (AP) — Only two points separate Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the Premier League. Liverpool hit four goals for a third consecutive game by beating Everton 4-1 on Wednesday. Being third is far from problematic for Jürgen Klopp’s 2020 champions with another 24 games to go. Manchester City won 2-1

By TIM BOOTH AP Sports Writer SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Mariners were still in the middle of finishing their first big deal of the offseason when they started making an aggressive move to land Robbie Ray for their pitching rotation, a signing that would grab even more attention. The Mariners see Ray as a

By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett and Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman entered the season with modest expectations. They will end it in the ACC championship game. Pickett rewrote Pitt’s record book in 2021, throwing for 40 touchdown passes while leading the Panthers to 10 wins. Hartman has

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — The Hero World Challenge might feel like a working vacation being in the Caribbean the first week of December. But Collin Morikawa is taking it seriously. The British Open champion has a chance to reach No. 1 in the world if he were to win

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Liverpool great Steven Gerrard couldn’t do his old club a favor. Now manager of Aston Villa, Gerrard saw his team lose 2-1 at home to Manchester City. City is one of the sides challenging Liverpool for the Premier League title. First-half goals by Portugal internationals Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva gave

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks have made a move to solidify the back end of their bullpen, adding four-time All-Star Mark Melancon on a $14 million, two-year deal. The right-handed Melancon led the National League with 39 saves last year in his only season with the San Diego

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Karim Benzema scored a first-half winner as Real Madrid edged Athletic Bilbao 1-0 to extend its winning streak and increase its lead in the Spanish league. Benzema netted his league-leading 12th goal in the 40th minute to give Madrid a seventh consecutive victory in all competitions.

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Baseball Writer SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Left-hander Alex Wood is staying with the San Francisco Giants, reaching agreement Wednesday on a $25 million, two-year contract. He gives manager Gabe Kapler two starters named Alex in the rotation after Tuesday’s addition of right-hander Alex Cobb on a $20 million, two-year contract with

By IAN HARRISON Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — In each of the past two offseasons, pitcher Kevin Gausman spurned free agent advances from the Toronto Blue Jays and general manager Ross Atkins. When Atkins called again this winter, Gausman couldn’t say no any longer. Gausman and the Blue Jays finalized a $110 million, five-year contract

SOUTHAMPTON, England (AP) — James Maddison scored for the third successive game as Leicester twice came from behind to salvage a 2-2 draw at Southampton in the Premier League. Leicester was denied a comeback victory by a combination of exceptional goalkeeping and uncharacteristic profligacy. Jamie Vardy shot over when through on goal, while Harvey Barnes

LONDON (AP) — Neal Maupay scored with an overhead kick in the 89th minute to give Brighton a 1-1 draw at West Ham in the Premier League. Maupay converted his acrobatic finish from a cross by substitute Tariq Lamptey to leave West Ham waiting for a first Premier League win over the Brighton in nine

By JAKE SEINER AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball teams committed to an unprecedented $1.4 billion in salaries Wednesday, hours before the league locked out players following the 11:59 p.m. expiration of the sport’s collective bargaining agreement. It’s the first time clubs have combined to spend over $1 billion in a

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Even at a time football typically dominates television ratings, Thanksgiving week was notable. CBS’ turkey day telecast of the Dallas Cowboys against the Las Vegas Raiders reached 37.8 million people, the most-watched NFL regular-season game since Thanksgiving 1993. Saturday afternoon’s resumption of the Michigan-Ohio State

By BRETT MARTEL AP Sports Writer BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Newly hired LSU coach Brian Kelly says he doesn’t spend time thinking about legacies. That’s how he responded Wednesday when asked how he expects his legacy at Notre Dame to be affected by the suddenness with which he walked away from the Fighting Irish

WOLVERHAMPTON, England (AP) — Burnley maintained its impressive record against Wolverhampton by securing a 0-0 draw in the Premier League to make it six matches unbeaten against its opponent. It was the first time Burnley had played since a thrilling 3-3 draw with Crystal Palace last month with snow forcing the postponement of its home