Sports category, Page 726
Analysis: Pitt must set sights on strong finish, even if it includes a berth in the NIT
Pitt is in the grip of a slump, if that’s the correct term for losing two of three games at a point in the season that matters most. The Panthers’ NCAA Tournament hopes, already slim before the 69-62 loss at Clemson on Tuesday night, have all but disappeared. Blame Pitt’s...
Mark Madden: Liverpool FC’s Carabao Cup victory will remain my most vivid sports memory
I’ve attended Super Bowl XXX, two World Series, five Stanley Cup finals, Mario Lemieux’s comeback game in 2000, Pitt-Penn State football and several Pittsburgh Condors games. I’ve seen Neil O’Donnell disappoint, Roberto Clemente dazzle, Lemieux score with 13 seconds left, Jaromir Jagr perform heroically on one leg and John Brisker...
FedEx ends naming rights agreement for the Washington Commanders stadium long known as FedEx Field
FedEx has ended its naming rights agreement to the Washington Commanders stadium in Landover, Maryland, a venue that had been known as FedEx Field since 1999. The move confirmed Wednesday comes two years prior to the expiration of the current agreement scheduled for 2026, and as the NFL club under...
Tim Benz: Victory in Vancouver may be Penguins’ win of the year. But is the season too far gone for Kyle Dubas?
The Penguins’ overtime victory over the Vancouver Canucks had a ton of memorable moments. • The Pens overcame a 2-0 deficit (and some shaky penalty calls) in the first period. • The usually repugnant power play scored on a five-on-three, only to yield a shorthanded goal to J.T. Miller during...
Paul Skenes to make 1st Grapefruit League start for Pirates at Orioles on Thursday
BRADENTON, Fla. — Paul Skenes knew he was making his Grapefruit League debut Thursday against the Baltimore Orioles but, beyond that, the right-hander wasn’t aware that he was facing 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes and the top prospect in baseball in shortstop Jackson Holliday. After throwing two...
With Mitch Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, Joe Flacco, Steelers and Browns may impact each other on the QB carousel
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns are inexorably linked as AFC North rivals. This offseason, there may be some linkage when it comes to their quarterback situations as well. After winning the 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year award with the Browns, quarterback Joe Flacco and the franchise have...
First Call: Ravens GM praises former player who joined Steelers; an Arthur Smith favorite hits free agency
Wednesday’s “First Call” checks in on a popular name among Steelers fans as free agency approaches. A player Arthur Smith had in Atlanta and Tennessee has been cut loose. The Ravens’ general manager may have a franchise tag target. He is also praising a former player who has been scooped...
Quinn Priester searches for consistency in hopes of securing spot in Pirates’ rotation
BRADENTON, Fla. — When Quinn Priester wasn’t getting the results he wanted with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he sought confirmation of a time when his fastball command and velocity weren’t issues. The 23-year-old right-hander found it by returning to the minor leagues, both physically and mentally. Deflated by a mid-August demotion,...
Payton Sandfort’s triple-double propels Iowa to victory over Penn State
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Payton Sandfort finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his first triple-double and Iowa breezed to a 90-81 victory over Penn State on Tuesday night. Sandfort, a junior, made 3 of 11 shots with two 3-pointers and 18 of 19 free throws for...
Penguins beat Canucks in overtime for 3rd straight win
A goal by defenseman Erik Karlsson at 1:41 of overtime gave the Pittsburgh Penguins a 4-3 comeback win against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia on Tuesday. The victory extended a winning streak to a modest three games for the Penguins (27-21-8, 62 points) as they...
NFL-worst Carolina Panthers increasing overall ticket prices by more than 4% for 2024 season
CHARLOTTE — The Carolina Panthers are raising overall ticket prices by slightly more than 4% in 2024 following a season in which they finished with an NFL-worst 2-15 record and were shutout in the final two games. The lower level seating at Bank of America Stadium will see the most...
Gary Bettman calls on Jets, Winnipeg fans to find solution to falling attendance
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — NHL commissioner Gary Bettman called Winnipeg a strong market where “hockey matters,” and said he believes the team’s falling attendance will be resolved. Bettman spoke Tuesday, before the Jets hosted the St. Louis Blues. The Jets say Winnipeg’s season-ticket base has decreased 27% in three years, from...
NASCAR teams have hired top antitrust attorney in revenue dispute
The NASCAR season is underway, with 38 races to determine another stock car racing champion in the 76th season of the top motorsports series in the United States. There is a serious problem for NASCAR and its teams: Negotiations on a new revenue-sharing model have deteriorated. In mid-February, representatives from...
Pitt’s NCAA Tournament hopes take big hit in loss to Clemson
There’s no doubting the reality that confronts the Pitt basketball team, game after game. Without Blake Hinson’s points, Pitt is a different team and victory is nearly impossible against the best opponents. That was proven in Littlejohn Coliseum on Tuesday night when Clemson’s Jack Clark followed Hinson anywhere he went...
Chiefs mulling whether to use franchise tag on Chris Jones or L’Jarius Sneed as deadline nears
The Kansas City Chiefs are weighing whether to use the franchise tag on All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones or star cornerback L’Jarius Sneed, though general manager Brett Veach said Tuesday he is hopeful both will be back next season. The two stalwarts of the Chiefs’ Super Bowl-winning defense would otherwise...
Shohei Ohtani shows he’s ‘built differently,’ slugs 2-run HR in Dodgers debut
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Shohei Ohtani stepped into the bright Arizona sun, carrying the weight of a $700 million contract and the expectations that go with it, before launching a two-run homer in his first exhibition game for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Not a bad way to endear himself to his...
Column: Chris Kirk’s road to recovery included roommates and YahtzeeVideo
Chris Kirk knew the long road back from alcoholism and depression would require support from family at home and from PGA Tour friends on the road. Neither was in short supply. He just didn’t know it also would involve Yahtzee. “It had to be Palm Springs two or three years...
U.S. women fought to raise the level of soccer worldwide, and now the competition is much tougherVideo
CARSON, Calif. — The U.S. national team has fought for years to raise the level of women’s soccer across the globe, but that doesn’t make its inevitable losses to teams it once dominated any easier. “People say that everyone’s catching up with us. Of course, and that’s what needs to...
Ke’Bryan Hayes hits grand slam as Pirates homer 4 times to beat Braves for 1st win
BRADENTON, Fla. — The Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t have any success against Atlanta left-hander Chris Sale through the first two innings, so they welcomed a pitching change. When the Braves turned to 20-year-old righty Owen Murphy, a 2022 first-round pick, the Pirates took advantage in the third inning. Jack Suwinski doubled,...
Quarterbacks who could find way to Steelers become hot topic at NFL Combine
INDIANAPOLIS — Quarterbacks dominated the conversation Tuesday on the first day of the NFL Combine, and most of the talk had little to do with the incoming class of passing prospects. The future of two quarterbacks loosely connected to the Pittsburgh Steelers — Chicago’s Justin Fields and Denver’s Russell Wilson...
Penguins’ Bryan Rust out week-to-week with upper-body injury
The Pittsburgh Penguins, still feeling the sting of losing top winger Jake Guentzel to injury, received more bad news Tuesday afternoon as coach Mike Sullivan informed reporters in Vancouver that forward Bryan Rust is out week-to-week with an unspecified upper-body injury. Guentzel, currently on long-term injured reserve, is unable to...
Racing authority reports equine fatality rate of 1.23 per 1,000 at tracks under its jurisdiction
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Horse racing’s federal oversight body says racetracks under its jurisdiction experienced 1.23 racing-related equine fatalities per 1,000 starts in 2023, a much lower rate than at tracks outside its watch. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority report, released Tuesday, also stated that its fatality rate was lower...
Sean Payton hints at moving on from Russell Wilson, says Broncos have to hit on ‘the next one’ at QB
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Sean Payton isn’t providing anything definitive on Russell Wilson’s time in Denver but he did hint at the Broncos moving on from him when he suggested the team cannot afford to miss on “the next one” at quarterback. Payton met with the media at the NFL scouting...
20 years since record-setting brawl, fighting is down across NHL but not going anywhereVideo
Minnesota’s Marcus Foligno took a hit, delivered one of his own to Chicago’s Jarred Tinordi, and the two big guys dropped the gloves. Outdoors in front of 82,000 people in the Meadowlands, it took even less for Matt Rempe and Matt Martin to spice up the Rangers-Islanders showdown with a...
Ravens’ John Harbaugh never believed Steelers’ Mike Tomlin was leaving organization
INDIANAPOLIS — The late-season rumors about Mike Tomlin leaving the Pittsburgh Steelers with a year remaining on his contract turned out to be unfounded. Tomlin’s longtime rival in the AFC North didn’t believe the speculation anyhow. Like a lot of people, John Harbaugh didn’t think Tomlin was going anywhere, and...
