Former Cy Young winner Mike McCormick dies at age 81Video
CORNELIUS, N.C. — Longtime Giants pitcher Mike McCormick, who won the Cy Young Award in 1967, has died. He was 81. The Giants say McCormick died Saturday at his home in North Carolina after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. McCormick played 16 years in the majors from 1956-71 with...
Baseball season in jeopardy as fight between owners, players gets uglierVideo
The MLB Players Association said it is “disgusted” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred backtracked from his assertion that there “unequivocally” would be a baseball season this summer, accusing the league of “negotiating in bad faith since the beginning.” When asked by ESPN if there was going to be a season in...
First Call: ESPN’s McGwire-Sosa documentary heavy on nostalgia, light on substance
Monday’s “First Call” is going to be a review of ESPN’s Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa documentary “Long Gone Summer.” I looked at the clock for about the fourth or fifth time Sunday night. It was 10:45 p.m. “Are they going to get to the steroids topic or what?” I asked aloud....
Baseball players say talks futile, tell MLB to order returnVideo
NEW YORK — Baseball players told Major League Baseball additional talks to start the season during the coronavirus pandemic are pointless and said owners should order a return to work, which likely would spark lengthy litigation and the sport’s return to labor wars. The union’s action Saturday night could lead...
Organizations around Cincinnati weigh whether to drop Schott’s name from facilitiesVideo
CINCINNATI — Marge Schott’s slurs and other offensive comments while she owned the Cincinnati Reds have organizations in her hometown reconsidering the use of her name on facilities that benefited from her donations. Schott died in 2004, but her name is still prominent in the community. Most of her estate...
Fantasy Sports podcast: MLB frustrations, running back contract woes, Ryder Cup
We bust out the time machine for this week’s fantasy sports podcast with Jeff Erickson of RotoWire. First, we go into the future, forecasting what fantasy strategies may be like in a baseball season that lasts between 48 to 80-plus games. The big variable seems to be pitchers. With the...
Tigers continue to load up on offense on Day 2 of MLB DraftVideo
NEW YORK — The Detroit Tigers took a few more big swings at rebuilding their lineup. And they hope sooner rather than later. After selecting Arizona State slugger Spencer Torkelson to open the MLB Draft on Wednesday night, the Tigers used their first four picks Thursday on hitters they envision...
Baseball plans game at Field of Dreams, but will they come?Video
DYERSVILLE, Iowa — Spurred by a voice telling him, “If you build it, he will come,” the Iowa farmer played by Kevin Costner dutifully carved a baseball field out of his cornfield and then watched as Shoeless Joe Jackson and his Chicago White Sox teammates strode out of the stalks...
Detroit Tigers draft Arizona State slugger Spencer Torkelson with No. 1 pickVideo
NEW YORK — Spencer Torkelson slugged his way through college, bashing baseballs all around the country with eye-popping power. All those impressive long balls made the decision easy for the Detroit Tigers, who made the Arizona State star the No. 1 pick in the Major League Baseball amateur draft Wednesday...
Rob Manfred says ‘100%’ chance of MLB season, new proposal soonVideo
NEW YORK — Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said there is “100 percent” chance of big league ball this year. MLB will make another proposal to start the pandemic-delayed season, but Manfred vowed Wednesday to unilaterally order opening day if an agreement is not reached. The players’ association made its second...
AP sources: MLB players cut to 89 games, want prorated money
NEW YORK — Baseball players moved toward teams but remained far apart economically in their latest proposal for starting the pandemic-delayed season, adamant they receive full prorated salaries while offering to cut the regular season to 89 games. The proposal by the players’ association, given to Major League Baseball electronically...
Torkelson, Martin, Lacy lead list of top MLB draft prospectsVideo
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball’s amateur draft begins Wednesday night with the first of a pandemic-shortened five rounds. Detroit has the No. 1 overall pick for the second time in three years after taking pitcher Casey Mize in 2018. Here’s a look at the top college and high school...
A plethora for playoffs: MLB proposes up to 16 teams advance
Major League Baseball is tossing around plenty of ideas these days to start up a shortened season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic — a DH in the National League, neutral-site games, personal rosin bags for pitchers. Now comes a proposal that would truly upend the sport: up to 16 playoff...
Latrobe grad Zach Kokoska hopeful to hear name called during shortened MLB Draft
Zach Kokoska might be on a baseball field or camped out at a Marriott hotel in South Florida on Wednesday and Thursday during the MLB Draft. Either way, the power-hitting outfielder will have his cell phone turned on. The former Latrobe star and Gatorade Pennsylvania Player of the Year has...
AP sources: MLB offers 76-game season, up to 75% of salaries
NEW YORK — MLB made another try to start the coronavirus-delayed season in early July, proposing a 76-game regular season, expanding the playoffs from 10 teams to as many as 16 and allowing players to earn about 75% of their prorated salaries. Players have refused cuts beyond what they agreed...
Unfiltered: Mark Madden, Tim Benz break down MLB’s reboot failure, Drew Brees, media coverage in covid-19 era
Madden and Benz Unfiltered returns this week, and the guys are catching up with the sports world. Mark Madden and Tim Benz discuss the stalled rebooting of the MLB season and whether fans even care at this point. They also discuss the NHL’s plan for pod cities to host playoff...
Could this MLB draft tip the scales overwhelmingly in favor of analytics?
Circumstances have forced this year’s baseball draft to become an exercise in profiling and evaluating athletes from a distance. The covid-19 pandemic prevented scouts from the Royals and other clubs from doing much of the in-person and interpersonal information gathering that typically helps drive decision-making processes. Reliance on quantitative data,...
Madden Monday: How MLB and NHL are getting in their own way, Steelers talk
After a week off, the “Madden Monday” podcast is back. Mark Madden and Tim Benz take a long look at attempts to reboot the NHL and MLB seasons. Why are both leagues constantly getting in their own way? From a hockey perspective, the issue seems to be how long things...
Former MLB player from Fayette County dies
Lawrence Donald “Bobby” Locke grew up in the small coal patch community of Rowes Run in Fayette County. He was one of 10 children of the late John and Anna Misenko Locke and a star football and baseball player for Redstone High School who pitched the Hawks to a 1-0...
AP source: MLB rejects 114-game plan, now looking at 50Video
NEW YORK — MLB rejected the players’ proposal for a 114-game schedule in the pandemic-delayed season with no additional salary cuts, telling the union that teams have no reason to think 82 games is possible and now will discuss even fewer. Players made their proposal Sunday, five days after management’s...
MLB players, owners revert to money squabbles of oldVideo
NEW YORK — Baseball owners and players have reverted to form — the type displayed over the past half-century during eight work stoppages filled with salary squabbles. Players proposed to resume the sport in the coronavirus pandemic with a 114-game regular season and full prorated salaries, leaving each player with...
AP source: MLB players offer 114-game season, no more salary cutsVideo
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball players proposed a 114-game regular season Sunday, up from 82 in management’s offer, but no additional pay cuts beyond the one they agreed to in March, a person familiar with the plan told the Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because...
Column: Pandemic doesn’t stop MLB players, owners from taking low roadVideo
We’ve got billionaires and millionaires pointing fingers while the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus pandemic ticks past 100,000 lives lost. Conversations that are supposed to be confidential are becoming public knowledge before they can finish reaching everyone who is supposed to be in the loop. There’s no shortage of...
Pirate Parrot benched? Mascots wonder why they’re banned from MLB
The Phillie Phanatic had stories of his favorite adventures — from the Galapagos Islands to the cobblestone streets of Philadelphia — read to him most weeks from his very best buds. The Philly furball was tucked in with a bedtime story from Bryce Harper. Andrew McCutchen and manager Joe Girardi...
Hundreds of minor league ballplayers releasedVideo
NEW YORK — Major league teams released hundreds of young players with the minor league season in doubt because of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 200 players were cut Friday, and more than 400 have been released over the past month according to transactions posted at MiLB.com. The start of...
