Sports category, Page 1817
WVU, Pitt won’t meet in basketball version of Backyard Brawl this season
Pitt has played West Virginia 187 times on the basketball court — more than any other opponent — but the game won’t happen this season because of the coronavirus pandemic, WVU coach Bob Huggins said Thursday. “It’s been postponed, moved back, delayed, whatever,” he said. “That’s not going to happen...
Vance McDonald irked by NFL re-scheduling, not with diminished role for Steelers
Vance McDonald is annoyed, but not about his diminished role in the Pittsburgh Steelers offense. The veteran tight end is OK with ceding snaps, targets and receptions to free-agent signee Eric Ebron. What he’s not OK with is the team’s season being disrupted by a coronavirus outbreak that was no...
Springdale, Jeannette prepare for Eastern Conference battle with playoff implications
When Eastern Conference opponents Springdale and Jeannette meet Friday at Veterans Memorial Field, it might have a different feel compared to years past. The situation was somewhat similar last year. The Dynamos and Jayhawks came into the matchup undefeated, but the Jayhawks were on a higher level as they cruised...
Matt Murray thanks Pittsburgh, Penguins organization
Matt Murray took to social media to thank Pittsburgh for his time here. After news of his trade Wednesday to the Ottawa Senators for a second-round pick and mid-level forward prospect, he posted a message on his Instagram saying, “Thank you, Pittsburgh for some incredible years. I cherished every opportunity...
Steelers set guidelines for fans attending game Sunday at Heinz Field against Eagles
Although fans will be permitted inside Heinz Field on Sunday to attend the Pittsburgh Steelers’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the atmosphere outside will look different than previous seasons. The Steelers announced Thursday that no tailgating — a pregame custom for decades — will be permitted in the stadium parking...
Ex-Penguins goaltender Matt Murray eager for new start with Senators
Matt Murray already has a poignant connection to his new team, the Ottawa Senators. A native of Thunder Bay, which is a 16-hour drive across the expanse of Ontario from Canada’s capital, Murray looked up to a journeyman NHL goaltender who spent parts of two seasons playing for the Senators...
NFL covid-19 disruptions are causing chaos in fantasy football world, too
Want a “fantasy,” Steelers fans? Here’s a fantasy. How about an NFL week without the specter of games being postponed or moved around? That’s a fantasy in my world. It’s also a fantasy in most fantasy football leagues. And while the real-life logistics of maneuvering around the covid-19 landmines are...
Cody Bellinger robs Padres as Dodgers hold on for 2-0 NLDS lead
ARLINGTON, Texas — Cody Bellinger would take the homer-robbing catch over the home run he hit if he had to pick from the two. The Los Angeles Dodgers needed both from their MVP center fielder. Bellinger nearly went to a knee to hit his long home run, and later made...
First Call: Titans illegal practice session before Steelers game? J.J. Watt’s clash with Bill O’Brien. Ex-Pirates pitchers shine.
Steelers fans want to know what exacerbated the Tennessee Titans coronavirus outbreak. Thursday’s “First Call” tries to bring that into focus. Also, J.J. Watt apparently had a burr under his saddle about former coach Bill O’Brien. The Duquesne basketball team is thinking mini-bubble. And more ex-Pirates pitchers are impacting the...
U mad, bro? Steelers fans are smoldering. Pitt fans upset. Penguins fans ‘fond farewell’ to Matt Murray.
I’ve gained a whole new respect for Steelers fans. They’ve proven to me that they can get just as uncontrollably agitated about a game the Steelers didn’t even play as they can get about a game that the Steelers didn’t win. I mean, this Tennessee Titans postponement really has Western...
Rays push Yankees to brink of elimination
SAN DIEGO — Randy Arozarena homered for the third straight game and Kevin Kiermaier and Michael Perez also went deep for the Tampa Bay Rays, who beat the New York Yankees 8-4 Wednesday night to move within one victory of reaching the AL Championship Series for the first time in...
Reconfigured season places Penn State in the Big Ten fire immediatelyVideo
Through James Franklin’s first six seasons, Penn State eased into its schedule playing 18 nonconference opponents, most of whom did not present the same challenges found in the Big Ten. Nothing unusual about that. In a typical season, and this one certainly does not qualify, many Power 5 schools employed...
Indians manager Terry Francona underwent surgeries, expects return in 2021Video
CLEVELAND — Terry Francona’s mind briefly wandered to a life without baseball while he battled through a major health scare. Retirement stared him in the face. “Some days when I was extremely frustrated, the thought crossed my mind,” the Indians manager said. “When it was hard to see the light...
Ravens QB Lamar Jackson’s deep-ball accuracy ‘a work in progress’Video
Four games into the Ravens’ season, quarterback Lamar Jackson hasn’t had to sweat the small stuff. It’s the bigger throws that have cost him. On short passes — balls with a target depth of 0 to 9 yards — Jackson has been more accurate (83%) this season than Green Bay...
Penguins’ options were limited in trading Matt Murray
Jim Rutherford smirked when the idea was proposed to him. Trade Matt Murray? The Penguins general manager shook his head “no” while dismissing the notion. This happened in late April 2015 during Rutherford’s end-of-season media availability following his first year with the Penguins, and Murray was in the midst of...
New NASCAR team lands Daniel Suarez as driverVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Former driver Justin Marks started a new NASCAR team that will field a car in 2021 for Daniel Suarez. The team announced Wednesday is called Trackhouse Racing and will field the No. 99 Chevrolet for Suarez, who will drive for his fourth team in four years. The...
Chad Pinder’s HR helps rally A’s past Astros, trail ALDS 2-1
LOS ANGELES — Chad Pinder tied the score with a three-run homer in the seventh inning, Sean Murphy hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the eighth and the Oakland Athletics rallied past the Houston Astros, 9-7, on Wednesday to avoid elimination in their AL Division Series. Houston leads the best-of-five...
Penguins select forward Chase Yoder in 6th roundVideo
The Penguins selected forward Chase Yoder in the sixth round (No. 170 overall) of the NHL Draft. A native of Fairview, Texas, Yoder, 18, appeared in 19 United States Hockey League (USHL) games for the U.S. National Team Development Program in 2019-20 and scored seven points (three goals, four assists)....
Ian Anderson sharp, Nick Markakis alert as Braves blank Miami
HOUSTON — Rookie Ian Anderson pitched like an October veteran. Old pro Nick Markakis threw the best strike of the game. And just like that, the Atlanta Braves are on the verge of something they haven’t done since the days of Chipper, the Big Three and Bobby Cox. Anderson blanked...
Boston College QB Phil Jurkovec displays confidence from Pine-Richland days
Jeff Hafley could have sent anyone to the airport to pick up the quarterback and his family. Surely, there was other important business on Chestnut Hill that needed the attention of Boston College’s new head coach. But Hafley wanted to greet this visitor himself. This was Phil Jurkovec, one of...
Big Apple rotten with Jets, Giants off to 0-4 startsVideo
NEW YORK — No wins, eight losses and lots of frustrated fans. The Big Apple is pretty rotten when it comes to its professional football teams, and it’s tough to imagine things getting better any time soon. The Jets and Giants are 0-4 for the first time since 1976 —...
Novak Djokovic’s body acts up at French Open; faces Stefanos Tsitsipas next
PARIS — The first obvious sign of trouble for Novak Djokovic came when he stepped out into Court Philippe Chatrier with a rather large square of beige athletic tape on the back of his neck. The next indication came on the very first point of his French Open quarterfinal against...
Penguins draft forward Raivis Ansons in fifth roundVideo
The Penguins drafted forward Raivis Ansons in the fifth round of the NHL Draft. A native of Riga, Latvia, Ansons spent last season with Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the Quebec Major Hockey League. Teammates with forward Nathan Legare, the Penguins’ third-round selection in 2019, Ansons, 18, appeared in 60 QMJHL games...
Washington benches QB Dwayne Haskins for Kyle Allen
Dwayne Haskins is going from starting quarterback to out of uniform. Ron Rivera benched Haskins for Washington’s next game Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams and turned to Kyle Allen as the new starter with the team 1-3 and at what the coach believes is a crucial moment of the...
Pirates make international splash by signing Taiwanese pitcher Po-Yu Chen
The Pittsburgh Pirates made a splash in the international market with the signing of Po-Yu Chen, a 19-year-old right-handed pitcher from Tawain’s world champion under-18 national team. The 6-foot-2, 187-pound Chen is a former two-way player who is now focusing on pitching and has a low-90s fastball, slider and curveball...
