New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to have season-ending Tommy John surgery
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Yankees ace Gerrit Cole will have season-ending Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Tuesday. The Yankees said the 34-year-old right-hander was examined Monday by Dr. Neal ElAttrache at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles. ElAttrache, the Dodgers’ head team physician, will operate. Cole experienced discomfort following his second spring training outing Thursday. New York also is missing another starting pitcher, AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil, who will be sidelined for at least three months because of a strained lat muscle.
Jets and QB Justin Fields agree to a 2-year, $40 million deal, AP source says
A person with knowledge of the deal tells The Associated Press that the New York Jets and former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields have agreed to a two-year contract worth $40 million. Fields would step in as New York’s starter in place of Aaron Rodgers, who the Jets announced last month they are moving forward without after two seasons. The deal for Fields includes $30 million guaranteed, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement wasn’t announced by the team. The Jets also agreed to terms with former Baltimore cornerback Brandon Stephens and former Jacksonville safety Andre Cisco.
Panthers’ Aaron Ekblad suspended 20 games for violating NHL’s performance-enhancing drug policy
Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been suspended 20 games without pay for violating the NHL and NHL Players Association’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. The league announced the ban Monday. The defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers have 18 games left in the regular season. In a statement released through the NHLPA, Ekblad said the news that he had failed a random drug test shocked him, and he apologized for the error. He said he took something while recovering from injuries “without first checking with proper medical and team personnel.”
Luka, Lakers frustrated with officiating and themselves in a rough first game without LeBron James
NEW YORK (AP) — LeBron James was frustrated by his own play and angry at the officiating after the Lakers lost 111-108 to the Brooklyn Nets without LeBron James. The Lakers dropped their second straight after winning eight in a row before falling at Boston on Saturday. James strained his left groin in the fourth quarter of that game. The Lakers have not said how long they expect the All-Star forward to be sidelined, and coach JJ Redick said James was still being evaluated to determine the severity of the injury.
Paige Bueckers and UConn are healthy and rolling as her final March Madness approaches
UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Paige Bueckers is in a class by herself in the Big East, becoming the first player to win the most outstanding player of the conference tournament three times. It was the 23rd Big East tournament title for the Huskies, including five straight since they rejoined the conference in 2021. Now UConn’s star will try and cap off her illustrious career with an NCAA championship. The difference is that this year, Bueckers are UConn are healthy heading into March Madness. The Huskies lost in the Final Four last year to Caitlin Clark and Iowa.
After the milestone was first wiped out by an offsides review, MacKinnon finally earns 1,000th point
DENVER (AP) — Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon has reached the 1,000-point milestone. He earned a secondary assist on Artturi Lehkonen’s goal early in the third period against Chicago. MacKinnon dropped the puck off for Devon Toews at the blue line, and Toews’ shot was deflected in by Lehkonen. That broke a scoreless tie 31 seconds into the third. MacKinnon added an assist on Martin Necas’ goal about 3 minutes later. He nearly reached the milestone much earlier in the game. He appeared to have produced a first-period assist, but an offside challenge wiped out that goal by Necas and knocked MacKinnon back to 999 points.
Christian Horner wanted to leave a sordid season behind him. Boos mar early days for F1 executive
Any hope Christian Horner had of leaving last year’s sordid season behind him ended at Formula 1’s splashy car launch last month when the Red Bull Racing leader was booed. Horner is officially F1’s villain as the season opens this weekend at the Australian Grand Prix. The latest season of “Drive to Survive” dropped one week before season-opening practice. It touches lightly on the position Horner was in just one year ago, when he was under investigation by Red Bull following an employee allegation of inappropriate behavior.
Deals for QBs Darnold and Fields, pass rushers Williams and Sweat highlight start of NFL free agency
The NFL’s 52-hour legal tampering period arrived with a slew of stars receiving big contracts to either stay put or join a new team retooling its roster. Over the weekend, the Bills and NFL MVP Josh Allen agreed to an extension that includes a league-record $250 million guaranteed and Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett agreed to stay in Cleveland on a deal that makes him the highest-compensated non-quarterback in NFL history with $40 million in annual salary. Among the headliners Monday were Milton Williams and Josh Sweat, who both parlayed their Super Bowl heroics into bigger bucks elsewhere.
The 49ers lose several key players on the opening day of free agency
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The opening of free agency for the San Francisco 49ers was more about their losses than their additions. While San Francisco agreed to a deal with backup tight end Luke Farrell and brought back two reserve players, the Niners lost several players who were key contributors on a team that played in the Super Bowl 13 months ago. San Francisco told nine-time Pro Bowl fullback Kyle Juszczyk that he will be released before the start of the league year on Wednesday. That’s according to a person familiar with the move who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hadn’t made an announcement. Several other players agreed to deals with other teams.