6:45 PM ET NEW YORK — Mets first baseman Pete Alonso said Wednesday that he disagrees with MLB’s crackdown on pitcher-friendly foreign substances, and that the larger issue facing the sport is the league’s manipulation of baseballs depending on free-agent class — a theory he presented as “fact.” “The biggest concern is MLB manipulates the
4:04 PM ET Atlanta Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter will miss the rest of the NBA playoffs because of a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee, the team announced Wednesday. Hunter experienced some mild swelling in his right knee prior to Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers in their Eastern Conference semifinal series, and he
8:34 PM ET Boston Celtics president Brad Stevens has received team permissions to interview several assistant coaches for his franchise’s head coaching job, including the LA Clippers‘ Chauncey Billups, sources told ESPN. Stevens started making calls on Wednesday to get the OK to talk to several candidates, including Billups, Milwaukee Bucks‘ Darvin Ham and Charles
9:18 PM ET Tim BontempsESPN Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert reclaimed the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award Wednesday night, becoming the fourth player to be named the league’s top defender at least three times over the course of his career. Gobert, who won the award in 2018 and ’19 before Giannis Antetokounmpo won
2:42 PM ET LeBron James plans to change his Los Angeles Lakers jersey number to No. 6 next season, a source confirmed to ESPN. James had worn No. 23 during his first three seasons with the Lakers. The number change was first reported Wednesday by The Athletic. Fellow Lakers star Anthony Davis will keep his
4:09 PM ET Mastercard Inc and drinks company Ambev, major sponsors of South American football, backed away from the Copa America on Wednesday as players criticised organisers for moving the tournament to Brazil despite one of the world’s worst COVID-19 outbreaks. – Brazilian footballers criticise Copa America switch– Brazil boss Tite denies pressure to step
5:36 PM ET Tobin Heath has not played with the USWNT since last November. Getty Images U.S women’s national team manager Vlatko Andonovski says that attacker Tobin Heath and midfielder Julie Ertz are both “on schedule” to recover from their respective injuries in time to play in the Tokyo Olympics. Heath suffered an ankle injury with
12:42 PM ET Jack Grealish said he has “never looked back” after switching his allegiance from Ireland‘s youth squads to joining England‘s Under-21s, when a bizarre bathroom incident — in which he collapsed as a teenager — led the Englishman to join Ireland. The 25-year-old played 19 times for Ireland at Under-17, Under-18 and Under-21
5:25 PM ET Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas is “optimistic” about bringing Barcelona forward Lionel Messi to play in Major League Soccer. Messi, 33, is out of contract with Barca at the end of June and has previously expressed a desire to play in the United States in the final years of his career. Barca
8:59 PM ET The United States continued its good run of form in a runaway 4-0 win against Costa Rica in a friendly on Tuesday night at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. The Americans were fresh off their epic 3-2 CONCACAF Nations League final win over Mexico on Sunday, a match that went to