MLB=
Major League Baseball has slightly increased its offer to the
players as the two sides continue to negotiate an agreement for the
delayed 2020 season. The owners’ latest proposal calls for a
72-game regular season with players receiving 80 percent of their
prorated salaries – 70 percent during the regular season and 10
percent more for completion of the postseason. Games would begin on
July 14 under this proposal. The league’s previous offer called for
76 regular-season games with players to receive 75 percent of their
prorated salaries, though the union has maintained its stance that
players should earn a full rate of their prorated pay.
NBA=
The NBA released further details to teams on its plan to restart
its interrupted season in Orlando in late July. Players from the 22
teams that will take part in the restart will begin coronavirus
testing on June 23, with training camps tentatively scheduled to
begin July 9 pending agreements with the Walt Disney World complex
and the completion of all medical protocols. Games are set to
resume July 30 with the playoffs beginning Aug. 17 and the
postseason running into mid-October.
NHL=
Las Vegas is considered a strong candidate to become one of the two
hub cities for the NHL’s 24-team playoff format. There are 10
potential hub cities, including three in Canada and a decision is
expected to come within the next 10 days. The league and players
must also agree on testing and health-and-safety protocols amid the
pandemic before games can resume.
The Bruins announced an unidentified player tested positive for the
coronavirus but has since tested negative for the disease on two
occasions. General manager Don Sweeney added that the player did
not take part in any informal workouts with teammates and did not
have any symptoms of COVID-19. Ten players have been known to test
positive for COVID-19 since the NHL halted its season in March. The
league is planning to restart the season in early August with a
24-team playoff format.
GOLF=
Harold Varner III has taken sole possession of the clubhouse lead
in the second round of the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial,
the PGA Tour’s first event since suspending the season in mid-March
due to the coronavirus pandemic. Varner entered the day tied atop
the leaderboard with Justin Rose after opening with a 7-under 63,
then followed up with a 66 to move to 11-under for the tournament.
Jordan Spieth shot 65 for a second straight day and is a stroke
behind Varner at 10-under, while Rory McIlroy is just two shots
back after carding a second-round 63.
NFL=
Antonio Brown pleaded no contest to burglary with battery charges
related to a fight with a moving truck driver in Florida earlier
this year. As part of a deal with Broward County prosecutors, Brown
will serve two years of probation, undergo a psychological
evaluation and follow-up treatment, attend an anger management
course, perform 100 hours of community service, and follow a
stay-away order from the truck driver and the moving company owner.
Mitch Trubisky said that the Bears’ acquisition of Nick Foles has
given him extra motivation. He said wasn’t surprised when Chicago
traded for Foles in March, or when they informed him they weren’t
picking up his fifth-year option. “That’s the business we’re in,”
he said in a conference call on Friday. “I’ve been motivated since
our season ended last year. I didn’t feel like it went the way we
wanted to, and we left a lot out there. But I’m excited for this
year. I think it’s going to be a good competition.”
Commissioner Roger Goodell announced that the league plans to
recognize Juneteenth as a league holiday, according to an internal
memo. Juneteenth is considered the oldest celebration commemorating
the end of slavery in the United States, celebrated on June 19, the
day in 1865 that Union soldiers told enslaved African Americans in
Galveston, Texas, that the Civil War had ended and they were free.
COLLEGE SPORTS=
The University of Houston is suspending all voluntary workouts for
its athletes after six tested positive for COVID-19 with symptoms.
Houston announced it was shutting down workouts due to ”an
abundance of caution” and an increase of positive tests in the
greater Houston area over the last week. The school said the
athletes, who were not identified, have been placed in isolation
and medical staff is conducting contact-tracing procedures.
A letter sent out on behalf of the Texas Longhorn “student athlete
body” called on the school to rename several buildings, change the
traditional school song, and donate a percentage of athletic
department revenue to organizations supporting the Black Lives
Matter movement. The letter said that the football team would
participate in all required team activities, but players would not
aid in recruiting future players or participate in alumni events.
The letter also called for Texas to stop using its traditional song
“The Eyes of Texas,” which has been criticized for its connection
to minstrel shows with characters in blackface in the early 1900s.
SOCCER=
The Premier League announced all players for the first 12 games of
its resumed season will wear jerseys with the slogan “Black Lives
Matter” replacing player names. The campaign will continue through
the scheduled end of the season on July 26. All EPL clubs issued a
joint statement calling for an end to racial injustice as a
response to the death of American George Floyd on May 25. The EPL
is set to resume Wednesday following a three-month hiatus.
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