Monday Sports in Brief

MLB

NEW YORK (AP) - Major League Baseball plans to unilaterally issue a 60-game schedule for its shortest season since 1878 after the players’ association rejected a negotiated deal of the same length, putting the sport on track for a combative return to the field amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Commissioner Rob Manfred and union head Tony Clark met last week and outlined plans that included expanding the playoffs from 10 teams to 16, widening use of the designated hitter to National League games and an experiment to start extra innings with a runner on second base. But the latest version of the deal proposed by MLB was rejected by the Major League Baseball Players Association’s executive board in a 33-5 vote on Monday.

Those innovations now disappear.

MLB asked the union to respond by 5 p.m. EDT Tuesday as to whether players can report to training by July 1 and whether the players’ association will agree on the operating manual of health and safety protocols. The schedule would be the shortest since the National League’s third season.

AUTO RACING

TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) - Even in victory, Ryan Blaney thought about what happened to close friend Bubba Wallace over the weekend. And what happened afterward.

Blaney held onto the lead after a restart with two laps to go Monday, earning his second straight win at Talladega Superspeedway on a day that began with NASCAR drivers throwing their support behind Wallace.

Blaney nipped Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at the finish line by .007 seconds for his fourth win and first since Talladega in October. It was a race marked by support for Wallace.

Aric Almirola spun at the end and crossed the line almost backward.

Ford has now won nine of the last 10 Cup races at Talladega, and all three Team Penske drivers have won this season.

The racing was overshadowed by an extraordinary act of solidarity with NASCAR’s only Black driver. Dozens of drivers pushed Wallace’s car to the front of the field before Monday’s race as FBI agents tried to find out who left a noose in his garage stall over the weekend.

SONOMA, Calif. (AP) - A makeshift noose was found hanging from a tree at the Sonoma Raceway in California and officials said they were investigating the incident.

Raceway President Steve Page said a “piece of twine tied in what appeared to be a noose” was found hanging from a tree Saturday behind a former administrative office, news outlets reported.

Page said the incident was under investigation by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department. He also said he has asked staff and on-site business tenants to share any information or “any possible alternative explanation.”

NFL

Dak Prescott plans to be at training camp with the Dallas Cowboys, if and when it starts, on the richest one-year contract in franchise history.

There is also still time to work out a long-term deal for the star quarterback.

Prescott signed his $31.4 million tender under the franchise tag Monday. That comes just over three weeks before the July 15 deadline to agree on a long-term deal.

By signing the offer under the franchise tag, Prescott is obligated to report for all team activities or risk being fined. He didn’t participate in the club’s virtual offseason program while unsigned.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

WASHINGTON (AP) - Washington Mystics players Natasha Cloud and LaToya Sanders are opting out of participating in the 2020 WNBA season for the league’s reigning champions.

In a social media posting Monday, Cloud cited a desire to “fight on the front lines for social reform,” while Sanders explained in a statement issued by the club that taking the season off “is what’s best for my health and family.”

Their announcements follow those of other WNBA players who have said they won’t be a part of plans for a 22-game schedule that would begin in late July in Florida without spectators because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Jonquel Jones, the star center who helped the Connecticut Sun reach last season’s WNBA Finals, is going to sit out because of concerns about the COVID-19 outbreak, while Atlanta Dream guard Renee Montgomery is missing the season to focus on social justice issues.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

WASHINGTON (AP) - Washington Wizards forward Davis Bertans will skip the Disney-based resumption of the NBA season, making him the first known example of a healthy, eligible player sitting out.

Bertans can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason and is expected to command a big contract as one of the league’s top 3-point shooters.

Washington general manager Tommy Sheppard told The Associated Press on Monday that Bertans had informed the team of his decision. The Wizards are allowed to sign a replacement player for Bertans as early as Tuesday, and Sheppard said the club “will look at it closely.”

Bertans’ plan to miss the remaining games was first reported by ESPN.

GOLF

Brooks Koepka will try to become the first player to win the PGA Championship three straight times in stroke play, and there won’t be anyone at Harding Park to cheer him on.

The PGA of America confirmed Monday the first major of this most unusual year won’t have spectators.

The PGA Championship, originally scheduled for May 14-17 in San Francisco, now is set for Aug. 6-9 and will be the first of three majors this year. The U.S. Open moved from June to Sept. 17-20 in New York, with the Masters moving to November two weeks before Thanksgiving. The British Open was canceled.

SOCCER

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - The Orlando Pride have withdrawn from the upcoming National Women’s Soccer League tournament after six players and four staff members tested positive for COVID-19.

The NWSL is the first U.S. professional team sport scheduled to return amid the coronavirus pandemic. The month-long Challenge Cup tournament is set to start Saturday in Utah.

Another round of testing will take place to confirm the results, the league said in announcing the positive tests Monday. Because of the number of positive results and the short time before the start of the tournament, the Pride withdrew.

FIGURE SKATING

Two-time U.S. champion Alysa Liu is changing coaches, joining a trio of veteran coaches.

Liu, who will be 15 in August, will now work with Lee Barkell, Lori Nichol and Massimo Scali. She has worked with Nichol and Scali in the past.

The youngest winner of the women’s title, at age 13 in 2019, Liu repeated in January.

Liu will continue to be based in Oakland, California.

OBITUARY

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Ken Snow, a two-time national player of the year, died Sunday, three days before his birthday. He was 50.

Steve Franklin, director of education at Indiana Soccer, made the announcement Monday on Facebook. The Indiana athletic department said it confirmed the death through a family member.

Snow might have been the best player in Indiana history, and his uncanny talent was on display from the moment he arrived on campus in 1987. The Illinois native led the nation and set a single-season school record with 28 goals as a freshman.

He was just warming up. He wound up scoring 84 goals in 87 matches, finishing his career with 196 total points - both school records. He still ranks sixth all-time on the Division I career goals list.

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