Sports category, Page 1018
An NBA under play and a Premier League same game parlay: Best Bets for April 15
BY GABE HENDERSON | Home Field Sports Each day, one of our experts will offer up a best bet (or two or three) that mobile sportsbooks are offering. It might be a traditional spread bet, a player prop or one of the various odds boosts that books offer. Here are...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: Penguins have to extend or trade Jake Guentzel this offseason
The Penguins’ offseason will be one of difficult decisions. One of the primary ones involves winger Jake Guentzel. Guentzel, 28, is heading into the last year of a contract that pays $6 million annually. He had a quietly effective season, collecting 36 goals and 37 assists in 78 games. Listed...
Pirates place 1B/DH Ji-Man Choi on IL with Achilles strain, recall INF-OF Tucupita Marcano
The Pittsburgh Pirates took a big bat out of the middle of their batting order when first baseman/designated hitter Ji-Man Choi was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a strain of his left Achilles tendon. To replace Choi on the active roster, the Pirates recalled infielder/outfielder Tucupita Marcano...
The Penguins limp into an early offseason with an uncertain future
Sidney Crosby detests free time. He abhors it almost as much as a clingy opposing third-line center hassling him for a puck or yapping personal insults. So, given the Pittsburgh Penguins’ failure to qualify for the NHL’s postseason that begins Monday, this won’t be an enjoyable summer for the team’s...
Johnsons win the spring, Karter and Nahki named most improved players at Pitt drills
In advance of the Blue-Gold Game on Saturday afternoon, Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi named two Johnsons — tight end Karter and defensive end Nahki — winners of the Ed Conway Award, emblematic of the most improved players during spring drills. Johnson, who transferred last year from Butler (Kan.) Community College,...
NFL Draft primer: Flawed, yet talented QB group can be found at head of class
After a one-year hiatus, quarterbacks will be back in demand early in the NFL Draft. Passers could be taken in four of the first five selections, a contrast to the 2022 class when no quarterbacks were taken until the Pittsburgh Steelers grabbed Pitt’s Kenny Pickett with the No. 20 overall...
Plum JO wrestlers place at state tournaments
A trio of Plum youth wrestlers — Nicholas Pifer, AJ Pifer and Ethan Schwartz — qualified for and took part in the Keystone State Tournament March 17-19, at IUP’s Kovalchick Center. AJ Pifer and Schwartz also qualified for the Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling State Tournament March 25-26, at Pitt’s Petersen Events...
NHL playoffs: Devils-Rangers, Bolts-Leafs highlight openers
After six weeks of hopeful excitement that his New Jersey Devils would face the New York Rangers in the opening round of the playoffs, Erik Haula had a simple, sarcastic take: “Here we are.” And the playoffs are finally here, too. Devils vs. Rangers in another chapter of their bitter...
What to know entering the NBA playoffs, which start Saturday
Here’s a rarity: All five teams from one division are going to the NBA playoffs. And they pulled that off in a year where a division champion almost didn’t get there. All five teams from the Pacific Division — Sacramento, Phoenix, the Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State and the Los...
Looking for a leadoff: Pirates searching to replace Oneil Cruz at top of the batting order
When Oneil Cruz fractured his left ankle on Easter, the Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t just lose their starting shortstop but a leadoff hitter who proved he could get on base, hit for power and whose speed made him a threat on the basepaths. Cruz slashed .282/.331/.541 with 18 extra-base hits and...
Minor league report: Goaltender Joel Blomqvist debuts as Penguins loseVideo
In his season debut at the American Hockey League level, goaltender Joel Blomqvist made 23 saves on 27 shots for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 4-0 road loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn. on Friday. The Pittsburgh Penguins’ second-round pick (No. 52 overall)...
Pirates farm report for April 14, 2023: Tucupita Marcano collects 3 more hits in Indy loss
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 5-8) lost to St. Paul (Twins), 4-2, running its losing streak to three games and its home losing streak to seven. LHP Angel Perdomo (0-1, 7.71) gave up three runs on two hits and two walks without recording an out. SS Tucupita Marcano (.422) stayed hot, going 3...
Pirates fail to support starting pitcher Johan Oviedo in 3-0 loss to Cardinals
For Johan Oviedo, there was no deeply hidden secret to pitching against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night. “I tried to enjoy my time pitching out there. Have fun and just don’t think,” he said on AT&T SportsNet. When it comes to not thinking, perhaps he would prefer to...
NFL Draft steal? Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker hurdles age, health, style concernsVideo
Hendon Hooker is fluid on the football field and mobile in NFL meeting rooms, where he has been hurdling concerns about his age, health and playing style. The 25-year-old former Tennessee quarterback, who tore the ACL in his left knee less than five months ago, has spent his predraft visits...
Battle of Pennsylvania martial arts competition returns this weekend in Beaver Falls
Angelo Marziale began his journey in martial arts competition more than 40 years ago, and, since those early days, the 50-year-old Creighton resident and fifth-degree Shorin Ryu black belt has captured many championships near and far. A former student of Lower Burrell martial arts legend Frank Caliguri, Marziale continues to...
Capitals, coach Peter Laviolette part ways after missing playoffsVideo
Peter Laviolette won’t be back as coach of the Washington Capitals, who now have a big decision to make after missing the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade. The Capitals parted ways with Laviolette on Friday, less than 24 hours after their season ended, a decision general...
Former NBA star Shawn Kemp charged in parking lot shootingVideo
SEATTLE — Prosecutors in Washington state charged former NBA star Shawn Kemp on Friday with first-degree assault in a parking lot shooting last month over a stolen cellphone, saying that in a text message just before the shooting, Kemp wrote, “I’m about to shoot this (expletive).” Kemp was arrested after...
Masters champ Jon Rahm rebounds as Jimmy Walker leads RBC HeritageVideo
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Jimmy Walker was feeling like his old self after his second straight 6-under-par 65 on Friday — and so was Masters champion Jon Rahm halfway through the RBC Heritage. Walker had his third straight round in the 60s overall to post a two-day total of...
Pirates catcher Austin Hedges returns from concussion injured list
The Pittsburgh Pirates activated catcher Austin Hedges from the concussion injured list Friday and immediately inserted him into the starting lineup — batting ninth— against the St. Louis Cardinals. To make room for Hedges on the active roster, catcher Tyler Heineman was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. Hedges was 0 for...
A move-by-move look at Ron Hextall’s tenure as Penguins general manager
Here is a look at the significant deals made by Ron Hextall in his two-plus years as general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins: April 11, 2021 Penguins acquire: Forward Jeff Carter Los Angeles Kings acquire: 2022 third-round pick (conditional), a 2023 fourth-round pick Carter was good at first, filling in...
Steelers add punter Braden Mann on waivers claim from Jets
The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to have some competition at punter in training camp. Braden Mann, who spent his first three NFL seasons with the New York Jets, was awarded to the Steelers on a waivers claim Friday. He was cut by the Jets after they signed veteran Thomas Morstead....
The future of the Penguins hockey operations remains to be seen
The Pittsburgh Penguins were supposed to be off Friday. Typically, a day after their regular season finale, they take a respite to heal injuries and clear their heads before they gear up for the postseason. And that certainly did take place on Friday. Just without the part of preparing for...
Fenway Sports Group non-committal on future of Penguins coach Mike Sullivan
Mike Sullivan’s job as Penguins coach is safe — for now. After the team’s ownership group Friday announced a major shakeup at the top of its front office, a Fenway Sports Group executive was complimentary of Sullivan’s work but said his fate would be left with the team’s next director...
Former Steeler Ryan Shazier, others get chance to show media skills at NFL workshopVideo
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Jason Kelce has excelled as one of the NFL’s best offensive linemen for his ability to quickly adjust blocking schemes and make split-second decisions to ensure his quarterback has a clean pocket. The Philadelphia Eagles center has discovered that translating that to a television or radio audience...
Rory McIlroy to forfeit $3 million by skipping RBC HeritageVideo
Rory McIlroy withdrawing from the RBC Heritage this week means he will forfeit $3 million from his Player Impact Program bonus. The PGA Tour confirmed Friday that McIlroy, who received $9 million of his potential $12 million bonus in January, will not be getting the balance. The PIP, which began...
