FOOTBALL
No recusal for Goodell
People with knowledge of the decision say NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will hear Tom Brady's appeal of his four-game suspension for his role in the deflated footballs scandal. The NFL told the players' union Friday that Goodell will not recuse himself. The people said spoke on condition of anonymity because Goodell's decision has not been made public. The commissioner considers it his responsibility to hear the appeal. The union asked Goodell to withdraw from that role because it said he was not impartial and would be called as a witness. Brady was suspended for the first four games of the 2015 season after a league-sanctioned report by lawyer Ted Wells found the New England quarterback "at least generally aware" of a scheme to deflate footballs used in the AFC title game.
• Cornerback Orlando Scandrick has the raise he sought by skipping the first two weeks of voluntary offseason workouts with the Dallas Cowboys. The eighth-year veteran signed a one-year contract extension Friday, adding $9.5 million to what's now a five-year deal worth $20 million through 2019. It's the second time in three years the Cowboys have reworked contract terms for Scandrick, who missed the first two weeks of voluntary offseason workouts in hopes of getting more money. He reported this week. Scandrick, 28, was Dallas' best cornerback last year but was set to make just $1.5 million this season. Now he'll get $4 million, half of what Brandon Carr will make without a pay cut after his first season without an interception
• The Montreal Alouettes have signed defensive end Michael Sam, the first openly gay player drafted in the NFL. The club said the free agent has agreed to a two-year deal. Sam came out before last year's draft. He was selected in the seventh round by the St. Louis Rams and cut in training camp. The Dallas Cowboys signed him to their practice squad but released him in October. He is to be introduced at a news conference Tuesday in Montreal.
BASEBALL
Smith suspended 8 games
Milwaukee Brewers reliever Will Smith was suspended for eight games Friday for having a foreign substance on his pitching arm during a game Thursday at Atlanta. Major League Baseball said Smith plans to appeal, so the penalty is on hold. Smith, a former Northwest Arkansas Naturals pitcher, was available for Friday night’s game with the Braves but did not pitch. Smith was ejected for having rosin and sunscreen on his right forearm in the seventh inning of Thursday night’s 10-1 loss. He said after the game that he put the substance on his forearm before warming up in the bullpen on a brisk night. He expressed regret for not wiping it off before entering the game. It’s widely acknowledged pitchers use similar practices to grip the ball better even though it’s against the rules.
• New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is set to make his next rehabilitation start Wednesday against Boston's Triple-A team. New York Manager Joe Girardi made the announcement before playing Texas on Friday night. He said the Japanese right-hander will be limited to 65 pitches in his game for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre at Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Girardi said it was possible that Tanaka could rejoin the Yankees after that minor league start. Tanaka has been on the disabled list since April 27 because of tendinitis in his right wrist and a strained forearm. He pitched three scoreless innings Thursday in Triple-A, throwing 41 pitches. Tanaka is 2-1 with a 3.22 ERA in four starts for the Yankees. He was an All-Star last year during his first season in the majors, but was slowed in the second half because of a tear in his elbow.
• The Oakland Athletics have ruled out immediate neck surgery for outfielder Coco Crisp. The A's said Friday they expect to make a decision this weekend on Crisp's playing status. He had a similar injury last season, and hasn't played since leaving a game Tuesday in Houston with a stiff neck. "If you talk about surgery, that probably means a bad outcome as far as his playing career," Manager Bob Melvin said Friday. Crisp, 35, had an MRI taken on the neck Wednesday, but Melvin said it did not reveal anything the A's didn't know last season. "We're going to have to deal with it like we did last year," Melvin said. "If there are issues we'll give him some time off. If there are significant issues we'll DL him. Obviously, this is a dicey injury and we're going to have to be careful with it." Crisp, who had surgery on his elbow in early April, is batting .044 in 13 games this season. Oakland placed relief pitcher Edward Mujica on the 15-day disabled list Friday and called up shortstop Andy Parrino from Triple-A Nashville. Mujica fractured and cut his right thumb Thursday night while fielding a ground ball hit by the Rays' Bobby Wilson. Because the stitches will remain in Mujica's hand for several days, the A's decided to put him on the disabled list. They are hoping the right-hander can resume throwing shortly after the swelling goes down.
COLLEGE ATHLETICS
UNC gets allegations notice
North Carolina has received a notice of allegations from the NCAA connected to the school's academic fraud scandal. In a statement Friday, Chancellor Carol Folt and athletic director Bubba Cunningham say UNC is reviewing the notice and will release it publicly at a later date. The statement did not reveal the contents of the document, which the NCAA uses to specify rules violations. UNC's response is due in 90 days. The NCAA reopened an academic-misconduct probe last summer connected to irregular courses in a department. An outside investigation outlined how courses were often treated as independent studies requiring no class time and one or two research papers, frequently graded by an office administrator. The probe found problems spanning 18 years and affecting more than 3,100 students, roughly half being athletes.
HORSE RACING
Pharoah goes for gallop
Triple Crown hopeful American Pharoah went out for his first gallop since winning the Preakness, covering 1 3/16 miles at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on Friday. Exercise rider Jorge Alvarez said the 3-year-old colt 'didn't seem like he was tired or anything," American Pharoah won the Kentucky Derby on May 2 and the Preakness last Saturday. He is preparing for the Belmont Stakes on June 6, when he will attempt to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. American Pharoah is expected to have two timed workouts at Churchill Downs before he's sent to New York on June 3.
BASKETBALL
Ex-Globetrotters great dies at 89
Marques Haynes’ dribbling skills wowed fans in more than 100 countries. He was a showstopper, a player who helped make the Harlem Globetrotters beloved ambassadors of basketball around the world.
Haynes, often called the greatest dribbler in basketball history, died Friday in Plano, Texas, of natural causes, the Globetrotters said. He was 89.
In two stints with the touring team — from 1947-53 and 1972-79 — Haynes played in more than 1,200 games for a team that combined dazzling skills, theatrical flair and circus antics.
The Globetrotters will dedicate their 90th anniversary tour in 2016 to Haynes and will wear a uniform patch in tribute.
While playing at Langston (Okla.) University, the acrobatic Haynes caught the attention of Globetrotters owner Abe Saperstein in 1946 after leading Langston to a win over his team. Haynes remained at the school, but after graduation joined the Globetrotters. He led them to victories against the George Mikan-led Minneapolis Lakers of the NBA in 1948 and 1949.
Haynes was more than mere showman on the court, although his dribbling skills were eye-popping displays that often had opponents standing and watching in awe. He led Booker T. Washington High School in his hometown of Sand Springs, Okla., to the unofficial national championship in 1941 and was a scholastic All-American that season. He then starred at Langston, an NAIA school where he was a four-time all-conference selection and team MVP.
Haynes led Langston in scoring all four years and the team had a 112-3 record, including a 59-game winning streak. The Globetrotters retired Haynes’ No. 20 jersey in 2001, one of only five players to be so honored.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Sports on 05/23/2015