BASEBALL
McCutchen moving to RF
Andrew McCutchen is on the move, just not out of Pittsburgh. Pirates Manager Clint Hurdle announced Sunday that McCutchen is moving from center field to right field this season. Gregory Polanco will flip from right field to left, with Starling Marte sliding over from left to center. McCutchen, a five-time All-Star and the 2013 National League MVP, won a Gold Glove in center in 2012 but has seen a dip in his defensive performance recently, according to advanced metrics. Pittsburgh explored trading McCutchen earlier in the offseason, but he is expected to be with the team when the Pirates report for spring training later this month. McCutchen tweeted a photo of Hall of Fame Pirates right fielder Roberto Clemente without comment Sunday night. The right field wall at PNC Park is 21-feet tall in honor of Clemente, who wore No. 21. Hurdle called all three outfielders "selfless" for being open to the new alignment. Marte, an All-Star last year, is a two-time Gold Glove winner in left.
FOOTBALL
OBJ: 'Regrets' Miami trip
Odell Beckham Jr. acknowledged on Sunday having "regrets" about the trip to Miami he and other Giants receivers made the Monday before a wild-card playoff game against the Packers last month. Beckham, appearing as a guest analyst on ESPN Postseason NFL Countdown, was asked by host Suzy Kolber about a recent comment from fellow receiver Victor Cruz that the much-discussed, much-criticized trip was not worth the trouble. "Kind of going off what he said, and I saw his statement and I talked to him about it," Beckham said, "I think what he was saying was all the extra attention and distraction it caused for our team and our organization, I don't think any of us wanted that. That's where the regrets may lie. But as far as going back on it, you live and you learn. You make decisions and you have to live with the consequences. You have to be willing to do that. And that was the case. It's something that I'll be able to look back on in life and you just grow from it and that's all you can do." Beckham also admitted that he was, in fact, the person who punched a hole in a wall near the Giants' locker room at Lambeau Field out of frustration after the 38-13 loss to the Packers. "Honestly, I've learned my lesson about that," he said. "I didn't sit there and punch a wall, man. It was literally a piece of paper, Sheetrock. It just happened."
WRESTLING
Iran lifts U.S. team ban
Iran has lifted a ban on U.S. wrestlers, allowing them to take part in the Freestyle World Cup later this month in the Iranian city of Kermanshah, Iranian media reported Sunday. The report by state TV quotes Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi as saying that the ban was lifted after the "discriminative restrictions" on Iranian nationals travelling to the U.S. was suspended by a U.S. federal judge. The wrestlers were originally banned Friday from the Feb. 16-17 competition after President Donald Trump temporarily suspended travel from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran. The Trump administration is now appealing to reinstate the travel ban. On Sunday a judge in San Francisco rejected the government's request for an immediate reinstatement. Formal arguments in the case begin today. Regardless of tensions between their governments, American and Iranian wrestlers have frequently hosted each other in competitions and have a working relationship that goes back decades. At least one Iranian parliamentarian, Ali Mohtari, was critical of the original decision to ban the U.S. team. In a posting on Twitter, Mohtari argued that Iran should do the opposite of Trump and instead make a point of welcoming the American wrestlers.
HORSE RACING
Bella wins Las Virgenes
Unique Bella won the $200,000 Las Virgenes Stakes for 3-year-old fillies by 8 ¾ lengths Sunday at Santa Anita. Ridden by Mike Smith, Unique Bella ran a mile in 1:35.66 and paid $2.20 and $2.10 in the Grade 2 race. Mopotism returned $4, while Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Champagne Room was another 1¼ lengths back in third. There was no show wagering because of the four-horse field. Miss Southern Miss was last. Trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, Unique Bella was coming off a 7½-length victory in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes on Jan. 8. Champagne Room, last year's Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old filly, had been idle since winning the BC Juvenile Fillies at 33-1 odds on Nov. 5 at Santa Anita. Unique Bella has three wins in four career starts. She earned 10 points toward qualifying for a spot in the 14-horse field for the $1 million Kentucky Oaks on May 5 at Churchill Downs. Champagne Room earned two points for her third-place finish, but she tops the Kentucky Oaks leaderboard with 23 points. Unique Bella is third with 20 overall points.
SOCCER
Cameroon fights back
Cameroon rallied from 1-0 down and won the African Cup of Nations title with a sublime 89th-minute winner from substitute Vincent Aboubakar to beat Egypt 2-1 in the final Sunday. Aboubakar controlled the ball just outside the area in the dying minutes, clipped it over a defender, and then shot past Egypt's goalkeeper to clinch Cameroon's fifth African title with a brilliant finish. Aboubakar ran all the way to the VIP enclosure to celebrate as his teammates chased him. One of Cameroon's coaching staff members rushed out to try and hug Aboubakar and was shoved out the way as the big striker made his way over to the stands. Aboubakar delivered Cameroon's first African Cup crown since 2002 and denied Egypt, which led early in the first half in Libreville, Gabon, an eighth title. Mohamed el-Neny scored for Egypt in the 22nd but another Cameroon substitute, defender Nicolas Nkoulou, equalized in the 60th.
HOCKEY
Blues forward out for year
St. Louis Blues forward Robby Fabbri will miss the rest of the season because of left knee injury. The team announced Sunday that Fabbri is out with an ACL injury and will be back for 2017-18 training camp. In corresponding roster moves, St. Louis recalled Magnus Paajarvi and Kenny Agostino from Chicago of the American Hockey League. Fabbri was checked into the boards by Pittsburgh's Carter Rowney during the first period Saturday night and went to the ice. Fabbri put no pressure on his left leg as he left. The long-term injury is another blow to the Blues, who have lost six of their past eight games to fall out of a playoff position in the Western Conference and fired Coach Ken Hitchcock last week. The 21-year-old Fabbri had 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points in 51 games this season. Fabbri, a first-round pick in 2014, was just eight points short of matching his total from last year, his rookie season. It's another devastating injury for Fabbri, who had a high-ankle sprain during the 2015 world junior tournament. Paajarvi and Agostino were recalled for the first time this season. Agostino leads the AHL with 60 points in 48 games.
Sports on 02/06/2017