TENNIS
Venus wins in Miami
Three-time tournament champion Venus Williams won her opening match Thursday at the new site of the Miami Open by beating Dalila Jakupovic 7-5, 6-3. Williams won the tournament in 1998, 1999 and 2001 when it was played on Key Biscayne. The event moved this year to the Miami Dolphins' complex at Miami Gardens, and Williams played in the stadium. Whitney Osuigwe, a 16-year-old qualifier from Bradenton, Fla., earned her first WTA Tour victory by beating Mari Osaka, 6-2, 6-4. Osaka is the sister of 2018 champion Naomi Osaka. No. 3-seeded Petra Kvitova won her opening match by beating Maria Sakkari 6-1, 6-4.
FOOTBALL
Cardinals sign ex-Hog
The Arizona Cardinals have signed defensive lineman Darius Philon (Arkansas Razorbacks) to a two-year contract and tight end Ricky Seals-Jones to a one-year deal. Terms of the deals announced Thursday were not disclosed. Philon, 25, has played four seasons with the Chargers after being selected in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He's appeared in 54 career games with 19 starts, including two playoff games. He had a career-high 50 tackles and 4 sacks last season while playing a career-high 13 games. Philon has 121 career tackles and 9½ sacks. Seals-Jones had 34 receptions for 343 yards and a touchdown last season, his third with Arizona.
GOLF
Two share lead
Joel Dahmen took advantage of gentle morning conditions Thursday for a 5-under 66 and a share of the lead with Austrian-born Sepp Straka in the Valspar Championship at Palm Harbor, Fla. He handled the tough Copperhead course with six birdies and a strong finish -- a 6-iron to 4 feet for birdie on No. 3, a 7-iron to 5 feet on the par-3 fourth hole, a 20-foot birdie putt at No. 9. The lead stood when the wind picked up in the afternoon. Of the 28 rounds in the 60s, only eight were in the afternoon. One of them belonged to Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world. He had a 69. Russell Knox wiped out a double bogey on No. 9 by hitting 3-wood into the cup from 274 yards for an albatross on the par-5 11th, and riding that to a 29 on the back nine. He was one shot behind at 67. The group at 67 included Kevin Kisner and Luke Donald.
Boutier leads by 1
Celine Boutier closed with a 4-foot birdie putt late Thursday afternoon for an 8-under 64 and a one-stroke lead in the Founders Cup at Phoenix. The Frenchwoman won the Vic Open last month in Australia for her first LPGA Tour title. Na Yeon Choi was tied for second with Alana Uriell (Arkansas Razorbacks), Charlotte Thomas, Jin Young Ko and Nanna Koerstz Madsen in the event that honors the 13 women who founded the tour. Choi returned from a back injury that sidelined her 11 months. Uriell won a Symetra Tour event two weeks ago in Florida in her pro debut, making an eagle on the first hole of a playoff. Top-ranked Sung Hyun Park, Jenny Shin, Carlota Ciganda, Pornanong Phatlum and Monday qualifier Cheyenne Knight shot 66. Gaby Lopez (Razorbacks) shot a 2-under 70. Stacy Lewis (Razorbacks) had a 75.
BASEBALL
Big Goldschmidt deal?
The St. Louis Cardinals and new first baseman Paul Goldschmidt are finalizing a five-year extension worth around $130 million, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. The deal is expected to be finalized by Saturday. The extension will start after 2019 and carry through 2024. The completion of the deal is pending a physical, which is scheduled for today. John Mozeliak, Cardinals president of baseball operations, declined comment on any specific pending deal. Goldschmidt's extension surpasses Matt Holliday's seven-year, $120-million contract as the largest in club history. He also surpasses Yadier Molina's $20-million salary to become the highest paid Cardinal ever. The Cardinals acquired Goldschmidt from Arizona in a four-player deal that sent catcher Carson Kelly and pitcher Luke Weaver along with a draft pick and a prospect to the Diamondbacks. He arrived with one year remaining on his contract. He will make $15.5 million this season.
Sabathia returns
New York Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia returned to the mound Thursday for the first time since undergoing a heart procedure in December. Sabathia allowed 1 run and 2 hits over 2 innings on Thursday in a minor league exhibition game, striking out 3 for Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Toledo, Detroit's Class AAA affiliate. Sabathia said he "felt great" after his 26-pitch outing. Sabathia will make another minor league appearance on Tuesday against Philadelphia Phillies prospects. He is expected to miss his first two or three regular season starts. The 38-year-old had a stent inserted this winter after a blockage was found in an artery from his heart.
Snell, Rays agree
American League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and the Tampa Bay Rays have agreed to a $50 million, five-year contract that covers three seasons of arbitration eligibility plus two years after he could have become a free agent. The team announced the deal Thursday, less than two weeks after renewing the left-hander's contract at a salary of $573,700 for the upcoming season. That would have been a raise of just $15,500 from 2018, when he led the league with 21 victories. Snell's new deal includes a $3 million signing bonus and a raise to $1 million for this season. The 26-year-old went 21-5 with a 1.89 ERA last year, setting franchise records for wins and ERA.
BASKETBALL
Fans line up to bet legally on March Madness
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — College basketball fans lined up at casinos and racetracks or furiously tapped smartphone screens Thursday to get down bets on March Madness, many in states where it is legal for the first time.
Casino industry executives and gambling regulators predict the 67-game tournament should produce more bets than the Super Bowl.
Tom Gable, head of the sports book at the Borgata casino in Atlantic City, said advance action has been predictably heavy.
“We’ve been fielding calls since December from people saying, ‘What are you doing for March Madness, how can I reserve a seat and a hotel room?’ ” he said. “We knew the demand was going to be there way in advance.”
This is the first NCAA Tournament since New Jersey won a U.S. Supreme Court case clearing the way for all 50 states to offer legal sports betting. So far eight of them do: Delaware, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, West Virginia and New Mexico, where sports bets are done through a tribal compact.
“March Madness is one of the few times every year where the entire sports world is focused on one event,” said Richard Schwartz, president of Rush Street Interactive. “In Nevada, March Madness has surpassed the Super Bowl in betting handle, so now that fans can legally bet in New Jersey, we expect it to be one of our biggest mobile and online wagering events.”
He said it is a good way for casinos, tracks and online outlets to re-engage gamblers who may have been dormant since the Super Bowl on Feb. 3. And numerous casinos are offering cross-promotions among their in-person and online sports betting operations, designed to generate business on slots and table games, food and beverage sales, and hotel stays.
In Las Vegas, dozens of people were in line Thursday waiting to place a bet at the Westgate casino 45 minutes before the first game began. Some still had their luggage with them.
The overwhelmingly male crowd was younger than the one that gathered at the property’s sportsbook for the Super Bowl a few weeks ago.
“It’s a ‘mancation’ at its best,” said Jay Kornegay, the Westgate’s vice president of race and sports book operations. “The Super Bowl is a more mature, older crowd, more couples. March Madness is 99 percent guys, and most of these guys are here on a reunion with old friends, neighbors or ex-coworkers.”
Sports on 03/22/2019