FOOTBALL
Clemson: 23 positive for virus
Clemson said 23 football players have tested positive for covid-19 since returning to campus this month. Clemson announced the results Friday. It did not identify the athletes. In all, school spokesman Jeff Kallin said 28 people were found with covid-19 since testing began for athletes and other personnel on June 8. The uptick at Clemson mirrors one in the state of South Carolina, which reported a single-day high of 1,081 people testing positive Friday. Along with the players, two football staff members and three athletes from other sports were found with the virus. The school said all were asymptomatic and have begun isolation for at least 10 days. No one has been hospitalized. In all, Clemson has administered 315 tests for the disease since athletes came back to athletic facilities.
Niners' WR suffers broken wrist
San Francisco 49ers receiver Richie James has broken his right wrist during offseason workouts and won't be ready to return to the field until after the start of training camp. The 49ers confirmed a report of the injury by NFL Network on Friday and said they will have a better idea of how long James will be sidelined after he reports to training camp next month. NFL Network said James is expected to miss at least two months. James is the second receiver lost to injury this week for the defending NFC champion 49ers. No. 1 wideout Deebo Samuel underwent surgery Thursday to repair a fracture in his left foot suffered during informal player workouts in Tennessee. Samuel said he expects to be back in 10 weeks, meaning his will miss the start of training camp but should be healthy for the season opener Sept. 13.
Jets, Mims reach deal
The New York Jets have agreed to terms with Baylor wide receiver Denzel Mims, their second-round draft pick in April, a person with knowledge of the deal tells The Associated Press. Mims fits a major need for a Jets' offense that lost its top wideout, Robby Anderson, to Carolina in free agency. Chosen 59th overall, he'll get a four-year deal worth about $5.5 million.
MOTOR SPORTS
Zanardi suffers head injury
Alex Zanardi, the Italian race car champion who transitioned into a gold medalist Paralympian after losing both of his legs, was seriously injured in a handbike race Friday. Zanardi was transported by helicopter to Santa Maria alle Scotte hospital in Siena after a crash near the Tuscan town of Pienza during a national race for Paralympic athletes, police told The Associated Press. A medical bulletin from the hospital said Zanardi underwent "a delicate neurosurgery operation" due to "severe cranial trauma." The surgery lasted about three hours, after which Zanardi was moved to the intensive care unit. "His condition remains very serious," the hospital said. A Carabinieri police official in Montepulciano said the incident involved a "heavy vehicle."
BASEBALL
Twins remove statue
The Minnesota Twins removed a statue of former owner Calvin Griffith at Target Field, citing his racist remarks in 1978 and saying the team could no longer "remain silent." Griffith's statue was one of several installed when the team opened the ballpark in 2010. Its removal came on Juneteenth, the traditional commemoration of emancipation of slaves. "While we acknowledge the prominent role Calvin Griffith played in our history, we cannot remain silent and continue ignoring the racist comments he made in Waseca in 1978," the Twins said in a statement Friday. Griffith moved the Washington Senators to Minnesota for the 1961 season, and the franchise was renamed the Twins. During a speech in Minnesota to a Waseca Lions Club in 1978, he said he decided to make the move "when I found out you only had 15,000 blacks here," the Minneapolis Tribune reported at the time.