Best 15 Minutes in Sports–Thursday
………………(Baseball)……………..
Padres…Will extend weekly payments to all 220-minor league players under contract for 3-more months…thru August 31st….Initial payment packages of (400) per week were to expire this weekend…Club also continuing medical health care coverage to all minor leaguers.
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(MLB)
Union…Holds conference call with Player Reps to discuss response to Owners demand of more pay-cuts…Emotions ranged from ‘livid’ to ‘disrespected’ to
‘galvanized’. Sources say counter-offer could be coming from Union by weekend.
Union…Yet to set up a second round of negotiations with Owners after Wednesday presentation calling for massive salary cuts for all players as part of 82-game season.
Union…Says players making minimum salaries this year, would receive (46%) of salaries for year under new plan….Highest paid stars would receive just (22%) of salaries for year.
Union…Owners proposed giving players 25M payment for divisional series…..80M payment for Championship series….125M for World Series…Means players would get 230M as their share of new postseason TV-contract which is worth 1B-total.
Angels…Report that star OF-Mike Trout would take a 67% payout if the current proposal is accepted…Trout was supposed to make (37.7M) this year…would receive only (11M) of salary.
Oakland A’s…Announce pay-cuts of 20-to-33%-for front office business and baseball staffs.
Atlanta…Longtime Braves C-Biff Pocoroba passes away (66Y)…played from 1975-1984.
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…………………(Football)……………….
NFL Owners…Vote Thursday on rule changes
..4th-and-15Y play instead of onside kick for teams trailing in games
..Injured Reserve-allow 3-players be recalled
..Defenseless Player Penalty-protect KR-PReturners
NFL Owners…Remove proposal for hiring of ‘Sky Judge’ as 8th official on crews…NFL wants to study it further….Sources say owners would have to invest alot money to hire 17-Sky Judges-who would demand top pay to come out of retirement to accept key role.
Miami..Owner Steven Ross donates 2M to Food Bank..to purchase 1,000-meals a day for 1-full year.
Raiders..Confirm considering moving preseason camp from Napa to Henderson, Nevada.
Rams…Announce they will unveil new So-Fi Stadium with preseason game with Saints on August 14th…Selling tickets for game-but no final approval fans will be allowed to attend.
Cowboys…Send officials to Frisco, Texas to negotiate as possible training camp sight if California does not approve opening of Oxnard facilities in July.
Lions-Carolina-Baltimore…All negotiating with Greenbrier, West Virginia as possible training camp location.
Washington..WR-Antonio Brown working out with QB-Dwyane Haskins in Florida.
Raiders..QB-Derek Carr working out with 3-receivers in Las Vegas.
Carolina..Former RB-Mike Tolbert rips Panthers..says they mishandled both of Cam Newton’s major injuries…says club waited 4-months before Newton had shoulder surgery…says Misdiagnosed foot sprain-kept calling it ankle injury…waited 3-months to have surgery.
Jacksonville….New Off Coord-Jay Gruden praises QB-Gardner Minshew for dedication learning new NFL playbook.
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(College Football)
San Diego State…Sources say Aztecs coaches-SDSU athletic department employees…none were asked to take paycuts…non were laid off during pandemic so far.
USC-UCLA…Say they are not ready to announce opening of facilities for players conditioning drills….Pac 12-announced it was setting July 15th as date players could return to campus.
Northwestern…Lands transfer QB-Peyton Ramsey-Indiana
Tennessee Tech….Newly hired RB-coach Gerald House passes away (28Y) on illness act home in Georgia.
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……………(Basketball)………….
NBA Board of Governors…to hold conference call on Friday to discuss format for Playoffs in Bubble in Orlando….Still discussing 16-to-20 teams in postseason with play in games for last group of teams.
76ers…Reopened training facilities on Wednesday.
NY Knicks…Begin interviews for new head coach…Will interview Tom Thibodeau-ex Bulls…Kenny Atkinson-ex Brooklyn Nets.
Sacramento…Putting disappointing C-Marvin Bagley on trade block…was 2nd player taken in 2018-two years of injuries and poor play
Golden State…Coach Steve Kerr tweets death of George Floyd in Minnesota was ‘murder’….asking ‘what has happened to people le in America?’
Arizona State…Bitter dispute between coach Bobby Hurley and AD-Ray Anderson….Hurley accuses AD of being ‘insensitive to women’…after ASU booster accused of sexual harassment and touching of women at Sun Devils basketball games…1-of those accosted was Hurley’s wife.
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……………(Hockey)………………
NHL Union….Wants further discussion with league about Hub cities plan for playoffs….Wants Best of 7-series not Best of 5-series….Does not like plans for 15-teams to be included in Draft Lottery.
NHL…May have to consider not holding playoffs in Canada-becuase of Canadian 14-day quarantine for players coming into the country….Might hinder Toronto-Vancouver-Edmonton bids to be host city…
NHL…Getting blowback on report they would move a team out of Hub City-if the games were being held in their city….Could be issue for Oilers-Golden Knights…if Edmonton or Las Vegas were chosen as hub sights.
Red Wings..Give vote of confidence to Coach Jeff Blashill..will return next year despite (153-194-52) record.
San Jose…Forward Jon Dahlen elects to sign to play in Sweden next year-not try to return to NHL.
Penguins….Lose C-Nick Bjugstad for playoffs…reinjures disc in back has second medical procudure.
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…………….(General)……………..
NASCAR….Charlotte 300 on Wednesday night….Rain wipes out race…rescheduled for Thursday after remnants of tropical storm moves out.
Bob Baffert…2-of his horses test positive for drugs at Oaklawn Track in Arkansas…including Kentucky Derby favorite Charlatan.
English Premier League….4-more players test positive for virus…bring to 16-positive tests since camps reopened last week.
PGA…Issues Memo for restart of Tour at the Colonial in two weeks…Players requested to stay in 1-of-4 bubble hotels…Must trade swab test before they leave home….will be tested when they arrive in Ft-Worth…and each day of tournament.
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