The Dodgers play their first night game of the spring as they host the Kansas City Royals at Camelback Ranch. Ryder Ryan makes his second start against right-hander Mitch Spence.
Sign up for a user account and get:
The NBA’s tanking problem won’t be easily solved. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver nevertheless plans to implement potential solutions.
Via Jared Weiss of The Athletic, Silver said Friday at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference the NBA will make “substantial” changes to the NBA draft lottery next year.
Silver mentioned possibilities including disconnecting the draft order from records.
“That would be a major shock to the system,” Silver said. “Not to forecast where we’re going, but I’m an incrementalist.”
The situation requires something much more than incremental moves. Silver has correctly acknowledged that the current process leads to misaligned incentives. The only way to change that is to make draft order depend on something other than record. A straight lottery with all teams getting one ping-pong ball in the hopper would do that.
The ultimate way to align incentives would be to turn the draft order on its head, giving the champion the first pick and the worst team the last. That would absolutely remove any and all temptations to lose games on purpose.
For the NBA, the problem is that some teams have accepted short-term losing as a cost of long-term business.
“There’s been a destigmatization around certain behaviors and I think that’s a broader societal issue,” Silver said. “I think in other aspects of society, the guard rails have come off a little bit.”
Adam, please don’t blame society for your team’s business decisions. Blame your teams for prioritizing getting better players later over winning now.
Still, to the extent that societal expectations have changed, the NBA isn’t a follower. It’s at the front of the freaking line.
For the NFL, it’s important to be thinking of ways to get ahead of the problem before it fully and completely becomes one. If/when the season expands to 18 games, it will only become more likely — and more obvious — when teams choose to engineer a lost season in the direction of a draft-day win.
The World Baseball Classic is in full swing; I’m watching Mexico try to finish off Great Britain as I write this. But there are still players left behind in Spring Training who are still competing for jobs and Mitch Spence is one of those.
The Royals traded for the righty just as Spring Training was getting underway, and after spending most of the last two seasons with the Athletics, he appears to be on the outside looking in at the Royals’ big league roster. He’s only made one appearance so far this spring, a two-inning start against Milwaukee back on March 1. In that game, he struck out two, walked none, gave up zero hits, and hit a batter. So, a pretty good start for him. He’ll try to build on that tonight.
Here’s the starting lineup for the Royals:
Collins and Massey are the only guys starting tonight who currently project to make it to the Royals’ opening day roster, and neither as starters. Starling Marte still won’t make it onto the field, sadly. Maybe tomorrow!
Here are all the pitchers on tonight’s roster who could appear after Spence:
The game will be broadcast on local radio at 96.5 FM, though you could also watch the Dodgers’ TV broadcast on MLB TV if you are subscribed and not in either market, so that’s how I’ll probably be enjoying the game.
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Isack Hadjar has no lack of confidence going into his debut season at Red Bull Racing, despite having arguably the most difficult ride in Formula 1.
On the eve of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, the 21-year-old French driver said he expects to win a race in his first season with the team while squaring up against teammate and four-time world champion Max Verstappen.
It seems incongruous for him to say it, given Hadjar is only going into his second season of F1 and Red Bull doesn’t appear to have a major pace advantage heading into Sunday’s race at Albert Park in Melbourne.
To add to Hadjar’s challenge is that Verstappen has gone through four teammates in about 15 months.
One of them, Sergio Pérez, said in January that being Verstappen’s teammate was “the worst job there is in Formula 1.” Pérez was beside Verstappen for four years at Red Bull before being dropped at the end of 2024 with two years left in his contract. Pérez is returning to F1 this year with new team Cadillac.
Still, Hadjar is putting the off-track talk aside, saying the team is set to surprise everyone with the pace of the RB22 car.
“I would say I’m confident in our race car, what we can do in the race, a bit less probably on one lap pace,” Hadjar told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview. “But if we’re going to surprise people it’s definitely in a good way.”
Hadjar said he was stunned by the competitiveness of Red Bull’s new power unit, an endlessly complex technical project.
“I was very happily surprised with the reliability and driveability of the engine,” Hadjar said. “I know that I can’t make engines, but I know what it requires to make something smooth to drive. And to do it in 3 1-2 years, start the project so late and (then) make it so well is so impressive.”
Also impressive is Hadjar himself, who came back from an embarrassing formation lap crash on debut during last year’s Australian GP to score points at 10 of 24 races, including a third place at the Dutch Grand Prix, the fifth-youngest podium finisher in F1 history.
Hadjar will also benefit from having the same team boss, Laurent Mekies, who also made the step from Racing Bulls to replace Christian Horner at Red Bull last year in the aftermath of Horner’s exit in the days following the British Grand Prix last July.
“Yeah, it’s good, not much change for me,” Hadjar said. “I know him (Mekies) quite well, made my debut in F1 with him, we had some very good moments. So, it’s good not to step into unknown territory, so it’s good to keep going on the way I started F1.”
One change Hadjar has made is important — a geographical one. He moved from Faenza, Italy where he was close to Racing Bulls to London to be closer to Red Bull Racing’s Milton Keyes operation. He’ll need all the help he can get to take on Verstappen in the same team.
As always, Hadjar is confident and looking forward to the challenge.
“I’m just happy, at my age, to be able to see what it’s like to be next to the best driver on the grid,” Hadjar said, “with the same material and see what I can do, and just learn from him.
“Yeah, I’m just happy. And lucky.”
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
BOSTON — Jayson Tatum suited up for the first time since rupturing his right Achilles tendon on Friday night.
“Our team is whole now,” Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said before the game.
Tatum suffered the injury with minutes remaining in a Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks in the 2025 Eastern Conference semifinals this past May. Within hours, he underwent surgery, before any swelling could impact his timeline, a move that was made in hopes that it would expedite his return. Sure enough, it appears it worked.
“Number 0… JAYSON TATUM!”
DAL/BOS is LIVE NOW on ESPN 🍿 pic.twitter.com/VG7s6izK1Q
— NBA (@NBA) March 7, 2026
“We always knew he was coming back this year,” said Mazzulla, rejecting months of speculation about whether the 28-year-old would sit out the season. “I knew that when he decided to have the surgery within a 16-hour span or whatever the case was.”
After months of being listed as “out” on the injury report, he was upgraded to “questionable” on Thursday and “available” on Friday, letting the basketball world know one of its brightest stars was back.
Was there a minutes restriction?
“I have no idea,” said Mazzulla.
Will he start?
“He’ll start.”
Sure enough, when the Celtics made their introductions on Friday night, Tatum was last to be announced, and a raucous TD Garden crowd welcomed their hero back from a 10-month absence with a standing ovation.
On Boston’s first possession against the Dallas Mavericks, Tatum attempted his first shot, a miss, and he checked out midway through the opening quarter without a point.
But, still, Tatum was back, and all was right in Boston.
BOSTON — Jayson Tatum suited up for the first time since rupturing his right Achilles tendon on Friday night.
“Our team is whole now,” Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said before the game.
Tatum suffered the injury with minutes remaining in a Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks in the 2025 Eastern Conference semifinals this past May. Within hours, he underwent surgery, before any swelling could impact his timeline, a move that was made in hopes that it would expedite his return. Sure enough, it appears it worked.
“Number 0… JAYSON TATUM!”
DAL/BOS is LIVE NOW on ESPN 🍿 pic.twitter.com/VG7s6izK1Q
— NBA (@NBA) March 7, 2026
“We always knew he was coming back this year,” said Mazzulla, rejecting months of speculation about whether the 28-year-old would sit out the season. “I knew that when he decided to have the surgery within a 16-hour span or whatever the case was.”
After months of being listed as “out” on the injury report, he was upgraded to “questionable” on Thursday and “available” on Friday, letting the basketball world know one of its brightest stars was back.
Was there a minutes restriction?
“I have no idea,” said Mazzulla.
Will he start?
“He’ll start.”
Sure enough, when the Celtics made their introductions on Friday night, Tatum was last to be announced, and a raucous TD Garden crowd welcomed their hero back from a 10-month absence with a standing ovation.
On Boston’s first possession against the Dallas Mavericks, Tatum attempted his first shot, a miss, and he checked out midway through the opening quarter without a point.
But, still, Tatum was back, and all was right in Boston.
Today, this Colorado Rockies soundly defeated The Athletics 11-6.
For game highlights, click here.
I was unable to download manager Warren Schaeffer’s comments, so here’s Chase Dollander:
Brett Sullivan had quite a day:
And here’s Rockies third baseman Kyle Karros (who gave us some “Karro’s taco’s):
And, finally, please enjoy five minutes of Rockies highlights:
Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!
The Dodgers host the Kansas City Royals at Camelback Ranch on Friday in their first night game this spring, with a 5:05 p.m. PT start. This is the second of two consecutive night games at Camelback Ranch, with the Colorado Rockies coming over on Saturday.
Miguel Rojas 3B
Freddie Freeman 1B
Mookie Betts SS
Teoscar Hernández LF
Dalton Rushing C
Alex Freeland 2B
Nick Senzel DH
James Tibbs III RF
Michael Siani CF
Ryder Ryan starts first in what will be a bullpen game for the Dodgers.
Tanner Scott, Will Klein, Edgardo Henriquez, and Ronan Kopp are slated to pitch Friday, as are non-roster invitees Antoine Kelly and Wyatt Mills.
DULUTH, Ga. (AP) — Tajianna Roberts scored 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, Mackenly Randolph had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 12 Louisville beat Syracuse 87-61 on Friday in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
Second-seeded Louisville (26-6) plays the winner between No. 3 seed North Carolina and sixth-seeded Virginia Tech in the semifinals Saturday.
Reyna Scott made 7 of 10 from the field and finished with 15 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Cardinals. Skylar Jones scored 12 while Imari Berry and Laura Ziegler each added 11 points.
Syracuse (23-8), the No. 7 seed, announced before the game that Dominique Darius — who averages 12.6 points and has a team-high 106 assists this season — would miss the rest of the tournament due to a hand injury suffered in the Orange’s 70-59 win over California in the second round.
Uche Izoje had 22 points, 16 in the first half, and nine rebounds for the Orange. Sophie Burrows added 12 points and nine rebounds and Jasmyn Cooper scored 11.
Roberts opened the scoring with a 3-point shot nearly three minutes into the game that sparked a 17-3 run and Louisville led by at least eight points the rest of the way.
The Cardinals made 36 of 68 (56%) from the field and limited Syracuse to 34% (23 of 67) shooting, 4 of 25 (16%) from 3-point range.
Syracuse: Awaits a likely at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament.
Louisville: Plays Saturday in the semifinals.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
President Donald Trump predicted the destruction not just of college sports but the entire U.S. collegiate system unless the industry is fixed quickly — something some sports leaders who joined him Friday at a White House summit agreed could only happen by raising more money to pay players.
Trump suggested he would write an “all-encompassing” executive order within a week in hopes it would spark action from Congress. He also said he expected the order to trigger a lawsuit that could put the issue back in front of the court system that approved industry-changing payments to players for their name, image and likeness.
The new system has left many schools drowning in red ink from paying players, while rules governing those payments are only slowly taking hold.
“The whole educational system is going to go out of business because of this,” Trump explained, when asked why he was devoting time to college sports with the war in Iran and other issues dominating the headlines.
During the meeting in the East Room — which included lawmakers, conference commissioners, the president of the NCAA and CEO of the U.S. Olympic team but none of the NCAA’s 550,000 college athletes — Trump said, “I thought the system of scholarships was great.” He was harkening to the recently ended era in which players received little to nothing beyond the financial aid.
He said the “horrible” court settlement that led to the current system — a settlement that virtually everyone in the room agreed to — “threw the sports world and college the college athletic world into ‘tithers.’”
Virtually everyone in the room agreed that the industry needs to be saved from the spiraling costs associated with the onset of NIL payments and that a bill called the SCORE Act, which has struggled to pass the House, could be the base of any change. House Speaker Mike Johnson suggested there were now enough votes to pass it.
Fewer dug into the details, specifically the wide differences that exist over how to fund all this growth. Among the key proposals in play over the last several months was one that would rewrite the existing Sports Broadcasting Act to allow college conferences to pool their TV rights.
One key backer of that, Texas Tech regent Cody Campbell, was at the meeting and told Trump he would like to be part of a smaller working group that helps him draft his executive order.
Campbell has suggested pooling TV rights could raise another $6 billion, which could keep football, basketball and Olympic-sports programs solvent for decades. The Southeastern Conference and the Big Ten disagree with that conclusion.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey urged the Senate to act.
“This is not about revenue, this is about structures and national standards,” he said before listing a number of issues the SCORE Act, as currently written, would address, which includes a limited antitrust exemption for the NCAA that many Democrats oppose.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, whose committee is key to getting a bill passed in the upper chamber, said lawmakers needed to look at both the cost side and the revenue side in formulating a law.
“If we wait another year, wait another two years, the programs in your state are going away and the students in your state are losing their scholarships,” Cruz said. “It would be an absolute travesty if we let that happen.”
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports
