MLB – Tigers rookie Kevin McGonigle agree to an $150 million, 8-year contract for 2027
Detroit Tigers rookie Kevin McGonigle has agreed to a $150 million, eight-year contract starting in 2027. The 21-year-old infielder made his major league debut on March 26 and has been impressive, hitting .311 with one homer and eight RBIs in 17 games. McGonigle is the fourth top prospect to secure a big-money deal since late March, following contracts for Konnor Griffin, Colt Emerson and Cooper Pratt. His deal includes a $14 million signing bonus and covers the first three seasons after he would have been eligible for free agency. McGonigle was drafted 37th overall in 2023.
MLB – Major League Baseball
Last Night
Detroit Tigers 2, Kansas City Royals 1
Chicago Cubs 11, Philadelphia Phillies 2
Tampa Bay Rays 8, Chicago White Sox 3
Tigers 2, Royals 1 – Wenceel Pérez hits an 8th-inning homer as Tigers beat Royals 2-1 for 5th straight win
Wenceel Pérez hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning and the Detroit Tigers won their fifth straight game, beating the Kansas City Royals 2-1. Pérez entered the game in the eighth inning as a defensive replacement when Zach McKinstry left after a collision with Jac Caglianone at third base. Pérez’s first at-bat came as the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the eighth and he hit a 1-1 changeup from Eli Morgan over the right-field fence for his first homer of the season.
Cubs 11, Phillies 2 – Hoerner drives in 5 runs, Imanaga strikes out 11 to lead Cubs past Phillies
Nico Hoerner drove in a career-high five runs, Shota Imanaga struck out 11 in six strong innings and the Chicago Cubs routed the Philadelphia Phillies 11-2 on Wednesday night. Dansby Swanson homered and Matt Shaw had three doubles and a pair of RBIs for the Cubs, who pounded out 15 hits to take the rubber match of the three-game set. Trea Turner and Bryce Harper homered for Philadelphia. Imanaga allowed three hits and walked one.
Rays 8, White Sox 3 – Caminero, Fraley and DeLuca homer as Rays pound White Sox 8-3 for 5th straight win
Junior Caminero, Jake Fraley and Jonny DeLuca homered, and the Tampa Bay Rays pounded the Chicago White Sox 8-3 for their fifth straight win. Caminero gave the Rays a 1-0 lead in the third with a rocket down the left-field line against White Sox starter Sean Burke. He added an RBI groundout in the fifth before Jonathan Aranda doubled in run. Fraley made it 4-0 when he led off the sixth with his first homer.
Tonight
Kansas City (Bubic 2-1) at Detroit (Montero 1-1), 1:10 p.m. News/Talk/Sports 94.9 WSJM 12:45p
Tampa Bay (Matz 3-0) at Chicago White Sox (Leasure 1-0), 2:10 p.m.
Cubs are off
NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Florida Panthers 8, Detroit Red Wings 1
Chicago Blackhakw 5, San Jose Sharks 2
Panthers 8, Red Wings 1 – Benning gets 2 goals, Panthers finish season with 8-1 win over Red Wings
Mike Benning got his first two NHL goals, Wilmer Skoog, Mikulas Hovorka and Ludvig Jansson all got their first NHL points, and the Florida Panthers closed out their injury-plagued season by routing the Detroit Red Wings 8-1. Luke Kunin, Vinnie Hinostroza, Cole Schwindt, Cole Reinhardt and A.J. Greer also had goals for Florida, while Skoog, Marek Alscher and Matthew Tkachuk — playing for the first time since he and his wife welcomed their first child earlier this week — finished with two assists. Justin Faulk had the goal for Detroit.
Blackhawks 5, Sharks 2 – Louis Crevier scores twice as Blackhawks end season with 5-2 win over Sharks
Defenseman Louis Crevier scored twice in the final period, Ryan Greene and Nick Lardis also added third period goals, and the Chicago Blackhawks rallied in their season finale to beat the San Jose Sharks 5-2 on Wednesday night. Crevier, with the first multigoal game of his career, tied the game at 2 by converting a backhand pass from Connor Bedard 3:51 into the period, then added an insurance goal on a 60-foot slapshot midway through the period. Greene scored his 12th of the season between Crevier’s goals, beating Sharks goaltender Yaroslav Askarov from the slot at 8:35. Bedard also set up Lardis’ goal.
NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
NBA Play-In Tournament
Philadelphia 76ers 109, Orlando Magic 97
Golden State Warriors 126, Los Angeles Clippers 121
Sixers 109, Magic 97 – Maxey scores 31 and Sixers beat Magic 109-97 in play-in game, advance to series vs. Celtics
Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points, V.J. Edgecombe added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers weathered the absence of Joel Embiid to beat the Orlando Magic 109-97 and secure the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Sixers moved on to a first-round series that begins Sunday at Boston. Desmond Bane and the Magic aren’t done yet. They will host Charlotte on Friday night with the winner earning the No. 8 seed in the East and a first-round matchup with Detroit. Embiid had an emergency appendectomy last week in Houston.
Warriors 126, Clippers 121 -Warriors wake up in vintage comeback win over Clippers
Stephen Curry and Draymond Green have already done it all and won it all during their 14 years and four championships together. The Warriors’ visit to the Los Angeles Clippers was merely a play-in game for the right to travel to Phoenix after a trying regular season that ended with Golden State sitting eight games below .500 and in 10th place in the Western Conference. And yet both the style and substance of this 126-121 comeback victory indelibly evoked the brilliance of the Warriors’ golden era. The few remaining men who were around for all of it were thrilled to travel back in time.
NBA – NBA says Ball’s takedown of Adebayo should have been called flagrant
The NBA says Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball should have been ejected for an uncalled flagrant foul when he reached out and tugged on the ankle of Miami’s Bam Adebayo. The foul caused a back injury that forced Adebayo out of a play-in tournament game that the Heat ultimately lost to Ball and the Hornets. The league said Ball made “unnecessary and reckless contact” with Adebayo on Tuesday night. Ball was fined $60,000 for the foul and for using profanity in an interview, but he remains eligible to play in the Hornets’ elimination game Friday against Orlando.
Likelihood of NFL replacement refs enters new stage with background checks, physicals
The NFL’s process of hiring replacement referees has reached another stage, according to a memo sent to teams. Several replacement officials have completed hiring steps including background checks and will soon progress to undergoing physical exams per a memo sent to teams on Wednesday that was obtained by The Associated Press. Training sessions with NFL officiating supervisors would then begin as early as next month. The league has undertaken these steps because negotiations with the referees’ union have been unsuccessful, two people with knowledge of the discussions told The Associated Press last month. Both people spoke on condition of anonymity because the conversations are private.
FIFA – FIFA says Iran will participate in World Cup ‘for sure’ despite war
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said Wednesday that Iran will participate in the World Cup “for sure” despite its war with the United States. Speaking at CNBC’s Invest in America Forum, Infantino said it is important that Iran participates in the World Cup even though its participation has been in doubt since the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes on the country. Infantino met with the Iranian national team in Antalya, Turkey, two weeks ago and said Wednesday he was impressed.
Golf – LIV Golf leader says the show will go on amid reports of Saudi funding uncertainty
The CEO of LIV Golf is seeking to quell speculation about the Saudi-funded league’s financial status by saying the rest of the season will go on interrupted. Scott O’Neil’s memo to the staff says LIV will be at full throttle as it heads into the heart of the season. The memo follows a long day of reports that suggested Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund was on the verge of cutting its support. LIV Golf is in Mexico City this week for its sixth tournament of the year. Left unclear in the memo was how much longer the funding would last.
MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
Great Lakes Loons 6, Dayton Dragons 5
West Michigan Whitecaps 7, Lansing Lugnuts 5
South Bend Cubs 9, Beloit Sky Carp 5
Tonight
Dayton Dragons at Great Lakes Loons, 6:05 p.m.
West Michigan Whitecaps at Lansing Lugnuts, 6:05 p.m.
Beloit Sky Carp at South Bend Cubs, 7:05 p.m. Sportsradio 960 WSBT 6:45p
MHSAA – Michigan High School Athletic Association
Last Night
Girls Soccer
Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 2, St. Joseph 0
Portage Central 2, Lakeshore 0
Michigan Lutheran 3, Our Lady of the Lake 0
Battle Creek Lakeview 4, Kalamazoo Central 1
Gull Lake 10, Battle Creek Central 0
Edwardsburg 3, Sturgis 2
Otsego at Three Rivers, Postponed
Plainwell at Vicksburg, Postponed
Eua Claire at Covert, Postponed
Berrien Springs 3, Buchanan 2
Tonight
Baseball
Battle Creek Lakeview at St. Joseph, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Kalamazoo Loy Norrix a Lakeshore, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Bridgman at Brandywine, 4:15 p.m. (DH)
Fennville at Coloma, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Allegan at Watervliet, 4:00 p.m.
Kal. Central at Portage Northern, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Otsego at Marshall, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Buchanan at Union City, 4:30 p.m.
Holland Black River at Saugatuck, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Marcellus at Bloomingdale, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Comstock at Cassopolis, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Centreville at Hartford, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Decatur at Lawrence, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Bangor at White Pigeon, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Girls Tennis
Plainwell at Otsego, 4:00 p.m.
Brandywine at Bridgman, 4:30 p.m.
Softball
Battle Creek Lakeview at St. Joseph, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Kalamazoo Loy Norrix a Lakeshore, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Fennville at Coloma, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Mattawan at South Haven, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Paw Paw at Mishawaka Penn (IN), 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Allegan at Watervliet, 4:00 p.m.
Sturgis at Dowagiac, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Concord at Edwardsburg, 5:30 p.m.
Otsego at Marshall, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Howardsville Christian at Lawton, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Eau Claire at Mendon, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Gobles at Hopkins, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Holland Black River at Saugatuck, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Marcellus at Bloomingdale, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Comstock at Cassopolis, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Centreville at Hartford, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Decatur at Lawrence, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Bangor at White Pigeon, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Girls Soccer
Calhoun Christian at Michigan Lutheran, 5:30 p.m.
Berrien Springs at South Haven, 6:30 p.m.
Lawton at Comstock, 6:00 p.m.
Mattawan at Portage Northern, 6:30 p.m.
Harper Creek at Allegan, 6:30 p.m.
Fennville at Kalamazoo Hackett, 5:00 p.m.
Lawton at Comstock, 6:00 p.m.
