Maria Sharapova's tweet says it best: "Not sure how this happened but Hey Harvard! Can't wait to start the program!"
Sharapova, 29, is serving a two-year suspension levied by the International Tennis Federation after testing positive for the banned substance meldonium. It's a messy situation, but while awaiting a decision on her appeal to overturn or reduce the suspension, she is keeping busy by enrolling in a two-week program at Harvard Business School. Sharapova made the announcement Saturday on Twitter and Facebook. Her agent, Max Eisenbud, said Monday that the program involves two classes on campus.
Sharapova is the founder of candy brand Sugarpova and has earned $21.9 million this year, according to Fortune, but the failed drug test has cost her big-money endorsements. Nike cut ties with Sharapova in March.
As of now, Sharapova is not listed on the roster of Harvard's 2016-17 women's tennis team.
Lucky bird
A bird flying around Kauffman Stadium saw its life flash before its eyes when it nearly got hit by an offering from St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright during the second inning of Monday's game in Kansas City.
The Cardinals tweeted out: "It's not aviary day that you see that!"
As the jokey nature of the tweet might indicate, the bird snuck around Wainwright's breaking ball -- and the swing of the bat by the Kansas City Royals' Cheslor Cuthbert -- to avoid disaster.
But the scene looked all too similar to Randy Johnson's infamous run-in with a bird in 2001, when the Hall of Famer hit one in-flight with a fastball. The bird burst in a puff of feathers.
While Wainwright struggled on the mound versus Kansas City, he can at least rest easy knowing no birds were harmed during his start.
New York, New York
Carmelo Anthony says he's already trying to recruit Kevin Durant.
"Well, there are some advantages to the Knicks" wrote Janice Hough of leftcoastsportsbabe.com "-- lots of media attention, the city of New York, and the months of May and June off."
Banner year
Sherwin-Williams said it won't remove a 10-story banner of Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James after recently announcing it would come down for 90 days starting next month.
The company Tuesday said the iconic James banner would remain on the side of its global headquarters and that it would donate $150,000 to the LeBron James Foundation to help inner-city youth succeed in school. The company first announced in May that it would be installing a banner to mark the company's 150th anniversary before the start of next month's Republican National Committee.
Fans started an online petition to keep the James banner up after the Cavaliers delivered Cleveland's first championship in a major sport in 52 years. The company said last week the James banner would return this fall.
Sports on 06/29/2016