BASEBALL
Giants put closer on DL
The San Francisco Giants have placed closer Mark Melancon on the 10-day disabled list for a second time this season with a sore forearm. Melancon, who signed a $62 million, four-year contract with the Giants during the offseason, was on the disabled list with the same injury in May. Melancon is 1-2 with a 4.35 ERA and 11 saves in 15 chances.
SS Diaz sent to minors
St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz was sent to Class AAA Memphis before Wednesday night's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, with the club purchasing the contract of infielder Alex Mejia from Memphis. Diaz was an All-Star last season, but had been in a hitting slump of late. He did not play until entering Tuesday's game as a late replacement, and Manager Mike Matheny said before that game that Diaz was not seeing the ball well. Diaz, batting .260, was the Cardinals' leader in hits with 71 going into Wednesday's game. Mejia, 26, was named a Texas League All-Star earlier this month and will be making his major league debut when he sees action.
Holliday has viral infection
The New York Yankees have placed designated hitter Matt Holliday on the 10-day disabled list with a viral infection. Holliday, 37, is batting .262 with 15 home runs and 47 RBI in 68 games in his first season in New York. The move was made retroactive to Sunday. New York also announced that first baseman Chris Carter was outrighted to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and had accepted his assignment. Carter was designated for assignment after Friday night's 2-1 victory over Texas.
Cubs, Montero part ways
The Chicago Cubs cut ties with Miguel Montero on Wednesday after the veteran catcher blamed pitcher Jake Arrieta for allowing seven stolen bases in Tuesday's loss to the Washington Nationals. Montero, who turns 34 on July 9, was designated for assignment, and the World Series champions recalled catcher Victor Caratini from Class AAA Iowa. Montero is batting .286 with 4 home runs and 8 RBI in 44 games. Montero posted a series of tweets Wednesday saying goodbye to fans and the city of Chicago. He apologized over the phone to Arrieta, who won the NL Cy Young Award in 2015.
Trump welcomes Cubs
President Donald Trump welcomed the manager and several players from the World Series champion Chicago Cubs to the White House on Wednesday. Trump met with Manager Joe Maddon and some Cubs, and called the Cubs a "great team." They gave him a team jersey printed with "45" in recognition of his status as the 45th U.S. president. In January, the Cubs visited President Barack Obama at the White House after winning the World Series and shortly before his term ended.
FOOTBALL
Cowboys Irving suspended
Dallas defensive end David Irving has been suspended the first four games of the season for violating the NFL's policy against performance-enhancing drugs. The ban announced Wednesday leaves the Cowboys without two potential starting pass rushers because of suspensions. Randy Gregory, a second-round pick who slid in the 2015 draft because of concerns over marijuana use, is likely to miss the entire season for multiple violations of the substance-abuse policy. Irving, one of the team's best pass rushers at the end of last season, can return Oct. 8 against Green Bay at home. It's the third consecutive year that Dallas will begin the season with at least two defensive players suspended, and the Cowboys could have a third. Cornerback Nolan Carroll, a free agent pickup from Philadelphia, faces a two-game ban over his arrest on a drunken-driving charge in Dallas.
MOTOR SPORTS
Interim crew chief suspended
NASCAR has suspended yet another crew chief for Kyle Busch. Engineer and interim crew chief Ben Beshore will miss Saturday night's race at Daytona because the No. 18 team had two unsecured lug nuts at the end of the Sonoma Raceway race over the weekend. Crew chief Adam Stevens will miss his fourth and final race this weekend for a tire rolling off Busch's car at Dover. Beshore, who was also fined $20,000, had been Stevens' replacement. Joe Gibbs Racing said engineer Jacob Canter will crew chief for Busch at Daytona.
TRACK AND FIELD
Bolt tops in 100 meters
Usain Bolt started the European leg of his final season before retirement with a victory in the 100 meters at the Golden Spike meeting in the Czech Republic on Wednesday. At the meet where he has most frequently competed in his career, with nine appearances, Bolt reeled in the rest of the field after a trademark slow start to cross the finish line in 10.06 seconds. The time fell short of his season best of 10.03. Bolt is preparing for the world championships in London in August, the final major competition for the eight-time Olympic champion.
TENNIS
Wimbledon seeds announced
The "Big 4" of men's tennis were given the four highest seedings for this year's tournament at Wimbledon. No. 1-ranked Andy Murray, the defending champion, is the top-seeded player, followed by Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Nadal and Djokovic are also in the top four of the ATP rankings, but Federer is No. 5. Third-ranked Stan Wawrinka, who has won the other three Grand Slam titles but not Wimbledon, is seeded fifth. Milos Raonic, Marin Cilic, Dominic Thiem, Kei Nishikori and Alexander Zverev round out the top 10 in the seedings. In the women's seedings, Angelique Kerber is No. 1 in a list that mirrors the top-10 rankings. The only exception is the absence of Serena Williams, who is pregnant and skipping the tournament.
BASKETBALL
Knicks part ways with Jackson
NEW YORK -- Phil Jackson is out as New York Knicks president after he oversaw one of the worst eras in team history and feuded with star Carmelo Anthony.
Days after Jackson reiterated his desire to trade Anthony and said he would listen to deals for Kristaps Porzingis, Madison Square Garden Chairman James Dolan reversed course and cut ties with Jackson on Wednesday.
"After careful thought and consideration, we mutually agreed that the Knicks will be going in a different direction," Dolan said in a statement. "Phil Jackson is one of the most celebrated and successful individuals in the history of the NBA. His legacy in the game of basketball is unmatched."
But his work as a first-time executive was awful. The winner of an NBA-record 11 championships as coach, Jackson couldn't engineer one playoff berth while running the Knicks. The team was 80-166 in his three full seasons, including a franchise-worst 17-65 in 2014-15.
The move comes less than a week after Jackson led the Knicks through the NBA draft and on the eve of free agency that opens Saturday. Dolan said General Manager Steve Mills would run the day-to-day business of the team in the short term.
Jackson was a Hall of Fame coach with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, delivering titles with some of the game's biggest stars like Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. He also was part of the Knicks when they won NBA titles in 1970 and 1973.
He was welcomed back to the organization to huge fanfare in March 2014, but it soon became clear the transition would be a poor one. His first coaching hire, Derek Fisher (Little Rock Parkview, UALR), lasted just 1½ seasons, and Jackson's trades and free agency moves also failed to improve the club.
"I had hoped, of course, to bring another NBA championship to the Garden. As someone who treasures winning, I am deeply disappointed that we weren't able to do that," Jackson said. "New York fans deserve nothing less. I wish them and the Knicks organization all the best -- today and always."
Sports on 06/29/2017