THE HOT CORNER

1

PRO BASEBALL: Two tests were positive for COVID-19, both among players, during 14,704 samples collected in the past week under Major League Baseball’s monitoring program. Cincinnati first baseman Joey Votto had tested positive, the Reds said Wednesday.

There have been 12 positive tests — nine for players, three for staff, among 43,928 monitoring tests during spring training, a rate of 0.3%, the commissioner’s office said Friday. The positive tests were among nine of the 30 teams.

2

PRO CYCLING: The classics riders are dominating the weeklong Tirreno-adriatico race in Italy. Mathieu van der Poel claimed the third stage Friday with an authoritative sprint to follow up on wins from Wout van Aert and Julian Alaphilippe on the opening two days. Van der Poel, who rides for the Alpecin-fenix team, required nearly 5½ hours to complete the race’s longest stage.

3

PRO TENNIS: Garbiñe Muguruza reached her third final of the season after needing seven match points to beat Elise Mertens 6-4, 7-6 (5) in the semifinals of the Dubai Championships on Friday. Muguruza will play Barbora Krejcikova in today’s final as the Spanish player seeks her first title since April 2019.

4

SOCCER: The delayed World Cup qualifying matches in Asia will be completed in June with each of the eight groups playing in a separate host nation because of the pandemic. The Asian Football Confederation said Friday one team in each five-nation group will stage the remaining games from May 31-June 15.

5

PRO BASEBALL: Right-hander Trevor Cahill, 33, and the Pirates finalized a $1.5 million, one-year contract, a deal that allows him to earn an additional $1 million in performance bonuses for innings. The team announced the signing on Friday, giving a very young pitching staff an experienced arm.