Racist chants prompt brief suspension of Serie A game

PARMA, ITALY (AP) >> Racist chants prompted a brief suspension during an Italian league soccer match between Atalanta and Fiorentina on Sunday.

The referee ordered a warning to be read over the stadium’s loudspeaker after the chants were apparently made by Atalanta fans toward Fiorentina fullback Dalbert Henrique, a Brazilian player who is black.

Toward the half-hour mark, Dalbert stopped and glared at the direction where the chants appeared to come from, and he then spoke to the referee.

The address over the loudspeaker, warning that the match would not resume until the chants stopped, was met with whistles from the crowd.

Once the crowd calmed down, the match resumed after a break of several minutes.

It’s the latest incident in a spate of racism in Serie A. ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. >> Boston Red Sox left-hander David Price will have surgery Thursday to remove a cyst in his left wrist that ended his season early. The 2012 Cy Young winner is expected to be ready for the start of spring training.

Price, who went 7-5 with a 4.28 ERA in 22 starts this season, last pitched on Sept. 1 and made just two appearances since the end of July.

Boston manager Alex Cora said before Sunday’s game at Tampa Bay that Price should have a normal offseason once his recovery from surgery is completed.

“As of now everything seems like, take care of the cyst and he should be fine,” Cora said.

The defending World Series champion Red Sox were mathematically eliminated from postseason play on Friday night.