WBC won’t use new innovations
Major League Baseball’s new pitch clock, limits on shifts and larger bases will not be used during the World Baseball Classic.
The three innovations will be debuted during the spring training exhibition season that starts Feb. 24. The 20-team national team tournament runs from March 8 to 21, and players will return to their clubs for more exhibition games with the new rules ahead of opening day on March 30.
Pitch limits again will be used, as will the three-batter minimum, designated hitters and video review.
Thirty-man rosters were due Tuesday and will be announced Thursday.
Amanda Kamekona, a former softball player at UCLA, has been hired as a minor league hitting instructor for the Cleveland Guardians, the first female on-field coach in team history. Kamekona, who also played at Cal State Fullerton, was twice named a third-team All-American selection while helping the Bruins post a 96-20 record in two seasons. She still holds the school record with eight RBIs in a game. In 2008, she led UCLA in almost every offensive category with 14 homers, 46 RBIs, 17 doubles and 47 runs. Most recently she coached at La Puente Bishop Amat.
The San Francisco 49ers are hiring former Carolina interim coach Steve Wilks as defensive coordinator, the Associated Press reported. ... Tennessee promoted passing game coordinator Tim Kelly to offensive coordinator and added three assistants including the franchise’s first full-time female coach, Lori Locust, a defensive quality control coach.
Miami is hiring Lance Guidry, who was defensive coordinator at Marshall last season and recently accepted the same position at Tulane, to lead its defense, AP reported . ... Wrigley Field will host a college football game for the third time since 2010 when Iowa plays Northwestern next season.
Junior forward Mawot Mag will miss the rest of the season for No. 24 Rutgers after tearing a knee ligament.
Deandre Ayton tied his career high with 35 points and Devin Booker scored 19 after missing 21 games with an injury as the Phoenix Suns beat Brooklyn 116-112. Cam Thomas scored 43 for the Nets, becoming at 21 the youngest player with three straight 40-point games . ... San Antonio acquired center Dewayne Dedmon from Miami with a second-round draft pick for cash. Dedmon, who played at Lancaster High and USC, is averaging 5.7 points in 30 games . ... Point guard Kyle Lowry was ruled out for at least the Heat’s next three games because of a left knee issue.
The Buffalo Sabres agreed with forward Dylan Cozens on a seven-year extension worth $49.7 million. ... U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh is expected to leave President Biden’s administration to run the National Hockey League Players’ Assn., AP reported.
IndyCar driver Conor Daly will attempt to qualify for the Daytona 500 with the NASCAR team owned by boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Marcos Giron reached the Dallas Open’s second round with a win over fellow American Alex Rybakov.
The UFC announced it will open a 32,000-squarefoot MMA training facility in Mexico City this year.
The five Olympic committees in the Nordic region urged the International Olympic Committee to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from “international sports participation” because of the war in Ukraine.