THE HOT CORNER

1 SOCCER:

Major League Soccer and its players are extending their collective bargaining agreement for a week through Feb. 7. The league and the Major League Soccer Players Association issued a joint statement Thursday stating“the two groups have engaged in productive discussions and will continue to negotiate.” The current five-year deal had been set to expire tonight.

2 BASEBALL:

The United States will start its second attempt to qualify for this year’s Olympic baseball tournament against Nicaragua on March 22 at Surprise, Arizona. The Americans play the Dominican Republic the following day at Tempe and finish Group B against Puerto Rico on March 24 in Surprise, the World Baseball Softball Confederation said Thursday in Lausanne, Switzerland.

3 BASEBALL:

The Nationals acquired reliever Ryne Harper in a trade with Minnesota. Washington sent minor league right-hander Hunter McMahon to the Twins in the deal. Harper went 5-2 with one save and a 3.81 ERA in his first major league season in 2019. The 30-year-old pitched scoreless relief in 17 of his first 18 appearances with Minnesota. He joins a Washington bullpen featuring Sean Doolittle, Daniel Hudson and Will Harris.

4 SKIING:

A second women’s downhill training run was canceled Thursday on the 2014 Sochi Olympic course, putting Saturday’s World Cup race at risk. The International Ski Federation published a photograph showing the mountain shrouded in fog.

5 AUTO RACING:

Formula One is closely monitoring the coronavirus outbreak in China and will modify its race calendar if necessary. The F1 race in Shanghai is scheduled for April 19 and may be at risk of being postponed or canceled.