A’s saddened after passing of former pitcher Sprague Sr.
Former major league pitcher Ed Sprague Sr., who grew up in Hayward and later made the first relief pitching appearance in Oakland A’s history, has died. He was 74.
Sprague, a right-hander who played eight seasons with four teams, was an original member of the A’s in 1968 and became the first Oakland reliever to save a game at Fenway Park as well as win a game at Yankee Stadium.
The A’s announced Friday that Sprague had died but didn’t provide further details. He spent his first two seasons with Oakland and Sprague’s son, Ed Sprague Jr., also a former major league player, is the A’s director of player development. His granddaughter, Payton, also works for the organization as partnership marketing manager.
“The A’s organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Ed Sprague Sr., an original member of the 1968 Oakland A’s team and the 1969 club,” the team said in a statement.
Sprague Sr. was a graduate of nowdefunct Sunset High in Hayward, where he played with two-time major league All-Star shortstop Bud Harrelson. Sprague Sr. made his major league debut at age 22 when he relieved Catfish Hunter in the seventh inning of a 3-1 loss in Baltimore in the first-ever Oakland A’s game. He also had the distinction of being the first Oakland A’s pitcher to give up a home run when Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson took him deep in the eighth inning.
Sprague posted a 17-23 career record with a 3.84 ERA and nine saves over 198 appearances — 23 career starts — with the A’s, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Milwaukee. He played for the A’s in 1968 and ’69 and had a career-high four saves in his season.
Sprague was born Sept. 16, 1945, in Boston.
• NL MVP Cody Bellinger agreed to an $11.5 million, one-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the largest salary for a player eligible for arbitration for the first time.
Shortstop Corey Seager agreed to a $7.6 million, one-year deal with the Dodgers, also skipping arbitration.
• Outfielder Mookie Betts agreed to a $27 million contract with the Boston Red Sox, the largest one-year salary for an arbitration-eligible player.
• Left fielder David Peralta dodged salary arbitration by agreeing to a $22 million, three-year contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press.
• Aaron Judge agreed to an $8.5 million, one-year contract with the New York Yankees, who also reached a $12.5 million deal with left-hander James Paxton and a $5 million agreement with catcher Gary Sánchez. All three players were eligible for salary arbitration.
• Shortstop Francisco Lindor avoided salary arbitration and agreed to a $17.5 million, one-year contract with the Cleveland Indians, who have so far rejected trade offers for the four-time All-Star.
• Third baseman Kris Bryant avoided arbitration with the Chicago Cubs, agreeing to an $18.6 million, one-year contract, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.
• The Astros agreed to deals with five of their seven arbitration-eligible players but are headed toward a hearing with star outfielder George Springer.
Springer, 30, has requested a salary of $22.5 million and Houston has offered $17.5 million, the largest gap among the 20 major league players who swapped figures in arbitration.
College football
STANFORD DB ADEBO RETURNING >> Stanford star cornerback Paulson Adebo will return to school for his senior season.
Adebo announced that he decided not to enter the draft even though he was considered one of the top cornerback prospects eligible for the draft.
Adebo has 38 passes defensed and eight interceptions in 22 games the past two seasons.
Golf
PREGNANT WIE INSPIRED TO KEEP PLAYING >> Michelle Wie always thought if she ever had children, that would be the end of her golf.
Now she is more inspired than ever to return.
Wie, who married Golden State Warriors executive Jonnie West in August, announced they are having their first child — a girl — this summer.
“I do know, especially now having a baby girl, the motivation to come back is even stronger,” Wie said during a conference call. “Because I’m having a girl, I want her to see me play, and be a strong woman. That’s really important. I always thought I’d be the person that I’m going to quit when I have kids. Now it’s different.”
Wie has been one of the most recognizable players in women’s golf from from the time she was a teen prodigy in Hawaii, coming within one shot of making the cut at the Sony Open on the PGA Tour as a ninth-grader at nearby Punahou School.
Her surprise announcement on Instagram capped off 10 months she described as a whirlwind.
On the golf course, she never fully recovered from wrist surgery and played only four tournaments. Her last event was the KPMG Women’s PGA at Hazeltine, where she opened with an 84 and tearfully wondered how much longer she could keep going.
Off the course, life was never better. Wie and West, the son of NBA great Jerry West, announced their engagement in March. They were married in August and Wie, who graduated from Stanford, moved back to the Bay Area. And now they’re starting a family. “I’m so blessed — 2019 could have been a bad year for me,” Wie said.
• Justin Thomas and Patrick Reed both missed the cut at Waialae in the Sony Open and missed out on what could be a weekend where anything goes.
Brendan Steele birdied five of his last six holes — the exception was a double bogey — for a 4-under 66 that gave him a share of the lead with Cameron Davis of Australia, who also had a 66.
They were at 6-under 134, the highest score to lead the Sony Open through 36 holes since 2006. More unusual was the cut was at 1-over 141, leaving only a seven-shot differential between first and worst.
Soccer
QUAKES STICKING WITH GM FIORANELLI >> San Jose general manager Jesse Fioranelli has signed a new multiyear contract, meaning owners John Fisher and Lew Wolff are sticking with Fioranelli’s plan to develop the Quakes’ youth program to support the senior team in the future.