Sammy Sosa appears to acknowledge PED use, apologizes; Cubs welcome him back into fold
CHICAGO (AP) -- Sammy Sosa appeared to acknowledge using performance enhancing drugs during a career in which he hit more than 600 home runs, and the Chicago Cubs said they were ready to welcome him back. Sosa says in a statement "there were times I did whatever I could to recover from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games." He adds: "I never broke any laws. But in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize." Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said the team plans to invite Sosa to the annual fan convention Jan. 17-19 in Chicago.
Towns returns to Minnesota, trying to embrace the moment and handle the emotion before Knicks-Wolves
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Karl-Anthony Towns smiled at the surreal moment as he walked into the Target Center interview room hours before the Knicks played the Timberwolves in his return to Minnesota for the first time since being traded to New York. Towns spent nine seasons with the Timberwolves before he was dealt three days before training camp began. He said he was simply trying to appreciate the experience as emotional as taking the court against his close friends was going to be. Towns has by all accounts adjusted well. His scoring average of nearly 25 points per game is his highest in four years.
US women's team star Trinity Rodman says her relationship with father Dennis Rodman is strained
U.S. women's soccer team forward Trinity Rodman has opened up about her strained relationship with father Dennis Rodman, saying he is largely absent from her life. She told the Call Her Daddy podcast that the former NBA star is only a father by blood. Dennis Rodman responded to his daughter with a post on Instagram saying he tried to be a father and will keep trying.
AP Exclusive: Pro tennis player Jenson Brooksby talks about living with autism
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- American professional tennis player Jenson Brooksby tells The Associated Press he was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder when he was nonverbal at about 2 1/2 years old. Brooksby is getting ready to get back on the tennis tour next month after missing nearly two full years because of injuries, operations and a suspension connected to missed drug tests. He is planning to make his Grand Slam return at the Australian Open, which starts Jan. 12. That was the last tournament he played, back in January 2023, when he upset three-time major finalist Casper Ruud. Brooksby was ranked No. 33 at age 21 in 2022.
12-team college football playoff arrives after 100 years, a few billion dollars and many detours
It took more than 100 years, a few billion dollars and the cold, hard realization that you can't fight progress forever. And now, finally, college football has what the rest of sports have: a legitimate postseason tournament. The first-of-its-kind 12-team College Football Playoff kicks off Friday and Saturday with four first-round games on campuses steeped in gridiron tradition: Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State. Winners advance to play over the New Year's holiday, and the tournament concludes Jan. 20 with the national title game.
Lindsey Vonn hits back at critics who think she's crazy to return to ski racing at age 40
ST. MORITZ, Switzerland (AP) -- Lindsey Vonn didn't just pop into the hospital one day for a new titanium knee and then decide on the way out that she wanted to return to downhill ski racing. It's been a long and calculated process involving several minor and some major knee surgeries with careful vetting of the medical issues involved. So she's getting fed up with how several of her fellow skiing champions are questioning why she would return to the sport's most dangerous disciplines at such an advanced age. The 40-year-old Vonn says she's "getting pretty tired of people predicting negative things about my future."
European soccer leagues reject latest proposal for new breakaway competition
MANCHESTER, England (AP) -- The organization that represents European soccer leagues has rejected latest proposals for a breakaway super league. Plans for a new rival to the Champions League -- the Unify League -- were released this week by Madrid-based A22 Sports Management. It was not clear what support there was for the proposed competition, but A22 says it held talks with clubs, leagues and "other parties." But the European Leagues which represents 39 leagues and associations says it rejected "any suggestion that a consultation took place with our organization." It reaffirmed leagues' commitment to the current system by which teams qualify for UEFA competitions like the Champions League and Europa League.
Carmelo Anthony, Sue Bird, Doc Rivers, Mark Few among candidates for Basketball Hall of Fame class
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) -- Carmelo Anthony may go into the Basketball Hall of Fame twice next year. The Hall of Fame released its list of candidates for the Class of 2025 on Thursday, with the list of first-time nominees including Anthony and fellow retired NBA stars Dwight Howard and Marc Gasol. WNBA greats Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles and Chamique Holdsclaw are all first-time candidates as well, along with NBA coaches Doc Rivers and Billy Donovan, Miami Heat managing general partner Micky Arison, Gonzaga men's coach Mark Few and former Iowa women's coach Lisa Bluder. Among the repeat nominees is the 2008 U.S. Olympic men's basketball team, which included Anthony.
Cody Bellinger experienced World Series title with dad Clay at old Yankee Stadium
NEW YORK (AP) -- Cody Bellinger experienced a World Series title at old Yankee Stadium. His dad Clay was part of the 1999 and 2000 champions. Two days after New York acquired Cody from the Chicago Cubs, he talked about his excitement to play for the Yankees. Bellinger hit .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs in 130 games this year, missing time because of a broken right rib. The Cubs traded the 29-year-old with $52.5 million remaining on the contract and agreed to pay the Yankees $5 million.
Scandals, some changes in public perception highlighted the year for sports betting
Sports bettors in the U.S. are expected to set another record in 2024 for the amount of money wagered legally. That coincides with what has been a year of reckoning for U.S. sports betting, which was rocked by scandals. The bad publicity included Jontay Porter's lifetime ban from the NBA for trading on inside information to fix prop bets, and MLB star Shohei Ohtani's interpreter pleading guilty to bank and tax fraud after prosecutors said he stole nearly $17 million from Ohtani to pay off illegal gambling debts. That, along with an oversaturation of advertising and some low tax benefits in the 38 states that currently allow betting, has contributed to what one expert says is an ongoing moral reboot surrounding the public's attitude about sports betting.