■BASEBALL
Yankees acquire Eric Hinske
The New York Yankees added a veteran bat to their lineup by acquiring Eric Hinske from the Pittsburgh Pirates for a pair of minor league prospects on Tuesday. Hinske, who can play all three outfield positions as well as third and first base, was batting .255 with the Pirates this season with one home run and 11 RBIs. The 2002 American League rookie of the year, Hinske, 31, won a World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2007 and last year made it back to the Fall Classic with the Tampa Bay Rays. The rebuilding Pirates get 23-year-old pitching prospect Casey Erickson and outfielder Eric Fryer.
■BASKETBALL
Pistons fire coach Curry
Michael Curry was fired on Tuesday as coach of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons, his departure coming just one day before the start of the league’s free agent signing period. The Pistons had reached the Eastern Conference finals for six consecutive seasons but went 39-43 in Curry’s first season as coach and were drummed out of the play-offs in the first round by Cleveland without winning a game. “This was a difficult decision to make,” Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars said. “I want to thank Michael for his hard work and dedication. However, at this time, I have decided to make a change.” Dumars dumped his former teammate two months after assuring that he would return and faced major questions about who might take over as coach and when as the final hours ticked away before free agent offers went on the table. Curry played for the Pistons from 1995 to 1997 and 1999 to 2003, having also spent time with Milwaukee, Toronto, Washington, Philadelphia and Indiana before retiring in 2005.
■BASKETBALL
Nowitzki’s ex transferred
NBA star Dirk Nowitzki’s former fiancee Crystal Taylor was transferred from a Texas jail to a lockup in Missouri on Tuesday. Taylor, arrested at Nowitzki’s Dallas home in May, was taken to Missouri after posting bond in Jefferson County. Keith Day of Professional Bail Bonding in Beaumont, Texas, was listed as the agent who paid, but officials there said they were unable to determine where the money came from. Taylor, 38, faces probation violation charges in Missouri. She was charged with theft in Beaumont, Texas, for allegedly failing to pay for US$10,000 worth of dental work in 2006. Corrections officials in St Charles County, Missouri, said Taylor arrived early on Tuesday to face probation violations stemming from 1997 charges of forgery and stealing. She is scheduled to appear in court next Monday for a bond reduction hearing in Missouri, court documents said. Taylor has told the Dallas Morning News that she is pregnant with Nowitzki’s child. Nowitzki has filed for custody if a paternity test proves he is the father.
■ICE HOCKEY
Canadiens sign Scott Gomez
The Montreal Canadiens acquired Scott Gomez, and his sizable contract, from the New York Rangers in a seven-player trade on Tuesday. With the free-agent signing window opening yesterday, Canadiens general manager Bob Gainey got an early jump on the competition landing the play-making center he had been seeking. Gomez will earn US$8 million next season. The Canadiens also received forward Tom Pyatt and defenseman Michael Busto from New York while sending forward Christopher Higgins and defensemen Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko and Doug Janik to the Rangers.
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen has become the first female player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after the Golden State Valkyries selected her in the third and final round of the league’s draft on Monday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship earlier this month. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen (陳凱玲) has become the first player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after being selected by the Golden State Valkyries in the third and final round of the league's draft yesterday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship on April 6. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament's most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as a
Robinson Cano spent 17 seasons playing in the MLB in front of all kinds of baseball fans, but he said there is something special about his stint with the Mexican Baseball League’s Diablos Rojos. He is not alone. The league last week opened its 100th season, aiming to keep an impressive growth in attendance that began after the national team’s surprise run at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, and is already surpassing some first-division soccer clubs. After finishing third in the 2023 tournament, many casual fans, some of them soccer enthusiasts disappointed after Mexico were eliminated in the first round in the 2022
In-form teenager Mirra Andreeva on Thursday crashed out of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, after going down in straight sets to fellow Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova in the last 16. World No. 7 Andreeva, who already has two titles under her belt this season, lost 6-3, 6-2 against the 22nd-ranked Alexandrova in just over an hour. The 17-year-old Andreeva had defeated her elder sister Erika in the previous round on Wednesday, but Alexandrova quickly took control as she claimed her fourth win over a top-10 player this season. The 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva in February became the youngest winner of a WTA
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