Latest in Sports

It was no contest in the ratings wars last night, as the WWE Friday Night SmackDown on Fox dominated the demos, scoring an 0.7 in P18-49 to easily top the field. The victory continues the show’s upward trend since returning to live touring on July 16. Friday's episode also marked the return of WWE Superstar Becky…

UPDATE: Major League Baseball has extended the administrative leave for Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer through Sept. 3, as the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office ponders its next steps. The Pasadena Police Department has concluded its investigation into assault allegations on Bauer. He stands…

The National Football League’s regular season is just around the corner, and coaches are holding their breath as the final preseason games this week provide one last chance to see a critical starter injured. But even if all the league’s players make it through this weekend and are ready to take on the regular season…

“Sobering,” is how Los Angeles County Director of Public Health described the Covid infection data from L.A. schools for the week of August 16. Ferrer said the county recorded 3,186 new cases in schools in that week. That total includes LAUSD and other campuses. About 2,500 of those infections were instances of one…

Sisters Serena Williams and Venus Williams said Wednesday that they will not play in the upcoming U.S. Open tennis tournament because of injuries. They join standouts Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in their withdrawals, marking the first major tournament since 1997 without the quartet of stars who have largely…

With the NBA preseason set to start in about six weeks, ESPN has removed Rachel Nichols from its coverage of the league and canceled what is arguably its flagship NBA-focused show, The Jump, which Nichols fronted. Nichols’ last appearance on the show was August 16. Since then, it has been hosted by ESPN NBA reporter…

ESPN host Stephen A. Smith is tightening his grip on daytime talk mainstay First Take, as co-host Max Kellerman is departing the show and making way for rotating co-hosts. Kellerman had appeared on the show alongside Smith and Molly Qerim Rose since July 2016. Soon after Kellerman boarded as co-host, the show was…

Fox Corp.’s free streaming service Tubi and Fox Sports are teaming to launch "Sports on Tubi" in the U.S. It will feature 10 live streaming channels spanning various sports as well as almost 700 hours of on-demand programming. Brands involved in the initiative include the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, Big Ten, Concacaf soccer…

Chris Paul, an 11-time NBA All-Star with a sizable off-court portfolio, has joined “media flow management” software firm Greenfly as a strategic investor. Paul is described as a “power user” of Greenfly’s services, as a player as well as in his charity work and as former president of the NBA Players Association. He…

With college athletes now getting paid for their name, image and likeness (NIL), The Rich Eisen Show and the Gorilla Glue Co. have teamed up for a related promotion. They will salute college football’s “Toughest Player on Earth” beginning next week, with the season set to kick off Saturday. Each Tuesday during the…

One of the greatest boxers of all-time may have reached the end of his career. Manny Pacquiao, an eight-division world champion, lost to Yordenis Ugas on Saturday night by unanimous decision, with Ugas retaining his super welterweight title. At age 42, it was a disheartening loss for Pacquiao, who was the heavy…

A court filing late on Friday indicates federal prosecutors will use testimony from at least five Major League Baseball players in the drug-related trial of a former Los Angeles Angels employee. Ex-Angels Communications Director Eric Kay will stand trial in Fort Worth, Texas this October for giving oxycodone to…