Sports
Mercury set for playoff tuneup vs. last-place Sparks
Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner (42) and guard Diana Taurasi talk during the second quarter against the Las Vegas Aces at Footprint Center on Sept. 1, 2024, in Phoenix. The Phoenix Mercury will be the No. 7 seed heading into the WNBA playoffs, while the Los Angeles Sparks, with the league’s worst record, are trying to end their season on a positive note when the teams play Tuesday in Los Angeles.
The Mercury improved to 18-20 after their 93-88 win on the road against the Chicago Sky on Sunday.
Phoenix is 1 1/2 games behind the Indiana Fever (20-19) for the No. 6 seed with two games remaining, while the Fever have one. Indiana owns the tiebreaker between over Phoenix with a 3-0 sweep of the season series.
Brittney Griner scored 26 points with 10 rebounds and Diana Taurasi added 25 in Phoenix’s win at Chicago. Natasha Cloud had 18 points and 11 assists, while leading scorer Kahleah Copper (21.6 points) missed her second consecutive game with a back injury.
Mercury head coach Natt Tibbetts said defending Griner continues to be a chore for defenses. Griner was 12 of 20 from the floor.
“You hope that she settles (for poor shots) or hope you can get her pushed off the block early, in the possession,” Tibbets said Sunday about the options for defenses guarding Griner. “But she shot a ton of paint shots and that’s what we need.”
Sophie Cunningham, who just signed a contract extension through next season for the Mercury, made two free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining to seal the victory. Cunningham finished with 13 points and five rebounds.
Cunningham is a candidate for the WNBA Sixth Player of the Year award averaging 8.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game to match a career high.
The Sparks (7-31) lost their seventh straight game in a 90-87 defeat on the road against the Seattle Storm on Sunday. Dearica Hamby (17.1 points per game) had 25 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in the loss to Seattle.
Decimated by injuries, Los Angeles will miss the playoffs for the fourth straight year. The most serious injury was first-round pick Cameron Brink’s ACL tear in June. Lexie Brown (Crohn’s disease) and Layshia Clarendon (mental health reasons) also have been out.
“She’s just been so important for us and shouldered so much early,” Sparks coach Curt Miller said of Hamby. “She’s the most improved player in this league.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: RB David Montgomery 'wants out' of Detroit
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) looks on before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Lions running back David Montgomery “wants out” of Detroit after three seasons, ESPN reported on Sunday.
Montgomery, however, immediately appeared to refute the report on X, posting: “Damn, Dmo told you that?”
The ESPN report claims the Lions would want “a decent Day 3 pick (possibly a fifth-rounder)” in the 2026 NFL Draft in return for Montgomery, who turns 29 in June and is owed $6 million next season.
The report follows general manager Brad Holmes’ remarks after the season about Montgomery being unhappy with his playing time in 2025. Sharing a backfield with Jahmyr Gibbs, Montgomery rushed for a career-low 716 yards and eight touchdowns in 17 games (no starts).
“Those are conversations that we’re going to have to have because I’ve got a lot of respect for that player,” Holmes said of Montgomery in January. “He deserves to be in a situation where his skillset can be utilized, and so yeah would love for it to be here, but if it can’t be here then you’d just love to see where could work out best for him.”
At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, Holmes said the situation with Montgomery is “fluid.” He signed a two-year extension during the 2024 season that runs through the end of the 2027 campaign.
“Yeah, I have been in touch with David’s agent, and his representation,” Holmes revealed. “Obviously, we love David, he’s a great player, we love to have him, you know, kind of want to put last year in the rear view, and just move forward. But, obviously, a player has to want to be at a certain place as well. The conversations are still fluid, but we’ll see how it goes.”
Montgomery has rushed for 2,506 yards and 33 touchdowns in 45 games (28 starts) in three seasons with Detroit (2023-25). He has 76 catches for 650 yards in that span.
He began his career with the NFC North rival Chicago Bears, who drafted him in the third round in 2019. Montgomery rushed for 3,609 yards and 26 scores in 60 games (51 starts) with the Bears (2019-22).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Yankees LHP Ryan Yarbrough joins U.S. roster for WBC
Jun 18, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Ryan Yarbrough (33) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images New York Yankees left-hander Ryan Yarbrough was added to the Team USA roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic on Sunday.
The 34-year-old reliever replaces Minnesota Twins right-hander Joe Ryan, who is dealing with low back tightness. Ryan moves into the designated pitcher pool, meaning he is eligible for a call-up after each round of the WBC.
Yarbrough went 3-1 with a 4.36 ERA and one save in 19 games (eight starts) during his first season with the Yankees in 2025, striking out 55 batters and walking 19 in 64 innings.
Ryan Yarbrough has been added to our roster for the World Baseball Classic!#ForGlory???? pic.twitter.com/RrtKJQ20gz
— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) March 1, 2026
Team USA will play its first game of the 2026 WBC on Friday night, meeting Brazil in a Pool B contest in Houston.
Yarbrough has a career record of 56-41 with a 4.22 ERA and four saves in 215 games (76 starts) with the Tampa Bay Rays (2018-22), Kansas City Royals (2023), Los Angeles Dodgers (2023-24), Toronto Blue Jays (2024) and Yankees. The side-arming southpaw signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal in November to return to New York in 2026.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Ex-pitcher Dan Serafini gets life sentence for '21 murder
Dan Serafini (file photo) pitched in MLB with seven teams. He was convited of first-degree murder. Former major league pitcher Dan Serafini was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Friday for the 2021 shootings of his in-laws in North Lake Tahoe, Calif.
Serafini, 52, was convicted in July of the first-degree murder of father-in-law Gary Spohr and the attempted first-degree murder of mother-in-law Wendy Wood during a burglary. Spohr, 70, died from a single gunshot and Wood, then 68, survived but died by suicide the following year.
In the courtroom on Friday in Auburn, Calif., Placer County prosecutor Morgan Gire described Spohr and Wood as loving grandparents.
“The impact of this attack has extended far beyond the immediate victims, deeply affecting family members and the broader community, and highlighting the lasting harm caused by deliberate violence,” Gire said.
Serafini, who pitched for six MLB teams from 1996 to 2007, addressed the court and maintained his innocence. He said he was out partying with his wife, Erin Spohr, at the time of the shooting and referred to himself as a “broken, imperfect man that makes mistakes,” according to MyNews4.
The Minnesota Twins selected Serafini, a native of the San Francisco area, with the No. 26 overall pick in the 1992 MLB Draft. He made his debut in 1996 and went on to appear in 104 games (33 starts) with the Twins, Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies before his retirement in 2007.
He had a 15-16 record with a 6.04 ERA and one save. He threw 263 2/3 innings and struck out 127 batters.
–Field Level Media
Report: RB David Montgomery 'wants out' of Detroit
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