Sports
Wolves aim to avoid slipup vs. lowly Hornets
Mar 4, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) talks to a referee during a time out against the Philadelphia 76ers in the fourth quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images The Minnesota Timberwolves need to take care of matters against lowly teams, and they will have one such opportunity Wednesday night when they visit the Charlotte Hornets.
Minnesota produced a big fourth quarter on Tuesday in a 126-112 victory against the visiting Philadelphia 76ers. It was a one-game stop at home following four straight road outings, and now it’s back on the road for two more games this week.
For Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, the key to the closing stretch of the season will be staying on course. He was concerned about his team’s 19 turnovers, which led to 21 points, against the 76ers.
“We can’t go back to that type of basketball,” Finch said.
The Timberwolves made 18 shots from 3-point range vs. Philadelphia. Seven of the treys came from reserves Donte DiVincenzo and Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
DiVincenzo logged 12 points and eight assists on Tuesday in his fourth game since being sidelined for 19 consecutive games due to a toe injury.
“I think his shot is going in because we’re finding him for wide-open ones,” Finch said. “He’s just kind of doing everything. … His activity on defense has been great. He’s like in midseason form. You’d never know he had six weeks off.”
Minnesota has won back-to-back games following a stretch that included six losses in an eight-game span.
Each of the Timberwolves’ last five defeats came by a single-digit margin.
The Hornets, who are on a seven-game losing streak, haven’t been so competitive.
“Some games, we come out not ready to play. Sometimes we come out a half not ready to play,” Charlotte guard Nick Smith Jr. said. “We just got to stick to the game plan and continue to play hard. We can’t come out sluggish. We just got to be ready to play and be ready to play defense.”
The Hornets lost 119-101 to the visiting Golden State Warriors on Monday despite getting 35 points from Miles Bridges.
Charlotte center Mark Williams continues to provide solid contributions, such as his 12-point, 13-rebound effort against the Warriors.
“Number one, just the consistency of it,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said. “He has put up really good numbers. He has done that throughout the year, but I want to see him consistently at that level. Part of it is his force and his physicality.”
The Hornets, though, are reaching to all sorts of areas on the depth chart in search of a breakthrough. Rookie Damion Baugh logged 28 minutes off the bench on Monday, and he provided six points, six assists and a surge of energy.
“He plays the game with such bounce and pop, and he carries a basketball around with him all the time,” Lee said. “He’s just a guy who loves the game, and you feel his energy and his impact on both ends of the floor.”
Minnesota’s Naz Reid racked up 25 points when the Timberwolves beat the Hornets 114-93 on Nov. 4 in Minneapolis. LaMelo Ball had 19 points for Charlotte in that game.
The Timberwolves have been pretty much the same at home or away. Their road record is 17-15, while they are 17-14 at home.
Both teams might be short-handed in the post on Wednesday. Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert hasn’t played since Feb. 12 due to a lower back ailment, though he might be ready to return.
The Hornets will have to wait to learn the status of center Taj Gibson, who wasn’t available Monday night because of illness. He was listed as probable to face Minnesota.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tigers place 2B Gleyber Torres (oblique) on 10-day IL
Detroit Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) bats a single against Texas Rangers during the first inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Saturday, May 2, 2026. The Detroit Tigers placed three-time All-Star second baseman Gleyber Torres on the 10-day injured list Wednesday with a left oblique strain.
Torres, 29, had progressed in recent days but continued to feel pain while swinging. He was unable to serve as a pinch hitter, leading the Tigers to put him on the IL, retroactive to Monday.
“It’s a mild left oblique strain that continues to nag him,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Obviously, Gleyber has been getting treatment and getting looked at by doctors — and it continues to be stagnant. Hopefully, this will resolve itself within a short time period, but nowadays, I don’t know.”
In his ninth MLB season, Torres is hitting .259 with two home runs, 11 RBIs and a .716 OPS in 32 games.
“I was getting better and better, but I still feel it a little bit in that area,” Torres said. “At this point, we don’t want to push it. It’s not a really big strain, so hopefully, I can get back (on a rehab assignment) in five days — not two weeks. Let’s see what’s going to happen in the next couple of days.”
Torres is a career .264 hitter with 156 homers, 526 RBIs and a .769 OPS in 1,065 games with the New York Yankees (2018-24) and Tigers.
Third baseman Jace Jung, 25, was recalled from Triple-A Toledo in a corresponding move. He has appeared in two games this season for Detroit, collecting one hit and one run in four at-bats.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tigers' Framber Valdez suspended for beaning Trevor Story
Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers, on May 5, 2026, in Detroit, Michigan, with players and coaches from the Tigers and Red Sox on the field after a hit-by-pitch from Tigers left-hander Framber Valdez. Detroit Tigers left-hander Framber Valdez received a six-game suspension and an undisclosed fine Wednesday for intentionally throwing at Boston Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story on Tuesday night.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch also received a fine and a one-game suspension, which he will serve in Wednesday night’s series finale against the visiting Red Sox. Bench coach George Lombard will fill in as manager.
Both benches emptied in the fourth inning after Story got plunked by a fastball from Valdez, earning the pitcher an ejection following the worst start of his career.
Valdez allowed a career-high 10 runs (seven earned) on nine hits, including three homers, in three-plus innings, taking the loss in the 10-3 setback.
Valdez, 32, is 2-2 with a 4.57 ERA through eight starts in his first season with Detroit, which signed him to a three-year, $115 million deal in February.
A two-time All-Star with Houston (2022, 2023), Valdez is 83-54 with a 3.41 ERA in 196 career games (174 starts) with the Astros (2018-25) and Tigers.
–Field Level Media
Sports
'Everything hurts': Michelle Wie West making first LPGA start in 3 years
Michelle Wie West watches a practice round of the 2025 Masters. Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Serving as tournament host is not what’s making Michelle Wie West nervous at this week’s Mizuho Americas Open in West Caldwell, N.J.
Wie West, 36, will tee it up in an LPGA Tour event for the first time since stepping away from competition after missing the cut at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open. She joked Wednesday that she “knew a few people” who could help her secure a spot into this week’s field, as Wie West prepares to play in next month’s U.S. Women’s Open.
After three years away from competition, Wie West was asked if the mental or physical side of the game is the most difficult to prepare for this week.
“Definitely mental. I don’t know physical. I feel pretty old right now and everything hurts. But I would say mental for sure,” Wie West said. “I get hit with moments of being nervous and I freeze up.
“To be fair, I feel like I have a lot of really good clarity on the feeling of being nervous and whatnot. But kind of getting back into the mode of playing there is really only a few things I do when I get nervous. I need to just not do them. That’s easier said than done.
“Yeah, it’s all difficult.”
A little more than a year after playing in her last LPGA Tour event, Wie West gave birth to her second child. She has spent much of the time since in various endeavors, including using events like the Mizuho Americas Open to mentor youth athletes.
The itch to compete and grow the game of golf also remains. In addition to the two upcoming events, Wie West is one of 14 women who have signed on to compete in the upcoming WTGL, the tech-infused indoor golf league co-owned by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
“I think any platform that can give LPGA players a sounding board and opportunity to showcase their talent, personalities, I think TGL is perfect for that,” Wie West said. “I think we’re going to reach new audiences hopefully.
“With the innovation and technology, I think it’s a perfect place to showcase everyone’s talents.”
Nelly Korda is the most prominent name yet to commit to the WTGL. However, like the world’s top-ranked player, Wie West hopes the league will grow to see PGA and LPGA Tour players compete together.
“From day one I got very excited about the aspect of playing co-ed matches. I think that would be really exciting,” she said. “I think these players, LPGA players, have such amazing personalities.”
–Field Level Media
Tigers place 2B Gleyber Torres (oblique) on 10-day IL
Tigers' Framber Valdez suspended for beaning Trevor Story
