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MINNEAPOLIS — Mike Shirley is fascinated to see how the Major League Baseball draft plays out.“In all my years of doing this when you get outside of pick eight or nine, I think you have no idea what’s going to happen,” the Chicago White Sox director of amateur scouting said Friday during a Zoom interview. “In my history, I don’t think we’ve ever had to work on so many players who possibly could be there at 26.”AdvertisementThat’s when the Sox are slotted for the first round of the draft, which begins Sunday.Will the Sox be aiming to fill a need, or are they targeting the best available player at that spot?Advertisement“Without question it’s a combination,” Shirley said. “Something I think every major-league team in every room is trying to figure out (is) the pitching landscape, most importantly, and then you have to weigh those position players against that. At the end of the day, the preference may be a pitcher, but that doesn’t mean if the right position player is available that we will not walk down that road.”The strength of this year’s draft, according to Shirley, is the college position player.“At the top especially,” Shirley said. “The position player as a whole, even if you look at your board like you’re building a board nonstop, there are a lot of position players that we really like in this draft.“It’s a light pitching draft as a whole, and I think we’re all trying to figure out what the pitching looks like.”Shirley is in his third season in his role after being promoted in September 2019. Before that, he was the team’s assistant scouting director after serving as a cross checker from 2010-2018. He was a full-time area scout in the Midwest from 2004-09 after joining the Sox as a part-time area scout before the 2000 season.Two years ago, the Sox selected pitcher Garrett Crochet at No. 11. Crochet joined the major-league team that September and was a valuable reliever last season. He’s out this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in spring training.White Sox reliever Garrett Crochet delivers to the Red Sox on Sept. 12, 2021, at Guaranteed Rate Field. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)Last year, the Sox drafted shortstop Colson Montgomery with the 22nd pick. Montgomery entered Friday with a 48-game on-base streak. He had reached safely in all 16 games with Class A Winston-Salem after being promoted from Class A Kannapolis on June 24.“Crochet is an extreme talent,” Shirley said. “We’re so happy with what Garrett is going to provide to us, what he’s provided, what he’ll continue to provide. (2020 second-round pick) Jared Kelley has significant upside and will be a good starter for us. He’s starting to figure his process out.Advertisement“I really believe in Colson. And a lot of people thought we were taking a risk with Colson, but to know the person, the ability, the projection, I think he showed us, at least to myself, what Colson was. I feel the group did a great job understanding Colson. We worked very hard to comprehend Colson. And I do think we got it right at this point. A lot of things can change, but Colson is doing some special things down there. I think that’s who he is.”White Sox shortstop Colson Montgomery warms up during a minor-league spring training workout on March 10 in Phoenix. (Ross D. Franklin / AP)The Sox are going through the possibilities for Sunday.“We just left the room and (have had) the nonstop navigation of what it might look like, who may be there, the availability of some players you don’t expect,” Shirley said. “For example, (it’s a) lighter pitching draft, what if there’s a run on the pitchers? A position player you didn’t think was going to be there, what if he’s available?“There’s so many scenarios being worked on.”Eloy Jiménez was not in the starting lineup for the second consecutive game as he recovers from tightness in his right leg.“I feel better now than (Thursday),” Jiménez said before Friday’s game against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. “The same soreness (that led to a pause of his rehab assignment while with Triple-A Charlotte). But now I’m going to heal faster because I feel way better in my second day. I’m already swinging. And when it happened at first (in Charlotte), I couldn’t even swing the first day or the second day. And (Friday), I’m feeling way better.”AdvertisementManager Tony La Russa said it’s unlikely Jiménez will play this weekend.“I don’t see it,” La Russa said. “You get on base, you have to run. I watched him hit in the cages. I don’t think you can push it. Unless he’s pinch hitting, you never know. Bases loaded with two outs.”Catcher Yasmani Grandal (lower back spasms) is 8-for-17 with a home run, four RBIs and nine walks in six rehab games between Double-A Birmingham and Charlotte.“He’s taking his at-bats,” La Russa said. “He’s starting to catch some. I don’t know if they’ve given him a target date to come back, but him playing is a good sign.”

The Chicago Cubs find themselves in an unfamiliar position.For the first time in seven years, they own a top-10 pick in the MLB draft. The No. 7 selection Sunday marks their highest since 2014, when the Cubs chose Kyle Schwarber at No. 4. The pick became part of a three-draft stretch that also produced All-Stars in Kris Bryant and Ian Happ.AdvertisementThe future success of the Cubs rebuild needs them to hit on their top draft picks and develop the type of internal pipeline perennial postseason contenders rely on. Vice president of scouting Dan Kantrovitz does not expect the organization’s overhaul to affect their draft approach over the 20 rounds from Sunday through Tuesday.“I think at this point, given the time it takes for most of the players we’re drafting to matriculate to the big leagues, I don’t think we can try to time a window like that,” Kantrovitz said this week. “If you start to get into that, then you might end up missing the best player available on the board. It’s such an imprecise science as it is. It’s not really a concern for us.Advertisement“If it ends up being a toolsier high school player who we draft that requires a little bit more time, we have the infrastructure to handle it. And if it ends up being a college player that is projected to get there a little quicker, we’ll be equally happy.”Cubs vice president of scouting Dan Kantrovitz talks with the media before a game against the Orioles on Tuesday at Wrigley Field. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)It’s still too early to fully evaluate the Cubs’ last five draft classes, but early results portend a mixed bag of production and potential.Right-hander Alex Lange (No. 30, 2017) has a 3.23 ERA over the last two seasons for the Detroit Tigers after the Cubs traded him in 2019 for Nick Castellanos. Left-hander Brendon Little (No. 30, 2017) owns a 5.53 ERA in 19 appearances at Triple-A Iowa. Nico Hoerner (No. 24, 2018) is a budding star who has thrived in his transition to shortstop and providing the contact-hitter profile the Cubs lineup has needed. Right-hander Ryan Jensen (No. 27, 2019) has struggled with his command while posting a 5.05 ERA in 11 starts at Double-A Tennessee. A serious hip injury that required surgery muddles the future of shortstop Ed Howard (No. 16, 2020). Left-hander Jordan Wicks (No. 21, 2021) was just promoted to Double A, according to Friday’s minor-league transaction log, after making 16 starts at High-A South Bend, with whom he recorded a 3.65 ERA and 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings in 16 starts.The 2022 amateur draft is expected to see high school position players taken among the top picks. The Cubs have the 10th-highest bonus pool ($10,092,700) for the first 10 rounds while the No. 7 pick has a slot value of $5,708,000. Teams can spend up to 5% above their pool and pay a tax on the overage but do not lose a future draft pick if they remain below that threshold. It’s a strategy the Cubs have utilized every year since the bonus-pool system was implemented in 2012.Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.Among the players the Cubs could target with their first pick: third baseman Cam Collier (Chipola, Fla., JC), shortstop Termarr Johnson (Mays, Ga., High School), outfielder Elijah Green (IMG Academy), shortstop Zach Neto (Campbell), shortstop Brooks Lee (Cal Poly) and corner infielder Jacob Berry (LSU).South Florida outfielder Cam Collier runs onto the field during a game against Central Florida on April 1, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP)The MLB draft typically was held in early June. The league pushed it back until mid-July for the first time last year to coincide with All-Star Game festivities, which hasn’t been well-received by some front-office personnel as the trade deadline looms. One benefit, however, to the extra month of draft preparation is the increase of data available to teams. College summer leagues remain ongoing, and the Cubs have scouts at games providing the organization additional information.“Historically, that was never the case,” Kantrovitz said. “The draft was in early June and the summer leagues and all the high school showcases, that would happen after the draft and there’d be a few days of catching your breath and then you’d hit the ground running for next year’s scouting evaluations. But we’re still getting data up until the very last minute. That’s a pretty big difference from prior years.”Owning the No. 7 pick didn’t change the Cubs’ scouting and evaluation strategy for the first half of the spring. The goal, Kantrovitz said, was to cast a wide net and ensure they thoroughly evaluated every player because of the uncertainty that exists during the spring collegiate and high school seasons.Advertisement“Whether it’s players that might get injured or whether signability changes or whether a player might decide to go to college at the last minute, we don’t want to confine ourselves and then be surprised,” Kantrovitz said. “So it’s better to cast a wider net than not. But certainly, for the second half of the spring, we’ve started to really zero in on who that top seven might be.”[ [Don’t miss] Ian Happ is having the best season of his career. Here’s how the Chicago Cubs OF developed into an All-Star. ][ [Don’t miss] Chicago’s U.S. attorney sues Cubs, alleging disability law violations in Wrigley Field renovations ]In his third season leading the Cubs’ draft, Kantrovitz has a better understanding of each scout’s individual style.“Everybody looks at players differently,” Kantrovitz said. “Some scouts are more conservative than others, some are more aggressive. Some scouts might be better at evaluating pitchers than hitters. That’s something that only comes with time. You can read scouts’ prior reports, but until you really work with them and travel with them, you don’t really get a feel for how you can best interpret their evaluations.”

Luke Richardson watched the conclusion of his first development camp as Chicago Blackhawks coach Friday at Fifth Third Arena.Now he can take a breath. Sort of.Advertisement“It’s been lots of going for me in the last few weeks,” said Richardson, whom the team formally introduced June 29. “This is great. This is what we live for, hockey. It was great to see the young players putting in a great effort this week.”He added it’s great to “get here and start meeting staff in the organization and diving right into the hockey feel.”AdvertisementBlackhawks coach Luke Richardson calls Sam Rinzel “a real good steal in the draft for us.”He said Kevin Korchinski had a good camp, too, and wants him to look at tape of Duncan Keith. pic.twitter.com/fvW1h0DYHf— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) July 15, 2022

After a week of drills, Hawks draft picks, prospects and other invited players put what they learned at camp on display during a scrimmage.It was tied 3-3 after two periods after Landon Slaggert took a high stick and Victor Stjernborg scored a penalty shot against Mitchell Weeks to knot it up for Team White.But Team Red prevailed on winger Joseph Serpa’s 3-on-3 goal, his second marker of the day.Filip Roos and Slaggert also scored for Team Red. Aidan Thompson and Nils Juntorp added goals for Team White.It’s unlikely any of the camp participants, outside of defenseman Alex Vlasic, makes Richardson’s opening night roster, but that doesn’t mean they failed to make an impression.“It was a lot of players to look at,” Richardson said, “but a young player like (25th overall draft pick Sam) Rinzel, he looks like a tall, lanky kind of guy off the ice, but when he gets on the ice he really has great footwork and speed and skating. He’s got lots to work on as a young defenseman, as everybody does, but that’s just something that you can recognize and I think that was a real good steal in the draft for us.”Richardson pivoted to the draft’s seventh overall pick, defenseman Kevin Korchinski.“Kevin had a great camp here, too, as our first pick and he’s a guy that can move the puck, have a good gap, good sticks,” Richardson said. “Not to compare him or anything, but a Duncan Keith, if he can try and emulate his game to that level, that’s someone that if he has a chance to look at some footage of him, that would be really helpful because he’s going to be a guy that moves the puck and can add to the offense,. He’s such a good skater and mobility and a good stick.”AdvertisementHere are three things we learned from camp.General manager Kyle Davidson described his recent conversations with Kane and Toews as “healthy.”It remains to be seen how the two would characterize those discussions given that they’ve been dead set against dismantling the team. But Davidson has done precisely that, sacrificing Alex DeBrincat, Kirby Dach and Brandon Hagel for draft picks and prospects.Richardson said he talked with the pair of locker room leaders, though luckily for him they’re all still in the get-to-know-you phase.“I had a good talk with them this week, both just passing by in the gym but also a sit-down kind of a meet-and-greet in a private office, just so we can just sit and relax and talk,” he said. “We’re not diving into anything too deep yet.“I just wanted to let them know who I am, what I’m about and listen to them on what they’re thinking and feeling over the last week, lots of changes and stuff like that. You know what? They seemed good to go and really excited about having an open communication.Advertisement“But also they’re driven, they said they’re driven to get their game and the team’s game on course to where we can have some success as much as possible this year.”ExpandAutoplayImage 1 of 13Forward Dominic James practices during Chicago Blackhawks prospect development camp at Fifth Third Arena, July 14, 2022. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)On Thursday, assistant coach Kevin Dean explained the merits of zone defense. It’s an ideology Richardson shares.“It’s lots of times there’s lots of communication and reads out there,” Richardson said, “but overall zone defense is going to be way more structured than man-on-man where you’re flying all over the place.“I think a real good structured hard defensive zone, where you stay in your zones, you’re passing off players,” is preferred, especially with younger players, Richardson said. “But the whole thing is when it’s your time to kill a play and get the puck back, we’ve got to be really strong at that.”Asked about offense, Richardson kept it general.“The offense is going to come from if we can play fast defense,” he said. “If we can have our forwards have that mindset it’s going to help our (defensemen) have a better gap and stay out of the D-zone and transition better in the neutral zone to have more offense and lead to more offense.Advertisement“We want to give some room for creativity to players like Patrick (Kane) — obviously one of the best in the league for years — but there’s areas and times in the games for that. … We’ve got to take risk out of it.”Richardson doesn’t have much history with many of the Blackhawks, but he knows free-agent acquisition Max Domi from their time together in Montreal.Both joined the Canadiens in 2018 (in Domi’s case, via a trade from the Arizona Coyotes) and were together for two seasons before the Columbus Blue Jackets traded for Domi’s rights on Oct. 6, 2020.Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.With DeBrincat traded to Ottawa, Domi is one of the candidates expected to help fill the loss of a 40-goal scorer.“Max has got some great speed and good vision and sees the ice well,” Richardson said. “I definitely want him to bring that speed here.”AdvertisementDomi, whom Richardson described as “almost too unselfish,” had nine goals and 23 assists in 53 games for Columbus. After a March trade, Domi finished out the season with the Carolina Hurricanes and notched three goals and three assists in 14 playoff games.“Sometimes you’ve got to shoot that puck to make people honor you so then that opens up other people to make those plays,” Richardson said. “That’s something that we’ll talk about.”The Hawks also signed Andreas Athanasiou, who’ll also be counted on for offense.“I think free agency definitely helped,” Richardson said. “Adding some speed up front is really huge.”

MINNEAPOLIS — Luis Robert was out of the lineup, exiting after the first /inning with lightheadedness.Adam Engel stepped in and stepped up, hitting a three-run homer in the seventh inning Friday to help the Chicago White Sox to a 6-2 win against the Minnesota Twins in front of 27,021 at Target Field.Advertisement“That’s why guys wear full uniforms to the dugout from the first inning,” Engel said. “As soon as somebody goes down early like that, obviously you hope that there’s nothing seriously wrong with him. But then you’ve got to get right into game mode.“You’ve got to try to get going in a way that you can find a way to contribute and help the team win that night.”AdvertisementTim Anderson’s solo home run in the fourth gave the Sox the lead.White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, left, celebrates with third-base coach Joe McEwing after hitting a solo home run against the Twins in the fourth inning Friday in Minneapolis. The Sox won 6-2. (Craig Lassig, AP)Engel’s three-run homer to left gave the team some breathing room as the Sox gained ground on the division-leading Twins, whom they trail by three games in the American League Central. The Sox remain a half-game behind the second-place Cleveland Guardians.“Ultimate team man,” Sox manager Tony La Russa said of Engel. “What a clutch at-bat that was. … Great team win.”This is an important four-game series for the Sox as they attempt to tighten the AL Central race. So far, they’ve done just that by winning the first two games. The Sox are at .500 (45-45) for the first time since June 21 when they were 33-33.“I’m not a huge watcher of the record, the whole .500 thing, as much as I like to keep pace with how many games back we are,” Engel said. “At the end of the day if we play really good baseball — which is what we’re capable of, what a team like this is capable of doing — then I feel like we’ve got a chance to make a run at what our goals are.“You can get caught up in winning or losing each night. But at the end of the day, what we really should be focused on is playing good baseball. If we can play good baseball, we’ve got a really good shot at accomplishing what we set out to accomplish this spring.”Robert led the way Thursday with three hits, including a grand slam, in a 12-2 victory.He was a factor again Friday, walking and scoring on Andrew Vaugh’s two-run single in the first.AdvertisementIn the bottom of the first he played Carlos Correa’s liner on a hop, and the ball got by him. Correa was credited with a single and an advancement to second on Robert’s error. Correa later scored on a two-run double by Alex Kirilloff.Robert caught Jose Miranda’s flyball to center to end the first. Engel replaced him in the second.“He just said he was lightheaded, and we took him out right away,” La Russa said.The Sox already were without left fielder Eloy Jiménez, who is dealing with tightness in his right leg. And Robert’s absence put them down two potential power sources.Anderson answered the call, breaking the 2-all tie in the fourth with a home run against reliever Emilio Pagán. His sixth homer of the season was just out of the reach of center fielder Nick Gordon, who leaped at the wall in an attempt to make the catch.Anderson made an impressive jumping catch in the fifth, robbing Max Kepler of a hit.Advertisement“In that situation to keep that inning from developing was huge,” La Russa said. “He got up there and he lingered. He looked like Dr. J or Michael (Jordan). They look like they’re floating. He floated for a while and caught it.”Added Sox starter Michael Kopech: “We know when he’s on the field he’s going to do something that 99% of guys can’t do, whether that be at the plate or on defense. And we saw both (Friday). It was awesome. That’s why he’s an All-Star, right?”Anderson singled with one out in the seventh against reliever Griffin Jax. Yoán Moncada walked and Engel worked a full count before launching the home run.“He’s got really good stuff,” Engel said. “I was just trying to make sure I swung at strikes. I was trying to get a pitch in the zone and put a swing on it. Certainly not trying to hit a home run right there. (José Abreu) is behind me and is one of the best RBI collectors in the game. In that situation I’m just trying to get on base and let (Abreu) do his job. Every now and then the game rewards you for that.”Kopech allowed two runs on five hits with two strikeouts and four walks in five innings. He said the baseballs were “slicker than probably any I’ve thrown this year.”“It was tough to get a grip but made adjustments and got through it,” Kopech said. “At the end of the day the task is the same, no matter who steps in the box. Focus on the target and throw a strike and if you don’t do it, the next pitch focus on your target and throw a strike.Advertisement“Execute a pitch. I didn’t do it as much as I would have liked (Friday), but I did a good enough job to compete.”Joe Kelly struck out two in a perfect sixth and Reynaldo López had a one-two-three seventh. Kendall Graveman allowed two hits but induced Kirilloff to ground into an inning-ending double play in the eighth. Liam Hendriks struck out one while retiring the side in order in the ninth as the Sox won their fourth straight and sixth of eight.“We’re playing better baseball,” Engel said. “The offense is playing as good as it has played all year. … Our pitching is doing a great job as well. And then we’re playing good defense. Unfortunately we’ve made some mental mistakes, myself being one of those guys, throughout the season that’s cost us more games than we’d like to give up.“But I think we’re starting to play cleaner baseball and our offense is relaxing and getting into a groove. I’m really excited. We’re having a lot of fun right now, and I think that’s part of it as well. … I’m excited to see how this goes.”

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Tiger Woods made an early and emotional departure Friday from the British Open, possibly for the last time at St. Andrews. Cameron Smith can only wonder if the 150th Open will be his arrival as an undisputed elite player.Smith already won The Players Championship this year and has risen to as high as No. 3 in the world. His 8-under 64 gave him his first lead in a major, by two shots over PGA Tour rookie Cameron Young. Rory McIlroy was lurking another shot behind.Advertisement“It’s obviously a really good spot to be in,” Smith said. “I feel like I’ve been in this spot a lot over the past couple of years, and things just haven’t quite gone my way yet.”Woods strode over the Swilcan Bridge without stopping to pose for pictures and said it “felt like the whole tournament was right there” when he walked the final 356 yards of what was otherwise a long day of 75 to miss the cut.AdvertisementWoods didn’t retire from major championship golf or the British Open. He’s just not sure a right leg held together by hardware or a lower spine that has been fused will allow him to compete when the Open returns to St. Andrews again.Tiger Woods tips his cap to the crowd at the end of his second round of the British Open on Friday in St. Andrews, Scotland. Woods shot a 75 and missed the cut. (Peter Morrison/AP)“It’s very emotional for me,” he said. “To me it felt like this might have been my last British Open here at St. Andrews. And the fans, the ovation and the warmth, it was an unbelievable feeling.”About the time Woods was saluting thousands of fans crammed into so many spaces around St. Andrews, Smith was making birdie after birdie to take the lead. Right when it looked like it couldn’t get any better, he holed a 65-foot eagle putt on the 14th hole.Young overcame a few mistakes and closed with a birdie for a 69, putting him in the last group with Smith going into the weekend.McIlroy got one of the loudest cheers — for a shot, not a farewell — with his 25-foot birdie on the tough Road Hole at the 17th. He missed a birdie chance on the 18th. Still, it was important for him to back up a great start (66) with a solid round (69).He was tied with Viktor Hovland, who delivered his own thrills by holing out from 139 yards for eagle on the par-4 15th hole and finishing with a birdie for a 66.Smith was at 13-under 131, the lowest 36-hole score in the Open at St. Andrews.Cameron Smith, of Australia, plays from the 17th tee during the second round of the British Open on Friday in St. Andrews, Scotland. Smith shot an 8-under 64 and leads by two heading into the third round. (Alastair Grant/AP)Even a weekend without Woods is set up for great theater.AdvertisementDustin Johnson, who has a Masters green jacket and a U.S. Open title, played early in the best conditions of the week — light rain that took some of the fire out of the Old Course and then a warming sun — for a 67. He was four shots back. Right behind was Masters champion Scottie Scheffler with another 68.Smith is building a reputation as a great putter, a great weapon to have on the greens at St. Andrews, and he plays without fear. He opened with three straight birdies and then began to pull away around the loop at the far end of the course.He holed an 18-foot putt on No. 7, made birdie from 30 feet on the par-3 eighth and then drove the 10th green and two-putted from some 90 feet for a third birdie in four holes.The big blow came at the par-5 14th when Smith buried the long eagle putt. He looked as though he had just rolled in a short one for par. That’s his game. That’s his style.“I don’t get too excited nor too angry. I like to stay in the middle there,” Smith said. “A lot of people say that it’s boring to watch. But that’s just how I go about my golf.”On the other end is McIlroy, among the most dynamic players from his generation. With four majors early in his career and always a promise for more, he is seen as one of the better candidates to fill at least some of the void when Woods isn’t around.AdvertisementThat explains the tee times. The R&A was trying to get it close to the right time that Woods and McIlroy would cross paths — Woods going one way toward the 18th, McIlroy the other way heading down the first. That’s about how it played out.McIlroy looked over and tipped his cap to Woods.“Everyone hopes it’s not the end of his Old Course career,” McIlroy said. “I think he deserves — we deserve him — to have another crack at it.”Rory McIlroy looks at his second shot on the 15th hole during the second round of the British Open in Friday in St. Andrews, Scotland. McIlroy shot a 4-under 68 and is tied for third place, three shots behind leader Cameron Smith. (Peter Morrison/AP)Woods wasn’t the only early departure. Collin Morikawa became the first defending champion to miss the cut since Darren Clarke in 2012. Phil Mickelson missed out on the Celebration of Champions exhibition on Monday, the champions’ dinner on Tuesday and the weekend. He missed the cut for the third straight time in the British Open.For now, McIlroy is trying to add his name to among the greats who have won an Open at St. Andrews. He has finished in the top 10 in the previous three majors this year. He won the Canadian Open last month. He feels he has been playing consistently well.It would be easy to assume, given his experience in majors, that he’s right where he wants to be. But that starts with Smith, who already this year took down the No. 1 player (Jon Rahm) at Kapalua and the strongest field in golf at The Players Championship.Advertisement“I just need to go out and play my game and play my golf over the next two days and that’s all I can do,” McIlroy said. “Cam Smith goes out and shoots another two rounds like he did the first two days, I’m going to have a really hard time to win the tournament. So I’ve just got to go out and do the best I can and worry about myself and hopefully that’s good enough.”

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball agreed to pay minor-leaguers $185 million to settle a federal lawsuit that has progressed through the courts for eight years without reaching a trial.The settlement, announced May 10, was filed Friday with the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, where Chief Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero is expected to grant his approval.AdvertisementIf approved, $120,197,300 will be split among the players, $55.5 million will go the the players’ lawyers, up to $5.5 million will be the reimbursement costs of the suit, $450,000 will be for the costs of administering the settlement, $637,000 will go to incentive awards for the player representatives in the suit, $400,000 for a contingency fund and $2,315,000 for a payment under the California Private Attorney General Act.As part of the settlement, MLB agreed to rescind any prohibitions against teams paying wages to minor-league players outside of the season.AdvertisementThe suit was filed in 2014 by first baseman/outfielder Aaron Senne, a 10th-round pick of the Marlins in 2009 who retired in 2013, and two other retired players who had been lower-round selections: Kansas City Royals infielder Michael Liberto and San Francisco Giants pitcher Oliver Odle. They claimed violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and state minimum wage and overtime requirements for a work week they estimated at 50 to 60 hours.Spero wrote in a pretrial ruling in March that minor-leaguers are year-round employees who work during training time and found MLB violated Arizona’s state minimum wage law and was liable for triple damages. Spero also ruled MLB did not comply with California wage-statement requirements, awarding $1,882,650 in penalties.He said minor-leaguers should be paid for travel time to road games in the California League and to practice in Arizona and Florida.In 2017, the players suing were defined as those with minor-league contracts who played in the California League for at least seven straight days starting on Feb. 7, 2010, or Feb. 7, 2011, depending on state or federal claims; those who participated in spring training, extended spring training instructional leagues in Arizona starting Feb. 7, 2011; and those who participated in spring training, extended spring training instructional leagues in Florida starting Feb. 7, 2009.

HOUSTON — Thirty women who had accused the Houston Texans of turning a blind eye to allegations that their former star quarterback Deshaun Watson was sexually assaulting and harassing women during massage sessions have settled their legal claims against the team, their attorney said Friday.The terms of the settlements between each of the women and the Texans are confidential, said attorney Tony Buzbee.AdvertisementWhile only one of the women had filed a lawsuit against the team, the others intended to make legal claims against the Texans before the settlements were reached, Buzbee said.In separate lawsuits, 24 women accused Watson of exposing himself, touching them with his penis or kissing them against their will during massage appointments while he played for the Texans. One woman alleged Watson forced her to perform oral sex. Last month, Buzbee announced 20 of those 24 lawsuits have been settled.AdvertisementIn a statement, Texans owners Janice McNair and Hannah and Cal McNair said while the team did not have any knowledge of Watson’s alleged misconduct, they were “shocked and deeply saddened” when they first learned about the accusations and chose to resolve the claims against the team “amicably.”“This is not an admission of any wrongdoing, but instead a clear stand against any form of sexual assault and misconduct. We hope that today’s resolution will provide some form of closure to the parties involved, our fans and the Houston community at large. As an organization, we will now turn our focus to the future and doing what we can to ensure respect for all,” the McNairs said in their statement.In the lawsuit filed last month against the Texans, a woman accused the team and some of its employees of having been told or being aware of Watson’s troubling behavior and “known tendency to push boundaries during massage sessions.” The lawsuit alleged the Texans provided Watson with various resources, including rooms at a Houston hotel, massage tables and a non-disclosure agreement the women were told to sign, that allowed the quarterback “to further his misconduct with women.”Buzbee said while he would have no additional comment on the allegations against the Texans, in a statement he added “there is a marked contrast in the way in which the Texans addressed these allegations, and the way in which Watson’s team has done so.”Watson, who agreed to be traded to the Cleveland Browns in March after four seasons with Houston, has claimed his innocence and that any sex with the therapists was consensual. The 26-year-old is facing possible discipline from the NFL over the allegations.Watson, who signed a five-year, $230 million contract with the Browns, is waiting to see if he’ll be eligible to play this season. NFL disciplinary officer Sue L. Robinson will decide whether the three-time Pro Bowler violated the league’s personal conduct policy with his off-field behavior.A former federal judge in Delaware, Robinson held a hearing this month during which the league and the NFL Players Association presented arguments. The league has insisted on an indefinite suspension for Watson while the union says there are no grounds for a lengthy ban since he did not commit any crimes.Two separate grand juries in Texas declined to indict Watson on any criminal complaints.AdvertisementThis is the first case for Robinson, who was jointly appointed by the league and union to handle discipline. She has been reviewing post-hearing briefs from both sides.The Browns, who traded three first-round picks to Houston and six total for Watson, are eager to know how long they could be without their starting quarterback. The team opens training camp July 25.Buzbee said he hopes to take to trial the four remaining lawsuits against Watson sometime in the spring next year.AP Sports Writer Kristie Rieken in Houston and AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report.

When former Boston Bruins assistant coach Kevin Dean took a job as an assistant with the Chicago Blackhawks, he had no illusions about what he was getting himself into.“They said it’s going to be a lot of patience. Exercise some patience,” Dean said Thursday during his introduction at Fifth Third Arena. “It’s going to be clunky at times, but we’re going to want to be on a trajectory up.”AdvertisementDean will be in charge of the defense under first-time head coach Luke Richardson. The Hawks are going through a rebuild to boot, so there has been an influx of new faces since Kyle Davidson became the permanent general manager.”We’re going to compete, we’re going to close hard, we’re going to transition fast, we’re going to get our pucks to the net. Those are basics we want to harp on and fundamentals we expect all our defensemen to work on.”–Blackhawks assistant coach Kevin Dean pic.twitter.com/FKrOqHw1z2— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) July 14, 2022

“We didn’t spend a ton of time on (discussing) a ‘rebuild,’” Dean said, “but it’s going to be some younger players, (so) let’s be patient and teach them how to play hockey the right way.Advertisement“All of a sudden, a couple of years in the league, they start to find their game, they become impact players, they’ve got good habits and some depth and you become a good hockey team.“And it doesn’t take forever to do that.”Here are five things we learned from development camp.It’s not a dig. Dean and Richardson had no previous connection to each other than occasionally running across each other as you typically do through the course of an NHL season.Said Dean: “I was let go, or not renewed, in Boston, so I was making calls and I texted Luke early in the process and Luke was very forthright and got back to me right away and said be patient and see where it goes.“When Chicago got a little more comfortable and started to talk to people, it went well from there.”Dean knows what he brings to Chicago’s situation.“Coming into a team that’s going to be a little bit younger, I think my strength is on the defensive side of the puck and I just want to come here and bring a good attitude and good energy and teach these young defensemen.”AdvertisementBeing a Blackhawks defenseman is something Dean is familiar with. The left-shot defenseman was traded twice during the 1999-2000 season and then-Dallas Star landed in Chicago in February 2000.New Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Kevin Dean kneels during practice at Johnny’s IceHouse on Feb. 14, 2000. (JOSE MORE / CHICAGO TRIBUNE)“I think it’s a great place to play, great city,” Dean said of Chicago. “We weren’t great when I played here but it was great playing. The United Center is one of the best venues to play in the world. The nights that we had good crowds and the game was tight was awesome.”Dean’s Hawks finished third in the Central Division his first season and the next season they finished fourth.“It’s such a great sports town in general. It’s a great town. I grew up not far from here,” the Madison, Wis., native said. “I have a special place in my heart for Chicago and the Blackhawks.“I left and they got better right away,” he laughed. “They got better a couple years later. They had some good drafts not long after and they started turning the ship around pretty quickly.“It was fun to watch those teams. The 2010s, they were something else.”AdvertisementIt seems as if Dean’s philosophy boils down to this: If you go anywhere on the ice, go hard.“We’re going to compete, we’re going to close hard, we’re going to transition fast, we’re going to get our pucks to the net,” Dean said. “Those are basics we want to harp on and fundamentals we expect all our defensemen to work on.”Jeremy Colliton and Marc Crawford employed what has been termed a “half-man” coverage, but Dean said he and Richardson are “aligned” that they prefer playing zone.“More in the D-zone, not man-on-man. That’s going to be up to Luke to firm that up,” Dean said. “Close hard when it’s your turn to close, separate when it’s your turn to separate, get some support from the low forward and get going the other way.“But not man-on-man where you’re following around the guy the whole time.”Speed, that is. And if they don’t possess flat-out speed, they at least have to have a motor.AdvertisementThat was the idea behind signing Andreas Athanasiou, Max Domi and some of the other free agents the Hawks have signed since Wednesday..“With Andreas, one of the faster players in our league,” Davidson said of the 6-foot-2 forward. “Bring up the speed factor on our team. Max can play up in that top-six area where he can bring a good pace of play but also a really high compete level, which we want to bring up in our group.“Colin Blackwell is heart and soul, motor never stops. Really happy to get him and drive that work rate up a bit higher.”Strome and Dominik Kubalík were restricted free agents with arbitration rights, and neither were tendered qualifying offers.Kubalík signed a two-year deal ($2.5 million cap hit) with the Detroit Red Wings and Strome inked a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals for $3.5 million.“It was more the uncertainty around cost,” Davidson said. “Both had arb rights, and so the arbitration process just brings a little bit more uncertainty and it drags out a little further into the summer.”AdvertisementDavidson wants to stay flexible with his budget.“Again, it’s not easy walking away from good players and good people as Dylan and Dominik are,” he said, “but we just felt this was something that gave us more certainty in our budgeting.” The Hawks also didn’t re-sign goalie Kevin Lankinen, an unrestricted free agent. Lankinen signed a one-year deal with the Nashville Predators.“There were a lot of options for goalies out there this year,” Davidson said. “It just didn’t work out. I think he was maybe looking for a change, or we just couldn’t work something out.”Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.The Hawks signed Alex Stalock, who will back up Petr Mrázek.Advertisement

The Chicago Cubs will have to wait another day to try to end their seven-game losing streak.Their game Friday against the New York Mets, scheduled for 1:20 p.m., was postponed because of inclement weather and has been rescheduled for 7:05 p.m. Saturday as part of a split doubleheader.AdvertisementSeparate tickets are required for each game. Gates for the make-up game will open about 60 minutes before first pitch.Right-hander Marcus Stroman, originally slated to take the mound Friday, will start Game 1 Saturday against the Mets, followed by left-hander Drew Smyly for Game 2.AdvertisementThe Cubs (34-55) are trying to build a little momentum with three games remaining before the All-Star break. But the offense isn’t cashing in on enough opportunities while the pitching staff has struggled to deliver consistency.Entering Friday, the Cubs lead the National League and rank second in the majors with 953 plate appearances with runners in scoring position. However, the Cubs have hit .221 in such situations, the second-lowest mark in the big leagues behind the Pittsburgh Pirates (.205).The Cubs went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position during Thursday’s 8-0 loss to the Mets and, notably, that lone hit failed to score a run.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland — Jim Thorpe has been reinstated as the sole winner of the 1912 Olympic pentathlon and decathlon in Stockholm — nearly 110 years after being stripped of those gold medals for violations of strict amateurism rules of the time.The International Olympic Committee announced the change Friday on the 110th anniversary of Thorpe winning the decathlon and later being proclaimed by King Gustav V of Sweden as “the greatest athlete in the world.”AdvertisementThorpe, a Native American, returned to a ticker-tape parade in New York, but months later it was discovered he had been paid to play minor-league baseball over two summers, an infringement of the Olympic amateurism rules. He was stripped of his gold medals in what was described as the first major international sports scandal.Thorpe to some remains the greatest all-around athlete ever. He was voted as the Associated Press’ Athlete of the Half Century in a poll in 1950.AdvertisementIn 1982 — 29 years after Thorpe’s death — the IOC gave duplicate gold medals to his family but his Olympic records were not reinstated, nor was his status as the sole gold medalist of the two events.Two years ago, a Bright Path Strong petition advocated declaring Thorpe the outright winner of the pentathlon and decathlon in 1912. The IOC had listed him as a co-champion in the official record book.“We welcome the fact that, thanks to the great engagement of Bright Path Strong, a solution could be found,” IOC President Thomas Bach said. “This is a most exceptional and unique situation, which has been addressed by an extraordinary gesture of fair play from the National Olympic Committees concerned.”Thorpe’s Native American name, Wa-Tho-Huk, means “Bright Path.” The organization with the help of IOC member Anita DeFrantz had contacted the Swedish Olympic Committee and the family of Hugo Wieslander, who had been elevated to decathlon gold medalist in 1913.“They confirmed that Wieslander himself had never accepted the Olympic gold medal allocated to him, and had always been of the opinion that Jim Thorpe was the sole legitimate Olympic gold medallist,” the IOC said, adding that the Swedish Olympic Committee agreed.“The same declaration was received from the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports, whose athlete, Ferdinand Bie, was named as the gold medalist when Thorpe was stripped of the pentathlon title,” the IOC said.Bie will be listed as the silver medalist in the pentathlon, and Wieslander with silver in the decathlon.World Athletics, the governing body of track and field, has also agreed to amend its records, the IOC said.AdvertisementThorpe tripled the score of his nearest competitor in the pentathlon and had 688 more points than the second-place finisher in the decathlon.During the closing ceremony, King Gustav V told Thorpe: “Sir, you are the greatest athlete in the world.”