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Orlando Pride coach Amanda Cromwell and first assistant coach Sam Greene have been placed on a temporary administrative leave effective immediately, pending the results of a current investigation, the team said Tuesday. “The decisions come following recommendations from the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) and the NWSL Players Association (NWSLPA) Joint Investigative Team,” the Pride said in their statement. “This is an interim step while the investigation is ongoing, and no final determinations or conclusions have been reached.”AdvertisementNo details about what prompted the investigation were released.The Pride said that assistant coach Seb Hines has been appointed to coach the Pride in the interim. Advertisement“Providing a respectful environment and adhering to all league policies are of the utmost priority for the Pride. The Club is committed to fully cooperating with the Joint Investigative Team through the conclusion of this process. As this is an ongoing investigation, the Club will have no further comment at this time,” the team said in its release.The move come after the Pride suffered their worst loss of the season in a 5-0 victory loss to the host Houston Dash on Friday night.“This is a tough one to talk about,” Cromwell said after the match. “I thought we had good energy to start the game. There was a little bit of methodical both ways. I think both teams were feeling each other out. When they scored, I don’t think our response was good enough to pick up energy, pick up the level, and just conceding multiple goals again in the first half, put you in a bind and so we change things up.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Chicago White Sox called on Jake Burger to hit for Carlos Rodón in the fifth inning of a July 24 game last season against the Milwaukee Brewers.The Sox trailed by three with the bases loaded and one out. Brewers starter Corbin Burnes struck out Burger on three pitches.Advertisement“I let myself and the emotions get a little too large in that situation,” Burger said Saturday, recalling the at-bat. “Tried to do too much. And you learn from those situations and just apply them to the next one.”Burger leaned on that experience in a pinch-hitting situation in the eighth inning Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field.AdvertisementThe Sox were down a run but had a runner on first. Burger hit the second pitch he saw over the center-field wall for a go-ahead two-run homer, leading the Sox to a 3-2 victory.He became the first Sox player to hit a game-winning, pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning or later since Daniel Palka on Aug. 2, 2018, against the Kansas City Royals. Palka hit a three-run homer in the eighth.“As long as I control my emotions, anything can happen,” Burger said. “That’s kind of how I take it and it’s always fun to have the chance from (manager) Tony (La Russa) to have a situation like that given to you.”Burger carried over the success Sunday, starting at third base and going 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a run in the 6-5 victory. He had two doubles in a game for the first time in his career.“He’s just gaining confidence,” La Russa said after Sunday’s game. “He’s a hungry hitter. (Teammate Andrew) Vaughn’s got it too. … These guys are hungry.“That’s a real box checker for a productive major-leaguer. Come out there, don’t throw any at-bats away. That’s a big compliment to pay them.”Jake Burger watches his two-run home run off Rays reliever Jalen Beeks during the eighth inning on June 4, 2022. (Chris O’Meara/AP)Burger, 26, is slashing .245/.289/.434 with five doubles, five home runs and 17 RBIs in 31 games as the Sox begin a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday at Guaranteed Rate Field.He drove in two with a first-inning double Sunday — his first career hit with the bases loaded (1-for-6). Burger scored on a two-run single by Yasmani Grandal.Advertisement“That was fun,” Burger said of the four-run first. “Anytime you can get out to a quick lead, it’s huge and it helps everybody. The defense, takes pressure off them and the pitching. It was huge to get out to a start like that.”His second double came in the second.“Come down here, you know you’re going to have a tough matchup (against the Rays),” Burger said. “They’re always a good team. Taking two of three is always a big thing and I’m glad we got that done.”Recently, Burger has gotten some of the biggest hits whenever the White Sox win.He hit a go-ahead three-run home run in the fifth inning of a 3-1 victory against the Boston Red Sox on May 25 at Guaranteed Rate Field, a day after rejoining the team from Triple-A Charlotte.Burger ended a marathon City Series game against the Cubs on May 29 at Guaranteed Rate Field, driving in the winning run with a single to left for a 5-4 victory in 12 innings.AdvertisementHis pinch-hit homer Saturday helped snap a four-game losing streak. And he provided the spark in the first inning Sunday.“I’ve been smiling a ton, just having fun,” Burger said.Discussing the past few years after the game against the Red Sox, Burger said he takes “every day as a blessing.”A first-round pick in 2017 out of Missouri State, Burger missed all of 2018 after suffering a ruptured left Achilles tendon in spring training, then missed all of 2019 because of a bruised left heel.With the 2020 minor-league season canceled because of the pandemic, Burger played in a local league in Missouri before joining the White Sox alternate site in Schaumburg.He spent time with the White Sox (slashing .263/.333/.474 with one homer and three RBIs in 15 games) and Charlotte last season.AdvertisementBurger continues to make the most of this most recent opportunity.“No matter where I’m at, I’m going to have fun and compete,” Burger said Sunday. “That’s what I’m trying to do day in and day out.”

Steve Stone tweeted some positive news Sunday about a sub-.500 Chicago White Sox team battling through injuries and underachieving players.Then the Sox TV analyst goaded fans to chime in with an opposing point of view.Advertisement“I’m optimistic,” Stone wrote. “But feel free to whine and complain.”It was a far cry from the Steve Stone of 2004 whose on-air criticism of Cubs players and manager Dusty Baker got so heated it created a rift that couldn’t be healed, leading to Stone’s abrupt departure from the WGN booth after the season.AdvertisementAfter a few years in self-exile, Stone returned and reintroduced himself to the South Side, first in the Sox radio booth and then on TV broadcasts with Ken “Hawk” Harrelson. Stone still is going strong at 74, and on Tuesday he will celebrate the 40th anniversary of his broadcasting debut on ABC’s “Monday Night Baseball.”NBC Sports Chicago plans to crank up the “Wayback Machine” for the opener of the Sox series versus the Los Angeles Dodgers, and there’s a lot to unpack since June 7, 1982. So get ready for a StoneFest.White Sox play-by-play man Jason Benetti with his partner Steve Stone in the broadcast booth at U.S. Cellular Field on May 20, 2016. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)Stone basically has gone through four metamorphoses while partnering with Harry Caray, Chip Caray, Harrelson and Jason Benetti. He played the role of amiable sidekick to Harry Caray, provocateur to Chip Caray and second fiddle to Harrelson.Now he has found his perfect match in the 38-year-old Benetti, a sharp-witted play-by-play man who doesn’t mind letting Stone get in a word (spoiler alert: Stone likes to get in a word). The two trade quips like an old married couple, sort of a Chicago baseball version of Al and Peg Bundy from “Married … with Children.”It’s not for everyone. But it’s a chemistry that can’t be replicated, as we’ve seen during Stone’s recent absence for a preplanned vacation in Las Vegas.Encapsulating 40 years of someone’s career would be impossible, and most of the great Stone stories can be found in his two books written with Chicago sports writers Barry Rozner and Mark Gonzales. I’ve known Stone for 35 years. He once got me in trouble with my bosses for goading me into telling the Cubs to fire general manager Ed Lynch during a rain delay of a Cubs-Giants game in 1999.I recently asked Stone for some brief thoughts on his main broadcast partners and other topics. He provided answers over the phone while betting an exacta box at Belmont at a Las Vegas sportsbook.Here is some of our conversation.AdvertisementOn working with Howard Cosell on “Monday Night Baseball” telecastsBefore he started at ABC, Stone said Al Michaels told him he could agree with everything Cosell said on air and gain a valuable ally while losing credibility. Or he could disagree and “probably be right” while making a “powerful enemy.” Stone played nice.In his second game, Stone was ready to tell an anecdote he learned about a player. When the player entered the game, Cosell blurted out the same story as if he learned it himself. It taught Stone not to give away everything in production meetings.“In my second game, I get big-footed by the original Big Foot,” he said. “Al Michaels told me: ‘Don’t worry. Howard never cared about anybody he stepped on on the way up because he had no intention on coming back down.’ And he never did.”Likenesses of White Sox announcers Darrin Jackson, Ed Farmer, Steve Stone and Ken Harrelson competed against each other during the 2014 season. (Abel Uribe, Chicago Tribune)On lessons learned from Harry Caray“One of the things Harry said to me that I’ve always carried forward is the best communicators are the ones everyone understands,” Stone said. “‘Don’t talk over the heads of your listeners.’ I never really forgot that. I try to stay away from cliches. Harry taught me a lot about how to appeal to a Midwest fandom. To put on airs in the booth never really was appealing to me and it wasn’t who I was.”AdvertisementOn Harry Caray’s transformation from critical White Sox broadcaster to promoter on Cubs broadcasts“Harry was one of the great salesmen of everything revolving around him,” Stone said. “He sold baseball. He sold beer. He sold the team he worked for and mostly he sold Harry. He understood who were the White Sox fans. A lot of people really disliked Harry because he was one type of broadcaster with the White Sox (and changed). But that was his fandom, the guys who’d go to McCuddy’s and have a couple boilermakers before the game. He’d get on the players and the manager, just like everybody else in the ballpark.“But Harry was really smart. And when he came to the Cubs he knew that wasn’t the Cubs fandom and he became good old grandfatherly Harry. He started singing, ‘Jo-dy, Jooooo-dy Davis.’ He made stars of these Cubs players who were just adequate. I came over and knew Jody was an average catcher and would say he was not an elite catcher and Cubs fans would go crazy.“Harry changed but not because he was older. He knew exactly who he was broadcasting to and he knew his Tribune Co. bosses didn’t want to see that (Sox version of him). He could read the room.”On transforming from sidekick to co-star with Chip CarayFormer Cubs announcers Steve Stone, left, and Chip Caray pose at Wrigley Field on Oct. 3, 2004. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)Stone compared his early role with Harry Caray to that of Murray, the supporting character on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” played by Gavin MacLeod. “I was on ‘The Harry Show,’” Stone said. “Some days my part was bigger and some days it was smaller. But I never lost sight of the fact it was ‘The Harry Show.’”AdvertisementChip Caray told Stone before their first spring training broadcast in 1998 he would have “room to do whatever” he wanted.“It was almost like Jason and I,” Stone said of the partnership. “Jason does a prolific amount of research and so did Chip. They both were raised with computers, worked very hard and were younger than me.”On the bitter ending to his Cubs career“I had a wonderful run and literally thought at the time I’d spend the rest of my career with the Cubs,” he said. “As we know, 2004 came along. The great misnomer that continues to mystify me is why people keep saying I was fired by the Cubs for being too negative. The reality was WGN picked up my option.”Stone resigned after the season.On the final day of the 2004 season, Cubs fans chanted “Stoney, Stoney” under the WGN booth, showing their support for the broadcaster during his stormy feud with players — notably Kent Mercker and Moises Alou — and Baker.AdvertisementStone declined to rehash the incidents that led to his departure. But he noted Boston Red Sox owner John Henry once went to TV analyst Dennis Eckersley after Eckersley’s reported spat with pitcher David Price and said: “I’ve got your back and that’s not going to happen again.” Stone said neither he nor Chip Caray received that kind of support from anyone in the Cubs organization during the ‘04 controversies.“Nobody,” he repeated.On reverting to second fiddle again on Sox broadcasts with HarrelsonHawk Harrelson and Steve Stone at SoxFest in 2011 at the Palmer House Hilton. (Phil Velasquez, Chicago Tribune)Harrelson and Stone, two alphas and former players, sat far apart during home games at Sox Park, leaving an impression they were reluctant partners. Stone said he “learned a lot” from Hawk and they just had different styles.“He was a lifer in baseball and so was I,” Stone said. “I did listen to him. His style of play by play was completely different than anybody’s I had ever worked with, and I knew that I came into his half of the town.“When I came to the White Sox (TV booth), that (decision) was controlled by Hawk Harrelson, and Sox fans love him to this day. I didn’t come in to capture the fandom. I came in to add something to the broadcast. Yeah, he and Harry could sometimes be mercurial, but I learned how to live with it with (Caray) and with the Sox and wound up with two wonderful jobs.”AdvertisementOn the conversational tone of his broadcasts with Benetti“We’ll set the stage early, and if it’s a dramatic game, we do baseball,” Stone said. “None of the lunacy we get into is at the expense of the game. But you can’t lose sight of the fact we’re trying to entertain an audience so they stick around and watch us through times maybe they would ordinarily click off.”Stone said Benetti “for a young broadcaster … has a great sense” of knowing when to have fun.“I like everything he does,” Stone said. “And he frees me up to do what I think I do best, which is dissect a baseball game from every angle and nuance.”On his Twitter trollsTwitter is a “nasty place,” Stone quickly discovered. He often trades barbs with his followers.Advertisement“For the most part, people there are idiots,” he said. “If you go with that idea, you’ll probably be OK.”Stone said he doesn’t take any guff from Twitter trolls because he’s not paid for his tweets.“I’m trying to give them the benefit of 53 years of professional baseball, and these guys are telling me things that I don’t know,” he said. “They can see it, but I can’t.”Stone acknowledged being referred to as a company man or homer for not speaking out more often on costly mental mistakes by players or questionable managerial moves by Tony La Russa.“If I said everything that came into my mind, I don’t think (the Sox) would want me to work for them,” he said. “Our object is to help sell the team. That’s part of the deal.”On his futureAdvertisementWhite Sox pitcher Steve Stone tips his hat in a farewell gesture to a few of the 50,412 fans who watched him pitch 9⅔ innings on July 31, 1977, against the Royals. (Ernie Cox Jr / Chicago Tribune)Stone said he’s broadcasting “simply for the love of the game, the love of baseball, the love of Chicago.” He turns 75 next month but hopes to continue as long as the Sox will have him. “It’s an outstanding way to make a living, to pass the summer, to keep entertained, to keep challenging my mind and to stay active,” he said. “No plans at this point of not doing it.”But a return to the Cubs TV booth to bookend his career is a non-starter for Stone.“I do not want to work any television broadcast for any other team than the Sox,” he said. “I’m pretty much a Sox guy.”

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks have agreed to a minor-league contract with former Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.The person spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the move has not been announced. The Chicago White Sox released the left-hander after he posted a 2-5 record with a 7.88 ERA in eight starts. He was in the final season of a three-year, $55 million deal.AdvertisementThe 34-year-old Keuchel won the AL Cy Young Award with the Houston Astros in 2015 and is a two-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner. He’ll try to recapture his old form by reuniting with pitching coach Brent Strom, who was with the Astros in 2015 and joined the Diamondbacks during the offseason.The Diamondbacks are looking for more options in their rotation after right-hander Humberto Castellanos went to the injured list with an elbow injury.AdvertisementThe Athletic first reported Keuchel’s deal with the Diamondbacks.If Keuchel is added to the 40-man roster, the Diamondbacks would be responsible for only a prorated share of the $700,000 major-league minimum, and the White Sox would remain responsible for the rest of his $18 million salary this year. The Sox also owe a $1.5 million buyout of a 2023 option.

Arlo White, until recently the voice of English Premier League soccer on NBC and an occasional Chicago Fire announcer, will be the lead play-by-play caller for LIV Golf, according to an announcement Monday by the controversial new rival series to the PGA Tour.White will be joined in the LIV Golf booth by longtime Golf Channel and NBC broadcaster Jerry Foltz and — for this week’s inaugural tournament outside London — former Asian Tour player Dom Boulet, known as the “voice of golf in Asia.” The announcement said a list of networks airing the series will be revealed later this week.AdvertisementThe LIV Golf series, started by Greg Norman and financed mostly by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, has eight tournaments scheduled this year, including five in the United States. The 54-hole events offer huge guaranteed purses, with this week’s tournament awarding $25 million to the 48-player field and $4 million to the winner.The PGA Tour denied releases for its members to play in the LIV Golf events and most current top players have declined to join the new league, although a few marquee names such as Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia are in this week’s field.AdvertisementWhite called four Fire games on WGN-TV last summer, and he and the Major League Soccer team said in February he would return this season “for a longer spell.”I’ve been itching to confirm this. I’ll be back in Chicago in 2022, & for a longer spell this time. Looking forward to hitting the @WGNTV airwaves with @TNTerens & @TMeola1 & our fantastic broadcast crew. 29 games on WGN. This club is going places on and off the field 🔥 #cffc https://t.co/hSNS87WX7k— Arlo White (@arlowhite) February 18, 2022

White will be replaced by Peter Drury on NBC’s Premier League coverage when the new season begins in August, according to multiple reports last week. White had been NBC’s lead voice for coverage of England’s top league since it acquired Premier League rights in 2013.[ Arlo White is the voice of the Premier League on NBC. And although he’s from England, he’s a die-hard Cubs and Bears fan. ]Arlo White throws out a ceremonial first pitch before a Cubs-Mariners game on Sept. 3, 2019, at Wrigley Field. (Paul Beaty/AP)

LOS ANGELES — All-Pro defensive tackle Aaron Donald is getting a big raise to stay with the Los Angeles Rams under a reworked contract through 2024.The Super Bowl champion Rams announced Donald’s return Monday. The team didn’t disclose terms of the new deal, but NFL Network reported Donald is getting a $40 million raise that will make him the highest-paid defensive player in the league.AdvertisementDonald was already under contract for $55 million over the next three seasons, but he openly contemplated retirement after he won his first ring in February. The Rams realized Donald deserved a hefty raise, and he will get $65 million guaranteed in the next two seasons.The deal means the seven-time All-Pro will be back to torment offenses for the Rams, who will be among the Super Bowl favorites again in the upcoming season. They already signed quarterback Matthew Stafford to a contract extension during the offseason, and the rest of the team’s championship core is largely intact.AdvertisementThe 31-year-old Donald has stayed at home in Pittsburgh during the Rams’ offseason workout programs, but he is expected to attend when the team opens its mandatory minicamp Tuesday.Donald is widely considered the most dominant defensive player in the sport, and he demonstrated his power again last season. He capped four excellent postseason games by making the final defensive play to stop the last drive by the Rams opponents in both the NFC title game and the Super Bowl.Donald finished the regular season with a career-high 84 tackles and 12½ sacks, his fifth straight season in double digits. He also became the Rams franchise leader in career sacks while earning his eighth consecutive Pro Bowl selection.He is a three-time winner of the AP’s Defensive Player of the Year award, claiming it in 2017, 2018 and 2020.

At a time when tears would have been understandable, Benet’s Mariana Pinto was all smiles.The senior forward’s sunny disposition was on full display as the Redwings accepted their medals and the Class 2A second-place trophy at North Central College in Naperville.AdvertisementThe Lewis-bound Pinto, so reliable in leading Benet in scoring and assists this spring, got the Redwings to the brink of their second state championship in three seasons.But her potential game-tying penalty kick hit the left post with 4:17 remaining in the second half Saturday and defending state champion Troy Triad hung on for a 1-0 win.AdvertisementBenet’s Mariana Pinto (10) takes a penelty kick in the second half during the Class 2A state championship game at at North Central College’s Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium in Naperville on Saturday, June 4, 2022 (H. Rick Bamman / Naperville Sun)“That’s the way soccer works,” Pinto said. “The greatest players miss their moments or they make history, so it’s all a part of the game.“What we’ve done is amazing, so there’s no reason to be sad.”There was no reason to think Pinto, who finished the season with 25 goals and 13 assists, wouldn’t come through when senior midfielder Katie Lewellyan was knocked down in the box for Benet (22-5).Lewellyan was the only remaining player from the 2019 state title game for the Redwings, who scored the tying goal with 1:46 left in regulation before beating Wauconda 2-1 in overtime.Was she thinking of that moment when she got fouled?“Yeah, I was,” Lewellyan said.Benet’s Keira Petrucelli (9) takes a shot in front of Troy Triad’s Macy Mell (11) during the Class 2A state championship game at at North Central College’s Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium in Naperville on Saturday, June 4, 2022 (H. Rick Bamman / Naperville Sun)Triad goalkeeper Reagan Chigas guessed wrong on Pinto’s shot, but the ball struck the left post.Junior forward Anna Casmere actually beat a defender to the rebound for the Redwings but missed a shot wide under pressure.AdvertisementBenet coach Gerard Oconer was as shocked as everyone else about the near-miss.“She’s made all of her penalty kicks throughout the entire season, our leading goal scorer, so you have every confidence that she’s going to make it,” Oconer said of Pinto. “That’s just the cruelty of the game sometimes.“You need a little bit of luck. In 2019, we had that little bit of luck and unfortunately (Saturday) we just didn’t.”Triad (25-1) had nearly no luck against Benet’s defense of Annastacia Thiel, Sadie Sterbenz, Nora Hanson and Bailey Abbott.Benet’s Reese MacDonald reacts to a penalty against Troy Triad during the Class 2A state championship game at at North Central College’s Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium in Naperville on Saturday, June 4, 2022 (H. Rick Bamman / Naperville Sun)The Knights, who have won 49 of their last 50 games since losing to Benet in the 2019 state semifinals, mustered only three shots.But Maryville-bound senior Gina Catanzaro made a steal and scored on a 25-yard shot at the 22:33 mark of the second half.AdvertisementThe Redwings had two scoring chances after that. Pinto missed a 26-yard free kick just over the crossbar with 9:00 remaining. Then came the penalty kick.“At the end of the day, it is OK,” Lewellyan said. “Mariana had a great shot — was just unlucky to hit the post. There was nothing else she could have done.”Naperville SunTwice-weeklyNews updates from the Naperville area delivered every Monday and WednesdayThere also was little more the Redwings, who had a 13-game winning streak snapped, could have accomplished this season.Their previous four losses were one-goal decisions to Class 3A opponents, including state champion Metea Valley.Benet’s Mariana Pinto (10) heads the ball in front of Troy Triad’s Jackie Barkus (6) during the Class 2A state championship game at at North Central College’s Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium in Naperville on Saturday, June 4, 2022 (H. Rick Bamman / Naperville Sun)“I’m just so proud of the way they’ve continued our strong tradition,” Oconer said. “There were a lot of expectations coming into this season after finishing last year with an undefeated regular season and making it to a sectional final in 3A.“Obviously, moving down to 2A gives you a really good opportunity to win. I told the girls that after starting our season 2-2, you could have gone another direction, but we had the resolve to turn things around.”AdvertisementThey did it despite having only four seniors. Pinto and Lewellyan led them to within inches of the top.“We had such a new group I don’t think we realized we could work together so well,” Pinto said. “But the way we did do that is incredible, and I’m super proud of everyone.”Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.

LONDON — Phil Mickelson, a chief recruiter for a Saudi-funded rival league to the PGA Tour, is ending his four-month hiatus by adding his name to the 48-man field for the LIV Golf Invitational that starts Friday outside London.Mickelson will be joining Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia and three other former major champions in a 54-hole tournament at Centurion Golf Club with $25 million in prize money and $4 million going to the individual winner.Advertisement“I am ready to come back to play the game I love but after 32 years this new path is a fresh start, one that is exciting for me at this stage of my career,” Mickelson said in a statement posted on social media.Mickelson also said he would be playing the last two majors, starting June 16 in the U.S. Open at The Country Club outside Boston.AdvertisementHe said the “transformative” new league would allow him to focus on a healthier approach to life on and off the course. Mickelson did not mention the signing fee, which is likely to be every bit of the $125 million or more reportedly paid to Johnson.It will be Mickelson’s first time playing since Feb. 6 at the Saudi International, where he first began to draw attention to how he was leaning when he accused the PGA Tour of “obnoxious greed” in an interview with Golf Digest.Two weeks later, Alan Shipnuck published excerpts from his unauthorized biography on Mickelson in which the six-time major champion acknowledged Saudi Arabia’s human rights atrocities, including the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, but said it was worth getting involved if it meant getting leverage to make changes on the PGA Tour.Mickelson also said he and three other top players paid attorneys to write the operating agreement of the new league. He apologized for what he said were reckless comments, without mentioning the PGA Tour.But then he was out of view for four months, skipping the Masters and the PGA Championship, which he had won the year before at age 50 to become the oldest major champion in history.Mickelson apologized again in Monday’s statement, adding that he “empathizes” with those who disagree with his decision to leave the PGA Tour for a league funded primarily by the Public Investment Fund in Saudi Arabia.“His contributions to the sport and connection to fans around the globe cannot be overstated and we are grateful to have him,” said Greg Norman, the CEO and commissioner of LIV Golf Investments. “He strengthens an exciting field for London where we’re proud to launch a new era for golf.”The PGA Tour did not grant releases for any of its 14 members who have signed up for the rival series, a list that also includes Louis Oosthuizen, Martin Kaymer and Charl Schwartzel.AdvertisementFive other players from the Asian Tour were added as exemptions.Even as Mickelson was the leader in trying to get players to join, his name was left off the original field list that was released on Tuesday. The Daily Telegraph reported Johnson, at No. 15 the highest-ranked player in the world, received upward of $125 million to join.The decision likely means the end of Mickelson’s career on the PGA Tour as players who defect are likely to face suspensions for violating tour regulations by playing overseas without a release.Mickelson has 45 career PGA Tour victories and has amassed nearly $100 million in career earnings on the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions. He won his first tour event in 1991 when he was an amateur at Arizona State and his most recent title last year at the PGA.The LIV Golf Invitational is the first of eight such tournaments, with five of them scheduled for the United States, two of them on courses owned by former President Donald Trump.At least six players in the field already have resigned their PGA Tour memberships. Kevin Na announced his decision on social media. The manager for Garcia, Oosthuizen, Schwartzel and Branden Grace said they have resigned, too.AdvertisementAs much as he was promoting a new concept, Mickelson appeared to be the one who caused the Saudi league to lose momentum with his interviews in February that disparaged the Saudis (“scary mother-(expletives)”) and the PGA Tour (“A dictatorship. They divide and conquer.”)All the top players — including Johnson — pledged their support for the PGA Tour. Johnson later changed his mind.

Sometimes, if you look closely, you can spot the blue band on Frank Schwindel’s wrist.For Schwindel, his Team Ryker wristband is a visual connection to the 7-year-old Chicago Cubs fan who calls the first baseman his best friend.AdvertisementSchwindel’s bond with Ryker Colón began in January at a meet-and-greet event through Club 400, a nonprofit founded by a Cubs fan. It spawned a link between Schwindel and the Colón family.Ryker is one of 17 children in the world with a JAG2 gene mutation. Doctors categorize his condition as a form of muscular dystrophy; however, the rare disease does not have a name. Ryker no longer can walk and uses a power wheelchair.AdvertisementNone of it stopped him from playing catch that night with Schwindel, who hopes wearing the Team Ryker wristband will bring awareness to the disease.[ [Don’t miss] The day Caleb Kilian has been waiting for turns into the ‘best day of my life’ for the 25-year-old Cubs pitcher ]“Whatever I can do that brightens someone’s day,” Schwindel told the Tribune. “Being able to connect with people and give a kid like Ryker smiles and hope where you don’t give up and keep the faith. Anything can happen.”After the Cubs’ April 22 game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Schwindel shared a photo on his Instagram story of him wearing the blue Team Ryker wristband. He requested some be mailed to him, keeping one for himself while putting the rest on a table in the Cubs clubhouse for any of his teammates to grab. Reliever Scott Effross was among those to take one, displaying it on a shelf in his locker.Cubs fan Ryker Colón, 7, wears a wristband reading “Team Ryker” while playing with toy cars at a Club 400 charity event featuring Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman on May 27, 2022, in Lake in the Hills. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)Schwindel continues to stay in touch with the Colóns and gets regular updates from Ryker’s father, Eddie. He gave the family his tickets to attend a Cubs game this summer.“The worst part is not knowing,” Schwindel said. “It’s tough to see, and especially me being a dad now, you just want what’s best for your kids. And it’s got to be tough, seeing them struggle or not being able to do the things they want to do.“I just want to help them out and just know that we’re thinking about them.”Stewart McVicar launched Club 400 in 2014 after spending four years building the ultimate Cubs fan dwelling in the tricked-out basement of his Lake in the Hills home.The space features all the knickknacks and mementos a Cubs fan could dream of, ranging from a plethora of signed jerseys and baseballs to a neon-lit replica of the Wrigley Field marquee to a one-of-a-kind life-size bobblehead of Anthony Rizzo.AdvertisementInside the Club 400 charity space, featuring Cubs memorabilia, on May 27, 2022, in Lake in the Hills. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)During the summer of 2020, McVicar hosted limited tours because of COVID-19 and asked Cubs fans to nominate someone deserving. Eddie Colón nominated Ryker and 10-year-old son Aramis, named after former Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez.The Colóns were chosen and made the three-hour drive from their home in Muscatine, Iowa. At the time, Ryker still was walking and wore a helmet because he had been falling.“They gave the boys the best tour ever,” Eddie said.Three months after the visit, McVicar reached out to Eddie through Facebook to check in on the family and asked about Ryker and his backstory. They kept in touch online and through Club 400.At one point, friends of Eddie in Muscatine reached out to McVicar because of his fundraising background and the medical costs associated with Ryker’s condition. It took months of persuading before Eddie agreed to let McVicar and Club 400 feature them.[ [Don’t miss] How Matt Swarmer’s unique slider is bringing the 28-year-old Cubs rookie big-league success ]On Sept. 10, Club 400 hosted a fundraiser for the Colóns with former Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster as the special guest. The event raised $40,000, all of which went to the family.Advertisement“Kids are so resilient, they can teach us all a lesson of when we’re going through tough times to remember to smile and be thankful for what we have, and he has an amazing support system around him,” Dempster told the Tribune. “Here’s a kid who life has taken so much away from him with his challenges, and that’s OK. He doesn’t see them as challenges. He sees them as opportunities. And that’s pretty special. He’s fun to be around.”Club 400 has raised $600,000 over the last eight years for numerous charitable causes with a goal to reach $1 million. Its most recent event on May 27 featured pitcher Marcus Stroman and partnered with his charity, HDMH Foundation, and The Lost Boyz, an organization that provides baseball and softball to youths in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood.“Ryker is one of the great things that came out of COVID,” McVicar said. “Not only do we help them a little bit — and we can’t always solve the problems — but easing the burdens are a good thing. It’s not me. It’s the community of the people that follow Club 400 that makes things happen.”The Club 400 events and network help find connections to other resources, especially medical ones. It was through people in Club 400 that Eddie and his wife, Brandi, were able to get Ryker into Shriners Hospitals for Children in Chicago. Although Shriners wasn’t able to help with Ryker’s disease, the hospital reassured the Colóns they had been seeing the right people in the neurology field.A Club 400 member also reached out to a chiropractor 90 minutes from Muscatine where the Colóns travel for Ryker once a week. They used to go three times a week but cut back because of Aramis’ travel baseball practice schedule.“It’s a struggle for us to try to let anybody watch Ryker just because it’s a lot,” Eddie said. “People say, ‘You guys need some time away,’ but it’s not that easy because, yes, they’re not going to let anything happen to him. But to carry him from the kitchen, from the living room to the restroom, that’s a lot of work.”AdvertisementEver since Ryker was little, hospital visits were common.Eddie recalls how, at birth, Ryker had a constant cough, one that still lingers today. Nobody could figure out what was causing the issue. Then in 2018, the Colóns realized something wasn’t right when 3-year-old Ryker frequently fell. He was fitted with a helmet.Eddie and Brandi’s focus and questions shifted: Why was he losing mobility? Why was it hard for Ryker to keep his head up?“Basically he’s been going to doctors his entire life,” Eddie said.That has included three surgeries, including one on Ryker’s right ear in early May. While in the hospital, he watched a Cubs game with his dad while wearing a Team Ryker band. Ryker let the nurses know Schwindel had one on too, “and they thought that was so cool,” Eddie said.Cubs first baseman Frank Schwindel signs autographs during a rain delay of a Cubs-Pirates game April 24, 2022, at Wrigley Field. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)Among the various doctor visits was a four-year span of trips to the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital, where the family did not gain any answers. For the last two years, the Colóns have taken Ryker to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, where they at least learned one notable insight into Ryker’s condition.AdvertisementA muscle biopsy revealed the rarity of Ryker’s disease. The clinic kept some of Ryker’s muscle fat tissue and tests it every year because medical advancements are constantly changing. The most recent test revealed the variant in the JAG2 gene.The Colóns were told researchers in Florida and the Netherlands keep files of the 17 children worldwide with the mutation and are trying to crossmatch data and information to identify any common links.“The genetic doctor said some kids at birth were severe and they couldn’t walk at all and they need a lot of help, and then there are some that developed it in the teens,” Eddie said. “And then there’s some like Ryker that early on it started going that way.”Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.The Colóns have researched muscular dystrophy to gain insight into Ryker’s ailments. But despite doctors recommending he attend camps for kids with muscular dystrophy, Ryker does not qualify right now because his disease remains unnamed.[ [Don’t miss] Christopher Morel continues to be a ‘spark’ and highlight for the Cubs ]With Ryker unable to walk, the Colóns utilize a heavy-duty stroller at home to move him around. A chairlift gets Ryker upstairs to his bedroom.When a Mayo Clinic geneticist initially discussed wheelchair transportation for Ryker, Eddie was very hesitant. He worried about the impact on Ryker at school, namely the attention it would attract from classmates and how they would treat him.AdvertisementBut having seen how Ryker is welcomed by Aramis’ friends — many of whom have siblings Ryker’s age who include him in everything — Eddie relaxed at the thought of Ryker using an electric wheelchair. It’s now Ryker’s source of movement at school.“I know people are going to say stuff, but at school everybody wants to be around Ryker,” Eddie said. “Everybody loves him. I drop him at school and he gets get surrounded by, like, 12 kids.”What comes next is unclear. The Colóns are hopeful that raising awareness of Ryker’s disease will help unearth more information, more understanding of his condition and, hopefully, even a cure. While they don’t promise Ryker he will walk again, his family does everything it can to give him a childhood like any other 7-year-old boy growing up in Muscatine, Iowa.But how many of them can say they have a best friend on the Cubs?

Juan Yepez singled home automatic runner Nolan Gorman to lead off the 11th inning, Brendan Donovan doubled in an insurance run and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs 5-3 on Sunday night at Wrigley Field.Yepez lined his tiebreaking hit and Donovan delivered off Daniel Norris (0-4), who had pitched a perfect 10th.AdvertisementGenesis Cabrera (3-1) tossed four innings in relief of Adam Wainwright, including a perfect 11th, and allowed a run on two hits for the win.The Cardinals won for the sixth time in eight games and took the rubber match of a five-game series. They tied it at 3 in the ninth after the Cubs broke through for a 3-2 lead in the eighth.AdvertisementHarrison Bader’s second hit of the game was a triple to the wall in center off Rowan Wick leading off the ninth. Bader scored on a single by pinch hitter Lars Nootbaar, tying the game and dealing Wick his first blown save in five chances.Cubs pinch hitter P.J. Higgins looped an RBI double down the right-field line off Cabrera to break a 2-2 tie in the eighth. It scored Patrick Wisdom, who had lined his second double of the game.Jason Heyward and Frank Schwindel had RBIs to give the Cubs a 2-0 lead. Nolan Arenado singled in two runs in the fifth to tie it.Paul Goldschmidt chopped a pair of infield hits, stretching his on-base streak to a career-high 42 games. The NL batting leader has hit safely in two straight after his 25-game hitting streak ended in the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader.Cardinals designated hitter Albert Pujols continued to inch up baseball’s all-time lists. The 42-year-old singled off Wisdom’s glove in the fourth for his 3,319th hit, tying him with Paul Molitor for ninth. He also played in his 3,001st game, tying him with Cal Ripken Jr. for eighth.Cubs center fielder Christopher Morel loses his bat during the ninth inning at Wrigley Field on Sunday, June 5, 2022. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)Cubs rookie Christopher Morel singled up the middle in the third to push his career-starting on-base streak to 20 games, extending a franchise record. Nico Hoerner had a double among two hits and scored a run.Both starters were workmanlike in seven-inning no-decisions.Wainwright allowed two runs while scattering nine hits and two walks. He struck out none.AdvertisementChicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.Justin Steele limited the Cardinals to two runs (one earned) on seven hits. Steele’s solid outing was his longest this season and tied for the longest of his career. The second-year Cubs left-hander hasn’t won since April 9.The Cubs took a 1-0 lead in the first on Schwindel’s sac fly.Hoerner legged out a double down the line in left in the fourth and scored on Heyward’s single to make it 2-0.The Cardinals tied it in the fifth on three straight singles, with Arenado’s smash up the middle driving in the runs.Wainwright and Yadier Molina made their 315th start as batterymates, third in major-league history. They’re one game behind the Boston/Milwaukee Braves duo of Warren Spahn and Del Crandall for second place.Cubs manager David Ross said rookie OF Seiya Suzuki (sprained left ring finger) batted in the cage Sunday and could resume full baseball activities Tuesday. … Ross said INF Jonathan Villar (mouth injury) could return when the Cubs play in Baltimore on Tuesday. … LHP Wade Miley (left shoulder strain) tossed a bullpen session Sunday.AdvertisementCubs RHP Keegan Thompson (6-0, 1.99) faces Orioles RHP Kyle Bradish (1-3, 6.82) on Tuesday in Baltimore.