Sports briefs
By NewsPress Now
Mike Trout needs surgery on torn meniscus
ANAHEIM, Calif. | Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout will have surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee, sidelining the three-time AL MVP indefinitely.
The Angels believe Trout will be able to return this season, general manager Perry Minasian said while announcing the injury Tuesday.
Trout is batting .220 with a major league-leading 10 homers, 14 RBIs and six stolen bases this year, but he will be sidelined by a major injury for the fourth consecutive season.
Trout had an MRI after playing in the Angels’ 6-5 victory over Philadelphia on Monday. The outfielder fought back tears while describing the pain that gradually crept up on him after the game.
“It’s crazy, because I look back and I don’t even know when I did it,” Trout said. “I was kind of telling myself, ‘Maybe I just banged it on something and I didn’t realize it.’ And then after the game, getting treatment on it, it was really sore. The plan was just to see how I felt in the morning. If I woke up and it was sore, just get it looked at. That was the plan. Last night was tough for me to sleep. It was just aching all night.”
Trout’s latest injury is another major blow to the Angels, who are off to an 11-18 start in their first season since Shohei Ohtani’s free-agent departure.
Los Angeles also lost Anthony Rendon indefinitely to a torn hamstring earlier this month. The $245 million third baseman also has been sidelined for major portions of the past four consecutive seasons by an array of injuries.
Trout and Rendon are by far the Angels’ two highest-paid players, each making more than $37 million this season.
The 32-year-old Trout won his three MVP awards during a dominant decade of play in the 2010s, but the formerly durable outfielder has been bedeviled by injuries since 2021.
He missed all but 36 games of the 2021 season with a strained calf, and he missed several weeks of the 2022 season with a back injury. Trout then broke a bone in his hand last season, missing all but one game after July 3.
Trout said he has never had health problems with his knees.
“I’ve talked to a couple of guys in there that’s had” meniscus repair,” Trout said while standing outside the Angels’ clubhouse. “It’s a pretty simple procedure. I’ll have it right away and get back as fast as I can, (but) this is tough.”
Jaguars cut Zay Jones, clearing a path to potentially sign Jarvis Landry
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. | The Jacksonville Jaguars released veteran receiver Zay Jones on Tuesday, dumping him five days after drafting LSU’s Brian Thomas Jr. with the 23rd overall pick and a day after agreeing to bring five-time Pro Bowler Jarvis Landry in for rookie minicamp.
Jones was scheduled to count nearly $10.8 million against the salary cap in 2024, a significant payout for someone expected to be the team’s fourth receiver at best. Jacksonville will eat $6.6 million in dead money to save $4.2 million this season.
Jones, who has 3,028 career receiving yards and 18 touchdowns in seven years with Buffalo, Oakland/Las Vegas and Jacksonville, missed eight games last season with knee and hamstring injuries. He also was arrested on a domestic violence charge that was ultimately dropped.
He was entering the final year of a three-year, $24 million contract that included $14 million guaranteed.
The Jaguars could use the cap savings to sign Landry, who is looking to get back into the league after sitting out 2023.
Landry has played nine NFL seasons, including four in Miami and four in Cleveland. He signed a one-year, $3 million deal with his hometown New Orleans Saints in 2022 but finished with 25 receptions for 272 yards and a touchdown — all career lows. He missed eight games and landed on injured reserve that December.
He insists he’s fully healthy now and ready to prove he belongs on an NFL roster. Jacksonville seems to be a good landing spot.
The Jaguars have been working to upgrade Trevor Lawrence’s receiving corps, which came up short when Christian Kirk was injured down the stretch last season. General manager Trent Baalke added Buffalo’s Gabe Davis in free agency, drafted Thomas and now will get an up-close look at Landry.
The Jaguars also cut kicker Joey Slye, moving on three days after drafting Arkansas’ Cam Little in the sixth round, and agreed to terms with 13 undrafted free agents. The undrafted rookie class includes five receivers: Joshua Cephus from UT-San Antonio, Albany’s Brevin Easton, Mount Union’s Wayne Ruby, Memphis’ Joseph Scates and Western Carolina’s David White Jr.
Browns pick up five-year contract option on CB Greg Newsome II
CLEVELAND | The Cleveland Browns got Greg Newsome II covered.
As expected, the team picked up the fifth-year option on the versatile cornerback’s rookie contract on Tuesday.
A first-round pick in 2021, Newsome is scheduled to make $13.3 million in 2025.
Newsome had been mentioned in trade rumors for months and they increased leading into the NFL draft last weekend. But the Browns have remained committed to Newsome, held onto him and exercised the option ahead of Thursday’s 4 p.m. deadline.
“Very happy with Greg,” general manager Andrew Berry said Saturday at his post-draft news conference. “Want as many man corners as we can have.”
It’s still possible the Browns will offer Newsome a long-term contract extension. Newsome said “that’s the goal” earlier this month.
Newsome has started 39 of 41 games in three seasons. He didn’t get an interception in his first two years before picking off a deflected pass and returning it 34 yards for a touchdown to key Cleveland’s comeback win at Baltimore on Nov. 12.
While it’s not his preference, Newsome can play in the slot and defend quick, smaller receivers. He’s also solid on the outside and gives the Browns one of the AFC’s top cornerback units along with Pro Bowler Denzel Ward and Martin Emerson Jr.
The 23-year-old Newsome was the No. 26 overall pick in 2021 after starring at Northwestern.
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch to have surgery on knee after collision
MINNEAPOLIS | The Minnesota Timberwolves will enter their second round playoff series against defending champion Denver with an unsettled bench — coach Chris Finch will be recovering from knee surgery.
Finch, who was hurt in a sideline collision with Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley, will have his ruptured right patellar tendon repaired Wednesday, according to a person with knowledge of the plan. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the team had not yet made the details public. ESPN first reported the news.
The surgery will leave Finch with only three days of recovery before Game 1 in Denver, and this type of procedure typically requires the leg to be immobilized for more time than that. He’ll need crutches for awhile, too. The cramped space on an NBA sideline makes it difficult to envision Finch being able to be on the bench for the beginning of the series.
Assistant coach Micah Nori took the lead after Finch hobbled off late in the Game 4 win at Phoenix that completed the first round sweep. Nori also coached the team March 8 at Cleveland when Finch was ill. Filling any voids will be a team effort from a staff that has developed a strong sense of chemistry in the short time it’s been together.
Conley was dribbling up the court near the boundary when Suns star Devin Booker bumped into him, sending him hurtling toward the coach. Conley tried to brace their fall, but the damage was already done by the impact. Finch immediately grimaced and grabbed his knee in pain.
Finch, who finished third in the NBA Coach of the Year voting, is 160-127 in 3½ years with the Timberwolves. He’s 7-8 in the playoffs, having led the team there in each of his three full seasons. Finch took over for the fired Ryan Saunders in 2021 when he was plucked from Toronto’s staff. He has also been an assistant with New Orleans, Denver and Houston.
With the Nuggets, he was hired by coach Mike Malone, his foe for the second straight postseason. Denver beat Minnesota in five games in the first round last year to spark the championship run.
Game 1 is Saturday, followed by Game 2 on Monday and then a three-day break before Game 3 in Minnesota on May 10.
Mobile sports betting will remain illegal in Mississippi after legislation dies
JACKSON, Miss. | Mobile sports betting will remain illegal in Mississippi after legislative negotiators failed to advance a final proposal Monday.
The House and Senate passed versions of the Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act earlier in the state’s legislative session. The bill would have allowed Mississippi to join the 30 other states where mobile sports betting is legal. Sports wagering has been permitted in the state for years, but online betting has remained illegal amid fears the move could harm the bottom line of the state’s casinos.
To assuage the concerns of casinos and lawmakers who represent areas where gambling is big business, the bill would have required betting companies to contract with brick-and-mortar establishments.
Estimates show Mississippi could bring in over $25 million a year in tax revenue, said Republican Rep. Casey Eure of Saucier, the bill’s prime sponsor. Legalization would also undercut the influence of illicit offshore sports betting platforms in Mississippi, which leads the nation in illegal online sports betting Google searches, according to data presented by lawmakers.
During legislative debates, some lawmakers raised concerns that gambling platforms would have no incentive to partner with smaller casinos, and most of the money would instead flow to the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s already bustling casinos.
A small group of negotiators had until Monday night to file a final proposal for consideration before the full Legislature. That deadline passed without a final product for lawmakers to consider.
—From AP reports
