Ariel view of Fifth Third Field, home to the Toledo Mud Hens minor league baseball team, on March 13, 2024, in Toledo, Ohio. (Jeremy Wadsworth/The Blade via AP, file)

Sixers

play host

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid has urged 76ers fans not to sell their playoff tickets to Knicks supporters. The Sixers need Embiid, the 2023 NBA MVP, who missed Game 2 against the Knicks due to injuries. The Knicks lead the series 2-0, with Games 3 and 4 in Philadelphia tonight and Sunday.

The Sixers tried to limit ticket sales to local fans through geo-fencing, but resale platforms make it easy for Knicks fans to buy tickets. This strategy isn’t new; other teams have tried it. The effectiveness will be seen in the crowd’s colors on Friday night.

Domínguez

injured

NEW YORK (AP) — Jasson Domínguez is heading to the injured list yet again after spraining a shoulder when he crashed into Yankee Stadium’s outfield wall, opening a path for heralded prospect Spencer Jones to make his major league debut.

Domínguez was hurt eight pitches into a 9-2 win over the Texas Rangers as he caught a leadoff drive by Brandon Nimmo. Domínguez’s MRI revealed a low grade AC sprain of his left shoulder, and initial concussion tests were negative. New York intends to call up Jones before tonight’s series opener at Milwaukee, a person familiar with the team’s decision told The Associated Press.

Triple-A

manager fired

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — The Detroit Tigers’ Triple-A manager says he was fired this week after sending an “inappropriate” text message to a female colleague.

The Tigers announced Tuesday that Gabe Alvarez had been fired for what they called a “violation of club policy,” but they did not specify the violation. Alvarez told ESPN on Wednesday that he sent “a single text message to a colleague that I intended as a lighthearted joke.

The 52-year-old Alvarez played parts of three big league seasons as a third baseman for Detroit and the San Diego Padres before working as an assistant coach with USC. He was hired as a minor league hitting coordinator by Detroit in 2021, began managing Double-A Erie in 2022 and was promoted to managing Triple-A Toledo in 2025.

World Cup

missing stars

(AP) — Kylian Mbappe is sidelined by a hamstring injury. Lamine Yamal is out for the rest of the club season and so is Brazil star Estevao. Injuries to some of soccer’s biggest names are mounting ahead of the World Cup which starts in five weeks.

Mbappe is expected to play again for Real Madrid this month and there is no suggestion his issue will rule him out of the World Cup. But every setback to France’s best player will be of concern to the national team. Barcelona’s teenage sensation Yamal is recuperating from a leg muscle injury and is also expected to be part of Spain’s squad and appear at his first World Cup.

Others however have not been so fortunate.

Abuse lawsuit

against OSU

(AP) — Thirty former Ohio State football players, including some former NFL players, are agreeing to join a federal lawsuit against the university over the sexual abuse of student-athletes decades ago by a team doctor. A lawyer in the case, Rocky Ratliff, said Thursday that the men have signed letters of agreement to join a lawsuit.

Ohio State has fought lawsuits brought by former student-athletes over its failure to stop abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss. Hundreds say they were abused by him. Ratliff says some other former football players have settled with the school in sealed agreements.

Ohio State says it has tried to reconcile with survivors through settlements, counseling services and medical treatment.