Sox’s Napoli to have surgery for sleep disorder
Boston Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli will undergo surgery next month that is intended to help him overcome sleep apnea.
The facial reconstruction procedure, known as bimaxillary advancement, involves separating the front part of his lower and upper jaw and moving them forward to provide more room behind his tongue to open the airway.
The surgery is set for Nov. 4.
Napoli said he has attempted to use various non-surgical methods through the years to treat the problem, but none were effective.
“I’ve been dealing with sleep apnea for a long time, my whole career,” Napoli told WEEI.com. “I’ve tried numerous things and none of them worked. Dental mouthpiece, CPAP machine, medicines … It’s just gotten to the point where I have to get this done.”
Napoli batted .248 with 17 home runs and 55 RBIs in 119 games during his second season with the Red Sox.
Lebron held out of Cavs’ preseason game
LeBron James was to sit out the first of three preseason games on Cleveland’s schedule this week when the Cavaliers played the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
Cavs coach David Blatt said James would take the night off to rest his back. The Cavs just returned from a trip to Brazil for an exhibition game against the Miami Heat.
James said his back is feeling better, but the Cavs are concerned about overusing him. He has played in more games than any NBA player since 2003.
Laimbeer let go as Liberty coach, GM
The New York Liberty parted ways with coach and general manager Bill Laimbeer on Tuesday.
The WNBA team announced that his contract was not renewed after the Liberty failed to make the playoffs the past two seasons and had a 26-42 record under Laimbeer’s direction.
That followed a highly successful run of three WNBA championships by the Detroit Shock with Laimbeer serving as the team’s general manager and coach from 2002 to 2009.
Laimbeer spent 14 years in the NBA as a player and was part of back-to-back championships with the Detroit Pistons.
Rays’ Friedman to lead Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers hired Tampa Bay Rays executive Andrew Friedman as their new president of baseball operations on Tuesday with the hope that he can lead the postseason success.
General manager Ned Colletti will stay with the Dodgers as a senior adviser to president and CEO Stan Kasten. Colletti had served as GM since 2005.
Friedman had worked as the Rays’ executive vice president for baseball operations since 2005 when he was hired at age 28.
Wizards exercise options on Beal, Porter
The Washington Wizards exercised the fourth-year contract option on guard Bradley Beal and the third-year contract option on small forward Otto Porter.
Beal finished second on the team in scoring at 17.5 points per game last season while shooting .419 from the floor and .402 from three-point range to go along with 3.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists.
Porter was selected third overall by Washington in the 2013 draft. He averaged 2.1 points and 1.5 rebounds in 37 games last season.