MLB suspends catcher for 162 games
Catcher Cody Stanley, a free agent who played for the St. Louis Cardinals last season, was suspended for 162 games by Major League Baseball on Friday after testing positive for the same performance-enhancing substance that led to a positive test and suspension last year.
The commissioner’s office reported that Stanley tested positive for dehydrochlormethyltestosterone, an anabolic steroid used to increase speed and strength.
Stanley, 27, made his major league debut with the Cardinals last year when he played in nine games and had four hits in 10 at-bats. In September, he was suspended for 80 games after he tested positive for the same steroid.
In a statement released by the players’ union, Stanley said, “(I) will never apologize for something I didn’t do. … We will not stop searching for why all of this has happened.”
NHL veteran joins Kontinental Hockey League
Veteran forward Pavel Datsyuk signed a two-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (Europe and Asia) on Friday.
The deal is worth $7.6 million, according to NHL analyst Aaron Ward.
Datsyuk, 37, elected to leave the NHL to return to his native Russia for family reasons, prompting the Detroit Red Wings to make a draft-day trade with the Arizona Coyotes to rid themselves of his cap hit.
A four-time Lady Byng Trophy winner and three-time Selke recipient, Datsyuk will see a few familiar faces with SKA St. Petersburg in former NHLer Ilya Kovalchuk and Russian national team coach Oleg Znarok.
Broncos, Miller resume negotiations
Super Bowl MVP Von Miller and representatives from the Denver Broncos are expected to talk on the phone in a bid to end their contract stalemate, ESPN reported on Friday.
Miller steadfastly has said that he does not wish to be placed under the franchise tag for the upcoming season. Franchise-tagged players have until next Friday to sign a long-term deal or make the average of the top-five salaries of their position for this year.
Guaranteed money reportedly has been the sticking point between the two sides on the proposed six-year, $114.5 million contract.
NBA suspends Thunder’s McGary
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Mitch McGary was handed a five-game suspension to begin the 2016-17 season for violating the league’s drug policy, the NBA announced on Friday.
McGary dealt with several injuries and was limited to just 20 games last season, averaging just 1.3 points and 0.9 rebounds in limited playing time.
The 24-year-old also removed himself from the team for a few weeks at the conclusion of the campaign due to a “personal matter.” In his last game on March 18, McGary scored four points in 6:16 of playing time in a 111-97 victory over Philadelphia.