Mets Sign Tim Tebow To Minor League Deal

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The Mets have signed outfielder Tim Tebow to a minor league contract, according to a team press release.  He’ll head to the team’s instructional league at their Spring Training site in Port St. Lucia, Fla. Tebow is represented by CAA’s Brodie Van Wagenen.



The “outfielder” label, of course, is relatively new for the former NFL quarterback. Tebow’s most recent baseball experience came all the way back in high school, as he went on to star at the University of Florida in an extremely successful college career that saw him win the 2007 Heisman Trophy before being drafted 25th overall in the 2010 draft by the Denver Broncos. Tebow became an unlikely hero early in his NFL career, leading the Broncos to a number of late-game comebacks in his second NFL season, including a dramatic overtime win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, his overall performance was middling, at best, and Tebow would appear in just one more NFL season (2012 as a member of the Jets). He signed contracts with the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles as well in 2013 and 2015 but appeared only in preseason contests for the two teams, ultimately settling in as an analyst at ESPN before recently announcing his desire to pursue a baseball career.

It goes without saying that the 29-year-old Tebow is a phenomenal natural athlete, though that certainly doesn’t guarantee any form of success in his move from professional football to professional baseball. Tebow worked out in front of scouts for 28 of Major League Baseball’s 30 teams last week — the Cubs and A’s did not attend — and was met with, at best, mixed reviews. Tebow was average or slightly above average in his 60-yard dash time and impressed scouts with his raw power, but his throwing arm drew considerably weaker reviews. And of course, Tebow will have to adjust to facing professional pitching on the fly. To this point, he’s worked out with former MLB catcher Chad Moeller and hit against free agent reliever David Aardsma, who pitched in the Majors as recently as last season. Still, even for an athlete of Tebow’s caliber, the learning curve will be substantial from this point forth.

While it has to be characterized as an extreme long shot that Tebow will ever be a meaningful contributor for the Mets (or even reach the Majors, for that matter), there’s little downside in at least rolling the dice on an athlete of his caliber that at least showed some degree of promise in a showcase. Braves GM John Coppolella offered similar sentiments just two nights ago, stating that there’s “no risk” to signing Tebow and admitting that Atlanta was exploring the possibility of signing Tebow to a minor league deal. And Tebow drew at least some degree of interest from at least eight teams, including the Blue Jays, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported last night (links to Twitter).

ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported the signing (via Twitter).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Rays agree to deal with Alexei Ramirez

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With Matt Duffy set to undergo season-ending Achilles surgery, the Tampa Bay Rays are shoring up their infield.

According to a report by Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times on Thursday, the Rays have signed veteran shortstop Alexei Ramirez, who was recently released by the San Diego Padres, for the final month of the season.

#Rays have signed SS Alexei Ramirez

— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) September 8, 2016

Ramirez gives #Rays another option at SS over final month with Duffy out. Was released by #Padres earlier.

— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) September 8, 2016

The former All-Star had been hitting a modest .240/.275/.330 with five home runs and 41 RBIs for the Padres this season. With the Rays at 59-79 on the year, Ramirez probably isn’t much more than a stopgap option to close out the year but could prove his long-term worth to the team with a strong showing.

Let’s just hope that Rays manager Kevin Cash won’t mind a stogie or two in the dugout every now and then.

Image via MLB on YouTube

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Darren Collison Accepts Plea Deal in Domestic Violence Case

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Darren Collison pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor domestic violence on Friday.

According to a CSN Bay Area report, the Kings PG will avoid a jail sentence by working on community service projects.

Collison will also be facing a suspension by the NBA, per the CBA. Former Hornet forward Jeff Taylor pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor domestic assault charge back in 2014 and received a 24-game suspension.

Ready to put the incident behind him, the 29-year-old released the following statement:

“Words cannot describe the feelings and regret that I have been experiencing the last few months. My family and I found ourselves in such an unfamiliar situation and it has been a difficult few months. This is far from who I am as a person and not something I am proud of. I take full responsibility for my actions. I have apologized to my beautiful wife that I have known and loved since high school. I appreciate and am thankful for the love and understanding from my family, friends and supporters. Now it is time to put this behind us and move forward.”

The post Darren Collison Accepts Plea Deal in Domestic Violence Case appeared first on SLAMonline.

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Ty Lawson reportedly agrees to one-year deal with Kings

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The long offseason wait is finally over for Ty Lawson.

According to a report by Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Sunday, Lawson has agreed to a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings.

Free agent guard Ty Lawson has agreed on a one-year deal with Sacramento, league sources tell @TheVertical.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) August 29, 2016

Coming off an awful 2015-16 campaign, it took the 29-year-old Lawson nearly two months to get a free agent deal, and it’s easy to see why. Lawson was an abject disaster during his time with the Houston Rockets before being bought out and never really got a chance to repair his value as an Indiana Pacer. He averaged a scant 5.7 points per game and 3.6 assists per game between both stops combined last season.

But the Kings had an even bigger disaster on their hands at the point guard position. Rajon Rondo signed with the Bulls, Darren Collison is dealing with a recent arrest for domestic violence, the newly-signed Garrett Temple is more of a wing, and Isaiah Cousins is a rookie. While Lawson, who has had his own serious troubles off the court, still seems likely to come off the bench behind Collison, this is probably the best scenario both sides could have hoped for given their respective circumstances.

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Bucks reportedly finalizing deal with Jason Terry

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The Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly set to bring in veteran guard Jason Terry.

ESPN’s Marc Stein reported Thursday that the 38-year-old was in “advanced talks” with Milwaukee, who are seeking veteran leadership in the locker room. Terry and coach Jason Kidd played together in Dallas as well.

On Friday, Stein confirmed that the deal was close.

The Bucks, league sources tell @ESPN, are finalizing their deal with veteran sharpshooter @JasonTerry31 today

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) August 19, 2016

Terry was a backup for Houston last season, and he’ll likely serve in a similar role for Milwaukee. He’ll bring a bit of veteran swagger and know-how to a very young Bucks team, but from a pure basketball standpoint, his impact will be limited.

Basketball – Larry Brown Sports
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Berlusconi bows out with deal to sell AC Milan to Chinese

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Milan (AFP) – Silvio Berlusconi agreed Friday to sell AC Milan to Chinese investors under a deal set to end his trophy-laden three decades in charge of the Italian giants by the end of this year.

Fininvest, the Berlusconi family’s private holding company, announced that after months of negotiations a preliminary agreement had been signed between the media tycoon and the prospective buyers.

The deal values Milan, which has some 220 million euros of debt, at 740 million euros ($ 825.4m), and will lead to a badly-needed cash injection of 350 million euros over three seasons, Fininvest said in a statement.

A total of 100 million euros of the sale price is to be paid on completion, which is scheduled to happen by the end of this year.

Chinese and Italian authorities will have to rubberstamp the deal but this is not expected to raise any significant obstacles.

The preliminary accord was signed by Danilo Pellegrino, the Fininvest CEO, and Han Li, a representative of the Chinese investors.

“Throughout the negotiations Fininvest has maintained its position established by Mr Berlusconi to provide AC Milan with a structure from which it can compete with the world’s top clubs,” Pellegrino said.

The group has been named as Sino-Europe Sports Investment Management Changxing, and includes businessman Yonghong Li, the Haixia Capital Capital group and other private and public Chinese companies. 

The buyers paid 15 million euros immediately to secure the deal and are due to pay a further 85 million euros as a deposit within 35 days.

The projected injections of funds will be a welcome boost for a club that remains one of the strongest brands in European football but no longer delivers the results to justify that status.

The cash-strapped club struggled to a seventh-placed finish in Serie A last season and last won a domestic title in 2011.

– A selling club –

Seven times champions of Europe (five of those triumphs came under Berlusconi), the Rossoneri lifted their last Champions League trophy in 2007.

Since then their fortunes have dwindled in parallel with those of the former prime minister, who was barred from political life after his 2013 conviction for tax fraud.

Berlusconi turns 80 in September, has recently had open heart surgery and has been seeking to offload part or all of his stake in Milan for over two years.

Even before that he had been scaling back his financial commitment to the club he acquired in 1986, with serious implications for its ability to compete at the highest level.

Andrea Pirlo was released to go after the last domestic title was secured in 2011 because the president would not sanction any more than a one-year contract extension for the Italy playmaker, who was to go on to help Juventus become the dominant force in Serie A.

Zlatan Ibrahamovic and Thiago Silva departed for Paris Saint-Germain a year later.

It was all a far cry from the money-no-obstacle approach Berlusconi took to assembling squads during Milan’s glory days.

The late 1980s Milan built around the Dutch trio of Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and Marco van Basten and the Dejan Savicevic-inspired generation that hammered Barcelona 4-0 in the 1994 Champions League are ranked among the finest club squads in history.

Friday’s deal follows hot on the heels of Milan’s city rivals Inter Milan being bought out by the Chinese investment group Suning in June.

Earlier on Friday, owners of Premier League outfit West Bromwich Albion agreed to sell the club to Chinese investment group Yunyi Guokai (Shanghai) Sports Development Ltd.

Chinese companies have also acquired stakes in Manchester City, Atletico Madrid and Slavia Prague, as well as buying second-tier English clubs Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Milan deal also comes against a backdrop of deepening ties between China and Italy. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has made increased trade and investment links with Beijing one of his top priorities and the numbers of Chinese visitors to Italy have surged on the back of last year’s World Expo in Milan.

The post Berlusconi bows out with deal to sell AC Milan to Chinese appeared first on World Soccer Talk.

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Bills reportedly discussing two-year ‘bridge deal’ with Tyrod Taylor

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The Buffalo Bills appear to be slowly dipping their toes into the waters of The Tyrod Taylor Experience.

According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports on Thursday, the Bills are discussing a “bridge deal” with Taylor in the range of two years, $ 30 million.

If the Bills are able to come to terms with QB Tyrod Taylor, the template they are discussing is a bridge deal in the range of 2yrs, $ 30M

— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) August 4, 2016

The 27-year-old is currently due to make $ 2 million in base salary plus a $ 1 million incentive bonus in 2016 with a $ 1.2 million team option for 2017. But after a stellar first season as a starter for Buffalo that saw him throw for 3,035 yards and 20 touchdowns en route to a Pro Bowl selection, both sides seem interested in a more lucrative longer-term agreement. Taylor’s agent, for one, has made it clear he wants to get a deal done before the start of the season.

Taylor has a quality arm and dual-threat athleticism (he also rushed for 568 yards and four touchdowns last year) but could still stand to improve his pocket instincts and decision-making. A two-year, $ 30 million deal seems like a win-win good-faith deal for the Bills to ensure that Taylor’s 2015 campaign wasn’t a fluke and for Taylor to be paid his current market value AND be in line for a bigger paycheck down the road should his year-to-year progression with Buffalo continue to improve.

H/T Rotoworld

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Newcastle And Real Madrid Set For Huge Swap Deal

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Silly season is here, guys.

Paul Pogba is on the verge of sealing a world record return to Manchester United, Gonzalo Higuain has just moved to Juventus for approximately three times his worth, and Real Madrid are chasing Moussa Sissoko.

Wait, what?

Yes that’s right, and to drive down the powerful Frenchman’s price, Madrid are willing to offer Newcastle United two players on loan as part of the deal.

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Newcastle rate Sissoko at £35m after his Euro 2016 performances that left Toon fans around the country asking themselves ‘is that the same lazy bloke that played for us?’

Zinedine Zidane is a fan of the powerhouse, and sees him as a cheaper alternative to Pogba, who seems certain to join Man United in the coming days.

To sweeten the deal, Madrid are planning on offering Newcastle ‘B’ team players Marcos Llorente and Mariano Diaz.

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Zidane rates Mariano particularly highly, and he scored against Chelsea in a pre season friendly last week. The big striker also scored 30 goals in 40 games last season, and Zidane feels a loan spell could help his progression to the first team.

Llorente is a number 10 style attacking midfielder, and the 21-year-old has represented Spain in youth internationals in the past.

The link between Rafa Benitez, Real Madrid makes the loans possible, and Madrid are hoping the price of Sissoko will drop somewhere closer to the £20m mark.

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Newcastle’s Championship season starts on Friday night and Sissoko is not expected to play a part in the away trip to Fulham, even if he’s still at the club by the time the game kicks off.

The Magpies are closing in on Sissoko’s replacement too, with Hull City’s Mohamed Diame undergoing a medical – which was hilariously revealed by someone’s mum on Twitter.

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Benitez has also activated the release clause of Aston Villa defender Ciaran Clark, who is also on Tyneside ahead of a £5m move.

The Rafalution continues.

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Dwight Freeney agrees to one-year deal with Falcons

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There’s just something about formerly elite players named Dwight signing in Atlanta this summer.

According to a report by Adam Schefter of ESPN on Tuesday, seven-time Pro Bowl defensive end Dwight Freeney is headed to Atlanta to sign a one-year deal with the Falcons.

DE Dwight Freeney is schedule to fly Thursday to Atlanta to sign a one-year deal with Falcons, per source.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 2, 2016

Freeney was, once upon a time, one of the most universally feared edge rushers in the league. However, he’s now 36 years old and has been in fairly noticeable decline for the last few years. Still, he was productive in 11 appearances for the Arizona Cardinals last season, leading the team with eight sacks and forcing three fumbles.

The Falcons finished dead last in the NFL in 2015 with a pitiful 19 total sacks, so Freeney is probably worth a flier for them based on his previous track record alone. Maybe this will be Freeney’s chance to prove his belief that he was undervalued by teams this offseason.

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Andre Johnson agrees to two-year deal with Titans

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Andre Johnson’s AFC South tour is nearly complete.

According to a report by Adam Schefter of ESPN on Friday, Johnson has agreed to a two-year deal with the Tennessee Titans, who will help absorb some of the money he is still owed by the Indianapolis Colts.

Tennessee Titans are signing WR Andre Johnson, per source.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 29, 2016

Titans gave WR Andre Johnson a two-year deal, per source. Colts owed him $ 2.5M this season, but with offset, Titans now will absorb some.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 29, 2016

Johnson, 35, appeared in all 16 games for Indianapolis last season, registering 503 receiving yards and four touchdowns. The seven-time Pro Bowler used to be one of the top wideouts in football but has struggled in recent years with route running and drops (perhaps due in part to age) and was featured sparsely in the Colts offense as a result. Johnson shut down some retirement rumors this offseason and worked out for Tennessee earlier this week.

The ex-Houston Texan will hopefully be another weapon for Marcus Mariota alongside Harry Douglas, Dorial Beckham-Green, Kendall Wright, and fellow newcomer Rishard Matthews, but there just doesn’t appear to be much upside left for the declining Johnson.

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