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Oscar De La Hoya announced from a hospital bed that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and won’t be able to fight former UFC champion Vitor Belfort on Sept. 11 in a Triller Fight Club PPV.

The Hall of Fame boxer was set to compete for the first since a December 2008 TKO loss to Manny Pacquiao.

Triller’s Ryan Kavanaugh told ESPN that Evander Holyfield has agreed to terms to step in and fight Belfort. Holyfield is 58 and hasn’t fought since a 2011 TKO victory over Brian Nielsen.

Kavanaugh said the contracts call for pro-fight rules contested over eight two-minute rounds. De La Hoya-Belfort was set to take place at Staples Center in Los Angeles (where De La Hoya was born and still resides), but Triller plans to hold Holyfield-Belfort at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida, sources told ESPN.

The California State Athletic Commission refused to sanction Holyfield-Belfort, sources told ESPN’s Marc Raimondi.

“Heavyweight fights are always the most exciting clashes, and this is a heavyweight fight between two true warriors,” Kavanaugh said. “We really wish Oscar a speedy recovery, he’s a champion and a warrior; we know he’ll fight this and win. We look forward to seeing him in the ring on the anniversary of Fight Club’s launch.”

Triller Fight Club debuted in November with the Mike Tyson-Roy Jones Jr. exhibition event, a commercial success. Kavanaugh said they are currently seeking out opponents for De La Hoya to fight on Thanksgiving Weekend.

The entire undercard, including the David Haye-Joe Fournier exhibition bout, will move to Florida, Kavanaugh said.

Holyfield (44-10-2, 29 KOs) is one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He owns two wins over Mike Tyson and a victory over George Foreman. Known for his fighting spirit, the Atlanta resident is one of the most beloved fighters of all time. Holyfield signed to fight Kevin McBride on Triller Fight Club earlier this year but the bout was scrapped due to medical concerns regarding McBride. McBride, 48, was deemed a +6 on the Boxing Severity Index by the California State Athletic Commission, a high-risk boxer.

Belfort, 44, will be boxing for the second time in his career. His pro boxing debut came in 2006, a first-round KO in Brazil.

The Brazilian is a former UFC light heavyweight champion who owns a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlson Gracie. Belfort also owns a black belt in judo. Known for his explosive power, he’s tied for the third-most finishes in UFC history with 14. Belfort’s third run with UFC ended in 2018, a KO loss to Lyoto Machida at UFC 224.

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Pirates ball-crusher Cruz accepts HR Derby invite

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Pirates ball-crusher Cruz accepts HR Derby invite

Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz accepted an invitation on Tuesday to compete in Monday’s Home Run Derby in Atlanta.

Cruz is the fifth player to commit to the competition, held one day before the All-Star Game. The others are Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves, Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals and Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins.

Cruz, 26, is known for having a powerful bat and regularly delivers some of the hardest-hit homers in the sport. His home run May 25 at home against the Milwaukee Brewers had an exit velocity of 122.9 mph and was the hardest hit homer in the 10-year Statcast era.

But Cruz has never hit more than 21 in a season, and that was in 2024. He’s on track to set a new high this year and has 15 in 80 games.

Cruz has 55 career homers in 324 games with the Pirates.

Cruz will be the first Pittsburgh player to participate in the Derby since Josh Bell in 2019. Other Pirates to be part of the event were Bobby Bonilla (1990), Barry Bonds (1992), Jason Bay (2005), Andrew McCutchen (2012) and Pedro Alvarez (2013).

Overall, Cruz is batting just .203 this season but leads the National League with 28 steals.

Among the players to turn down an invite to the eight-player field are two-time champion Pete Alonso of the New York Mets, Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies and 2024 runner-up Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals.

Defending champion Teoscar Hernandez of the Los Angeles Dodgers recently turned down a spot as a consideration to nagging injuries.

Top power threats Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers also are expected to skip the event.

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Yanks moving Chisholm back to 2B after 3B stint

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Yanks moving Chisholm back to 2B after 3B stint

New York Yankees All-Star Jazz Chisholm Jr., after making 28 starts in a row at third base, is moving back to second base starting with Tuesday’s game against the Seattle Mariners, manager Aaron Boone said.

Boone confirmed the change on the “Talkin’ Yanks” podcast on Tuesday.

Chisholm, who is batting .245 with 15 home runs, 38 RBIs and 10 steals in 59 games, has recently been bothered by soreness in his right shoulder, which he said is an issue only on throws.

He said he prefers to play second base and prepared in the offseason to exclusively play in that spot before injuries played havoc with Boone’s lineup card, starting with Chisholm’s oblique injury in May.

Third baseman Oswaldo Cabrera went down with a season-ending ankle injury on May 12.

DJ LeMahieu manned second base while Chisholm was at third, but Boone has a better glove option in Oswald Peraza, a utility man with a stronger arm plus defensive skills across the infield.

LeMahieu, 36, is batting .266 with two home runs and 12 RBIs this season.

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White Sox reinstate OF Robert (hamstring) from IL

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White Sox reinstate OF Robert (hamstring) from IL

The Chicago White Sox reinstated outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (hamstring) from the 10-day injured list Tuesday.

Robert, 27, has struggled this season through career lows in batting average (.185), on-base percentage (.270) and slugging percentage (.313). Through 73 games, he has amassed just 16 extra-base hits (eight doubles, eight home runs) in 285 plate appearances.

He does have 22 stolen bases in 28 attempts and is just one shy of his career- high in steals.

In a corresponding move, the White Sox optioned infielder Tristan Gray to Triple-A Charlotte. Gray was just recalled before Monday night’s game but did not play.

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