Sports

Rain pushes Xfinity Series at Fontana to Sunday

Published

2 years ago

February 26, 2023

admin

7:58 PM ET

Associated Press

FONTANA, Calif. — NASCAR postponed the Xfinity Series race at Fontana to Sunday night because of steady rain at Auto Club Speedway on Saturday.

Practice and qualifying sessions for both weekend races at Fontana had already been canceled because of consistent, heavy rain from an extraordinary Southern California storm.

The Xfinity drivers still went through their introductions, got into their cars and took pace laps during a short break in the weather, but rain began to fall again during the warmup. Track officials used jet dryers in an attempt to improve the surface, but the task quickly became impossible.

Drivers laughed when they saw their breath freeze while they took their pace laps, and they audibly worried about the steadily increasing rain until NASCAR red-flagged them shortly before the start. The cars were parked in pit lane under their rain covers for almost an hour before NASCAR finally gave up on racing roughly 2½ hours after the scheduled start time with the temperature at 41 degrees.

The Xfinity race will now take place after the Cup Series race Sunday, with an expected local start time of 5 p.m.

Both the Cup Series and Xfinity Series drivers will have to race without practice on the track east of Los Angeles, with the starting orders determined by the metric used to set the qualifying order.

Christopher Bell will be on the pole for Sunday’s Cup race, with Daytona 500 champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. joining him on the front row.

This is the final race weekend on the famously weathered asphalt of the 2-mile track at Auto Club Speedway. A half-mile track is expected to be built on the site over the next two years, which means NASCAR won’t race in Southern California next year.

While drivers uniformly love the racing on the weathered asphalt of Fontana’s 2-mile track, they also know Sunday could be challenging even if the rain stops as expected overnight. Along with uncommonly cold temperatures, the aged racing surface will be particularly prone to weeping — when moisture seeps through the cracks in a racetrack long after the rain.

“I’m not as concerned about the cold temperatures as I am about the track weeping,” defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano said. “Older track surface, a lot of cracks within it, I would assume it’s going to be hard to drive this thing. And we’re probably going to start with wet spots on the racetrack. I don’t know if they’re going to be able to get them all, and it’s hard to do it because the track is so wide. The racing groove is so wide.”

Sports

White Sox put Meidroth on IL with bruised thumb

Published

3 hours ago

August 8, 2025

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White Sox put Meidroth on IL with bruised thumb

Associated Press

Aug 7, 2025, 05:57 PM ET

SEATTLE — The Chicago White Sox placed rookie shortstop Chase Meidroth on the 10-day injured list Thursday with a right thumb contusion ahead of their 4-3, 11-inning loss in their series finale against the Seattle Mariners.

Meidroth, who is hitting .252 with three home runs, 15 RBIs and 11 stolen bases, said he will be shut down from swinging for “a few days.” He hasn’t registered an at-bat since July 30 against the Philadelphia Phillies, when he was hit by a Taijuan Walker sinker in the fifth inning.

Also Thursday, Chicago selected the contract of shortstop Jacob Amaya from Triple-A Charlotte and designated right-handed pitcher Gus Varland for assignment.

Sports

Ticket to reprise: Mets honor Beatles’ Shea 60th

Published

3 hours ago

August 8, 2025

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Ticket to reprise: Mets honor Beatles' Shea 60th

Associated Press

Aug 7, 2025, 01:45 PM ET

NEW YORK — The Mets will honor the 60th anniversary of the Fab Four’s performance at Shea Stadium, where they will host the Mariners on Aug. 15 for The Beatles Night at Citi Field.

The 1965 performance was a milestone because The Beatles became the first rock band to perform a major stadium concert. A 50-minute documentary titled “The Beatles at Shea Stadium” captured the show. At the time, the multipurpose stadium was home to the Mets and New York Jets.

The celebration will begin with a performance by 1964 the Tribute in front of Shea Bridge at 6:15 p.m. ET. The first 15,000 fans to enter Citi Field will receive an exclusive Shea Stadium replica.

The first pitch will be thrown by members of the game-day staff who worked the famous concert. A themed fireworks show will be held after the game.

Sports

M’s Naylor exits with sore shoulder after swing

Published

3 hours ago

August 8, 2025

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M's Naylor exits with sore shoulder after swing

ESPN News Services

Aug 7, 2025, 06:34 PM ET

SEATTLE — Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor left Thursday’s 4-3 victory against the Chicago White Sox in the third inning because of shoulder soreness, manager Dan Wilson said.

In his first at-bat against White Sox starter Shane Smith, Naylor grimaced after swinging at a high, inside fastball. He walked down the first base line and back before finishing his at-bat, which ended with a strikeout.

Naylor stayed in the game, but later exited after grounding out to second base to end the third inning.

Wilson told reporters after the game that Naylor is day-to-day.

Naylor, one of Seattle’s notable trade deadline acquisitions from the Arizona Diamondbacks, is hitting .289, with 14 home runs, 65 RBI and 21 stolen bases this season. Since joining the Mariners, the left-hander is batting .261 with three home runs and 10 stolen bases.

While with the Diamondbacks, the left-handed hitter was pulled from a June 23 game — also against the White Sox — in the fourth inning due to right shoulder discomfort. Naylor avoided a stint on the injured list and returned to the lineup two days later.

Donovan Solano, who hadn’t played in two weeks, took over at first base for Seattle when Naylor exited.

The Mariners, who swept a series for the first time since July 11-13, moved within 1 1/2 games of first-place Houston in the American League West.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.