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AUSTIN, Texas — A.J. Allmendinger dominated early, then had to fight to retake the lead at the start of the final stage to earn his 11th career NASCAR Xfinity series road course victory Saturday at the Circuit of the Americas.

Allmendinger bumped Sheldon Creed out of the lead with 14 laps to go, then held off William Byron over the next couple of laps before pulling away late for the victory, his second in a row at the Texas track. Byron will be starting Sunday’s NASCAR Cup series race from the pole position.

“I spent a lot of years not winning anything, so I’m going to celebrate everything like its my last one, because you never know,” the 41-year-old Allmendinger said. “We fought hard.”

Allmendinger and Kaulig Racing had the dominant car for much of the race and started Saturday from the pole. He built a big lead early before a pit stop strategy misstep and getting caught in some caution flag restart traffic dropped him to the back.

“I feel like I’m on vacation,” Allmendinger told his garage in an early radio message as he steadily pulled away from the pack in the first stage.

The race got much harder from there.

With NASCAR running a new format that doesn’t have breaks at the end of the road course race stages, Allmendinger pitted from the front. That dropped him to 27th and turned a 3.5-second lead into deficit of about 37 seconds. He then got stuck in the pack on a restart, one of four in stage two, and the car in front of him got bumped and spun around, forcing Allmendinger into a complete stop.

“I wasn’t sure how the race was going to play out,” Allmendinger said. “I knew we had a really fast car, it was about getting back up there.”

Creed won the second stage, giving the Richard Childress driver a chance to race for his first career Xfinity series win. But another restart saw Allmendinger launch from sixth to second and right on Creed’s bumper.

With those two battling for the lead and Byron waiting behind them for an opening, Allmendinger tagged Creed’s left rear wheel and pushed him sideways. Creed fought back to finish ninth.

“He turned. I was trying to stay off him. I hate that happened,” Allmendinger said. “(Creed) has all the right to be mad … It’s the way it goes. It’s not they way I wanted to take the lead.”

Creed noted Allmendinger had the speed to eventually pass him, but was frustrated by the contact that cost him a podium.

“I don’t know if I had his pace in the long run,” Creed said. “I thought I gave him enough room, but I don’t know. I need to watch it.”

Byron, who will have a chance to grab yet another Cup series win for Hendrick Motorsports on Sunday, pushed Allmendinger until the last two laps, before a wobble through the track’s S-curves forced him to pull back for second.

“I was getting one final run at him,” Byron said. “He’s just so good on these road courses.”

Ty Gibbs finished third for Joe Gibbs Racing. Austin Hill, who won at Daytona, Las Vegas and Atlanta, for the Richard Childress, retired early after reporting gear change problems in the opening laps.

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The series moves to short track racing next Saturday at Richmond Raceway in Richmond, Virginia.

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Fired Moore in custody, suspect in alleged assault

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Fired Moore in custody, suspect in alleged assault

Sherrone Moore was in custody in the Washtenaw (Michigan) County Jail on Wednesday night as a suspect in an alleged assault, just hours after he was fired as Michigan’s football coach for having what the school said was an “inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”

Moore was initially detained by police in Saline, Michigan, on Wednesday and turned over to authorities in Pittsfield Township “for investigation into potential charges.”

Pittsfield police released a statement Wednesday night saying they responded at 4:10 p.m. to the 3000 block of Ann Arbor Saline Road “for the purposes of investigating an alleged assault. … A suspect in this case was taken into custody. This incident does not appear to be random in nature, and there appears to be no ongoing threat to the community.

“The suspect was lodged at the Washtenaw County Jail pending review of charges by the Washtenaw County Prosecutor,” the statement continued. “At this time, the investigation is ongoing. Given the nature of the allegations, the need to maintain the integrity of the investigation, and its current status at this time, we are prohibited from releasing additional details.”

Pittsfield police did not name the suspect in its statement.

Earlier, Saline police stated they “assisted in locating and detaining former University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore. Mr. Moore was turned over to the Pittsfield Township Police Department for investigation into potential charges.”

Michigan fired Moore on Wednesday following an investigation into his conduct with a staff member.

“U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore has been terminated, with cause, effective immediately,” the school said in a statement. “Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that Coach Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”

Moore, 39, spent two seasons as Michigan’s coach, after serving as the team’s offensive coordinator.

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Sources: O’s, Alonso finalizing 5-year, $155M deal

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Sources: O's, Alonso finalizing 5-year, 5M deal

First baseman Pete Alonso and the Baltimore Orioles are finalizing a five-year, $155 million contract, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Wednesday.

Alonso, after failing to get the long-term deal that he coveted, made $30 million with the New York Mets in 2025 and was worth every penny as he rebounded to slash .272/.347/.524 with 38 home runs and 126 RBIs, batting behind Juan Soto for the first time. But the Mets did not make Alonso an offer, sources confirmed to ESPN.

In August, the five-time All-Star became the Mets’ all-time leader in home runs, surpassing Darryl Strawberry’s previous record of 252 to solidify his place as one of the franchise’s top players. Alonso now has 264 home runs.

It was Alonso’s best offensive output since his rookie season, with one key underlying metric (xwOBA) being the best of his career. So what changed? His strikeout rate was down and his power numbers were up, both of which would be affected by the shortening of his swing length. The shortness of his swing was in the 74th percentile (ranked 58th) this season after being in the 51st percentile (ranked 104th) last season, among qualified hitters.

But his baserunning and defensive metrics continued to regress, almost entirely due to his range.

Within minutes of the Mets’ final game — a season that saw them collapse over 3½ months from the best team in baseball in mid-June to postseason spectators — Alonso opted out of the $24 million remaining on his contract to reenter free agency.

Alonso, 31, was a beloved homegrown star in Queens after he was drafted in the second round by the Mets in 2016. He burst onto the scene with an MLB-leading 53 home runs to win the 2019 NL Rookie of the Year Award. He became a fixture over six seasons for his slugging prowess, eccentric personality and his affinity for the organization.

Coming off his worst year in 2024 as a major leaguer with full-season career lows in home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage and OPS, Alonso sought a lucrative long-term contract after rejecting a seven-year, $158 million extension in the summer of 2023. But David Stearns, president of baseball operations, refused to engage Alonso on the long-term deal he wanted.

The Orioles won the AL East in 2023 and were a wild card last year, but a team full of young talent backslid significantly in 2025. Baltimore’s pitching had a lot to do with that, but the offense wasn’t great either despite the presence of Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman and Jordan Westburg.

Alonso gives the Orioles a veteran power bat in the middle of the lineup, and new manager Craig Albernaz will have some flexibility. Rutschman and Samuel Basallo are options at both catcher and designated hitter, with Basallo also potentially getting at-bats at first base. Alonso has played 162 games each of the past two seasons, almost all at first base.

It’s now harder to see a path to regular playing time, barring injury, for first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, who could become a free agent after this season. Coby Mayo, a power-hitting prospect who hit .217 with 11 homers in 85 games this past season, might also be blocked.

Baltimore could still use a dependable starter to help a rotation that produced a 4.65 ERA last season, but acquiring Alonso shows the Orioles are willing and able to land a top free agent after sticking mostly to short-term deals in recent years.

“Christmas came early,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said on social media after the news broke.

Earlier this offseason, Baltimore signed reliever Ryan Helsley and traded for outfielder Taylor Ward.

The Mets lost Alonso a day after closer Edwin Diaz agreed to leave New York for a $69 million, three-year contract with the two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, a deal still not finalized. New York also traded outfielder Brandon Nimmo to Texas on Nov. 24 for Gold Glove second baseman Marcus Semien.

New York was baseball’s second-biggest spender heading into 2025 behind the Dodgers but failed to reach the postseason.

ESPN’s Jorge Castillo, Kiley McDaniel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Braves sign vet OF Yastrzemski to 2-year deal

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Braves sign vet OF Yastrzemski to 2-year deal

ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves signed veteran outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to a two-year deal Wednesday that includes a club option for 2028.

The 35-year-old Yastrzemski hit .233 with 17 home runs and 46 RBIs in 146 games last year between San Francisco and Kansas City.

Yastrzemski, who spent the first six-plus seasons of his career with the Giants before being sent to the Royals in July, will make $9 million in 2026 and $10 million in 2027. Atlanta holds a club option for 2028. Yastrzemski will make $7 million if the Braves pick up the option. He will receive a $4 million buyout if they do not.

The versatile Yastrzemski, the grandson of Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski, can play all three outfield positions and is a career .238 hitter. His best season came in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 campaign, when he batted .297 with 10 homers in 54 games and finished in the top 10 in NL MVP voting.

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