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SAN FRANCISCO — Sergio Romo retired as a San Francisco Giant just the way he wanted to, pitching one final time for the team he helped to win three World Series championships, and then calling it a career Monday night.

In a moment more special than he could have imagined, the entertaining right-hander faced three Oakland batters in the seventh inning at Oracle Park in the exhibition finale for both clubs.

“Very fitting to find some closure in what literally is for me, was a storybook career,” he told reporters, pausing to catch his breath after the Athletics’ 12-6 win.

The Giants reached out a few weeks back to see whether Romo might consider tossing an inning — he looked at his arm and asked if it could give it one last hurrah. He had already taken up golf.

“I understand how special this opportunity was,” he said.

So, Bay Area baseball fans were treated to a last listen of Romo’s longtime signature “El Mechon” walk-up tune, too, and he basked in the cheers.

But ahead of unleashing his nasty slider, Romo got a dose of what he’ll be missing in the new, modern baseball world — he was immediately called for two clock violations by the plate umpire, resulting in a pair of automatic balls.

The first was for taking too long to finish his warmup tosses. The second was for taking too long to throw his first pitch.

Going against one of his former teams, and starting with a 2-0 count, Romo quickly walked his first batter. He threw a wild pitch and surrendered two singles that scored a run before former teammate Hunter Pence walked out to make a pitching change.

Romo, 40, soaked it all in as he made his way to the dugout, tipped his cap and hugged Giants manager Gabe Kapler and others in a sensational sendoff.

Romo got a curtain call and fought tears as he went back into the dugout.

Saluted with a rousing ovation when he strolled to the bullpen to begin his warmup tosses, Romo received more cheers when he came into the spring training game. The A’s players watched and clapped from their dugout rail, and the Giants grinned, witnessing the emotional goodbye to baseball.

Ever popular with the home fans, Romo wore a special hat. All during spring training, every time a kid asked for an autograph, he’d have them sign his cap.

“If this was the last hat I was going to wear in the big leagues … I figured it would be nice to not go in there alone,” he said.

Romo played 15 seasons for eight organizations, including the Athletics, spending his initial nine years with the Giants. The reliever on Monday shared a goodbye note to San Francisco on The Players’ Tribune.

“Dear San Francisco, Tonight I get to do something one last time – something that’s been one of the biggest honors of my whole life: I get to put on a Giants jersey. And before I go do that, I just wanted to write this letter, and share some thoughts with you all. Thanks for reading,” he said.

On Sunday in Oakland, Romo greeted fans and fist-bumped youngsters as he made his farewell rounds. On his Instagram account, the ever-creative Romo posted a photo of himself holding a sign similar to those of students on the first day of school but signifying his last day in the majors.

Romo grew up in Brawley, California, about 125 miles east of San Diego and some 30 miles north of Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico. He was a 2013 All-Star for the Giants and posted a career record of 42-36 with a 3.21 ERA and 137 saves over 821 appearances spanning 722⅔ innings. Last year, he pitched a combined 23 games for Seattle and Toronto.

He also played for the Dodgers, Tampa Bay, Miami and Minnesota. A 28th-round draft pick by San Francisco in 2005 out of Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colorado, Romo was a key member of manager Bruce Bochy’s stellar bullpen soon after making his big league debut in 2008.

Romo helped the Giants win every-other-year titles in 2010, ’12 and ’14 — the 2010 team capturing the franchise’s first championship since 1954 and first since moving West from New York in 1958.

Romo excelled in those games, posting a 0.00 ERA and three saves in six World Series appearances.

And long after those October highlights, Romo wound up on the very same mound for the last time, finishing up on a March night.

“What an experience,” he said.

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Va. Tech LB Woodson arrested on DWI charge

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Va. Tech LB Woodson arrested on DWI charge

Virginia Tech junior linebacker Caleb Woodson, a team captain, was arrested Saturday on a charge of misdemeanor driving while intoxicated.

Woodson, 21, was jailed and released Saturday on $2,500 unsecured bond. He has a court date scheduled for Sept. 9. According to online court records, this is his first DWI offense.

Coach Brent Pry said Woodson will face internal discipline following his arrest, and that his status for Sunday’s opener against No. 13 South Carolina in Atlanta has not been determined.

“There’s been a lot of discussions over the last few days regarding this matter,” Pry said. “And there’s certainly internal program consequences at play, measures at play, and then the university’s policy, the athletic department policies, we’re committed to seeing that out.”

Pry also told reporters that Woodson’s status as a team captain, which he earned last week, has been removed, although he will have the chance to earn it back.

Woodson started 11 of 13 games for the Hokies last season, finishing second on the team with 72 tackles while recording 7.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and an interception.

Woodson, from Haymarket, Virginia, started one game and played in all 13 during his 2023 freshman season, when he had 22 tackles.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Bama, WVU nix series in wake of schedule change

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Bama, WVU nix series in wake of schedule change

Alabama and West Virginia mutually agreed to cancel their home-and-home series that had been scheduled for 2026 and 2027, the schools announced Tuesday.

Alabama said it was making adjustments to its nonconference schedule in response to last week’s announcement that the Southeastern Conference would go from playing eight to nine league games starting in 2026.

West Virginia said it wanted to align with the scheduling philosophy followed by many teams contending for a College Football Playoff berth. That means playing a fellow power-conference opponent, one from the Group of Five and one from the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision.

Alabama will now play East Carolina on Sept. 5, 2026, as well as South Florida on Sept. 12 and Florida State on Sept. 19. West Virginia now plays Coastal Carolina on Sept. 5, UT-Martin on Sept. 12 and Virginia on Sept. 19.

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Colorado names transfer Salter QB1 for opener

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Colorado names transfer Salter QB1 for opener

Colorado coach Deion Sanders named Kaidon Salter the Buffaloes’ starting quarterback on Tuesday, ahead of the team’s opener Friday against Georgia Tech.

“The kid has a ton of experience, dual threat, can throw the heck out of the ball as well,” said Sanders. “He’s the guy. He’s the guy at this point.”

Salter, who transferred to Colorado after three years as a starter at Liberty, was the presumed starter but had been competing with five-star true freshman Julian Lewis.

“He’s done it before,” said Sanders. “This is not his first time running out the tunnel and getting the start. … I like what he did in the spring, and he’s growing and growing and growing.”

Sanders credited offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur and volunteer assistant coach Byron Leftwich for their work with Salter.

“I defer to those two coaches to allow me to understand what I see as valid,” said Sanders, who added that he is hopeful Lewis will also get game reps.

Salter appeared in two games for Liberty in 2021, before starting most of the team’s games of over the next three years. During that span, he threw for 5,889 yards with 56 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. He also ran for 2,006 yards.

He will replace Shedeur Sanders, who started the past two years for Colorado, before being drafted in the fifth round by the Cleveland Browns.

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