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TALLADEGA, Ala. — Denny Hamlin won the first superspeedway pole of his career and will lead the field to green at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday.

Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner and two-time winner at Talladega, turned a lap at 180.642 mph in Saturday qualifying to put his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in the top starting spot.

“I was well aware that I’ve never gotten a superspeedway pole,” said Hamlin, who has won 36 poles in his career.

Hamlin finished ahead of Aric Almirola in a Ford from Stewart-Haas Racing and Ty Gibbs, Hamlin’s teammate at JGR. Chase Briscoe of SHR qualified fourth and was followed by Ryan Blaney of Team Penske. JGR drivers Christopher Bell and Martin Truex Jr. were sixth and seventh, while reigning Cup champion Joey Logano of Penske was eighth.

Kyle Larson, the winner last week at Martinsville Speedway, qualified ninth for Hendrick Motorsports and was the only Chevrolet driver to crack the top 10. Chris Buescher in a Ford from Roush Fenway Racing rounded out the top 10.

Ross Chastain, who won this race a year ago, qualified 23rd for Trackhouse Racing. Chase Elliott, the Talladega winner in October who is making his second consecutive start after missing six with a broken leg, qualified 29th.

Talladega ends a stretch of three consecutive short track races and a road course event that all drew criticism for a subpar racing product. The road course race at Circuit of Americas in Texas was a chaotic crashfest, and the short track stops at Richmond, Bristol and Martinsville were lambasted for an inability for drivers to pass in NASCAR’s second-year Next Gen car.

The drivers are asking for more horsepower, for tires that wear off faster and to eliminate shifting. They met with NASCAR on Saturday morning to discuss ideas for the Next Gen. The hope is that Talladega, a 2.66-mile high-speed track prone to spectacular crashes and surprise winners, will change the tone of the conversation permeating the sport.

“Talladega really never doesn’t deliver. It always delivers,” Logano said. “You’re not going to know who is going to win the race going down the backstretch [of the final lap]. That’s why fans love it.”

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Tigers’ Baddoo to miss start of regular season

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Tigers' Baddoo to miss start of regular season

LAKELAND, Fla. — Detroit Tigers outfielder Akil Baddoo had surgery to repair a broken bone in his right hand and will miss the start of the regular season.

Manager A.J. Hinch said Friday that Baddoo had more tests done after some continued wrist soreness since the start of spring training. Those tests revealed the hamate hook fracture in his right hand that was surgically repaired Thursday.

Baddoo, 26, who has been with the Tigers since 2021, is at spring training as a non-roster player. He was designated for assignment in December after Detroit signed veteran right-hander Alex Cobb to a $15 million, one-year contract. Baddoo cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.

Cobb is expected to miss the start of the season after an injection to treat hip inflammation that developed as the right-hander was throwing at the start of camp. He has had hip surgery twice.

Baddoo hit .137 with two homers and five RBIs in 31 games last season. The left-hander has a .226 career average with 28 homers and 103 RBI in 340 games.

After the Tigers acquired him from Minnesota in the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings in December 2020, Baddoo hit .259 with 13 homers, 55 RBIs, 18 stolen bases and a .330 on-base percentage in 124 games as a rookie in 2021. Those are all career bests.

Baddoo went into camp in a crowded outfield. The six outfielders on Detroit’s 40-man roster include three other left-handed hitters (Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter and Parker Meadows) and switch-hitter Wenceel Pérez. The other outfielders are right-handers Matt Vierling and Justyn-Henry Malloy.

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Dodgers’ Miller has no fracture after liner scare

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Dodgers' Miller has no fracture after liner scare

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Bobby Miller still had a bit of a headache but slept fine and felt much better a day after getting hit on the head by a line drive, manager Dave Roberts said Friday.

Roberts said he had spoken with Miller, who was still in concussion protocol after getting struck by a 105.5 mph liner hit by Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch in the first game of spring training Thursday.

The manager said Miller indicated that there was no fracture or any significant bruising.

“He said in his words, ‘I have a hard head.’ He was certainly in good spirits,” Roberts said.

Miller immediately fell to the ground while holding his head, but quickly got up on his knees as medical staff rushed onto the field. The 25-year-old right-hander was able to walk off the field on his own.

“He feels very confident that he can kind of pick up his throwing program soon,” said Roberts, who was unsure of that timing. “But he’s just got to keep going through the concussion protocol just to make sure that we stay on the right track.”

Miller entered spring training in the mix for a spot in the starting rotation. He had a 2-4 record with an 8.52 ERA over 13 starts last season, after going 11-4 with a 3.76 in 22 starts as a rookie in 2023.

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Brewers OF Perkins (shin) to miss start of season

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Brewers OF Perkins (shin) to miss start of season

PHOENIX — Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Blake Perkins is expected to miss the first month of the season after fracturing his right shin during batting practice.

Brewers manager Pat Murphy revealed the severity of Perkins’ injury before their Cactus League opener Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds.

“They’re estimating another three to four weeks to heal and a ramp-up of four to six weeks,” Murphy said. “So you’re probably looking at May.”

Perkins, 28, batted .240 with a .316 on-base percentage, six homers, 43 RBIs and 23 steals in 121 games last season. He also was a National League Gold Glove finalist at center field.

“Perkins is a big part of our team,” Murphy said. “The chemistry of the team, the whole thing, Perk’s huge. He’s one of the most loved guys on the club, and he’s a great defender, coming into his own as an offensive player. Yeah, it’s going to hurt us.”

Murphy also said right-handed pitcher J.B. Bukauskas has what appears to be a serious lat injury and is debating whether to undergo surgery. Bukauskas had a 1.50 ERA in six relief appearances last year but missed much of the season with a lat issue.

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