Sports

Pirates ‘ran out of time,’ elect not to activate Cruz

Published

2 years ago

September 13, 2023

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ESPN News Services

Sep 12, 2023, 09:31 PM ET

PITTSBURGH — Oneil Cruz‘s season officially ended on Tuesday, when Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton announced the club wants the shortstop to continue his rehabilitation into the offseason.

Speaking before the Pirates’ 5-1 win over the Washington Nationals, Shelton told reporters that club management made the decision this week. The hope, for most of the season, was Cruz, 24, would return from his broken left ankle in September and close out the season with his teammates.

“We got together over the last couple days and basically started talking about it. You guys know what the calendar is. We’re running out of days,” Shelton said. “With an injury that happened that long ago, being able to do the proper rehab process, we got to the point where we ran out of time.”

Cruz’s left leg rolled up underneath him after he collided with Chicago White Sox catcher Seby Zavala on April 9. He had surgery the next day, and the team first thought he’d miss four months. As the summer wore on, that return date continued to be pushed back, though Cruz remained with the team and was a fixture in the dugout.

“The rehab is continuing to go well,” Shelton said. “Now, I just think we have to figure out how we’re going to facilitate the offseason.”

A burgeoning star, in an organization full of prospects, Cruz, along with 26-year-old third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, is viewed as occupying the left side of the infield for years to come in Pittsburgh. He was batting .250 with a home run and four RBIs, at the time of the injury, and the Pirates were off to a 6-3 start.

They cooled off in the summer, and traded away several of their aging veterans at the trade deadline. Tuesday’s win gave Shelton’s club a 67-78 record.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Sports

Stanley Cup Playoffs Central: Bracket, schedule, scores, news

Published

49 mins ago

April 17, 2025

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Stanley Cup Playoffs Central: Bracket, schedule, scores, news

The 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs begin on April 19. The Winnipeg Jets are the NHL’s top overall seed, having finished the regular season with the most points in the standings, and the Washington Capitals earned the No. 1 seed in the East.

This page will be your home throughout the postseason, including schedules, scores, highlights and other preview content.

Read on for the full playoff coverage from every first-round series all the way through the Stanley Cup Final.

First round

Atlantic Division

Regular-season records:

Maple Leafs: 51-26-4, 106 points
Senators: 44-30-7, 95 points

Leading scorers:

Maple Leafs: Mitch Marner (27 goals, 73 assists)
Senators: Tim Stutzle (23 goals, 53 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Regular-season records:

Lightning: 47-26-8, 102 points
Panthers: 47-31-4, 98 points

Leading scorers:

Lightning: Nikita Kucherov (37 goals, 84 assists)
Panthers: Sam Reinhart (39 goals, 42 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Metropolitan Division

Regular-season records:

Capitals: 51-21-9, 111 points
Canadiens: 40-31-11, 91 points

Leading scorers:

Capitals: Dylan Strome (29 goals, 52 assists)
Canadiens: Nick Suzuki (29 goals, 58 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Regular-season records:

Hurricanes: 47-29-5, 99 points
Devils: 42-32-7, 91 points

Leading scorers:

Hurricanes: Sebastian Aho (29 goals, 45 assists)
Devils: Jesper Bratt (21 goals, 67 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Central Division

Regular-season records:

Jets: 56-22-4, 116 points
Blues: 44-30-8, 96 points

Leading scorers:

Jets: Kyle Connor (41 goals, 55 assists)
Blues: Robert Thomas (21 goals, 60 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Regular-season records:

Stars: 50-25-6, 106 points
Avalanche: 49-29-4, 102 points

Leading scorers:

Stars: Matt Duchene (30 goals, 51 assists)
Avalanche: Nathan MacKinnon (32 goals, 84 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Pacific Division

Regular-season records:

Golden Knights: 49-22-10, 108 points
Wild: 45-30-7, 97 points

Leading scorers:

Golden Knights: Jack Eichel (27 goals, 66 assists)
Wild: Matt Boldy (27 goals, 46 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Regular-season records:

Kings: 48-24-9, 105 points
Oilers: 47-29-5, 99 points

Leading scorers:

Kings: Adrian Kempe (35 goals, 38 assists)
Oilers: Leon Draisaitl (52 goals, 54 assists)

Schedule:

Game 1: TBD
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
Game 4: TBD
Game 5: TBD
Game 6: TBD
Game 7: TBD

Sports

Robertson injured in Stars’ regular-season finale

Published

49 mins ago

April 17, 2025

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Robertson injured in Stars' regular-season finale

ESPN News Services

Apr 16, 2025, 10:36 PM ET

Dallas forward Jason Robertson sustained a lower-body injury during the Stars’ regular-season finale at Nashville on Wednesday and left the game.

Robertson, the Stars’ second-leading points producer with 80 (35 goals, 45 assists) this season, left the game early in the second period after being hit into the boards by Nashville’s Michael McCarron. The team announced that Robertson would not return.

Dallas, which went on to lose 5-1, is locked into second place in the Central Division and will host the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the playoffs. However, the Stars are mired in a season-worst 0-5-2 slide.

Robertson, the Stars’ second-round draft pick in 2017, is in his sixth season with Dallas, having recorded 79 or more points in each of the past four campaigns.

Field Level Media and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Sports

Iafallo signs 3-year, $11M extension with Jets

Published

49 mins ago

April 17, 2025

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Iafallo signs 3-year, M extension with Jets

Field Level Media

Apr 16, 2025, 12:47 PM ET

Winnipeg Jets forward Alex Iafallo signed a three-year contract extension worth $11 million Wednesday.

The extension will begin next season for Iafallo, who has recorded 31 points (15 goals, 16 assists), 15 penalty minutes and a plus-21 rating in 81 games this season.

Iafallo, 31, has totaled 262 points (111 goals, 151 assists) in 583 career games with the Los Angeles Kings and Jets. He was an undrafted free agent who was signed by the Kings out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth in 2017.