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Bobby Petrino has agreed to become the next offensive coordinator at Arkansas, and the two sides are finalizing the deal, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.

The former Razorbacks head coach is slated to be on campus in Fayetteville on Wednesday.

Petrino spent this season as the Texas A&M offensive coordinator but wasn’t retained by new coach Mike Elko after Jimbo Fisher was fired earlier this month. The Aggies defeated the Razorbacks 34-22 on Sept. 30.

Petrino’s return would mark a spectacular full-circle moment, as he left Arkansas in 2012 after being fired in the wake of a scandal that saw him hire his lover and mislead his bosses about their relationship. That all came to light after a motorcycle accident, and the story rocked the college sports world and ended Petrino’s career at Arkansas after he’d gone 21-5 the previous two seasons.

The hiring of Petrino is expected to require presidential approval, as he was fired for cause during his last stint there. In the school’s termination policy, it states that “an employee who has been dismissed for cause, or who has been designated by their campus or division as not eligible for re-hire shall not be eligible for reemployment within any of the University of Arkansas System’s campuses, units or divisions.”

Petrino was head coach at FCS Missouri State before taking the Texas A&M job, and Missouri State almost beat the Razorbacks during the 2022 season in Fayetteville. Arkansas rallied in the fourth quarter for a 38-27 win.

Petrino, 62, had been seriously considered by school officials leading up to the hire, and sources told ESPN that he had indicated in the recruiting space that he was in the mix for an SEC coordinator job.

Earlier this month, Arkansas elected to bring back head coach Sam Pittman amid a 4-7 season that ended with a loss to Missouri last week.

Over the past two decades, Petrino has developed a dual reputation as one of the sport’s most gifted playcallers and someone who has found controversy at nearly every stop. Since his firing at Arkansas, and in addition to Missouri State, he has worked at Western Kentucky and Louisville.

Petrino’s stay with the Aggies proved benign, as sources said he avoided staff strife and the Texas A&M offense played well, finishing No. 25 nationally in scoring.

Arkansas fired offensive coordinator Dan Enos in October during a puzzling season in which Pittman’s name continued to surface on lists of coaches on the hot seat.

The school would have owed Pittman more than $16 million, and athletic director Hunter Yurachek said in a statement that it wasn’t the “season that any of us anticipated.”

The allure of Petrino the tactician is undeniable. He coached Lamar Jackson in his Heisman Trophy-winning season in 2016 with the Cardinals, and has long been regarded as a high-end playcaller, as his final two seasons at Arkansas ended in trips to the Sugar Bowl and Cotton Bowl.

Petrino’s off-field issues outside of his spiral at the end of his Arkansas tenure included a secret meeting with Auburn officials in 2003 that backfired when it was revealed publicly because coach Tommy Tuberville still had his job. Petrino quit his NFL head-coaching job with the Atlanta Falcons after 13 games to take the Arkansas job and left a note for the players in the locker room.

After his stint at Missouri State, he left for the offensive coordinator job at UNLV, only to leave for Texas A&M a few weeks later.

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3B Ramirez (ankle) returns to Guardians’ lineup

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3B Ramirez (ankle) returns to Guardians' lineup

TORONTO — Cleveland Guardians star Jose Ramirez was back in the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays, two days after the third baseman left in the third inning because of a mild right ankle sprain.

The six-time All-Star was injured when he stumbled and fell while crossing first base on an infield single. Ramirez went down after being struck in the back by a throw from Blue Jays right-hander Chris Bassitt.

Ramirez was batting third Sunday against right-hander Bowden Francis.

Ramírez sat out Saturday when Cleveland beat Toronto 5-3. He went 2 for 2 before departing Friday, boosting his average to .274. He has five home runs and 15 RBIs in 31 games.

In last Thursday’s 4-3 victory over Minnesota, Ramirez became the first primary third baseman to reach 250 homers and 250 stolen bases.

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Yankees’ Volpe day-to-day after tests on shoulder

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Yankees' Volpe day-to-day after tests on shoulder

NEW YORK — Shortstop Anthony Volpe was not in the New York Yankees‘ starting lineup Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays, a day after he injured his left shoulder on a dive while trying to get to a grounder.

“X-rays, MRI — good news,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “He’s sore today, but I feel like we’re probably in a good spot. We’ll see. Kind of day to day right now.”

Volpe remained in the game after his unsuccessful attempt for a backhand stab on Christopher Morel‘s eighth-inning single, which sparked a two-run rally in Tampa Bay’s 3-2 win Saturday.

Volpe said after the game he heard a pop in the shoulder.

“It’s a little unclear in there. He’s got some stuff that they feel like is older stuff, so hard to know exactly,” Boone said. “He’s definitely a little cranky in the shoulder today.”

Volpe, 24, is hitting .233 with five homers, 19 RBIs and four stolen bases in his third season with the Yankees.

Oswald Peraza was listed to start at shortstop, batting ninth.

New York already is missing second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (strained right oblique), third baseman DJ LeMahieu (strained left calf), ace Gerrit Cole (Tommy John surgery) and right-hander Luis Gil (right lat strain), the reigning AL Rookie of the Year.

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Marlins reinstate C Fortes, place 2B Lopez on IL

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Marlins reinstate C Fortes, place 2B Lopez on IL

The Miami Marlins activated catcher Nick Fortes from the 10-day injured list Sunday morning. To make room for him on the active roster, starting second baseman Otto Lopez was placed on the 10-day injured list.

Fortes, the Marlins’ Opening Day catcher, posted six hits in 20 at-bats with two doubles, one triple and one RBI in seven appearances before going on the IL on April 10 with an injured left oblique muscle. The 28-year-old missed 20 games as the Marlins went 7-13 without him. To prepare for Sunday’s return, he rehabbed for two games at Triple-A Jacksonville and went 0-for-6.

Fortes figures to split time with 23-year-old rookie catcher Agustin Ramirez, who has delivered a .256/.293/.615 slash line with three homers and five RBIs in 10 games during his first stint in the bigs.

The 26-year-old Lopez hits the injured list, retroactive to Saturday, with a sprained right ankle. Lopez started the season hot with a .400 average to go with two homers, six RBIs and one stolen base during five games in March. Since then, he has batted .191 (17-for-89) with no homers, five RBIs and two steals.

Rookie Javier Sanoja, 22, has filled Lopez’s spot at second base the last two games and provided two doubles, two runs and one RBI in seven at-bats.

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