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TORONTO — Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins expressed regret Wednesday that Shohei Ohtani turned down Toronto after meeting with the team and instead chose to sign a record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Atkins for the first time confirmed Ohtani visited Toronto’s spring training facility in Dunedin, Florida, but wouldn’t say whether the meeting occurred Dec. 4, when Atkins spoke to reporters at the winter meetings via Zoom rather than in person in Nashville, Tennessee. Ohtani announced his agreement with the Dodgers five days later.

“We were obviously very disappointed with the outcome, and it was a very difficult phone call to receive, one of the more difficult ones in my career,” Atkins said. “At the same time, [it was an] incredible process and group effort and collaboration that I feel so good about, not only that process but what it meant to be in that position for the organization, for the city, for the country. There’s no doubt in my mind he was exceptionally attracted to this country, this city, this team. We felt incredible about the process, but we moved on.”

Ohtani also met with the San Francisco Giants, who said they made an offer comparable to the one he agreed to with the Dodgers.

Atkins said he didn’t think the Blue Jays were used to extract a better offer from a competing bidder.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “I feel strongly otherwise. We feel really good about the process. It was an incredible effort from ownership to business to baseball, people coming together. Not the outcome we wanted, but feel really good about the process and absolutely felt like it was authentic and real.”

Since missing out on Ohtani, the Blue Jays have brought back Gold Glove outfielder Kevin Kiermaier with a $10.5 million, one-year deal, and added utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa with a $15 million, two-year contract. Atkins said outfielder and designated hitter are the positions he is most likely to add to before spring training.

“We have a very good team in place that we are exceptionally excited about,” Atkins said. “We could be open to a trade. We are not actively looking to trade away from our major league team.”

Toronto was 89-73 last season and earned an American League wild-card berth for its third playoff appearance in four seasons but was swept for the third straight time, scoring one run in two losses at the Minnesota Twins.

Kiner-Falefa and Kiermaier had different experiences in free agency, with Kiermaier finding fewer suitors this offseason than a year ago.

“All I need is one team interested, so I’m thankful and grateful the Blue Jays were that team,” Kiermaier said. “I want to have the best offensive year I’ve had in my whole career.”

Kiner-Falefa said he was “kind of overwhelmed” by the level of interest. He turned down offers of every-day roles at shortstop and center field in favor of a super-utility role with Toronto, saying he believes the Blue Jays are “ready to win.”

“It was kind of an easy decision when you factor in the living situation, the city, especially leaving New York,” said Kiner-Falefa, who spent the past two seasons with the Yankees. “I kind of fell in love with the energy [of New York]. The only other place I felt that was Toronto.”

Kiner-Falefa, who is from Hawaii and has Samoan and Japanese roots, said he appreciates Toronto’s multiculturalism, its eclectic architecture and its culinary options.

“I love Asian food and I’ve never seen so many good Asian restaurants lined up,” he said.

Kiner-Falefa gets $7.5 million each season and can earn $500,000 annually in performance bonuses for plate appearances: $250,000 each for 500 and 550.

Kiermaier can earn $250,000 in roster bonuses: $150,000 for 120 days on the active roster and $100,000 for 150.

Both players have identical provisions for award bonuses that include $150,000 for winning MVP, $125,000 for second, $100,000 for third, $75,000 for fourth and $50,000 for fifth. They also would get $50,000 each for making the All-Star team, winning a Gold Glove, winning a Silver Slugger and getting voted World Series MVP. They would get $25,000 for League Championship Series MVP.

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Jackie Robinson story restored at Defense Dept.

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Jackie Robinson story restored at Defense Dept.

The Department of Defense restored a story on its website highlighting Jackie Robinson’s military service Wednesday after deleting it as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to purge references to diversity, equity and inclusion through a “digital content refresh.”

While it does not make any references to DEI, the story on Robinson was among a swath scrubbed from government websites in recent days. Before the story on Robinson’s service was restored, the URL had redirected to one that added the letters “dei” in front of “sports-heroes.”

In a statement sent by the Pentagon at 1:24 p.m. ET Wednesday, press secretary John Ullyot cited Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in saying “DEI is dead at the Defense Department” and said the Department of Defense was “pleased by the rapid compliance” that led to the erasing of stories on Robinson, Navajo Code Talkers and Ira Hayes, one of six Marines who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima.

At 2:46 p.m. ET, Ullyot released an updated statement.

“Everyone at the Defense Department loves Jackie Robinson, as well as the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee airmen, the Marines at Iwo Jima and so many others — we salute them for their strong and in many cases heroic service to our country, full stop,” the updated statement said. “We do not view or highlight them through the prism of immutable characteristics, such as race, ethnicity, or sex. We do so only by recognizing their patriotism and dedication to the warfighting mission like ever other American who has worn the uniform.

“In the rare cases that content is removed — either deliberately or by mistake — that is out of the clearly outlined scope of the directive, we instruct the components and they correct the content so it recognizes our heroes for their dedicated service alongside their fellow Americans, period.”

By 3:09 p.m. ET, the story was restored with its original URL. The Department of Defense declined to answer questions from ESPN as to whether the removal of Robinson’s story was deliberate or mistaken.

Robinson, who served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II, broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers. One of the most integral figures in American sports history, Robinson won the National League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards during a 10-year career that led to a first-ballot induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The story is part of the Department of Defense’s “Sports Heroes Who Served” series. Other stories, including one on Pee Wee Reese that references his acceptance of Robinson, his teammate, amid racial tensions in his first season, remained on the site during the time Robinson’s story was scrubbed. The Department of Defense also removed a website that celebrated Charles Calvin Rogers, who received the Medal of Honor, but later reestablished the site, according to The Washington Post.

Robinson was drafted into military service in 1942 and eventually joined the 761st Tank Battalion, also known as the Black Panthers. He was court-martialed in July 1944 after he refused an order by a driver to move to the back of an Army bus he had boarded. Robinson was acquitted and coached Army athletics teams until his honorable discharge in November 1944.

Robinson, who died in 1972, remains an ever-present figure in MLB, with his No. 42 permanently retired in 1997. On April 15 every year, the league celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, honoring the date of his debut with the Dodgers by having every player in the majors wear his jersey number. Last year, Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, who is 102 years old, attended the April 15 game between the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field.

On Feb. 20, Trump announced plans to build statues of Robinson, boxing icon Muhammad Ali and NBA star Kobe Bryant in the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture park he proposed during his first administration.

ESPN’s William Weinbaum contributed to this report.

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Departing Buckeyes expect Sayin to be next QB1

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Departing Buckeyes expect Sayin to be next QB1

COLUMBUS, Ohio — At the NFL scouting combine last month in Indianapolis, Ohio State‘s draft hopefuls talked about Julian Sayin as the likely choice to be the team’s next starting quarterback.

“Julian’s that guy, to be honest with you,” cornerback Denzel Burke told reporters.

“Now it’s his time,” added quarterback Will Howard, the man Sayin and two others will try to replace for the defending national champions.

But Sayin isn’t viewing the starting job as his quite yet. The redshirt freshman is focused on spring practice, which kicked off Monday, and operating in a quarterback room that has been reduced by Howard’s exit and the transfers of Devin Brown (Cal) and Air Noland (South Carolina). Junior Lincoln Kienholz and freshman Tavien St. Clair, a midyear enrollee, were the other two quarterbacks practicing Wednesday.

“You have to block out the noise,” said Sayin, who transferred to Ohio State from Alabama after Nick Saban retired in January 2024. “I’m just focusing on spring practice and just getting better.”

Quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler said Ohio State is “a long way away” from even discussing the closeness of the competition. Fessler, promoted to quarterbacks coach after serving as an offensive analyst last season, is evaluating how the three quarterbacks handle more practice reps, and areas such as consistency and toughness.

He’s confident any of the three can handle being Ohio State’s starting quarterback and the magnitude the job brings, even though none have the experience Howard brought in when he transferred from Kansas State.

“A lot of that was done in the recruitment process,” Fessler said. “I’m confident all three of them could be the guy. Those guys already check that box. So now it’s just a matter of who goes out and wins the job. And again, we are so far away from that point.”

Sayin, ESPN’s No. 9 recruit in the 2024 class, has been praised for a lightning-quick release. He appeared in four games last season, completing 5 of 12 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.

“We continue to work to build that arm strength, to strengthen his core, to work rotationally, because he is such a rotational thrower, to be able to maximize his movements, both between his lower half and his upper hats, so you can get that ball out with velocity and be successful,” Fessler said. “So he definitely has a quick release, but there’s so much more to playing the position.”

Sayin added about 10 pounds during the offseason and checks in at 203 for spring practice. He’s working to master both on-field skills and the intangible elements, where Howard thrived, saying, “There’s a lot that comes to being a quarterback here besides what you do on the field.”

Kienholz, a three-star recruit, saw the field in 2023, mostly in a Cotton Bowl loss to Missouri, where he completed 6 of 17 pass attempts. He also added weight in the winter, going from around 185 pounds to 207.

“The past few years, I’ve had older guys in front of me and just getting to learn from them on how to be a leader and how to take control,” he said. “Now I’m the oldest guy in the room, so I feel that now, and I kind of feel more confident.”

Buckeyes coach Ryan Day has challenged the quarterbacks to be the hardest workers on the team, and to sustain that ethic.

“I know every single one of them saw that quote by Coach Day, which is pretty awesome,” Fessler said. “It’s so real. It’s who we have to be — the toughest guys in the building, and the hardest-working guys in the building.”

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Defense Department pulls Jackie Robinson story

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Jackie Robinson story restored at Defense Dept.

The Department of Defense deleted a story on its website that highlighted Jackie Robinson’s military service, with the original URL redirecting to one that added the letters “dei” in front of “sports-heroes.”

The scrubbing of the page followed a Feb. 27 memo from the Pentagon that called for a “digital content refresh” that would “remove and archive DoD news articles, photos, and videos promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).”

The Department of Defense did not respond to requests for comment by ESPN.

“We are aware and looking into it,” an MLB spokesperson said.

Robinson, who served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II, broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers. One of the most integral figures in American sports history, Robinson won the National League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards during a 10-year career that led to a first-ballot induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The deleted story was part of the Department of Defense’s “Sports Heroes Who Served” series. Other stories, including one on Robinson’s teammate Pee-Wee Reese that references his acceptance of Robinson amid racial tensions in his first season, remain on the site.

Robinson was drafted into military service in 1942 and eventually joined the 761st Tank Battalion, also known as the Black Panthers. He was court-martialed in July 1944 after he refused an order by a driver to move to the back of an Army bus he had boarded. Robinson was acquitted and coached Army athletics teams until his honorable discharge in November 1944.

Robinson, who died in 1972, remains an ever-present figure in MLB, with his No. 42 permanently retired in 1997. On April 15 every year, the league celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, honoring the date of his debut with the Dodgers by having every player in the majors wear his jersey number. Last year, Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, who is 102 years old, attended the April 15 game between the New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field.

Martin Luther King Jr. said Robinson’s trailblazing efforts in baseball made his own success possible, and Robinson joined King on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement.

“The life of Jackie Robinson represents America at its best,” Leonard Coleman, the former National League president and chairman of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, told ESPN. “Removing an icon and Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient from government websites represents America at its worst.”

The removal of Robinson’s story reflects other efforts by the Pentagon to follow a series of executive orders by President Donald Trump to purge DEI from the federal government. A story on Ira Hayes, a Native American who was one of the Marines to raise the American flag at Iwo Jima, was removed with a URL relabeled with “dei,” according to The Washington Post. Other stories about Navajo code talkers, who were lauded for their bravery covertly relaying messages in World War I and World War II, were likewise deleted, according to Axios.

The Department of Defense also removed a website that celebrated Charles Calvin Rogers, a Black general who received the Medal of Honor, but it later reestablished the site, according to the Post.

On Feb. 20, Trump announced plans to build statues of Robinson, boxing icon Muhammad Ali and NBA star Kobe Bryant in the National Garden of American Heroes, a sculpture park he proposed during his first administration.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan and William Weinbaum contributed to this report.

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