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SAN FRANCISCO — Orlando Cepeda, the slugging first baseman nicknamed “Baby Bull” who became a Hall of Famer among the early Puerto Ricans to star in the major leagues, has died. He was 86.

The San Francisco Giants and his family announced the death Friday night, and a moment of silence was noted on the scoreboard at Oracle Park midway through a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“Our beloved Orlando passed away peacefully at home this evening, listening to his favorite music and surrounded by his loved ones,” his wife, Nydia, said in a statement released through the team. “We take comfort that he is at peace.”

It has been a difficult month for the Giants. Cepeda’s death comes only 10 days after Hall of Famer Willie Mays died on June 18 at age 93.

“Man, what another gut punch,” said Giants manager Bob Melvin, who grew up in the Bay Area cheering for the team. “Another just incredible personality and just beloved here. Statue out front. The numbers he put up, there are a lot of legends here and he’s certainly right in the middle of that. To have it so close in proximity to Willie, it’s kind of staggering.”

Cepeda was a regular at Giants home games through the 2017 season until he dealt with some health challenges. He was hospitalized in the Bay Area in February 2018 following a cardiac event.

One of the first Puerto Rican stars in the majors but limited by knee issues, he became Boston‘s first designated hitter and credits his time as a DH for getting him enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 1999 as selected by the Veterans Committee.

When the Red Sox called Cepeda in December 1972 to inquire whether he’d like to be their first designated hitter, the unemployed player accepted on the spot.

Cepeda was an 11-time All-Star who played 17 seasons for six MLB teams. He won the 1958 NL Rookie of the Year award with the Giants, for whom he played his first nine seasons, and the NL MVP with the Cardinals in 1967, when he hit a career-high .325 with 25 home runs and 111 RBIs.

He had a career .297 batting average with 379 home runs and 1,365 RBIs.

Cepeda is one of only two players in NL history to win both Rookie of the Year and MVP unanimously, along with Albert Pujols, who won Rookie of the Year in 2001 and MVP in 2009.

“Orlando Cepeda was one of the best hitters of his generation,” said MLB commissioner Rob Manfred in a statement. “He starred for three historic National League franchises, and the 11-time All-Star played alongside Hall of Fame players throughout his career. Orlando was the 1958 National League Rookie of the Year when Major League Baseball debuted in San Francisco, where later ‘The Baby Bull’s’ number 30 was retired. In 1967 he earned NL MVP honors during the St. Louis Cardinals’ World Championship season.

“Orlando overcame challenges throughout his life to build a Hall of Fame career. This beloved figure from Puerto Rico was one of the many players of his era who helped turn baseball into a multicultural game. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my deepest condolences to his family, his friends across our game, and his many fans in Puerto Rico, San Francisco, St. Louis, Atlanta and beyond.”

Cepeda was a surefire Hall of Famer until his arrest in 1975 — a year after his retirement following a 17-season career — on charges of marijuana possession, for which he served nine months in prison.

His Hall of Fame election in 1999 came 20 years after he became first eligible.

“I can’t complain,” Cepeda told the Los Angeles Times in a 1985 interview. “I’ve lived the good times. I’ve lived the bad times. Not many people taste that.”

Information from The Associated Press and ESPN Stats & Information was used in this report.

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Dempsey, former NCAA president, dies at age 92

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Dempsey, former NCAA president, dies at age 92

SAN DIEGO — Cedric Dempsey, the former NCAA president who helped turn Arizona into a national power as athletic director before leading the national organization through key years of transition and growth, died Saturday in San Diego, the NCAA said. He was 92.

Dempsey was revered as an administrator on campus. His nine-year tenure as the NCAA’s leader included moving its headquarters and significant fiscal growth for the organization, including landmark television deals worth billions.

“Ced was instrumental in shaping the NCAA as it moved into the new century, overseeing a restructuring of the organization, and strengthening the foundation of college sports for years that followed his tenure,” current NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a statement released by the organization.

“His impact on the lives of student-athletes and administrators across the nation will be felt for years to come,” Baker said.

Dempsey oversaw the organization’s move from the Kansas City suburbs to Indianapolis in 1999 and helped reimagine how the governing body could work best in the 21st Century.

His most enduring legacy may be the role he played in creating television deals with ESPN and CBS that brought in $6.2 billion over an 11-year span.

Dempsey charmed his way through it all with a smile and wit that was lauded throughout the headquarters and the college sports world.

“Twenty-one years ago, Cedric painted a picture for me that I could one day be an athletic director,” current Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois said in a statement. “His guidance helped me see a calling I never knew could be possible. I am forever grateful for the impact he had on the trajectory of my career and on my life as a whole. He will be deeply missed by our family and by everyone in the University of Arizona community.”

Reed-Francois first met Dempsey when she was serving as an associate athletic director for Compliance and as the Senior Woman Administrator at Fresno State.

Dempsey’s hires in Tucson included coaches such as Lute Olson and Dick Tomey, who became iconic figures for Wildcats fans. During his 11-year tenure, Arizona State teams won five national team championships, 39 individual NCAA titles and 17 Pac-10 crowns.

He also served as the men’s basketball selection committee chairman in 1988-89.

Dempsey grew up in Equality, Illinois, and went on to play football, basketball and baseball at Albion College in Michigan. From 1959-62, he served as the men’s basketball and cross country coach at his alma mater before stepping back in 1963 to become an assistant basketball coach.

In 1965, he started a 46-year career in administration by becoming an associate athletic director also at Albion. He left there to be the athletic director at Pacific in California, before stints at San Diego State and Houston before moving to Arizona in 1983.

Dempsey left Arizona in 1994 to become the sixth executive director/president in NCAA history, and it was there he became a national figure.

“I think the NCAA is where it is today because of Ced,” former NCAA executive committee chairman Bob Lawless said when Dempsey announced he was retiring in January 2002. “He has been a real treasure for the NCAA.”

He also served as commissioner of the All-American Football League from 2007-10 and battled cancer three times. Dempsey is a member of multiple Halls of Fame and is survived by his wife, June, and two children.

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BYU lands best-rated recruit since ’06, TE Harris

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BYU lands best-rated recruit since '06, TE Harris

BYU landed the program’s highest-ranked pledge since at least 2006 on Monday when four-star tight end Brock Harris, ESPN’s No. 33 overall recruit and the No. 1 player in the state of Utah, announced his commitment to coach Kalani Sitake and the Cougars.

Harris, a 6-foot-7, 240-pound prospect from Saint George, Utah, is ESPN’s fourth-ranked tight end in the 2026 class. He chose BYU over Michigan, Georgia, Miami, Oregon and Utah following multiple trips to all six schools over the past year prior to Harris’ announcement at Pine View (Utah) High School on Monday afternoon. He lands with the Cougars as the lone ESPN 300 pledge among five prospects currently committed to the program’s 2026 class.

The son of a former BYU baseball player, Harris attracted heavy Power 4 interest and took an extensive number of visits throughout his process — most recently to Michigan in late March — before opting to remain in his home state with BYU.

Harris previously told ESPN that his connection with the program’s coaching staff began after he first attended a BYU prospect camp in the eighth grade. Those ties were ultimately strong enough for the Cougars to fend off national powers like Georgia, Oregon and Michigan for the coveted tight end recruit who grew up roughly 260 miles southwest of campus.

A standout route runner for his size, Harris projects to be a versatile hybrid tight end at the college level, equipped with sharp blocking ability but also elite pass-catching traits that could allow him to become a dangerous downfield target. Harris, who has hauled in 118 passes for 1,678 yards and 21 touchdowns across three varsity seasons, will join a thin and unseasoned BYU tight ends room in 2026 with Cougars tight ends Carsen Ryan and Ethan Erickson both out of eligibility following the 2025 season.

Harris will become BYU’s highest-ranked high school addition in the ESPN recruiting era (since 2006) and only the program’s seventh top 300 pledge in that span if he signs with the Cougars later this year. He joins three-star tight Ty Goettsche, cornerback Justice Brathwaite and a pair of in-state prospects in quarterback Kaneal Sweetwyne and outside linebacker Penisimani Takitaki among the early commits to BYU’s upcoming recruiting class.

Harris is now the second pledge among the eight tight ends ranked inside ESPN’s top 150 prospect in 2026, joining five-star Oregon pledge Kendre’ Harrison (No. 11 in the ESPN 300), who committed to the Ducks this past November.

After missing out on Harris, Georgia remains heavily involved in the recruitments of five-star tight end Kaiden Prothro (No. 19) and Mark Bowman (No. 24). Oregon is another program in the mix for Bowman, who reclassified from the 2027 cycle earlier this year, and could still rejoin the race for Ian Premer (No. 60). Former Texas A&M pledge Xavier Tiller (No. 83) is set for official visits later this spring with Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and USC. Four-star tight end Mack Sutter (No. 138) has narrowed his recruitment to Alabama, Illinois, Ohio State, Ole Miss and Penn State and will take officials with each program from April 11 to June 20.

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Nebraska transfer WR Gilmore no longer on team

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Nebraska transfer WR Gilmore no longer on team

LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska receiver Hardley Gilmore IV, who transferred from Kentucky in January, has been dismissed from the team, coach Matt Rhule announced Saturday.

The second-year player from Belle Glade, Florida, had come to Nebraska along with former Kentucky teammate Dane Key and receivers coach Daikiel Shorts Jr. and had received praise from teammates and coaches for his performance in spring practice.

Rhule did not disclose a reason for removing Gilmore.

“Nothing outside the program, nothing criminal or anything like that,” Rhule said. “Just won’t be with us anymore.”

Gilmore was charged with misdemeanor assault in December for allegedly punching someone in the face at a storage facility in Lexington, Kentucky, the Lexington Herald Leader reported on Jan. 2.

Gilmore played in seven games as a freshman for the Wildcats and caught six passes for 153 yards. He started against Murray State and caught a 52-yard touchdown pass on Kentucky’s opening possession. He was a consensus four-star recruit who originally chose Kentucky over Penn State and UCF.

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