NASCAR-STEWART
Grand jury to rule on Stewart case
CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. (AP) β A grand jury will decide whether NASCAR driver Tony Stewart will be charged in the August death of a fellow driver at a sprint car race in upstate New York. Ontario County District Attorney Michael Tantillo made the announcement after reviewing evidence collected by sheriff’s investigators.
Stewart’s car struck and killed Kevin Ward Jr. at a dirt-track race in Canandaigua (kan-un-DAY’-gwuh) on Aug. 9. The 20-year-old had climbed from his car after it had spun while racing alongside Stewart.
Stewart issued a statement saying he looks forward to the process being completed and will continue to cooperate.
UNION-RICE APPEAL
Appeal expected today
NEW YORK (AP) β The players’ union today plans to appeal the indefinite suspension the NFL handed to Ray Rice last week.
NFL Players Association spokesman George Atallah told The Associated Press yesterday “we are expecting to appeal before the deadline on Tuesday night.” That deadline is 11:59 p.m. EDT.
Rice originally was suspended two games under the NFL’s personal conduct policy for striking his then-fiancee in a hotel elevator. When videotape of that incident was made public and showed Rice punching his now-wife Janay, knocking her unconscious, the Baltimore Ravens released the running back. Almost immediately after that, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell made Rice’s suspension indefinite.
Although he doesn’t have a team, Rice remains a member of the NFLPA.
Rice can apply for reinstatement when he convinces Goodell that he is “addressing this issue.” Rice can avoid prosecution and a criminal record by completing a pretrial intervention program, a resolution prosecutors said they agreed to after consulting with Janay Rice.
NFL-REDSKINS NAME
Capitol Hill action
WASHINGTON (AP) β A U.S. senator says she will introduce a bill to eliminate the NFL’s tax-exempt status because the league has not taken action over the Washington Redskins name. The announcement by Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington state was one of several initiatives presented during a Capitol Hill news conference today aimed at increasing pressure on Redskins owner Dan Snyder.
PETERSON-GOVERNOR
Minnesota Governor wants Peterson sidelined
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) β Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton says Vikings running back Adrian Peterson should have remained suspended until an accusation of child abuse was resolved in the Texas legal system.
Peterson is accused of using a wooden switch to spank his 4-year-old son. He has said he was sorry for hurting the child but did not intend to and is not a child abuser.
The governor said in a statement to The Associated Press that Peterson is innocent until proven guilty. But Dayton also called Peterson’s actions “a public embarrassment” to the Vikings and the state of Minnesota.
BROWNS-GORDON ARRESTED
Gordon gets probation
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) β A prosecutor says Cleveland Browns receiver Josh Gordon will receive probation and undergo a substance-abuse assessment after pleading guilty to a drunken-driving charge in North Carolina.
Acting Wake County district attorney Ned Mangum says Gordon received a 60-day suspended jail sentence and one year of unsupervised probation.
The Pro Bowler is serving an NFL imposed season-long suspension for a failed marijuana test, though that could be reduced under proposed drug policy changes.
REDSKINS-RAMBO
Rambo cut
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) β The Washington Redskins have cut Bacarri Rambo after the second-year safety struggled in the team’s first two games. Rambo was released to make room for safety Brandon Meriweather, who was restored to the roster after serving a two-game suspension for a helmet-to-helmet hit.
MLB-SCHEDULE
Nationals, Orioles eye titles
UNDATED (AP) β The Washington Nationals can clinch the NL East with a win at Atlanta tonight. The defending champion Braves are trying to snap a four-game losing streak while the Nats look for their fourth straight victory. It would be the second division title in three years for Washington.
Over in the American League, Baltimore can clinch its first division title since 1997 with a win over visiting Toronto tonight. The Birds inched closer to the AL East crown by beating the Blue Jays 5-2 last night.
Detroit begins the night with a one-and a-half-game lead over Kansas City in the AL Central. The Tigers visit Minnesota while the Royals host the Chicago White Sox. In the AL West, Seattle plays at the Los Angeles Angels a night after LA clinched a postseason berth. The Mariners are two games out of the wild-card picture. Also tonight Oakland will host Texas.
A key series in the National League Central begins tonight with Milwaukee at St. Louis. The Brewers start the night five games behind the first-place Cardinals. As for wild-card hopes, the Brewers are a game and a-half out of the picture behind both Pittsburgh and San Francisco. The Pirates host Boston tonight while the Giants visit Arizona. Staying in the NL West, first-place Los Angeles visits Colorado. The Dodgers top the Giants by four games.
Also tonight, Cincinnati righty Johnny Cueto (KWAY’-toh) looks to improve his mark to 19-8 when the Reds visit the Chicago Cubs. Rounding out the schedule, the New York Yankees visit Tampa Bay, the New York Mets host Miami, Cleveland visits Houston and Philadelphia plays at San Diego.
BRAVES-STADIUM
Stadium has a name
ATLANTA (AP) β The Atlanta Braves new suburban stadium will be called SunTrust Park. That announcement was made today at a ceremony to officially break ground on the 41,500-seat stadium which is scheduled to open in 2017. Terms of the 25-year deal were not released. Braves chairman Terry McGuirk says the sponsorship was factored into the $697 million budget.
The groundbreaking ceremony included Hall of Famer Hank Aaron and Rob Manfred, the commissioner-elect of Major League Baseball.
YANKEES-PRADO
Prado out
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) β New York Yankees infielder-outfielder Martin Prado (mar-TEEN’ PRAH’-doh) has had an appendectomy and will miss the rest of the season. The team says Prado had the surgery early today and has been placed on the 60-day disabled list.
Prado has been a solid performer for the Yankees, posting a .316 batting average with seven homers and 16 RBIs in 37 games since being obtained from Arizona on July 31.
