All those missing doubles and triples, well, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thinks he knows where at least some of them went.Over the fence.I think that guys chase exit velocity and launch angle so that doesnt lend itself to balls in the gap or down the lines, Roberts said. So I think that's the whole crux for me.While singles and home runs were up in the majors last year, the number of doubles and triples continued to decline. There were 7,745 doubles, down from 7,771 in 2024 and 8,254 a decade ago in 2016, according to Sportradar. Triples dropped to 628, compared to 697 in 2024 and 873 in 2016.In an effort to create more action on the basepaths, Major League Baseball made the bases bigger when it changed some of its rules before the 2023 season. There was an increase in doubles, triples and steals that same year before doubles and triples resumed their downward trend.It likely means less of a particularly exciting moment in a baseball game, when a crowd collectively leans forward and cheers in anticipation as a player runs toward second or third with a throw on the way.I guess you could say yeah, it loses something, but I think there's also a gain in some other things, Chicago White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi said. People like home runs and more stolen-base opportunities.The decline in doubles and triples can be traced to a variety of factors, beginning with defensive positioning.While the 2023 rules package included limitations on infield shifts, there are no such restrictions on outfielders. And they are often playing deeper to guard against extra-base hits, helped by cards they keep in their back pockets that detail a hitter's tendencies.When I was playing, it was kind of, you want to play shallow to take away the singles, said Roberts, a former major league outfielder, but nowadays youre playing for damage, and so outfields play considerably deeper than they used to.Nolan Arenado remembers it like it was yesterday. The eight-time All-Star was playing for St. Louis on May 23, 2022, when he recorded the highest exit velocity of his career, a 111.4 mph liner on a 1-1 pitch from Toronto right-hander Jos Berros in the bottom of the second inning. The ball went over the head of shortstop Bo Bichette before it was cut off by center fielder Bradley Zimmer.Yeah. Single, said Arenado, who was traded to Arizona in January. And you know a few years back that probably would have been just an automatic double. ... So that was the first time I really noticed it. The defense alignment, it changes everything. You know you really got to hit a ball in the gap or you got to hit it down the line to get doubles.Texas Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young also pointed to the evolution of defensive alignment.Every team has their own model and I think does a really good job of positioning, said Young, a former major league pitcher.Ballpark dimensions also have played a role. The New York Mets have made multiple changes to Citi Field since it opened in 2009, bringing in the fences to make the ballpark more hitter friendly. The Detroit Tigers altered the outfield at Comerica Park before the 2023 season, lowering the walls and moving in some areas. The Kansas City Royals made some adjustments to Kauffman Stadium this year.Citi Field and Yankee Stadium, which also hosted its first game in 2009, are two of the majors' least friendly ballparks when it comes to doubles and triples, according to Statcast's park factors leaderboard. Globe Life Field, which opened in 2020, also ranks in the bottom 10 in each category over the previous three years combined.Pitching is pretty good. I think maybe some of the outfields, theyre bringing fences in, Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said. You dont hear anybody moving the fences back. So theres a few ballparks, like Detroit, right-center. Kansas City was a big one. Now they moved them in. Youre not going to see a ton in our ballpark, just the way were configured. Right field's not very big.It's 325 feet down the line in right in Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park. The short porch in right field at Yankee Stadium is 314 feet from home plate. Tampa Bay's Tropicana Field, which reopens this season, is 315 feet on the left-field line and 322 to right.Major league outfielders also are more athletic than before, cutting down on the balls that used to roll all the way to the wall leading to extra bases. Now, if you are a negative defensively, you have to hit at such a ridiculously high level in order to be even a starting player, Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner said. So there just arent many players out there that are negatives defensively at this point.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

Laura Woods HAS launched a scathing attack on Alan Pardew after the former manager suggested Arsenal's potential Premier League triumph would carry an asterisk.The television presenter dialled into talkSPORT following Arsenal's 1-0 victory against Brighton and Hove Albion.That result, combined with Manchester City's draw against Nottingham Forest, extended Mikel Arteta's side's advantage at the summit to seven points.Pardew, who previously managed Crystal Palace and Newcastle United, had been providing commentary on the match and expressed his dissatisfaction with what he witnessed from the league leaders.TRENDINGStoriesVideosYour SayHis remarks sparked an immediate and passionate response from the Arsenal-supporting presenter.The ex-Newcastle boss had described Arsenal's performances as merely "functional" during his commentary duties, suggesting any title success would come with a significant caveat."When I look at them with my football manager's head on, they're very professional," Pardew stated. "They do every bit of gamesmanship to get it over the line."He continued: "At the moment it looks like Arsenal are going to see it through. But there'll be an asterisk next to their name."It's a professional, functional display. They're good and powerful, but there is nothing beautiful about them."Woods was left incensed by the assessment.LATEST SPORTS NEWS:Winter Olympics athlete reveals health issue after he admitted to cheating on his girlfriendEmma Raducanu takes aim at former coaches as she explains fall from grace since spectacular US Open triumphLewis Hamilton demands Africa 'take back' land from Britain as start of new F1 season looms"Alan, I love you but that is the most disrespectful thing I've ever heard," she fired back."How can you say that? Because we take free-kicks, set-pieces and corners? I don't understand the thought process."Woods made clear that Arsenal supporters would be entirely unconcerned about aesthetics should they secure the championship."If Arsenal win the league, none of us fans care how we do it," she declared. "I don't care if you lot don't enjoy watching us. Why would we care if we're entertaining or not?"The presenter's passionate defence of her club came with the Gunners sitting comfortably atop the table with their seven-point cushion.She also noted that regardless of how events unfolded, her mood would remain considerably brighter than that of pundit Jamie O'Hara, a devoted Tottenham supporter currently watching his side battle against the unthinkable prospect of relegation.Woods then shifted her focus to Tottenham's precarious league position, delivering a series of barbs aimed at O'Hara.Spurs currently find themselves just a single point above the relegation zone ahead of their fixture against Crystal Palace, with the genuine threat of dropping into the Championship now looming large."You won't go down though, Jamie," Woods initially offered, before swiftly changing tone. "In all honesty I thought it was a joke earlier in the season but now it's actually becoming a reality."She added with laughter: "You can't go down, you're too big a club, your stadium's too lovely. But the good thing is Adele will be able to play there more often!"O'Hara later posted on X: "Getting mocked by Woodsy on talkSPORT absolute disgrace, ain't spoke to me for two years."Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter

Court documents show she was arrested in Ventura County on Wednesday night.

Tadej Pogacar startet am Samstag bei Strade Bianche in die Saison. Auf seinem Programm stehen wieder die Klassiker. Bei der Frankreich-Rundfahrt kann er zum Rekord-Sieger aufsteigen.[mehr]

Wappingers Falls, N.Y. - The Hudson Valley Renegades, the High-A affiliate of the New York Yankees, are thrilled to announce the return of Renegades F... - SAL Hudson Valley Renegades

Aprs les fortes tensions dans le pays, la Fifa a pu changer en longueur avec les autorits mexicaines, afin de s'assurer que l'ensemble des rencontres de la Coupe du monde 2026 seront scurises un trs haut niveau.

Coureurs die zelfs tijdens de allersnelste rondjes het gaspedaal los moeten laten. Renstallen die minutieus uitrekenen in welke bocht het batterijpakket optimaal op te laden is. Plus: stevige stress voor de racestart. De Formule 1 beleeft een gespannen aanloop naar de seizoensopener in Melbourne. En dat is nog een understatement. "We zijn voortdurend problemen aan het tackelen", vertelt Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi). "Alsof je een baby leert lopen en praten." Drie weken reserveerde de F1 voor het proefdraaien met de nieuwe auto's. Veel meer testdagen dan gebruikelijk, puur vanwege een ingrijpende reglementswijziging. Hoewel de renstallen in Cataloni en Bahrein veel meer meters maakten dan gevreesd, hangen er nog steeds donkere wolken boven de sport. "Ik ben opgelucht dat het testen behoorlijk ging. We hebben allemaal veel meters gemaakt. Dat ging in het verleden weleens mis", zegt Toto Wolff. De Mercedes-leider erkent dat het een klus wordt om fans waar voor hun geld te geven. "Natuurlijk lopen we tegen uitdagingen aan, zoals het opladen tijdens de kwalificatie en de race. Er is een open discussie met de F1-leiding, maar voor draconische maatregelen is het nog te vroeg." Met de billen bloot "Dit circuit wordt een schok voor het batterijpakket", verwacht Mercedes-rijder Kimi Antonelli. Ook Wolff geeft toe dat de baan niet ideaal is. "Melbourne is een energievreter. We gaan meteen met de billen bloot, maar zullen alles nauwgezet analyseren. Al zijn we rivalen op de baan, we hebben hetzelfde belang: F1 beter en spannender maken." Of de kwalificatie er leuker op wordt? Dat lijkt een illusie. Het favoriete uurtje van veel F1-fans, waarin coureurs alles uit hun auto persen, dreigt om zeep geholpen te worden door leeglopende batterijen. Energie sparen tijdens de allersnelste rondjes, het zadelt coureurs op met duivelse dilemma's. Vol gas de laatste bocht uit om het ultieme rondje vliegend te beginnen? Of is het slimmer om iets behoedzamer uit de startblokken te schieten en zo langer vol vermogen te houden? Sleutelterm is 'lift and coast': rijders moeten uitrollend bochten opofferen, zodat ze daarna niet met lege batterijen zitten. Het oordeel van Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) is ontnuchterend. "In snelle bochten doen je skills er niet meer toe. Batterijen bepalen hoe snel je hem neemt. Of eigenlijk hoe langzaam." "Dit botst enorm met onze natuur", schetst Lando Norris (McLaren). "Langzaam gaan om een snelle tijd neer te zetten? Dat hebben we nog nooit meegemaakt." Ook Haas-rijder Ollie Bearman kan er moeilijk aan wennen. "Op sommige plekken gaan we nu 40 kilometer per uur langzamer. Bochten die uitdagend waren, zijn opeens een eitje." Max Verstappen serveert de nieuwe reglementen af als "F1-onwaardig en anti-racen". Wereldkampioen Norris sluit zich daar aarzelend bij aan. "Ik wil niet negatief doen, maar de auto's zijn erg anders. Minder leuk, minder puur. Ik ben het in grote lijnen met Max eens. We zijn alleen maar bezig met batterijen opladen, terwijl we juist het uiterste uit de auto willen halen." Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) is milder. "Iedereen staat op nul. Dat is een opwindende ontdekkingsreis. We moeten allemaal de boost-knop en de andere opties uitvogelen." Misschien komt de opgewekte bui van de zevenvoudig kampioen door zijn proefstarts. Terwijl het leeuwendeel van de teams ploeterde, schoot Ferrari uit de startblokken. "We hebben dat beter voor elkaar dan de rest", knikt stalgenoot Charles Leclerc. "Een opsteker." 'We gaan rare starts zien' De racestart-repetities in Bahrein verliepen verre van vlekkeloos. Het beeld: een ellenlange startprocedure, oranje knipperlichten en fel gierende motoren die klinken als gillende stofzuigers. Plus auto's die tergend langzaam op gang kwamen. "Als ze de rode lichten net zo snel uitdoen als vorig jaar, blijven we allemaal stilstaan", schetst Hamilton. "Het duurt veel langer door extra handelingen in de cockpit, maar ik denk niet dat het gevaar oplevert." "Deze startprocedure is al lang bekend. Het staat iedereen vrij te starten vanuit de pitstraat", sneert Ferrari-teambaas Fred Vasseur. Niettemin is de racestart een F1-hoofdpijndossier. Australir Oscar Piastri (McLaren) voorspelt onvoorspelbaarheid. "Het is in allerlei opzichten tricky. Je kunt veel fout doen. We gaan rare starts zien." Ook de torenhoge titelfavoriet beschouwt de racestart als struikelblok. "Om te winnen moeten je eerste meters ook goed gaan", zegt George Russell (Mercedes). "Mijn oefenstarts waren de belabberdste uit mijn carrire, terwijl Hamilton als een raket van 11 naar 1 schoot." Start Formule 1-seizoen bij de NOS De eerste grand prix van het nieuwe seizoen is zondag om 5.00 uur Nederlandse tijd in Australi. De race is via een liveblog te volgen op NOS.nl en in de NOS-app. Dat geldt ook voor de kwalificatie zaterdagochtend om 6.00 uur.

Sydney superstar Isaac Heeney cops a knee to the head from Carlton recruit and former Swans teammate Ollie Florent.

The West Indies cricket team was stranded in India after their T20 World Cup 2026 exit due to flight disruptions caused by restricted Gulf airspace amid Israel-Iran tensions. Frustrated coach Daren Sammy earlier posted, I just wanna go home and At least an update. He later confirmed, Got an update. thats all wi wanted, as Cricket West Indies works to arrange safe travel.

The demand for advanced battery materials has increased rapidly due to the growth of electric vehicles, renewable energy storage, and portable electronics. One material that plays an important role in these innovations is the lithium strip. A lithium strip is a thin piece of lithium metal commonly used in battery research, laboratory experiments, and industrial energy storage solutions. Because...