A Venezuelan flag was stitched on the right side of Omar Lpez's cap. And an American flag was positioned a few feet to his left.Baseball, meet politics. Politics, meet baseball. Like it or not, it's happening.The World Baseball Classic already underway in Tokyo starts pool play Friday in three other locations, including Miami. And, to no surprise, Venezuela's team is a top attraction for the games in Latin-centric South Florida. Sporting events having geopolitical ties is nothing new, but the situation the Venezuelan team managed by Lpez faces in this tournament is unusual. These games come two months after the U.S. executed a military operation in Venezuela to capture deposed leader Nicols Maduro and bring him to New York to face drug trafficking charges.Im going to be honest with you, Lpez insisted Thursday. Ive been working in baseball for 28 years and I dont talk about political stuff, to be honest. Im here to talk about our Venezuelan team. Im not here to talk about anything about political situations around the world, around my country. We are alive, we are here and we want to play for our team to win every single game here.When news of Maduro's capture seeped out in the early morning hours of Jan. 3, many Venezuelans it's believed, based on U.S. Census estimates, that about 200,000 people who identify as being from that country live in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area took to the streets in celebration. Much of that was centered in the Miami suburb of Doral, which has the largest Venezuelan population in South Florida and also is where President Donald Trump owns a golf resort that will host the G20 Summit later this year.And based on just the numbers of tickets that are available and their resale prices online, Venezuela's four games at loanDepot Park the home of the Miami Marlins between Friday and Wednesday will draw large crowds. Im super happy, super happy to be here in my city, Marlins utilityman Javier Sanoja said. I love Miami because its the closest we have to our country, and seeing it full of Venezuelans fills me with pride.That won't just be the case for Venezuelans, of course. Events like the WBC not unlike the Olympics, the Ryder Cup and more are designed to stoke national pride, even in unusual times both in the U.S. and abroad.The tournament is beginning less than a week after the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran to start a new war in the Middle East. At the WBC, the U.S. is playing its pool play games in Houston; Israel has its pool games in Miami. Cuba a longtime political adversary of the U.S. is opening in San Juan but could get to Miami if it advances out of pool play. And all of this, plus soccer's World Cup later this year, is happening amid an immigration crackdown that has some wondering if it's safe to even try and visit the U.S.There were no noticeable protests outside the ballpark in Miami on Thursday when teams worked out, and it's unknown if there will be any sort of politically charged events either inside or outside the stadium when games happen over the next few days.To put it mildly, its interesting times right now, Israel manager Brad Ausmus said. So, I hope there is that kind of unifying joy that all these players, coaches, theyre representing their heritage, but they all have one thing in common and thats baseball. I hope the fans enjoy it.Venezuela's players all say some version of the same thing, that they're here to play baseball even with the country's deposed leader in a jail cell in New York. The political times, to those players, don't make the games any more or less significant.I dont try to pay attention to that, you know, Venezuela captain Salvador Perez said. I understand when fans buy a ticket, they want to see the team win. Win or lose, its part of the game. ... I can control what I can control. The rest, God has control of that.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

A Venezuelan flag was stitched on the right side of Omar Lpez's cap. And an American flag was positioned a few feet to his left.Baseball, meet politics. Politics, meet baseball. Like it or not, it's happening.The World Baseball Classic already underway in Tokyo starts pool play Friday in three other locations, including Miami. And, to no surprise, Venezuela's team is a top attraction for the games in Latin-centric South Florida. Sporting events having geopolitical ties is nothing new, but the situation the Venezuelan team managed by Lpez faces in this tournament is unusual. These games come two months after the U.S. executed a military operation in Venezuela to capture deposed leader Nicols Maduro and bring him to New York to face drug trafficking charges.Im going to be honest with you, Lpez insisted Thursday. Ive been working in baseball for 28 years and I dont talk about political stuff, to be honest. Im here to talk about our Venezuelan team. Im not here to talk about anything about political situations around the world, around my country. We are alive, we are here and we want to play for our team to win every single game here.When news of Maduro's capture seeped out in the early morning hours of Jan. 3, many Venezuelans it's believed, based on U.S. Census estimates, that about 200,000 people who identify as being from that country live in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area took to the streets in celebration. Much of that was centered in the Miami suburb of Doral, which has the largest Venezuelan population in South Florida and also is where President Donald Trump owns a golf resort that will host the G20 Summit later this year.And based on just the numbers of tickets that are available and their resale prices online, Venezuela's four games at loanDepot Park the home of the Miami Marlins between Friday and Wednesday will draw large crowds. Im super happy, super happy to be here in my city, Marlins utilityman Javier Sanoja said. I love Miami because its the closest we have to our country, and seeing it full of Venezuelans fills me with pride.That won't just be the case for Venezuelans, of course. Events like the WBC not unlike the Olympics, the Ryder Cup and more are designed to stoke national pride, even in unusual times both in the U.S. and abroad.The tournament is beginning less than a week after the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran to start a new war in the Middle East. At the WBC, the U.S. is playing its pool play games in Houston; Israel has its pool games in Miami. Cuba a longtime political adversary of the U.S. is opening in San Juan but could get to Miami if it advances out of pool play. And all of this, plus soccer's World Cup later this year, is happening amid an immigration crackdown that has some wondering if it's safe to even try and visit the U.S.There were no noticeable protests outside the ballpark in Miami on Thursday when teams worked out, and it's unknown if there will be any sort of politically charged events either inside or outside the stadium when games happen over the next few days.To put it mildly, its interesting times right now, Israel manager Brad Ausmus said. So, I hope there is that kind of unifying joy that all these players, coaches, theyre representing their heritage, but they all have one thing in common and thats baseball. I hope the fans enjoy it.Venezuela's players all say some version of the same thing, that they're here to play baseball even with the country's deposed leader in a jail cell in New York. The political times, to those players, don't make the games any more or less significant.I dont try to pay attention to that, you know, Venezuela captain Salvador Perez said. I understand when fans buy a ticket, they want to see the team win. Win or lose, its part of the game. ... I can control what I can control. The rest, God has control of that.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Joani Reid said she had temporarily stood down from the party after her husband was arrested on suspicion of spying for China.

Noch zehn Spieltage stehen in der Bundesliga aus - und fnf Teams kmpfen um drei Champions-League-Pltze. Der Sportschau-Check mit dem Blick auf Ausgangslage, Belastung und Restprogramm.[mehr]

FARGO - The RedHawks added a pair of Minnesota-Crookston alums Thursday, signing infielder/outfielder Jake Hjelle and LHP Alex Koep.Hjelle, 25, wa... - AA Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks

White Plains, New York - The Westchester Knicks, the official NBA G League affiliate of the New York Knicks, has rescheduled their February 23rd postp... - G League Westchester Knicks

Le milieu de terrain espagnol du PSG, Fabian Ruiz, est absent depuis la fin du mois de janvier en raison dune blessure au genou gauche contracte face au Sporting en Ligue des champions. Mais selon Jrme Rothen, le champion dEurope se prserve surtout pour la slection espagnole en vue de la Coupe du monde 2026.

Garrett Mitchell, a.k.a. Cleetus McFarland, dropped some news that shocked FOX Sports' Kevin Harvick during the latest episode of "SPEED With Harvick And Buxton." "I just signed a two-year deal with RCR," Mitchell said, referring to Richard Childress Racing, the team for which Harvick made his NASCAR Cup Series debut in 2001. "What?" Harvick replied, stunned. "Richard Childress Racing," Mitchell elaborated. "A two-year, part-time [deal]. I'm racing the superspeedways in the O'Reilly [Series] car." There it is. After running his first NASCAR race in the Craftsman Truck Series at Daytona International Speedway last month, Mitchell is set to compete in the NASCAR O'Reilly Series on a part-time basis behind the wheel of the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. He'll debut in the O'Reilly Series at Rockingham Speedway in North Carolina in April. Mitchell is scheduled to race the No. 33 Chevrolet as a third entry in RCRs championship-winning NASCAR OReilly Series program. "Well, you've got the best cars," Harvick said, complimenting RCR. "I raced for Richard for a long time, and there isn't anybody that puts any more effort into superspeedway racing than Richard." With more than 4.6M YouTube subscribers, Mitchell has quickly built a passionate fan base enthusiastic to learn more about motorsports as they watch the Bradenton, Florida native and Freedom Factory race track owner build his racing resume. He made his first ARCA Menards Series start in 2025 driving for Rette Jones Racing, earning top-10 finishes at Talladega Superspeedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway. He most recently made his NASCAR Truck Series debut for Rette-Jones Racing at Daytona, running five laps before getting caught up in a wreck that ended his day. He also finished 11th in the ARCA race at Daytona in February. It's yet to be seen if Mitchell is ready for this step in his career, but a two-year deal from a respected name in racing would suggest confidence.

The West Indies, who were knocked out of the T20 World Cup after losing to India in the Super Eight match on Sunday at Kolkata, were not able to fly back home as flight operations through parts of the Gulf region were disrupted.

The Bills, Rams and more teams have already made major moves. Here's how each trade grades out.