This is default featured slide 1 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 2 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 3 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 4 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

This is default featured slide 5 title

Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.

dl

"zone name","placement name","placement id","code (direct link)" direct-link-1798409,DirectLink_1,23050697,https://www.highcpmgate.com/rrafqkvmm?key=b2efdc77796ce8f7559adb663e370f07

Saturday, 14 February 2026

Merrill Kelly will start on Opening Day for Diamondbacks

February 14, 2026  ,  No comments

PHOENIX — Merrill Kelly will start on the mound on Opening Day for the Arizona Diamondbacks next month, manager Torey Lovullo announced on Saturday.

Kelly will get the ball on March 26 against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chavez Ravine, the 37-year-old’s first career Opening Day start.

The Diamondbacks brought Kelly back this offseason on a two-year deal after having traded him at the deadline to the Texas Rangers.

Kelly had been with Arizona since 2019, and even with the impending return of Zac Gallen after he agreed to a free agent contract on Friday, Kelly will be given the opportunity to kick off the season.

RELATED STORIES

Kelly was eager to come back to Arizona, where he went to Desert Mountain High School, Arizona State, where he lives with his family and has extended family. The D-backs gave him a shot at the major leagues after he had been pitching in South Korea, and he rewarded that trust by becoming a mainstay in the starting rotation over seven seasons.

“Arizona’s home, it’s always gonna be home,” Kelly said after the signing in December. “I didn’t really want to go anywhere else.”

Last year, Kelly made 32 starts with a 3.52 ERA between Arizona and Texas. He owns a 3.47 ERA since the start of 2022.

Kelly’s teammates found out about the reunion at outfielder Alek Thomas’ wedding in Mexico this offseason, which created a quite a stir.

“I overheard him talking about something, and I was like, ‘Did I just hear that right? And he was like, ‘You heard that right,'” pitcher Ryne Nelson said on Tuesday. “Just gave him a big hug. He’s a really good guy to have around with all his knowledge and eagerness to share it with everybody, which I think is a big attribute.”

The Diamondbacks wasted no time with this decision after the Gallen versus Corbin Burnes debate dragged on last spring.

Gallen had started the previous three Opening Day games for the Diamondbacks from 2023-25. Randy Johnson has the club record with six Opening Day starts, followed by Brand Webb’s four.

The Diamondbacks start the year with three games in Los Angeles before returning home for three games against the Detroit Tigers and four versus the Atlanta Braves.



from Arizona Sports https://ift.tt/viQUqCy

Read More

Friday, 13 February 2026

Newsome will be Gilas-ready despite hurting knee

February 13, 2026  ,  No comments

Meralco star Chris Newsome won’t have time for a breather, even after playing hurt and failing to help the Bolts exit in the East Asia Super League. Played through a hurting knee in Meralco’s 88-79 loss to Ryukyu at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday, Newsome will only have a few days to attend to

from Inquirer Sports https://ift.tt/Ie5LFVT

Read More

Who have Mike LaFleur, Cardinals added to the coaching staff?

February 13, 2026  ,  No comments

The Arizona Cardinals continue to fill out their coaching staff following the hire of head coach Mike LaFleur this offseason.

Arizona’s coordinators appear set, with defensive coordinator Nick Rallis running it back with the team on top of offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial joining the ranks.

Now, it’s on to rounding out the rest of the coaching staff.

Here’s a running list of the coaches on LaFleur’s staff so far:

Cardinals’ 2026 coaching staff

Offensive coordinator — Nathaniel Hackett

Hackett takes over for the departed Drew Petzing, who is now the OC for the Detroit Lions.

Hackett served as the Packers OC for three seasons (2019-21) under Matt LaFleur, Mike’s brother and Green Bay’s head coach. Hackett was also on the Packers’ staff last year as a defensive analyst.

The new Cardinals OC brings with him plenty of experience from multiple NFL stops. He will not call plays in Arizona, however. That duty falls to his head coach.

Defensive coordinator — Nick Rallis

RELATED STORIES

Rallis gets another run in Arizona following three seasons under former head coach Jonathan Gannon.

He’s got a lot to prove in his return after his unit gave up the sixth-most yards (357.7) and fourth-most points (28.7) per game last season.

Special teams coordinator — Michael Ghobrial

Ghobrial spent the past two seasons as the New York Giants’ special teams coordinator.

He got his NFL start with the Lions through the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship in 2017.

Ghobrial worked alongside LaFleur with the New York Jets as the assistant special teams coordinator from 2021-22.

He takes over for Jeff Rodgers, who is now in Buffalo in the same capacity.

Offensive line coach — Justin Frye

Frye re-ups with the Cardinals after spending last year with the franchise.

It was a rough first go for Frye, whose offensive line took a noticeable step back from the two years prior.

He’s got a good connection with Paris Johnson Jr. and Jon Gaines II from their college days. There are going to be a lot of eyes on his position group after missing the mark in 2025.

Assistant offensive line coach — Chris Cook

Cook is another familiar face running it back with the Cardinals after spending the past three seasons in Arizona.

Quarterbacks coach — Matt Schaub

Schaub comes over with plenty of NFL playing experience behind 16 seasons and four franchises.

The same can’t be said about his prior coaching experience, though. His lone coaching stop was as a football analyst with the Atlanta Falcons in 2023.

Schaub as a player crossed paths with LaFleur in Atlanta in 2016. LaFleur served as an offensive assistant during their one season together.

Wide receivers coach — Tony Sorrentino

Sorrentino comes aboard after spending the past four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings as an assistant wide receivers coach. He worked closely with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

The Cardinals WRs coach worked with Hackett for a season in Jacksonville (2015). Sorrentino served as an assistant WRs coach and offensive quality control. Hackett was the team’s QBs coach during their time together.

Tight ends coach — Jake Moreland

Moreland served as a tight ends coach for both the Denver Broncos (2022) and Houston Texans (2023-25) before linking up with the Cardinals this offseason.

He also worked under LaFleur previously as an assistant OL coach with the Jets in 2021.

Running backs coach — Matt Merritt

Merritt is coming off two seasons with the Miami Hurricanes as their running backs coach.

This marks his first taste of NFL coaching.



from Arizona Sports https://ift.tt/UHqol4w

Read More

Chris Paul announces retirement after Raptors waive him

February 13, 2026  ,  No comments

Chris Paul, who played for the Phoenix Suns from 2020-23 and led them to the 2021 NBA Finals, announced his retirement Friday after he was waived by the Toronto Raptors.

The 40-year-old Paul was playing for the Los Angeles Clippers this season, his 21st in the NBA, and he strongly hinted in November that it would be his last.

He was sent home by the Clippers in December and saw his contract get included in a three-team deadline deal in February that also included the Brooklyn Nets.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Chris Paul (@cp3)

The 12-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist has earned four All-NBA first team selections, and he ranks second in NBA history with 12,552 assists. He was the first player to score at least 20,000 points while recording at least 10,000 assists.

RELATED STORIES

He became arguably the most accomplished player in Clippers franchise history while leading the team to six winning seasons from 2011-17, including the Clippers’ first two Pacific Division titles and three playoff series victories. Paul returned to Los Angeles as a free agent last July, rejoining a franchise where he is loved by fans while having an outside chance to contend for his first championship alongside Kawhi Leonard and James Harden.

Paul hasn’t spoken to reporters since he strongly hinted at retirement while the Clippers were back in his native North Carolina. But he acknowledged a video retrospective of his career played by the Clippers during a timeout at Intuit Dome last week. The video ended with “Congratulations, Point God” on the screen.

Paul couldn’t really be blamed for the Clippers’ profound struggles this season because he hadn’t played much.

He averaged 2.6 points and 3.3 assists while playing just 14.3 minutes per game — all career lows — and he didn’t play at all in five straight games in mid-November.

Paul had eight points and three assists while playing 15 minutes against the Heat in what turned out to be his final game with the team — a game in which Harden and other starters were effectively benched, in the latest sign of discord for coach Tyronn Lue’s team.

The Clippers are on a five-game skid, and they’re tied with Sacramento for the second-worst record in the Western Conference heading into Wednesday’s games. Leonard has been limited to 10 games by injuries, and they’ve already lost guard Bradley Beal to season-ending hip surgery.

The Clippers’ streak of 14 consecutive winning seasons is the longest active streak in the NBA, but owner Steve Ballmer’s club has yet to show signs of contention this season — and now they’re going forward without a historically talented point guard and franchise favorite.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



from Arizona Sports https://ift.tt/CME2Ixf

Read More

Thursday, 12 February 2026

Bella Belen says past experiences toughened her

February 12, 2026  ,  No comments

After spending a lot of the one hour and 53 minutes it took to finish the match focusing PLDT’s defense on Bella Belen, Coach Ralf Ricafort wasn’t done just yet with the Capital1 standout. He also spoke about her for several minutes during his post-game interview. “This is going to be how her season will

from Inquirer Sports https://ift.tt/T1DKPgI

Read More

Report: Diamondbacks sign former closer Paul Sewald to 1-year deal

February 12, 2026  ,  No comments

The Arizona Diamondbacks are signing reliever Paul Sewald, MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert first reported on Thursday.

The deal is reportedly for one season and worth $1.5 million, adds AZCentral’s Nick Piecoro.

Sewald pitched for the D-backs from 2023-24 after coming aboard at the 2023 MLB trade deadline and taking over as Arizona’s closer.

He recorded a 3.57 ERA to go along with 13 saves in his first season with the Diamondbacks, helping the franchise reach the World Series. During that postseason run in 2023, Sewald posted a 5.40 ERA and six saves across 10 innings pitched. He was perfect before running into the Texas Rangers in the World Series.

The following season, Sewald picked up an oblique strain during spring training that delayed his start to the year. He was quick to get after it upon his return, notching 11 saves and a 0.54 ERA through the end of June. July was a completely different story, though, with the pitcher blowing four saves and sporting a 10.80 ERA. He would end up losing the closer role, with the D-backs opting for a closer-by-committee approach the rest of the way in 2024.

RELATED STORIES

Sewald went on to sign with the Cleveland Guardians in 2025 but appeared in just 18 games before being traded midseason to the Detroit Tigers where he appeared in four games. Across 22 combined games, he posted a 4.58 ERA and 1.220 WHIP in 19.2 innings. He added two saves, both with Cleveland.

He missed significant time due to right shoulder strains, while his fastball velocity has decreased from 92.2 mph in 2023 to 90.4 mph last year.

The Diamondbacks entered the offseason in need of both starting rotation and bullpen help.

Arizona’s bullpen went through the injury wringer last season, with its most important arms suffering serious injuries. Co-closers A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez both underwent season-ending elbow surgeries after a combined 23.1 innings, while Kevin Ginkel struggled through a shoulder injury-marred campaign. Ryan Thompson and Jalen Beeks also spent stints on the IL.

The D-backs are hoping to get Puk and Martinez back at some point during the 2026 season. They also tendered contracts to Ginkel and Thompson, maintaining some continuity in a bullpen that grew increasingly younger in the second half of last season.

Arizona leaned on a major league-record 17 pitchers to record a save in 2025, including rookies Juan Morillo, Taylor Rashi and Kyle Backhus, the latter of whom was traded to Philadelphia this offseason.

Shelby Miller led the D-backs with 10 saves before getting traded to Milwaukee at the July deadline. There were 30 pitchers in MLB with more than 10 saves last year, and Jhoan Duran recorded more than 10 saves each for two different teams.

The Diamondbacks also led the National League with 29 blown saves.

When asked by MLB Network at the winter meetings what he wanted under the Christmas tree this winter, D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said a closer.

“We led the league in blown saves or lost leads after the seventh inning last year,” Lovullo said. “If we’re just league average, we make the playoffs. … I think the back end of a bullpen is extremely important.”

The Diamondbacks have previously shown interest this offseason in several late-inning relievers, including Pete Fairbanks and Pierce Johnson, but the bullpen market moved quicker than other positions, and Arizona went into January without adding a major league reliever.

Arizona signed Taylor Clarke to a one-year deal on Jan. 15, adding depth to the bullpen with another familiar face. The team then traded for righty Kade Strowd from Baltimore.

The club has also taken a series of fliers on relievers with minor league deals, such as former Yankees setup man Jonathan Loaisiga and ex-Mariners righty Isaiah Campbell.



from Arizona Sports https://ift.tt/QrBowSc

Read More

Wednesday, 11 February 2026

Still seeking chemistry, Cool Smashers good enough to cream Flying Titans

February 11, 2026  ,  No comments

Creamline flashed championship poise to bag a first win in the 2026 PVL All-Filipino Conference, and it was a very sweet one as it came at the expense of sister team Choco Mucho, 27-25, 17-25, 25-21, 25-15, on Tuesday night before 12,600 fans at Mall of Asia Arena. The Cool Smashers had started their redemption

from Inquirer Sports https://ift.tt/0TmuC5s

Read More