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Major Damage to “The Trop”

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TAMPA-St. PETERSBURG  – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Tampa Bay Rays organization will assess the damage done to Tropicana Field, inflicted on Wednesday night as Hurricane Milton bore down on the region.

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The roof at the stadium in St. Petersburg, Fla., broke apart amid the wind and rain from the Category 3 hurricane. The Rays didn’t address whether the “Trop,” as it is called, will be playable to start the 2025 season.

“During the past couple weeks, our beloved city, region and state have been impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We are devastated by the damage incurred by so many,” the team noted Thursday afternoon in a statement posted to social media.

“Our priority is supporting our community and our staff. We are fortunate and grateful that no one was hurt by the damage to our ballpark last night. Over the coming days and weeks, we expect to be able to assess the true condition of Tropicana Field. In the meantime, we are working with law enforcement to secure the building.

“We ask for your patience at this time, and we encourage those who can to donate to organizations in our community that are assisting those directly impacted by these storms.”

The stadium, initially called the Florida Suncoast Dome when it opened in 1990, has been the Rays’ home since the franchise played its first game in 1998. It had been set to serve as a staging area for first responders in the storm.

Tropicana Field cost $138 million to build. The 1.1-million square foot building was covered by what the team media guide calls “the world’s largest cable-supported domed roof,” which is “made of six acres of translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass and supports itself with 180 miles of cables connected by struts.”

It was built to withstand winds up to 115 mph.

The Weather Channel reported wind gusts of up to 102 mph in St. Petersburg. Parts of the downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg were drenched by as much as 17 inches or rain, per the report.

There was good news at Raymond James Stadium, the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, however. NFL Network reported Thursday that the stadium and the Bucs’ practice field sustained only “cosmetic” damage.

–Field Level Media

Ohtani 50/50 Ball to Auction

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RUNNEMEDE, NJ – (Staff and Wire service Report) – The owner of the ball that Shohei Ohtani hit for his historic 50th homer of the year remains in dispute, but the souvenir will continue to be auctioned off while legal proceedings continue.

Goldin Auctions announced Monday that the lawyers for the fans who are arguing over the ball’s rightful owner agreed to let the auction continue. With another two weeks to go in the auction, the latest top bid was $1.5 million, which would see the buyer owing more than $1.8 million when the auction house’s fee is included.

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The ball has significant value because of its place in baseball history: When that ball cleared the fence in Miami on Sept. 19, Ohtani became the first player ever to amass 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in the same year. The Los Angeles Dodgers star ended the season with 54 homers and 59 steals.

After the ball landed in the left field stands, Chris Belanski wound up with it, and he is the one who initiated the auction. However, two other fans, Max Matus and Joseph Davidov, subsequently filed separate lawsuits alleging that they had possession of the ball before it was taken from them.

Davidov’s attorney, Devon Workman, told Front Office Sports on Monday, “Parties have agreed to let the sale proceed and then the parties will continue to litigate over ownership over the final proceeds of the sale.”

Goldin said in a statement, according to ESPN, that “all parties want the 50/50 ball to be auctioned by Goldin, and have agreed to convey any and all of their ownership interests in the 50/50 ball to the winner of the auction, giving the winner full assurance that they will receive free and clear title to the 50/50 ball.”

The record price for a baseball is $3 million, which was paid for the ball Mark McGwire hit for his 70th homer in 1998.

–Field Level Media

Vanderbilt Fined $100,000; Arkansas Fined $250k

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NASHVILLE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Southeastern Conference announced on it will fine both Vanderbilt University and the University of Arkansas for “violations of the league’s access to competition area policy,” or in layman’s terms, for not preventing fans from storming the field Saturday.

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Vanderbilt (3-2, 1-1 SEC) scored the biggest upset in school history, taking down a No. 1 team in Alabama for the first time ever, 40-35. Meanwhile, Arkansas (4-2, 2-1) also recorded a top-five upset (its first in 15 years) by defeating then-No. 4 Tennessee 19-14 in Fayetteville, Ark.

In the wake of both upsets, as is customary in big wins, fans charged the field to celebrate with their teams. In Vanderbilt’s case, the fans took down the goalpost and carried it out of the stadium, eventually depositing it in the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville.

After fans took to the field in Arkansas, Volunteers defensive lineman Omari Thomas was attempting to exit but was seen on video shoving a male fan into a female and both fell to the ground.

Thomas apologized on Sunday.

“I apologize for my actions during the chaotic postgame scene,” Thomas wrote on social media. “Even though we got run into multiple times by fans while trying to exit the field, that doesn’t condone my actions or define my character. I sincerely apologize. I wish Arkansas and their fans all the best.”

Per policy that was revised in 2023, Vanderbilt received a fine of $100,000 as a first-time offender. Arkansas was levied a $250,000 penalty for its second offense. The Razorbacks’ first offense was last November during men’s basketball season when fans stormed the court following an 80-75 victory over No. 9 Duke.

For conference games, the fines are paid to the opposing institutions.

Alabama dropped to No. 7 after the loss. Tennessee fell to No. 8.

–Field Level Media

Pac-12 Reloads with Four Schools

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SAN RAMON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Mountain West representatives Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State will join the Pac-12 in the 2026-27 academic year, the latter conference announced Thursday morning.

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The Pac-12 board of directors unanimously approved the additions of the four schools to join Oregon State and Washington State, the last two remaining schools after an offseason that saw 10 members jump to other power conferences. Oregon, Washington, UCLA and Southern California moved to the Big Ten; Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State shifted to the Big 12; and Cal and Stanford joined the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State officially will join the Pac-12 on July 1, 2026.

“For over a century, the Pac-12 Conference has been recognized as a leading brand in intercollegiate athletics,” Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould said in a statement. “We will continue to pursue bold cutting-edge opportunities for growth and progress, to best serve our member institutions and student-athletes. I am thankful to our board for their efforts to welcome Boise State University, Colorado State University, California State University, Fresno, and San Diego State University to the conference. An exciting new era for the Pac-12 Conference begins today.”

The NCAA gave the Pac-12 until July 2026 to have a minimum of eight universities if the league is to remain part of the Football Bowl Subdivision. The Mountain West additions still leave the league two short, although officials are pursuing additional options.

The four schools joining the Pac-12 would have to pay an exit fee of $18 million. The Pac-12 also would owe the Mountain West $43 million for taking schools away, part of the deal it reached to arrange scheduling of football matchups for Oregon State and Washington State this year.

MWC commissioner Gloria Nevarez released a statement late Wednesday to address reports that the four schools were exiting the conference.

“The Mountain West Conference is aware of media reports regarding the potential departure of several of our members, and we will have more to say in the days ahead,” Nevarez said. “All members will be held to the Conference bylaws and policies should they elect to depart. The requirements of the scheduling agreement will apply to the Pac-12 should they admit Mountain West members. Our Board of Directors is meeting to determine our next steps. The Mountain West has a proud 25-year history and will continue to thrive in the years ahead.”

Colorado State and San Diego State have been in the Mountain West since the league’s founding in 1999. Boise State joined the conference in 2011, and Fresno State followed in 2012. One of those four schools won or shared the league’s football championship in 10 of the past 12 seasons.

“We are ecstatic to be joining the Pac-12 Conference,” San Diego State athletic director John David Wicker said. “While we are grateful to be a founding member of the Mountain West with 26 years of success in the conference, we are excited at what lies ahead with these new opportunities. We will continue to compete for conference championships on the field and to graduate leaders in the community.”

–Field Level Media

Dutch Gold

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PARIS – The Netherlands won gold in the men’s 3×3 basketball by edging France 18-17 in overtime in the final at the Paris Olympics on Monday, just a few minutes after Germany earned their first international title in the women’s tournament.

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France was backed by a passionate crowd, but Worthy de Jong, instantly recognizable with his bleached blond hair, tied the score in the last seconds of regulation and sealed the title for the Dutch with a two-point, long-range shot in overtime.

On the women’s side, Germany beat Spain 17-16 after Sonja Greinacher hit a two-pointer that gave them a decisive lead with 30 seconds remaining at Place de la Concorde.

Greinacher had already scintillated in a back-and-forth semifinal contest against Canada, delivering 11 points and five rebounds for a 16-15 win.

“We definitely wanted that gold medal,” Greinacher said after getting a congratulatory hug courtside from compatriot and 14-times NBA All-Star Dirk Nowitzki.

“I think we just wanted to enjoy our last game together as a group. That was the biggest goal of it all, to just enjoy.”

The men’s bronze went to Lithuania after they dispatched Tokyo gold medalists Latvia 21-18, who picked a bad day to suffer their only two losses of the tournament.

The United States, who won the women’s gold in Tokyo, prevailed over Canada 16-13 to claim bronze this time around, a consolation prize after losing 18-16 to Spain in overtime in the semifinals.

“After we lost this morning and had our gold dream crushed, we were down,” American Hailey Van Lith said.

“We were kind of feeling sorry for ourselves. It took a lot of mental toughness just to compete in this game.”

In their bronze medal game, the United States had to rely on close one-point shots and five free throws to beat Canada’s Plouffe twins, Katherine and Michelle, the Nos. 1 and 3-ranked players in the world.

The Americans had a difficult start to the tournament, losing their three opening pool games to Germany, Azerbaijan and Australia before finally finding their groove.

The Paris 3×3 tournament was even more complicated for the U.S. men’s team, who were making their Olympic debut with a revamped squad after failing to qualify for Tokyo.

The Americans had to play four of their seven games without top-ranked player Jimmer Fredette, who suffered two torn ligaments in his adductor, and failed to break out of their pool.

France’s women, runners-up at the 2023 World Cup, were just as disappointing, finishing last in the pool phase behind Azerbaijan.

–Reuters, Special to Field Level Media

Lakers Honor Kobe and Gianna

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LOS ANGELES – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – On the symbolic date of 8/2/24, the Los Angeles Lakers unveiled the second of three statues commissioned to honor Kobe Bryant near Crypto.com Arena.

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The new statue depicts Bryant alongside his daughter Gianna. The two were among seven people who died in a Southern California helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020. Kobe Bryant was 41 when he died; Gianna was 13.

 

 

In the statue, the two are seated, with the father’s arm around the daughter as angel wings spread behind them. Kobe Bryant, identified as “Most Valuable Girl Dad,” says in a quote at the base, “Gianna is a beast. She’s better than I was at her age. She’s got it. Girls are amazing. I would have five more girls if I could. I’m a girl dad.”

The date was chosen because 8 and 24 were the numbers Bryant wore in his Hall of Fame career for the Lakers, and 2 was the number Gianna wore.

The same numbers were in play when the Lakers unveiled the first Bryant statue outside their home venue. The team has yet to announce when the third statue will be ready.

Also on Friday, the locker Bryant used at the arena for his final 13 NBA seasons sold at auction for $2.88 million. ESPN, citing auction house Sotheby’s, reported that the amount was a record for a sports locker.

 

 

The locker had a value estimated at $1 million to $1.5 million, according to Sportico.

–Field Level Media

NFL: Can’t Spare a Dime?

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NEW YORK – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The NFL scored a victory worth up to $14.1 billion in court on Thursday when a federal district court judge threw out a jury’s verdict in an antitrust lawsuit that targeted the league’s “Sunday Ticket” online viewing package.

In a 16-page order, U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez in New York took issue with how the jury arrived at its figures of $4.6 billion to residential customers and $97 million to commercial establishments, saying they were “not based on the ‘evidence and reasonable inferences’ but instead were more akin to ‘guesswork or speculation.’”

In antitrust cases, the amounts of the verdict would be tripled.

Gutierrez also faulted testimony from expert witnesses Daniel Rascher and John Zona, who were testifying for the plaintiffs in the class-action case that represents some 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 commercial establishments.

“The Court agrees that Dr. Rascher’s and Dr. Zona’s testimonies based on their flawed methodologies should be excluded. And because there was no other support for the class-wide injury and damages elements of Plaintiffs’ … claims, judgment as a matter of law for the Defendants is appropriate,” the filing said.

“No reasonable jury could have found class-wide injury or damages,” Gutierrez wrote.

The plaintiffs have the option of appealing the decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The NFL responded to the judge’s move with a statement: “We are grateful for today’s ruling in the Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit. We believe that the NFL’s media distribution model provides our fans with an array of options to follow the game they love, including local broadcasts of every single game on free over-the-air television. We thank Judge Gutierrez for his time and attention to this case and look forward to an exciting 2024 NFL season.”

In a hearing on Wednesday, the NFL argued that the jurors did not understand antitrust law, which led to confusion in reaching their compensation amount.

The “Sunday Ticket” package enables viewers to see NFL games that involve teams out of their home markets.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys maintained that the one price to see all out-of-market broadcasts is unfair to customers who may want to watch just one or a few teams.

“Given the relatively low cost of internet streaming and satellite and cable television carriage, each team acting independently would offer their games at a competitive price to anybody in the country who wanted to watch that particular team,” the plaintiffs argued. “Instead, however, the teams have all forgone this option in favor of creating a more lucrative monopoly.”

The judge faulted the expert testimony for not explaining “how these out-of-market telecasts would have been available for free to cable and satellite customers.”

–Field Level Media

Magic’s Pat Williams, Dead at 84

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ORLANDO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Pat Williams, Orlando Magic co-founder and basketball Hall of Famer, died on Wednesday. He was 84. Williams died of complications from viral pneumonia, the Magic said in an official team statement.

Along with businessman Jimmy Hewitt, Williams started to work toward getting Orlando an NBA franchise back in 1986. A year later, the NBA Board of Governors gave an expansion franchise to the city, and on Dec. 22, 1988, the Magic sold their 10,000th ticket to officially bring the team to the league.

That was just a sliver of Williams’ NBA career, which lasted 51 years and included over 30 with the Magic.

“Pat Williams simply brought magic to Orlando,” Magic chairman Dan DeVos and CEO Alex Martins said in a joint statement. “His accomplishments will always be remembered. Armed with his ever-present optimism and unparalleled energy, he was an incredible visionary who helped transform the world of sports in multiple ways.

“From bringing the Magic to Orlando, to transforming sports marketing and promotions, he was always ahead of the curve. Pat forever changed the sports landscape in Orlando. He shined a light on what those who called Orlando home already knew — that Central Florida was a fabulous place to live, work and play.”

65,000 Watch ARG Defeat Colombia

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MIAMI GARDENS – (Staff and Wire Service Report)  – With star teammate Lionel Messi sidelined by an apparent right ankle injury, substitute Lautaro Martinez led Argentina to a record 16th Copa America title with his goal in extra time for a 1-0 victory over Colombia Sunday night.

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Martinez, who entered the match in the seventh minute of added time, made the best of a brilliant through ball from Giovani Lo Celso to score his tournament-best fifth goal in the 112th minute overall.

Argentina, the 2022 World Cup champion, defended its 2021 Copa America crown while breaking a tie with Uruguay for the most titles at the tournament.

Colombia’s only title came in 2001 as the host nation. The Colombians had a 28-match unbeaten streak (22-0-6) come to an end on Sunday.

The start of the match was delayed 82 minutes from its original 8 p.m. ET kickoff due to ticketless fans breaching the gates, forcing a lockdown of the stadium. Later, because of the swell of people trying to get in, some gates were opened to allow anyone, ticket or not, entry.

The match ended at 12:09am (ET).

Messi, 37, exited the match in the 66th minute. He went down untouched, but after medical attention, he walked off the field with his right shoe in his hand and was shown on the bench in tears.

The injury originally occurred in the 35th minute after a hard challenge about a yard beyond the end line by Colombia’s Santiago Arias, who appeared to clip Messi in the leg before rolling on his right ankle. Messi stayed down for a few minutes before returning to the play.

A sellout crowd of over 65,000 saw Colombia control the first half but come up empty.

Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was forced to make four saves in the first half and saw a shot by Jhon Cordoba kiss the outside of the left post in the seventh minute.

However, Colombia didn’t have another shot on target for the remainder of the match, finishing with four to Argentina’s six.

Midfielder Angel Di Maria, 36, started in his final match for Argentina, ending his 17-year international career with 145 appearances, tied for third most in club history.

Di Maria was subbed out in the 117th minute.

–Field Level Media

USA Soccer: Give Them the Boot

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KANSAS CITY (Missouri) – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – It’s time to give U.S. Soccer the boot. After the U.S. men’s national soccer team failed to get out of the group stage at Copa America despite a favorable draw and home-pitch advantage, the United States Soccer Federation vowed to conduct a review of the results.

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The main focus of that examination likely will be coach Gregg Berhalter, already a lightning rod with the team’s fanbase even before the U.S. lost two of its three Copa America matches and finished third in Group C.

The U.S. fell 1-0 to Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., on Monday, four days after losing 2-1 to Panama in Atlanta. The only victory for the 11th-ranked Americans came in the tournament opener against 84th-ranked Bolivia. Panama, which finished second in the group after defeating Bolivia 3-1 on Monday, is ranked 43rd. Uruguay, which swept its three matches, is rated 14th.

U.S. Soccer wrote in a statement late Monday night, “Our tournament performance fell short of our expectations. We must do better.

“We will be conducting a comprehensive review of our performance in Copa America and how best to improve the team and results as we look towards the 2026 World Cup.”

Berhalter was asked directly after the Uruguay defeat whether he felt he is the right person to lead the U.S. squad into the 2026 World Cup, which it will co-host. He replied, “Yes.”

Berhalter added, “We know we’re capable of more, and in this tournament, we didn’t show it, it’s really as simple as that.

“You look at the stage that was set with the fans in this tournament, with the high level of competition in this tournament, and we should have done better. We’ll do a review and figure out what went wrong and why it went wrong, but it’s an empty feeling right now, for sure.”

While the U.S. team under Berhalter has dominated traditional rival Mexico in CONCACAF competition, the coach’s results in major tournaments have been mediocre.

Berhalter, 50, first got the job in December 2018 following a lengthy search that came after the U.S. failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

The squad advanced out of its group at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, recording draws against Wales and heavily favored England before edging Iran 1-0. The Netherlands beat Berhalter’s side 3-1 in the Round of 16.

In the aftermath of the Qatar tournament, Berhalter was dragged into a public spat with player Gio Reyna and his family. The midfielder’s parents accused Berhalter of committing domestic abuse decades earlier. Meanwhile, Berhalter’s contract with U.S. Soccer expired, and the federation went through two interim coaches in 2023 before ultimately rehiring Berhalter.

The ongoing Copa America was the U.S. team’s last major test before 2026. The United States, Mexico and Canada will have no qualifying matches ahead of the next World Cup, as all received automatic berths as co-hosts.

Midfielder Weston McKennie told The Athletic regarding Berhalter, “I believe we all have a comfort with Gregg and we all understand him and we’ve had him for a long time. He’s progressed the team very far from where we started off four or five years ago.

“I think the connection that we have with him is what’s important, in having a coach that players … would run through a brick wall for him, players that listen to him. And so I think whatever happens, happens, but I think if he’s the coach, we’re all happy, get up, dust off, learn and keep moving forward. That’s the only thing you can do now.”

–Field Level Media