Sports

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Jeremy Ruckert has rooted for the New York Jets all his life. Now the former Ohio State tight end is playing for them. Ruckert was drafted in the third round by his favorite NFL team last week. It set off a raucous

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Rafael Nadal one day. Novak Djokovic the other.  The list of victims of Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz keeps growing. And so does the hype over tennis’ newest sensation. The 19-year-old Alcaraz rallies to beat top-ranked Djokovic 6-7 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5) in more than 3 1/2

By ANNE M. PETERSON AP Sports Writer Houston Dynamo defender Teenage Hadebe grew up in Zimbabwe. As a child, his mom bought him a soda as a treat. The cap of the soda had a code that won Hadebe a soccer ball. That ball launched a career that has sent him around the globe. But

BURNLEY, England (AP) — Burnley’s relegation woes deepened after losing to Aston Villa 3-1 in the English Premier League for the team’s first defeat under interim manager Mike Jackson. Steven Gerrard’s Villa did both Everton and Leeds a big favor by ripping Burnley apart, with Emi Buendia having a goal and an assist. Danny Ings

LONDON (AP) — Watford is the second team to be relegated from the English Premier League after losing at Crystal Palace 1-0. Even if Roy Hodgson’s team won at Selhurst Park, it was still highly likely to go down. But survival is no longer mathematically possible after Wilfried Zaha’s match-clinching penalty in the 30th minute.

LONDON (AP) — Brentford scored two early goals in a 3-0 victory over Southampton to boost the club’s hopes of a top-half finish in its first season in the English Premier League. Pontus Jansson and Yoane Wissa scored within a minute of each other as Brentford moved to within a point of 10th-placed Brighton. Brighton

LONDON (AP) — Chelsea’s prospective new ownership has watched Romelu Lukaku score his first English Premier League goals in 2022 before the team collapsed to 2-2 against Wolverhampton to leave work still to do to wrap up Champions League qualification. Lukaku netted twice in a two-minute span early in the second half. Among those inside

By JEROME PUGMIRE AP Sports Writer PARIS (AP) — There were minor clashes between riot police and ultras from soccer club Nice outside a main Paris train station ahead of the French Cup final on Saturday. Around 450-500 Nice ultras, some wearing balaclavas, were grouped outside Gare de Lyon. The group then started quickly roaming

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A storming time trial from Simon Yates saw the British rider win the second stage of the Giro d’Italia. Mathieu van der Poel keeps hold of the pink jersey. Yates is one of the title favorites. He beat Van der Poel by three seconds on the nine-kilometer individual time trial through

By DANIELLA MATAR AP Sports Writer MILAN (AP) — Napoli has won at Torino 1-0 despite missing a penalty and consolidated third place in Serie A. Fabián Ruiz scored in the second half after Lorenzo Insigne had another spot kick saved. Napoli moved four points above fourth-placed Juventus after the Bianconeri lost at Genoa 2-1

LONDON (AP) — Kell Brook is retiring from boxing. The 36-year-old Briton was world welterweight champion from 2014-17. His last fight was the win over longtime rival Amir Khan in a grudge match in February. Brook says in an interview with British newspaper The Sunday Telegraph: “It’s over for me. I’ll never box again.” The

NEW YORK (AP) — The series opener between the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees has been postponed for a second straight day because of a forecast for sustained rain in the area. The postponement was announced nearly four hours before game time. The Rangers and Yankees will make up Saturday’s game on Monday at

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — Rafael Nadal isn’t losing any sleep after losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals at the Madrid Open. His focus hasn’t changed. It’s still all about getting ready for the French Open in a few weeks. He says he know the path to “arrive (in Paris)