CLEVELAND (AP) — A person familiar with the deal tells AP that All-Star third baseman José Ramírez and the Cleveland Guardians have reached agreement on a five-year, $124 million contract. Ramírez’s deal runs through the 2028 season, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because numerous details need to be finalized. The Guardians open the 2022 season in Kansas City on Thursday. The team and Ramírez’s representatives had been in talks about a deal for weeks at training camp in Arizona. Ramírez is one of the AL’s best all-around players. He’s finished in the top three in MVP voting three times in the past five seasons.
HOUSTON (AP) — A judge in Texas says Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson must say whether he had sex with 18 massage therapists who supported him last year following criminal complaints. USA Today reported that Watson has 30 days to comply. He previously would not answer the question. Watson also has to provide other information about his massage history since 2019, including any language in his Texans contract about massages. Watson was traded last month from Houston to Cleveland. He has been accused by 22 women of sexual misconduct during therapy sessions.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Sun Belt Conference is reviving men’s soccer this fall. The nine-team league will include new members James Madison, Marshall and Old Dominion along with soccer-only members Kentucky, South Carolina and West Virginia. They’ll join existing Sun Belt schools Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern and Georgia State. Marshall won the 2020 NCAA championship. West Virginia advanced to the national quarterfinals last fall. The Sun Belt Conference previously sponsored men’s soccer from 1976 to 1995 and from 2014 to 2020. The league will now sponsor 18 NCAA Division I sports and have 14 members starting in July.
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