Update on the latest sports

MLB-INDIANS-CALLAWAY

Francona: No one covered up for Callaway

CLEVELAND (AP) — Indians manager Terry Francona said no one in the Cleveland organization “covered up” for former pitching coach Mickey Callaway, who is under investigation by Major League Baseball following allegations of sexual harassment.

In a story posted Tuesday, The Athletic reported that 12 current and former Indians employees have come forward to say the team was aware of Callaway’s inappropriate behavior while he was their pitching coach from 2013-17.

Callaway was Cleveland’s pitching coach from 2013-17 before he was hired to manage the New York Mets. He’s currently suspended as the Los Angeles Angels pitching coach, pending the MLB inquiry. Francona said the Indians planned to release a statement later.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————NBA-HAWKS-COACHING

McMillan debuts as interim coach

MIAMI (AP) — Atlanta Hawks interim coach Nate McMillan says he agreed to serve as the Hawks’ interim coach only after talking with fired coach Lloyd Pierce. The Hawks are 14-and-20 so far this season.

Even then, McMillan didn’t rest easy. He immediately felt the burden of his increased responsibility and says he “didn’t get a wink of sleep” following the firing.

McMillan says at first he wasn’t interested when Hawks president Travis Schlenk extended the offer to replace Pierce. McMillan, who was fired last year following four seasons as the Indiana Pacers coach, says he wasn’t looking for another opportunity to lead a team. He says Pierce helped to convince him to accept the interim job.

NFL-CHIEFS-BRITT REID

Lawyer wants ‘most serious charges’ against ex-Chiefs coach

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — An attorney for the family of a 5-year-old girl critically injured in a crash involving former Kansas City Chiefs assistant coach Britt Reid says the girl suffered a devastating brain injury that has left her unable to speak or walk.

Attorney Tom Porto said Tuesday in an interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America” that the family of 5-year-old Ariel Young wants to see “the most serious charges and the most serious sentence that Britt could ever receive.” The girl has been hospitalized since the Feb. 4 crash in which Reid’s truck slammed into two cars on the side of the road. Police have said Reid told investigators he had “two or three drinks” along with prescribed Adderall before the crash. No charges have been filed.

In other NFL news:

—J.J. Watt didn’t lack for suitors when deciding where to continue his spectacular football career. The three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year said there were four or five teams that were seriously in the hunt. The more he looked at his options the more the Arizona Cardinals made sense. Watt said on Tuesday that he’s eager to join a roster that includes quarterback Kyler Murray, receiver DeAndre Hopkins and linebacker Chandler Jones.

— Two people familiar with the discussion have confirmed to The Associated Press that the Miami Dolphins told linebacker Kyle Van Noy he will be released. Miami will clear nearly $10 million in cap space with the move. Van Noy signed a $51 million, four-year deal as a free agent a year ago. Van Noy battled injuries last season but had six sacks and 69 tackles in 14 games for a defense that ranked sixth in points allowed.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL-MINNESOTA-PITINO

Job in jeopardy, Gophers’ Pitino ‘not waving the white flag’

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota coach Richard Pitino acknowledges his job is in jeopardy with the Gophers going through another late-season fade.

He says he doesn’t believe his fate has been determined. Minnesota has lost eight of its last 10 games and is currently without injured starters Gabe Kalscheur and Liam Robbins. The Gophers have a 13-12 record overall and are 6-12 in the Big Ten. Pitino is in his eighth year with the program. He says Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle has “always been supportive” and that he’s “not waving the white flag.”

SPORTS- VIRUS OUTBREAK

LSU seeks outdoor attendance increase

UNDATED (AP) — LSU officials say they’ve been working with Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards on soon increasing attendance at outdoor athletic venues to 50%.

Baseball is among the most popular spectator sports at LSU. During the 2019 college baseball season, the last before the coronavirus pandemic, LSU set an NCAA record with 473,298 spectators attending 43 home games at Alex Box Stadium, which holds more than 11,000.

In other pandemic related stores:

—SMU’s scheduled home finale Sunday against Tulsa has been canceled by the American Athletic Conference due to the continued suspension of activities in the Mustangs program because of COVID-19 issues. That ends their regular season.

—The Southeastern Conference wants the few fans able to attend the men’s basketball tournament in Nashville to know the rules. Health officials are allowing a seating capacity of 20% at Bridgestone Arena for approximately 3,400 fans because of COVID-19 restrictions at the tournament starting March 10.

—West Virginia’s baseball team has paused activities for the next seven days because it is unable to meet COVID-19 thresholds as established by the Big 12. The school’s athletic department said that a three-game home series Friday through Sunday against Kent State and a March 9 home game against Marshall will not be played.

—Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby will miss Tuesday night’s game against Philadelphia after being placed on the COVID-19 protocol list.. The Penguins did not hold a morning skate ahead of the game, in line with the league’s COVID-19 guidelines.