NFL
ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons named defensive coordinator Raheem Morris interim head coach on Monday after firing Dan Quinn.
Morris is in his sixth season with the Falcons and his first season as defensive coordinator.
The Falcons fired Quinn on Sunday night, hours after the team fell to 0-5 for the first time since 1997 with a 23-16 loss to the Carolina Panthers. Falcons owner Arthur Blank also fired longtime general manager Thomas Dimitroff.
The Falcons announced team president Rich McKay would take control of football operations on an interim basis and also assist in the search for a full-time coach and general manager.
Morris was coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009-2011. His team finished 10-6 in 2010, marking the best turnaround in franchise history following a 3-13 finish in 2009.
MLB
CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox and manager Rick Renteria have agreed to split following a disappointing finish to a breakout season in which the team made the playoffs for the first time in 12 years.
The White Sox announced Monday that Renteria won’t return after he led them to a 35-25 record in his pandemic-shortened fourth year. They ended a string of seven consecutive losing seasons with their first playoff appearance since 2008.
The team and longtime pitching coach Don Cooper also agreed to part.
The White Sox held a three-game lead in the AL Central before losing seven of their final eight to finish tied for second with Cleveland at 35-25, one behind Minnesota. Chicago then got knocked out by Oakland in three games in their wild-card series.
Renteria drew criticism for some questionable decisions down the stretch. And now, he and the White Sox are moving on.
General manager Rick Hahn described Renteria as a “fantastic baseball man” and “better person” whose “fingerprints” will be all over the White Sox if they win a championship.
“This is not how we wanted this to end,” Hahn said. “We wanted it to end with Ricky leading us to championships. That was the intent from the start. Over time, through very candid and quite frankly personal conversations about where this organization is, what our time horizon is, what we need to do to win in October and get to that final, ultimate goal, it became evident that it was time to make a change.”
Hahn said Renteria’s replacement likely will come from outside the White Sox. He would like someone who has worked for a championship organization, though major league managing experience is not necessarily a requirement.
Renteria became the franchise’s 40th manager when they promoted him from bench coach to replace Robin Ventura in October 2016. He led the White Sox to a 236-309 record
SAN DIEGO (AP) — San Diego Padres outfielder Tommy Pham is recovering after he was stabbed in the back Sunday night, authorities said.
Pham was stabbed shortly after 10:30 p.m. outside the Pacers Showgirls International gentlemen’s club, police Lt. Shawn Takeuchi told the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Pham apparently didn’t know the attackers, who remain at large, he said.
Two people who said they spoke with Pham told the Union-Tribune that Pham was leaving and saw an argument taking place near his car.
Pham was stabbed in the lower back and the wound pierced all three layers of skin but didn’t damage any organs, according to a statement from the Padres. The team said he was in good condition and is expected to fully recover.
OBITUARY
Joe Morgan, the Hall of Fame second baseman who became the sparkplug of the Big Red Machine and the prototype for baseball’s artificial turf era, has died. He was 77.
He died at his home Sunday in Danville, California, family spokesman James Davis said in statement Monday. Morgan was suffering from a nerve condition, a form of polyneuropathy.
Morgan’s death marked the latest among major league greats this year: Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Tom Seaver and Al Kaline.
Morgan was a two-time NL Most Valuable Player, a 10-time All-Star and won five Gold Gloves.
Most of all, he completed Cincinnati’s two-time World Series championship team, driving a club featuring the likes of Pete Rose, Johnny Bench and Tony Perez to back-to-back titles.
In a 22-year career through 1984, Morgan scored 1,650 runs, stole 689 bases, hit 268 homers and batted .271.
NEW YORK (AP) — Charlie Moore, the 400-meter hurdles champion at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, has died. He was 91.
Moore died Thursday from pancreatic cancer, according to World Athletics. Cornell University also confirmed the passing of the school’s former athletic director and star athlete.
Moore won the 400 hurdles in the rain in 1952 in 50.8 seconds to tie the Olympic record he set in the quarterfinals. Moore also earned a silver medal in Helsinki on the United States’ 1,600-meter relay team. After the Olympics, he set a world record of 51.6 in the 440 hurdles at the British Empire Games in London.
ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) — Hall of Fame trainer Gary Jones, who oversaw Hall of Fame horse Best Pal and 1986 older horse of the year Turkoman, has died. He was 76.
Jones died Sunday at his home in Del Mar near San Diego following a lengthy illness, Santa Anita officials said Monday.
Jones had 1,465 victories from 7,900 starters and career purse earnings of $52,672,611, according to Equibase. He retired in 1996 and was elected to racing’s Hall of Fame in 2014.
NHL
Alex Pietrangelo agreed to terms with the Vegas Golden Knights on a $61.6 million, seven-year deal Monday, according to a person with direct knowledge of the contract. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal had not been announced by the team.
The 30-year-old leaves the St. Louis Blues after serving as captain of their 2019 Stanley Cup championship team. Pietrangelo is coming off scoring a career-high 16 goals despite the season being cut short at 70 games.
Pietrangelo has 109 goals and 341 assists for 450 points in 758 regular-season NHL games. He had a postseason-best 16 assists and averaged almost 26 minutes of ice time during the Blues’ Cup run.
SOCCER
NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Soccer said Monday all Colorado Rapids’ matches have been postponed for 10 days.
The league said the move was being made even though there had been no new confirmed cases of coronavirus among Colorado players or staff. The MLS said the postponements were the result of the number of cases within the organization, and the decision was made in consultation with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
The Rapids have not played since a 5-0 win over San Jose on Sept. 23 and have already had four games postponed.
AUTO RACING
Oliver Askew and Arrow McLaren SP will part ways at the end of this IndyCar season, a rookie year disrupted by a concussion suffered in the Indianapolis 500.
The Arrow team said Monday that Askew will compete in the Oct. 25 season finale if he’s medically cleared but has been released to look for a new job in 2021.
The 23-year-old missed two races earlier this month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway while working on a recovery plan with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s sports medicine concussion program. Askew suffered the concussion in an Aug. 23 crash but competed in four races before he was diagnosed.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Vanderbilt’s football game at Missouri on Saturday has been postponed because COVID-19 issues have left the Commodores without enough available players.
The Southeastern Conference announced Monday the game has been tentatively rescheduled for Dec. 12. It is the first SEC game rescheduled due to COVID-19-related problems and the 28th FBS game overall to be postponed or canceled since Aug. 26.
WOMEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
For the first time in seven years, the UConn and Notre Dame women’s basketball teams won’t play in the regular season.
The schools announced Monday that the game was postponed because the Irish need to restructure their schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The perennial powers and former conference rivals extended their series last year through the 2023-24 season. That has been pushed back a year, with UConn hosting games next season and in 2023-24. The Irish will host the games in the other two years.
KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) — Kennesaw State coach Agnus Berenato is taking a leave of absence following recent surgery for breast cancer.
Berenato, the former Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech coach, announced her diagnosis with cancer on Sept. 28, 2019. She had surgery on Oct. 1 and says she plans to take a leave of absence until spring of 2021.
Khadija Head, the associate head coach, will serve as interim coach.
COLLEGE SWIMMING
WILMINGTON, N.C. — Officials at UNC Wilmington say a COVID-19 cluster has developed with the school’s swimming and diving team. A statement from the school on Monday said seven cases were discovered with the team.
State health officials define a cluster as five or more cases that are considered in close proximity by location in the last 14 days.
According to the school, the individuals involved have been and/or are isolating and have been receiving medical monitoring and/or treatment as needed.
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