KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals have signed all six of their draft picks, including first-rounder Asa Lacy, along with seven undrafted free agents that together give the rebuilding franchise one of the best incoming crops of first-year players in the majors. The club announced the 13 signings on Tuesday with Lacy being the headliner. The big, rangy left-hander out of Texas A&M was widely considered the top college arm in the draft, yet he slid to the Royals at the fourth overall pick.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals have signed first-round draft pick Jordan Walker for $2.9 million, which comes just under the slot value for the 21st overall pick. Walker is a power-hitting third baseman picked out of high school. The Cardinals continued Tuesday to bring their selections from the first-year player draft under contract. The Cardinals already signed their second-round pick, East Carolina outfielder Alec Burleson; third-round pick Levi Prater, a left-hander from Oklahoma; and fifth-round pick L.J. Jones, an outfielder from Long Beach State.
CHICAGO (AP) — Former Kansas State guard Brian Patrick is headed to DePaul as a graduate transfer. Patrick will be eligible to play immediately after spending two years at Kansas State and last season at Purdue Fort Wayne. He played in 49 games as a backup at Kansas State before transferring, and averaged 11.1 points for Purdue Fort Wayne after sitting out a year. DePaul went 16-16 overall and finished last in the Big East at 3-15.
UNDATED (AP) — College baseball players who had their seasons end abruptly in March are finding it challenging to stay sharp. That's largely because the coronavirus pandemic has forced most summer leagues to shut down. That leaves the players to their own devices to get in workouts and do baseball drills. Even if they do play summer ball, the season will be short. Clemson coach Monte Lee says he's worried about players being overzealous when they return to campus for fall practices. Lee said he plans to have his players ramp up slowly because their routines have been disrupted.
UNDATED (AP) — Suspended West Virginia defensive coordinator Vic Koenning has apologized after a player alleged he made a series of insensitive remarks. Koenning was placed on administrative leave Tuesday after safety Kerry Martin posted the allegations on his Twitter account. On Wednesday, Koenning said he never intended his words or actions to be insensitive. Martin said the latest incident happened Monday, when Koenning shared a conversation he had with his son about protests over racial injustice. Martin, who is Black, also said Koenning has talked about politics, including that President Donald Trump should build a border wall to keep Hispanics out of the country.
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma State athletics has added a diversity council. The move comes soon after football coach Mike Gundy’s decision to wear a T-shirt promoting a right-wing news network upset All-America running back Chuba Hubbard and several teammates. Hubbard, who is Black, chose to remain after Gundy apologized.
TORONTO (AP) — The Canadian government says Major League Baseball has submitted a plan to play in Toronto and health authorities are examining it. A spokeswoman for the Public Health Agency of Canada confirmed it is examining the restart plan. Anyone entering Canada for nonessential reasons must quarantine for 14 days, and the U.S.-Canada border remains closed to nonessential travel until at least July 21. On Tuesday, the Canadian government said it was open to MLB playing in Toronto this summer, but the league had not submitted the required plan to health authorities.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The return of Indiana Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon has been delayed after he tested positive for the coronavirus. And Sacramento Kings forward Jabari Parker says he has been dealing with the virus as well. The NBA is set to start again in Central Florida next month. All 22 NBA teams that will be part of the resumed season began mandated testing Tuesday.
UNDATED (AP) — Brooks Koepka chose to withdraw from the Travelers Championship because his caddie tested positive for the coronavirus. The four-time major champion feels even worse for his younger brother. Chase Koepka is trying to make it on the Challenge Tour in Europe, just like his brother once did. He made it through a Monday qualifier for a PGA Tour event. Both withdrew out of caution from being in close contact with someone who tested positive for the virus. Brooks Koepka says he feels responsible for putting his brother in that position. His brother had no place to stay Monday night after qualifying so Koepka had him stay in his house.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Redskins are removing former owner George Preston Marshall from their Ring of Fame and striking all references to him on their website. Marshall’s name has already been removed from the history wall at the team’s training facility. Marshall refused to integrate by signing Black players until “forced to do so” in 1962. There have been renewed calls for owner Dan Snyder to change the team’s name.