Brennen Davis — the top prospect in the Chicago Cubs organization — has back surgery  —  The back injury to Chicago Cubs top prospect Brennen Davis is more serious than initially thought.  —  Davis had back surgery in Los Angeles Thursday, sources told the Chicago Tribune.

Twins commentator Jim Kaat gives Yankees hurler Nestor Cortes an offensive nickname  —  Whether it's the Sultan of Swat, the Splendid Splinter or The Big Unit, baseball has a storied history of nicknames for its stars.  —  Minnesota Twins color commentator Jim Kaat tried to add a new chapter …

Miami Dolphins minicamp practice (Week 3): Tua Tagovailoa throws two long bombs  —  Plenty has been made of Tua Tagovailoa's arm strength, and whether or not the Miami Dolphins' starting quarterback has the ability to stretch the field with longer throws.  —  Even though Tagovailoa connected …

Francisco Lindor out of Mets lineup against Dodgers after shutting hotel doors on middle finger  —  LOS ANGELES—Forget thumbs.  That was so last year.  This season, Francisco Lindor's middle finger is making headlines.  —  Lindor was out of the Mets lineup for their series opener …

LeBron James Is Officially A Billionaire  —  He missed the playoffs for just the fourth time in 19 seasons but LeBron still scores as the first active NBA player to make our list.  —  LeBron James-18-time NBA all-star, 4-time NBA champion, 2-time Olympic gold medalist-has hit yet another milestone …

Philadelphia Phillies fire manager Joe Girardi after 22-29 start  —  MLB, Philadelphia Phillies  —  The Philadelphia Phillies have fired manager Joe Girardi, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski announced Friday.  —  The move was made with the Phillies at 22-29 …

The Dodgers Embrace the Family of a Player They Once Shunned  —  At Pride Night, Los Angeles will celebrate the life of Glenn Burke, M.L.B.'s first openly gay player.  His family will be there hoping the honor makes Burke “partially whole.”  —  LOS ANGELES — The life and times of Glenn Burke …

Mets demote Dominic Smith to Triple-A  —  It wasn't an easy conversation to have with Dominic Smith, though Buck Showalter supposes it never really is.  But with injury and circumstance depleting the Mets' pitching depth, there was no way around it - Smith, who's publicly clamored for more playing …

Danny Mendick's baserunning gaffe keeps the Chicago White Sox from scoring the tying run in a 6-5 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays  —  TORONTO — Alejandro Kirk hit a pair of two-run home runs in the Toronto Blue Jays' 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, which extended the Blue Jays' streak to six games.

Why Reds' Tommy Pham says Mike Trout shares some responsibility for Joc Pederson slap incident  —  BOSTON — As Tommy Pham walked toward the dugout at the conclusion of batting practice Tuesday, the Reds outfielder signed autographs for some fans on the left-field line at Fenway Park.