Heat-Bulls with plenty of subplots, but desperation ultimately at Friday's forefront  —  MIAMI — As they waited to see if their season would continue, the Chicago Bulls received reaffirmation Tuesday night as they watched from Toronto: The Miami Heat are vulnerable.

Were 9-year-old Diar DeRozan's screams the Chicago Bulls' secret weapon as the Toronto Raptors missed 18 free throws?  —  TORONTO — As the tide turned in the favor of the Chicago Bulls during Wednesday's 109-105 play-in tournament win over the Toronto Raptors, one constant sound was like a metronome …

Denver weather: High fire danger as wind buffets dry ground amid heat  —  Red flag warning issued for metro Denver  —  A third day in a row of summer-like heat with temperatures reaching 79 degrees and wind gusting at speeds up to 45 miles per hour, buffeting dry ground, is expected to create critical fire weather Thursday.

Salt Lake City group joins MLB expansion chase  —  A Salt Lake City consortium led by the former owner of the Utah Jazz plans to pursue a Major League Baseball franchise in the coming years, touting the area's population growth, strong economy and baseball history as draws for a coveted expansion slot …

Adley Rutschman blasts first career walk-off homer to give Orioles series-clinching 8-7 win over Athletics  —  The win wasn't pretty, but the last swing sure was.  —  Adley Rutschman came up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth inning with the chance to give the Orioles their ugliest win of the season …

Seiya Suzuki homers in Iowa Cubs game Wednesday.  Is this his last before jumping back to majors?  —  The first pitch Seiya Suzuki saw Wednesday afternoon was a 91.4 mile per hour four-seam fastball from Omaha Storm Chasers pitcher Austin Cox that drifted over the outer part of the plate.

Adrian Kempe, Kings dismiss Ducks in regular-season finale, will face Edmonton in playoffs  —  ANAHEIM — On the final night of the regular season for the Kings and Ducks - teams occupying wildly different ends of the spectrum - they found a form of common ground on Thursday night at Honda Center.

Fort Lauderdale airport closed until Friday, stranding hundreds of passengers  —  From a flooded Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to inundated streets of Broward County, a transportation nightmare was all but guaranteed Thursday after unprecedented rains pounded the area the day before.

Mets' trip to West Coast may go long way to character building  —  Pete Alonso called it a test and Brandon Nimmo called it “huge”.  Buck Showalter went as far as to say it was going to be a “big challenge.”  —  What this West Coast trip really is for these Mets, especially this early in the season, is a slog.

UF's QB competition emerges among top questions entering Gators' spring game  —  GAINESVILLE — Florida will stage coach Billy Napier's second spring game on Thursday night under the lights at the Swamp.  —  The Gators have remade their roster following a 6-7 season ending on a three-game losing streak.

New MLB Rules Change the Game for Broadcasters Maybe Most of All  —  Just over 6% of the MLB season has been played, and 2023 as a whole still has 72% of its days remaining, but I'm ready to call it: Baseball's rule changes are this year's best innovation in sports.

Phillies' Matt Strahm disagrees with MLB teams extending alcohol sales  —  Several baseball teams have amended their alcohol sale policies in response to shorter game times this season, and at least one major leaguer isn't wild about the change.  —  Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm said during …