O.J. Simpson’s “trial of the century” over the 1994 killings of his ex-wife and her friend bared divisions over race and law enforcement and brought an intersection of sports, crime, entertainment and class that was hard to turn away from.

Thousands of fans have streamed into Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati despite steady rain to pay respects to Pete Rose.

Luis Tiant has died at the age of 83.

Pete Rose still isn’t going into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Pete Rose found a home in Las Vegas, where acceptance wasn’t a problem.

Banished baseball great Pete Rose has died.

A Southern California bookmaker who took thousands of sports bets from the former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani has pleaded guilty to running an illegal gambling business.

Sports and gambling are once again in the spotlight following lifetime bans handed to San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano and Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter.

Bud Harrelson, the scrappy and sure-handed shortstop who fought Pete Rose on the field during a playoff game and helped the New York Mets win an astonishing championship, died early Thursday morning.

Hall of Famer Johnny Bench apologized for an antisemitic comment made at an event to honor former Cincinnati Reds general manager Gabe Paul, who was Jewish, and others.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred has no intention of altering Pete Rose’s lifetime ban from baseball and said the sport’s commercial deals with gambling companies have no impact on the status of the career hits leader.

The Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in Murphy vs.

The Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in Murphy vs.

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens have now been rejected for the Hall of Fame by baseball's writers and several of their peers.

Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling were passed over by a Baseball Hall of Fame committee that elected former big league slugger Fred McGriff to Cooperstown on Sunday.

Steroids-tainted stars Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Rafael Palmeiro are on the eight-man ballot for the Hall of Fame’s contemporary baseball era committee, which meets Dec. 4 in San Diego.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies are set to play the Houston Astros in the World Series.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies are set to play the Houston Astros in the World Series.

Pete Rose dismissed questions about his first appearance on the field in Philadelphia since the franchise scrapped 2017 plans to honor him because of a woman’s claim she had a sexual relationship with baseball’s hit king when she was a minor.

Pete Rose will make an appearance on the field in Philadelphia next month for the first time since receiving a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball.

Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout has struck out in seven straight at-bats during a tough series in Houston.

Albert Pujols will be in the starting lineup for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Pittsburgh Pirates when he begins his final big league season Thursday in what should be an emotional return to Busch Stadium.

Ray Fosse, the strong-armed catcher whose career was upended when he was bowled over by Pete Rose at the 1970 All-Star Game, has died.

Derek Jeter put the finishing touches on his Hall of Fame speech as the plane that carried him to the enshrinement ceremony in Cooperstown, New York, was landing.

Tyler Naquin hit another leadoff home run and the high-scoring Cincinnati Reds kept rolling, backing Luis Castillo to rout the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-4 for their fifth straight win.

Both winless teams in the majors are defending division champions.

Now that Fernando Tatis Jr. has been placed on the injured list, the San Diego Padres hope their electrifying shortstop won’t be sidelined too long.

Like many baseball writers, C. Trent Rosecrans viewed the Hall of Fame vote as a labor of love. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)Like many baseball writers, C. Trent Rosecrans viewed the Hall of Fame vote as a labor of love. Ken Rosenthal, Rosecrans’ colleague with The Athletic, began a recent column this way: “I hate my Hall of Fame ballot. So it remains up to the voters to decide how they’ll weigh off-field issues when evaluating Hall of Fame candidates. Lynn Henning, a former columnist for the Detroit News, understands what makes some of these candidates objectionable — but he doesn’t think the Hall of Fame vote is the right forum for holding them accountable.

FILE - In this Dec. 1, 2020, file photo, the Olympic Symbol is reinstalled after it was taken down for maintenance ahead of the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics, in the Odaiba section in Tokyo. Your 2020 year-end sports quiz awaits. Like much else these days, quizzes will be graded on the curve:JanuaryThe IOC sets conduct guidelines for athletes at the Tokyo Olympics. JulyThe renamed Washington Football Team might get another rebrand. ___Answers: January (b); February (a); March (b); April (a); May (c); June (b); July (c); August (a); September (a); October (b); November (b); December (c).

File-This Jan. 28, 2020, file photo shows a remembrance board at a memorial for Kobe Bryant near Staples Center in Los Angeles. LeBron, on court, gives heartfelt shout,A declaration: “Mamba out.”Sports still reeling by Super Bowl,Where Patrick Mahomes takes control. Defying odds, even reason,Baseball makes it through its season,Leaving summer and into fall --Bob Gibson ’s time, October ball. Through it all, a truth emerges:Games go on while COVID surgesAnd records fall, that much is clear --Consider Tara VanDerveer. But we’ll toast, of course, don’t think twice --Take a deep breath and roll the dice.

And to his star-powered teammates, Joe Morgan was a driving force, too. “Joe Morgan was quite simply the best baseball player I played against or saw,” Reds Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench texted to The Associated Press. The Reds decided to dismantle the Big Red Machine, prompting Morgan to also leave. Morgan also was board vice chairman of baseball's Hall of Fame and on the board of the Baseball Assistance Team. ″Bench probably had the most raw baseball ability of any of us,” Morgan said before his Hall of Fame induction.

Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan has died. And to his star-powered teammates, Joe Morgan was a driving force, too. “Joe Morgan was quite simply the best baseball player I played against or saw,” Reds Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench texted to The Associated Press. “Small in stature like his idol Nellie Fox, Joe played every game at the highest level. ″Bench probably had the most raw baseball ability of any of us,” Morgan said before his Hall of Fame induction.

FILE - In this June 12, 2016 file photo, former New York Yankees pitcher Whitey Ford waves to fans from outside the dugout at the Yankees' annual Old Timers Day baseball game in New York. A family member tells The Associated Press on Friday, Oct. 9, 2020 that Ford died at his Long Island home Thursday night. Ford won 236 games and lost just 106, a winning percentage of .690. Ford holds records for World Series wins (10), games and starts (22), innings pitched (146) and strikeouts (94). Ford won 18 games in his first season back and never won fewer than 11 for 13 straight seasons.

(AP Photo, File)It was the summer of 1963, Bob Gibson was already well on his way to establishing himself as one of the most fearsome, intimidating pitchers in big league history. As Rose recalls that night in St. Louis, he was playing second base when Gibson hit a double early in the game. “He just walks by and says, ‘It was a slider, rook.‘”The baseball world and beyond was talking about the great Bob Gibson, a day after the Hall of Fame ace died at 84 in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. No way to even imagine that in this era: Nine starts in the World Series, eight complete games, including a 10-inning win over Mickey Mantle and the Yankees. Rose, without looking it up, knew he hit .307 lifetime against Gibson, going 35 for 114.

(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)Major League Baseball had its fullest schedule in nearly a half-century Friday with 20 games set to be played, including five doubleheaders caused by postponements for weather, the coronavirus and protests of racial injustice. The last time 20 games were on the schedule was Aug. 4, 1974, when there were nine doubleheaders, the Elias Sports Bureau said. There were 12 complete games thrown that day, including nine-inning efforts by Catfish Hunter, Luis Tiant and Dave McNally. Only three of those 20 games back then took over 2 hours, 40 minutes. On Friday, the Blue Jays needed 2:42 for Torontos 8-7 win in seven innings at Fenway Park.

Bard had not pitched in the major leagues since 2013, and after his control and confidence deserted him, his playing career appeared over before he attempted a comeback this year. He was back in the bullpen for Cleveland in September and took the mound Sunday as a starter, beating Kansas City. TRIVIA TIMEThis season's opener between the Washington Nationals and New York Yankees on Thursday night was baseball's most-watched regular-season game in nine years. MILESTONESAlbert Pujols of the Angels became the fifth player to start a season opener in 20 straight years, joining Pete Rose, Carl Yastrzemski, Eddie Murray and Frank Robinson. TRIVIA ANSWERBrett Gardner had three hits and two steals for the Yankees in the 2011 game.

Oakland Athletics players celebrate after Matt Olson, center left, hit a grand slam home run against the Los Angeles Angels in the tenth inning a baseball game in Oakland, Calif., Friday, July 24, 2020. According to STATS, Olson became the third player to hit a walkoff grand slam on opening day. The game went to the 10th tied at 3 after Jason Castros tying homer in the ninth against As closer Liam Hendriks. The Angels didn't deliver a win for Maddon in his Angels managerial debut. UP NEXTLHP Sean Manaea, who went 4-0 last season in September after returning from shoulder surgery before losing the wild card game, pitches Saturday opposite Angels RHP Dylan Bundy.

CINCINNATI Marge Schott's slurs and other offensive comments while she owned the Cincinnati Reds have organizations in her hometown reconsidering the use of her name on facilities that benefited from her donations. Her name is featured on many facilities, from the Cincinnati Zoo to a baseball stadium on the University of Cincinnati's campus. Schott ran a car dealership in Cincinnati before buying controlling interest in the Reds, one of the city's most treasured entities. She donated $2 million for a 3,085-seat baseball stadium at the University of Cincinnati that has her name on the exterior. He tweeted that he once had an opportunity to have the field at Marge Schott Stadium named for him.