Tim Duncan will serve as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night, replacing Gregg Popovich, who will miss the game against the Charlotte Hornets because of personal business, the team announced.

Duncan spent his entire 19-year career with the Spurs and has been an assistant coach since July 2019.

He will not address the media before or after the game, instead letting assistant coach Will Hardy handle those duties.

Duncan won five NBA championships with the Spurs and will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame later this year.

Superstar outfielder Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers are deep into discussions on a contract extension expected to run nine years and be worth approximately $215 million, sources confirmed to ESPN.

Both sides believe that the deal, which will run through the 2028 season and includes a mutual option for the 2029 season, will get done, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan. Yelich would make $12.5 million in 2020 and $14 million in 2021 under terms of the existing deal, then a new seven-year extension worth $190 million would kick in, sources told ESPN.

The Athletic was the first to report that the two sides are close to an extension.

Yelich, the 2018 National League MVP, won his second straight NL batting title last season.

The 28-year-old outfielder finished behind the Los Angeles Dodgers' Cody Bellinger in 2019 MVP voting when Yelich hit .329 with 44 homers, 97 RBIs and an 1.100 OPS in 130 games. His season was cut short when he fouled a pitch off his right kneecap on Sept. 10, breaking it.

The Brewers plan to shift him from right field back to left field this season, creating a spot in right for newly signed Avisail Garcia. Yelich won a Gold Glove in left with the Miami Marlins in 2014.

In 2018, Yelich hit .326 with 36 homers, 110 RBIs and a 1.000 OPS in his MVP season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

JUPITER, Fla. -- Andrew Miller has lost control, and neither he nor the Cardinals know why.

The two-time All-Star and 2016 ALCS MVP with Cleveland will be sidelined for an undetermined amount of time as he tries to regain the feel for his pitches.

"The sensation I have throwing a baseball now just isn't consistent with what it is when I know I'm good," Miller said.

Miller struggles to describe the feeling he experiences when releasing the ball. It's not pain. There's no burning or tingling. It simply doesn't feel right.

Scheduled to pitch in relief Monday, Miller cut short his warm-up after several tosses badly missed his target.

"I wasn't worried about hurting myself," Miller said. "The stuff that's been bothering me and I've been trying to work through, it just wasn't getting better."

That outing followed a wild Grapefruit League debut Friday during which Miller allowed one run in one inning while hitting two batters, including Tim Tebow.

Miller said the issue dates to last season, his first with St. Louis, and contributed to his disappointing 5-6 record and 4.45 ERA. He's entering the final year of a two-year free-agent contract worth $25 million, with a club option for 2021.

"There's not an incident or moment when something happened and you can really point to something," Miller said. "Whatever it is, it's been gradual to get there."

Miller said his arm and shoulder feel fine and aren't experiencing weakness. He spent Tuesday undergoing tests.

"In some ways it's good that there's no clear-cut pain," Miller said. "In other ways it's frustrating because, what is it?"

Entering spring training, Miller was among a handful of relievers who could have emerged as the Cardinals' closer, but he seemed destined to reprise his setup role as a lefty capable of throwing multiple innings.

Miller is weary of trying to pitch through the issue without having any idea of the cause.

"Last year was a challenge," Miller said. "Even before that, you keep waiting, you keep putting the work in and hoping you kind of pull through the fog and you can do what you expect from yourself. It's just been an incredible grind."

The injury news is significantly better for Kwang Hyun Kim. Groin tightness prompted the offseason signee from Korea to skip Monday's scheduled start and throw a bullpen instead.

Kim emerged healthy from that session and is now scheduled to start one of the Cardinals' games on Thursday.

Manager Mike Shildt said the Cardinals aren't overly concerned about the split fingernail that forced Genesis Cabrera, Kim's replacement starter Monday, from that game.

Only one World Series favorite entering the season actually won the World Series in the decade we just completed. Wait, let's put that another way: A team that was one of the top five favorites entering the season won the World Series only once over the past decade.

The 2019 Washington Nationals didn't necessarily feel like a surprise champ, given the star-laden nature of the team and their many playoff appearances throughout the decade, but they were coming off a mediocre 82-80 season, had lost Bryce Harper in free agency and entered the season just ninth among World Series favorites, according to the betting odds.

Here are the final preseason odds for the decade's champions, via sportsoddshistory.com, along with where that team's odds ranked among the 30 franchises, the team's win total from the previous season and how much it improved during its championship year:

2019 Nationals: +1600, ninth (82, +11)
2018 Red Sox: +1150, seventh (93, +15)
2017 Astros: +1175, sixth (84, +17)
2016 Cubs: +660, first (97, +6)
2015 Royals: +3300, 18th (89, +6)
2014 Giants: +2500, 13th (76, +12)
2013 Red Sox: +2800, 14th (69, +28)
2012 Giants: +2000, seventh (86, +8)
2011 Cardinals: +2500, 10th (86, +4)
2010 Giants: +2500, 11th (88, +4)

Only two of the 10 championship teams won 90 games the season before. This doesn't mean the Yankees, Dodgers or Astros -- the current top three favorites -- won't win the World Series this year. It doesn't even suggest the postseason is a complete crapshoot; after all, the 2016 Cubs, 2017 Astros and 2018 Red Sox each won more than 100 games (and the 2019 Astros might have been a fourth straight 100-win champ if Howie Kendrick hadn't hit that improbable home run off Will Harris in Game 7 of the World Series).

It does suggest, however, that predicting the World Series winner in March is not easy. As powerful as the Dodgers, Yankees or Astros look right now, over the past 10 years, only the 2016 Cubs looked like a superteam heading into the season and ended up raising the piece of metal in October.

With that in mind, we ask what team is this year's Nationals? What team might be this year's surprise champ?

First off, let's eliminate two groups of teams:

Last year's 90-win teams: Astros, Dodgers, Yankees, Twins, Braves, A's, Rays, Nationals, Indians, Cardinals. Of those 10 teams, the Indians currently have the longest betting odds at +3000, ranking 18th. (Personally, I'll take the Rays at +2500.)

This year's bad teams: Two of the above World Series winners had losing seasons the previous year, and the 2012 Red Sox won just 69 games. Going back even earlier, eight other teams in the division era (since 1969) won the World Series coming off a losing season: 2003 Marlins (79 wins), 2002 Angels (75), 1997 Marlins (80), 1991 Twins (74), 1990 Reds (75), 1988 Dodgers (73), 1987 Twins (71), 1969 Mets (73).

Nonetheless, the vast majority of 71- or 73-win teams do not reach the playoffs the next season, let alone win it all. For 2020, I don't see a road to the World Series for the following teams, which also are the seven teams with the longest betting odds: Tigers, Orioles, Marlins, Royals, Mariners, Giants and Pirates.

Here is a look at some of the elements that have boosted the recent championship teams and how this year's potential surprise contenders fit in.

Keep the rotation healthy

The first step to winning the World Series is making the postseason. The Nationals tied for the eighth-most wins in the majors last season, but that got them in the tournament. To make the postseason, an overlooked precept is simply to have your starting pitchers stay healthy. One thing I like to look at is how many starts a team got from its four most-used starters. If you get to 120, that means those four averaged 30 starts apiece. That's the goal.

The Nationals got 123 starts in 2019 from Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin, Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer, with only Scherzer missing a chunk of time. They never really did solve the No. 5 spot in the rotation, but that's common for most teams. Keep your top four healthy and you have a good foundation for a successful season.

Here's how the past 10 champs fared in this area:

2019 Nationals: 123
2018 Red Sox: 113
2017 Astros: 98
2016 Cubs: 123
2015 Royals: 109
2014 Giants: 122
2013 Red Sox: 118
2012 Giants: 128
2011 Cardinals: 129
2010 Giants: 132

Only the 2017 Astros had a major scramble with their rotation as Mike Fiers led the team with 28 starts and seven pitchers made at least 12 starts. Of course, the Astros also made a key August addition to the rotation in Justin Verlander.

Teams that fit here:

1. New York Mets. The Mets obviously have the makings of an outstanding rotation with two-time reigning Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman, Steven Matz and Rick Porcello, with Michael Wacha in reserve. The first five guys all made at least 30 starts last season, and FanGraphs projects the Mets with the second-best rotation in the majors (behind the Nationals). The Mets won 86 games last season, so it doesn't take much improvement to get them into playoff range.

2. Arizona Diamondbacks. Coming off an 85-win season, the rotation figures to be the strength of the team. Madison Bumgarner joins Robbie Ray, Zac Gallen, Luke Weaver, Mike Leake and Merrill Kelly. Weaver missed time last season, but the others were all healthy. FanGraphs is only lukewarm on this group, ranking it 21st, but that seems low given that all except Kelly project to 2.0 WAR or higher (meaning an average major league starter). Maybe the ceiling is somewhat limited -- although I love Gallen, and Ray's stuff remains tantalizing -- but this rotation has a very high floor.

3. Texas Rangers. The Rangers went 78-84 in 2019 even though three-fifths of their rotation was a disaster. Mike Minor and Lance Lynn were terrific, but Ariel Jurado was third on the team with 18 starts -- and he had a 5.81 ERA. Enter Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson and Jordan Lyles. If Kluber bounces back from his injury-shortened season and Minor and Lynn pitch well again, that's a dynamic top three. Then all they would need is for Gibson and Lyles to remain healthy. I have concerns about Texas' offense, and the AL West is tough at the top with Houston and Oakland, but the Rangers' rotation could anchor a surprise team.

Teams that don't fit here:

1. Los Angeles Angels. The Angels have perhaps the worst track record in recent years in keeping a rotation together. The Angels didn't have a single pitcher make 20 starts in 2019 and have had just 10 pitchers make 20 starts over the past five seasons -- and that's 10 different pitchers. The Angels brought in Julio Teheran and Dylan Bundy to hopefully add 60 starts, but Griffin Canning is already sidelined with a sore elbow. Canning said his recent MRI showed "normal wear and tear," but if he starts the season on the injured list, it will mark his third IL stint for elbow discomfort since August.

2. Boston Red Sox. Boston's top three starters are Chris Sale, who has missed time each of the past two seasons; Nathan Eovaldi, who made just 12 starts last year; and Eduardo Rodriguez, who made 34 starts and pitched 203⅓ innings last season but cleared 24 starts for the first time since his rookie season in 2015. After that, you get to Martin Perez and ... Ryan Weber? This team needs 90 starts from Sale, Eovaldi and Rodriguez and has to hope somebody steps up as the No. 4 guy.

Have an MVP candidate ... or two

The Nationals lost Harper for 2019, but Anthony Rendon had his best season, hitting .312/.412/.598, leading the majors with 126 RBIs and finishing third in NL MVP voting. Juan Soto finished ninth in the MVP voting. All 10 of our champs had a top-10 MVP finisher -- including four guys who won:

2019 Nationals: Rendon, 6.3 WAR (third in voting)
2018 Red Sox: Mookie Betts, 10.9 (first)
2017 Astros: Jose Altuve, 8.1 (first)
2016 Cubs: Kris Bryant, 7.4 (first)
2015 Royals: Lorenzo Cain, 7.2 (third)
2014 Giants: Buster Posey, 5.4 (sixth)
2013 Red Sox: Dustin Pedroia, 6.3 (seventh)
2012 Giants: Buster Posey, 7.6 (first)
2011 Cardinals: Albert Pujols, 5.3 (fifth)
2010 Giants: Aubrey Huff, 5.7 (seventh)

Teams that fit here:

1. Los Angeles Angels. With Mike Trout and now Rendon, the Angels have perhaps the best 1-2 combo in the game. Since his rookie season of 2012, Trout has had just three other 5-WAR position players as teammates: Andrelton Simmons, who did it twice but primarily because of his glove, Torii Hunter way back in 2012 and Howie Kendrick in 2014. Trout has never had a teammate with a .900 OPS. In large part because of Trout and Rendon, FanGraphs ranks the Angels fourth in projected position-player WAR.

2. San Diego Padres. If you want to dream on the Padres, dream on the 1-2 dazzling duo of Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado. Tatis was worth 4.2 WAR in 84 games in his exhilarating rookie season. That's 7.5 WAR over 150 games. Machado had an up-and-down first season with the Padres and was worth only 3.1 WAR, but from 2015 to 2018, he averaged 5.8 WAR per season.

3. Colorado Rockies. Nolan Arenado is an annual MVP candidate, but Trevor Story led Arenado in Baseball-Reference WAR in 2019 (6.4 to 5.7) and matched him in 2018 (5.6). Story finished eighth and 12th in the MVP voting the past two seasons.

Teams that don't fit here:

1. Cincinnati Reds. The rotation has a chance to be very good, which is why the Reds are at +2,000, the same as the Rays and Angels and better than the Brewers and Twins. They added Mike Moustakas and Nick Castellanos, but those aren't MVP-type players, and neither is Joey Votto anymore. The highest projected WAR for a Reds position player is Eugenio Suarez at 3.3, and he just started rehab after shoulder surgery. Suarez did hit 49 home runs last year and had 4.5 WAR, but that got him to just 15th in the MVP voting.

2. Toronto Blue Jays. Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are certainly impressive young talents, but MVP-level talents as sophomores? That feels like a stretch. Bichette was amazing in his 46-game stint (.311/.358/.571), but the ZiPS projection brings him down to .276/.335/.472 and 3.3 WAR. Vladdy Jr. needs to improve his pitch selection and launch angle to tap into his raw power. FanGraphs isn't buying the Toronto rotation -- No. 26 in projected WAR -- so the Jays will need Bichette and Guerrero to be big stars. I think that's more likely in 2021 than 2020.

Sign a big free agent

The Nationals lost Harper but signed Patrick Corbin, who went 14-7 with a 3.25 ERA and 5.7 WAR -- oh, and tossed three scoreless innings in relief in Game 7 of the World Series. Corbin was both good and expensive ($140 million). You don't always have to pay big, but most of our World Series winners made a significant addition in free agency:

2019 Nationals: Corbin (5.7 WAR)
2018 Red Sox: J.D. Martinez (6.4)
2017 Astros: Josh Reddick (4.1)
2016 Cubs: Ben Zobrist (3.7)
2015 Royals: Edinson Volquez (2.6)
2014 Giants: Tim Hudson (1.2)
2013 Red Sox: Shane Victorino (6.1)
2012 Giants: Gregor Blanco (2.1)
2011 Cardinals: Lance Berkman (3.8)
2010 Giants: Aubrey Huff (5.7)

Teams that fit here:

1. Los Angeles Angels. Back to Rendon. It's not just that Rendon is great, but that he filled a big hole in the lineup as Angels third basemen hit just .243/.306/.345 in 2019.

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2. Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies were tied for 23rd in the majors in starting pitcher WAR last year, so Zack Wheeler fills a need, but he also has the upside to do better than the 3.96 ERA he posted for the Mets. They'll still need better results from Jake Arrieta and Zach Eflin, but Wheeler and Aaron Nola provide the starting point for a good rotation.

3. Chicago White Sox. The White Sox added Yasmani Grandal, Edwin Encarnacion, Dallas Keuchel and Gio Gonzalez in free agency. White Sox DHs hit a putrid .205/.285/.356 in 2019, so Encarnacion projects as a big improvement there, but Grandal is the big signing. With Grandal and James McCann, the White Sox project to have the best catching in the majors (5.2 WAR).

Teams that don't fit here:

1. Colorado Rockies. They didn't sign a single free agent to a major league contract.

2. Chicago Cubs. They gave $1 million deals to Jason Kipnis, Steven Souza Jr. and Hernan Perez. At least Souza could surprise. When he was last healthy, in 2017, he had a 4-WAR season for Tampa Bay.

Hey, we just had a bad season

Sure, the Nationals won just 82 games in 2018, but their talent level was obviously much higher. They had won 97 games in 2017 and 95 games in 2016. They should have won more games in 2018, as their Pythagorean record was 90-72. Based on runs scored and runs allowed, they underperformed by eight wins. This theory applies more to the Nationals than the other teams on the list, but the Astros had made the playoffs two seasons before their title year and the Giants see-sawed between championships and nonplayoff seasons.

Teams that fit here:

1. Chicago Cubs. The Cubs finished 84-78, six wins under their Pythagorean record. They were just two games out in mid-September before they collapsed with a nine-game losing streak. Also, the second-tier players were awful in 2019. Take out the core five (Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Kyle Schwarber, Willson Contreras) and here's how many runs above or below average the rest of the offense was in recent seasons:

2016: minus-11
2017: plus-4
2018: plus-6
2019: minus-50

If the second-tier players aren't so awful and the bullpen is a little more clutch, the Cubs have strong bounce-back potential.

2. Boston Red Sox. The eventual champs won 108 games in 2018, and even if that was simply a year when everything came together, they also won 93 games in 2017 and 2016. Of course, bouncing back without Mookie Betts will be more difficult.

3. Colorado Rockies. Remember, they lost the division to the Dodgers in 2018 in a tiebreaker. They won a wild card in 2017. Maybe the talent level is much higher than their 71-91 performance in 2019. Or maybe it isn't.

Teams that don't fit here:

1. Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies made all those moves last season and still finished .500. Sure, Wheeler should help, but this is neither a young team ready to make a leap (like the 2016 Cubs or 2017 Astros) nor a team just looking to bounce back from a bad season. They haven't finished above .500 since 2011.

2. Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers actually made the playoffs last year but qualify for this article because they won 89 games. In some ways, the Brewers can be compared to the 2015 Royals, who had also won 89 games and a wild card in 2014 (and reached Game 7 of the World Series). The Royals were dismissed in part because they had lost their best starter in James Shields (14-8, 3.21 ERA), much like the Brewers are being overlooked in part because they lost Grandal and Moustakas. The Royals, however, made a lot of smaller moves in the 2014-15 offseason: adding Edinson Volquez, Kendry Morales, Luke Hochevar, Ryan Madson and then Ben Zobrist and Johnny Cueto in-season. The Brewers have similarly looked to replace Grandal and Moustakas with a series of smaller moves. Oh, and they also have an MVP candidate in Christian Yelich to lead the offense.

So who will be this year's Nationals?

Here are the three sleeper teams I like:

1. Mets (+1800, eighth). With that rotation, the likelihood of a better season from Edwin Diaz and the addition of Dellin Betances to improve the bullpen, plus Polar Bear Pete Alonso anchoring the lineup (and maybe even the return of Yoenis Cespedes), the Mets have all the ingredients ... if they don't find a way to screw it up, as the Mets so often do.

2. Angels (+2000, ninth). Do I like the rotation? Not really. Do I like the bullpen? I have some concerns. Is the AL tough at the top? Yes, it is. But the Angels have a high floor with Trout and Rendon, a potential impact rookie in Jo Adell and maybe, just maybe, Shohei Ohtani pitching like an ace come October.

3. Diamondbacks (+3000, 18th). Look, beating out the Dodgers in the NL West feels almost impossible -- FanGraphs gives the odds at just 1.9% -- and most of the projected standings have them third in the division behind the Padres. I like the depth in the rotation, however, and Ketel Marte was an MVP candidate a year ago. It's a good defensive team, Starling Marte was a solid addition and Eduardo Escobar is coming off a 35-homer season.

So, whom do you like?

British number two Heather Watson let a 4-1 final-set lead slip in her Monterrey Open first-round match against Germany's Tatjana Maria.

Watson, 27, led 4-1 in all three sets but only converted one of those leads as she lost 7-6 (7-4) 3-6 7-5.

The world number 49 was unable to continue her winning streak after lifting the Acapulco title last week.

Defeat ended the possibility of a potential second-round match against British number one Johanna Konta.

Konta, 28, plays in one of the most intriguing matches of the first round, when she faces four-time Grand Slam champion Kim Clijsters in the second match of the 36-year-old's comeback.

The Belgian, who retired for the second time in 2012, produced a remarkable display in her return last month when she pushed Australian Open finalist Garbine Muguruza before losing 6-2 7-6 (8-6).

Clijsters will face the Briton, who is ranked 16th in the world and seeded second in Monterrey, later on Tuesday in Mexico (about 01:00 GMT, Wednesday).

World No.1’s fury at disciplinary verdict handed out before Windy City Open loss to Paul Coll
By ROD GILMOUR – Squash Mad Correspondent

Mohamed Elshorbagy, Egypt’s Bristol-based world No 1, has launched an explosive attack on the Professional Squash Association (PSA) after being sent a disciplinary email by the players’ body hours before losing at the ongoing Windy City Open in Chicago.

Elshorbagy, who has lived in the west country of England since he first came over as a 15-year-old to attend Millfield School, admitted the falling out in a 10-minute Facebook video today, during which he also revealed that he could not travel to Egypt during 2020.

The Egyptian lost his quarter-final match to New Zealand’s Paul Coll on Monday night before being interviewed by the PSA. But Elshorbagy said that the interview was not made public and claimed that the decision was made by Lee Beachill, the former world No 1 who is now the PSA’s chief operating officer.

Elshorbagy said: “I found that surprising. I’m not someone who makes excuses when they lose, but what happened to me in this event has been very unfair and people need to know.”

As a top eight player he is obliged to play in the PSA Tour’s platinum events. As such, Elshorbagy, coached for several years by the great Jonah Barrington, revealed that he sent an email on February 10 to the PSA board outlining why he could not play in major events in Egypt in 2020.

Elshorbagy, who did not reveal why he can’t travel to Egypt, said that he had not received a reply by the time he travelled out for the $250,000 tournament in Chicago.

According to Elshorbagy, he subsequently received an email from the PSA board the day before Monday’s match against Coll. It is understood that Shorbagy was handed a “disciplinary zero”. The Egyptian stated that it would now be “a miracle” to keep his world No 1 ranking.

He said: “I can live with the decision but how can they send me it the day before the quarter-final of a major? I couldn’t sleep before the match and the way it was handled was very unprofessional.”

Ali Farag, the world No.2 and Elshorbagy’s rival, is one of nine PSA board members and the email outlined that his fellow Egyptian had abstained from the board vote.

However, Elshorbagy accused the PSA of a “huge conflict of interest” after the email was sent by its chairman Ziad Al Turki, who also sponsors Farag.

Referring to his non-broadcasted video, Elshorbagy added: “Why was I not allowed to say the truth? I’m very disappointed in going to a match and my preparation being completely messed. None of us deserve to be treated this way during a major event.”

It was later confirmed by the PSA that ElShorbagy had revealed (in the interview that was not broadcast) that Egyptian males aged 19 to 34 face conscription. Athletes and celebrities based overseas can avoid the call-up by paying 50,000 dollars every time they return home to Egypt.

It’s an unofficial deal the government have with business and sports stars, although Liverpool footballer Mo Salah has been given a special dispensation by the Prime Minister.

ElShorbagy played in Egypt only once a year last year, and in 2018 and 2017. In 2016 he played in two events in Egypt. 

Adding a further twist, the PSA received praise on social media last night for broadcasting an interview with American No.1 Amanda Sobhy, who accused Egyptian Nouran Gohar of deliberately blocking her path to the ball and criticised match referee Wayne Smith for failing to spot these alleged incidents.

Sobhy later qualified her remarks by saying that she did not wish to discredit Gohar as a player. 

ElShorbagy said he assumed that because PSA Board member Daryl Selby (who represents Sobhy) had applauded the revealing tone of Sobhy’s interview that he would have also stuck up for the comments made by ElShorbagy.

Pictures courtesy of PSA

WEST ORANGE, N.J. – Lincoln Educational Services Corp., a national leader in specialized automotive training, announced Tuesday that Lincoln Tech has been chosen as the official technical school of Arrow McLaren SP.

This will mark the fourth consecutive year that Lincoln Tech is sponsoring the team, continuing a long relationship with co-owner Sam Schmidt.

A major component of the associate sponsorship agreement is the Mentorship Program, which allows five Lincoln Tech students to be selected from across the country to join the Arrow McLaren SP team as members of the pit crew for each of five races this season.

Lincoln Tech’s logo will also be displayed on the No. 7 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, driven by rookie Oliver Askew.  Askew makes his NTT IndyCar Series debut this season following successful runs in the USF2000 Championship Series in 2017, the Pro Mazda Championship Series in 2018 and then winning the Indy Lights Series Championship in 2019.

“We’ve seen year after year how our students benefit from the experience of working with this team, and we’re honored to once again sponsor Arrow McLaren SP,” says Lincoln Tech President and CEO Scott Shaw.  “This year, to serve as their official tech school, makes it even more special.  For almost 75 years Lincoln schools have helped students build careers in the auto industry – and what better way to experience ‘auto technology’ than in the pit of a real IndyCar racing team?”

As an associate sponsor since 2017 the relationship has grown into a cooperative partnership between Lincoln and Arrow McLaren SP.  Students selected for the Mentorship Program will have the opportunity to attend team meetings, meet the team’s drivers, run tires, assist with basic car prep and maintenance, and shadow front end crew member Cole Jagger – himself a graduate of Lincoln Tech’s Indianapolis campus. In addition, students in the Indianapolis campus’ computerized manufacturing program have been assisting the team by machining components for Arrow McLaren SP’s race cars.

“Through our extended partnership with Lincoln Tech we are able to stay one step ahead of our competitors, not only through Lincoln Tech’s manufacturing resource but, most importantly, as a talent pipeline,” said Taylor Kiel, Managing Director of Arrow McLaren SP.  “Our close proximity to the Indianapolis campus has provided us an opportunity to engage their students and resources in creative and meaningful ways which have positively impacted our organization on and off track.  I’m also proud to say that through our partnership, we have hired multiple Lincoln Tech graduates that are contributing members of our race-winning organization and we look forward to identifying the next one.”

SOUTHLAKE, Texas – Sportscar Vintage Racing Ass’n announced Tuesday that NASCAR champions Mike Skinner and Johnny Benson have filed entries for the Vintage Race of Champions Charity Pro-Am at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

The VROC competition is part of the March 26–29 SpeedTour Road Atlanta Grand Prix weekend.

“Mike and Johnny have become good friends to SVRA,” said SVRA President and CEO and majority owner of the Trans-Am Co., Tony Parella. “Mike has been a regular at our SpeedTour race meets the last two years, and I love how both he and Johnny have embraced our SVRA vintage racing code of camaraderie.”

Skinner is the defending champion of the Road Atlanta VROC Pro-Am, having scored the victory over Al Unser Jr. there last year. He remained in the hunt for the VROC A-Production championship through the final race of the season at Virginia Int’l Raceway in September.

Skinner has 28 race wins and 50 poles in NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series competition. In 1995, he delivered the Truck Series championship for legendary team owner Richard Childress, scoring 16 victories with the black No. 3 Goodwrench Truck across two seasons. By 1997, Childress promoted him to join the great Dale Earnhardt as his teammate in the NASCAR Cup series. He again delivered, winning the 1997 rookie title, as well as six pole positions and a pair of exhibition race wins in Japan in the following seasons.

In 2013, he was recognized for his accomplishments when he was inducted into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. Skinner has continued his career competing on the world-famous hill climb at the Goodwood Festival of Speed where he holds the record for the NASCAR class and has been voted “Driver of the Event” by the Duke of Richmond on three occasions. Skinner competes with SVRA and in other races as well as hosting the radio show, “Skinner Round-Up” with his wife Angie on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Benson has 18 NASCAR race victories with one in Cup, three in Xfinity, and 14 in Trucks. He earned Xfinity and Truck championships in 1995 and 2008, respectively. Benson is one of 37 drivers to have won a race in all three of NASCAR’s major series – Cup, Xfinity, and Trucks. Three drivers have won championships in Xfinity and Trucks – Benson, Greg Biffle and Austin Dillon.

Early in his career, Benson also scored an American Speed Ass’n championship in 1993. As a result of his success, Benson represented the Xfinity series in the 1996 IROC invitational, finishing third in the season standings. Early in his career, he also scored an American Speed Association (ASA) championship in 1993. He was ASA rookie-of-the-year in 1990, and also won the same honor after stepping up to the Cup series in 1996.

One of the league's hottest offenses will get a boost on Tuesday night when Edmonton forward James Neal returns from a foot injury in time for the Oilers' game vs. the Stars in Dallas.

Edmonton, which did not have a morning skate in Dallas, announced Tuesday afternoon it had activated Neal, 32, off injured reserve. He has been out since Jan. 29. He has 19 goals and 29 points in 50 games this season, his first with the Oilers. Neal has 289 goals and 543 points in his career.

It's the second game in as many nights in which Edmonton will welcome back a key forward. On Monday, in a convincing 8-3 win over the Predators in Nashville, right wing Kailer Yamamoto returned from an ankle injury and posted two points in the win.

Edmonton has 11 goals in the past two games, and has points in four of the last five games. As play begins Tuesday, the Oilers are in second place in the Pacific Division with 78 points, two behind Vegas.