Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander added to his already lengthy Hall of Fame résumé on Wednesday, when he was announced as this year's American League Cy Young Award winner, edging teammate Gerrit Cole.

Verlander received 17 first-place votes compared to 13 for Cole in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Tampa Bay Rays righty Charlie Morton finished third a year after leaving Houston in free agency.

Results are tabulated on a system that rewards seven points for first place, four points for second place, three points for third place, two votes for fourth place and one point for fifth place.

Verlander, 36, became the 20th pitcher to win multiple Cy Young Awards. He won in 2011 with Detroit after a season for which he also took home AL MVP honors. Since then, he'd been a runner-up three times. The eight years between Cy Young wins is the longest span in the history of the award.

"The adversity I went through puts a new perspective on everything,'' he said. "I mean, still would've liked to have won a couple of them.''

Verlander went 21-6 while leading the AL in wins and innings pitched (223). He finished second to Cole in ERA (2.58) and strikeouts (300).

The 300-strikeout season was the first of Verlander's illustrious career. He struck out his 3,000th career hitter in his final regular-season start against the Angels on Sept. 28, becoming the 18th pitcher to reach that milestone. On Sept. 1, he became the sixth pitcher to throw at least three no-hitters with his 14-strikeout no-no at Toronto.

Verlander and Don Newcombe are the only players to have won Rookie of the Year, a Cy Young Award and MVP.

Verlander teamed with Cole to become the first duo to win 20 games and strike out 300 batters for the same team since Arizona's Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling in 2002. Verlander is the fourth Astros pitcher to win a Cy Young Award and the second since Houston moved to the American League. Dallas Keuchel took AL honors in 2015, and Roger Clemens (2004) and Mike Scott (1986) won the award when the Astros were in the National League.

With New York's CC Sabathia retiring, Verlander becomes the active leader in most major pitching categories. His 225 wins are 20 more than that of teammate Zack Greinke, and his 3,006 strikeouts are 314 more than that of Washington's Max Scherzer. Verlander is also the career leader in innings (2,982), starts (453) and wins above replacement for pitchers (71.4).

The only blotch on Verlander's 2019 record was the continuation of his long-standing troubles in the World Series. He lost both of his starts against the Washington Nationals, giving up seven runs in 11 innings. Verlander is 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in seven Fall Classic starts -- the most winless starts by a pitcher in Series history.

For all he has done, Verlander might be at it for a while. He reiterated a couple of times this season that he's still hoping to ply his trade until age 45, which would put him well in line to become baseball's next 300-game winner.

His goal this offseason is to add velocity to his top-end fastball. He's thinking about using weighted balls and other new-age throwing techniques.

"I will always try to push the boundaries of what I can do,'' Verlander said. "If my body says, 'Hold on, you can't do that anymore,' then I'll pull back.''

Cole, 29, went 20-5 while leading the AL in ERA (2.50) and strikeouts (326), the latter the most in baseball since Randy Johnson struck out 334 in 2002. But he was more than pure power: Cole walked just 48 batters on the season, giving him a remarkable 6.79 strikeouts for every walk.

The breakout season continued a career resurgence for Cole that began when he was acquired in a 2018 trade by the Astros from the Pittsburgh Pirates, who selected him first overall in the 2011 draft. Cole was 59-42 with a 3.50 ERA and 8.4 strikeouts per nine innings at the time of the trade. During two seasons with the analytics-driven Astros, he went 35-10 with a 2.68 ERA and 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

After losing to the White Sox on May 22, Cole began a remarkable streak that lasted all the way to Game 1 of the World Series. He went 25 starts without a loss, including the postseason, going 19-0 in that span, with a 1.59 ERA and 258 strikeouts in 169⅓ innings. Finally, his streak was broken when he lost to the Nationals on Oct. 22.

Cole became a free agent after the season, and based on his age and the strength of his past two campaigns, it is widely believed that he will land the largest pitching contract in baseball history.

"I know that Gerrit had a great time playing here and I know he would like to return, if possible,'' Verlander said. "But that is now on Gerrit and his family and people above me.''

Morton, who turned 36 on Tuesday, provided crucial stability for a Rays rotation that was beset by injuries. Morton's 194⅔ innings was 53 more than that of any other pitcher on the Tampa Bay staff. Among the injured was lefty Blake Snell, who took home AL Cy Young honors in 2018 before being limited to 107 innings in 23 starts this season.

Of course, you don't become a Cy Young finalist based on innings alone. Morton went 16-6, setting a career mark for wins, and posted personal bests in ERA (3.05) and strikeouts (240). The strong campaign continued a late-career surge for the righty, who had won 10 games just once in his first nine big league seasons. He has won at least 14 games in each of the past three seasons.

Morton teamed with Verlander and Cole in the Astros' rotation after the latter was acquired in 2018. He left Houston after the season for a two-year, $30 million deal with the Rays.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A new World Champion to be crowned after Marwan stops elder brother Mohamed
By ALEX WAN – Squash Mad Asian Bureau Editor

There would be a new name etched onto the World Championships trophy on Friday after Mohamed ElShorbagy was beaten by his own younger brother Marwan in a see saw match that went to the wire today. With the exit of Mohamed and Karim Abdel Gawad the previous round, all former World Champions are now out of the running for the coveted prize.

In what is only his fourth win over the elder ElShorbagy, Marwan played some exceptional squash for most parts of the match to deserve such a victory on the biggest stage of the game. It has to be said it was somewhat unconventional the flow of the match, with Marwan working very hard for the three games he won, while Mohamed simply waltzed through the two he won.

The opening game was rather close up to Marwan leading 7-6, after which he let out a loud roar upon winning the next point by wrong footing his brother. His confidence grew and he dominated the next few rallies to lead after 14 minutes.

In the second game, it was all Mohamed as he raced to a 4-0 lead before Marwan scored a point. Mohamed continued to surge ahead right after to 8-1 and never looked back, wrapping up in style in the final two points – first a backhand cross court and then a backhand top spin volley, both which ended in the nick.

The third had to be the crucial game. Both brothers came in hitting really hard, increasing the tempo of the game and maintaining the pace nearly throughout the game. But Marwan was always slightly ahead in the first half of the game. But an attack on the serve took him to 6-4 turned the game around as Marwan was simply dominant from thereon and closed it out 11-6.

There was not much a fourth game as Mohamed turned on his beast mode to dominate the entire game that lasted a mere 5 minutes.

Marwan saved his best for last in the decider. Despite being penalised for asking for a let and playing on to lose a point to 4-2, he was quite unstoppable and raced to an 8-3 lead. When Mohamed pulled back to 8-6, he was then penalised a penalty stroke for a bad movement into Marwan despite hitting a winner, allowing Marwan a 3-point cushion to 9-6.

A stroke brought him to his first match ball, one of two which Mohamed saves. In the next rally, an opportunity came – Mohamed hits a shoulder height ball and Marwan slams it into the nick and throws his racket in celebration.

“It was really tough out there. It was five games in less than one hour, but it was very tough mentally. Mohamed is one the most experienced player in the draw, he has played against so many generations and I knew it was going to be really tough today mentally more than physically. I gave it everything I had. I put my heart into that fifth game.

“I had already played him a couple of times this year and each time I’m getting close. I’m really happy with how I responded in that fifth game and I’m happy with how I played overall. I’m very lucky to have (coaches) Haitham (Ashoush) and Nick (Matthew) here. I mean, the way they speak to me between games, it motivates me, pushes me, just so much experience I have in my corner.

“Every time I play him (Mohamed), I feel my emotions will hit me at some point. Today I just made sure I focussed on what I had to do and not let my emotions get to me. I just made sure it didn’t hit me today”, Marwan said.

Marwan plays Paul Coll tomorrow, who will be the first Kiwi to play in a World Champs semi-finals since Ross Norman in 1988. It was an impressive showing by Paul, who looked very dominant today having played a 2-hour cliff hanger the day before. It is no surprise though, as Paul is well known for his physical superiority.

He took out first time quarter-finalist Zahed Salem in straight games. For most parts of each game, it was Paul who was taking control of the rallies more, and often leaving Zahed chasing down the corners.

“Very happy to be through to the semi-finals of the World Champs. It was sort of a minimum goal we put coming into this tournament, but I’ve got to put that behind me now. I’m in the semi-finals and I don’t want to stop here now.

“I just wanted to dominate today. Yesterday, I feel I got a little dominated and had my natural game taken away from me. So today, I just wanted to step up and really take the game away from Zahed”, Paul said on his tactics coming into today’s match.

The German Tree Chopper Simon Rosner made it into his second successive semi-final of the World Champs after putting on an impressive showing to halt the run of The Marksman James Willstrop.

The pair, both standing at 6’3, produced an amazing first game much to the delight of the crowd. Both players were hitting so accurately and having fresh legs, chased down the most ridiculous shots utilising the long reach they had.

It was obvious right from the start that Simon the ball to travel twice as fast as James. But The Marksman so cleverly controlled the pace for most parts of the first game. But it was Simon who manages to win the crucial points, taking the game on his third game ball.

In the next two games, James was nowhere near the player he was in the opener. It was always Simon dictating the rallies, winning both comfortable 11-6 and 11-3 in 9 minutes each.
The effects of his heroic upset of 2016 World Champion in the previous round might also have been a factor on his physical well-being.

“Mentally it’s such a big, big difference whether you’re 1-0 up or down, especially if the game was that long and going into the tie break. I knew if I won that first game and if I kept the intensity, I would be able to push through and that is exactly what happened. I kept the intensity up and not dropping down, and that is why I managed to wrap it up.

“You always have to be on your toes with James. He can come back anytime when he gets his second wind. I knew that he was getting a little tired. I heard his breathing as well, but still, no matter how tired he is, he’s The Marksman. He’s able to find the corners really well and if you’re not 100% there, he can take you out”, said the German Tree Chopper of having to be always on the ball with The Marksman.

In the shortest match of the day, second seed Tarek Momen perhaps had his most straight forward match the entire tournament as he beat Peru’s Diego Elias in just 37 minutes. After a blistering start in the first game where Tarek went short very earlier in the game, he was tested a little in the second. But that was all as he cruised through once again in the third to get into his third semi-finals in five years.

“Maybe the good start that I had made a little difference at the end. I was really keen on trying to get as explosive and tight as possible right from the start. It makes a difference. The match could go 120 minutes over five games or 30-40 minutes over three games based on the start. So I try to learn from the few things that I’ve done wrong in previous occasions and today was definitely a good day at the office for sure.

“It was critical to have a short match today. The tournament is six matches long and I needed something to beat that beating to my body. I’m hoping to do the best recovery now and be fresh for tomorrow”, added Tarek on the fact that he has had some tougher earlier rounds and today might have been his shortest match.

2019 PSA Men’s World Championships, Khalifa Tennis and Squash Centre, Doha, Qatar.
Quarter-finals.

[5] Simon Rosner (Ger) 3-0 James Willstrop (Eng) 14-12, 11-6, 11-3 (46m)
[4] Paul Coll (Nzl) 3-0 [14] Zahed Salem (Egy) 11-8, 11-9, 11-6 (47m)
[2] Tarek Momen (Egy) 3-0 [6] Diego Elias (Per) 11-6, 13-11, 11-6 (37m)
[9] Marwan ElShorbagy (Egy) 3-2 [1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (Egy) 11-6, 2-11, 11-6, 3-11, 11-8 (59m)

Pictures courtesy of Qatar Squash

Wasps wing Paolo Odogwu has been banned for six weeks after he pleaded guilty to kicking Sale centre Rohan van Rensburg in the face during last week's 28-18 Premiership defeat.

The 22-year-old was dismissed for the incident in the 79th minute of the match by referee Tom Foley.

Odogwu's claim he used his outstretched leg to "assist his balance" was rejected by the independent panel.

However, they did agree the contact with the face was unintentional.

"He did intend to use his outstretched leg to fend off a potential oncoming player and was reckless as to whether or not it made contact or caused injury." independent panel chair Dan White said.

"In this case the dangerous action of the player resulted in a minor injury to the Sale player.

"In our opinion this was nevertheless a top end entry point; his disrespectful behaviour to the referee and crowd, after receiving the red card, only served to reinforce our view. His behaviour reflected poorly on the player and the game as a whole."

The former Sharks three-quarter, whose penalty was halved for prior record and positive post-incident behaviour, will be free to play again from Tuesday, 23 December.

Meanwhile, Bath wing Aled Brew was banned for three weeks after he accepted a striking charge following the 22-13 win over Northampton Saints last weekend.

Brew was also sent-off, for striking Saints full-back George Furbank, by referee Ian Tempest in the second-half of the game.

"The panel did not accept that this was a reckless action by the player. It was a deliberate action that was completely avoidable; albeit committed in the heat of the moment," chair White added.

"No injury was caused to the opposition player who passed the Head Injury Assessment and returned to the field."

Although the starting point in the Rugby Football Union's sanctions for a striking charge is six weeks, his previous behaviour and contrition after the event also led to a 50% reduction in the punishment.

He can return to action on Tuesday, 3 December.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Daniel Hemric will return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series with JR Motorsports in 2020, running a part-time schedule in the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro.

The 28-year-old Hemric has been tabbed to run 21 races for the organization, and will do so with the same number that he contested his rookie NASCAR Cup Series season in this year.

Hemric will join Jeb Burton (11 races) and team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. (one race) to round out the driver lineup for JRM’s No. 8 entry in its pursuit of the Xfinity Series owner’s title next season.

“Daniel is a solid competitor with a great personality. He’ll be a quality addition to our lineup in 2020,” said Earnhardt Jr. “We’re lucky to have him. I feel like he has grown as a driver from his time in the Cup Series. That will be valuable to him with this new opportunity to compete in the Xfinity series. He’s a local Kannapolis (N.C.) native with a lot of determination to succeed, and I’m excited to work with him.”

Hemric’s return to the Xfinity Series will mark his first appearance since competing in the division full-time in 2017 and 2018.

Hemric secured coveted spots in the Championship 4 in each of those seasons, earning 23 top fives, 39 top 10s and five poles with 510 laps led in 66 series starts.

“Having Daniel on board with our No. 8 team really solidifies things for JRM in 2020,” said Kelley Earnhardt Miller, JRM general manager. “It puts the team in a healthy place with four cars running for a championship again, and we can’t wait to see how Daniel will perform next year. We have a ton of confidence in him and in the company’s direction.”

Wednesday’s announcement comes on the back end of Hemric’s rookie year in Cup Series competition. With only one race remaining before the season concludes at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Hemric is on point to claim Rookie of the Year honors, with one top-five and two top-10 finishes, as well as a pole award.

“I want to thank Dale, Kelley and everyone at JR Motorsports for believing in me,” said Hemric. “For a Kannapolis (N.C.) boy like me, driving for the Earnhardt family is pretty awesome. My goal here is simple—to go win races for JR Motorsports and to help their program any way that I can. I’ve raced against their cars before and I know how they’re capable of running.

“My focus is on finishing the Cup season out strong, but once the checkered flag flies at Homestead, we’ll set our sights on getting the No. 8 car to Victory Lane early and often next season.”

Before making his way to NASCAR’s top stage, Hemric blazed a path through the regional racing circuits, scoring multiple championships in super late models and Legend Cars, including a win in the prestigious Legends Million in 2010.

Hemric made his NASCAR Truck Series debut in 2013, and through two years of full-time competition (2015-16) notched 15 top fives and 30 top 10s.

Details surrounding Hemric’s race schedule and sponsorship lineup will be announced at a later date.

CONCORD, N.C. – Dominic Scelzi will reunite with car owner Nick McColloch this Saturday for the final winged sprint car race of the season in California.

It’s been a little more than two years since the duo last teamed up, and Scelzi is excited to ignite the partnership for a special show this weekend at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif.

“The last time we got together we won,” he said. “The next time out we lost an engine in qualifying and didn’t get to race again. That was the end of 2017 and last year we weren’t able to get together. I’m excited to work with Nick and Kerry again. I enjoyed racing with them and at the time won the biggest race of my career with them.”

Scelzi is coming off a weekend in North Carolina, where the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series season wrapped up during the Can-Am World Finals hosted by The Dirt Track at Charlotte.

He piloted his family-owned No. 41s sprint car during that three-day weekend.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – American Flat Track announced Wednesday the second round to its highly-anticipated 2020 season.

The world’s fastest dirt track motorcycle racing will make its return to Georgia’s Dixie Speedway for the 2020 Atlanta Short Track on March 28, 2020, with tickets available now.

The three-eighths-mile oval of Georgia red clay has hosted the second round of AFT’s season three years running. The banked track provides a fast surface for heart-pumping and bar-banging race action.

Fans can look forward to tight racing and charged competitors on a quest to make a stand in the 2020 points race.

With free parking, activities for the kids and ticketing packages for the entire family, the 2020 Atlanta Short Track event is sure to be a hit.

A variety of premium ticketing options are available, allowing fans to customize their race day experience. Sold out two years in a row, The Tailgate Area and Tailgate Parking passes allow fans to kick back with friends and family while watching their favorite AFT athletes speed past on the track.

Also in high demand, the VIP Experience allows pass-holders exclusive access to the VIP tent located in a premium viewing area just outside turn one of the race track.

With complimentary food and beverage included, it marks the perfect experience for the die-hard flat track fan looking to get up close and personal with all the race day action.

Jason Day hopes that a more streamlined process will lead to increased success as he makes his first trip to Mexico in a decade.

Day has not played in each of the first three iterations of the WGC-Mexico Championship since the tournament shifted from Doral to Mexico City, and he hasn't played the Mayakoba Golf Classic since a T-28 finish in 2009. But the Aussie is back in Playa del Carmen this week, thanks in large part to his desire to remain sharp for the Presidents Cup after being added by International captain Ernie Els last week.

Day has had a mediocre year by his lofty standards, as the former world No. 1 is down to 29th in the latest world rankings. That's his lowest position since before the 2013 Masters, and it's a byproduct of a solid but unspectacular stretch that has included just one top-10 finish since the Masters.

Speaking to reporters at Mayakoba, Day shared that he didn't have a trainer for most of the year, a decision he regretted after a back injury sparked his withdrawal at Bay Hill and lingered throughout the season.

"You put everything together, the results have pretty much spoken for themselves," Day said.

He also pointed the finger to a revolving door on his bag. Day has employed four different caddies this year, including a short-lived union with Steve Williams. He's back to friend David Lutterus this week on the El Camaleon course.

"I went through three caddies — I'm on my fourth — and my back was injured. Like, that's not a good formula for success," Day said. "What do I need to be successful? I need to not have to worry about any of this. All those things that I was worrying about throughout the year is a distraction."

Day opened the new wraparound season with two starts in Asia, highlighted by his T-22 finish at the Zozo Championship that came on the heels of his skins game exhibition win in Japan. He'll also play the Australian Open before joining his International teammates at Royal Melbourne.

Day has added both a "golf trainer" and a "physio trainer" in recent months. With the hope that Lutterus can become a long-term caddie solution, he remains optimistic that he'll be able to mount another charge at world No. 1 having just celebrated his 32nd birthday on Monday.

"I feel like I've got a good team back together," he said. "I think the biggest thing for me is to be healthy. I mean, golf is tough enough as it is. If I'm giving these guys an advantage with me being, you know, having a sore back or having an injury, it's not the right way to go about it; it's not professional. I need to be at my best to beat these guys."

As Evansville's K.J. Riley and his teammates rode the bus back to campus following Tuesday night's 67-64 upset of No. 1 Kentucky in Lexington, coach Walter McCarty told his energized team to quiet down because Charles Barkley wanted to congratulate it.

He put the TNT analyst and Hall of Famer on speakerphone.

"I didn't even know he knew Charles Barkley," said Riley, who led all scorers with 18 points. "He congratulated us and he told us that the hard work is paying off."

Overall, McCarty said he had 400 congratulatory text messages waiting for him after Tuesday's win, which was tied for the third-largest upset in college basketball over the last 15 seasons (Evansville was a 25-point underdog), per ESPN Stats & Information.

Rick Pitino, McCarty's coach when Kentucky won the national title in 1996, reached out. Georgetown's Patrick Ewing, McCarty's teammate when he played for the New York Knicks during the 1996-97 season, texted him to praise his team, too. Oklahoma City Thunder coach Billy Donovan, an assistant when McCarty was at Kentucky, also contacted him after the victory.

Sam Cunliffe's two free throws with 6.8 seconds to play sealed the win for Evansville as Kentucky's Tyrese Maxey missed a deep 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game. Kentucky made just 37 percent of its field goal attempts and committed 11 turnovers in the first half.

Kentucky had previously won 52 consecutive home games against unranked opponents. Evansville, picked to finish eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll, finished 11-21 overall and 5-13 during the 2018-19 campaign, McCarty's first as the team's head coach.

It was the program's first victory over a No. 1 team.

ESPN's BPI gave Evansville a 4 percent chance to win.

McCarty said his team's experience fueled the win. He said he told his team that it could win at Kentucky, where he won a multitude of games as a player, if it stood strong in the opening minutes and refused to allow the crowd to become a factor.

"They were not going to get rattled," he said. "They weren't afraid. Nothing against Kentucky, but they're young. It feels good that people are paying attention to us."

When they returned to campus, the Purple Aces were greeted by hundreds of students. Riley said he didn't get to bed until 2 a.m. He was also inundated with texts. One in particular surprised him.

"It was from a Kentucky fan," Riley said. "He said, 'I'm a Kentucky fan but you're my favorite player now.'"