Atlanta United leads Forbes list of most valuable MLS franchises for the second year running, with a valuation of $500 million, while clubs league-wide saw franchise valuations rise by 30% on average.

Los Angeles-based sides the LA Galaxy ($480 million) and LAFC ($475 million) ranked second and third, while MLS Cup finalists the Seattle Sounders ($405 million) and Toronto FC ($395 million) rounded out the top five.

Forbes said its valuations were for the team only, and excluded stadiums and real estate. The report added that of the 23 teams that took part in the 2018 season, just six were profitable and half of those were barely in the black.

Yet the overall valuations continued to grow at an impressive pace. The average MLS team is now worth $313 million, up 30% from last year. The report noted that the year-over-year growth far outpaces rising team values in the NBA (13%), NFL (11%), MLB (8%) and NHL (6%).

The growth is being fueled by the belief that the sport in North America will continue to increase in popularity and participation. The league's media rights deal expires at the end of the 2022 season, and the U.S. will co-host the 2026 World Cup with Canada and Mexico.

Joe Mansueto recently completed his purchase of the Chicago Fire for a total of $321.6 million. The acquisition of the final 51% revealed a valuation of $400 million, though Forbes was lower at $335 million.

In Seattle, former Microsoft executive Terry Myerson led an ownership group that includes celebrities Russell Wilson, Ciara and Macklemore that bought out Joe Roth's minority stake in the Sounders, giving the team a valuation between $300 million and $400 million

In Atlanta's case, its valuation was driven by a league best average attendance of 52,000 per game, as well as the sale of midfielder Miguel Almiron to Newcastle United for a league record $27 million.

Excluded from the valuations were revenues generated by Soccer United Marketing, the league's marketing and commercial rights arm which manages media rights for U.S. Soccer, CONCACAF, and the U.S. tours of the Mexico men's national team. Forbes said that SUM distributed $125 million to the league's owners last year.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The MRI results on the left knee of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jacoby Brissett were as hoped for, revealing an MCL sprain, coach Frank Reich said Monday.

The Colts, according to Reich, will play it by ear in determining if Brissett will play in Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins (1-7).

"We're going to have to wait until Wednesday and see how it feels," Reich said. "It's one thing to come in [Monday] after the injury. I think in his mind he felt a little bit better than he expected to feel. That's still a far cry from being able to play the game. He's optimistic but you have to wait until Wednesday, 48 hours to see how it responds to see if you can even start thinking about practicing and wrapping your mind around playing Sunday."

Brissett suffered the injury in the second quarter when guard Quenton Nelson was pushed back into him deep in Pittsburgh territory in Sunday's loss to the Steelers. Brissett remained on the ground for a couple of minutes before jogging to the sideline with a noticeable limp.

Brissett, who was 4 of 5 for 59 yards prior the injury, spent an extended amount of time in the medical tent before he put his helmet on briefly, then took it back off and watched the rest of the game from the sideline. He said he had a difficult time making lateral movements on his left knee.

Veteran Brian Hoyer, signed by the Colts after the retirement of Andrew Luck, replaced Brissett and was 17 of 26 for 168 yards and three touchdowns despite not getting any first-team reps in practice this season. Hoyer's biggest mistakes were that he threw an interception that was returned 96 yards for a touchdown by Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and he fumbled the ball on a strip sack on fourth down.

Hoyer will start if Brissett doesn't play Sunday and Reich said Chad Kelly, the nephew of Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly, would likely be elevated from the practice squad to the active roster to be Hoyer's backup. Hoyer has started 37 games in his career while playing with New England, Arizona, Cleveland, Chicago, Houston and San Francisco.

"Brian, when you look back at the tape he played pretty well," Reich said. "Played really well in fact. Obviously the pick-six was the big blemish on the scorecard. He's a smart player. He's really simulated well to the offense. Most of those plays he hasn't gotten reps because he wasn't here for training camp and Jacoby takes all the reps. That's pretty much the standard protocol for all teams. You have to get mental reps. He's a pro, does a good job at that and he's a talented football player."

The Colts (5-3), who had their three-game winning streak end with the loss Sunday, are currently in second place in the AFC South.

PHILADELPHIA -- Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson will have surgery to repair a torn abdominal muscle Tuesday, the team announced Monday.

The surgery will be performed by Dr. William Myers, his representative Bobby McCrae told ESPN.

Jackson reinjured his abdomen Sunday against the Chicago Bears. Wanting to return as soon as possible, he originally declined surgery after suffering a Grade 2 abdominal strain Week 2 against the Falcons. He returned Sunday after missing six games, but only made it through one series.

Tests revealed that he now has a full tear.

The recovery time is expected to be at least six weeks, putting Jackson's 2019 in jeopardy.

Jackson, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, was reacquired by the Eagles in an offseason trade with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but has been limited to three games, in which he has nine receptions for 159 yards and two touchdowns, because of his injury.

LeBron James opened his I Promise school in Akron, Ohio, over a year ago and now plans to provide transitional housing for students and families in need of safe shelter.

The LeBron James Family Foundation and Graduate Hotels announced plans for the I Promise Village by Graduate Hotels to help I Promise students whose families might be fighting challenges such as homelessness, domestic violence, or other traumatic or unsafe situations.

"Initially, our work was focused on helping these kids earn an education," James said in a statement. "But we've found that it is impossible to help them learn if they are struggling to survive -- if they are hungry, if they have no heat in the freezing winter, if they live in fear for their safety. We want this place to be their home where they feel safe, supported, and loved, knowing we are right there with them every step of the way as they get back on their feet."

James expanded on those comments during Lakers practice Monday in Chicago.

"You can have all the support in the world while you're at school or while you're at basketball and while you're playing sports or anything, but if you go home and it's not stable and you don't have any stability there, you can resort back to the negative things or the bad habits that you might have. And, sometimes it's not even the kids' fault on why the situation is the way they are so for us to be able to provide that for our kids and for the families and adults as well, the parents, it's a pretty cool things."

The Village, located in a historic Akron apartment building that will be renovated and furnished, is slated to be ready by July.

"Being able to offer this safe haven for our families is transformational in every sense of the word," said Michele Campbell, the LeBron James Family Foundation executive director. "This is about more than just getting kids to school. This is about keeping them alive. We're seeing families struggling every day with very real and oftentimes unexpected issues that turn their worlds upside down. This will allow the family time and opportunities to grow while not worrying if they'll have a roof over their head."

The I Promise school has nearly 350 at-risk third- through fifth-graders, with plans to expand to third through eighth grade in 2022.

"The I Promise Village by Graduate Hotels will be a monumental next step for us and LeBron and his foundation's commitment to the future of the students and their families," Graduate Hotels founder and CEO Ben Weprin said. "It's humbling to see the change they are [effecting] on a daily basis and we're honored to be a part of the journey."

Information from ESPN's Eric Woodyard was used in this report.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard said he has never seen anything like the rash of injuries the Golden State Warriors have endured dating back to the 2019 NBA Finals.

"I've never seen it," Lillard said in advance of Monday's game against the Warriors. "I think they might be the first to do a lot of things. At one point they had a starting five of five All-Stars, won 73 games, they've done a lot of great things, made a lot of history.

"It just seems like adversity has hit hard at this point for them. Those guys aren't old. They'll bounce back from it, but you just hate to see it."

Since Game 5 of last year's Finals, during which the Warriors lost All-Star Kevin Durant to an Achilles injury, the rest of their core pieces have gone down with various injuries that have shaken up the NBA.

Klay Thompson tore his left ACL in Game 6 of the Finals and may miss the entire season. Stephen Curry broke his left hand last week in a loss to the Phoenix Suns and will miss at least three months. Draymond Green tore a ligament in his left index finger and is expected to miss at least a week as he recovers.

Lillard understands that injuries are part of the game, but like many NBA players, he can't believe how many setbacks the Warriors have dealt with in succession.

"It's just unexpected," Lillard said. "You don't expect to see them go from being such a huge deal, big super team, to one guy [Durant] leaves and injuries. It's just an unfortunate situation that you hate to see. In that way, it's just different. It's kind of weird to see them not as the Warriors.

"I feel for the players. You never want to see any of your peers go down with injuries. Klay's a great dude, so it sucks to see him go down that way. Same thing with Steph. ... They'll recover and they'll be back hopefully at 100 percent. That's what we all want to see."

Aside from the differences on the floor, Monday's game also marks the first time Lillard, a proud Oakland native, will play inside Chase Center, the Warriors' new billion-dollar arena in San Francisco. As he spoke to reporters following Monday's shootaround, he noted several times just how much different the new arena felt compared to Oracle Arena, the Warriors' home in Oakland for the past 47 years.

"It's very weird," Lillard said. "It's very weird ... this is extra weird. Because I'm looking around like -- this place has no history. So it's definitely different."

Lillard acknowledged that while it was tough not being able to play closer to his home, he was frustrated by the fact that several professional teams are moving out of the Oakland area. The Raiders are expected to move to a brand-new stadium in Las Vegas next season.

"It just rubs me wrong," Lillard said. "Like I've watched games here [at Chase Center] on TV and the crowd's just not the same. ...The Black Hole is still there. You still see the Nation in support, why would you leave that behind? It's a real sense of pride in Oakland about everything that represents us.

"It's like the Warriors going across the [Bay] Bridge, the Raiders going to Vegas, it's almost like a money grab. The money moves is kind of pushing the real love and what's really behind these organizations to the side -- which is understandable, and also not understandable because I'm from Oakland. I know both sides [of the situation]. You hate to see it."

Lillard noted that he would still remain loyal to the Raiders after they relocate next year, but he didn't hide his feelings about teams leaving Oakland.

"I don't like it," Lillard said. "If that's what ya'll want to know, I don't like it."

New York Yankees greats Thurman Munson, Don Mattingly and Tommy John are among a 10-man ballot of candidates who will be eligible for selection to the Baseball Hall of Fame this year though the Modern Baseball Era committee.

Munson is on the committee's ballot for the first time, as are Dwight Evans and Lou Whitaker. Former players Steve Garvey, Dale Murphy, Dave Parker, Ted Simmons are again up for selection, as is former players' union executive Marvin Miller.

The Modern Baseball Era Committee, which will vote in December, considers individuals who contributed to baseball from 1970-87 and who are no longer eligible through the writers' election process. They must receive votes on 12 of the committee's 16 ballots to be elected to the Hall of Fame. In 2017, Jack Morris and Alan Trammell were elected through the Modern Baseball Era committee.

Munson won the AL Rookie of the Year in 1970 and the MVP in 1976 with the Yankees. He is one of only two catchers in history to hit .300 with 180 hits and 100 RBI over three consecutive seasons, but his career was cut short at age 32 when he died in a plane crash.

Mattingly, the 1985 AL MVP, was a career .307 hitter and won nine Gold Gloves in 14 seasons with the Yankees.

John played eight of his 26 major league seasons with the Yankees and enjoyed much of his greatest success in New York, finishing second in the Cy Young voting in 1979. He finished 288-231 in 700 career starts, pitching 14 years after undergoing the now-common ligament surgery that now colloquially bears his name.

Simmons, who fell one vote shy of election in 2017, played 21 seasons for the Cardinals, Brewers and Braves, being named to the All-Star team eight times. He is second all-time in both hits and RBIs among players who spent at least half their careers as a catcher.

Whitaker spent 19 years with the Detroit Tigers, making the All-Star team five times and winning three Gold Gloves at second base. He won the 1984 World Series while playing alongside Trammell.

Evans played 19 seasons for the Red Sox and one for the Orioles, racking up 2,446 hits while winning eight Gold Gloves. He hit 256 of his 385 home runs in the 1980s, more than any other American League player in the decade.

Garvey was a 10-time All-Star, hitting .294 in 19 seasons with the Dodgers and Padres. He won the NL MVP award in 1978 and 1984 and helped the Dodgers win the 1981 World Series.

Murphy hit 398 homers in his 18-year career with the Braves, Phillies and Rockies and won back-to-back MVPs in 1982 and 1983.

Parker won two NL batting titles and the MVP in 1978 and won the World Series with the Pirates in 1978 and the Oakland A's in 1989.

Miller, who died in 2012, helped institute free agency as head of the players' association in the 1960s and '70s. He was highly critical of the Hall of Fame selection process during his lifetime and fell one vote shy of induction for the 2011 class.

Garvey, John, Mattingly, Murphy and Parker all received half or fewer of the votes required through the committee in 2017, as did Luis Tiant, who was left off the ballot this time.

ATLANTA -- The Braves have re-signed outfielder Nick Markakis and catcher Tyler Flowers to $4 million, one-year contracts for 2020 after declining their team options.

The team also declined a club option for longtime starting pitcher Julio Teheran, likely signaling the end of his tenure with the Braves, and made a $17.8 million qualifying offer to free agent third baseman Josh Donaldson.

The deals for Markakis and Flowers were essentially a financial wash. Both players made $4 million last season and had club options of $6 million for 2020. The team will pay $2 million buyouts to each and their new deals ensures both will take home a total of $6 million to remain in Atlanta another season.

Teheran became the first pitcher to make six straight Opening Day starts for Atlanta, but the team opted against exercising a $12 million option for 2020, instead paying a $1 million buyout. The move was not unexpected after Teheran was left off the postseason roster after going 10-11 with a 3.81 ERA, though he was added back to the squad after Chris Martin was injured.

Teheran completed a $32.4 million, six-year contract and becomes a free agent.

J.D. Martinez will not opt out of his contract with the Boston Red Sox, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

By remaining with the Red Sox, Martinez can earn $62.5 million over the next three years. He also has an opt-out clause after the 2020 season.

Over the last three seasons, Martinez leads the league in home runs with 124, and is second in RBIs with 339, batting average at .313, slugging percentage at .619 and OPS at 1.007 over that span.

The Red Sox, who had the highest payroll in baseball last season, are looking to get below the luxury tax threshold. It remains to be seen how this will affect newly hired chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom's ability to also retain Mookie Betts, the 2018 MVP who will become a free agent after next season. Betts made $27.7 million last season and is likely to get more in arbitration this season.

Martinez, 32, led the Red Sox in home runs, RBIs and hits in 2018, on the way to winning his first World Series title. His numbers in 2019 fell off as he battled back spasms, but in his two years in Boston, he hit 79 homers and drove in 235 runs. He was an All-Star both of his years in Boston.

While he played 38 games in the outfield this year, Martinez is primarily a designated hitter.

Martinez takes a meticulous approach to hitting, analyzing at-bats and opposing pitchers, and several Red Sox players credited him with helping them improve their approach.

Martinez broke in with the Houston Astros in 2011 and was released by the team in 2014. Martinez decided that he had to change his swing, and worked with Robert Van Scoyoc, now the Dodgers hittig coach, and Craig Wallenbrock.

He signed a free agent deal with the Detroit Tigers in 2014, then was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in July 2017. In 62 games with Arizona, Martinez hit .302 with 29 home runs and 65 RBIs. That landed him the deal with the Red Sox.

In other roster moves on Monday, the Red Sox reinstated Dustin Pedroia and Chris Sale from the 60-day injured list. Catcher Juan Centeno, who played in seven games for Boston in 2019, elected to hit free agency and has been outrighted from the roster.

DEARBORN, Mich. – Ford is bringing its new Bronco R race prototype to Mexico later this month to compete in the SCORE Baja 1,000.

The reintroduction of the Bronco to the Baja 1,000 comes 50 years after Rod Hall drove a Ford Bronco to the overall victory in the 1969 Baja 1,000, something that hasn’t been done since by a 4×4 vehicle.

The truck will feature a race livery inspired by Hall’s winning vehicle. The Bronco R passes the torch to off-road racer Shelby Hall, Rod’s granddaughter, who will drive it for portions of this year’s race in honor of her late grandfather.

As a test, the Bronco R will head back to the Baja Peninsula later this month to take on the near 1,000-mile grueling off-road course and challenge the production Bronco’s powertrain and architecture.

The Bronco R was developed by Ford Performance in collaboration with builder Geiser Bros Design and Development and Baja 1,000 Trophy Truck champion Cameron Steele.

“Bronco’s win at Baja in 1969 was epic, something that even after 50 years has not been repeated,” said Hau Thai-Tang, Ford chief product development and purchasing officer. “Rugged endurance racing is such a big part of Bronco heritage. The Baja 1000 gives us not only the perfect setting to honor Rod Hall’s win, it also provides an authentic test bed to demonstrate our upcoming Bronco’s desert racing capability and durability.”

A small team led by Paul Wraith, Bronco chief designer, worked since July to make the race prototype unmistakably Bronco at first sight. The team worked in secret to create a one-off build that hints at the new Bronco to come, while paying homage to the first-generation Bronco’s styling and proportions.

The team focused on creating a race-ready look with an overall heritage-inspired design language. With its compressed body height and long-travel suspension, Bronco R features an ultra-wide stance, while a variety of aero components reinforce its performance intent. The prototype’s lightweight composite body includes a clamshell hood and roof, as well as clean body panels that harken back to the first-generation Bronco models (1966-77). A cut-roof design allows rear seat passengers to use a second-row hatch for access.

With its exterior inspired by the winning 1969 Baja 1000 Bronco livery, the Ford Performance Bronco R race prototype pays tribute with its red, white and black colors accented by its blue space frame. No. 2069 stretches across its rear quarter-panel and wing – 20 to signal the class in which it will race and 69 in honor of the year in which Hall and Minor roared to an overall victory in what was then known as the Mexican 1,000.

“My grandfather was so proud of the 1969 Baja race and of his Bronco,” said Shelby Hall. “More than just the memory of winning Baja, he loved that Bronco. I have no doubt he would be blown away by the Bronco R race prototype.”

The design team on the Bronco R used cutting-edge tools such as high-tech virtual reality, polygon modeling and 3D printing to develop parts, but also incorporated low-fidelity prototyping and role-playing to aid problem-solving and swift decision-making.

“This wasn’t our usual development process, but it was the right process for this project,” said Wraith. “We found, created or adapted the right tool for the task at hand – a cool and exciting blend of old and new creative techniques. We stretched ourselves, but it was worth it – and great fun.”

More than a celebration of Hall’s 1969 win, the Bronco R race prototype is designed with the production model’s body-on-frame architecture to test its capability and durability, while also energizing off-road enthusiasts who eagerly await the return of America’s original sport utility vehicle.

The race prototype is built on a modified Ford T6 architecture that will provide the base for the production model. Beefed up for Baja, the Bronco R features an independent front suspension with 14 inches of travel and a production-based five-link rear chassis design with up to 18 inches of travel, plus custom Fox shocks, 17-inch beadlock-capable aluminum wheels and 37-inch BFGoodrich tires.

“Like the original Bronco, we kept Bronco R’s design authentic and simple, with a roll cage on a production-style frame, and a five-piece lightweight body on top,” said Brian Novak, Ford Performance off-road racing supervisor. “For the endurance needs of Baja’s 1,000 grueling miles, we built in a limited number of race-focused parts. But even the twin turbos of the EcoBoost engine are representative of what the production Bronco will offer.”

INDIANAPOLIS — Questions have circulated for the last several years about the future of NASCAR racing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

However Roger Penske, who announced Penske Corp. is buying the speedway on Monday, made it clear NASCAR has a place in the track’s future.

Penske was asked during Monday’s news conference announcing the sale of Hulman & Co., IMS, the NTT IndyCar Series and IMS Productions to Penske Corp. about his commitment to NASCAR and whether the stock-car sanctioning body would continue to have a long-term presence at the 2.5-mile oval.

“When you look at (NASCAR racing at IMS for) 27 years, there’s no reason to break that string of races,” Penske noted. “I had a chance to talk to Jim France late last night to tell him that we were going to have this conference here in the morning, and he obviously was excited. We’ve worked together. We were partners with ISC at Homestead. We actually sold our business to them back several years ago. So we have a very close relationship with Jim (France) and with Steve Phelps and Steve O’Donnell and the entire France family. We would expect to take this for many, many years.

“They (NASCAR) need to run at Indianapolis. We want them to and there’s no question that we’re going to look at opportunities to expand the relationship with them in the future.”

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debuted at IMS on Aug. 6, 1994, with California-born, Indiana-raised young gun Jeff Gordon winning in the inaugural Brickyard 400.

Since then, IMS has hosted 26 Cup Series races, with Gordon leading the wins category with five victories (’94, ’98, ’01, ’04, ’14). Fifteen different drivers have won Cup races at Indianapolis.

The track has also hosted NASCAR’s second-tier Xfinity Series since 2012, with one of Penske’s drivers — Brad Keselowski — triumphing in that division’s debut race at IMS.

NASCAR Chairman & CEO Jim France praised both the outgoing and incoming IMS leadership on Monday in the wake of the historic announcement.

“The Hulman-George family has been instrumental in the growth of motorsports through their passion for racing, elevating Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the IndyCar Series to a global scale, and we thank them for their leadership and significant contributions to NASCAR,” said France. “Roger Penske is incredibly accomplished across both motorsports and business and we look forward to the successful operation of these properties under his experienced leadership.”

With Penske now leading IMS into the future, additional questions quickly surfaced regarding the feasibility of a NASCAR/IndyCar doubleheader at Indianapolis.

Penske has been publicly quoted as saying he would be in favor of such a combined weekend.

While he stopped short of saying that IMS was a prime location to do so on Monday, Penske did confirm it was a prospect he’d take a look at going into the future.

“I think it was interesting to see Newgarden run around what they call the ROVAL down in Charlotte several weeks ago and I think it was pretty exciting. I think some of the fans had never seen an IndyCar on an oval or a race track,” Penske noted. “These are things that Tony will give us some of his input (on), and certainly Mark and the team … we’ll look at are those things we can do and can we execute those so we bring value here to the speedway.

“We’ve got to break some glass on some of these things, don’t we? We’ve got to try some of this,” Penske added. “I’m prepared to take a risk. No risk equals no reward in many cases. Those are the things that Mark, with him and him team, that we’ll take a look at. I wouldn’t say it’s out of the possibility.”

In fact, there were a lot of things that Penske said might be on the table as he shepherds IMS going forward, including the possibilities of endurance sports-car racing and Formula One racing at the track.

Of note, F-1 previously raced on the IMS grand prix road course from 2000 to 2007.

“We want to add capability … and ask, ‘What can we use this for?’” Penske said. “Can we run a 24-hour race here? Can we run a Formula One race here? What are the things we can do? This (track) is a great asset. Once the tradition had been broken in adding the NASCAR race, which we’re going to get behind in a big way because for 27 years they’ve run here, it opened up many possibilities. I look at all of these across the board to see what we can do.

“This business is not broken,” he pointed out. “This is a great business, and the leadership team that’s been here has done an outstanding job and what we want to do is be a support tool going forward.”