Bubba Wallace and Carson Ferguson were duking it out up front on Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway during the Bojangles’ Summer Shootout, but they forgot about Ryan Mackintosh.

Before anyone knew it, the third man in the fight quickly had a shot to win it in stunning fashion. (Video Courtesy of Legends Nation)

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The 97th edition of the Broadmoor Pikes Peak Int’l Hill Climb presented by Gran Turismo will begin marching up Pikes Peak on Sunday, June 30.

Roughly 7,000 racing fans from as many as a dozen countries and 44 states will watch from designated spectator areas on the 14,115-foot mountain as 88 competitors from 17 countries, including 29 rookies, take on the challenge of the world’s most famous hill climb.

Pikes Peak is the second-oldest motorsport race in America (1916), behind only the Indianapolis 500 (1911).

Competitors on the Peak will come from the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Belgium, France, Japan, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, China, Brazil, Germany, Northern Ireland and the Czech Republic.

The Race to the Clouds is still basking in the glow of the fabulous performance last summer by French driver Romain Dumas in the 2018 Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak, toppling the old mark of 8:13.78 set by Sébastien Loeb of France in 2013.

Dumas careened up the 156-turn, 12.42 mile course to the summit in a jaw-dropping time of 7:57.148 to establish a new course record and earn Autoweek’s Moment of the Year.

“We never know what incredible moments each year will become part of the race’s history,” said PPIHC Executive Director Megan Leatham, “We have an awesome lineup of competitors from around the world coming to Pikes Peak again this summer to take on the mountain, so buckle up.”

Pikes Peak has seen champions since 1916 who are part of American motorsport history —Ari Vatanen, Parnelli Jones, Mario Andretti, Rick Mears, Michèle Mouton, Nobuhiro Tajima, Bobby Unser, and Malcolm Smith, just to name a few.

This year’s Indy 500 winner, Simon Pagenaud, finished second on Pikes Peak in 2013 in the Exhibition Class.

While it’s unlikely that Dumas’ mark will be eclipsed this year by a talented stable of drivers, everyone will be watching the decorated veteran Rhys Millen, as he attempts to break the Time Attack 2 Production record in the Exhibition Division.

The time to beat is David Donner’s 10:26.896 set in 2015, driving a 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo S.

Millen, 46, a New Zealander who moved to the USA in 1990, and son of Pikes Peak legend Rod Millen, will be competing for the 24th time in the race, this time in a jazzy, luxurious Bentley Continental GT coupe sporting the Bentley 100th anniversary livery.

He’ll also be seeking his 13th championship in his race history, which began in 1992 with a title in the Open Division.

In 2015, he was named “King of the Mountain” after breaking the electric modified record with a time of 9:07.22 — a record he topped the following year by 10 seconds (8:57.118). His fabulous life includes stunt driving for commercials and movies, the latest a sizzling spot for Hankook Tires, seen by millions.

Other notables entered this year include Paul Dallenbach, Greg Tracy, Liam Doran, William Au-Yeung and Robin Shute.

UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo is undergoing left shoulder surgery after tearing his subscapularis muscle during his fight against Marlon Moraes earlier this month, Cejudo told ESPN.

Cejudo said he suffered the injury in the first round of his fight at UFC 238. Despite the injury, he defeated Moraes via third-round TKO to become just the fourth fighter in UFC history to be crowned champion in two weight classes at the same time.

The subscapularis muscle is the most used muscle in the shoulder and is part of the rotator cuff.

Cejudo severely injured his ankle days before the fight while training at the host hotel in Chicago, but he told ESPN the injury will not need surgery.

Cejudo's doctors have told him he will need about four to five months before he is cleared to fully train again, meaning he'll likely be out for the rest of the year.

Cejudo (15-2) will no doubt be in the running for 2019 Fighter of the Year. In January, he knocked out TJ Dillashaw in 32 seconds.

The NBA comparison game is tricky in any draft. No two players are identical, and it's easy to talk yourself into or out of a prospect just because he reminds you of someone else.

But for a player as unique as Duke's Zion Williamson, comps are even more challenging. Williamson is this year's consensus No. 1 pick, likely headed to the New Orleans Pelicans at the start of the 2019 NBA draft on Thursday (7 p.m. ET on ESPN). There's also a strong case that he's the best college prospect since Anthony Davis.

But Zion still has a few doubters around the league, and those lingering naysayers often pose the question, "Who is he in the NBA?"

We've never seen a prospect quite like Williamson before. In trying to picture what exactly NBA Zion will look like, we need to look at five players instead of one.

Here's how standout aspects of the Duke phenom's game compare to different NBA players at the same stage, and what it might mean for Williamson at his pro peak.

1. Draymond Green | Defensive versatility

Schmitz: Zion delivers amazing rim-rattling slams, but it's his defensive versatility and willingness to work on that end that make him the ideal modern big prospect, with the 1-through-5 switchability of Draymond Green. Williamson even produced a 7.2 defensive box plus-minus in his lone season at Duke -- identical to Green's defensive impact as a senior at Michigan State. In the NBA, Green has consistently ranked among the most effective stoppers in the league, according to ESPN's defensive real plus-minus, despite his size.

Like Green, Zion plays far bigger than his measurables suggest, allowing him to slide all the way up to the center spot, giving Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry ultimate flexibility at the other four positions. Although Draymond (7-1½ wingspan, 8-9 standing reach) is longer than Zion (6-10½ wingspan, 8-7 standing reach), Williamson is close to 50 pounds heavier, with far superior leaping ability to go along with similar defensive feel and toughness.

Zion's nuclear bounce allows him to play with his head at the rim in verticality situations, while his catlike quickness and motor help him cover ground in the blink of an eye to rotate for blocks. Even when he is tasked with checking more traditional bigs, his frame, low center of gravity and competitiveness are enough to neutralize opponents.

Williamson comfortably checked all five positions at Duke, stifling point guards like Ky Bowman, wings like Jarrett Culver and centers like the 260-pound Steven Enoch. He can shift between anchoring a defense to switching to point guards, displaying nimble feet for a player of his weight. Williamson also has outstanding anticipation in the passing lanes, regularly jumping routes with elite closing speed.

He can stand to improve his discipline, but Williamson covers up a lot of his mistakes with effort.

Goldsberry: Green's unique blend of size, strength, speed and smarts has made him one of the definitive players of this decade. As NBA offenses embraced pace-and-space, defenses had to adapt. Many traditional stoppers like Roy Hibbert have lost their jobs, as bigs are now required to defend both the edges and the interior of the court. Green is so unique because he can play great defense everywhere.

He can switch onto almost any player, from Chris Paul to Joel Embiid, and if Zion can do the same in the NBA, his team will be a nightmare. Green's versatility as an individual force is arguably the most important factor that has enabled Golden State to develop one of the best defensive schemes for the current era.

If there were such a thing as a defensive quarterback in basketball, Green would be all-pro.

2. Ben Simmons | Transition skills

Schmitz: Like Simmons at LSU, Williamson is shifty in the open court for a player his size, pushing off the glass and weaving through traffic with guardlike agility before exploding at the rim for tomahawk dunks. Both players are at their best getting downhill in transition, and the unpredictability of these grab-and-go attacks is what makes positionless players like Simmons and Williamson so difficult to guard in space.

At the collegiate level, Simmons was used as more of a traditional big man in the half-court while being given the freedom to carve up defenses in transition, leading to a host of SportsCenter Top-10 plays. Both players love to use powerful in-and-out dribbles to catch defenders off balance, playing high-to-low and changing speeds impressively, making them nearly impossible to stop with a head of steam. Williamson is an underrated ball handler, with great body control, allowing him to maintain balance while taking off of either foot.

Although Simmons is a far superior passer who has clearly been groomed as a jumbo lead guard, Williamson's court vision similarly expands in the open court. Whether it's through a Hail Mary outlet over the top of the defense or an aggressive push into a thread-the-needle bounce pass, Zion is a heady facilitator against a scrambling defense, something that should come alive even more in the NBA when surrounded by athletes and shooters.

Goldsberry: Everybody loves to point out that Simmons can't shoot 3s. While that's true, it's also misleading, because Simmons is a prolific 3-point creator as a passer. Consider these two facts, via Second Spectrum:

• Simmons ranked third in the NBA in 3-point assists this season with 255 (Klay Thompson made 241)

• Simmons led the NBA in total transition assists

It's not just that Simmons has a knack for creating shots -- he ranked second in the NBA in passes to shooters this season, per Second Spectrum tracking, trailing only Russell Westbrook -- it's that he has a knack for creating some of the best shots in the game: the ones in transition and the ones from beyond the arc.

During the regular season, Simmons created a whopping 12.1 3-point assist opportunities per 100 possessions, per Second Spectrum. His vision and feel for the court is world-class, particularly in transition, but those passes are possible because defenses have to honor his own ability to attack the rack.

The world's best transition playmakers are able to both create for themselves and for teammates in the open floor. One reason Zion has such high expectations is because he has the potential to check both boxes at a very high level. He can't match Simmons as a transition distributor right now, but his scoring threat gives him a chance to generate nearly as many great looks for teammates in time.

3. Blake Griffin | Playmaking athleticism

Schmitz: We've never seen a 285-pounder who can sky for dunks quite like Williamson, but Griffin (248 pounds as a 20-year-old) was a close replica. Like college Griffin (6-11 wingspan), Williamson is a power dunker set to tear down the rim on every attempt, doing so despite mediocre positional length. He seems to get just as much lift off one leg or two and is challenging for any shot-blocker to challenge when he gets to his launching pad. But it's not just the dunks that make these two similar.

They're both extremely agile, with sure handles and impressive functional athleticism. They drop fluid spin moves, crossovers, hop steps and low-to-the-ground drives rare for players that strong. Given his strength and coordination, Griffin has developed into quite the shot-creating big, with the ability to even play some 4-5 pick-and-roll, something we saw often with DeAndre Jordan during the Lob City days.

Zion figures to find similar success, as we saw Duke use him as a mismatch ball handler in pick-and-roll situations, scoring 28 points on 22 such possessions. He loves to reject ball screens but can also use the pick to either get downhill and attack or slow up and find an open teammate.

Zion uses devastating lateral hop steps, and like Griffin, his combination of sheer strength, ballhandling, vision and shiftiness makes him a tough cover in space. Williamson is also a comfortable post passer, and his facilitating is likely his most underrated skill. A slightly superior passer at the same stage of development, Williamson should eventually become an even more dynamic playmaker and driver than Griffin as his career progresses.

Goldsberry: Imagine if Dominique Wilkins could pass like Vlade Divac. That's what Blake Griffin has become -- an unprecedented combination of scoring, highlight dunks and crafty passing. The 2013-14 version of Griffin, when he finished third in MVP voting, showed that the best way to discourage overzealous help defense and double-teams is with smart dishes.

Whether in the pick-and-roll or in the post, for Zion to reach his full potential he needs to become a great half-court passer at the NBA level. As the league trends more and more toward perimeter scoring, ball-dominant bigs are increasingly rare, and the ones who persist can facilitate like Griffin, who averages more than five assists per game.

As Zion leaves the crowded scoring areas of the ACC, his vision and passing will be vital in the spaced-out world of the NBA. While the combination of interior prowess and perimeter shot creation may seem like an odd formula, it's one that rests at the core of a few of the league's best superstars, including LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

4. Charles Barkley | Motor/rebounding

Schmitz: Barkley developed into one of the better undersized rebounders the game has ever seen, so this comp is high praise, but Williamson is deserving.

Zion has consistently proved to be one of the most effective offensive rebounders in college basketball, utilizing quick, powerful swim moves or aggressive spins to beat opponents to the ball regularly. Not only can he sky in a crowd and snatch the ball at its highest point with strong hands, but he'll also throw his weight around, voluntarily crashing against the hardwood to create extra possessions.

Like Barkley, he'll also use his low center of gravity to wedge opponents out of the play on the defensive glass before attacking rebounds in a hurry. The nastiness with which he plays on the glass resembles the NBA legend, too.

Williamson is a thankless superstar who doesn't need plays called for him to have an impact, and his rebounding prowess and motor on the backboards are the main reason why.

Goldsberry: The Round Mound of Rebound is one of the most evocative nicknames in basketball history, but it also doubles as a very brief scouting report for Barkley. Despite his relative shortness and roundness, Sir Charles became one of the best rebounders in his era thanks to his blend of motor, boxouts and smarts.

Zion has a bigger frame than Barkley, but his energy is similar, and that's a major compliment. The pace-and-space era has reduced the number of goliath bigs even trying to get boards, which should benefit Zion. If he can learn the NBA arts of boxing out and back taps, Williamson will become one of the most formidable physical forces chasing rebounds around the NBA.

5. Julius Randle | Posting scoring style

Schmitz: Williamson was one of the most efficient post-up scorers in college basketball, punishing switches or even more traditional bigs with a fairly simple approach. Similar to Randle at the same stage, Zion has tremendous drop-step footwork, erasing defenders with his combination of physicality and quickness, turning over his right shoulder before exploding to the rim for short push shots or layups.

Like Randle, Williamson is a bit undersized for his position, with average length and reach, which helped him develop touch shots from all different angles to combat superior length. Both are left-hand dominant, although Zion already was far more efficient at the same stage. Williamson shot 74.7% on all 2s at Duke, while Randle converted 57.1% at Kentucky.

Will Williamson maintain that level against NBA bigs? I'm not sold that he'll operate on the block as often as he did at Duke. He'll certainly have to add counter moves, like Randle did, operating more out of midpost face-up situations. He's still a bit of a blank slate in terms of his post-up attack, but the ingredients are there to make it work.

Goldsberry: The Randle comparison is nice, especially stylistically. I also see a lot of Toronto-era Chris Bosh here if we're talking efficiency.

First of all, Zion is an absolute beast in the paint. He made 76% of his shots inside of 10 feet -- that's LeBron-in-his-prime-level efficiency, and by far the highest such mark of any lottery prospect. But his shot activity near the basket also reflects his dominant left-handedness.

That combination of volume and efficiency is something Randle could only dream about when he was 19. If Zion can extend his Duke-era interior dominance into the NBA, we might be looking at the most effective southpaw since Bosh was at his most ferocious with the Raptors.

In trading for Mike Conley, the Utah Jazz announced themselves as a legitimate contender to make the Finals next season and swiped the first domino in what is set up to be an interesting and unpredictable point guard market.

To review: Utah traded Jae Crowder, Kyle Korver, Grayson Allen, the No. 23 pick in Thursday's NBA draft (7 p.m. ET on ESPN), and a protected future first-round pick that will mostly likely shift over to Memphis in 2022 -- when it will be top-six protected, per league sources.

Contracts tied to Conley and Rudy Gobert expire after the 2020-21 season, so by (probably) deferring the pick until 2022, Memphis has at least given itself a shot of catching the Jazz in a down year at the same time the NBA might have a "double draft" combining one-and-done college prospects with newly eligible players coming out of high school.

This is good return for Memphis, which is losing a franchise legend and the last remaining on-court link to the beloved Grit-N-Grind era. (Conley should have a statue outside FedExForum in Memphis soon after his retirement.)

The Grizzlies took a slight risk in waiting until now to deal Conley instead of acting at the trade deadline, but it ended up costing them nothing beyond the chance to clear more 2019-20 salary. They might have come out better for it.

They always wanted two first-round picks, and they got them. The Detroit Pistons opted against paying that price, sources say, and even had the Pistons agreed, Memphis might have been stuck with Reggie Jackson. The Pacers would not surrender two first-round picks and Aaron Holiday, sources say.

In Allen, Korver, and Crowder, Memphis gets three useful players. (Depending on how they structure the trade, the Grizzlies could also create a fat trade exception of about $25 million.) Allen, the 21st pick a year ago, logged just 416 minutes as a rookie, but Utah remained optimistic about his potential. The Grizzlies can almost argue they acquired three first-round picks in this deal. Waiting also allowed Memphis to have certainty over where Utah would pick in Thursday's draft.

Korver and especially Crowder are movable for value. (Memphis trading Crowder for two second-round picks makes too much sense for it not to happen -- and maybe soon.) Crowder leaves a gaping hole at power forward in Utah. (The Jazz's best lineups since acquiring Crowder at the 2018 trade deadline have featured him as a small-ball power forward.)

No matter how the Jazz timed this trade, adding Conley's $32.5 million salary takes them out of the market for max-level free agents, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks. Utah can open $16.9 million in space by waiving Derrick Favors, whose deal for next season is nonguaranteed, but even that does not create maximum space with Conley's mega-salary coming in.

Utah probably coughed up one more asset than it would have liked, though that might have been unavoidable. It's hard to tell if Boston's interest in Conley was ever real, but you can't blame Utah for believing it became real once reports had both Kyrie Irving and Al Horford potentially heading for the exits. Utah also needed to send out enough salary to keep Favors and remain under the cap. Sending Crowder over Dante Exum is a big bet on Exum. The Jazz need Exum to help next season.

Utah using its space on Conley also marks some minor good news for Philadelphia and any other suitor for Tobias Harris. The Jazz had Harris listed among its major free-agency targets, sources say, but they will move down into lower power forward tiers depending on what they do with Favors. Keep him, and they will be limited to using the room midlevel exception of about $4.8 million. Waive him, and they can crack open enough space to sign someone in the Nikola Mirotic/Bobby Portis/Marcus Morris/DeMarre Carroll tier. They could also send out Favors in a sign-and-trade for a free agent around that level.

If all else fails, they could elect to keep Favors in his role as token starting power forward and heavy-minutes backup center behind Gobert.

Utah has never quite given up on the Favors-Gobert starting duo, even if it seems like they give up on it when the going gets tough in the playoffs. Utah has always defended like all hell in its twin towers alignment. Favors has won them playoff games. The questions have all come on offense.

Spacing was tight with Ricky Rubio running point. Utah's offense mostly survived in the regular season -- minus a disastrous start in 2017-18 -- but things got dicier against dialed-in playoff defenses. The Favors-Gobert pairing would have a more honest chance with Conley, Donovan Mitchell, and Joe Ingles surrounding them in what could be a killer starting five. Georges Niang loosened Utah's spacing as a break-in-case-of-emergency rotation guy in the playoffs against Houston, and figures to get a real chance next season.

Utah may discover it needs a better, more versatile power forward option than is on the roster now. If so, the Jazz have the time and tools to rectify that.

Conley is a very snug fit regardless. You need multiple plus playmakers to score against elite playoff defenses. Mitchell was a little overtaxed as a No. 1 option. He shot 39 percent across his two playoff runs, and finished with more turnovers than assists in Utah's dispiriting first-round loss to Houston this season.

Mitchell is 22! Expecting expert-level navigation from him in the playoffs this soon was not super-reasonable. He's not LeBron James. All things considered, Mitchell has managed well enough; he certainly looked ready for the moment as a rookie in coaxing Carmelo Anthony onto an island and running Oklahoma City out of the 2018 playoffs.

Ingles is a fine all-around player, but he was a little overburdened as a No. 2 option who ran Utah's offense when Mitchell rested -- and sometimes even when Mitchell was on the floor.

Acquiring Conley slots everyone into a more natural hierarchy. Very quietly, Conley had an All-NBA-caliber season in what ended up as his Memphis swan song. He can share the controls with Mitchell; both will munch on more catch-and-shoot 3s as a result. Conley is a steadier and more precise crunch-time ball handler who can calm Utah's offense amid the late-game frenzy.

Ingles settles back into a role as a secondary creator against scrambled defenses. He has drained at least 40 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s in each of the last four seasons, and cracked the 46 percent barrier -- wow! -- in both 2016-17 and 2017-18 before a slight downturn last season.

Conley has lost a half-step, but he is still at least Rubio's equal on defense -- and probably a little better in hothouse moments. He is less prone to gambling out of scheme. Utah's defense should remain among the league's two or three best with Conley and Gobert bookending things.

Utah is 2-8 against Houston over the last two postseasons. It became fashionable to brand them with the dreaded backhanded compliment: regular-season team. On one level, that is kind of an empty term. It really just means that a team isn't quite as good as the best teams, and Utah before this deal plainly was not as good as the best teams.

But the label was at least hinting at real issues. Utah did not quite have enough stylistic diversity on either end. Acquiring Conley doesn't change that in regard to Utah's defense. Play enough postseason series, and Gobert is going to run into a tough matchup. That is just life for paint-bound rim protectors. (That said, Gobert got more comfortable last season venturing out toward the 3-point arc. His defense -- and Utah's as a whole -- steadied against Houston after a disjointed first two games in which James Harden obliterated an exaggerated scheme designed to take away his step-back 3-pointer.)

On offense, Utah's whirring perpetual motion machine of handoffs and screens looks gorgeous in the regular season. In the playoffs, more defenses roll their eyes at that Basketball 101 stuff, switch every action, and dare someone to get buckets one-on-one.

Conley gives Memphis a second guy who can dust behemoths on switches. The upgrade in shooting will make each of those handoffs and screens more dangerous, and reduce the opposing defense's margin for error. On more of those two-man actions, both players will be multifaceted threats. Any mistake -- any window opened -- will carry more risk.

Remember: Even in bricking away to a ghastly 99 points per 100 possessions against Houston, the Jazz found 22 wide-open 3s per game -- the most of any postseason team, per NBA.com. They just missed a crazy portion of them. Adding another elite shooter gives them a bit more insulation against such slumps.

The cost is real, but this is what you do when you have a chance to make the Finals. Six years ago in a down cycle, the Jazz happily gobbled up two first-round picks from the Golden State Warriors in exchange for absorbing cap detritus -- allowing the Warriors to unlock enough space for Andre Iguodala.

Now in an up cycle, with the Golden State dynasty in shambles amid an unthinkable rash of injuries, Utah is going for it -- and (they hope) paying a similar price.

There are a ton of dominoes left to fall in the West. The Lakers need to build a team around LeBron James and Anthony Davis; if they do a halfway decent job of it, they could be scary. The Clippers could claim conference finals favorite if they sign Kawhi Leonard and another All-Star-level player. (Personally, I love the fit of Horford with the Clippers -- if they lure Leonard away from a great situation in Toronto.)

The bickering Rockets are still here. None of Denver, Portland, Oklahoma City, and San Antonio are going anywhere. At least one -- maybe more -- have the goods to make a big win-now move. (Can we get Kevin Love to Portland somehow, please?)

But Utah was a legit 50-win team before adding Conley, and they have given themselves a chance to be something more.

Other ripple effects of a major trade:

• The rest of the NBA's free agent point guards lost a source of leverage in Utah. One fun quirk: Several of the teams with holes at the position have dynamic wings who soak up a lot of ball-handling duty -- Mitchell in Utah, Victor Oladipo in Indiana, Devin Booker in Phoenix, Luka Doncic in Dallas.

Do those teams want traditional floor generals, or guys more like Patrick Beverley -- 3-and-D spot-up types? (Malcolm Brogdon is perhaps the apex version of this player on this summer's free agency market, but he is restricted and the Bucks would like to keep him.)

Utah went for the best talent available.

Indiana is circling Ricky Rubio, though they have eyes on other targets -- including trade options -- if Rubio's market gets too frothy, sources say. Brooklyn believes it is the frontrunner for Irving, sources say, which would put D'Angelo Russell in play somewhere. Russell is an intriguing fit next to those ball-dominant wing types; playing him in more of a hybrid role might actually nudge his shot selection toward a healthier direction -- more catch-and-shoot 3s.

Phoenix still has no proven point guard; Tyler Johnson could be available if he opts into his contract for next season, sources say. The Mavericks can create about $30 million in cap room. They may opt to use that on a big man instead of chasing Kemba Walker or some other high-profile point guard, though nothing has been decided yet, sources say. (Dallas pursuing Horford has been the hottest rumor of the day; they will face competition for him.)

Orlando has D.J. Augustin for one more season, and a giant question mark at the position beyond that. Washington has Tomas Satoransky heading into restricted free agency; will anyone hit him with an offer sheet fat enough to stress the Wizards?

• Boston owns the Grizzlies' pick next season, but only if it falls outside the top six. Trading Conley signals a full-on rebuild. If the Grizzlies pick in the top six next season, Boston gets Memphis' pick in 2021 regardless of where it falls. Will it still be a golden chip then? Or can Memphis bottom out this season, keep its pick, and improve to the point that it is merely a run-of-the-mill lottery team in 2021?

The Minnesota Twins placed infielder Marwin Gonzalez on the 10-day injured list and right-handed reliever Blake Parker on the family medical emergency list Wednesday.

Gonzalez has a strained right hamstring, the team said. He is hitting .255 with nine home runs and 26 RBIs in his first season with the Twins. He has made starts all around the infield this season, at third base (31), second base (two) and shortstop (one). He also has made 16 starts in the outfield.

He was lifted for pinch hitter Max Kepler in the sixth inning Tuesday night against the Boston Red Sox. Kepler, who was supposed to get the night off Tuesday, ended up playing 12 innings and getting three hits, including the game-winning single in the 17th inning.

The team did not disclose details on Parker's family medical emergency. He leads the Twins with nine saves this season (in 10 chances) and is 0-2 with a 4.26 ERA in 25 1/3 innings pitched.

The Twins recalled catcher/infielder Willians Astudillo and right-hander Sean Poppen from Triple-A Rochester in corresponding moves.

Astudillo hit .250 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 33 games with the Twins earlier this season. Since being sent to Rochester, Astudillo hit .526 with three home runs and 11 RBIs in nine games.

The New York Yankees released veteran right-hander Danny Farquhar, who was trying to work his way back onto a major league roster after suffering a ruptured brain aneurysm during a game while pitching for the Chicago White Sox last season.

Farquhar, 32, signed a minor league contract with the Yankees during the offseason and after an extended spring training was sent to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. In three innings in Scranton, he gave up seven runs, including three home runs, and ran up a 21.00 ERA.

Farquhar collapsed in the White Sox dugout on April 20, 2018, with a brain hemorrhage. He spent more than two weeks in the hospital, then returned to the ballpark June 1, 2018, to throw out a ceremonial first pitch at U.S. Cellular Field.

Farquhar was cleared to resume baseball activities last June and became a free agent after the 2018 season.

World Rugby has abandoned plans for a new Nations Championship starting in 2022 after failing to gain the required support from unions.

The governing body needed unanimous approval from the 10 unions that make up the southern hemisphere's Rugby Championship and Europe's Six Nations.

World Rugby says there was a "lack of consensus on key issues" including timing and the tournament's format.

The project had secured equity support worth £6.1bn over 12 years.

"We remain fully committed to exploring alternative ways to enhance the meaning, value and opportunity of international rugby," said World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont.

"This includes our continued commitment to competition and investment opportunities for emerging nations to increase the competitiveness of the international game with a view to possible Rugby World Cup expansion in 2027."

The Nations Championship would have seen a top division of 12 teams from both hemispheres play each other once in a calendar year, either through traditional competitions like the Six Nations or the Rugby Championship, or in summer or autumn Test windows.

The top two teams would have then met in an end-of-year showpiece final.

However, a major sticking point was the concept of promotion and relegation, with Six Nations unions such as Scotland and Ireland believed to be unconvinced on the sustainability and vibrancy of the second division.

The proposals would have also seen the November international schedules redrawn, with smaller nations fearing any new calendar would reduce the opportunities available to them.

However, a 12-team first division would have seen regular exposure against the top nations for the likes of Fiji and Japan, who would each have benefited from as many as 11 matches each year against top-tier nations.

The players' union was also believed to harbour reservations over the travel required in the summer international window, when northern hemisphere teams traditionally play in the south.

England hooker Dylan Hartley is set to miss out on the World Cup after struggling with a knee problem.

Regular captain Hartley led England to back-to-back Six Nations titles in 2016 and 2017 under head coach Eddie Jones, but hasn't played since December.

Jones is also set to shun hundreds of caps worth of experience when he names his first training squad on Thursday.

Scrum-half Danny Care and flanker Chris Robshaw are understood to be among the high-profile omissions.

Thursday's 29-man party will only include players not involved in the Premiership semi-finals, with Harlequins' uncapped forward Alex Dombrandt in line to be named after a strong performance against the Barbarians earlier this month.

With all English-based players given a mandatory rest period of five weeks, those from beaten semi-finalists Gloucester and Northampton will join the camp next week.

Jones then names his final training party, including players from finalists Exeter and Saracens, on 4 July.

'Hartley not in right condition'

Hartley, 33, was an ever-present part of Jones' regime before he missed the tour of South Africa last summer because of concussion.

He has struggled to nail down a regular place since, and has not featured for either club or country in 2019 because of a recurring knee problem.

Although as a Northampton player he was not due to join the camp until the end of the month, it is understood he is not in a fit enough condition to be involved.

Sources close to Hartley say he will continue to rehabilitate his injury in the hope to be fit and available in August, but in reality the odds are now firmly against him making the tournament in Japan.

'Omissions a gamble'

Even though they have fallen out of favour of late, Care, 32, and 33-year-old Robshaw's exclusions come as a major surprise and represent a gamble from Jones.

Care, England's second-most capped scrum-half with 84 appearances, was a regular part of the squad before being left out of the tour of South Africa in summer 2018.

Despite playing against both the Springboks and New Zealand that autumn, as well as scoring a try against Japan, he was dropped for the match with Australia and did not feature in the last Six Nations.

Gloucester's Willi Heinz, Saracens' Ben Spencer, Wasps' Dan Robson and regular starter Ben Youngs are set to be the scrum-halves called into camp.

Along with Care, another experienced operator in 36-year-old Richard Wigglesworth is also thought to have been overlooked.

Flanker Robshaw was also a squad mainstay before having knee surgery in October and missing the autumn internationals.

The former England skipper has not played for his country since, with Mark Wilson and Brad Shields commandeering the blind-side flanker position.

Meanwhile, Northampton's uncapped back-rower Lewis Ludlam, 23, is understood to have shot into late contention.

Marler considering coming out of retirement

Meanwhile, prop Joe Marler is considering coming out of retirement for the showpiece in Japan.

The 28-year-old, who has 59 caps, announced the end of his international career in September in order to spend more time with his family.

But he is thought to be weighing up a return, and is again a part of England's Elite Playing Squad - which is not made public.

If he decides to make a comeback, Marler would not be named in the training squad until the start of July given he played for the Barbarians against an England XV on 2 June.