Hampshire 131 for 3 (Vince 69) beat Middlesex 128 (Hafeez 34, Morris 3-22, Abbott 3-25) by seven wickets

Chris Morris and Kyle Abbott claimed three wickets apiece as Hampshire kept their Vitality Blast hopes alive with a seven-wicket win over Middlesex at Lord's.

The men from the Ageas Bowl came through the Grace Gates knowing they needed four wins out of four to have a chance of making the knockout stages and their South African pace duo all but clinched the first of these as they bundled out the hosts for 128.

James Vince's 69 made short work of the chase, leaving Middlesex, who have been riding high in the South Group standings still looking for a couple of wins to book their own place in the quarter-finals.

Middlesex were put in after losing the toss and struggled from the outset.

Paul Stirling's poor form in T20 this year continued when he became Abbott's first victim, lbw to the first ball of the fourth over.

Dawid Malan and Stevie Eskinazi briefly threatened to post a score, but once the former had edged Morris through to keeper Lewis McManus the Seaxes lost their way.

Eoin Morgan continued the cameos trend, striking two sixes in his 20, before perishing attempting a third from the bowling of the excellent Liam Dawson, who bowled well in tandem with South African debutant Tabraiz Shamsi.

Middlesex debutant and Pakistan Test star Mohammed Hafeez tried to hold things together with 34, sharing a stand of 46 with wicketkeeper John Simpson. But he was bowled by Wood before Abbott dismissed Simpson and Toby Roland-Jones with successive balls.

Morris picked up two late scalps as Middlesex lost their last five wickets for seven runs in 16 balls.

Having top scored with the bat, Hafeez struck an early blow with the ball when Rilee Rossouw drove him straight to Nathan Sowter at cover.

Hampshire skipper Vince, though, looked in ominous form from the get-go, one sumptuous cover-drive underlining his class.

Sam Northeast tried to follow his example only to blast a Roland-Jones delivery straight up in the air and give Stirling a simple catch.

But Dawson, fresh from his unbeaten half-century against Surrey in the County Championship 24 hours earlier, proved a valuable ally to Vince, who went to 50 from 33 balls with his seventh boundary. The 50 partnership came in just 32 deliveries and although Vince holed out on the cover boundary, Hampshire sprinted home with 31 balls to spare.

There was a revealing moment as Jofra Archer walked off the pitch having just completed the first five-wicket haul of his Test career.

Thrown the ball by team-mates who recognised the significance of the occasion - there will, no doubt be more five-wicket hauls, but there will never be another first - Archer did not, initially, at least, raise it to soak up the applause of the crowd. Instead, he continued to rub it on his trousers; still looking for the shine that might help him gain some swing.

It was a moment reminiscent, perhaps, of the way in which Jonathan Trott, at his best, would sometimes mark his guard even after he had guided his side to a victory in a match. For these are men so locked in their craft, so consumed by their profession, that it becomes instinctive to work on it even when the immediate targets have been hit.

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That craft was evident in Archer here. After showing the fire and brimstone side to his game at Lord's, where he achieved a pace of 96mph and displayed that wonderfully unpleasant bouncer, here Archer reasoned that conditions called for different skills. So instead of looking to make the batsmen jump and parry, he sought to draw them onto the front foot and exploit conditions which saw the ball move sharply through much of the day.

That is a remarkably mature approach for a young man playing just his second Test. Many of this crowd would have longed to see him unleash the sort of deliveries that had Lord's on the edge of their seats last week and many of them roared him in at the start of the day. So despite claiming one wicket - Marcus Harris caught behind of an almost perfect delivery that demanded a stroke and moved fractionally to kiss the edge - in his opening spell, there was a slight sense of anti-climax as it finished. This had been a demonstration of subtlety, skill and control. And when you're dressed as Elvis, a banana, or a monk - and that accounts for a fair few in the Headingley crowd on Thursday - subtlety can get a bit lost.

But this was exactly the approach taken by the likes of Malcolm Marshall or Richard Hadlee in such conditions. And Archer's ability to nip the ball both ways, using both seam and swing, while maintaining that full length that allowed the ball the chance to swing and demanded a stroke from the batsmen. After producing a hostile performance at Lord's that would have made Mitchell Johnson proud, he produced a skilful performance here that would have done the same for James Anderson. To be capable of both approaches is immensely encouraging for England.

"I don't need to run in and bowl 90mph every spell to get wickets," Archer said afterwards. "I've shown that today. There will be times in Test matches you have to focus on hitting your length. There will be times to ramp it up as well but you don't have to go into it every innings.

"This wasn't a wicket where you had to run in and bowl 90mph. It was a bit softer on top; there was a bit of swing and nip. If you put it in the right areas you should get wickets."

That's not to say Archer did not display sharp pace here. By the time he was recalled to the attack for his second spell, Australia were 124-2 and England were in real danger. In these conditions, that was a fine score. The support bowlers had failed to maintain the control of the openers and, at one stage, 88 runs had been leaked from 14 overs. The thought remains that, had they all bowled tighter, Australia may have struggled to score many more than 100 in such conditions. England may yet struggle in reply.

As a result, Archer appeared to go up a gear. Having beaten David Warner with an 88mph delivery that nipped past his outside edge, the next ball - timed at a fraction under 90 mph - demanded a stroke and again took the edge on its way to the keeper. The word 'unplayable' is overused, but the best most batsmen could hope to do with such a delivery was miss it. The wicket precipitated a sharp decline which saw Australia lose eight wickets for 43. Coincidentally, 8 for 43 were the figures Bob Willis took here in that famous game in 1981. Archer's haul of 6-45 was the best by an England bowler in the Ashes at Headingley since.

Later, Warner compared him to Dale Steyn - in terms of his skills and his ability to up his pace as required - and Jasprit Bumrah - in terms of the difficulty in picking up his lengths from his action. Look at the names mentioned in this article so far: Marshall; Hadlee; Steyn; Bumrah. These are some of the best there have ever been. England have something very special here.

"It was incredible Test bowling," Warner said of Archer and Broad's opening spells. "It was world-class bowling at its best. They bowled unbelievably well and a play and miss became a good shot."

Is this praise premature? Well, we'll see. But Archer really does appear to have the armoury - the control, the pace, the skills and the robust body - to suggest he can sustain the bright start to his career. Indeed, when his captain eventually realises that he is the man who should be running in down the hill, and he is the man who should bowl in shorter spells, it's possible his figures could even improve. He bowled at the wrong end for much of this innings and conceded runs as a result of the unusually attacking fields.

The one cloud on his horizon is his workload. Already, he has delivered 61.1 overs in this series and this was just the third innings in which he has bowled. By contrast, Broad has delivered fewer than 50 overs in the same timeframe. Overall, England have delivered 194.1 overs since Archer came into the Test side, meaning he has bowled almost a third of them. That is not sustainable.

So while it is understandable that Joe Root turns to him in every situation - the Ashes are on the line here, after all - it has to change. While he's shown he is far more than a tearaway with a magnificent bouncer, that top register of pace remains a significant weapon. Even in this innings, he produced the odd sharp bouncer which would have had batsmen just a little reluctant to prop onto the front foot. England need to help him retain that pace. Johnson, at his best, rarely bowled spells of longer than three or four overs.

It was that weariness that was most apparent straight after the game. Asked by the BBC how he felt about that first five-for, his instinctive response was to reply: "It means I get to rest now. I'm over the moon to have got six wickets today, but I'm equally happy just to get off."

That sustains a familiar theme. Following the Lord's Test, Archer tweeted a picture of an old man struggling to raise himself from a chair with a stick for help and wrote: "Me getting out of bed tomorrow morning."

It was a joke, of course, but it was also a warning. Bowlers like Archer come along, for England at least, very rarely. He's already helped England to a World Cup and he might just have got them back in an Ashes series. He needs looking after. He needs protecting. We're only at the start of Archer's international journey, but already he has shown an array of skills that whisper the potential of greatness.

Cam Newton's surgically repaired shoulder has been the focus for much of the Carolina Panthers' preseason, but the focus turned to the franchise quarterback's left foot and ankle after a first-quarter sack in Thursday night's preseason game at New England.

Team medical staff examined Newton's left foot on the sideline after the sack, his second in three series. The 2015 NFL MVP then walked to the locker room, the team later announcing he would not return.

Newton, 30, underwent surgery on his left ankle on March 2014.

Newton sat out the first two preseason games as the staff used extreme caution in his recovery from January arthroscopic surgery on his throwing shoulder, the second time that shoulder had been operated on in three offseasons.

He completed his first four passes Thursday for 22 yards before his first incompletion, a throwaway to avoid a sack.

Newton didn't get rid of the ball on the play he was injured. He scrambled around the pocket before going down with New England defensive lineman Adam Butler holding onto his left foot.

Replay didn't show anything out of the ordinary, but Newton was favoring the foot when he left the field.

This wasn't the first time Newton incurred a preseason injury against the Patriots on a scramble. He suffered a fractured rib in 2014 and ultimately missed the opener at Tampa Bay.

Newton finished 4-for-6 for 30 yards.

A video of Conor McGregor punching an older man inside a Dublin bar surfaced online last week, and seeing the video was "like a dagger into my heart," McGregor told Ariel Helwani in an exclusive interview with ESPN on Thursday.

In the interview, McGregor expressed regret for his actions in April, when he struck the man in an ugly incident in his native Ireland. The former two-division UFC champion came clean and took full responsibility for his "unacceptable behavior" in that event.

"I was in the wrong," McGregor said. "That man deserved to enjoy his time in the pub without having it end the way it did. ... I tried to make amends and I made amends back then. But it doesn't matter. I was in the wrong. I must come here before you and take accountability and take responsibility. I owe it to the people that have been supporting me. I owe it to my mother, my father, my family. I owe it to the people who trained me in martial arts. That's not who I am. That's not the reason why I got into martial arts or studying combat sports. The reason I got into it was to defend against that type of scenario."

The Gardai, Ireland's national police, are investigating the incident at The Marble Arch Bar on April 6, a spokesperson confirmed to ESPN last week. The Gardai do not comment on named individuals. McGregor said he would accept any consequences.

"Whatever comes my way, I will face it," McGregor said. "Whatever comes my way, I deserve it. I will face this head on. I will not hide from it. I was in the wrong. It was completely unacceptable behavior for a man in my position."

The pub punch was McGregor's second run-in with the law in two months. McGregor was arrested and charged with smashing a man's cellphone and stealing it outside a Miami club in March. Those charges were dropped in May. McGregor admitted he was in the wrong with regard to that situation, too.

"I need to just stop reacting to the bait," McGregor said. "People are trying to bait me into things. Am I the fish or am I the whale? I must be calm, I must be zen. I must lead by example. There's so many people looking up to me. How can I react in this way? I need to get ahold of this and, like I said, I'm working very hard to do this."

McGregor, 31, is the biggest star of the UFC, having been a part of four of the top pay-per-view events in promotion history. He also fought Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match in 2017, a bout that earned him upward of $50 million, he has said. In the interview with Helwani, McGregor expressed concern that his current lifestyle will squander the fortune he has made in combat sports.

"So, if I have this opportunity before me, if I don't execute this and get this right, make this happen for the children of my children's children, all of my successes, all of everything I've achieved will be void, will be meaningless to me," McGregor said. "I must get this right and I must not go down that path, the written path, the cliché of the fighter that has it all and ruins [it]. I need to be aware of my past, of the past of other individuals, and learn from it and grow and that's what I'm doing."

McGregor said he's "eager" to return to the UFC. He's currently recovering from surgery on a broken left hand he suffered in May. The original plan was for him to return in July, possibly against Justin Gaethje at Madison Square Garden, McGregor said, but the hand injury prevented that. A fight before 2019 is over is a possibility, he said.

For a comeback bout, McGregor said it doesn't matter whom he faces. He mentioned former rivals such as Khabib Nurmagomedov, Nate Diaz, Dustin Poirier, Jose Aldo and Max Holloway, as well as possible new foes such as Tony Ferguson, Frankie Edgar, Jorge Masvidal and Gaethje. McGregor said he is in a good position as far as negotiations with the UFC. A stake in the company is no longer a "sticking point" for his return, but it remains something he wants.

McGregor said he took inspiration from Diaz's victory over Anthony Pettis at UFC 241 last weekend in Diaz's first fight since losing to McGregor in 2016. McGregor also mentioned Stipe Miocic's ability to overcome his knockout loss to Daniel Cormier and finish Cormier at UFC 241. The Irishman said he yearns for his own chance to make a triumphant return after his loss to Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October 2018.

"Mine is gonna be the greatest one of all," McGregor said.

In March, McGregor announced on Twitter his retirement from the UFC. In the interview with Helwani, however, McGregor said he is anything but retired -- and he's not sure he ever will hang up the gloves. At the moment, it seems McGregor's primary focus is getting back in the Octagon.

"I must get my head screwed on and just get back in the game and fight for redemption, retribution, respect -- the things that made me the man I am," McGregor said. "And that's what I will do."

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- Due to holes in the end zones of IG Field, where goalposts for the Canadian Football League's bigger field are usually planted, the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers played on a shorter field Thursday night.

Lengthy conversations among NFL, Packers and Raiders officials ended with the decision that the players should not be in such unsafe conditions, so the playing field was reduced to 80 yards, with each 10-yard line serving as the goal line.

Up until about 20 minutes before kickoff, field workers were trying to tamp down a square of artificial turf in each end zone, to no avail. It would not stay put.

NFL, #Packers and game officials check out the "hole" in the end zone before #Raiders game. pic.twitter.com/N8JBhBAYx2

— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) August 22, 2019

A statement from the NFL was released shortly after kickoff:

"Tonight's game is being played on a reconfigured field. The field met the mandatory practices for the maintenance of surfaces for NFL games based on an inspection yesterday. Concerns arose today surrounding the area where the Blue Bombers' goalposts were previously located. The 10-yard line will function as the goal line at this game. In lieu of kickoffs, the ball will be placed at the 15-yard line."

Caesars and most other sportsbooks graded the game as usual since field size is not in any rules as far as canceling bets. At Caesars, the game closed as a pick 'em, with an over/under of 40.

The Raiders were technically the home team for the preseason contest, which raised the question as to why the team would give up a game in Oakland, California, to travel to the middle of a foreign country. Per a league source, the Raiders did not yet have a lease with the Oakland Coliseum when the NFL scheduled its preseason and gave the Raiders a Week 3 home game, be it in San Francisco; Santa Clara, California; Reno, Nevada; Las Vegas; or Oakland.

But with MLB's Oakland Athletics home this week, the Raiders had to hit the road to play host, hence the team having talks with Canadian cities Regina, Saskatchewan, and Edmonton, Alberta, and even with Honolulu, before signing up with Winnipeg for the first NFL game of any kind played in Western Canada.

And while the Packers, who had planned on playing some front-line players, made a statement by sitting 33 players, it was hard to tell if the Raiders reacted similarly since they did not plan on playing many, if any, starters against Green Bay. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who was questionable to play due to a sore back, was one of the 33 players the Packers sat.

There was at least one other game in NFL history played on a field shorter than 100 yards. In 1932, the Chicago Bears and Portsmouth Spartans played the league's first playoff game indoors at Chicago Stadium, on a modified 80-yard field, due to poor weather.

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump presented 91-year-old basketball legend Bob Cousy with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Thursday, praising the former Boston Celtics star as "one of the all-time greats in the history of sports."

Cousy played for the Celtics from 1950 to 1963, winning six league championships and the 1957 MVP title. The Bob Cousy Award, given to the country's best point guard in men's college basketball, is named for him. He is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and played a pivotal role in founding the National Basketball Players Association.

After hanging up his No. 14 jersey, the 13-time NBA All-Star went on to coach basketball at Boston College.

"This acknowledgment allows me to complete my life circle," Cousy said during the Oval Office awards ceremony. "I can stop chasing a bouncing ball. The Presidential Medal of Freedom allows me to reach a level of acceptance in our society I never once ever dreamed of."

Trump spoke of Cousy's childhood during the Great Depression and discovering his talent for basketball at a young age. The president said Cousy never forgot his first mentor's advice to never be predictable, and jokingly added: "Hey, I've heard that lesson, too."

The president recognized Cousy's achievements on and off the court, lauding his support for underprivileged young athletes and speaking out against racism.

Cousy, who is white, ardently supported his black teammates who faced discrimination during the civil rights movement. Still, Cousy lamented in Gary Pomerantz's biography "The Last Pass: Cousy, Russell, the Celtics, and What Matters in the End" that he didn't do more for his black teammates, including 2011 Medal of Freedom recipient Bill Russell.

The Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, celebrates individuals for their "especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the U.S., to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors."

Trump credited West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin for suggesting the medal be given to Cousy.

Cousy is the second Medal of Freedom recipient this year. Trump presented the award to golfer Tiger Woods in May.

Cousy is the 10th honoree under Trump, who is Cousy's candidate of choice in the 2020 presidential election.

In a recent interview with NBA.com, Cousy described himself as politically moderate. He said that although he disagrees with some of the president's actions, he plans to vote for Trump next year.

During the awards ceremony, Cousy said the medal was made all the more special because it had been presented by the "most extraordinary" president in his lifetime.

"I know in your world, you're well on your way to making America great again," Cousy told the president. "In my world, it's been great for 91 years. Only in America could my story have been told."

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wants to temper expectations. Maybe that is understandable.

He is preparing to step into the point guard position Russell Westbrook held for 11 years for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 10.8 points and 3.3 assists as a rookie for the Los Angeles Clippers last season. He joined the Thunder in the deal that sent All-Star Paul George to the Clippers.

He has a massive hole to help fill. Westbrook was the 2017 NBA MVP and two-time scoring champion, two-time All-Star MVP and two-time assist leader who averaged a triple-double the past three seasons with the Thunder before he was traded to the Houston Rockets this summer.

"I am not Russell Westbrook," Gilgeous-Alexander said matter-of-factly Thursday. "We don't have the same name, the same body type, nothing like that. So I'm going to try to be myself and be the best me, and everything else will take care of itself."

Thunder general manager Sam Presti has said Gilgeous-Alexander has star potential, yet he will likely split time with new addition Chris Paul next season.

"Regardless of the situation, I'm going to continue to work hard and play my game," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "I know that eventually it will come out and things like that. I don't worry about starting. I don't worry about accolades or anything like that. I just work hard, keep my head down and be true to who I am."

Gilgeous-Alexander relishes the opportunity to be mentored by Paul, a nine-time All-Star who averaged 15.6 points and 8.2 assists last season. He has worked with Paul since joining the Thunder, but wouldn't share all that he has learned.

"Some of the things I like to keep a secret," he said, laughing. "I've learned a lot from him in terms of thinking the game, angles, things like that. He's obviously a really good player. He's been a really good player for a really long time, and a guy that I looked up to growing up. I'll continue to learn from him as long as I get to."

The Thunder have a slew of draft picks for future years, and Gilgeous-Alexander, just 21, could be a key building block.

"I think where Shai is today is not close to where ultimately he's going to be," Presti said last month. "But we have to be really patient with that process. But he's got great tools, and he'll have to follow the same track that a lot of these other players have, but we think he has a bright future."

Danilo Gallinari, a key piece who helped the Clippers reach the playoffs last season, also joined the Thunder in the Paul George deal. The forward averaged career highs of 19.8 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last season and made 43.3 percent of his 3-pointers.

"Really skilled," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Competitive as well, and even a better guy. One of my vets from my rookie season, and I'm happy to have him still with me."

Gilgeous-Alexander looks forward to working with Steven Adams, a 7-foot center who averaged 13.9 points and 9.5 rebounds for the Thunder last season while shooting nearly 60 percent from the field.

"Honestly, he was very annoying," he said. "His screens are rock -- very annoying to get over. Having him on my side of the playing field will be a lot better this year."

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CliffBruntAP

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More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

The Houston Astros denied a reporter access to Justin Verlander's media availability following the team's 2-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday night.

Detroit Free Press writer Anthony Fenech was not allowed to attend Verlander's postgame session with reporters, Astros vice president of communications Gene Dias told the newspaper. Verlander refused to speak to any reporters with Fenech in attendance.

Verlander tweeted Thursday morning that he refused to talk to Fenech "because of his unethical behavior in the past," saying the newspaper has not engaged with him on the issue.

Although I tried to avoid this situation altogether, I've still reached out to @freep multiple times today with no response. They're still not interested in my side of the story.

— Justin Verlander (@JustinVerlander) August 22, 2019

The Astros said in a statement released Thursday afternoon that their decision was made "after taking into consideration the past history" between Fenech and Verlander and "Verlander's legitimate concerns about past interactions with Fenech, and the best interests of the other media members working the game. We chose to prioritize these factors when making this decision.

"Fenech was allowed access to the clubhouse shortly after other media members and had the opportunity to approach Verlander or any player he needed. We believe that our course of action in this isolated case was appropriate."

The Astros opened their clubhouse at 9:35 p.m. As the rest of the media was allowed to enter, Fenech, who has a credential issued by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, was stopped by three Astros security officials.

Fenech contacted MLB vice president of communications Mike Teevan and was allowed in at 9:41 p.m., after Verlander had concluded his media session. Fenech approached Verlander, who said: "I'm not answering your questions.''

"Blocking a working reporter from doing his job is unprofessional, disappointing and intolerable," Free Press executive editor Peter Bhatia said. "We will be protesting to MLB and the Astros."

Free Press sports editor Chris Thomas also tweeted that neither he nor his reporter has heard from Verlander. Thomas added that he is "more than happy" to speak with Verlander about the conflict.

Hey, @JustinVerlander: I would like to know who you have contacted @freep about telling your side of the story. My reporter has not heard from you directly, nor have I.
My email is listed on the article we published last night.

I am more than happy to speak with you about it. https://t.co/vAbN86rNfY

— Chris Thomas (@ByChrisThomas) August 22, 2019

Verlander had made his displeasure with Fenech known at least twice before Wednesday night. He refused to talk to reporters with Fenech in attendance on Tuesday, and Dias told the writer before Wednesday's game that Verlander didn't want him at his postgame session.

MLB released a statement Thursday afternoon saying Fenech should have been allowed in the clubhouse.

"Per our Club-Media Regulations, the reporter should have been allowed to enter the clubhouse postgame at the same time as the other members of the media," MLB said. "We have communicated this to the Astros."

BWAA president Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic said the organization was "alarmed'' by the incident.

"This action by the Astros violated the MLB club-media regulations, which are laid out in the collective bargaining agreement, and the BBWAA expects MLB to respond accordingly and promptly,'' he said Thursday.

Verlander pitched for the Tigers from 2005 to '17, when he was moved to Houston at the waiver trade deadline. Fenech has been the Tigers' beat writer for the Free Press since 2015.

The Tigers scored the largest MLB upset in 15 seasons after being listed as plus-435 underdogs. Verlander took the loss after allowing two runs on two hits with 11 strikeouts in a complete-game effort.

The Astros are heavy favorites again Thursday, listed at minus-500 odds at Caesars Sportsbook.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BALTIMORE -- Somewhere, the Cincinnati Reds are toasting.

On Thursday at Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles surrendered their 259th home run of 2019, breaking a tie with the 2016 Reds for most homers allowed by a team in a single season.

The record-breaking bomb came in the top of the third inning of Baltimore's game against the Tampa Bay Rays when Austin Meadows sent a 1-2 curveball from O's starter Asher Wojciechowski just barely over the out-of-town scoreboard in right field for his 22nd dinger of the season.

A former first-round pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 2010, Wojciechowski came into the contest having allowed 12 homers in 49 innings. He surrendered another solo shot in the fifth, to Willy Adames.

Entering play Thursday, the Orioles were on pace to yield 329 home runs. With power numbers up across Major League Baseball, Baltimore isn't the only team that has been giving up homers at a record rate. Through Wednesday's games, the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies were all on target to surpass the 2016 Reds.

Nearly a quarter of Baltimore's historic 2019 total has come against the division rival Yankees. In 19 games against New York, Orioles pitchers surrendered 61 home runs, shattering the mark for most allowed to one team in a single season.

This season, 3.7% of all MLB plate appearances have resulted in home runs, up from 3.0% a year ago. Compared to 2014, when the leaguewide rate was 2.3%, home runs have increased by roughly 60%. If the current rate holds throughout the rest of the season, it would break the all-time single-season record of 3.3%, set during the 2017 campaign.

The rebuilding Orioles began play on Thursday in last place in the American League East, owners of a 41-86 record that was second worst in the majors. Their team ERA of 5.89 was the highest in baseball by nearly half a run.

Major League Baseball has banned all affiliated players from participating in the Venezuela winter league this season, a response intended to comply with President Donald Trump's embargo against the country's Nicolas Maduro-led government.

"MLB has been in contact with the relevant government agencies regarding the Executive Order issued by President Trump on Venezuela," the league said in a statement. "MLB will fully adhere to the policies implemented by our government. With respect to the Venezuela Winter League, MLB will suspend its involvement in that league until it receives direction from the relevant agencies that participation by affiliated players is consistent with the Executive Order."

The potential repercussions of the prohibition, which prevents major league and minor league players from joining the 75-year-old Liga Venezolana de Beísbol Profesional (LVBP), could be significant. Multiple sources told ESPN they feared the ban would warp the heretofore strong bond between MLB and Venezuela and spawn a situation similar to that of Cuba, another embargoed country whose complicated relationship with the league has festered for decades.

Dozens of affiliated players either return home to Venezuela or travel there annually to play winter ball, as many supplement paltry minor league incomes with low- to mid-five-figure sums to play in a 63-game season. The LVBP, whose champion participates with those from the Dominican, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban and Panamanian leagues in the annual Caribbean Series, is sponsored by Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA), the country's state-run oil company, according to sources.

The murkiness of the LVBP's link to a government-run business spurred MLB to consider the ban and consult with the Major League Baseball Players Association, according to sources. The fear, sources said, is that players agreeing to deals with a government-affiliated entity -- or agents consummating the deals -- would run afoul of the Aug. 5 executive order, which banned any such transactions.

Venezuela, once a bustling economic power in Latin America, has plunged into crisis, with widespread food and medicine shortages, millions of refugees leaving the country and toxic political infighting. The U.S. recognizes Juan Guaidó, the leader of the opposition, as president instead of Maduro, who remains in power.

One consequence of MLB's plan, sources said, could be Maduro retaliating by banning the league from signing amateur players in Venezuela. The country has proved to be a hotbed of talent, with Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras and New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres among the 95 Venezuela-born players who have logged major league time this season.

In recent years, as the economic strife worsened, teams shut down academies in Venezuela and consolidated their Latin American operations in the Dominican Republic. Top Venezuelan prospects have begun following suit, according to sources. Some of the best 12- and 13-year-old players in the country have moved with their families to the Dominican Republic in anticipation of signing with major league teams at age 16, sources said.

While all of the concerns about the executive order could be mollified by an agreement between the United States and Venezuela -- both countries on Thursday acknowledged recent back channel discussions -- MLB's desire to abide by it comes at a moment when the league's international dealings have been under scrutiny.

The Trump administration in April scuttled a deal between MLB and the Cuban government that would have allowed Cuban players to sign directly with the league instead of taking the circuitous and dangerous paths offered by traffickers. The Department of Justice continues a wide-ranging investigation into baseball's Latin American business -- including deals for Cuban defectors -- that sources said have targeted a number of teams, including the Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

MLB this week contacted the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the U.S. Treasury department that imposes economic sanctions, seeking clarity on the executive order, according to a source. Teams expect to continue to sign amateur players as long as Venezuela does not prohibit it, believing that doing so would not breach the executive order because individual teenage players are not under the Venezuelan government's purview.

Whether that legal argument holds up is unclear and part of the complications caused by the embargo. While a number of major league and minor league players planned to compete in the LVBP, contracts are not typically agreed upon until September and October. With no affiliated players allowed, Luis Amaro, the general manager for the Aguilas del Zulia, said he expected Venezuela natives playing in the Mexican and Italian leagues this summer to fill out the rosters.

Until then, MLB and the MLBPA can only wait to see the consequences of the potential action. The lockdown of the Venezuelan talent pool, while not crippling, would significantly hinder the talent base in the minor leagues, where hundreds of Venezuelans play. The lack of a winter option for young players in Venezuela concerned one agent, who said LVBP helps keep players out of trouble when they return home. Another agent, who expected multiple clients to make up for below-minimum-wage minor league salaries by playing in Venezuela, said he hopes clients still can get jobs in the Dominican, Mexican or Puerto Rican leagues.