ST. PETERSBURG — When Rays left-hander Josh Fleming makes his major-league debut in Sunday’s series finale against the Blue Jays at Tropicana Field, he will be surrounded by family. Sort of. His parents, Mark and Lori, traveled from Columbia, Ill., to the Tampa Bay area on Saturday. His fiancee, Katie, is expected on Sunday after attending her sister’s wedding. But due to COVID-19 safety restrictions — no fans permitted — none of his family will be allowed into the Trop. Instead, they will...

USA TODAY Sports ST. PETERSBURG — After completing a brilliant first half, left-hander Chris Sale was asked for an assessment of his first season with the Boston Red Sox. “I’m not really a big fan of talking about myself,’’ said Sale, the former Florida Gulf Coast University pitcher, following Thursday night’s 4-1 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. “I don’t think that’s for me to talk about.’’ Sale, who has made his sixth consecutive American League All-Star team and is a...

Andrea Melendez/news-press.com ST. PETERSBURG - After completing a brilliant first half, left-hander Chris Sale was asked for an assessment of his first season with the Boston Red Sox. “I’m not really a big fan of talking about myself,’’ said Sale, the former Florida Gulf Coast University pitcher, following Thursday night’s 4-1 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. “I don’t think that’s for me to talk about.’’ Sale, who has made his sixth consecutive American League All-Star...

It’s that time of the year. Thursday, the Florida State Seminoles will arrive in Charlotte, N.C., at the annual ACC Football Kickoff, a mini-conference convention of sorts, a chance for coaches and players to socialize, but mostly an opportunity to field questions from the media. Even though the Atlantic Coast Conference has the Clemson Tigers, the defending national champion, and Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, the Seminoles figure to be one of the...

Four starters return on the Ohio State offensive line. On paper, that sounds like a very good thing. After all, the Buckeyes were 11-2, reaching the College Football Playoff, and you’d guess the O-line would be brimming with confidence. Right? Not exactly. Oh, there’s talent in the group and a belief that the personnel will come through as needed. But with the Buckeyes just a few weeks away from training camp, there’s agreement among everyone from coach Urban Meyer to the linemen themselves:...