NEW YORK (AP) — Boston catcher Oscar Hernandez, Chicago Cubs pitcher David Garner, St. Louis pitcher Matt Pearce and Pittsburgh shortstop Andrew Walker have been suspended for 50 games each under baseball’s minor league drug program.

Hernandez, Garner and Pearce each had second positive tests for a drug of abuse, the commissioner’s office said Friday. Walker was disciplined for an unspecified violation.
The 24-year-old Hernandez played 18 games for Arizona in 2016 and four the following year. He hit .197 with eight homers and 21 RBIs in 67 games last year for Jackson in the Double-A Texas League and is on the roster of Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox of the International League.

Garner, a 25-year-old right-hander, is with the Iowa Cubs of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. He was 4-3 with a 3.25 ERA in 35 relief appearances last year for Double-A Tennessee and Iowa.

Peace, a right-hander who turned 24 last month, was 9-12 with a 3.08 ERA in 25 starts last year for Double-A Springfield of the Texas League and Triple-A Memphis of the Pacific Coast League. He is on the Memphis roster.

Walker, who also turned 24 last month, hit .240 with no homers and 11 RBIs last season in 39 games for a pair of Class A teams. He is on the roster of West Virginia Power of the Class A South Atlantic League.

There have been 25 players suspended this year under the minor league drug program and six under the big league program: Houston pitcher Dean Deetz, Washington catcher Raudy Read, Pittsburgh pitcher Nik Turley, Kansas City outfielder Jorge Bonifacio, Toronto pitcher Thomas Pannone and Minnesota shortstop Jorge Polanco.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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OSKALOOSA, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of killing a college basketball player in Oskaloosa says he was defending himself. Twenty-three-year-old Luke VanHemert is charged with second-degree murder, accused of stabbing to death 22-year-old Marquis Todd earlier this month. Todd played for William Penn University.

The Des Moines Register reports that VanHemert says in court documents that the stabbing of Todd “was an act of self-defense” but doesn’t provide more details.
Authorities think a car carrying Todd and two friends returned to the scene of a car crash outside VanHemert’s Oskaloosa house three times on the night of March 1, and that a fight broke out on the third trip back.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press…

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Everything seems to be cued up yet again for Kansas, which for the second year in a row needs just two wins to make it to the Final Four. It didn’t work for the Jayhawks a year ago and winning this year’s Midwest Region could be an even bigger challenge. Top-seeded Kansas faces red-hot Clemson on Friday night in a Sweet Sixteen matchup. Duke and Syracuse play each other in the nightcap and the winners will play on Sunday for a trip to San Antonio.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Jayhawks are the top seed and will have what should amount to a home game on a neutral floor. But Clemson raised eyebrows with a 31-point thrashing of Auburn to reach the Sweet Sixteen, and the Tigers have the kind of deep and experienced backcourt that can do well in March. The two teams play Friday night in Omaha, Nebraska.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A federal magistrate won’t free before trial an Iowa youth basketball coach who’s accused of secretly recording some of his players undressing. U.S. Magistrate Kelly Mahoney ruled after video hearing Wednesday that 42-year-old Greg Stephen didn’t pose a flight risk but did pose a danger to the community. Prosecutors had asked the judge to keep the ex-Iowa Barnstormers co-director in custody. Stephen was arrested last week on a charge of knowingly transporting child pornography.

UNDATED (AP) — The first half of the Elite Eight was filled with upset picks. And more could be on the way in second half of the Sweet 16. Villanova and West Virginia headline the second slate of games on Friday night.

ATLANTA (AP) — Gritty Kansas State delivered another upset in the South Regional, eliminating Kentucky with a 61-58 victory. Xavier Sneed scored 22 points, Barry Brown Jr. scored a huge basket in the closing seconds and K-State advanced to face Loyola in the first-ever 9-vs.-11 matchup in the Elite Eight.

ATLANTA (AP) — Marques Townes scored 18 points, including a key 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds remaining, to lead Loyola to a 69-68 win over Nevada in the NCAA South Regional semifinal. The No. 11-seeded Ramblers continued their improbable NCAA run and are one victory from a Final Four appearance.

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Former Colorado State assistant coach Niko Medved is returning to Fort Collins to lead the Rams men’s basketball program after spending a year as Drake’s head coach. Medved replaces Larry Eustachy, who stepped down last month, ending a “climate assessment” of the program led by athletic director Joe Parker.

Eustachy, who was 122-79 in five-plus seasons at CSU, is on paid leave until June 30, at which time he’ll formally resign. Medved was an assistant coach at CSU from 2007-13 before spending four years as head coach at Furman and then leading Drake last season to its first postseason berth in six years.

Drake athletic director Brian Hardin said: “We are disappointed by this news but remain excited and confident about the trajectory of the Drake men’s basketball program.” Hardin asked Dave Thorson to serve as interim head coach while a national search is conducted to find Medved’s replacement.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A federal magistrate won’t free before trial an Iowa youth basketball coach who’s accused of secretly recording some of his players undressing. U.S. Magistrate Kelly Mahoney ruled after video hearing Wednesday that 42-year-old Greg Stephen didn’t pose a flight risk but did pose a danger to the community. Prosecutors had asked the judge to keep the ex-Iowa Barnstormers co-director in custody. Stephen was arrested last week on a charge of knowingly transporting child pornography.

Court documents say Stephen has admitted taking secret videos of three players disrobing in a hotel bathroom in Illinois in January. He’s told investigators he secretly recorded his adolescent players undressing in an attempt to monitor their physical development. A trial date hasn’t been set.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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Melanie Petty, with the Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund in Atlantic, has announced the non-profit organization is proud to once again fund the Atlantic Baseball Pitching Clinics for 4th-7th graders.  Petty said also, “We are happy to have Sean O’Brien back in town to teach our youth and look forward to working together in the future.”

Sean O’Brien

She reminds you also, that the 10th Annual TFred Memorial Golf Tournament will be held on Saturday, August 11th.  The event is the only fundraiser held each year.  It’s a fun day of golf along with a silent auction and lunch.  Since losing Trev in 2009. Petty said the 501(C)3 fund has been able to donate back $165,000.00 in his memory to the things he loved. Watch for future donations to the community on the organizations’ Facebook page (Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund), and listen for them here on KJAN.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright believes he can still be the best pitcher in all of baseball, even at 36 years old and coming off an injury-riddled season that was the worst of his career. The right-hander will play a key role as St. Louis tries to end a skid of two straight seasons without making the playoffs.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Royals thought they would be rebuilding when their core group hit free agency. A soft market allowed them to retain several key players. Now, nobody is quite sure whether they will compete or collapse, which makes the upcoming season surprisingly interesting. The Royals open the season at home March 29 against the Chicago White Sox.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have signed defensive tackle Xavier Williams. The Arizona Cardinals declined to match the offer Kansas City made to the run-stopper. Williams grew up in the Kansas City suburb of Grandview, Missouri, before a standout career at Northern Iowa. He started twice and appeared in 23 games over the past two seasons in Arizona.

ATLANTA (AP) — The bracket-busting South Region looks more like the Kentucky Invitational, featuring the blue bloods from the Bluegrass State and those other guys. The Wildcats are joined in Atlanta by Nevada, Kansas State and Loyola, an upset-minded trio that made this the first regional in NCAA tournament history to oust all four top seeds on the first weekend. But Kentucky coach John Calipari is urging his young team not to “drink the poison” that they’ve got an easy road to the Final Four.

UNDATED (AP) — Kentucky should feel right at home in ‘Cat-lanta’ when it faces Kansas State in the semifinals of the South Regional. The team had a 26-6 record at the Georgia Dome, including a triumph in the 2012 South Regional on the way to its last national title. Kansas State is looking for extra motivation in the perception that it’s the worst team left in the NCAA field.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Missouri State is filling its men’s basketball coaching vacancy by hiring Dana Ford away from Tennessee State. Tennessee State athletic director Teresa Phillips has announced in a university release that Ford has accepted the Missouri State job. Ford went 57-65 in four seasons at Tennessee State but was 52-39 over the last three seasons. Ford takes over for the fired Paul Lusk.

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Duke and Kentucky have been down this road before, winning championships with extraordinarily young rosters. They seem to be the masters of the one-and-done era. Both programs have a chance to do it again. After several potential one-and-done phenoms were bounced from the NCAA Tournament in the opening weekend, the Blue Devils and Wildcats are the teams still playing that have rosters stacked with high-profile freshmen. Marvin Bagley III leads Duke; Kevin Knox is the centerpiece at Kentucky.

Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones and the Atlantic City Council, Wednesday evening, paid tribute to the Atlantic Middle School/High School Archery Team, for their efforts at State. Clint Roland, Archery Coach, said there are about 60 students from the Middle School and High School are enrolled in the Archery Program. About one-third of those students and some of their parents attended the Council meeting.

Some of the dozens of members of the Atlantic MS/HS Archery Team and Coach Roland, along w/City Council members.

Roland said 37 team members were sent to the State Tournament this year. The Tournament was comprised primarily of underclassmen and a handful of young seniors “So we’re not losing a lot, we’re gaining.” Roland said also the team “Has done tremendous things, they’ve done tremendous work with support from the school system, from the community and everybody around, and we’re a growing program. It keeps flying along.”

Roland said also, that the kids work hard for about six-months out of the year on their skills, and “It’s a long season, but they trudge forward.” He also thanked Atlantic Police Chief Dave Erickson for driving the school bus to their last tournament in southern Iowa during an ice storm, and keeping the students safe.

He said “It’s a great program, these kids do a great job. I’m proud to be a part of it.” Roland has been coaching the team for the past four-years. The team is also coached by Justin Williams and Dent Petty.