Trump ban: US sports figures criticise ban on immigrants

Luol Deng (right): "I stand by all refugees and migrants, of all religions, just as I stand by the policies that have historically welcomed them."

Leading US sports figures have criticised President Donald Trump's travel ban on nationals from seven mainly Muslim countries.

Trump's order has resulted in protests both in America and worldwide.

Those who have spoken out against the ban include British Los Angeles Lakers star Luol Deng who, as a child, fled to the UK from what is now South Sudan.

He said: "Refugees are productive members of society. It's important we humanise the experience of others."

The US president banned entry to the country from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen - and temporarily suspended refugee resettlement. The country's Olympic committee said the measures should not impact athletes travelling to the country for international events.

Trump signed the executive order on Friday and early on Sunday he tweeted that the US needed "extreme vetting, NOW". But later, in a statement, he tried to offer more reassuring words, saying: "This is not about religion - this is about terror and keeping our country safe.

"We will again be issuing visas to all countries once we are sure we have reviewed and implemented the most secure policies over the next 90 days," he said.

Trump doing fabulous job say voters

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Trump travel ban: Protesters speak out

There were stronger opinions elsewhere in the NBA on Trump's measures.

Detroit Pistons coach Stan van Gundy said in an interview with The Detroit News: "Now we're judging people by their religion - trying to keep Muslims out. We're getting back to the days of putting the Japanese in relocation camps, of Hitler registering the Jews. That's where we're heading."

Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri, a native of Nigeria, told reporters in the US: "I think it's just ridiculous. I just don't get it. This is mind-boggling. I'm a prime example of what opportunity is in this world."

NBA championship-winning coaches Steve Kerr, of the Golden State Warriors, and Gregg Popovich, of the San Antonio Spurs, have also spoken out against Trump's order.

Meanwhile, Muslim Atlanta Falcons player Mohamed Sanu said he wanted to focus on preparing for Sunday's Super Bowl against the New England Patriots instead of talk about the ban.

"My name's Mohamed, a lot of people know I'm Muslim, but I'm here because of my football talents, not because I'm Muslim," the 27-year-old said at the Super Bowl opening night.

"I'm here to talk about football so if you guys are going to continue to ask me about my religious beliefs then I'm going to continue to tell you the same thing."

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was cited by Trump as a supporter during his election campaign and was asked about the issue during a weekly radio appearance.

"I don't want to get into it, but if you know someone, it doesn't mean you agree with everything they say or they do," he said.

Britain's four-time Olympic champion Sir Mo Farah said he was "relieved" he could return to his US home after it was clarified Trump's travel ban did not apply to him.

The ban had appeared to apply to Farah, who was born in Somalia, until an announcement by the UK Foreign Office on Sunday that dual citizens were only affected if travelling to the US from one of the banned countries.

A petition calling for Prime Minister Theresa May to cancel Trump's planned state visit to the UK has so far gathered more than 1.5 million signatures.

Otani might not throw in Arizona

PEORIA, ARIZONA – In what could be a setback for major league scouts looking to gauge Shohei Otani’s arm, the chances are increasing that he may not pitch in Arizona next month.

The slugging pitcher, who arrived in the Phoenix area on Saturday with his teammates for the first phase of the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters’ spring training is reportedly not completely fit.

The Japan Series champs are practicing at the San Diego Padres’ spring training complex for the second straight season. They have a game against a South Korea club slated for Feb. 8 and an intrasquad game set for the following day.

Nippon Ham will wrap up its camp on Feb. 10 and resume training in Okinawa, but Otani and his Samurai Japan teammates will gather in Miyazaki on Feb. 22 for the final preparations ahead of March’s World Baseball Classic.

“We will keep a close eye on his condition,” manager Hideki Kuriyama said of the Pacific League’s Most Valuable Player from last season.

WBC duty means quick turnaround for foreign stars

Now that spring camps are only a few days away for NPB teams — some players are already working out “independently” together — the foreign contingent has begun trickling into the country. It was mostly the first-year foreign players the past couple of weeks, but now the veterans have started showing up.

For some, the return to Japan will be brief. The 2017 World Baseball Classic will cause a shakeup in a number of NPB camps, and it won’t only be Japanese players headed off to __play for their country.

Some recently arriving foreign stars will be headed right back to the airport in a couple of weeks to join their respective national teams ahead of the fourth edition of the WBC. The tournament begins March 7, with the semifinals and final scheduled for March 20-22 in Los Angeles.

“At the airport heading to Japan. Good bye Florida see you in a month for the WBC,” Giants reliever Scott Mathieson wrote on Twitter on Jan. 26, as he waited on his flight to Japan. Mathieson will be playing for Canada during the WBC.

His Giants teammate Luis Cruz will be heading back out soon as well, as the infielder will represent Mexico and __play alongside the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters’ Brandon Laird.

“I want to concentrate on giving my all in camp first,” Cruz told reporters when he arrived in Japan last week.

The Tokyo Yakult Swallows’ Wladimir Balentien and the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks’ Rick van den Hurk will play for the Netherlands and will travel to Korea for the first round.

They would return to Japan for the second round and jet off to America for the final rounds, should the Dutch qualify. After that, it would be back to Japan again to prepare for the season, which begins March 31.

Samurai Japan’s players have the advantage of not leaving the country before the final round. The foreign NPB stars participating in the WBC, however, might have a busy schedule ahead of them as they accumulate frequent flyer miles during a spring that will be anything but routine.

U.S. bound: The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters arrived in Arizona on Saturday in the U.S. ahead of the start of their second straight spring camp abroad. The team will train in Arizona from Feb. 1 until Feb. 10, before returning to continue their preparations in Okinawa.

“It starts today,” manager Hideki Kuriyama was quoted as saying by Sankei Sports before leaving Narita airport.

Shohei Otani, last season’s Pacific League MVP, will likely draw the lion’s share of attention from fans in the U.S., as was the case when the team headed stateside last year.

“The goal is to reach the top this year also,” Otani said before leaving.

While most of the regulars made the trip, Sho Nakata and Kensuke Tanaka are among those who will remain in Japan and work out at the team’s ni-gun camp.

Tour guide: Orix Buffaloes right-hander Brandon Dickson is adding tour guide to his resume has he prepares for his fifth season in Japan.

Dickson is doing his part by helping out the Buffaloes’ new foreign players and showing them the ropes as they adjust to life in Japan.

One of his first tasks was making sure they were fed well, reportedly taking his new teammates to Steakhouse Zen, a popular restaurant in Kobe.

Dickson, who has posted three consecutive nine-win seasons, said one his personal goals for the season was to improve on last year’s numbers. He’ll also be trying to reach double-digit wins for the first time in Japan.

Kawasaki Stadium stirs fond recollection of legendary games

Former Lotte Orions players Hideaki Takazawa (front, center) and Koichi Hori (front, right) pose for a photo with fans at Fujitsu Stadium Kawasaki, which was formerly known as Kawasaki Stadium, on Saturday. | KAZ NAGATSUKA

KAWASAKI – Former Lotte Orions outfielder Hideaki Takazawa recalled that he and his teammates would joke that there were more officials than fans at the stadium for their games back in the day.

The Pacific League was far behind the Central League in terms of media exposure and attendance in general in the 1980s. And Lotte, in particular, would always finish in the bottom half of the standings. It was one of the least-popular teams in all Japanese pro baseball, and poor attendance figures at home provided clear-cut evidence of that.

But its small, not-so-state-of-the-art home stadium, Kawasaki Stadium, has remained stuck in the minds of baseball fans of a certain age, even a quarter century after the club left to become the Chiba Lotte Marines.

A legendary game played there Oct. 19, 1988, between Lotte and the Kintetsu Buffaloes — which is popularly dubbed “10.19” — is undoubtedly one of the biggest reasons why. On that particular day, the usually deserted Kawasaki Stadium was all of a sudden the center of Japanese baseball.

“People are still talking about 10.19, and I feel appreciative for that,” Takazawa said during a talk show at an all-day event to reminisce about the stadium’s legacy on Saturday. “I still get interviewed about it.”

That day, the Buffs played a double header against the Orions to wrap up their regular season and needed to win both games to capture the PL pennant over the powerhouse Seibu Lions. They won the first game 4-3. In the second, they had a 4-3 lead until Takazawa dramatically smacked a solo homer in the bottom of the eighth. It finished in a 4-4 tie as the game was ended after the bottom of the 10th due to the time-limit rule back then.

The Orions’ spot in last place had already been set before the double-header and they had not won a single game (seven losses) against the Buffs in October alone.

But the Oct. 19 games were different. Takazawa revealed that Lotte’s then-skipper, Michiyo Arito, told his players before the first game that he would __play his best squad so it would not disrespect either Seibu or Kintetsu.

“We were told that we would have to __play as hard as we could, because the games meant so much for both teams,” said the 58-year-old Takazawa, who now serves as a coach at the Marines’ baseball academy.

Takazawa went on to say the unusual mood at the stadium naturally raised the tension for the Orions players as well.

“It wasn’t a normal situation,” said the Hokkaido native, who became the PL’s batting champion with a .327 average that season. “The mood created by the fans got us going.”

Takazawa confessed that the Buffs, who dramatically won the first game by scoring the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth inning, inadvertently provoked the playing-for-nothing Orions into taking the second game more seriously.

“They were celebrating, laying on the ground (after pinch hitter Masataka Nashida drove in the go-ahead run),” he said. “And we were like, ‘Hey, we’re playing, too.’ We wouldn’t get like that normally, but the whole stadium contributed to the mood.”

At any rate, the result of the second game meant the Buffaloes came up short and their first pennant since 1980 slipped from their grasp.

After playing 130 games apiece, the gap between the pennant-winning Lions and runnerup Buffaloes was miniscule. Seibu finished the season with a .589 winning percentage to .587 for Kintetsu.

Kenichi Yokoyama, who was first a member of the Orions ouendan cheering group and later served as a club official for the Marines over two decades, is a walking encyclopedia of the team and Kawasaki Stadium, which opened in 1951.

Yokoyama, 53, said the team’s final game at the venue in 1991 did not fill the stadium, which is said to have a capacity of 30,000 but in reality probably holds far fewer, but that the 10.19 game did, a sign of how extraordinary the contest was. It’s often been shown on TV programs that some fans would play badminton during games there, using the wide-open space in stands devoid of people.

Kawasaki Stadium, which had been the franchise home for the Takahashi Unions and Taiyo Whales (predecessor of the Yokohama BayStars) before Lotte came in 1978, has now been renamed Fujitsu Stadium Kawasaki and has been renovated. It’s used more as an American football venue these days. Yet some things, such as the fences behind home plate, part of the outfield fences and light towers, remain from the old days.

Yokoyama added that it is special that the unpopular stadium has not been torn down.

“Among the Pacific League stadiums that were used when I was a boy, it’s only Kawasaki Stadium that’s still in existence,” he said. “It’s incredible that the stadium is sill here, remaining as a sporting mecca.”

Ikuro Tanaka, a club official for the J. League’s Kawasaki Frontale, the current designated administrator for the stadium (Tanaka is the stadium manager), said many of the football players and young Frontale players who practice at the stadium don’t know much about what happened in the past, including 10.19. But he wants them to understand that they were given the place today based on its history.

“We need to inherit the legacy,” Tanaka said. “When you ask people what reminds them of Kawasaki, many would still say here. We almost feel like we want to make this a world heritage site.”

The Saturday event was the second held to recollect the legacy of the stadium and 10.19. Tanaka said that the organizers would like to hold it once a year or so going forward.

LeBron James: First Cleveland Cavaliers player to score 20,000 points

LeBron James has more than double the points of the next Cavaliers player

LeBron James became the first player to score 20,000 points for the Cleveland Cavaliers when the NBA champions beat Oklahoma Thunder 107-91.

The 32-year-old scored 25 points on Sunday to pass the milestone in his 10th season with the Cavaliers.

He now has twice as many points as Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who is second on the team's all-time list with 10,616.

James, who also played for Miami Heat, is eighth on the NBA all-time list with 27,938 career points.

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NBA Plays of the Week: Steph Curry's half-court buzzer-beater

Elsewhere the Atlanta Hawks needed four periods of over-time to beat New York Knicks 142-139.

The game lasted for more than four hours, after the teams were tied after 48 minutes and then played periods of five minutes until there was a winner.

Hawk's Paul Millsap played 60 minutes, including 35 consecutive minutes, to finish with 37 points.

The Hawks joked on Twitter about the length of the game

Former Padres pitching star Randy Jones battling throat cancer

SAN DIEGO – Former MLB star Randy Jones, the 1976 National League Cy Young Award winner, revealed Thursday on the San Diego Padres’ website that he is fighting throat cancer.

The 67-year-old left-hander said he was diagnosed with the disease in November and began chemotherapy and radiation treatments in mid-December.

“I feel positive,” Jones said. “They caught it early. It’s all in the throat and not in the lymph nodes. I’m beating this thing.”

Jones, whose jersey number 35 has been retired by the Padres, played for San Diego from 1973-80 then played his last two major league seasons for the New York Mets.

Doctors told Jones his cancer was linked to using tobacco.

“I chewed as a player,” Jones said. “I smoked cigars most of my adult life. I started dipping eight or nine years ago. There’s a link, it’s all related. But I’m lucky because I’ve been told this is a low-risk cancer. It’s in my throat, right above my vocal chords.

“It’s a tough grind, but I have to get it done. Food right now tastes terrible. I’ve lost 10 pounds. But I’m following orders. They tell me what to do and I do it. I’m on a ‘keep it simple, stupid’ program. I just say yes to all orders.”

The sinkerball specialist went 20-9 and led the National League with a 2.24 ERA in 1975, then went 22-14 with a 2.74 ERA in 1976 to earn the Cy Young Award. But he injured his left arm in his 40th and final start of the campaign and never regained his All-Star form.

Matsui’s wife gives birth to second son

NEW YORK – Hideki Matsui’s wife gave birth to the couple’s second son earlier this month, the former New York Yankee confirmed Thursday.

“He’s doing really well,” Matsui said of his newborn at his New York residence.

Matsui’s first son was born in 2013, a year after the slugger retired as a player. He has been a special adviser to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman since 2015 and is also a roving hitting instructor for the team’s farmhands.