Callum Shinkwin stormed to a four-shot victory for his second DP World Tour title at the Wales Open on Sunday.
The Englishman carded a one-under 70 in his final round at the Celtic Manor Resort to finish on 12-under for the tournament, comfortably clear of runner-up Connor Syme.
Shinkwin had looked poised to go head-to-head with playing partner Julien Guerrier, having held a one-stroke lead heading into the final day.
But after making six birdies and five bogeys, the 29-year-old found himself comfortably clear of the Frenchman, who endured an awful five-over final round to tie for third with David Dixon, Lucas Bjerregaard, Renato Paratore and Andy Sullivan at five under.
Back-to-back bogeys on the seventh and eighth in Newport halted Shinkwin's momentum, but he held his nerve to seal another title.
Shinkwin's only previous victory had come at the Cyprus Open in 2020.
Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt is asking for a trade, but the team has denied his request, cleveland.com reported on Sunday.
Hunt is in the final year of a two-year, $13.25million extension, and sat out team drills the past few days at training camp as he was seeking a long-term extension.
Hunt is coming off a 2021 season in which he was limited to eight games due to calf and ankle injuries. That came after he had 1,145 scrimmage yards and 11 total touchdowns for the Browns in 2020, while appearing in all 16 games and forming a solid 1-2 punch with Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb.
Hunt joined Cleveland in 2019 but sat out the first eight games that season after being suspended for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Kansas City selected Hunt in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and he led the league in rushing as a rookie with 1,327 yards.
Hunt's trade request is yet another distraction for the Browns, who acquired Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans in the offseason and traded fellow quarterback and former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers.
Watson was suspended for the first six games of the upcoming season for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy after two dozen women accused him of sexual misconduct during massage treatments while he played in Houston.
The NFL, though, is appealing that decision – leaving Watson's status in limbo.
Johann Zarco was "surprised" by his crash at Silverstone that denied him the chance to secure a first MotoGP victory.
The Pramac Racing driver started the British Grand Prix on pole as the season resumed following a five-week break and was able to maintain his lead in the early laps of the race.
A crash at turn eight on lap five ended that charge, however, with Zarco initially continuing but later returning to the pits and retiring from the race.
It was the eighth time in the premier class that Zarco has failed to turn pole position into a victory, and he felt his tyres were the reason why he missed out again.
"The warm temperature pushed me to take this medium front – that was a good tyre anyway because Pecco [Francesco Bagnaia] won on it, but it seemed for me, it was the reason of the crash, because there’s always a bit less grip with this tyre," he said.
"But I was too worried to go with the soft one and not finish the race on a good pace, overall. The medium one, I knew it pretty well, so that's why I was quite confident, and the first laps were pretty good.
"But I was surprised in that Turn 8. And clearly I'm disappointed, and it's pretty hard to put all the things together to put the victory."
Zarco's failure to finish saw him drop to fifth in the championship standings, now sitting 66 points behind leader Fabio Quartararo - with Sunday's race at Silverstone being a missed opportunity to close the gap, as the Monster Energy Yamaha rider only finished eighth after having to serve an early long-lap penalty.
The championship standings do not paint a pretty picture for the Frenchman, but he believes further opportunities will arise.
"I hope I will be in good form again in Austria, because what I could feel during this weekend and even during the race helped me to grow on the Ducati and get even more feeling as I want," he added.
"So, yeah, the most positive of today is this feeling that I could take during the race, and understand even more this tyre that sometimes seems a tricky choice, because for nothing you can be hero or zero."
Francesco Bagnaia secured back-to-back MotoGP victories to hand a significant boost to his championship hopes.
The Ducati rider came off the five-week break 66 points behind the championship leader but capitalised on Fabio Quartararo's struggles, closing the gap to 49.
Johann Zarco, who started on pole and third in the championship standings, saw his hopes of a first MotoGP victory end after he crashed out in the lead, which will also have a significant impact on his title chances.
With Quartararo affected by a long-lap penalty and Aleix Espargaro – second in the standings – carrying an injury, Bagnaia's win saw Ducati secure another podium.
Quartararo had an excellent start and immediately propelled himself to second on the grid behind Zarco before serving his long-lap penalty on the fourth lap, subsequently returning to the field to take fifth as he crucially came out ahead of Maverick Vinales.
Zarco's hopes of securing a maiden MotoGP victory ended the following lap, crashing out in the lead, leaving Jack Miller and Alex Rins to challenge for first – the latter having surged from 11th at the start.
Espargaro, having been a doubt for the race after a high-side in practice on Saturday, was unable to compete and fell down the field, though the dent to his Championship hopes was not as severe with teammate Vinales overtaking Quartararo on lap nine.
Three laps later, Bagnaia made his move and became the fifth different leader of the race, while Miller rose to second soon after with Rins looking vulnerable heading into the closing stages.
Vinales jumped further up the standings in the final laps, taking Rins, Miller and then Bagnaia to cap off a stellar drive, but he could not retain the lead, with Bagnaia's title hopes boosted by two consecutive victories.
Quartararo finished eighth, narrowly ahead of championship rival Espargaro but both will now be worried about the title charge of Bagnaia.
TOP 10
1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati)
2. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) +0.426
3. Jack Miller (Ducati) +0.614
4. Enea Bastianini (Gresini) +1.651
5. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) +1.750
6. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM) +2.727
7. Alex Rins (Suzuki Ecstar) +3.021
8. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) +3.819
9. Alex Espargaro (Aprilia) +3.958
10. Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46) +6.646
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Riders
1. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) - 180
2. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) - 158
3. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) - 131
4. Enea Bastianini (Gresini) - 118
5. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) - 114
Teams
1. Aprilia Racing - 240
2. Ducati - 238
3. Monster Energy Yamaha - 206
4. Pramac Racing - 195
5. Red Bull KTM - 179
Max Scherzer delivered 11 strikeouts across seven innings to cap a perfect day for the New York Mets who swept their divisional double-header with the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.
The Mets got past the Braves 8-5 in the matinee game, followed by a 6-2 victory in the evening led by Scherzer's impressive outing.
The wins were critical in the National League (NL) East where the Mets improved to a 69-39 record ahead of the reigning world champions at 64-45.
Scherzer was at his vintage best for the Mets, amid tension given the Braves had recently closed in on Mets in the race for first place ahead of the five-game series.
"This is what you play the game for," Scherzer said. "You play to face the best, especially deep in the season. You grind it out here in the NL East."
Scherzer's 11 KS means he sits fourth on the all-time MLB list for most 10 or more strikeout games by a pitcher with 109, behind Nolan Ryan (215), Randy Johnson (212) and Roger Clemens (110).
Yankees shut out as Montgomery stars
Jordan Montgomery came back to haunt his former employers only days after being traded as the St Louis Cardinals defeated the New York Yankees 1-0.
Montgomery pitched five scoreless innings for the Cardinals who triumphed courtesy of Paul Goldschmidt's first-inning run driven in by Nolan Arenado.
The Cards new left-handed pitcher, who was involved in the trade deal for Harrison Bader, only managed one strikeout but only allowed two hits and a walk.
Dodgers edge divisional rivals
Max Muncy's fifth-inning go-ahead three-run blast helped the Los Angeles Dodgers topple the San Diego Padres 8-3 in their National League (NL) West battle.
The Dodgers were trailing 3-2 at the time, but Muncy's intervention turned the tide. The Dodgers extend their lead in the NL West with a 74-33 record compared to the Padres who are 61-49.
The home run was Muncy's 11th for the season. Will Smith also had a solo home run, to finish with three hits with two runs and three RBIs.
World number one Daniil Medvedev strolled to victory for his first title of the year at the Los Cabos Open with a 7-5 6-0 demolition of reigning champion Cameron Norrie on Saturday.
The Russian, returning to hard-court tennis in Mexico this week ahead of his US Open title defence, pulled away after an injury timeout late in the first set to comfortably triumph against the 12th-ranked Briton.
Medvedev won every game after the timeout, taken for treatment on a hand issue, after scores were locked at 5-5, with both players having broken serve in the first set.
The third-seeded defending champion had no answers in a lopsided second set which only lasted 26 minutes.
This year's Australian Open runner-up, playing in his fourth final of the season, sent down 5-0 aces and converted six of 10 break points for the match to secure his 14th career title. He was exceptional on serve, with a 67 per cent first-serve win percentage.
The triumph capped an excellent week for Medvedev, who did not drop a set across five wins.
"Every match was very good, but the final match is always special," Medvedev said on court after the match. "It's always a high-level match and I'm really happy I managed to show some good levels and play some good shots."
Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios will take on unseeded Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka in the Washington Open final on Sunday after maintaining his unblemished record at this year's event with a 7-6 6-3 victory over Mikael Ymer on Saturday.
Kyrgios, who won in Washington DC in 2019, had played twice on Friday following rain delays on Thursday but found his passage through with 10 aces including one on match point to secure victory in one hour and 34 minutes.
"I didn’t play anywhere near my best tennis today," Kyrgios said. "I served pretty solid, but from the back of the court I didn’t play well at all. I'm just happy to be in the final once again."
Kyrgios is yet to drop serve throughout this year's tournament and has knocked off seeds Francis Tiafoe, Reilly Opelka and Tommy Paul along the way.
The Australian will take on Nishioka who stunned top seed Andrey Rublev 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 20 minutes to secure a spot in his third career final, beating a top 10 opponent for the third time in his career.
Rublev blasted 21-8 winners but also hit 31-14 unforced errors, with the Japanese's consistency proving enough for victory.
Shelby Rogers continued her dream run at the Silicon Valley Classic with victory over ninth seed Veronika Kudermetova securing a spot in the final against last year's runner-up Daria Kasatkina who toppled Paula Badosa.
Unseeded 29-year-old American Rogers has knocked off top seed Maria Sakkari along with Amanda Anisimova and 2019 US Open winner Bianca Andreescu on her way to the decider.
Rogers is also yet to drop a set, maintaining that run against the higher-ranked Kudermetova for a 6-3 6-4 victory in one hour and 20 minutes.
The triumph marks Rogers' biggest final in her career and her first on tour in six years.
Rogers, who trailed 2-0 in the second set, broke Kudermetova's serve with her second match point to clinch victory.
Second seed Badosa was bundled out by Kasatkina 6-2 6-4 in 46 minutes in the other semi-final on Saturday.
Badosa did not appear 100 per cent physically throughout the match and Kasatkina capitalised to secure back-to-back finals in San Jose.
The Spaniard had three break points in the decisive game before Kasatkina converted her first match point.
Kaia Kanepi and Liudmila Samsonova both powered their way into the Citi Open final with comfortable victories on Saturday.
Sixth seed Kanepi ruthlessly swept aside Australian Daria Saville 6-3 6-1 in one hour and 13 minutes, moving her closer to her fifth career title. The 37-year-old Estonian blasted 18 winners for the match.
World number 60 Samsonova proved too good for China's Wang Xiyu, winning 6-1 6-1 in one hour and seven minutes. Samsonova's big hitting was a key feature behind her win with four aces and 17 winners.
Brandon Wu holed out an eagle to grab a share of the lead with Im Sung-jae moments before play was halted and ultimately suspended on Saturday at the Wyndham Championships due to inclement weather.
Only 12 of 86 players completed their third rounds on Saturday, with Im and Wu both managing just 11 holes before play was called off amid rain and lightning in Greensboro, North Carolina.
There are 10 players within two strokes of the lead including five chasing their first wins on the PGA Tour.
The lead duo are tied at 12-under, with the South Korean moving into joint top spot on the leaderboard after four birdies across his 11 holes.
American 25-year-old Wu landed a birdie on the 10th hole and followed that up with an eagle on the 11th to draw level with Im just before the horn blew to suspend play. After a lengthy delay, play was called off for the day with light fading.
Wu had shared the lead at the halfway point with Kim Joo-hyung and Ryan Moore but the latter slipped two shots back after two bogeys from his completed 10 holes on Saturday.
John Huh, who held the lead after a first-round nine-under-par 61, steadied to be equal second at 11-under-par through 11 holes alongside Kim who completed 10 holes.
Thailand's Kiradech Aphibarnrat was the only player sitting near the top who finished their third round on Saturday, to be 10-under-par, with none of the rest of the top 10 getting through more than 11 holes.
Irishman Shane Lowry only got through 13 holes having been forced to charter a private jet to make his tee time after leaving the course on Friday presuming he had missed the cut. Lowry is 11 shots off the pace.
The third round will resume at 7.30am local time on Sunday.
Australia produced an excellent second-half showing to come from behind and secure a 41-26 victory against Argentina in Mendoza in the 2022 Rugby Championship.
Having suffered a 2-1 series defeat at the hands of former coach Eddie Jones' England last month, the Wallabies may have been fearing the same with Michael Cheika leading Argentina.
But Australia avoided a similar fate on Saturday despite a spirited first-half performance from the hosts.
Los Pumas scored the first try after just five minutes, with Pablo Matera picking up a short pass before diving over the line.
An Australian penalty was followed by two for Argentina, before the Wallabies fought back to narrow the deficit to three points after 17 minutes as Jordan Petaia was given the ball out of a scrum before powering through the opposition defence to cross.
The boot of Emiliano Boffelli added more penalty points shortly thereafter, with the contest becoming more tense as Argentina attempted to pull away, but a stubborn Australia side managed to stay in the game.
Boffelli scored another three points just before the break as his team went in 19-10 ahead, but Fraser McReight scored Australia's second try eight minutes into the second half off the back of a rolling maul.
Argentina may have thought they had seen off their opponents when they responded with a try of their own through Juan Martin Gonzalez as he went over in the corner, but when a collapsed maul led to a penalty try for Australia in the 55th minute, with lock Matias Alemanno receiving a yellow card, it provided the impetus the visitors needed.
Reece Hodge scored a penalty to give the Wallabies the lead, before a try from Folau Fainga'a took the wind out of Argentina's sails and Len Ikitau rubbed salt in the wounds with another deep into overtime, sealing an entertaining win for Dave Rennie's team.
Pumas feel comeback brunt
Having come back from 31-20 down with 15 minutes to go to beat Scotland in July, Cheika's new team know what it takes to overturn a deficit.
Unfortunately for him, his former side also have the capacity for a comeback, as they demonstrated with vigour when taking full advantage of dropping Argentinian heads, scoring 24 unanswered points after Gonzalez's try in the 55th minute.
Loss of Alemanno makes all the difference
A yellow card for Alemanno after the collapsed maul that led to Australia's penalty try was the real turning point in the game.
From that point on, Argentina did not score another point, with Rennie's side wearing them down with relative ease in the closing stages.
New York Giants rookie offensive lineman Marcus McKethan will miss the entire 2022 season after the team confirmed Saturday that he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee.
The Giants’ fears were confirmed after McKethan, 22, was carted off the MetLife Stadium turf during Friday’s scrimmage.
A fifth-round pick out of North Carolina, McKethan had worked at both guard and tackle during camp and was playing right tackle when the injury occurred.
With the season’s start still five weeks away, New York is already facing attrition on the offensive line after ESPN reported this week that Matt Gono’s persistent neck problems could prematurely end his playing career.
The Giants signed journeyman tackle Will Holden on Friday.
McKethan started 37 career games for North Carolina and was an honourable mention All-ACC selection in his final two seasons in Chapel Hill.
The Giants’ offense lost 267 yards last season on sacks, ranking 18th in the NFL.
Ashleigh Buhai was in superb form as the South African took the lead heading into the final round at the Women's Open.
Even though she trailed Chun In-gee heading into the weekend, Buhai was arguably the star on Friday with a brilliant 65, and the 33-year-old dazzled again at Muirfield.
Buhai carded a low score of 64 to take a six-shot lead at 14 under, with a bogey on the last the only blot on her scorecard, which included eight birdies.
Hinako Shibuno, who led heading into round two, propelled herself up to second place alongside Chun with a bogey free 66.
Chun holed costly bogeys on the ninth and 15th, yet regained her composure to finish with a birdie and a par, keeping her at nine under.
Madelene Sagstrom and Park Inbee are tied for fourth on seven under after respective rounds of 71 and 70, but will require a slip up from Buhai to truly be in contention on Sunday.
World number two Minjee Lee endured something of a mixed bag, with three bogeys and four birdies, and the Australian is T6, nine off the lead alongside Stephanie Kyriacou and Miyu Yamashita.
Nelly Korda had another difficult day, with the Olympic gold medallist and world number three sitting on three over for the tournament after carding 72.
With just five weeks until the open of the NFL season, the Carolina Panthers still do not know who their starting quarterback will be.
After both Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield took part in Saturday's scrimmage, head coach Matt Rhule said that the team will wait at least two more weeks before naming a starter.
Rhule pointed to the team’s joint practices and August 19 pre-season game with the New England Patriots as the next evaluation point.
"I'm not putting a timetable on the quarterback position until after we get back from the Patriots week," Rhule said Saturday. "The Patriots week is a true litmus test for us. That will really show us where guys are."
Neither Darnold—Carolina’s 2021 opening-starter—nor the freshly acquired Mayfield has yet to emerge as the favorite, and Rhule gave both players mixed reviews after the weekend scrimmage.
"The disappointing thing is each guy had an interception," Rhule said. "We’ve got to protect the football."
The Panthers open their regular season on Sept. 11 by hosting the Cleveland Browns, Mayfield’s former club.
The two signal-callers will be forever linked as the top two quarterbacks taken in the 2018 draft, with Mayfield going first overall and Darnold being chosen third.
Darnold spent three seasons with the New York Jets before being traded to the Panthers for draft picks last April. He won his first three starts with Carolina last season before finishing 4-7 with nine touchdown passes and 13 interceptions.
Mayfield started 59 career games for the Browns, and his efficient play in 2020 helped lead Cleveland to its first playoff victory since the 1994 season.
Mayfield’s injury-marred 2021 campaign was a letdown, however, and the Browns chose to pursue DeShaun Watson in the trade market.
MotoGP championship contender Aleix Espargaro could miss Sunday's British Grand Prix after admitting his pain is "getting worse".
The Aprilia rider was thrown from his bike in the opening minutes of final practice and taken away by a stretcher, though fractures were fortunately later ruled out at the medical centre.
Espargaro returned to the track for qualifying, where he finished sixth and secured a starting spot two places behind championship leader Fabio Quartararo, but Aprilia admitted it may not be possible for him to race.
"Aleix's condition will be assessed in the coming hours because if the pain increases, he may not be able to participate in the race tomorrow," the team admitted.
Handre Pollard stepped up to the plate in the absence of Faf de Klerk to kick South Africa to an opening 26-10 win over New Zealand in the 2022 Rugby Championship.
The Springboks saw their scrum-half taken off on a stretcher inside two minutes at Mbombela Stadium after a head knock to leave them light of one of their key creative forces.
But fly-half partner Pollard unfurled a judiciously managed game plan amid a raggedly entertaining encounter that saw the world champions get their campaign off to a victorious start.
Jacques Nienaber was left to sweat on what could have been a tough evening when De Klerk was forced from the field after he collided with the knee of winger Caleb Clarke.
Despite the loss of their influential half-back, an energised Springboks side still struck first, with Kurt-Lee Arendse and Lukhanyo Am's one-two combination off a box kick earning a breakaway try for the former.
A penalty against the All Blacks for coming off their feet allowed Pollard to add three more from the tee at the quarter-game mark, before Beauden Barrett responded with a kick in kind five minutes before the break.
The need to establish some equilibrium pressed at New Zealand after the interval, but they were unable to snatch at the chances afforded them by an open encounter, and Pollard was on hand to convert another penalty less than a quarter-hour into the second half.
Seven minutes later, the fly-half slotted a field goal in the pocket to stretch the hosts' lead well into double digits, and another from the tee with eight minutes left seemingly wrapped things up for the Springboks.
There was to be an unfortunate late incident to mar matters, as Arendse was shown a red card for taking Barrett out in the air, with the former carried off after the collision and the latter managing to leave on his own two feet.
The man advantage allowed a late breakaway try for Shannon Frizell to cut the deficit to single digits, but it was ultimately too little too late for the All Blacks as Willie Le Roux nabbed a response following a loss of possession inside their own 22-area at the final hooter.
MotoGP championship leader Fabio Quartararo believes he has the pace to win at Silverstone but accepts his long-lap penalty brings uncertainty.
The Frenchman will start on the second row for Sunday's race, finishing in P4 behind Jack Miller, Maverick Vinales and pole sitter Johann Zarco, clocking in at 0.171 seconds behind the leader.
Quartararo's strong pace means he is well in the fight for round 12 of the season, but having been issued a penalty for colliding with Aleix Espargaro last time out in the Netherlands, he knows it could cost him a win that would extend his championship lead.
"Johann has really strong pace, I think he is the fastest. But I think our pace is to fight for the victory," he told Autosport.
"Okay, long-lap penalty, we don't know which position we will finish, but at least our pace is top."
Quartararo added that he could not have offered anything more during qualifying, stating he was at the "maximum", but was pleased with his lap time.
"Well, it is what it is. I mean, I made one of the best laps of qualifying this year, I feel I have nothing more. We want to put more power in sometimes, but we are already on the maximum," he said.
"I feel happy about my pace also in FP4. Okay, with the crash of Aleix and [Takaaki] Nakagami I could not finish the lap because of the yellow flag, but I think all of our laps was on [1m] 59 and this is something really positive.
"The track is much better than last year and our consistency as well is much better."
Quartararo currently leads Espargaro by 21 points in the standings.
The Green Bay Packers will be hoping that a hamstring injury sustained by Darnell Savage in practice on Friday does not prove too serious.
Savage, the Packers' starting safety heading into the 2022 season, suffered the injury to his right hamstring during one-on-one matchups between receivers and defensive backs at the team's traditional "family night" at Lambeau Field.
The 25-year-old was covering Amari Rodgers, but had to watch the rest of the session from the sideline.
A first-round draft pick three years ago, Savage also had ice wrapped around his leg.
However, he was confident it was only a minor issue.
"I don't think it's a concern," Savage said, as reported by ESPN.
"It's a fast-people injury. Some of those things you can't avoid. I'll just handle it the right way and listen to those guys back there and I'll be all right."
Kyle Shanahan praised the aggression of his San Francisco 49ers, but warned they must channel it appropriately after stopping practice earlier in the week due to fighting.
Tuesday's practice was reportedly halted by a scuffle between linebacker Fred Warner and receiver Brandon Aiyuk, with punches thrown.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Shanahan said he wanted to see his players push one another, metaphorically, but that it goes too far when they could potentially cause each other injuries.
"I want everyone challenging each other," Shanahan said. "I don't care how much crap each other talks; I don't care how close they get to fighting.
"They can do whatever they want to get themselves to be as intense as they want and bring the best out of each other, which happens a lot that way. And it's the same on the field.
"But once you throw a punch, you get ejected or you get a penalty... I want people to be irritants, I want people to get as close as they can to all that stuff. I want people to get right on the line where they're about to black out, but you can't black out on the football field or you cost your team."
The disagreement between Warner and Aiyuk reportedly erupted after the former hit receiver Marcus Johnson late, which put Johnson in concussion protocol.
"I love the intensity of it," Shanahan added. "I don't think you have to fight to be intense, though. Scuffles are scuffles but then they lead to other stuff.
"I think that's why we've got a guy in protocol, because he took an unnecessary shot on someone, which led to the big fight and then we had a bunch of haymakers and stuff thrown in there, which only break hands.
"I think our team is pretty tough. I think we're pretty physical. Most probably [we would be] voted the most physical team on tape last year, I think we'd win most of that, and we didn't get in one fight last year. So, I don't think that totally pertains to toughness."
Miguel Cabrera has clarified previous comments that began rumours of his retirement, saying: "No way am I going to quit."
Cabrera has had a difficult year with the Detroit Tigers, playing through knee pain in recent weeks and seeing his stats suffer as a result, with just three extra-base hits in his past 21 games.
The 39-year-old set tongues wagging on Thursday when he seemed to indicate his future was uncertain, telling reporters: "I don't think about next year. I'm thinking about trying to finish healthy this year."
However, speaking to The Detroit News, Cabrera made it clear he did not mean he was about to call it a day, insisting he intends to play through to the end of the 2023 season.
"I'm not going to retire," he said. "Not until after next year when my contract is done. They didn't understand what I said. No way am I going to quit."
Cabrera in April became only the seventh player in the history of the major leagues with at least 500 home runs and 3,000 hits, and will be owed $32million in 2023, the final fully guaranteed year of his contract.
"Next year is going to go way better," he added. "Next year I'm going to be right there."
Dave Rennie says captain Michael Hooper has shown "true courage" by withdrawing from Australia's Rugby Championship opener against Argentina.
The flanker opted against facing the Pumas at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas on Saturday, as he is not in the right frame of mind to play.
James Slipper will step in to lead the Wallabies in Mendonza, with Hooper heading home and Fraser McReight getting a late call to take the number seven shirt.
Australia head coach Rennie praised Hooper for making such a brave decision.
"Michael's one of the most professional and impressive men I've coached I know this has been a difficult decision for him," he said.
"He's shown true courage by acknowledging where he is at and acting on it.
"We will support him in any way we can and I know the team will be focused on getting the job done tomorrow."
Hooper said: "While this decision did not come easily I know it is the right one for me and the team at this point in time.
"My whole career I’ve looked to put the team first and I don't feel I am able to fulfil my responsibilities at the moment in my current mindset."
Rugby Australia CEO Andy Marinos says Hooper will be given all the support he needs.
He said: "Michael is an incredible leader, it takes a brave man to identify where he’s at and come forward whilst having the best interests of the team at heart.
"His wellbeing is and remains the highest priority right now where Rugby Australia and the Australian Rugby community will do everything to support him and his family."
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