“We’re confronted with severe challenges from a new administration, and a narrow majority of Democrats in the House and a 50–50 Senate, to turn American into a socialist country and that’s 100 percent of my focus,” McConnell told reporters in Kentucky. Cheney, an ally of McConnell, has earned the ire of some of her GOP colleagues for rebuking former President Donald Trump’s claim that the 2020 presidential election was riddled with widespread fraud....

McConnell, who is white, is the husband of former U.S. Secretary for Transportation Elaine Chao, the first woman of Asian heritage to be appointed to a presidential cabinet. The Kentucky Republican was one of 37 GOP senators who opposed a motion to advance on the Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA), but the procedural vote succeeded with a bipartisan majority of 62, with one senator not voting. The Senate is divided, with 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans, but the vote means that formal debate could take place on the legislation, while the Senate could pass the bill as early as Thursday....

“Every person of conscience draws a line beyond which they will not go: Liz Cheney refuses to lie,” Romney wrote in a tweet Tuesday afternoon. “As one of my Republican Senate colleagues said to me following my impeachment vote: ‘I wouldn’t want to be a member of a group that punished someone for following their conscience.’” Romney’s comments aren’t the first time he has taken a stand against the GOP’s de-facto leader....

The other three didn’t have quite the seasons they wanted … and one player’s year couldn’t have gone much worse. Here is how the 2014 tagged players fared last season, and what grade they earned. Franchise tags Greg Hardy, DE, Panthers His days of earning $13.1 million for a season, his franchise tag figure, are probably over. His days as a Panther are officially running out. He played one game before going onto the commissioner’s exempt list in the wake of not only his domestic-violence case, but of Adrian Peterson’s charge, as well....

Henry: I wish I played with Giroud Mkhitaryan established himself as one of the hottest properties in European football during a three-season spell in the Bundesliga, the midfielder scoring 41 goals and creating 49 in 140 appearances in all competitions. Naturally Dortmund were desperate to hold on to the Armenia international when United came calling, but the 28-year-old could not turn down a switch to Old Trafford. “United might not have been my dream club to begin with, but they have always been among the best clubs in the world for me,” Mkhitaryan told Sport Bild....

The Red Devils snapped up the Armenia international in a £26 million deal with Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Mourinho’s top 10 excuses He was eased into the fold by Jose Mourinho, with some initial teething problems at Old Trafford making way for a more influential role. Mkhitaryan has impressed after finding his feet, but the 28-year-old midfielder insists he can offer even more to the collective cause in 2017-18....

Though he turned just 31 earlier this week, Abreu has become the senior member of the Chicago roster. He made his debut in 2014, and only a handful of his teammates have been there as long. FOSTER: 18 things I want to see during the 2018 MLB season But as the White Sox enter what GM Rick Hahn called “phase two” of the rebuild and another wave of heralded prospects prepares to debut in 2018, Abreu’s approach with his teammates is a crucial piece of the culture that has helped the rebuild succeed through the first phase....

Maddon signed with the Cubs just days after exercising an opt-out clause in his contract. Almost immediately, the Rays made the tampering allegations, which the Cubs and Maddon’s agent have adamantly denied. MORE: Why SN picks Cubs to win World Series | Team owner: Prediction ’not completely crazy' New baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said Monday he will rule on the case before opening night, April 5, when the Cubs play host to the Cardinals....

Round 1 will begin Monday at 7 p.m. ET and will run through the Round 2 compensation picks. Round 3 will begin Tuesday at 1 p.m. and will run through Round 10. Round 11 will begin Wednesday at noon and will run through Round 40. Here’s the full order of picks for the 2018 MLB Draft, as well as some of the top prospects to watch. MORE: MLB mock draft 2018 MLB Draft order Round 1...

Rumor: The Braves have made Madison Bumgarner a priority. Source: Alex Pavlovic, NBC Sports, Bay Area Need to know: Madison Bumgarner is only 30 years old, which seems weird because he’s been around for parts of 11 seasons. And despite not being MADISON BUMGARNER the past few years because of various injuries and perhaps some natural regression, it’s quite possible he has more strong seasons left. His stats since 2017: 19-25, 3....

St. Louis needed a right-handed hitter to spell Matt Adams at first base against left-handers. Reynolds, in theory, could do that, and he could do the same at third base in giving Matt Carpenter a breather. At this stage in his career, the 31-year-old Reynolds would seem better suited to being a platoon player anyway. His on-base percentage has declined each of the past two years, down to .287 last season in 433 plate appearances....

Shohei Otani’s entrance into the big dance may well define this offseason, and the landscape of the game for years to come. He’s an enigma, and perhaps the most tantalizing player to hit the market in recent memory. Two of the other big names, Justin Upton and Masahiro Tanaka, are already off the board, having opted to stay with their current clubs. FAGAN: Ranking the top 101 MLB free agents for 2018...

That limelight didn’t last long, however, as the Giants decided to recapture the narrative and sign Carlos Correa to a 13-year, $350 million deal Tuesday that made him the highest-paid shortstop in league history and, as an aside, knocked Bogaerts down to No. 6. Although Correa is making a negligible amount more than Bogaerts in AAV, the contract is hugely significant in that Correa opted out of the three-year deal he signed with the Twins last year to get it....

By the time the Mariners beat the Orioles, 6-5 in 10 innings, at shortly after 1:30 a.m. ET, it was the first time in baseball history all 15 home teams won on the same day. MORE: 70s baseball caps, ranked by a 90s kid | MLB’s most dominant pitchers Viewing every game as a 50-50 win-lose proposition independent of all other factors, STATS figured (via ESPN) the odds of a home sweep on a night with a full MLB schedule at 1 in 32,768....

It’s always tough to sift through prospective MLB talent, but in 2020, there’s a pretty clear top three: Arizona State’s Spencer Torkelson is pretty much deemed a unanimous No. 1 overall pick, ticketed for Detroit, while Austin Martin and Asa Lacy are both expected to go within the top five. Here are what some of the experts are saying about this year’s first round, which features 29 picks: MORE: What to know about the 2020 MLB Draft...

Let’s take a look at the full odds boards for the American League and National League MVP race and highlight some of the best bets, intriguing values, and top sleepers to win each award. MORE MLB FUTURES: ROYs | Cy Youngs | World Series All odds courtesy of Sports Interaction AL MVP odds 2022 AL MVP odds: Best bet Jose Ramirez, Guardians +461 As things currently stand, Aaron Judge is the deserved favorite, as he’s the best player on the best team with the most home runs in the majors (25)....

Players who aren’t afraid to not only call out the cheaters, but players who are not afraid to stand behind their words. Baseball needs players like Mike Fiers. Cheaters don’t deserve protection. They don’t deserve complicit silence. And this antiquated notion that Fiers is the one who is wrong has to end. We’ve heard that idea from many in baseball, first back in November when The Athletic’s article with Fiers’ comments was originally published, and then Jessica Mendoza last week and Pedro Martinez this week....

With Giancarlo Stanton and Dee Gordon out because of injuries, Marlins ace Jose Fernandez knows run support is hard to come by, but that is OK for the 22-year-old phenom. He’ll just do it himself. MORE: NL Fleeting Four: Short stays, big impacts | The Barr-Bungled Banner, 25 years later Making his fourth start of 2015 since returning from Tommy John surgery, Fernandez was dominant on the mound striking out 11 batters over seven innings....

For the first time this season, three MLB games went into extra innings, but none were as long as the Red Sox-Yankees game. The 19-inning contest was so long that Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira aged a year in the process. His 35th birthday is Saturday, and Friday night’s game finished at 2:13 a.m. ET, not long after Mookie Betts drove in Xander Bogaerts with a sacrifice fly. MORE: Power outage at Yankee Stadium | Batter Buchholz warned | First Pitch: Saturday’s matchups...