D2 EZ SU THE WASHINGTON POST.SUNDAY, APRIL 3 , 2022
TENNIS
Swiatek sweeps Osaka,
will be new world No. 1
Iga Swiatek ended her journey
to the women’s No. 1 ranking in
fitting fashion.
Swiatek continued her searing
start to 2022, beating Naomi
Osaka, 6-4, 6-0, to win the
women’s title at the Miami Open
in Miami Gardens, Fla., and
extend her winning streak to
17 matches.
Swiatek, who will replace the
now-retired Ashleigh Barty at
No. 1 in the women’s rankings
officially when the points are
updated Monday, also completed
the so-called Sunshine Double —
winning both Indian Wells and
Miami. She’s the fourth woman to
do so, joining Victoria Azarenka
(2016), Kim Clijsters (2005) and
Steffi Graf (1994 and 1996).
The 20-year-old Swiatek’s
homeland is Poland, which has
had more than 2 million people
enter from war-torn Ukraine in
recent weeks.
Swiatek took a moment during
her trophy ceremony to
acknowledge that those refugees
are on her mind....
U.S. Open champion Daniil
Medvedev expects to be sidelined
for one to two months after
having hernia surgery.
The second-ranked men’s
player wrote on Twitter on that he
has been dealing with “a small
hernia” in recent months.
Medvedev probably will miss
the next Grand Slam tournament,
the French Open, which begins
May 22.
AUTO RACING
Ty Gibbs bumped John
Hunter Nemechek from the lead
in a furious last-lap battle at
Richmond Raceway and won for
the third time this season in
NASCAR’s Xfinity Series.
Gibbs and Nemechek,
teammates with Joe Gibbs
Racing, got physical over the final
several laps, trading the lead and
making contact several times
until Gibbs nudged Nemechek’s
Toyota in Turn 3 of the last lap. He
won by just 0.116 seconds.
“I definitely deserve one back,”
Gibbs said in Victory Lane of the
bump. “We were racing for wins,
and they’re hard to come by....
Just got in there deep and had to
bump him out of the way up the
track. We’re short-track racing.”
Nemechek, who is not racing
full time in the series and thus is
ineligible for the championship,
was less than amused with the
way the finish unfolded.
“Him and I will settle it
Monday. I don’t want to say too
much and get myself in trouble,
but I just got drove through. He
didn’t even try to make the corner
there, so... racers never forget,”
Nemechek said after he finished
second.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Kallie Theisen scored a career-
high 16 points and grabbed
11 rebounds, Myah Selland added
12 points, 11 rebounds and five
assists, and South Dakota State
used a huge first-quarter run to
beat Seton Hall, 82-50, in the
championship game of the WNIT
in Brookings, S.D.
Haleigh Timmer added
14 points, Paiton Burckhard
scored 13 and Tori Nelson 1 1 for
South Dakota State (29-9).
S eton Hall finished 24-13....
Julius Pegues, the first Black
basketball player at the
University of Pittsburgh, died
following a battle with cancer. He
was 86.
T he school said Pegues died
this week at John Hope Franklin
Center for Reconciliation in
Tulsa.
The 6-foot-9 forward joined
Pitt in 1954 and played a year on
the freshman team before he
earned a scholarship and moved
to varsity. He averaged 13.6 points
and 4.9 rebounds in 77 career
games for the Panthers and twice
helped the Panthers to the NCAA
tournament, including a 31-point
performance in a first-round loss
to Miami (Ohio) in 1958.COLLEGE LACROSSE
Owen Murphy s cored four
goals and teammates Logan
Wisnauskas, Jonathan Donville
and Keegan Khan all had hat
tricks as the No. 1 Maryland men
(9-0, 2-0 Big Ten) pulled away
from Michigan, 20-12, in Ann
Arbor. The Wolverines dropped to
7-4, 0-2....
Ryan Lanchbury a nd Dalton
Young s cored four goals apiece as
host Richmond topped the No. 2
Virginia men, 17-13.
The Spiders (6-3) earned their
first win in eight all-time matches
against the Cavaliers (7-2)...
Dylan Watson scored seven
goals, bringing his season total to
34, as the No. 3 Georgetown men
(8-1, 1-0 Big East) went west and
downed No. 17 Denver (5-5, 0-1) by
a score of 17-9....
Libby May scored four goals as
the No. 8 Maryland women beat
No. 20 Johns Hopkins, 17-6, in
Baltimore. The Terps improved to
10-1, 2-0 in the Big Ten; the Blue
Jays fell to 6-6, 0-3....
The No. 16 Virginia women
yielded seven consecutive goals
across the second and third
periods and fell to No. 7 Duke,
1 3-8, in Durham, N.C.
The Cavaliers dropped to 6-7,
2 -4 ACC; the Blue Devils moved to
13-1, 4-1....
Gil Eby had four goals,
including three in a six-goal first
period for the No. 22 Navy
women, who beat Colgate, 12-5, in
Hamilton, N.Y.
The Midshipmen improved to
10-2, 4-2 in the Patriot League; the
Raiders dropped to 2-10, 1-3.
— From news services
and staff reportsDIGESTTELEVISION AND RADIO
NCAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT, FINAL
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NBA
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9:30 p.m. New Orleans at Los Angeles Clippers » NBA TV
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4 p.m. New York Islanders at New Jersey » TNT
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1 p.m. Baltimore vs. Minnesota » WIYY (97.9 FM)
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AUTO RACING
3:30 p.m. NASCAR Cup Series: Toyota Owners 400 » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
GOLF
1 p.m. PGA Tour: Texas Open, final round » Golf Channel
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SOCCER
7 a.m. French Ligue 1: Lens at Strasbourg » beIN Sports
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11:30 a.m. English Premier League: Newcastle at Tottenham » USA Network
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4 p.m. NWSL Challenge Cup: Orlando at Washington » Paramount Plus
4:30 p.m. MLS: LA Galaxy at Portland » F ox Sports 1
TENNIS
1 p.m. ATP: Miami Open, singles final; WTA: Miami Open, doubles final »
Te nnis Channel, MASN2
RUGBY
7 p.m. Major League Rugby: Houston at Austin » F ox Sports 2
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
4 p.m. HBCU All-Star Game » WUSA (Ch. 9), WJZ (Ch. 13)
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Noon Wake Forest at Boston College » ACC Network
1 p.m. Northwestern at Indiana » Big Te n Network
1 p.m. Texas at Oklahoma » ESPN
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Noon Illinois at Minnesota » ESPN2
Noon Mississippi State at Tennessee » SEC Network
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3 p.m. Oregon at UCLA » Pac-12 Network
4 p.m. Georgia at Alabama » SEC Network
5 p.m. Utah at Stanford » Pac-12 Network
MEN’S COLLEGE LACROSSE
7 p.m. Johns Hopkins at Rutgers » Big Te n Network
BY ANDREW GOLDENwest palm beach, fla. —
Andrew Stevenson, a second-
round draft pick in 2015 who
grew into a fan favorite for the
Washington Nationals, was out-
righted to the minors Saturday.
He cleared waivers and, because
he was arbitration eligible this
winter, will have the choice to
either accept the Nationals’ des-
ignation or declare free agency.
Stevenson, 27, made his major
league debut in 2017 and ap-
peared in 109 games for the
Nationals in 2021. In five seasons
with the Nationals, the lefty out-
fielder has played 248 games,
batting .248 with eight home
runs and 49 RBI. Stevenson also
contributed to the Nationals’ title
run in 2019, scoring as a pinch
runner on Juan Soto’s go-ahead
single in the eighth inning of the
National League wild-card game.
Nationals Manager Dave Mar-
tinez said the addition of the
designated hitter affected Steven-
son’s role. In past seasons, Ste-
venson has been an effective
pinch hitter, something Washing-
ton won’t need as much with the
DH coming to the NL and Nelson
Cruz signing with the Nationals
last month.
“If he gets another opportunity
to play in the big leagues, great,”
Martinez said. “If he doesn’t, I
hope that he understands that
we’d love to have him back.”The Nationals, whose spring
game Saturday night against the
Miami Marlins was rained out,
also reassigned pitchers Cade
Cavalli, Tyler Clippard, Carl Ed-
wards Jr., Jace Fry and catcher
Chris Hermann.
Cavalli, the Nationals’ top
prospect, had a rough outing last
week against the St. Louis Cardi-
nals, giving up eight hits in 2^1 / 3 in-
nings, and will begin the year
with the Class AAA Rochester
Red Wings. The Nationals want
to see Cavalli work in the strike
zone more rather than relying on
chases with his secondary pitch-
es. In a few spring training ap-
pearances, he flashed an ability
to blow away hitters with a high-
90s fastball but was at times
overly reliant on it. His arsenal is
filled out by a slider, curveball
and change-up. Martinez wants
Cavalli to use his change-up
more.
“He showed some really good
things this spring,” Martinez said.
“I told him, ‘That door’s going to
be wide open for you in the
future.’ ”
Clippard, a veteran reliever
who signed a minor league deal
with the Nationals in late March,
will need more time to get ready.
Martinez has repeatedly said he
doesn’t want to speed up any
pitchers who arrived late, espe-
cially with a shortened camp.
Stevenson packed up his bags
Saturday afternoon. Teammatescame up to him and said their
goodbyes; Yadiel Hernández and
Victor Robles dapped him up,
Tres Barrera hugged him, and
when Soto saw him packing up,
he said: “You out of here? Where
you going?”
As he makes his exit, the Na-
tionals’ only extra outfielders left
in camp are Gerardo Parra and
Hernández. Utility man Dee
Strange-Gordon also has spent
some time in the outfield.
Ehire Adrianza played outfield
with the Atlanta Braves a year
ago but injured his left quadri-
ceps in Thursday’s spring train-
ing game. Adrianza, who can also
play third base, shortstop and
second, still looked to be in some
pain when walking out of the
clubhouse Saturday.
Adrianza’s MRI exam showed
a strain in his quad, Martinez
said. He said the team will look
internally to fill Adrianza’s spot if
he goes on the injured list.Fedde has discomfort in side
Erick Fedde, who was sched-
uled to pitch Thursday, was
scratched with tightness in his
right side. Fedde said he experi-
enced some oblique discomfort
for a few days before his start and
spoke to the team’s medical staff
Thursday morning.
Fedde had an MRI on Thurs-
day and said the scans came back
“pretty clean.” He said he believes
the feeling might be related tosome scar tissue from an oblique
injury last year.
Fedde said he’s going to be
cautious but hopes to still be on
track to make his first start when
the season begins. The 29-year-
old right-hander said he was
going to play catch Saturday and
see how he feels.
“The idea of missing a month
sounds much worse than maybe
one start, so just trying to be
smart in that sense,” Fedde said.
“Whatever it comes down to, the
idea’s to be cautious.”
If Fedde isn’t ready to go,
Martinez said, Joan Adon could
fill his spot in the rotation.Corbin to start Opening Day
Martinez named Patrick Corb-
in the team’s Opening Day starter
Saturday after Corbin pitched in
a minor league game.
The Nationals open the season
at home against the New York
Mets on Thursday.
Corbin is looking to bounce
back after a down 2021 season in
which he posted a 5.82 ERA and
allowed an NL-high 37 home
runs.
The 32-year-old lefty made one
other Opening Day start in 2018
as a member of the Arizona
Diamondbacks.
“He’s throwing the ball the way
he wants to throw it,” Martinez
said. “I’m looking forward to
watching him go out there and
compete come April 7.”NATIONALS NOTESStevenson is outrighted to the minors
JONATHAN NEWTON/THE WASHINGTON POST
Andrew Stevenson, a n effective pinch hitter, lost value when the National League added the DH a nd the Nationals signed Nelson Cruz.ASSOCIATED PRESSMets right-hander Max Scher-
zer is dealing with a right ham-
string issue and isn’t sure when he
will pitch next, another frustrat-
ing setback for the top of New
York’s heralded but suddenly fra-
gile rotation.
A day after the Mets said star
Jacob deGrom will miss signifi-
cant time with a shoulder injury,
Scherzer was scratched from his
outing Saturday morning in a sim-
ulated game.
With less than a week until
Opening Day against the Wash-
ington Nationals, Scherzer said he
wasn’t sure about the immediate
plans. The three-time Cy Young
Award winner said he doesn’t ex-
pect the trouble with his ham-
string to be a long-term problem.
“Don’t know,” Scherzer said
when asked when he would pitch
again. “I’ve had these little ham-
string injuries before. They go
away in days. Fortunately enough,
I’ve been pretty good to not have
serious hamstring injuries. I’ve
had just little hiccups.”
“I think this is the same thing.
For me, it’s just a day-to-day thing... but when you’re dealing with
hammies, you never know.”
Unlike deGrom, Scherzer said
he would still be able to maintain
part of his routine, making his
recovery less time-consuming.
“This doesn’t really affect when
I throw, so I’m able to get into my
throwing mechanics,” Scherzer
said.
New York Manager Buck Show-
alter said he would lean on Scher-
zer for advice going forward but
added that the 37-year-old was
still in consideration for the Open-
ing Day nod against his former
teammates in Washington.
The Mets signed Scherzer to a
three-year, $130 million contract
this offseason.
l YANKEES: New York boost-
ed its depth behind the plate, ac-
quiring catcher Jose Trevino from
the Texas Rangers for right-hand-
er Albert Abreu and left-hander
Robert Ahlstrom.
Trevino hit .239 with five home
runs and 30 RBI for Texas last
season. In parts of four big league
seasons, the 29-year-old has bat-
ted .245 with nine homers and
55 RBI across 156 games.
New York traded longtime
catcher Gary Sánchez to the Min-
nesota Twins last month. Kyle Hi-
gashioka, who made 58 starts last
season, has been the Yankees’ pri-
mary backstop in spring training.
Abreu, 26, had one save and a
5.15 ERA in 28 games for New York
last season. He made his MLB
debut in 2020.Ahlstrom, 22, didn’t pitch in pro
ball last year after being drafted by
New York out of Oregon.
l BRAVES: Right-hander Luke
Jackson has ligament damage in
his elbow, and there’s no timetable
for his return.
A key part of the bullpen last
year during Atlanta’s run to the
World Series, Jackson is undergo-
ing a “comprehensive evaluation,”
the team said.
The Braves said tests revealed
damage to the ulnar collateral lig-
ament in Jackson’s right elbow.
The 30-year-old had the test after
being shut down for a week and
experiencing renewed discomfort
when he resumed throwing.
Jackson posted 18 saves in 2019
and has since served as one of the
team’s top setup men. He had a
career-best 1.98 ERA in 71 games
in 2021, helping Atlanta win its
first championship since 1995.l GUARDIANS: After striking
out in free agency, Cleveland
locked up one of its own, reaching
an agreement with closer Emman-
uel Clase on a five-year, $20 mil-
lion contract, a person familiar
with the negotiations told the As-
sociated Press.
The deal — which is pending a
physical — includes club options
for 2027 and 2028 worth $10 mil-
lion each, said the person, who
spoke on the condition of anonym-
ity because the team has not an-
nounced the agreement.
Acquired as part of a trade for
former Cy Young winner Corey
Kluber, Clase thrived in 2021 as a
rookie, racking up 24 saves with a
1.29 ERA in 71 relief appearances.
He would have been eligible for
free agency after the 2026 season
at the earliest.
l ANGELS: Los Angeles desig-
nated Justin Upton for assign-
ment despite owing the outfielder
$19.5 million this season.
The Angels still will be respon-
sible for Upton’s salary unless he’s
claimed by another team, which
seems unlikely. The 34-year-old
hit .211 with 17 homers and 41 RBI
in 89 games last year.
Should Upton clear waivers, he
is expected to decline a minor
league assignment and become a
free agent.
l MARLINS: Right-hander
Sandy Alcantara will take the hill
on Opening Day against the San
Francisco Giants, Manager Don
Mattingly said.
Alcantara posted a 3.19 ERA in
33 starts last season and owns a
career ERA of 3.49 in 86 games
(79 starts). The 26-year-old will be
the third Miami pitcher to make
three straight Opening Day starts,
joining Josh Beckett and Josh
Johnson.MLB NOTESHamstring injury could put Scherzer on the shelfERIC ESPADA/GETTY IMAGES
“For me, it’s just a day-to-day thing... but when you’re dealing
with hammies, you never know,” right-hander Max Scherzer said.