Sports News

BARQUISIMETO, Venezuela — Dozens of Venezuelans waited in line outside a chapel in the state of Lara on Saturday, hoping to bid farewell to former major league baseball player Luis Valbuena, who was killed in a car accident along with teammate Jose Castillo. The corpse of Castillo was moved earlier in the morning to a different central-west state. The 33-year-old Valbuena and 37-year-old Castillo were both former players for the Houston Astros. They died late Thursday when their SUV crashed as it tried to veer around an object put on the road.

Spanish authorities say a group of 400 to 500 "especially violent" fans from Argentina are expected to make the trip to Madrid for this weekend's Copa Libertadores final between River Plate and Boca Juniors. Officials say almost 4,000 security personnel will be deployed for Sunday's match, nearly double the number used in the "clasicos" between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Jose Manuel Rodriguez Uribes, the government official overseeing the city's security plans for the "high risk" match, says police will remain on high alert to detect and keep track of fans who could potentially cause problems before, during and after the final at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. ___ More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/apf-Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports ___ Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni

The Boston Red Sox have accepted an invitation to the White House to celebrate their World Series championship. Team President Sam Kennedy says the ballclub is working out a date with the White House. The traditional champions' visit to Washington has become more politicized, with some teams declining invitations from President Donald Trump. Kennedy says it's up to players to decide whether they want to attend. Manager Alex Cora says he'll be there.

The final spot in the College Football Playoff was down to Oklahoma, Georgia and Ohio State. It was the Sooners who join Alabama, Clemson and Notre Dame.        

Major League Baseball will put in place new procedures for vetting political contributions after giving $5,000 to Cindy Hyde-Smith, a Republican senator from Mississippi, and then asking for the money back following her controversial remarks. MLB's political action committee donated $472,500 from the start of 2017 through this Oct.

Deshaun Watson threw for 210 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a third as the Houston Texans set a franchise record with their eighth straight win, 34-17 over the Tennessee Titans        

Cousins, Vikings pass by Rodgers, Packers for 24-17 victory to push rivals further back in race        

Phil Mickelson birdied the fourth playoff hole to beat Tiger Woods in their $9 million made-for-TV match Friday. Mickelson made a 4-foot birdie putt on a specially set-up 93-yard par-3. The match at Shadow Creek Golf Club finished in the dark with lights set up around the hole. Mickelson was 1

Amari Cooper has 90-yard touchdown catch, two scores as Cowboys pull even with Redskins atop NFC East with 31-23 Thanksgiving victory        

Ohio State's Urban Meyer doesn't seem to be having much fun coaching this season        

Ezekiel Elliott had 151 yards rushing and his go-ahead 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter helped the Dallas Cowboys beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-20 on Sunday night. The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles fell to 4-5 with their third straight loss at home while the Cowboys improved to 4-5. Dak Prescott had 270 yards passing, tossed for one touchdown and also ran for a score.

Police say Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown was stopped for speeding over 100 mph in his Porsche, just hours before the team's game against the Carolina Panthers. Ross Township police tell WPXI-TV that an officer was searching for a bank robbery suspect Thursday when a black Porsche

The constitutional amendment approved Tuesday to ban dog racing means some 6,000 greyhounds will need new homes.        

The offer, which would have paid Bryce Harper an average of $30 million a year, is no longer is on the table.