Sports News Roundup: Cycling-Pogacar leads young guns' charge in pandemic-hit season; NFL says no local bubbles for playoffs and more

Astros take villain role, Dodgers snap title drought The Houston Astros being exposed as cheats, a Miami Marlins COVID-19 outbreak that raised speculation about the season being cancelled and a stacked Los Angeles Dodgers team snapping a 32-year title drought dominated MLB headlines in 2020.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Motor racing-Same champions, new winners in strangest F1 season

Formula One's pandemic-hit season was packed with novelty and surprises, even if Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes retained their titles in record style and by massive margins once racing returned. The strangest of campaigns crammed 17 races, instead of the record 22 originally envisaged, into little more than five months from July with four triple-headers.

Cycling-Pogacar leads young guns' charge in pandemic-hit season

Cycling managed to deliver an exhilarating, action-packed season that saw the younger generation, led by Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar, take power despite the season being shortened by the new coronavirus pandemic. There was a 4-1/2 month hiatus due to restrictions aimed at containing COVID-19 but four of the five 'Monument' classics and 18 of 33 World Tour races plus all three grands tours were held.

NFL says no local bubbles for playoffs

The NFL issued a memo Tuesday night informing teams they will not be allowed to force players and personnel to stay in a localized bubble during the upcoming postseason. The decision keeps in place the league's current COVID-19 protocols, which were recently reinforced to much improved numbers. Testing for the period from Dec. 6-12 found 14 players tested positive, along with 31 from other team personnel. Last week, there were 18 positive tests among players and 27 among other personnel -- a drop from about 75 each of the previous two weeks.

MLB owners, players at odds about season start

A disagreement between Major League Baseball owners and players over COVID-19 protocols is brewing and could put the start of spring training in question, USA Today reported Tuesday. On one side are team officials, who want players and team staff to be vaccinated against the virus before reporting to Arizona and Florida training sites -- even if that means a delay to the start of the season and fewer games.

Raiders lose Ruggs III to COVID-19 reserve list

At 7-6, the Las Vegas Raiders are very much on the AFC playoff bubble, and they're currently on the outside of the postseason structure looking in with three games remaining. Their run at a wild card got more difficult Tuesday as the Raiders placed rookie wide receiver Henry Ruggs III on the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Federer not sure he'll be ready for Australian Open

Roger Federer said his right knee is still not 100 percent, casting doubt on his availability for the Australian Open. The 20-time Grand Slam winner has been sidelined since knee surgery in February. The 39-year-old had a second procedure in June.

'This is my home': Antetokounmpo signs extension with Bucks

Reigning National Basketball Association (NBA) MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has signed a five-year contract extension to stay with the Milwaukee Bucks, the 26-year-old said on Tuesday. "This is my home, this is my city," Antetokounmpo wrote on Twitter. "I'm blessed to be able to be a part of the Milwaukee Bucks for the next 5 years. Let's make these years count. The show goes on, let's get it."

LeBron, AD to make preseason debuts vs. Suns

LeBron James and Anthony Davis will make their preseason debuts on Wednesday when the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers meet the Phoenix Suns. James and Davis sat out the Lakers' first two preseason games and will take the court for the first time since Game 6 of the NBA Finals on Oct. 11 when the Lakers finished off the Miami Heat to claim the NBA title.

Top 25 roundup: Hokies pin first loss on No. 24 Clemson

Tyrece Radford scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half to lift Virginia Tech to a 66-60 victory over No. 24 Clemson on Tuesday in Blacksburg, Va. Radford also flustered the Tigers last season, scoring 16 points in the Hokies' 70-58 win on March 4.

Astros take villain role, Dodgers snap title drought

The Houston Astros being exposed as cheats, a Miami Marlins COVID-19 outbreak that raised speculation about the season being cancelled and a stacked Los Angeles Dodgers team snapping a 32-year title drought dominated MLB headlines in 2020. Houston took on the villain role in January when an MLB investigation found the Astros stole pitch signs from opposing team's catchers during their World Series-winning 2017 campaign, news which rocked the baseball offseason.