The Italian arrived in France on a free transfer on deadline day, and a move to the Cote d’Azur appears to have reinvigorated the former Manchester City, Liverpool and AC Milan striker. Balotelli: I’ll fly helicopter over Nice He has seven goals to his name for Nice, with six coming in the league - with those efforts helping the club to the top of the Ligue 1 table. But they will now have to cope without their talisman for the upcoming fixtures with Bastia, Toulouse and Guingamp....

“For anyone that’s frustrated about wearing a mask and you’re not vaccinated, then look in the mirror. It’s your fault that we’re going back to having an indoor mask mandate,” Scott said during a news conference on Friday, according to WBAL-TV 11. “Make sure that folks get vaccinated. If you’re not vaccinated, shut up, don’t complain. Folks need to wear a mask to protect themselves, to protect the people around them....

Trump labeled Cummings, chair of the House Oversight Committee, a “brutal bully” in a series of tweets on Saturday after the Democrat called the treatment of migrant children near the southern U.S.-Mexico border “government sponsored child abuse.” The president also unleashed fury on the lawmaker’s 7th congressional district in Maryland, which includes west Baltimore. “His Baltimore district is FAR WORSE and more dangerous. His district is considered the Worst in the USA,” the president tweeted....

Trump has distanced himself from Bannon’s project, which raised more than $25 million said to be aimed at helping Trump build his long-touted southern border wall, insisting he did not approve of the action. A statement from White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, obtained by The Daily Caller’s Christian Datoc, said Trump had “always felt the Wall must be a government project,” suggesting it is “far too big and complex to be handled privately....

At a rally in Michigan, Obama was interrupted by a heckler as he was speaking about the recent attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul Pelosi. As Obama called for elected officials to “explicitly reject” dangerous rhetoric from their supporters, a man yelled out at him. What the man said to Obama was not immediately clear. “This is what I mean,” Obama said in response. Addressing the man, he continued: “Sir, we’ve got a… there is a process that we set up in our democracy....

Barca thrash Real Sociedad to reach Copa semis Having broken their Anoeta curse with a 1-0 win in the first leg, Luis Enrique’s side were in a strong position ahead of this second match and even without Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets, they rarely looked troubled by the Basque visitors. Denis Suarez, who netted his first senior Barca goal at Eibar on Sunday, added another two here, while Lionel Messi converted from the spot after a foul on the impressive Neymar, Luis Suarez scored his 20th of the season and substitute Arda Turan tapped in from close range late on....

Forward Iker Muniain scored the winner in the 70th minute after Bilbao's incessant pressure recovered the ball and sparked a counterattack inside Barcelona's half. Neymar was once again tagged to pick up Messi's goal-scoring duties, but when he wasn't frustrated by slippery footing Bilbao's defense got the better of him. Barcelona was left level on points with Atletico Madrid and three points ahead of Real Madrid after both title rivals won on Saturday....

The loss left Barcelona in ninth place in the Liga table, having won just four of their opening 10 league games. The Blaugrana have also struggled in the Champions League this term, which led to Koeman being ousted after just over a season in charge. The club announced on Thursday that Sergi Barjuan will serve as interim coach, however Xavi is expected to be appointed in the near future....

Ernesto Valverde’s side have won all seven of their fixtures in La Liga this term and sit six points clear of the Rojiblancos ahead of this weekend’s meeting in the capital. That will be the first for the Blaugrana at the Wanda Metropolitano after the stadium was inaugurated last month, and an eighth win would leave the Catalans in a commanding position at the top of the table. Here, Goal looks at everything you need to know ahead of the big match on Saturday night…...

There is, however, no place in the starting XI for new signing Ousmane Dembele, who joined Barca shortly before the close of the summer transfer window for a club record fee. He is joined on the bench by Javier Mascherano, who played for Argentina in their 1-1 draw against Venezuela on Tuesday. Ernesto Valverde’s men are aiming to take advantage of a slip by Real Madrid earlier in the day, with the capital side held 1-1 at home by Levante....

Neymar was forced to sit out PSG’s first Ligue 1 match of the season against Amiens last week due to the lack of official clearance for his transfer. Back Neymar to be Champions League top goalscorer at 12/1 The French club must first present an International Transfer Certificate to FIFA confirming the move before Neymar is eligible to play, a usually routine piece of paperwork that in this case has caused the player’s debut to be delayed....

Barneys will close the doors of 15 of its 22 locations, including stores in Chicago, Las Vegas and Seattle. Majority of the retailer’s outlet stores will also be shut down during Chapter 11 proceedings. The company’s owner, hedge fund Perry Capital, reached a deal for additional financing from Gordon Brother and Hilco Global. The $75 million gained in the deal will help keep the remaining stores open, including Barneys famous Madison Avenue location in New York City, as well as pay for its financial commitments to vendors....

While other larger-than-life players including Pedro Sandoval and CC Sabathia spent the offseason shedding weight, it appears Colon spent the offseason enjoying life like a normal 40-year-old should. MORE: Spring training photos | Tracy McGrady takes mound | Yankees’ Tanaka arrives Cue up the 'Entourage" theme music. Colon, a former Cy Young award winner, enters the 2014 season on his 10th MLB team, hoping to follow up on his impressive 2013 campaign in which he went 18-6 with a 2....

The two controversial, alleged PED users will enter their ninth year on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot as voting commences for the class of 2021, and voting has been unkind to them over the last few years. While both players were clear, far and away Hall of Fame talents, the whispers of steroid use has clouded their legacies and could have them out of the Hall of Fame entirely....

We’ll get to him in a moment, and why his case is different from Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens (maybe not how you’d expect). We’ll start here, though. Every single person who has submitted a Hall of Fame ballot over the past few years has dealt with the same dilemma: What do we do with the PED guys? I wrestled with that question, on an abstract basis for years and pointedly for months before I dropped my first Hall of Fame ballot in the mail on Dec....

MORE: The 25 best baseball movies of all time, ranked What Cooperstown has is a “Scribes and Mikemen” exhibit that honors writers who win the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for “meritorious contributions to baseball writing” and broadcasters who win the Ford C. Frick Award . Each year, these award winners get to speak during induction weekend which is maybe part of the reason they’re seen as Hall of Famers. Or maybe the phrase “writers’ wing” just sounds more marketable than “media exhibit....

Going forward, potential voters must be active members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America or have held active status within the past decade. MORE: Photos of induction day at the Hall of Fame | Griffey, Hoffman highlight 2016 class “BBWAA members previously holding Hall of Fame voting privileges who are no longer active in the game and are more than 10 years removed from active status will have the opportunity for annual reinstatement, based on their coverage of the game in the preceding year,” the Hall said in a statement....

And that, metaphorically speaking, is “Baseball” – Burns’s gargantuan, avidly awaited follow-up to “The Civil War.” When this 181/2-hour documentary (premiering on PBS Sept. 18) doesn’t overreach, when it goes with what comes naturally, it delivers plenty of strikes. The problem is that Burns, never one to underrate the breadth of his acuity, has succumbed to a case of Heavy Meaningitis. To a filmmak-er who has compared himself to Homer, baseball can’t be something so frivolous as a game....

Matt Rowan said his blood sugar was spiking at the time he made the remarks and he thought the microphone was off. He was acting as announcer for a Thursday quarter-final game between Norman High School and Midwest City in Sapulpa, Oklahoma and his comments were broadcast live on the NFHS (National Federation of State High School Associations) Network stream. The Norman students knelt as the national anthem began to play—a form of protesting racial injustice that has become popular across the U....