Former Liverpool and Burnley manager Matt Beard has died at the age of 47.
Beard led Liverpool to back-to-back Women’s Super League titles in 2013 and 2014.
He returned for a second spell at the club in 2021 but was sacked in February this year.
In a statement, Liverpool paid tribute to “an extremely committed and successful manager”.
They added: “He was also a person of real integrity and warmth, who will always be remembered with genuine fondness by everyone he worked with at the club. Rest in peace, Matt.”
Following his reappointment in 2021, Beard led the Reds to promotion back to the WSL and helped them to a seventh-placed finish on their return to the top flight.
Beard also managed Liverpool during their first ever Champions League campaign.
He was appointed Burnley manager in June but was sacked after just two months in charge.
Beard had previous spells at National Women’s Soccer League side Boston Breakers and West Ham, as well as an interim period in charge of Bristol City.
Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson speaks to BBC Breakfast’s Nina Warhurst about his brother living with dementia, and what he does to keep his own mind active.
He was speaking as part of National Playlist Day, which is used to celebrate the power of personalised music playlists for those living with dementia.
BBC Sport’s chief football news reporter Simon Stone:
Even when they are being subjected to the kind of criticism they are getting at the moment, West Ham’s ownership tend not to go in for knee-jerk reactions when it comes to dealing with managers.
Chairman David Sullivan is more likely to give someone a game or two extra rather than act when there is still a possibility the situation might be pulled round.
Clearly though, heavy home defeats by two of the club’s fiercest rivals and slipping into the bottom three is not a good look, especially when Potter’s appointment last season failed to trigger the improvement hoped for.
If there is a slight positive as far as Potter is concerned, it comes from knowing we are still incredibly early into the new season.
Julen Lopetegui collected only five points from his first six Premier League games in charge last season and it was January before he was sacked. In 2022-23, West Ham collected five points from seven games with David Moyes in charge.
The secondary point is that West Ham made four signings between 29 August and the transfer deadline closing two days later. Given there was an international break in between, how much time has Potter had to work with his new-look squad?
Next week, unbeaten Crystal Palace visit London Stadium for a game where huge demonstrations against the ownership are planned. If that game doesn’t go well, a tense atmosphere could turn toxic.
After that it’s a trip to Merseyside and a meeting with Moyes’ improving Everton before a trip to Arsenal, where West Ham have won on their past two visits, including under Potter in February.
That feels a more obvious time to reassess, even if many West Ham fans feel getting rid of the manager is only the start of the change they really want.
Onana was left out of the starting XI for the opening Premier League games against Arsenal and Fulham.
He then put in another error-strewn display in the humiliating Carabao Cup defeat at Grimsby.
Former Man Utd manager forced to ride E-Bike across pitch to get to tunnel during World Cup qualifier
It saw him dropped again for the Prem win over Burnley before United made a deadline-day £18.2million swoop for 23-year-old Belgian Senne Lammens.
And it has emerged that insiders felt Onana was showing a lack of involvement and interest in working for the team in the final days before the international break.
That included the former Ajax and Inter Milan keeper effectively refusing to even acknowledge his manager in training.
So Amorim was happy to wave through Onana’s exit, leaving him with Lammens, struggling Turk Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton, 39.
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Senne Lammens could make his debut against Man CityCredit: Getty
Amorim has to decide whether to give Lammens a debut at the Etihad or stick with Bayindir for now.
Meanwhile, Onana copped more flak for the 1-0 defeat by Cape Verde on Tuesday that virtually ended Cameroon’s hopes of automatic World Cup qualification.
Gary: Embarrassing when a club the size of Celtic can’t keep hold of their best players. And, even worse, they can’t seem to replace them when they get sold on for profit. Lack of ambition at the top level and Brendan would be justified to leave his position this time.
James: Celtic have proven once again they are not a serious football club. I used to think it was because the board lacked ambition. More worryingly, it has become clear that they are also lacking the capability. Unfortunately, there will be no consequences. Nothing will change.
Charlie: Underwhelmed, disappointed, but not surprised. This is not progress, it’s not even consolidation.
James: I think supporters should be told why the club is in the position it is at the moment. Does Rodgers have full control of signings? And if so, he must be held to account and explain why his big signings have not produced. There has to be more transparency between the board, manager, players and supporters.
Gordy: There is only one word – appalling. We have had the whole summer to look for replacements for the players we knew were leaving. It leaves the club in a ridiculous situation, where we have a fantastic support base, a fantastic stadium, and bang average manager (for not pushing the board for what he knew he needed). The board and recruitment team are shameful for leaving us in this predicament.
Stephen: The recruitment team, and board, have massively let down everyone associated with the club. The decision to let Idah leave, after starting the day knowing we needed to add options up front, beggars belief and feels like self sabotage. Embarrassed and disappointed to be a Celtic fan.
Benny: Where do you start? Ineptitude? Unlucky? No, it’s mismanagement and arrogance from a board who have previous for this shambolic amateurism. The manager would be more than justified for walking away. Shameful and embarrassing are the only words to describe this window and others. I dread the Europa League upcoming ties with this squad.
Paul: We’re in the same position every year; craving reinforcements that are ready for the starting XI. Instead, we get loans, past-it pros, and project players. The board are an embarrassment. They continually favour a great bank balance at the expense of a decent squad.
Jose Mourinho has been sacked by Fenerbahce after just over a year in charge.
The Portuguese’s departure comes two days after the Turkish club were eliminated from the Champions League play-offs by Benfica.
In a statement, Fenerbahce said Mourinho had “parted ways” with the club, before thanking the 62-year-old for his efforts and wishing him well. A club official later confirmed to the BBC that he had been sacked.
Mourinho, who has managed 10 clubs including Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham, guided Fenerbahce to second in the league during his sole season in charge, but his tenure was punctuated by controversy.
Champions Galatasaray said they would “initiate criminal proceedings” against Mourinho, after accusing him of making “racist statements” following a 0-0 draw in February.
Mourinho denied the allegations, saying he is the “opposite” of racist, and filed a lawsuit against the club seeking damages worth 1,907,000 Turkish Lira (£41,000).
Mourinho was a frequent critic of the standard of officiating in Turkey, and was handed a four-match ban – later reduced to two matches – for his comments about referees after the match against Galatasaray.
AN EASYJET cabin manager has lost an appeal after being sacked for calling female co-workers “lovely ladies”.
Ross Barr was fired for gross misconduct after crew members and passengers logged multiple complaints about his inappropriate behaviour.
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An easyJet cabin manager has lost an appeal after being sacked for a string of complaints
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Ross Barr dubbed his comments ‘banter’
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Customers reported how he used the tannoy as platform to perform his own comedy routinesCredit: Media Scotland
He had worked for the airline for eight years, and defended his actions as “flirty banter”.
Mr Barr also claimed he was discriminated against or his sexual orientation, alleging it would have been accepted if “a gay colleague” have made the same remarks.
The former cabin manager appealed the decision to let him go at an employment tribunal, but lost.
Mr Barr began working at easyJet in 2014 and became a cabin manager in 2017.
He was hauled into a disciplinary hearing in 2022 and issued a final warning after a sexual harassment complaint.
More allegations of a similar nature were recorded against him in both 2023 and last year.
Customers also claimed he would refer to his team as “lovely ladies” over the PA system.
Passengers further reported he used the tannoy as an opportunity to perform his own comedy routines rather that conduct proper safety briefings.
Mr Barr had confessed to telling a stewardess “oh I have just brushed past your boobs” as he moved past her.
He was also overheard telling another cabin crew member on a separate flight: “I’m not doing anything.. I’m just staring at your ass.”
The comment was made in front of flyers, including young children, according to witnesses.
In another complaint, one woman said: “The entire shift pretty much he was talking about sex or making jokes about it.
“He explained that he had been suspended before due to a speak up speak out that someone previously put in against him because ‘all I said was that her tits would get bigger if she got pregnant, and guess what they did’.
“She also said that he had referred to her and another crew member as his ‘much more attractive colleague’.”
A different complaint was logged after he told a staff member “having a problem trying to stuff it in? Bet you’ve never had that problem”, while she was packing a bag.
Mr Barr argued he did not mean to make anyone uncomfortable and dubbed his comments “banter”.
He was sacked in September 2024 after the hearing but appealed the decision.
The former easyJet worker argued his case had been tainted by previous hearings.
But employment Judge Muriel Robison ruled: “As the cabin manager you are in a position of trust and I feel there has been a breakdown in trust in relation to these situations, you should conduct yourself in a manner that ensures your crew feel safe onboard the aircraft.
“This is not the first time you have been in this situation with regard to your conduct and comments made to female crew members.
“You raised that you were treated differently compared to others under similar circumstances due to your protected characteristics.
“My investigation did not uncover any evidence to substantiate this claim.
“It’s my belief the process followed was consistent and fair, and you were not treated any differently to your colleagues.
“On 19 March, 2024, you successfully completed training that included a thorough focus on diversity, inclusion and equality in the workplace.
“Despite this, your continued behaviour demonstrated a failure to uphold the values and principles outlined in this training.”
Passenger Shayanne Wright made a sexual harassment complaint against the male host and said the incident left her feeling “violated.”
A British Airways spokesperson confirmed the allegations were being investigated and said the airline “have been in contact with our customer directly to resolve the matter”.
Wright said the airline did not apologise to her, however offered a $250 gift card, later increased to $1000.
NOTTINGHAM FOREST boss Nuno Espirito Santo and West Ham’s Graham Potter are joint-favourites to be the first Premier League managerial casualties of the 2025/26 season.
That’s according to bookmaker talkSPORT BET, who’ve updated their betting markets after more twists and turns in the Premier League sack race.
Here, SunSport takes a closer look at the leading contenders – and who’s most likely to get the boot first.
Nuno Espirito Santo – 11/8
Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo remains firmly in the frame to be the first Premier League manager axed this season, amid ongoing uncertainty at the City Ground.
The 51-year-old lit the fuse last week by admitting his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis has “changed” – and that they’re “not as close” as they once were.
Tensions are understood to stem from the club’s summer transfer dealings, now overseen by Edu, with Nuno reportedly frustrated at being sidelined from key recruitment decisions.
Forest have splashed more than £150million on seven new signings – including Omari Hutchinson, Dan Ndoye, Arnaud Kalimuendo and James McAtee – but Nuno still wants more, including a new goalkeeper and two full-backs.
Despite the growing pressure, Nuno has insisted he won’t walk away – but notably refused to guarantee he’ll still be in charge by the end of the transfer window on September 1.
He had been as short as 1/2 to be the first top-flight boss shown the door, but has drifted to 11/8 following a crisis emerging at West Ham.
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Owner Evangelos Marinakis confronting Nuno Espirito Santo on the pitch back in MayCredit: GETTY
Graham Potter – 11/8
West Ham’s Graham Potter is now level with Nuno at 11/8, having shortened from 3/1 earlier in the week after a horror run of results.
His miserable week hit a new low on Tuesday when the Hammers were dumped out of the Carabao Cup by Wolves, conceding twice in the final eight minutes in a 3-2 defeat – with Jorgen Strand Larsen bagging a brace.
The full-time whistle saw tempers boil over, with captain Jarrod Bowen confronting a furious supporter during heated post-match scenes.
That came on the back of a 5-1 thrashing by Chelsea at the London Stadium and an opening-day defeat to newly-promoted Sunderland.
Potter’s numbers make grim reading – just five wins in 22 matches since replacing Julen Lopetegui in January, with 12 defeats and a return of 0.95 points per game – the worst record of any manager in West Ham’s history.
The Hammers must now pick themselves up ahead of a weekend trip to face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground, before clashes against Tottenham, Crystal Palace, Everton and Arsenal.
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Jarrod Bowen is pulled away after clashing with West Ham supportersCredit: GETTY
What happened last season?
A total of eight Premier League managers were shown the door last season, with Manchester United’s Erik ten Hag the first to go in October.
Steve Cooper’s short-lived stint at Leicester came to a sudden end in November, before Wolves and Southampton parted ways with Gary O’Neil and Russell Martin on the same December afternoon.
Julen Lopetegui and Sean Dyche followed in January, their departures announced less than 24 hours apart. In April, Ivan Juric became the second Southampton manager to be sacked during the 2024–25 campaign.
Despite ending Tottenham’s 17-year trophy drought, Ange Postecoglou was the final manager to leave his post, dismissed in June after overseeing the club’s worst-ever Premier League finish – 17th.
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About the author
James Anderson
James Anderson is a Betting & Gaming Writer at The Sun. He is an expert in sports betting and online casinos, and joined the company in November 2020 to work closely with leading bookmakers and online gaming companies to curate content in all areas of sports betting. He previously worked as a Digital Sports Reporter and Head of Live Blogs/Events at the Daily Express and Daily Star, covering football, cricket, snooker, F1 and horse racing.
Rangers manager Russell Martin says there was “nothing to be proud” of in his side’s “humiliating” 6-0 defeat by Club Brugge as they crashed out of the Champions League.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Angels manager Ron Washington said Monday he is recovering from quadruple bypass heart surgery, the first time he has publicly addressed the health issues that have sidelined him since late June.
He made the announcement while visiting the Angels for the first time since the operation eight weeks ago in California. He is not returning to manage this season but hopes to have that opportunity next year.
Washington, at 73 the oldest manager in the majors, was last in the dugout for a 7-3 loss to the New York Yankees on June 19. The following day, the team said Washington was out indefinitely because of health issues after experiencing shortness of breath and appearing fatigued toward the end of that four-game series in New York.
“This happened fast,” Washington said. “I wasn’t feeling very good on our last trip to New York … and I finally decided to go to the trainer and let him see what was going on. My ankles were swollen. And he called the doctors in from New York and they knew right away what was going on, why my fluid was going into my ankles.”
He was cleared by Yankees doctors to fly home with the team and underwent tests after getting back to Southern California. The Angels announced on June 27 that he was going on medical leave for the rest of the season. Washington had surgery three days later.
Washington said the Angels were on a road trip when he was released from the hospital on July 7, so he got clearance to fly home to Texas where his wife could assist him with his recovery.
The well-liked Washington revealed the details of his medical issues before the Angels opened a three-game series in Texas. He plans to continue on to Houston before skipping the final stop on the road trip in Kansas City. Washington hopes to be with the team the rest of the season after the Angels return home.
Washington is the Rangers’ winningest manager with a 664-611 record from 2007 to 2014. He led them to their first two World Series appearances in 2010 and 2011.
After initially returning to Oakland’s organization for two seasons, Washington then was on the Atlanta Braves’ staff from 2017 to 2023 and part of their 2021 World Series championship.
With a young roster after Shohei Ohtani’s departure in free agency and with three-time AL MVP Mike Trout limited to 29 games because of injuries, the Angels went 63-99 last year in Washington’s first season as manager, a franchise record for losses. They were 36-38 before Washington left the dugout this year, and entered Monday night’s game 25-31 with Ray Montgomery filling in for him.
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, who led them to their first World Series title two seasons ago, is the second-oldest manager in the majors. The four-time World Series champion turned 70 in April.
When will the Dodgers’ hierarchy finally come to the same conclusion as everyone else in Dodger nation? Teoscar Hernández is a hack in right field, Michael Conforto needs a one-way ticket to the waiver wire and the Dodgers are a better team with Mookie Betts in right field.
Ron Yukelson San Luis Obispo
Everyone is blaming Teoscar Hernández for the Monday night loss to the Rockies. It’s not Teoscar’s fault. A manager’s job is to put his players in the best position to perform at their best, Teoscar is not a right fielder, he’s better in left field. Everyone thinks that these are professional players and they should be able to play any position. Yeah, they can play any position, but it may not be their best performance. Quit juggling the players around and put them where they will perform at their best.
Paul Kawaguchi Rosemead
Teoscar Hernández was singled out for criticism over his poor defense in a game the Dodgers lost to the Rockies. Yes, he didn’t do well in that game, but he has been very productive with his bat, with 74 RBIs and 20 home runs. Instead of making him the scapegoat for losing a game, why not point out the often awful bullpen performances. We are ahead in a game, then the relievers come in and blow the lead. They do this far more than Teoscar commits errors.
Deborah R. Ishida Beverly Hills
If the Dodgers crashed the Little League World Series, no one would blink. Like the kids, their leather is leaky, their arms are toast, their best hitter is their best pitcher, their silly celebrations are pure playground — shimmy shakes and sunflower seed showers. What’s missing? A team mom and the minivan for postgame DQ runs.
Steve Ross Carmel
I think the heat is getting to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. Not only was Michael Conforto in the lineup on Thursday with his .190 batting average but he was batting cleanup with his nine home runs and 27 RBIs while Andy Pages was further down the batting order. Since Shohei Ohtani was not in the lineup, I was shocked that the Dodgers scored nine runs.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s future as Nottingham Forest manager is uncertain after a breakdown in his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis.
Sources have told BBC Sport that Nuno’s position is not completely safe despite last season’s achievement of qualifying for Europe and the opening-day win over Brentford on Sunday.
The uncertainty, according to sources, has now stretched to the playing squad who are said to be aware of the situation.
In a news conference on Friday, the 51-year-old said his relationship with Marinakis “has changed” and they are “not as close”.
“I always had a very good relationship with the owner – last season we were very close and spoke on a daily basis,” Nuno said.
“This season it is not so well [between us] but I always believe that dialogue is important because my concern is the squad and the season we have ahead of us. Our relationship has changed and we are not as close.”
When asked if it was good his relationship with Evangelos Marinakis had changed, Nuno said: “No, it is not good. I think everybody at the club should be together but this not the reality.”
Forest have been active in the transfer market this summer, signing seven players – though they did sell winger Anthony Elanga to Newcastle for £55m.
But before last Sunday’s 3-1 win over Brentford, Nuno outlined his transfer concerns.
“We have doubts, who is going to be [here], when are they [new signings] going to come? All these things create doubts,” he said.
“Not only me but in the club. What we want is game-by-game to have as many options as possible. Europe will come after, and for sure it will be better, but for now until that happens it is a major concern.
“The owner is aware, the club is aware, everyone is aware. Everybody knows the reality. This is a lost chance that we had as a group to do it.”
There have been suggestions that Nuno has not been fully involved in the club’s recruitment this summer, which could be a factor in the deterioration of his relationship with Marinakis.
Liverpool manager Gareth Taylor tells BBC Sport’s Emma Sanders that he stayed “true to my role” when dealing with disagreements with England forward Chloe Kelly in his previous job as Manchester City boss.
“He builds a special relationship with players and they understand where he’s coming from.
“He has a modern mindset and all of those things mean it does take some time to put a team together, to get the team playing the way that you want.
“West Ham is not a club that panics about its managers. We tend to stick with them, tend to support people, stick with them and see it through.
“I really hope he does well. He’s a pleasure to work with, he’s incredibly professional.
“I know his relationship with the players is good. I know he’ll be sitting down with them today to have a long, hard think about what went wrong yesterday, expecting a reaction and expecting to put it right.”
Potter gave full debuts to Senegal full-back El Hadji Malick Diouf, a £19m signing from Slavia Prague, and Denmark goalkeeper Mads Hermansen, who joined for £20m from Leicester.
Striker Callum Wilson also made his debut as a substitute following his arrival from Newcastle, while another free transfer, Kyle Walker-Peters, remained on the bench.
They performed well in the first half and went close through Jarrod Bowen and Diouf, but faded badly after Eliezer Mayenda’s 61st-minute opener, conceding twice more in the final 17 minutes.
“I wish yesterday could start all over again,” added Brady. “It’s so tough to take. It’s never easy for the supporters, the players, or the manager to lose 3-0, particularly in the opening game of the season.
“I spent a lot of time with the manager and the squad in America on the pre-season tour. The spirit among them is fantastic. I know that they’ll be more disappointed, that they’ll be the most disappointed people this morning.
“I know we’ll see a reaction and I know they want to turn it around and they’ll want to turn it around quickly.”
The second in an occasional series of profiles on Southern California athletes who have flourished in their post-playing careers.
The expansion Los Angeles Angels were just 5 months old in September 1961 when the team called up three minor leaguers who would come to define the fledgling franchise’s early years.
Jim Fregosi, a teenage shortstop, would go on to make six All-Star teams and win a Gold Glove. Right-hander Dean Chance, who turned 20 that summer, would win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young awards and lead the American League in wins, ERA, shutouts and innings pitched. And Buck Rodgers would catch for nine big league seasons before managing at the minor and major league level for the Angels.
But only Dan Ardell, a light-hitting first baseman who was called up with them, would do something that had never been done before on Sept. 20 against the Detroit Tigers. In his first big league plate appearance, Ardell blooped a single to right field, only to see pinch-runner Ken McBride get caught rounding second base to end the game.
“I’m the only one to only get one hit. And the one hit was a walk-off loss,” he said. “Not easy to do.”
There were few witnesses since many in the crowd of 3,116 at Detroit’s Tiger Stadium had left long before the ninth inning. Ardell would appear in six more games, four as a pinch-runner, and make six more plate appearances without a hit, striking out twice, walking once and dropping down a sacrifice bunt to finish with a .250 lifetime batting average.
It wasn’t good enough to get him a plaque in the Hall of Fame but you can still find him listed there, alongside the other 20,964 men who have played in the majors.
“It’s a very low number,” Ardell said, acknowledging the accomplishment. “Very low.”
Yet more than six decades later, Ardell looks back on his month with the Angels with neither delight nor disappointment. He has gone on to live a rich life, one that has included well-paying jobs in banking and asset management, a 41-year marriage that produced four children and six grandchildren, and absolutely no regrets about a baseball career that was so short it’s remembered mostly for a teammate’s base-running blunder.
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1.Jim Fregosi during a game in Anaheim in 1965.(Transcendental Graphics / Getty Images)2.Dean Chance won a Cy Young Award with the Angels.(Associated Press)3.Rich Rollins of the Minnesota Twins swings and misses as Angels catcher Buck Rodgers catches the pitch in a 1962 game. All three players were called up to the Angels in September 1961 along with Dan Ardell, whose career only lasted seven games.(Hy Peskin Archive / Getty Images)
“I never had a desire to be a major league ballplayer,” said Ardell, a retired real estate executive who made $1,250 for his big league cameo. “I loved playing baseball, but once I started playing professionally, I was bored. I was disinterested.”
In fact, the bookish Ardell probably never should have been there at all. But after winning the College World Series as a sophomore at USC, he accepted a $37,500 bonus to leave school five semesters short of a degree to sign with the Angels.
Still, he hedged his bets just the same.
“They wanted to give me $35,000 and I said I need $37,500 because that would give me the $500 a semester [tuition] at ‘SC that I needed,” Ardell said.
The newly born Angels had just two minor league teams, so Ardell was sent to the Dodgers’ Class D farm club in Artesia, N.M. His manager was Spider Jorgensen, whose big league debut in 1947 had been somewhat overshadowed by teammate Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball’s color line that day. Since Jorgensen’s equipment never made it to the ballpark, he played third base that day using an infielder’s glove he borrowed from Robinson.
The team Jorgensen managed went 48-78 and finished last, 29½ games out of first in the Sophomore League — so bad that Sports Illustrated came to New Mexico to document its mediocrity. Ardell finished that first season with more strikeouts (32) than hits (30) in 125 at-bats, but he was big, left-handed and played first base — three attributes that were enough to get him a trial with an Angels team that entered September 30 games behind the league-leading Yankees.
“I basically played second string at ‘SC,” Ardell said. “So I go from second string to Class D ball — which wasn’t as good as our ‘SC team — to the big leagues all within 60 days. At age 20, it was an incredible roller coaster.”
It was a ride he quickly tired off. He didn’t drink and he was about to get married, so the frat house atmosphere of a professional baseball team wasn’t one he partook of. After three more minor league seasons, he retired at 23.
“I learned a lot about myself,” he said of those three mostly unhappy summers.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it. It was that he didn’t want to do it. Being a big league ballplayer may have been some kids’ dream, but it wasn’t his.
“I got no satisfaction out of it. And I was bored,” he said. “It just wasn’t that interesting to me once I had to make my living doing it.
“If you don’t love what you’re doing, if you don’t appreciate and like what you’re doing, it becomes hard work.”
At 84, Ardell has an easy smile and a quick, self-deprecating wit he employs often. He’s still at his playing weight of 190 pounds, but he says he’s lost 2 inches off a frame that once rose to 6-foot-2. And he no longer moves with the speed or grace that allowed him to steal seven bases in his first minor league season.
There is no memorabilia, no remnants of his short-lived career in his hillside home in Laguna Beach’s Bluebird Canyon, about a half-mile from the Pacific Ocean. He gave his gloves away during a garage sale shortly after he quit playing and a grandson took down the few pictures he had hung on the wall.
After retiring with a .252 average and 45 home runs in 389 minor league games, Ardell went back to college, then studied real estate, working for Union Bank and Wells Fargo. He eventually started a real estate asset management company with his twin brother Dave, an equally talented baseball player who played at UCLA, where he was the team captain.
After retiring with a .252 average and 45 home runs in 389 minor league games, Dan Ardell returned to school at USC, then studied real estate, working for Union Bank and Wells Fargo.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
That anyone remembers he played at all is both flattering and befuddling for Ardell, who receives about a dozen autograph requests in the mail each year.
“I mean, how do they even know my address?” he asked.
Still, he answers every letter. Some fans send old photos or baseball cards that are necessarily homemade since Ardell never got a Topps bubblegum card of his own.
“In those days anybody who signed a bonus, Topps would sign,” he said. “So they came to Artesia, where I was playing, and said ‘we want to give you a Topps card. And we’ll pay you five bucks’.
“I said, ‘I think I need 10.’ So I’m the only only major leaguer who never had a Topps card.”
Which isn’t to say Ardell has no mementos from his career. A fastball he didn’t see on a poorly lit field in San José slipped under the bill of his batting helmet and struck him flush in the head one night.
“I woke up the next day. You could see the seam where the baseball hit. I still have a dent,” he said with a chuckle, pointing to a spot in the center of his forehead.
It wasn’t until three decades after he walked away from the game that Ardell came to appreciate what he had accomplished — and only then after marrying Jean Hastings, who would shortly become a nationally recognized baseball academic and writer.
Ardell and Hastings — a Brooklyn native who had always been a baseball fanatic — were living in the same Orange County neighborhood when a mutual friend suggested they go out on a date.
“She had just read ‘Ball Four,’” Ardell said, referencing Jim Bouton’s book about the raunchy, less-seemly side of baseball. “So she said no, baseball players are to look at, they’re not to touch.”
Dan Ardell says he receives about a dozen autograph requests in the mail each year, with some fans sending old photos or homemade baseball cards since Ardell never got a Topps card of his own. “I mean, how do they even know my address?” he said.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
She went on the date anyway, then married Ardell a couple of years later in 1981. Jean, 79, died in 2022 after a short, ferocious battle with leukemia, but in the more than 40 years she spent with Ardell, she slowly rekindled his love for a game he had all but forgotten.
They went to conferences and symposiums, where Jean spoke on the magic and the poetry of baseball. They visited the Hall of Fame, traveled to Arizona for spring training and attended countless Angels games, watching on TV the ones they couldn’t attend in person.
“It was definitely part of her,” grandson Garrett Tyler said.
Jean not only helped Ardell put his baseball career into perspective, she helped put his life in perspective. Shortly after they married, “I decided to have a mission statement,” Ardell said. “And my mission statement was to make a difference in the lives of others.”
“Ten years later,” he added “I changed it to make a positive difference.”
He saw that desire at work in Jean, a political liberal who, in addition to her baseball writing, also worked with a nonprofit called Braver Angels that seeks to bridge the political divide by bringing Democrats and Republicans together. It was a philosophy she lived by marrying Ardell, a lifelong Republican who cast his first presidential vote for Barry Goldwater but later drove a car sporting a “Republicans for Obama” bumper sticker.
Ardell was already working with Opportunity International, a global nonprofit that alleviates generational poverty by microfinancing community projects both in Southern California and abroad. But now the bridge that he and Jean built became apparent through the difference being made — not only in those affected communities, but in his own soul as well.
Tyler said he grew up playing catch with his grandfather, who attended all his Little League games. But it was his grandmother who told him about Ardell’s professional career.
“He was always a little bit reluctant to talk about it. My grandma was the one that kind of opened him up,” said Tyler, 25, who followed his grandparents into baseball, where he works as manager of concessions for the Amarillo Sod Poodles, the double A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“I’ve talked to him a lot about that. He told me that he just didn’t have the confidence. He knew that he was good, but I don’t think he really understood it. I don’t know if he necessarily misses it or feels like he missed out. I think he was more appreciative of the journey that it took him on and how he’s evolved into a different love for baseball.”
As he has grown older, Tyler said that’s the part of his grandfather’s journey that has stuck with him; the mission statement part that says it’s not about the destination or the accomplishments, but about the influence you have on those you meet along the way.
In that way, he said, Ardell’s short career is now having an outsized influence.
Tyler mentions a friend who is basically playing for free, stranded below the longest rung of the minor league ladder. But he still puts on a uniform every day.
“He plays for the love of the game and just because it’s all he knows,” Tyler said. “One of the things that Dan asks me that I ask my friend is, ‘do you like what you’re doing?’ And at that point it’s not about your career longevity or how much money you’re making.
“As long as you’re happy playing and you’re making ends meet, then go for it.”
Ardell wasn’t happy playing, so he walked away. Three decades later with the love and support of a wife who saw baseball not as a sport but as a metaphor for life, as a game where the goal is to get home safely, Ardell began to understand the magic, too.
His one month in the majors led him to a career prosperous enough that he could help others, one that still fills his mailbox with letters from fans and one that has given him the wisdom to counsel other 23-year-olds to keep putting on the uniform as long as it fits.
Make a positive difference in the lives of others.
“It was a very inconsequential part of my life that was very consequential to other people,” Ardell said of his one month in the majors.
She dropped former England captain Steph Houghton in 2022, and told goalkeeper Mary Earps she would not be the number one for Euro 2025.
Her honesty is appreciated by many, but not all.
“Sarina has always been direct, she always says it how it is, whether you like it or not, and it’s something you have to take on the chin,” said midfielder Georgia Stanway.
“Get the people around you that you need and if she gives you some negative feedback then you know that the rest of the staff are going to help you to fix it.”
Kirby went from being a starter in 2022, to the fringes of the squad before she was told she would not make the cut for 2025.
The Brighton midfielder announced her international retirement early as a result but says Wiegman learned quickly what style of feedback people could handle.
“If it’s not right for the team, she will be direct with you, regardless of what you are feeling,” said Kirby.
“But she gets to know you, so you have that respect for her when you do have to have that difficult conversation. You know that it’s not personal, it’s just she needs more from you or she needs you to do more for the team.
“She is just consistent with everyone, regardless of whether you’ve got 80 caps or five. Everyone is treated the same.”
White says they had regular one-to-one conversations when Wiegman first took over and they often discussed analysis on Zoom away from camp.
“She visits clubs as well, and has communication with club managers. She’ll always pick up the phone to you no matter what time it is,” added White.
“She’s so approachable. Yes, she is the manager, but she is a human being. She wants what is best for you.”
Bardsley’s injuries meant she had to retire before making an appearance under Wiegman but she had regular contact throughout her attempted comeback.
The ex-goalkeeper was given a six-week deadline to return to play and when it was clear she wouldn’t make it, she called Wiegman, who was “very empathetic”.
“She is really emotionally intelligent and could feel I was disappointed. It probably made her selection headache a lot easier but she said lots of nice things about my career. I was just grateful,” said Bardsley.
“I would have loved to have played under her. She took the time to have a chat and I really appreciated that because she didn’t have to do that.”
But Houghton did not feel she was given the same treatment and has been critical of Wiegman’s approach to her.
Writing in her book, Houghton said she felt Wiegman was “pretty brutal” in how she communicated that she would not be part of her squad for the 2023 World Cup.
“We were told we would know the final World Cup squad on Tuesday,” Houghton wrote.
“On the Monday, I had an appearance at St George’s Park for Nike. When I went back to the changing room, I had a missed call from Sarina. She didn’t know I was there, so when I told her, she asked me to go and meet her in the canteen, where she told me she wasn’t taking me.
“I found myself wondering if this would have been a face-to-face conversation if I hadn’t already been at St George’s Park. Sarina told me that I probably wouldn’t play for England while she was in charge.
“She obviously made her mind up, which is fine and I’ve got to respect that. The problem was more that I think she’d intended to have this conversation over the phone, and she knew she was going to tell me I wasn’t in her plans at all. I thought that called for a face-to-face conversation given the career I’d had.”
As Hart High football players participated in a 6 a.m. workout on Wednesday morning, injured player Micaiah Underwood was given an important task — flying the team’s drone to take video. He had been trained by head coach Jake Goossen.
When an alarm went off alerting low battery, Underwood calmly manipulated the controls to bring the drone down — though it briefly went so high that teammates were joking it was out of control.
Managers make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for football players to eat after practices.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Every head coach needs to delegate responsibilities and rely on others to help him focus on getting his team ready, and three important positions in 2025 are drone operator, manager and athletic trainer.
Every program needs one of each.
At a City Section school earlier this week, three managers were making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for players to eat after practices. At another school, the athletic trainer was taping ankles and roaming the field in case of an emergency. For those teams without athletic trainers, coaches were forced to take on the task.
Coaches kept handing out their keys to managers to retrieve or open something.
From the hard to believe file. The Hart High Hawks were using a drone to film a football workout and the drone was attacked and disabled by a real Hawk. Let’s see what the insurance company says. pic.twitter.com/lfC2GYxDO8
Managers and trainers have been around for years, but drone operators are new. At Hart, they have to pay special attention to hawks. Seriously, Hart had a drone disabled by a hawk. Now there are spotters to make sure no hawks are nearby. After all, Hart’s new nickname is the Hawks and apparently the real hawks like flying drones.
So everyone say thanks to the drone operators, managers and trainers. They’re unsung helpers every program needs.
Electric bikes lined up at Hart High.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Oh, and one more trend. There are so many players using electric bikes to get to practices perhaps a charging station is next to be added on a program’s football budget.
Ron Washington was beaming in his black suit, complete with a red tie, as he sat at a table perched on a platform in the Home Plate Club of Angel Stadium on Wednesday.
The 71-year old manager from New Orleans, the newest in Angels history, scanned the room, taking in his moment as his new general manager, Perry Minasian, boasted about him. Minasian gave him his official Angels gear and Washington affixed his newest cap to his head and meticulously buttoned each button on his newest jersey.
“Now I’m legit,” Washington said and smiled.
It had been nine years since Washington had been in this position, the manager of a major league baseball team. Now that he was back, he stated his message clearly: The Angels will be a force to be reckoned with while he’s in charge.
“Our whole focus is going to be to run the [American League] West down,” Washington said in front of a crowd of Angels players, alumni, media members and team employees. “And you can take that to the bank and deposit it.”
Washington, hired by Texas Rangers ahead of the 2007 season, has had a chip on his shoulder after not winning a World Series despite AL pennants in 2010 and 2011 and a wild-card berth in 2012.
He left the Rangers before the end of the 2014 season — stating, at the time, that his decision to leave was because he had been unfaithful to his wife. Of the nature of his departure from the Rangers, Minasian said Wednesday that he had done his due diligence and felt comfortable hiring Washington.
Washington had been trying to return to a managerial position since then, interviewing with at least three other clubs over the years, he said, but he never stopped believing his next opportunity would come.
He has a World Series ring, having been an integral part of the 2021 campaign of the Atlanta Braves, the team he had been the third base coach for since the 2017 season.
Angels new manager Ron Washington, left, and general manager Perry Minisian hug during a news conference Wednesday at Angel Stadium.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
And he spoke with more than just determination, but a conviction in the Angels, with his confidence in himself and down-to-the-soul belief in a better Angels future paving the way.
The Angels have not reached the playoffs since 2014 and have eight straight losing seasons. In addition, Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani is a free agent and could leave the team. While some view the roster as weak, Washington sees potential.
“I really have been, since I’ve been here these past three days, focusing in on these young arms we got,” Washington said. “I am very impressed with the young arms we got. That’s why we trying to find us a pitching coach to guide them in the right direction.
“Pitching and defense is the key to success. The rest of it, I’m going to take care of as we move along. … The defense, you’re looking at the best in the business, and that’s not patting myself on the back. That’s a fact.”
The Houston Astros have won the AL West six of the last seven seasons. The Rangers won this season’s World Series.
While some view beating the top teams in the division as a tall order, Washington says so what.
“Yeah, the Astros [have] been there,” Washington said matter-of-factly. “When I took over in Texas, guess who was the big dog? The Angels. And what happened? We ran them down. So my intent is to run Houston down.
“I’m not saying that’s gonna happen this year. But we don’t know when it’s gonna happen. I can tell you what, we’re gonna get back on top.”
Washington’s official candidacy for the Angels job began with a dinner with Minasian in New Orleans a few weeks ago — though Washington’s familiarity with the Minasian family dates back much further. After that, Washington was invited to meet with Minasian and other members of the front office in Scottsdale, Ariz., for a brunch on the Tuesday of the general manager meetings last week.
Team owner Arte Moreno picked Washington up from the airport and Minasian and the rest of the Angels contingent talked with him for more than three hours, Minasian said, and he was offered the job. The next day, the Angels announced Washington as their new manager.
Washington’s Angels have already secured their new third base coach, Eric Young Sr., who followed Washington from Atlanta, as well as their new infield coach, Ryan Goins. Washington also said Wednesday that he knows who his first base coach is, though he did not give a name. The Angels confirmed Bo Porter as their new first base coach on Friday. The Angels also confirmed on Friday that they promoted Jerry Narron to major league catching coach after previously serving as their minor league catching coordinator. The Angels subsequently named Johnny Washington as their hitting coach and Barry Enright as pitching coach.
Next up on Washington’s agenda: making calls to the team’s biggest leaders for the foreseeable future: Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon.
Washington and Dave Roberts of the Dodgers are the only Black managers in the majors, after Dusty Baker retired from his position with the Astros last month. Washington replaces Phil Nevin, whose contract for next season was not picked up by the Angels.
Leicester City have named former Queens Park Rangers head coach Marti Cifuentes as their new manager on a three-year deal.
The 43-year-old Spaniard replaces Ruud van Nistelrooy at the Foxes’ helm with less than a month until the season starts.
Cifuentes takes charge of a Leicester side that finds itself in the Championship for the second time in three years, having been immediately relegated from the Premier League after going up as second-tier title winners under Enzo Maresca in 2024.
Cifuentes now joins Maresca, who left Leicester after promotion to take the job at Chelsea, as one of the six permanent managers the Foxes have had in just over two years.
Just as the Italian was tasked with returning the East Midlands club to the top flight during his tenure, promotion will also be expected of Cifuentes.
In his time at QPR, the Spaniard oversaw 18th and 15th-placed finishes.
Leicester say they feel the Spaniard will bring “a modern, progressive footballing philosophy” to the club, while chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha says that Cifuentes “is an excellent fit”.
“We felt strongly that bringing him to the club would help us to create the success we all want in the years ahead,” Srivaddhanaprabha added.
Cifuentes took charge of QPR when they were second-from-bottom in the Championship in October 2023 and escaping relegation was first asked of him at Loftus Road.
His latest campaign ended with him on gardening leave after the Hoops suffered a 5-0 defeat by already-promoted Burnley in April.
