Jays’ Pillar announces retirement

Kevin Pillar, an outfielder who spent the majority of his 13-year major league career with the Toronto Blue Jays, announced his retirement on Wednesday.

Pillar confirmed his decision during an appearance on the Foul Territory podcast, about a month after he was released by the Texas Rangers. After rehabilitating from offseason thumb surgery, Pillar played in 20 games for the Rangers — his 10th major league team — with nine hits in 43 at-bats.

Pillar, 36, was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 32nd round in 2011 and made his debut in 2013. He was traded to the San Francisco Giants early in the 2019 season, which was his best in the big leagues. He batted .264 with 21 home runs, 87 RBIs and 14 steals for the Giants that year, before signing with the Boston Red Sox in 2020.

“You will always be our Superman,” the Blue Jays said in a congratulatory social media post.

Bills’ pick accused of sexual assault

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills first-round draft pick Maxwell Hairston was accused in a lawsuit of sexually assaulting a woman in 2021 at the University of Kentucky.

The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in federal court in Kentucky by a woman who claims Hairston entered her dorm room without being invited, ignored her when she said didn’t want to have sexual intercourse, forcibly removed her bottoms and sexually assaulted her. The Associated Press does not typically name alleged victims of sexual assault.

Texts seeking comment Wednesday were sent to agents for Hairston.

The Bills had no comment and referred to statements made by general manager Brandon Beane in April during the draft. Beane said at the time the team had “fully investigated” a sexual assault allegation from 2021 involving Hairston, who he called “an impeccable kid.”

“So that’s unfortunate when things like that are attached to someone’s name. And in this case, doesn’t seem to be anything there,” Beane said.

Hairston is from West Bloomfield, Michigan, and spent three seasons playing at Kentucky (2022-’24) before being selected by the Bills in the first round — 30th overall — of the NFL draft in April. The 21-year-old Hairston is being given the opportunity to win a starting job at cornerback this season.

The Bills have been off since completing their mandatory practices in mid-June, and return later this month for the start of training camp.

Fever’s Clark to miss 4th game

INDIANAPOLIS — Caitlin Clark will miss her fourth consecutive game with a strained left groin for the Indiana Fever when they host Las Vegas.

The Fever announced Clark’s status on Wednesday, a day before their game against the Aces. Clark’s most recent absence, the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup victory over the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday, did not count toward the regular-season standings.

“She’s making progress,” Fever coach Stephanie White said. “Making progress and feeling good are two different things. We want to make sure that she feels good. We want to make sure that she’s confident. We want to make sure that we’re not putting her in a position to have any setbacks.”

Clark, the first overall pick in the 2024 draft and one of the two captains selected for the WNBA All-Star Game later this month, never missed a game in college at Iowa or with the Fever as a rookie. A strained quadriceps earlier this season kept her out for five games.