Dodgers’ Kershaw signs record deal

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Clayton Kershaw agreed Wednesday to a $215 million, seven-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. The deal makes the two-time Cy Young Award winner baseball’s first player with a $30 million average salary.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not yet been announced.

Kershaw receives the most lucrative deal for a pitcher, breaking the mark of $180 million set by Justin Verlander last March for his seven-year contract with Detroit.

MLBPA won’t agree to ending contracts

NEW YORK (AP) — New baseball union head Tony Clark says players won’t agree to terminating contracts as part of discipline for drug violations.

Clark took over as executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association following Michael Weiner’s death in November and expects talks on possible changes to the drug agreement to start before spring training.

Clark also anticipated players will agree before the upcoming season to ban home plate collisions and to allow expanded instant replay, which also requires a deal between Major League Baseball and the umpires’ union.

Schuerholz: Replay could be in MLB soon

PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. (AP) — The head of the committee that developed Major League Baseball’s plan to expand instant replay is optimistic the system will be in place this season, even though owners and unions for players and umpires have yet to approve.

Atlanta Braves President John Schuerholz expects the system will need three years of use to resolve problems that develop.

The plan would give managers the right to challenge most calls except balls and strikes, with one challenge allowed in the first six innings and two from the seventh inning on. A successful challenge would not count against the limits.

Sharapova survives in Aussie Open oven

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Soaked with sweat and clinging desperately for survival, Maria Sharapova was only a point from victory when Australian Open organizers finally decided that the searing heat was extreme enough to suspend matches.

The four-time major winner was serving at 5-4 in the third set, 2 hours, 38 minutes into her second-round match against No. 44-ranked Karin Knapp on Thursday. But the reprieve wouldn’t apply to the pair on Rod Laver Arena, because the long-delayed Extreme Heat Policy only kicks in at the end of sets in progress. It took another 50 minutes before Sharapova converted her fourth match point for a grueling 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 win.

The temperature was 102 degrees when Sharapova’s match started at just after 11 a.m. local time and increased to almost 109 degrees by the time she finished during the third straight day of a heat wave in sweltering Melbourne. At 3 hours, 28 minutes, it was the longest women’s match so far in the tournament.

Seeded winners included No. 1 Rafael Nadal, No. 6 Roger Federer and No. 10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the men’s bracket and No. 5 Agnieszka Radwanska and No. 10 Caroline Wozniacki in the women’s.

Vikings hire Zimmer as next coach

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Vikings announced on Twitter that they had hired Mike Zimmer for their top coaching job.

“I’m extremely excited to bring a championship to the state of Minnesota and to the great fan base of the Vikings,” Zimmer said in a video posted on the team’s Twitter account. “I can’t wait to get to work.”

McAulay will be referee at Super Bowl

NEW YORK (AP) — Terry McAulay will be the referee at the Super Bowl, marking the third time he has worked the NFL title game.

The rest of his seven-man crew on Feb. 2 will be umpire Carl Paganelli, head linesman Jim Mello, line judge Tom Symonette, field judge Scott Steenson, side judge Dave Wyant and back judge Steve Freeman.

Oden plays first game since 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) — Greg Oden played in his first NBA regular-season game in more than four years, coming off the bench in the second quarter of the Miami Heat’s 114-97 loss to the Washington Wizards.

He finished with six points and two rebounds in eight minutes.

Oden’s last appearance in a regular-season game was Dec. 5, 2009, when he fractured his left kneecap playing for the Portland Trail Blazers. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 draft also missed what would have been his rookie year because of a right knee injury. He has had three microfracture surgeries on his knees.

Vonn has surgery on knee

Lindsey Vonn announced on her Facebook page that she had surgery on her right knee.

The knee injury has prevented the reigning Olympic downhill champion from competing in the Sochi Games next month.

The 29-year-old Vonn posted that her surgery was “successful!” She also attached a picture with her new puppy, Leo.

Mayweather: Next opponent decided within week

Floyd Mayweather Jr. says his next opponent will be decided within a week. One thing’s for sure, it’s not Manny Pacquiao.

Mayweather Jr., who arrived in South Africa on Wednesday, named Britain’s Amir Khan and Argentina’s Marcos Maidana as contenders for his next bout in Las Vegas on May 3 but said “we don’t know. We will know within the next seven days.”