Reds add trio of top prospects to 40-man roster ahead of Rule 5 Draft
The Reds posture to protect their best near-ready prospects.
49ers release running back from the practice squad to make room for Adrian Martinez
On Monday, Kyle Shanahan said the team intends to open the practice window for Kurtis Rourke at some point this year.
Odell Beckham Jr. is reinstated after serving six-game PED suspension
Receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is once again free to sign with any team.
GB women beat Norway in EuroBasket 2027 qualifier
Great Britain's women get their EuroBasket 2027 qualification campaign back on track with a comfortable victory against Norway in Bergen.
![](/<figure><img alt="" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/sb_nation_articles_115/f39e2b8e033d0ddf69a60386cfd4733b" data-uuid="3e13cffa-9776-3aad-ac7c-056070d1331d"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">The deadline for Major League Baseball clubs to add players to their 40-man rosters to prevent them being exposed during December’s Rule 5 Draft was on Tuesday at 4 PM ET. The Cincinnati Reds did not let it pass without protecting a trio of their best and brightest prospects, officially adding shortstop Edwin Arroyo, shortstop Leo Balcazar, and outfielder Hector Rodriguez.</p><p class="has-text-align-none"><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/msheldon.bsky.social/post/3m5wnerddh22q">MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon relayed the news on Bluesky</a>, noting that right-hander Carson Spiers was designated for assignment to free up a 40-man roster spot that was subsequently used as part of the transactions.</p><figure><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"><div></div></div></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">Arroyo was one of the centerpieces of the deal that sent Luis Castillo to the Seattle Mariners, with Noelvi Marte – now Cincinnati’s resident RF – also in that deal. He overcame a lost 2024 to shoulder surgery to return to his typical brand of elite defense and high contact with AA Chattanooga in 2025, and despite his lack of power that glovework makes him pretty much a ready-made big league shortstop. </p><p class="has-text-align-none">Balcazar, meanwhile, is now fully recovered from an ACL tear from a few years ago and hit his way up to Chattanooga in 2025, too. He also is fresh off a solid overall performance in the Arizona Fall League that certainly did nothing to dent his prospect status (.277 AVG, .340 OBP).</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Rodriguez blasted his way through Southern League pitching while with Chattanooga (.298/.357/.481 in 345 PA) before getting his first call up to AAA in 2025, and he held his own there through season’s end while being just 21 years of age (.260/.304/.405 in 230 PA). The lefty swinger is firmly in the mix for PA in the Cincinnati outfield at some point in 2026, and is a key part of the team’s overall outfield outlook.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">One guy who apparently is not part of the team’s overall outlook is Carson Spiers, who lost his roster spot in these promotions. He was thoroughly banged up durin g the 2025 season, of course, but the departures of so many bullpen options in free agency meant many thought he’d at least hang around and be in the mix for one of those positions in 2026. There’s always the chance he clears waivers and sticks around on a minors deal, however, and that’s likely what the Reds were hoping here.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">The Rule 5 Draft is set for December 10th during the Winter Meetings.</p>)
![](/<figure><img alt="" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/sb_nation_articles_115/2025762c86bdb6c2cee84344b678f7c9" data-uuid="2ffd2954-7615-3cf3-b4de-db5c0c60d978"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">Once the San Francisco 49ers got Brock Purdy back from a turf toe injury, there was no need for Adrian Martinez on the active roster. On Tuesday, after clearing waivers, Martinez signed back to the team’s practice squad.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">During a conference call on Monday, head coach Kyle Shanahan said the team still intends to open the practice window for rookie quarterback Kurtis Rourke:</p><p class="has-text-align-none">“Yeah, we’ll open up his window eventually to give him his three weeks of practice and decide what to do from there. Then Adrian, we’re waiting to see if he clears waivers to see if he’s an option to bring back on practice squad.”</p><p class="has-text-align-none">To make room for Martinez, running back Sincere McCormick was released from the practice squad. McCormick is caught up in a numbers game on a team that has Christian McCaffrey, Brian Robinson, Isaac Guerendo, and Jordan James.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">We’ll find out which kickers the 49ers tried out on Tuesday shortly from the transaction wire and cover them, as Eddy Pineiro is set to miss at least a game with a Grade 1 hamstring injury.</p>)
![](/<figure><img alt="Savannah Wilkinson of Great Britain in action" height="1114" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/bbc_us_articles_995/5afed45066c3db900d57714ecf3534cc" width="1980" data-uuid="bf6957ea-73e6-31e0-af65-04f1d9a6e644"><figcaption>Savannah Wilkinson led the scoring for Great Britain with 20 points [Getty Images]</figcaption></figure><p><strong>Great Britain's women got their EuroBasket 2027 qualification campaign back on track with a comfortable 91-48 victory against Norway in Bergen.</strong></p><p>Britain had begun their qualifiers with a win against Switzerland in Manchester but fell to a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/basketball/articles/c1wlxyqg4deo?xtor=AL-72-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Byahoo.north.america%5D-%5Blink%5D-%5Bsport%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D">narrow defeat by Austria</a> in Vienna in their second outing last weekend.</p><p>But they took command against the Norwegians early, with Savannah Wilkinson dropping 12 points in the first quarter alone as the visitors surged to a 26-16 lead.</p><p>They did not let their advantage slip, stretching the gap to 53-25 by half-time and eventually cruising to victory to seal a dominant performance on the road.</p><p>Wilkinson led the way for Britain with 20 points followed by Hannah Jump and Temi Fagbenle with 13 apiece, while Stine Austgulen topped Norway's scoring charts with 18 points.</p><p>The women's team, who participated in the qualifiers despite <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/basketball/articles/cpwv5n9dpzgo?xtor=AL-72-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Byahoo.north.america%5D-%5Blink%5D-%5Bsport%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D">Fiba's suspension of the British Basketball Federation</a>, will play their remaining three fixtures of the first round in March 2026. </p><p>The top two sides from each group will progress to the second round of qualifying, along with the three best-performing third-placed teams from the seven groups.</p><p>The next edition of EuroBasket will be co-hosted by Belgium, Sweden, Finland and Lithuania in June 2027.</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/basketball/articles/c201qld33y9o?xtor=AL-72-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Byahoo.north.america%5D-%5Blink%5D-%5Bsport%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D">Ireland lose EuroBasket qualifier in overtime to Israel</a></li></ul><img class="tracking-img" height="1" src="https://a1.api.bbc.co.uk/hit.xiti/?s=598314&p=sport.basketball.articles.c629pl5q7jpo.page&x1=%5Burn%3Abbc%3Aoptimo%3Aasset%3Ac629pl5q7jpo%5D&x4=%5Ben-gb%5D&x5=%5Bhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fsport%2Fbasketball%2Farticles%2Fc629pl5q7jpo%5D&x7=%5Barticle%5D&x8=%5Bsynd_nojs_ISAPI%5D&x9=%5BGB+women+beat+Norway+in+EuroBasket+2027+qualifier%5D&x11=%5B2025-11-18T19%3A24%3A46.481Z%5D&x12=%5B2025-11-18T19%3A24%3A46.481Z%5D&x19=%5Byahoo.north.america%5D" width="1" data-uuid="8b691565-5a3f-3ab1-a21a-c6c5a1208a87">)