In Cincinnati, Patrick Brennan notes the MLS BOG meeting yesterday "came and went without a final resolution" on FC Cincinnati's expansion bid, but that does not mean the USL club "isn't progressing toward becoming an MLS franchise." MLS officials "singled out" FC Cincinnati in a statement yesterday, saying it "viewed Monday's Cincinnati City Council vote on a soccer-specific stadium as progress for FC Cincinnati's bid." ESPN's Jeff Carlisle yesterday tweeted that he was "told that MLS will make a visit to Cincinnati's West End site 'in the very near future'" (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 4/18).
POINT SYSTEM: In Boston, Nick Cafardo wrote one idea to improve MLB's pace of play is to "eliminate extra innings and have games end in a tie." MLB could "award teams two points for a win, one for a tie, and none for a loss." However, extra innings "would be allowed in the postseason." Cafardo: "Players, for the most part, hate extra innings" (BOSTON GLOBE, 4/15).
BIG PAYDAY: MMA JUNKIE's Morgan & Erickson reported Professional Fighters League officials have "developed a league system for a sport that has generally existed as a series of one-off events and will award" $10M in "prize money to athletes involved in the playoffs" for the company's inaugural '18 season. PFL plans "call for 12 fighters each ... to compete in two 'regular season' contests, with fighters earning points based on the results of their bouts and the method of victory." From there, the top eight fighters in each division are "paired together for a single-elimination tournament" that sees each bracket winner awarded a $1M prize (MMAJUNKIE.com, 4/16).
