Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart was hospitalized Tuesday with a back injury and Stewart-Haas Racing said the team was unsure of the extent of his injuries just a week before he is expected in Daytona Beach, Fla., to prepare for his final season in Sprint Cup and his final bid at the Daytona 500 Feb. 21. The 44-year-old Stewart, who is retiring at the end of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, was injured Sunday during an accident while riding an all-terrain vehicle on the West Coast, said SHR spokesman Mike Arning. He was being evaluated at an undisclosed hospital and able to move all extremities. Arning indicated Stewart’s condition will not be updated again until Thursday. Stewart was in Arizona on Saturday night at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale and interviewed on live television from the event.

Basketball

Unresponsive team led to Hornacek’s removal

Phoenix Suns general manager Ryan McDonough says coach Jeff Hornacek was fired after 2½ seasons because the players weren’t responding to him. Now the job has gone on an interim basis to Earl Watson, who at 36 becomes the youngest coach in the NBA. McDonough said it was his recommendation to owner Robert Sarver to fire Hornacek after the team’s Sunday night loss in Dallas, the Suns’ 14th road defeat in a row. “I realize Jeff was in a tough spot [because of injuries],’’ McDonough said, ‘‘but at the same time the team wasn’t competing how we hoped it would or how we think it is capable of competing.’’. . . Speaking to reporters before Tuesday night’s road game vs. the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett offered his full endorsement of interim coach Sam Mitchell as the young team continues to lose games. After an 8-8 start, the Wolves have gone 6-27 . . . The Minnesota Lynx re-signed WNBA finals MVP Sylvia Fowles and guard Renee Montgomery and then dealt forward Devereaux Peters to Indiana for Natasha Howard.

Baseball

Twins, Quentin agree on minor-league deal

Outfielder Carlos Quentin and the Minnesota Twins agreed to a minor league contract, giving the 33-year-old a chance to revive his career. The deal would give Quentin a $750,000 salary if he is added to the 40-man roster. The two-time All-Star announced his retirement last May through the Seattle Mariners, citing chronic knee injuries. He played briefly for their Triple-A club Tacoma. He was released by the Atlanta Braves last April after a trade with San Diego, the last team he played for in the majors in 2014 . Quentin batted .252 over nine seasons with the Padres, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks . . . Greg Bird, 23, a Yankees’ minor-league prospect who projected as a potential backup if not future replacement for Mark Teixeira, underwent season-ending surgery on his right shoulder. “The operating surgeon is optimistic that after surgery the player will be ready and available for the 2017 season,’’ said Yankees general manager Brian Cashman . . . Infielder Brendan Ryan, who was with the Yankees from September 2013 though last season, agreed to a minor-league contract with the Washington Nationals and will report to the club’s big league spring training, where he will compete for a backup job behind second baseman Daniel Murphy, who was signed as a free agent.

Miscellany

Evans (hamstring) exits US training camp

Defender Brad Evans left the US national soccer team training camp to rejoin the Seattle Sounders after coming out of Sunday’s 3-2 win over Iceland at halftime because of a tight right hamstring. Defender Michael Orozco, who scored a tying goal in the 59th minute, also left, as planned, to rejoin Tijuana. Twenty-four players remain on the roster for Friday’s exhibition against Canada at Carson, Calif., including midfielder Lee Nguyen of the New England Revolution . . . Brazilian striker NeymarSantos and his father, who acts as the player’s agent, maintained innocence after appearing in a Madrid court to answer questions for more than three hours about irregularities into the 23-year-old’s transfer to Barcelona . . . WBC middleweight champion Saul Alvarez (47-1), who beat Miguel Cotto in an unanimous decision in November, will defend his title against British boxer Amir Khan, who is jumping two weight divisions for the May 7 fight in Las Vegas.