A yearlong study by Major League Baseball concluded rising velocities, pitch shaping and emphasis on maximum effort are the likely causes of the vast increase in pitcher injuries and recommended exploring rules changes to address the problem.

The 62-page report released Tuesday said the trends extended to high school and youth baseball because of the incentive to get noticed by professional scouts. The study said there is no evidence linking the pitch clock to injuries.

Illustrated with 26 tables of data, the report was based on interviews with more than 200 people that included players, front office executives, orthopedic surgeons, athletic trainers, physical therapists, biochemists, major league, college and independent coaches, and international trainers.

Further areas to be studied include offseason training and early season workload, non-game activity, defining and measuring fatigue, biomechanics and pitching style, obtaining more data from international leagues and differentiating results from domestic and international signings.

Major league pitcher IL placements increased from 212 in 2005 to 485 this year and days on the IL rose from 13,666 to 32,257.

Tucker open to extension with Cubs >> Kyle Tucker played his first major league games at Wrigley Field when the Houston Astros visited the Chicago Cubs in April. It was cold, he said, and a lot of fun.

“Those fans love their Cubs,” Tucker said. “That’s kind of how it felt from, you know, the visiting side.”

Now he will get to check it out from the home side.

The Cubs acquired Tucker in a trade last week, inserting the well-rounded star into a lineup in need of another dangerous bat. The right fielder was limited to 78 games this year because of a broken shin, but he still hit 23 homers and drove in 49 runs.

“Definitely Chicago’s, you know, great city to play in. Great city just in general,” Tucker said of the possibility of an extension. “So I’m open for anything.”

Left-hander Fried and Yankees finalize contract >> Left-hander Max Fried and the New York Yankees finalized a $218 million, eight-year contract on Tuesday.

The deal was agreed to last week at the winter meetings after the Yankees lost outfielder Juan Soto to the rival Mets.

Fried’s deal is the largest for a left-handed pitcher in baseball history, $1 million more than David Price’s seven-year contract with the Boston Red Sox ahead of the 2016 season.

He was 11-10 with a 3.25 ERA over 29 starts this year for Atlanta.

Yankees agree to acquire Bellinger from Cubs >> The New York Yankees agreed to acquire outfielder Cody Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs for right-hander Cody Poteet, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the trade had not been announced. Chicago will send the Yankees $5 million as part of the trade, the person said.

Bellinger batted .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs in 130 games this year. He was on the injured list from April 24 to May 7 with a broken right rib.

College football

Cignetti named AP Coach of the Year >> When Curt Cignetti took the Indiana job last fall, he promised immediate success.

It wasn’t boastful bluster.

After daring the doubters to Google his winning pedigree, the son of a Hall of Fame football coach delivered on his word by leading the Hoosiers to a school-record 11 wins, a top 10 ranking and an improbable first playoff berth that set up a Friday night game at No. 3 Notre Dame.

Cignetti was named The Associated Press Coach of the Year on Tuesday, collecting 30 of 45 votes from AP Top 25 voters. Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham finished second with eight votes, Oregon coach Dan Lanning received five and SMU coach Rhett Lashlee got two.

NFL

Chiefs QB Mahomes plans to play against Texans >> Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is preparing to play against Houston on Saturday, unless his ailing ankle puts the two-time MVP in such a precarious position that he can’t protect himself or he “puts the football team in a bad position.”

Mahomes sustained a mild high-ankle sprain late in a 21-7 win in Cleveland on Sunday. He began to receive treatment on the plane ride home — “I wasn’t do high-knees or anything like that,” he quipped — and spent more than 12 hours getting additional work on it at the practice facility Monday, even though most of the team was given the day off.

Mahomes was back on the practice field Tuesday with Carson Wentz there to back him up.

Browns starting QB Thompson-Robinson against Bengals >> The Cleveland Browns are starting quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson on Sunday in Cincinnati with the switch coming after Jameis Winston threw three more interceptions, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Winston, who took over Cleveland’s starting job in October when Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending injury, was benched after throwing his third pick — and eighth in three games — in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 21-7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Dolphins place receiver DuBose on iR >> The Miami Dolphins placed Grant DuBose on injured reserve after the receiver suffered a helmet-to-helmet hit against the Houston Texans on Sunday that left him hospitalized.

DuBose remained in the hospital on Monday, but had movement in all extremities after a collision with safety Calen Bullock while trying to make a catch in the third quarter.

Soccer

US defender Sauerbrunn retires from soccer >> Becky Sauerbrunn, a former captain of the U.S. women’s team who played in three Olympics and three Women’s World Cups, announced her retirement from professional soccer after a 16-year international career.

Sauerbrunn, 39, also played in the National Women’s Soccer League for every year it has existed and was a four-time league Defender of the Year. She won two championships with FC Kansas City and another with the Portland Thorns. She also played with the Utah Royals.

Júnior and Bonmati win FIFA best player of the year awards >> Real Madrid star Vinícius Júnior finally got his hands on a big global player award.

Vinícius was named the men’s player of the year at the FIFA’s “The Best” awards, where Barcelona playmaker Aitana Bonmati continued to clean up in the prizes for women’s soccer.

The 24-year-old Vinícius was so disappointed to lose out to Manchester City midfielder Rodri for the Ballon d’Or in October that he and his Madrid team snubbed the ceremony in Paris in protest.