SPORTS DIGEST || Phantoms’ Connor is ranked 13th

Phantoms’ Connor is ranked 13th

Youngstown

Youngstown Phantoms forward Kyle Connor is ranked 13th in ISS Hockey’s March rankings for top prospects eligible for June’s NHL Draft.

Connor is the highest-ranked player in the USHL. Three members of the U.S National Development Program — Colin White, Jordan Greenway and Jeremy Bracco — and Waterloo’s Brock Boeser made the Top 30.

Rugby star agrees to deal with 49ers

San Francisco

A person with knowledge of the agreement says Australian rugby star Jarryd Hayne has agreed to a contract with the San Francisco 49ers.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press on Tuesday because an announcement is not anticipated until Hayne signs. He is expected to receive $100,000 guaranteed.

Hayne is giving up his sport to pursue an NFL career. He likely will compete for a job as a running back and return man on special teams. The 27-year-old player is 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds.

He held a news conference in Sydney to announce he would join the 49ers.

Eagles deal McCoy for Bills’ Alonso

Buffalo, N.y.

A person familiar with the deal says the Philadelphia Eagles have agreed to trade star running back LeSean McCoy for Buffalo Bills linebacker Kiko Alonso.

The person spoke under condition of anonymity Tuesday night because the teams had not announced the deal.

ESPN first reported the trade.

McCoy had an inconsistent season last year after leading the NFL with 1,607 yards rushing in 2013.

Incoming Bills coach Rex Ryan has said he wants his offense to rely heavily on a running attack.

Alonso played college football in Oregon under Eagles coach Chip Kelly. The 2013 second-round draft pick was a contender for NFL defensive rookie of the year.

He missed all of last season with a knee injury after while working out in Oregon in July.

Indians sell out home opener in 11 minutes

GOODYEAR, Ariz.

The Indians sold out their April 10 home opener against Detroit in 11 minutes.

The team said Tuesday that Progressive Field, which has been remodeled this winter, will again be packed to capacity for the 22nd straight year for the opener. The ballpark opened in 1994.

The Indians removed several thousand seats in therenovation, which will include the home and away bullpens stacked together beyond the center-field wall. Cleveland drew just 1.4 million fans last season — 29th in in the majors — and the club hopes the changes at the ballpark will help bring more fans downtown.

Cleveland averaged 18,428 fans per game in a ballpark that was once sold out for 455 consecutive games.

Yanks say they fired worker in Schilling flap

TAMPA, FLA.

The New York Yankees say they have fired a part-time ticket seller accused by Curt Schilling of making offensive comments on Twitter about the daughter of the former Boston pitcher.

Schilling congratulated his daughter on Twitter last week after she was accepted into Salve Regina University, where she’ll play softball next year.

Multiple people posted vulgar and sexually explicit comments about her.

Schilling wrote on his blog Sunday that he was astounded by the ignorance and lack of morals. He reposted tweets and identified some of the people responsible, pointing them out to employers and other organizations he believed they are affiliated with.

Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo said said Tuesday the team has “zero tolerance for anything like this. We’ve terminated him.” The Twitter account linked to the former Yankees employee has been deactivated.

Staff/wire reports