Super League to slim down to 12 teams at the end of next season

Danny Brough, left, scores for Huddersfield in last weekend's 22-16 win at Hull. The Giants are second in the table, and pushed for a 10-team format in Super League. Photograph: Lee Smith/Action Images

Super League will be cut to 12 teams at the end of next season, the clubs have confirmed.

Reorganisation of the domestic game took another step forward when the 14 Super League clubs finally ruled out a proposal to drop to 10 at their annual meeting in Bradford. It is thought just four clubs were in favour of keeping the option alive, with Huddersfield the only one to push strongly for it.

The clubs agreed last month to cut their number from 14 and ditch the current licensing system in favour of a restoration of promotion and relegation.

Now just two proposals remain up for debate. One is for two divisions of 12 with a straightforward system of promotion and relegation between the two.

The alternative is the option being pushed by the Rugby Football League which involves both Super League and a 12-team Championship being split after 23 rounds into three qualifying play-off groups of eight clubs.

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Dodgers Trade 3 Minor League Pitchers For Marlins’ Nolasco

Ricky Nolasco #47 of the Miami Marlins against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on July 3, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired right-hander Ricky Nolasco in a trade with the Miami Marlins.

The Dodgers sent minor league pitchers Steven Ames, Josh Wall and Angel Sanchez to Miami in Saturday’s deal. Los Angeles also received international signing bonus slot No. 96, which is valued at $197,000.

Nolasco made 18 starts for the Marlins this season, going 5-8 with a 3.85 ERA. The 30-year-old Southern California native is 81-72 with a 4.44 ERA in 213 games over eight seasons.

The Chicago Cubs originally selected Nolasco in the fourth round of the 2001 draft. He was acquired by the Marlins in 2005 and had been one of the most reliable arms for one of baseball’s most frugal franchises ever since.

The Dodgers were playing at San Francisco on Saturday.

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