NEW YORK -- John Saunders, the versatile sportscaster who has hosted ESPNs The Sports Reporters for the last 15 years, has died, the network announced Wednesday. He was 61.Saunders joined ESPN in 1986. The Canadian did play-by-play, led NHL Stanley Cup and World Series coverage on ESPN and ABC, and hosted studio shows for baseball, college football and college basketball.A cause of death was not announced.This tragic news brings us unspeakable sorrow. John was the patriarch of our family, and we cant believe he is gone, Saunders family said in a statement. We are sincerely touched by the outpouring of support and sadness, which is a reflection of the character and integrity that defined him.While we dont yet have all the specifics, John wasnt feeling well physically in recent days and sadly, he was unresponsive earlier this morning. We appreciate all of the thoughts and prayers for our cherished father, husband, brother and uncle.Saunders took over as host of The Sports Reporters, a Sunday morning staple of ESPN programming, after Dick Schaap died in 2001. Saunders played the role of calm traffic cop on the panel show that features three sports journalists volleying opinions on the top sports news of the day.John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades. His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen, ESPN President John Skipper said in a statement.Saunders was also a founding member of the board of directors for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, a charity started by the network after former college basketball coach and ESPN announcer Jim Valvano died of cancer in 1993.He was as close to Jimmy V as anybody at ESPN, said Dick Vitale, who has worked at ESPN for decades with Saunders and considered him one of his closest friends.Vitale said Saunders was a diabetic, but he was not ailing, and the death of one of his closest friends was unexpected. Saunders has been the master of ceremonies at Vitales gala and V Foundation fundraiser in Sarasota, Florida, in 10 of 11 years the event has been held, said the longtime college basketball analyst.When Vitale had to have throat surgery that threatened his career in 2008, Saunders surprised him at the hospital and was there with Vitale before and after the procedure.The doctor told me that there was a good chance it was going to be cancer, Vitale told the AP in a phone interview. I said, `John, do me a favor. When you come in that room after just give me thumbs up if its not ... and if it is dont do anything. And when I woke, the first guy I saw after surgery was John and I saw thumbs up and we hugged.Vitale added: He was like family. Im so shocked.The news of Saunders death was reported on ESPNs morning edition of SportsCenter from the Olympics in Brazil by anchor Hannah Storm, who struggled to compose herself enough to get through the announcement.Johns passion for his family, his nation, his favorite sport & the V foundation will stay with me forever, NBCs Mike Tirico, a longtime ESPN colleague of Saunders, tweeted. As will his kindness and support.Saunders death came less than two years after the network lost another popular broadcaster, Stuart Scott, at the age of 49 in January 2015 after a bout with cancer.Saunders was born in the Toronto area and grew up near Montreal.He was very proud to be Canadian, said Leo Rautins, the former NBA player who teamed with Saunders on Toronto Raptors telecasts. Hed mention it every time he could.Saunders played hockey at Western Michigan from 1974-76, teaming with former New York Rangers president and general manager Neil Smith.One of saddest days of my life today as I grieve suddenly losing my best friend of 42 years, John Saunders. Life will never be the same, Smith tweeted.Saunders younger brother, Bernie, played 10 NHL games for the Quebec Nordiques from 1979 to 1981.Saunders started as news director at CKNS Radio in Espanola, Ontario, in 1978. He worked as sports anchor at CKNY-TV in North Bay, Ontario, from 1978 to 1979, and at ATV News in New Brunswick in 1979-80 before he became sports anchor for CITY-TV in Toronto from 1980 to 1982.Saunders worked as a sports anchor at WMAR-TV in Baltimore from 1982 to 1986 before joining ESPN. While at ESPN, he doubled as a play-by-play man for the Raptors.I think youd have a hard time finding anyone to say anything bad about John, Rautins said. He was very giving, very caring, very intelligent.Saunders lived in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, with wife Wanda. They had two daughters, Aleah and Jenna.He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed, Skipper said. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time. Louis Domingue Jersey . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Mikhail Sergachev Jersey . Barcelona also left injured defenders Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano and Jordi Alba out of its squad for the trip to Glasgow. That means that Marc Bartra will probably start again in the centre of the defence alongside Gerard Pique. http://www.lightninghockeystore.us/Louis-Domingue-Jersey/ . LOUIS -- Alexander Steen scored a power-play goal with 59. Brayden Point Jersey .C. at the helm of the top team in the Eastern Conference. His tenure as the GM in Vancouver was all too brief. Though he led the Canucks to what was then a franchise record-shattering campaign in just his second season, Nonis was gone and replaced one year later. Braydon Coburn Lightning Jersey . -- Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Farmar will be out for roughly four weeks after tearing his left hamstring. CARMEL, Ind. -- Roberto Castro wants nothing more than to go home to Atlanta, and he took a soggy step in the right direction Thursday in the BMW Championship.Castro was just as good before the rain as he was after the storms cleared at Crooked Strick, running off eight birdies until a bogey on his last hole for a 7-under 65 and the temporary lead.Storms and heavy rain caused a 3 1/2-hour delay and changed the nature of Crooked Stick from fast and firm to greens that were soft and accessible. The delay meant that just under half the 69-man field finished the round.The first round was to resume at 8 a.m. Friday, with more bad weather in the forecast.Brian Harman got right back into gear. He was in position to potentially lock up his spot in the Tour Championship until closing with a 77 from the final group at the TPC Boston on Monday. He opened with a 66, with an eagle on the par-5 15th hole and no bogeys on his card.U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson was within one shot of the lead until he sent his drive into the lake to the right of the 18th fairway and made bogey, giving him a 67 along with Jason Dufner.Among those still on the course, Chris Kirk was at 5 under at the turn, while Hideki Matsuyama, Paul Casey and Adam Scott were at 4 under on the back nine. Casey had the 54-hole lead last week at the TPC Boston.Castro went to Georgia Tech and still lives in Atlanta, about 15 minutes from East Lake. Thats the destination for everyone in the field trying to get into the top 30 in the FedEx Cup and advance to the Tour Championship for a shot at the $10 million bonus.Castro, who has yet to win on the PGA Tour, made it to the Tour Championship in 2013 with a pair of top 10s in the playoffs.I told myself the last two weeks really to play like I had nothing to lose, and to make a bunch of birdies is a good way to start, Castro said. Sure, its a hometown tournament for me. Its the hardest one to get to, unfortunately, but its still a great tournament. I would love to be back.Castro had three birdies in a four-hole stretch on the back nine, including a chip-in on the 14th hole.He is at No. 53 in the FedEx Cup and likely would need to finish fourth at Crooked Stick to have a chance.The BMW Championship is back at Crooked Stick for the first time since 2012, when Rory McIlroy won on a rain-softened couurse.dddddddddddd This time, it was blazing hot during the pro-am Wednesday and players had a look at how tough it could play -- at least until the rain.Jason Day played a wedge out of the rough on the second hole, landed it some 30 feet short of the pin and watched it race across the green and into thick rough. After the delay, it was an entirely different golf course. Patrick Reed, who is leading the FedEx Cup, hit a short iron out of dense rough that plopped down 12 feet from the cup.The course could be attacked, and thats what the players did.McIlroy, coming off a victory at the TPC Boston, was at 3 under through 10 holes. Jordan Spieth was at 2 under, both birdies on par 5s on the front nine.But it was another struggle for Rickie Fowler, bidding for a Ryder Cup captains pick. After squandering a chance to make the U.S. team at The Barclays, Fowler was in the middle of the pack at the Deutsche Bank Championship and opened the BMW Championship with a 75.Bubba Watson, also hopeful of a pick, was 1 under through 13 holes. He followed three straight birdies with three straight bogeys on the front nine.Day, meanwhile, is set for the Tour Championship and assured of being in the top five in the FedEx Cup, meaning he would only have to win at East Lake to claim the cup and its lucrative bonus. The Australian looked out of sorts after the rain delay, however, missing fairways, missing greens and missing putts. The frustration mounted on the 16th green when he flipped his ball into the water after his third bogey on the back nine.Days biggest putt came on the next hole, however, a birdie from 25 feet that he struck before Reed could even mark his ball. It stopped his slide, sure. But it allowed him to head over to the 18th tee and hit his shot to make sure that his group finished before the horn sounded to stop play.DIVOTS: Dustin Johnson switched to a square-faced mallet putt like the one Jason Day uses. ... Brooks Koepka, who is No. 30 in the FedEx Cup, was 3 under through 14 holes when play was stopped. ... British Open champion Henrik Stenson is the only player missing from Crooked Stick. He wanted two weeks off to rest his right knee and be fresh for the Ryder Cup. ' ' '