FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Veteran tight end Benjamin Watson said Thursday that he began having second thoughts about his retirement about a month ago, but he was only willing to return for a 16th season with a few teams.

That list was headlined by the New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots.

Watson signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Patriots on May 9, and he is now one of the top options to potentially help fill the void created by Rob Gronkowski's retirement.

Watson, 38, called Gronkowski a "fabulous player" whom he has watched for years, but said Gronkowski's retirement wasn't a catalyst for him to change his mind. Even with the sting of not playing in the Saints' crushing loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game after he had been diagnosed with appendicitis, Watson had been moving forward in retirement.

"I started looking into other opportunities -- broadcasting, player development. I was actively looking for other options, and had a few options as well," Watson said after participating in the Patriots' voluntary organized team activity Thursday. "Then as time passed -- two months, three months -- I started thinking, 'Maybe I could do it one more time. Let's see what's out there.'

"... It was more of a family decision. My wife [Kirsten] and I talking about what that would look like for our family, and just kind of weighing the pros and cons."

As for why the Saints and Patriots were atop his list, Watson said the answer was fairly easy.

"We live in New Orleans now, obviously I just played there last year, and we love that community there," Watson said. "The kids have a lot of friends in school. Our church. Just the city itself, we really love the people there.

"And obviously [New England], it's a place where we started [as a first-round draft pick in 2004]. When I came here, I was a rookie and wasn't married. Now we have seven kids and have been married 13 years. So this place is always special to us as well. ... Having to uproot and go to a place that was new would have been tough for us."

The 6-foot-3, 251-pound Watson totaled 35 receptions for 400 yards and two touchdowns last season. Watson said he has always kept in touch with quarterback Tom Brady, joking that his texts are usually to congratulate Brady on another Super Bowl win, while Brady's texts are to congratulate him on another new baby.

Watson has played for the Patriots (2004-09), Cleveland Browns (2010-12), Saints (2013-15, 2018) and Baltimore Ravens (2016-17).

"There were two clubs, when I was retired, where I said, 'If I were to play again, I'd love to go somewhere I've been before or stay in New Orleans,'" he said. "Moving here as a rookie at 22 years old, and now coming back with a whole tribe, that's something that's going to be fun for all of us."

NEW YORK -- Nationals manager Dave Martinez was ejected in the eighth inning of a game against the Mets and didn't leave until making quite a scene.

Plate umpire Bruce Dreckman rang up Washington's Howie Kendrick for a strikeout as he tried to check his swing Thursday, then tossed the veteran player. Martinez charged from the dugout, spiked his hat and kicked dirt on home plate during an extended, heated argument.

Washington trailed 3-1 at the time and had already lost four in a row. Immediately after Martinez got ejected, the Nationals rallied for three runs. But the bullpen promptly gave up the lead in the bottom of the inning when the Mets' Carlos Gomez hit a three-run homer off reliever Wander Suero.

The Mets held on for a 6-4 victory. The blown save tied the Nationals with the Oakland Athletics for the major league lead with 10. Washington's bullpen entered Thursday's game with a major league-worst 6.89 ERA.

After starting the season with postseason aspirations, the Nats entered the game 19-30, a record better than only the Miami Marlins, Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals.

With Thursday's loss, Washington was swept in the four-game series and now has lost five straight games overall.

The Nationals are now 12 games under .500 for the first time since the end of the 2010 season, when they finished 69-93, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

New York Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedes is expected to miss the entire season after having ankle surgery, the team announced Thursday.

The Mets said the 33-year-old Cespedes, who suffered a broken right ankle in an accident on his ranch, had the operation at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

Cespedes hadn't played this season while recovering from surgery to remove calcification on both of his heels. The two-time All-Star played just 38 games last year and has played only 119 games since signing a four-year, $110 million deal before the 2017 season.

Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said this week the team was told Saturday night that Cespedes sustained multiple ankle fractures on his ranch in Port St. Lucie, Florida, where the club's spring training complex is located.

Cespedes helped lead the Mets to the 2015 World Series and a 2016 playoff appearance.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Swiss great Roger Federer's first French Open since 2015 will begin against Italian Lorenzo Sonego.

Defending champion Rafael Nadal will play a qualifier, while top seed Novak Djokovic meets Poland's Hubert Hurkacz.

In the women's draw, 2018 winner Simona Halep of Romania faces Australian Ajla Tomljanovic.

British number one Johanna Konta - seeded 26th - faces a qualifier, while male counterpart Kyle Edmund meets home hope Jeremy Chardy.

British men's number two Cameron Norrie will play controversial Australian Nick Kyrgios, while Dan Evans takes on Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.

Katie Boulter pulled out of the tournament earlier this month because of a back injury - although there was confusion as her name was still in the draw.

The French Open - the second Grand Slam of the year and the only one on clay - starts on Sunday.

Federer and Nadal could meet in the last four

Third seed Federer, 37, has been drawn in the same half of the men's singles as 11-time champion Nadal, meaning they could meet in the semi-finals.

Federer could also face Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas, who knocked him out of the Australian Open in January, in the last eight.

Spanish second seed Nadal has been handed a favourable-looking draw, with another qualifier awaiting in round two before potential matches against seeds David Goffin, Nikoloz Basilashvili and Kei Nishikori, or Daniil Medvedev.

Djokovic is projected to meet Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem, who was beaten by Nadal in last year's final, in the last four.

Germany's Alexander Zverev is a potential quarter-final opponent for the Serb.

Williams and Osaka set for rematch?

Serena Williams, who has been struggling with injury, plays 82nd-ranked Vitalia Diatchenko of Russia.

American 10th seed Williams cannot meet another seeded player until the fourth round, where she is projected to meet Australia's eighth seed Ashleigh Barty.

World number one Naomi Osaka begins her first Grand Slam as the top seed against Slovakia's Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, with 2017 champion Jelena Ostapenko or two-time Grand Slam winner Victoria Azarenka awaiting in the second round if the Japanese player beats the world number 92.

Williams could face Osaka, who beat the 23-time Grand Slam champion in September's controversial US Open final, in the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams has been drawn against Ukrainian ninth seed Elina Svitolina.

Konta has chance to end Roland Garros run

Konta has raced up the rankings - and earned herself a seeding in Paris - on the back of an impressive clay-court season in which she has reached the final of the Morocco Open and Italian Open.

The 28-year-old is hoping that form will lead to a change of fortune at Roland Garros, where she has lost in the first round on her four previous appearances.

Konta's rise means she cannot play another seed until the third round, where she could meet in-form fourth seed Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands.

Konta is the only British woman with direct entry into the main draw after 22-year-old Boulter withdrew, although Katie Swan, 20, is hoping to join her for the first time by winning her final qualifying match on Friday.

Edmund, 24, has struggled for form on the clay this season and has been handed a relatively tricky tie for a seeded player against France's Chardy, who is ranked 40th.

Evans - who has qualified directly for a Grand Slam for the first time in two years - plays a man who has been ranked inside the world's top 10 in the shape of 35-year-old Verdasco.

Against a backdrop of nerves, hype and controversial pot-stirring, Saturday's Pro14 final between Glasgow Warriors and Leinster promises to be a clash of titans.

Ticket sales indicate over 40,000 people will be there to watch the two conference winners battle at Celtic Park.

Warriors are on a nine-match winning run and are desperate for glory in their home city, while Leinster are formidable defending champions.

The Pro14 showpiece should be one to savour, and BBC Scotland looks at five key issues which set the stage.

Leo's lip

"I am sure all the Celtic fans will be out supporting Leinster because I believe Glasgow [players] are all Rangers supporters."

If Leo Cullen was casting his fishing rod this week, the Leinster coach baited a few after his side saw off Munster in their semi-final.

His football-related barb sounded like a joke - it probably was - but comments like these rarely go unnoticed in a football-mad city like Glasgow.

In any case, Celtic fans will be watching their team attempt to claim a third straight domestic treble in the Scottish Cup final a few hours before the rugby gets under way.

Have Glasgow found their muscles?

Dave Rennie's Glasgow have always played fast rugby, a team characterised by their willingness to attack from anywhere. But last season, in the Kiwi's debut campaign at the helm, he was often critical of his men for trying to "go around" their opponents before first going through them.

Now, they have found their muscles. Their set-piece, particularly the line-out, looks formidable. In their last nine matches, they have a success rate of just above 90% on their own throw, making 20 steals on opposition ball.

The 17 line-breaks, 22 beaten defenders, seven tries and half-century of points in the semi-final decimation of Ulster was underpinned by a relentless forward effort.

The case for the defence

When Glasgow beat Leinster in Dublin last month, it was the first time they had won in the Irish capital for eight years. All eight of the Warriors pack that day (barring Chris Fusaro, who was injured very early on and replaced by Adam Ashe, who made 33 tackles) made over 20 tackles, with Gray posting an astonishing tournament-best of 43, missing none.

Despite all those hits, Leinster still scored four tries. Glasgow have the league's best defence, but the champions are patient and clinical and they will be better on Saturday than they were then. Defence will again be key for Glasgow.

Can Leinster go again?

This is a Leinster team reared on success. In the last six years, they have won three European trophies and three league titles. Last season, they did the double, claiming the Champions Cup and Pro14 crowns. In their squad are 15 Irish Grand Slam winners, seven British and Irish Lions, two experienced Australia internationals and a brilliant New Zealander on the wing in James Lowe.

Saracens though had Leinster's number in this year's European final a fortnight ago. It was a brutally attritional game, and was swiftly followed by their Pro14 semi-final win over Munster, another bruiser of a contest.

Naturally, matches of such magnitude take an immense toll on minds as well as bodies. Cullen must make sure his players rouse themselves for one final effort.

Farewell, 'Hoggy'

This will be Stuart Hogg's last hurrah as a Warrior before departing for Exeter, the final game of a nine-year spell where he has grown to become one of the greatest talents in Scottish rugby history.

Hogg has mixed memories of these matches. By his own admission, he had gotten too big for his boots in 2014 and Gregor Townsend left him out of the Warriors squad that lost the final to Leinster. A year later, he was a vital part of the team that savaged Munster in Belfast, winning the first silverware of any Scottish pro-team.

In the time since, Hogg has become a leader in the Warriors team. How he would love to end with another title.

SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Recent rainfall that has flooded Lakeside Speedway has forced cancellation of both events of the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car doubleheader weekend, May 31 at I-80 Speedway and June 1 at Lakeside.

Lakeside Speedway officials have learned there is an anticipated three-foot rise in river levels due to all of the recent rainfall and already high water levels. The Kansas City, Kan., track has been proactively moving equipment to higher grounds and taking proactive measures to minimize damage.

There is already damage on the grounds regarding light poles, and with the expected rise in waters, the situation remains unsafe.

The decision was made to cancel both events, including the I-80 Dirt Classic in Greenwood, Neb., to save teams the expenses of a far travel for a single race weekend.