FIFA has given up on its efforts to expand the 2022 World Cup to 48 teams, football's world governing body announced on Wednesday.

"In line with the conclusions of the feasibility study approved by the FIFA Council at its last meeting, FIFA and Qatar have jointly explored all possibilities to increase the number of participant teams from 32 to 48 teams by involving neighbouring countries at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022," a FIFA statement read on Thursday.

"Following a thorough and comprehensive consultation process with the involvement of all the relevant stakeholders, it was concluded that under the current circumstances such a proposal could not be made now.

- Marcotti's March Q&A: Why FIFA wanted a 48-team World Cup
- #FCdebate: Is a 48-team World Cup a good or bad idea?

"Additionally, FIFA and Qatar have once again explored the feasibility of Qatar hosting a 48-team tournament by in particular lowering certain key FIFA requirements. A joint analysis, in this respect, concluded that due to the advanced stage of preparations and the need for a detailed assessment of the potential logistical impact on the host country, more time would be required and a decision could not be taken before the deadline of June. It was therefore decided not to further pursue this option.

"The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 will therefore remain as originally planned with 32 teams and no proposal will be submitted at the next FIFA Congress on 5 June."

FIFA had been exploring if logistical and political complexities could be overcome to expand the tournament from 32 to 48 teams, which would have required at least one more country being used in the Persian Gulf to accommodate an additional 16 matches in the region.

A FIFA internal report had already concluded that the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia could not join as co-hosts unless they restore the economic and travel ties with Qatar that were severed two years ago.

The regional diplomatic crisis left neutral Kuwait and Oman as the viable options. Oman has said it isn't keen on hosting games at the FIFA showpiece. FIFA president Gianni Infantino visited Kuwait last month in an attempt to persuade them to host matches in 2022.

But FIFA has now concluded that it lacked the time to prepare a country to host the extra games.

In Kuwait, Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium has 60,000 seats and the capacity at Sabah Al-Salem Stadium is only 26,000. Both venues would require upgrades to be used at the World Cup, putting the spotlight on working conditions and labor rights.

FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura wrote to human rights activists last month to offer assurances that there would be "an assessment of human rights risks and potential opportunities associated with a possible expansion."

Qatar has an exemption that allows foreigners to drink alcohol, but Kuwait has a complete ban that would have been problematic for FIFA, which has Budweiser as a major sponsor.

FIFA has already had to adapt to cope with taking its showpiece tournament to the Middle East for the first time.

While Qatar won a vote in 2010 on the basis of staging a June-July World Cup, FIFA shifted the tournament from its usual slot to Nov. 21-Dec 18, 2022, because of the fierce summer heat.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Miami Heat assistant and former Michigan star Juwan Howard has reached agreement on a five-year contract to be the next head coach of the Wolverines, a source told ESPN.

Howard will replace John Beilein, who left Michigan last week to become the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Beilein was with the Wolverines for 12 seasons, leading them to two national championship games.

MILWAUKEE -- NL MVP Christian Yelich has been scratched from Milwaukee's lineup against Cincinnati for a second consecutive day because of back spasms.

"He's improved today," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday. "We'll go through a bunch of treatments today and see how he is. The day off [Thursday] factors into all this. We'll see what we've got on Friday."

Yelich leads the major leagues with 19 home runs and is batting .325 with 41 RBIs in 44 games, including 42 starts.

He missed parts of seven games this season because of back problems and also missed time last season.

"I don't think chronic is the right word," Counsell said. "His back is an issue, but this isn't a structural issue. He's had some muscle issues in his back, but they've been short-term injuries. That's not a chronic characterization, for me.

"It's something that he's going to have to actively manage. These are small little things that are costing him a day here and a day there. Not worrisome from my end."

Hernan Perez replaced Yelich in right field.

The New York Mets have traded disgruntled outfielder Keon Broxton to the Baltimore Orioles for $500,000 in international bonus pool money.

The trade comes five days after Broxton was designated for assignment by the Mets.

Broxton told reporters last week that he was "surprised" by his lack of playing time with the Mets, who acquired the five-year veteran in an offseason trade with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Broxton, 29, batted just .143 (7-for-49) in 34 games with the Mets.

"I haven't been playing too much," Broxton told reporters last Wednesday. "I haven't gotten as many opportunities."

The Orioles acquired Broxton amid a series of roster moved before Wednesday's game against the New York Yankees.

Baltimore transferred right-hander Alex Cobb to the 60-day injured list and designated right-hander Yefry Ramirez for assignment.

The Orioles also claimed right-hander Chandler Shepherd off waivers from the Chicago Cubs and optioned him to Triple-A Norfolk.

New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton is suffering from left calf tightness, a setback in his return to the team.

The Yankees announced Wednesday that Stanton, who has been on the 10-day injured list since April 1, has been returned, meaning the club can reset his minor league rehab window.

Stanton, who had just started his rehab stint Monday, has missed most of this season because of biceps and shoulder injuries.

The Yankees have not announced how long the calf injury will sideline Stanton.

Some days, Michael Brantley thought the injuries were going to get the better of him, that they would zap what were supposed to be the prime years of his major league career. Brantley was the next big thing, the next blossoming star at the plate for the Cleveland Indians. His 2014 season, which featured an All-Star appearance, a Silver Slugger award and a third-place MVP finish, cemented that status.

One awkward dive for a fly ball put a potentially bright future up in the air.

Brantley had another strong season in 2015 but injured his right shoulder trying to make a diving catch that September. When rest and rehab didn't do the trick, Brantley underwent surgery in November. His spring training was delayed a bit, but he got into 11 games in late April and early May before hitting another roadblock. Something still wasn't right, and by August everyone recognized the reality: A second surgery was needed to address issues with the shoulder and biceps, further clouding Brantley's future.

"You really never know if you're ever going to come back," Brantley said last week.

Brantley bounced back impressively in 2018, hitting .309 with 17 homers and 76 RBIs, and this season he's back at the center of baseball's buzz as a member of the first-place Houston Astros, providing a much-needed left-handed bat in a right-handed-heavy lineup that features Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Carlos Correa and George Springer.

"You really never know if you're ever going to come back."

Michael Brantley

And for the first time since the injury, Brantley looks like a star again, at least through the first two months of the season, hitting .326/.374/.561 with 10 homers and 14 doubles in 48 games. And his .325 BABIP, consistent with his career average, suggests Brantley isn't just the beneficiary of a lucky stretch.

What pulled everything together on the field, as the injury slowly healed, was the years and years of routine upon which Brantley had built his success. The routine evolved as he evolved through his major league career. Before every game for the past six seasons, regardless of whether his name is in the lineup, Brantley has gone through the same steps to prepare his mind.

First, a rhythm drill followed by work on the tees. Next up is a one-handed bat drill before he hits on the field. Then he goes through a variation of the early part of his routine. Day after day, month after month, year after year.

As his routines helped things come back together on the field, Brantley, 32, said that wouldn't have happened without everything that held him together off of it. When things felt as if they were falling apart, it was the little things, like the breakfast and coffee made by Brantley's wife, Melissa, that got him through the day.

"There were some dark days in there, rehabbing in the cold and things weren't always going well. I stayed in Cleveland all offseason, worked out there, went in during the weekends on my own because I was so committed," Brantley said. "Having a wife that was supporting me, having a family that was supporting me to do this, it meant the world to me for the dark days where you didn't want to get up and do it. You look at the kids and you're doing it for them. That's the extra motivation."

After he was fully recovered physically, Brantley had to make another adjustment this year when he left the team he had been with since his major league debut and joined Houston, signing a two-year, $32 million deal this offseason.

"It's an adjustment period when you first switch to a new team after being with Cleveland for a long time," Brantley said. "They welcomed me here with open arms. The coaching staff has been great to me. They made me feel comfortable here really quick."

Beyond his left-handed bat, Brantley brought another veteran presence to the Houston clubhouse. From afar, many on the Astros admired Brantley's ability to always take a good at-bat. But the players and coaches quickly realized Brantley brought just as much to the team off the field.

"I call him Uncle Mike. He's always on me, doesn't ever let me get down. ... When he speaks, I listen."

George Springer

"He's always watching," Springer said. "I have learned that he's always watching and always listening, just in his own Michael Brantley way. He doesn't miss a beat and he knows what's happening with everybody. He's very observant and he can tell if there is something wrong with my swing or Jose's swing. He's only been here for three or four months and it's a testament to him because he's watching everything that happens."

Brantley's success -- he's on pace to cruise past his career high of 20 home runs while posting a career-best slugging percentage -- has added an extra dimension to the Astros' lineup. Through the first quarter of the season, Houston has a wRC+ of 134, a stat that calculates the value of a team's offensive production in relation to its era. That figure -- albeit with a small sample size -- puts the Astros above the 1927 Yankees (126 wRC+) and 1930-31 Yankees (124 wRC+), who had lineups featuring guys named Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.

"I know I'm going to get good pitches to hit because he's such a presence in our order," Bregman said.

Brantley's teammates know what he has been through, what it took for him to get back to this place. It's what has made him the role model of consistency. Day after day, month after month, year after year. It's what has earned him a new nickname and leadership role in the clubhouse.

"I call him Uncle Mike. He's always on me, doesn't ever let me get down," Springer said. "Doesn't ever let me get too high. Just wants to make sure I consistently do the right thing every day, that I prepare to play the same way every day, which is something I didn't really do before, just get to the park and do what I needed to do. Obviously, I respect the amount of time he has in this game and I respect him as a person. When he speaks, I listen."