ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — MJ Melendez drove in three runs to back another strong outing from Brad Keller, and the Kansas City Royals avoided a three-game sweep with a 10-1 rout of the Texas Rangers. The Rangers had their second three-game winning streak of the season stopped on the day they learned star shortstop Corey Seager would miss at least four weeks with a hamstring strain. Vinnie Pasquantino homered, and Bobby Witt Jr. had an RBI triple among three hits against his hometown team. The Royals ended a three-game losing streak with season highs in runs and hits.
DENVER (AP) — Nolan Gorman hit a late tiebreaking home run for the second straight day, lifting the St. Louis Cardinals over the Colorado Rockies 7-4. Nolan Arenado hit his 139th home run at Coors Field and Tyler O’Neill hit his first home run since opening day. With the score 4-4 in the eighth, Willson Contreras hit a two-out chopper off Justin Lawrence to second baseman Ryan McMahon and reached on an error by first baseman C.J. Cron. Gorman drove a sinker into the left-field seats for his fourth homer and a 6-4 lead.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays won their 12th straight game to start the season, one short of the major league record, as Randy Arozarena hit a three-run homer in a 9-7 victory over the Boston Red Sox. The 1987 Milwaukee Brewers and 1982 Atlanta Braves both opened 13-0, tying for the best mark in big league history. Tampa Bay’s 12-game winning streak matches the team record set in June 2004. Taj Bradley won his major league debut for the Rays. The 22-year-old right-hander allowed three runs and struck out eight over five innings. Arozarena made it 3-0 with a homer off Chris Sale in the first. Tampa Bay leads the majors with 30 home runs and has outscored opponents 92-27.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Umpire Larry Vanover is being evaluated for a concussion and other injuries at a hospital after being struck in the head with a relay throw during Wednesday’s game between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians. The 67-year-old Vanover was knocked down by the throw from Guardians All-Star second baseman Andrés Giménez. Vanover was positioned on the infield grass between second and the mound. MaJor League Baseball said Vanover is being checked for a head injury “and other potential medical issues. The timeline on his return is to be determined.” He's expected to be hospitalized overnight. Plate umpire Chris Cuccione told a pool reporter Vanover had a large knot on his head.
PHOENIX (AP) — Thanks to the pitch clock, the action is moving much faster at Major League Baseball games. It also means a little less time for fans to enjoy a frosty adult beverage. To combat that time crunch, at least four teams — the Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers, Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers — have extended alcohol sales through the eighth inning this season. Teams historically have stopped selling alcohol after the seventh. MLB games have been considerably shorter this season, largely thanks to a series of rule changes. Through the first 1 1/2 weeks of the season, the average game time was down 31 minutes, on track to be the sport’s lowest since 1984.
AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger has received a two-year contract extension that keeps him with the Cyclones through the 2028-29 season. Otzelberger has led the team to the NCAA Tournament each of his first two seasons and signed the highest-rated recruiting class in program history. When Otzelberger was hired away from UNLV, he agreed to a lower salary to help the athletic department manage buyout costs of the previous staff. Otzelberger’s annual salary will increase to $2.5 million on July 1, $3 million in 2024 and $3.5 million in 2025. He will received $100,000 increases each of the following years.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander highlighted his 32-point night with a go-ahead baseline jumper and four clutch free throws in the final 29 seconds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 123-118 to remain alive in the Western Conference play-in tourament. Josh Giddey had 31 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for Oklahoma City, the only Western Conference team to advance to the postseason with a losing record. Brandon Ingram scored 20 of his 30 points in the second half. The loss eliminated the ninth-seeded Pelicans while 10th seed Oklahoma City advanced to play at Minnesota on Friday night for the right to enter the NBA playoffs as an eighth seed.
TORONTO (AP) — Zach LaVine scored 39 points, DeMar DeRozan had 23 against his former team and the Chicago Bulls overcame a 19-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors 109-105 in a play-in tournament game. The Bulls will visit the Miami Heat on Friday night for the chance to earn the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoff bracket, and a first-round playoff matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks. Nikola Vucevic had 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls, who trailed 66-47 in the third quarter. Fred VanVleet had 26 points and 12 rebounds and Pascal Siakam scored 32 points but Toronto’s season ended in disappointment.
WEDNESDAY SCORES
INTERLEAGUE
Final Houston 7 Pittsburgh 0
Final Seattle 5 Chicago Cubs 2
Final L.A. Angels 3 Washington 2
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Minnesota 3 Chicago White Sox 1
Final N.Y. Yankees 4 Cleveland 3
Final Tampa Bay 9 Boston 7
Final Oakland 8 Baltimore 4
Final Toronto 4 Detroit 3
Final Kansas City 10 Texas 1
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final N.Y. Mets 5 San Diego 2
Final St. Louis 7 Colorado 4
Final Arizona 7 Milwaukee 3
Final Miami 3 Philadelphia 2
Final Atlanta 5 Cincinnati 4
Final L.A. Dodgers 10 San Francisco 5
NBA PLAYOFFS
Final Chicago 109 Toronto 105
Final Oklahoma City 123 New Orleans 118
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final N-Y Islanders 4 Montreal 2
Final Dallas 5 St. Louis 2
Final Calgary 3 San Jose 1
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