KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Michael Lorenzen threw seven innings of three-hit ball to help the Tigers beat the Royals 3-0. Lorenzen ran his scoreless streak to 23 2/3 innings dating to June 30 at Colorado. The All-Star right-hander stranded runners at the corners in the second and another at third base in the fourth. Tyler Holton worked a perfect eighth for Detroit before Jason Foley handled the ninth inning for his fourth save. Zack Greinke took the loss for Kansas City, allowing two runs over four innings in his first start since landing on the injured list with shoulder tendinitis. The Tigers have won five straight series against the Royals, and they are 7-3 against their AL Central rivals this season.
CHICAGO (AP) — Jordan Walker and Paul DeJong each hit a two-run homer, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs 7-2 for their sixth straight victory. Nolan Arenado drove in two runs and Steven Matz pitched five effective innings as St. Louis won for the the ninth time in 11 games overall. Paul Goldschmidt had two hits and scored two runs. Marcus Stroman pitched just 3 2/3 innings in possibly his final home start for the Cubs. The right-hander was charged with five runs — four earned — and seven hits. He struck out four and walked four.
SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle Mariners outfielder Jarred Kelenic was placed on the 10-day injured list with a broken bone in his left foot after kicking a water cooler following a ninth-inning strikeout the night before. Kelenic was apologetic fighting through tears for letting his emotions get out of hand and expressing his frustration in a way that led to an injury. Kelenic says he made a mistake and feels awful for letting his teammates down. There was no timeframe on when Kelenic may return but surgery is not expected. Kelenic is in his third season with the Mariners and showed significant improvement. He’s hitting .252 with 11 homers and 45 RBIs in 90 games.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs probably would have not won the Super Bowl last season without some spectacular play from their rookie class. Four defensive backs carved out crucial roles, George Karlaftis was one of their best pass rushers, Skyy Moore had a big punt return in the Super Bowl and seventh-round pick Isiah Pacheco became the starting running back. Now, the pressure is on for this year's group of first-year players to produce. That class is headlined by defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah, who grew up in suburban Kansas City and played at Kansas State, and wide receiver Rashee Rice, who already has caught Patrick Mahomes' eye.
IRVING, Texas (AP) — Men’s and women’s basketball teams in the expanded Big 12 will still play 18 conference games each during the 2023-24 season. The conference will have 14 schools for the upcoming season before the departures of Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC next summer. Each team will play five Big 12 opponents twice. Along with those home-and-away matchups, teams will play each of the remaining eight league foes once — four at home, and four on the road. As a 10-team league since 2011-12, the 18-game conference slate had each team playing each other home and away.
HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Brian Harman is quickly setting the new target at the British Open. The American opened with a 67. And now he has run off three straight birdies starting on the second hole. That puts Harman at 7-under par. Harman has never won a major. He once had the 54-hole lead at the U.S. Open at Erin Hills in 2017. Adrian Otaegui of Spain made all pars on the front nine and was at 4 under among those playing in the chilly breeze and occasional light rain. Rory McIlroy has just now teed off after opening at 71.
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — The United States begins its journey to a record third consecutive Women’s World Cup title with the same confidence it had in winning the last two tournaments. The top-ranked Americans open play against Vietnam, which is no doubt considering the U.S. a daunting challenge in its World Cup debut. The teams meet on Saturday in Auckland at Eden Park. As opponents, the Vietnamese are similar to Thailand, which the Americans thumped 13-0 in the opener at the World Cup four years ago in France.
UNDATED (AP) — A bipartisan group of senators is proposing new oversight of college sports and the NCAA. A bill being worked would pre-empt state laws and create national regulations for name, image and likeness compensation for players. It would also establish an entity to oversee enforcement of those rules, and fund long-term health care for athletes. Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Cory Booker of New Jersey along with Republican Jerry Moran of Kansas have previously introduced separate college sports bills.
FUKUOKA, Japan (AP) — American freestyler Katie Ledecky has never gone home with anything other than a gold or silver medal in the Olympics or world championships dating from the 2012 London Games. But it might happen Sunday in the women’s 400-meter freestyle on the opening night in the pool of the World Aquatics Championships. This is perhaps the most anticipated race of the entire eight-day program in Japan. Ledecky is up against two younger stars. There is 16-year-old Summer McIntosh. She is a Canadian who holds the world record at 400. And 22-year-old Ariarne Titmus. She is an Australian who is a former world-record holder. Ledecky also held the record.
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) — NFL owners have unanimously approved the sale of the Washington Commanders from Dan Snyder to a group led by Josh Harris. The deal is for a North American professional sports record of $6.05 billion. Snyder was also fined $60 million after the completion of an NFL-sponsored investigation into workplace culture and business dealings. Harris' group also includes basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, Washington-area businessman Mitchell Rales and partner David Blitzer. Blitzer co-owns with Harris the NBA's 76ers and NHL's Devils. Snyder had owned the club since 1999 and long insisted amid mounting criticism and pressure he would never sell.
THURSDAY SCORES
INTERLEAGUE
Final Chicago White Sox 6 N.Y. Mets 2
Final Toronto 4 San Diego 0
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Detroit 3 Kansas City 0
Final Seattle 5 Minnesota 0
Final Baltimore 4 Tampa Bay 3
Final Houston 3 Oakland 1
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Atlanta 7 Arizona 5
Final Cincinnati 5 San Francisco 1
Final Milwaukee 4 Philadelphia 0
Final St. Louis 7 Chicago Cubs 2