Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) — Nick Pivetta pitched seven dominant innings with 10 strikeouts, Christian Vázquez hit a three-run homer and the Boston Red Sox held off the St. Louis Cardinals 6-4 to win their fifth straight series. Trevor Story added a solo shot and Jackie Bradley Jr. had a go-ahead single for the Red Sox, who rebounded after getting blown out 11-2 on Saturday night for their 13th victory in 17 games. St. Louis wrapped up just its second visit to Fenway Park in 14 years, and second since 2017. The Cardinals have lost three of four. Juan Yepez hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer for St. Louis.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Jared Koenig pitched into the sixth inning for his first career win and combined with three relievers on a three-hitter, helping the Oakland Athletics beat the Kansas City Royals 4-0 to end an eight-game home losing streak. Seth Brown had three hits, including his first home run at the Oakland Coliseum in nearly a year. Sean Murphy also connected to help the A's avoid a three-game sweep. Oakland, which won for the third time in 18 games overall, still owns the worst record in baseball at 23-45. The Royals stranded six runners in scoring position and were shut out for the ninth time this season.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Cade Horton struck out a career-high 11 in six innings, Tanner Tredaway continued his torrid postseason with three hits, and Oklahoma took control of its bracket in the College World Series with a 6-2 win over Notre Dame. The Sooners need one more win to advance to the best-of-three finals starting Saturday. They'll play Wednesday against the winner of a Tuesday elimination game between Notre Dame and Texas A&M. Horton held the Irish scoreless on three singles the first five innings. Tredaway continued to be a catalyst for the Sooners and is batting .513 in the NCAA Tournament.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Trevor Werner hit a tiebreaking single in a four-run second inning and No. 5 national seed Texas A&M broke a nine-game College World Series losing streak with a 10-2 victory over rival Texas, ending the Longhorns' season. The Aggies spotted Texas a two-run lead before taking control of the first CWS game between programs that had met 373 times since 1904. Their first win in five Omaha appearances since 1993 moved them to another elimination game Tuesday against Notre Dame.
UNDATED (AP) — Gonzaga's Chet Holmgren, Auburn's Jabari Smith and Duke's Paolo Banchero are set to make it a forward-heavy start to the NBA draft. The three top the list of players at the position and overall draft prospects, though it's unclear which might go No. 1 overall. All three possess size and open-floor potential with the ability to step outside. Iowa's Keegan Murray is another key name who is unlikely to have a long wait to be picked after the top three. Other names to watch include Baylor's Jeremy Sochan, Ohio State's E.J. Liddell and Wake Forest's Jake LaRavia. There's also a preps-to-pros prospect in Dominick Barlow from the Overtime Elite developmental program.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Graham Zusi scored the deciding goal in a 2-1 win for Sporting Kansas City over Nashville. After the victory, Sporting KC moved to 4-9-4, while Nashville fell to 6-5-5.
Update on the latest sports
NHL-STANLEY CUP FINAL-AVALANCHE/LIGHTNING
Avalanche rout Lightning 7-0, take 2-0 lead in Final
DENVER (AP) — Looking like the better team by far against the defending champions, the Colorado Avalanche overwhelmed the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Valeri Nichushkin scored his seventh and eighth goals of the playoffs. Playoff MVP front-runner Cale Makar scored twice in the third period after failing to get a shot on net in the series opener. Game 1 overtime hero Andre Burakovsky scored again and set up Nichushkin's goal before leaving with injury. Even defensive defenseman Josh Manson and 35-year-old grinder Darren Helm got in on the fun with a goal apiece.
The Avalanche go to Tampa for Game 3 on Monday night.
GOLF-US OPEN
Contenders heating up play
BROOKLINE, Mass. (AP) — Will Zalatoris and Matt Fitzpatrick avoided the carnage and calamity that took down golf's best Saturday at a U.S. Open that set the tone for a final day of survival.
Zalatoris, who lost in a three-hole playoff at the PGA Championship last month, made only one bogey — a staggering feat on a beast of a Brookline course — for a 3-under 67.
Fitzpatrick, already a champion at The Country Club with his U.S. Amateur title in 2013, was equally steady and ran off three birdies over his last five holes for a 68. He will be in the final group of a major for the second straight time.
GOLF-LPGA TOUR
Nelly Korda eagles 18th to take lead in LPGA Meijer Classic
BELMONT, Mich. (AP) — Defending champion Nelly Korda made a 22-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th for a 6-under 66 and the third-round lead in the LPGA Meijer Classic, with six majors champions topping the leaderboard. Making her second start since returning from a four-month break because of a blood clot in her left arm, Korda also eagled the par-5 eighth. She was at 18-under 198 at Blythefield Country Club.
Jennifer Kupcho was a stroke back after 69. She rebounded from her first bogey of the week with a birdie on 18. Brooke Henderson, the winner Sunday in New Jersey and 2017 and 2019 champion at Blythefield, was 15 under after a 67. Lexi Thompson, the 2015 winner, had a 68 to get to 14 under.
MLB-SCHEDULE
Cubs' Contreras gets 3 hits and steal, beats brother, Braves
UNDATED (AP) — Willson Contreras had three hits and stole a base in his first game against younger brother William, helping the Chicago Cubs beat the Atlanta Braves 6-3. Chicago won a day after ending its 10-game losing streak and also stopping the Braves' 14-game winning streak.
The Contreras brothers both started at catcher, marking the first time they shared a field. They hugged before the 30-year-old Willson, a two-time All-Star, singled in the first inning. Contreras then stole second base against his brother, and scored on Jonathan Villar's two-run single. Willson Contreras later doubled and drove in a run. His 24-year-old brother had two hits for the Braves.
In other MLB action:
— Taijuan Walker retired 18 in a row and pitched into the seventh inning, Francisco Lindor homered for the second straight game and the New York Mets beat the Miami Marlins 3-2. The Mets have won three straight and five of six, earning their NL-best 44th victory and improving to a season-high 21 games over .500. Walker pitched one-run ball and struck out nine over 6 2/3 innings in front of a large crowd on an unseasonably cool and breezy day. Jon Berti singled to lead off the game and stole a base in each of the next two at-bats, but the speedster was stranded as the right-hander fanned the side.
— Rhys Hoskins' 10th-inning, pinch-hit single led the surging Philadelphia Phillies to a 2-1 win over the Washington Nationals on Saturday afternoon. Philadelphia has won 15 of its last 17 games and is 14-2 since firing former manager Joe Girardi on June 3 when the team was 22-29. It is a season-high five games over .500. The last-place Nationals sunk to 23-46 on the day they retired the No. 11 of organizational stalwart Ryan Zimmerman in front of a sellout crowd of 42,730. Aaron Nola pitched eight shutout innings for the second time in three starts.
— Freddie Freeman had three hits, Trea Turner homered and four Los Angeles pitchers limited Cleveland to two hits in the Dodgers' 7-1 victory over the Guardians. Julio Urías pitched six strong innings to earn his first win since May 20. The left-hander, who had gone 0-3 with a 3.09 ERA in his last four outings, allowed an unearned run on two hits with six strikeouts and two walks. It was a season low in hits for Cleveland, which was missing AL RBI leader José Ramírez due to right thumb discomfort. The loss snapped a season-best five-game winning streak.
— Brandon Crawford tied the game with an RBI single in the sixth and provided some breathing room with an RBI double in the ninth as the San Francisco Giants rallied past the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-5. The victory was the seventh in eight games for San Francisco, which is a season-best 10 games over .500 at 37-27. Wilmer Flores and Austin Slater homered for the Giants. Diego Castillo hit a three-run home run for Pittsburgh. The Pirates have dropped 11 of 12.
— Ryan McMahon's third hit of the game was a tiebreaking solo homer in the bottom of the eighth inning, leading the Colorado Rockies to a 5-4 win over the San Diego Padres. C.J. Cron and Charlie Blackmon also homered for the Rockies, who won their second straight after a seven-game home losing streak. Alex Colomé pitched a scoreless eighth for the victory and Daniel Bard earned his 14th save in 16 chances. Manny Machado homered for the Padres, who lost their ninth in a row to the Rockies at Coors Field.
— Willy Adames and Hunter Renfroe both homered for the second straight day, rookie Jason Alexander earn his first career win and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-3. Jace Peterson drove in two runs with a sixth-inning double on a chopper over the head of leaping first baseman Mike Moustakas, and Milwaukee won a second straight game for the first time this month. The roller-coaster Reds have lost three straight after a three-game winning streak, which followed a four-game slide. Alexander allowed one unearned run through five innings of his fourth start before giving up four hits and two runs in the sixth.
— Jameson Taillon and two relievers combined on a five-hitter, Aaron Hicks lined a three-run double and the New York Yankees extended their winning streak to nine by beating the Toronto Blue Jays 4-0. Taillon allowed four hits and struck out eight in 5 2-3 innings to win his eighth straight decision. New York's shutout was its 11th of 2022.
— Nolan Arenado hit a two-run homer over the Green Monster in the first inning and the St. Louis Cardinals broke it open with a six-run sixth in an 11-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Nolan Gorman and Tyler O'Neill both had a solo shot for the Cardinals, who rebounded after losing the opener of the three-game series. Paul Goldschmidt and Tommy Edman each had a two-run single during the big inning. The Red Sox lost for just the fourth time in 16 games.
— Gary Sánchez smashed a long two-run homer that capped a six-run third inning, Dylan Bundy threw eight effective innings and the Minnesota Twins beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-1. The Twins jumped ahead for a 6-0 lead with their big third inning, highlighted by a mammoth two-out, two-run homer from Sánchez that traveled 456 feet into the left-center seats and left his bat at over 107 mph. It was the two-time All-Star's eighth homer of the season. Bundy retired the first 10 hitters he faced before Alek Thomas bounced a single through the middle of the infield.
— Johnny Cueto and Reynaldo López combined for a three-hitter and Luis Robert tied a career-high with four RBIs as the Chicago White Sox jumped on Justin Verlander early and cruised to a 7-0 win over the Houston Astros. Cueto allowed two hits and struck out five in a season-high seven innings to get his first win since July 29 with San Francisco. Robert tied a season-best with three hits and José Abreu drove in two runs as the White Sox built a 7-0 lead after four innings to get their fourth win in five games.
— Mike Trout hit his 51st career home run against Seattle, Jared Walsh added a pinch-hit two-run homer and the Los Angeles Angels swept a doubleheader from the Mariners, winning the nightcap 3-0. Los Angeles won the first game 4-2 after Trout hit a two-run drive with two outs in the 10th inning off Diego Castillo. Trout hit his 20th homer of the season and his 32nd at T-Mobile Park with a solo shot off Tommy Milone with two outs in the third inning. The pitch wasn't in the strike zone, but Trout barreled it up and drove it out to center field.
— Brad Keller allowed one hit in seven crisp innings to lift Kansas City to a 2-0 win over the Oakland Athletics. Jose Cuas retired two batters and allowed a one-out double in the eighth. Scott Barlow set down the final four batters for his eighth save to complete the two-hitter and give the Royals a third consecutive win. The A's were shut out for the eighth time this season, dropped their eighth straight at home, and fell to a majors-worst 22-45. Oakland has lost 15 of 17. Keller was dominant in his first win since May 3. The 22-year-old retired 17 of the first 18 batters he faced and worked around three walks for his first road victory in five starts this season.
— Harold Ramirez hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays snapped their four-game losing streak with a 7-6 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. Francisco Mejía had a career-high four hits for the Rays and Yandy Díaz had three. Calvin Faucher pitched a perfect eighth to earn his first career win, the day after taking the loss in Baltimore's 1-0 victory. Robinson Chirinos had three hits and four RBIs for the Orioles.
— Eric Haase had three hits, including one of three Detroit homers, and the Tigers snapped a six-game losing streak with a 14-7 win over the Texas Rangers. The Tigers had scored only two runs in their last four games, but set a season high for runs against Texas. Javy Baez and Robbie Grossman also homered and top prospect Riley Greene scored twice in his major league debut. Rony Garcia picked up the win, allowing four runs on four hits in six innings. Texas starter Taylor Hearn allowed eight runs and 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings.
MLB-NEWS
Dodgers' Mookie Betts to injured list with cracked right rib
UNDATED (AP) — Dodgers star Mookie Betts is headed to the injured list with a cracked right rib. Manager Dave Roberts announced Betts' diagnosis after Saturday's 7-1 victory over Cleveland.
The 2018 AL MVP is tied for third in the majors with 53 runs scored and has 17 home runs, which is tied for fourth in the NL. The Dodgers are 29-7 when he scores a run.
Betts was injured during the first inning of Wednesday night's game against the Los Angeles Angels when he collided with Cody Bellinger in the outfield on a fly ball. Betts played the rest of that game but was scratched from the lineup the past two days.
In other news around the majors:
— The Milwaukee Brewers have designated for assignment two-time All-Star outfielder Lorenzo Cain on the same date he reached 10 years of major league service time. Cain hit .179 with one home run and nine runs batted in over 43 games this season. He is in the last year of a five-year, $80 million contract he signed with Milwaukee in January 2018. He's helped the Brewers reach postseason play each of the past four seasons. He played a key role in the Kansas City Royals winning the 2015 World Series.
— The Miami Marlins beat Jacob Stallings in salary arbitration, and the catcher will earn $2.45 million this season rather than his $3.1 million request. Today's decision gave teams a 9-3 advantage with just two cases remaining to be heard next week, involving New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge and Atlanta left-hander Max Fried. Stallings hit .246 last year for Pittsburgh with career bests of eight homers and 53 RBIs, earning $1.3 million. He entered Saturday with a .199 average, two homers and 21 RBIs. Richard McNeill, Gary Klendellen and Fredric Horowitz made the decision on Stallings, a day after hearing arguments.
— Ryan Zimmerman has become the first player for the Washington Nationals to have his jersey number retired by the club. Zimmerman was honored during an on-field pregame ceremony Saturday before Washington hosted the Philadelphia Phillies. Zimmerman was the first player ever drafted by the new-to-town Nationals in 2005. Zimmerman owns most major offensive career records for the franchise and helped the team win the 2019 World Series. Several former teammates were on hand to help celebrate the occasion.
— When Sandy Koufax joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955, he was in awe of being on the same team with Jackie Robinson. Now 67 years later, the two are immortalized in bronze at the entrance to Dodger Stadium. Koufax's statue was unveiled on Saturday in the Centerfield Plaza before the Los Angeles Dodgers faced the Cleveland Guardians. It is the second sculpture the Dodgers have commissioned after Robinson's in 2017.
NHL-CAPITALS-BACKSTROM
Backstrom has hip procedure
UNDATED (AP) — Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom had surgery on his left hip. The team says Backstrom had hip-resurfacing surgery Friday at the ANCA Clinic in Belgium. No timeline was given on his return. The team says Backstrom will begin a lengthy rehabilitation and recovery process immediately. Backstrom missed the first two months of this past regular season rehabbing the hip. He also needed constant treatment to play and knew he couldn't go into next season without doing something to solve the problem. Backstrom originally had surgery on the hip in 2015.
NBA-NEWS
Atkinson now not taking over as Hornets' coach
UNDATED (AP) — Kenny Atkinson's tenure as coach of the Charlotte Hornets is over before it started. A person with direct knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press that Atkinson has reversed course and will not take over as coach of the Hornets.
The move came Saturday, more than a week after the Golden State assistant had agreed to a four-year contract.
The Hornets having to reopen their search is not ideal for a multitude of reasons. Among those is the fact that they have three picks, including two in the top 15, of Thursday's draft. Charlotte may have to make the No. 13, No. 15 and No. 45 selections without a coach in place.
The Hornets had talked to several other candidates in their search to replace James Borrego, who was fired in April at the end of his fourth season. Darvin Ham, Mike D'Antoni and Terry Stotts were known to be on Charlotte's radar.
TENNIS-NEWS
Osaka to skip Wimbledon
UNDATED (AP) — Naomi Osaka has pulled out of Wimbledon for the second consecutive year. She says she is still having trouble with her left Achilles tendon.
The four-time major champion and former No. 1-ranked player posted a photo of herself on a grass court and wrote on Twitter on Saturday: "my Achilles still isn't right so I'll see you next time."
Osaka withdrew from the grass-court Grand Slam tournament in 2021 as part of a mental health break she took after pulling out of the French Open.
The 24-year-old hasn't played an official match since losing in the first round of this year's French Open. She has played only 17 matches this season and her ranking fell to No. 43 this week.
In other tennis news:
— Coco Gauff's best run yet in a grass-court tournament has come to an end. The 18-year-old American lost to Ons Jabeur 7-6, 6-2 today in the semifinals of the Berlin Open. Jabeur recovered from 3-1 down in the first set and dominated the second to set up a final Sunday against Belinda Bencic. Bencic is back in the Berlin final for the second straight year in her quest for a first grass-court title in seven years after a hard-fought win over Maria Sakkari in the semifinals.
— Top-ranked Daniil Medvedev will play Hubert Hurkacz in the final of the Halle Open in Germany. The top-ranked Medvedev advanced with a 7-6, 6-3 win over Oscar Otte, who beat Nick Kyrgios 4-6, 7-6, 7-6. Hurkacz hit 27 aces against 30 for Kyrgios, who lost despite holding in every one of his service games.
RACING-F1-CANADIAN GRAND PRIX
Verstappen edges Alonso to win pole for Canadian Grand Prix
MONTREAL (AP) Max Verstappen overcame slick conditions to win his second pole of the season, and Fernando Alonso used the wet track to earn his first front row start in a decade in rainy qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix.
The Saturday run for Verstappen was no surprise even though its the Dutchman's first career pole at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Instead, it was 40-year-old Alonso who brought the crowd to its feet with a thrilling run to qualify second. He jumped ahead of Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton as time expired and drew a rousing ovation from the rain-soaked spectators.
SWIMMING-WORLDS
Ledecky reclaims 400 title at swimming worlds
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Katie Ledecky has started the United States' medal collection at the world swimming championships with a gold by reclaiming her title in the women's 400 meters. Ledecky clocked 3 minutes, 58.15 seconds on the first day of racing for her fourth world title in the 400 freestyle after 2013, 2015 and 2017.
Ariarne Titmus edged Ledecky for the title in 2019 and took her world record last month but the Australian has skipped the worlds in Budapest to focus on the on the Commonwealth Games. Canada's 15-year-old Summer McIntosh finished 1.24 seconds behind Ledecky for the silver. Both were well ahead of the competition.
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