October 10, 2024 4:30 am
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Antonio Pierce’s first major act after becoming the Las Vegas Raiders’ interim coach midway through last season was naming then-rookie Aidan O’Connell the starting quarterback. Pierce is now the full-time Las Vegas coach. He is turning again to O’Connell as the Raiders reach a critical part of their season and is benching Gardner Minshew with the Pittsburgh Steelers visiting on Sunday. O’Connell went 5-4 after he became the starter last season.
October 9, 2024 2:13 am
One question going into Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin’s usual Tuesday press conference surrounded the team’s quarterback situation and if there would be a change in who takes the starting role against the Raiders this weekend. Justin Fields has been the starting quarterback for all of the regular season games so far, as Russell Wilson continues to recover from a calf injury that’s kept him mostly on the sidelines since training camp. Tomlin says the team is in a “little bit of a different place” with Wilson this week. Wilson is scheduled to participate fully in practice on Wednesday. But overall, not much is changing. Wilson will practice with the second team and Fields will prepare as the starter. Tomlin said they’ll continue in this pattern until Wilson “gets to a point where we’re comfortable with what we’re looking at.” One of Tomlin’s points of focus for the week is getting back to business, or winning. The quarterback situation isn’t the only concern when it comes to getting back to business, so are injuries. Tomlin spoke of a “laundry list” of injuries the team is currently facing. Tomlin says four players are already ruled out for Sunday: DeMarvin Leal, Nick Herbig, Cordarrelle Patterson and Alex Highsmith. Three more players are listed as doubtful: Jaylen Warren, Damontae Kazee and MyCole Pruitt.
October 9, 2024 4:25 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Six months of success for the Philadelphia Phillies could be wiped out before the leaves start to turn. With one more loss to the New York Mets, a 95-win regular season would become an afterthought. Tuesday night’s 7-2 loss dropped the Phillies into a 2-1 deficit in the best-of-five NL Division Series. Seeking their third World Series title after 1980 and 2008, the Phillies reached Game 6 of the World Series in 2022 before losing to Houston. They took a 3-2 lead over Arizona in last year’s NL Championship Series, and then dropped Games 6 and 7 at home.
October 9, 2024 4:27 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr.‘s towering two-run home run highlighted a six-run second inning, and the San Diego Padres held on to beat Shohei Ohtani and the rival Los Angeles Dodgers 6-5 to take a 2-1 lead in a tense NL Division Series. The Padres moved within one victory of eliminating the Dodgers in the NLDS for the second time in three seasons. Game 4 is Wednesday night at Petco Park, which was packed with a loud, rally towel-waving record crowd of 47,744. Tatis’ impressive homer gave the Padres a 6-1 lead, but Teoscar Hernández hit a grand slam with one out in the third.
October 9, 2024 4:30 am
BOSTON (AP) — Luis Tiant has died at the age of 83. The charismatic Cuban with a horseshoe mustache and mesmerizing windup pitched the Red Sox to the brink of a World Series championship and pitched himself to the doorstep of the Hall of Fame. He was known as “El Tiante.” Major League Baseball announced his death in a post on X on Tuesday. The Red Sox confirmed that he died at his home in Maine. Tiant’s death comes one week after that of all-time baseball hits leader Pete Rose, whose Cincinnati Reds faced Tiant’s Red Sox in the 1975 World Series — still considered one of the greatest matchups in baseball postseason history.
October 7, 2024 4:25 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves at an early season crossroads following a second straight close loss. Pittsburgh fell to 3-2 after letting a late lead slip away while falling to Dallas 20-17. Steelers quarterback Justin Fields took a step back, completing just 15 of 27 passes for 131 yards. With Russell Wilson’s calf injury improving, Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin could be faced with a choice on who gets the nod when the Steelers travel to Las Vegas to face the Raiders in Week 6.
October 8, 2024 4:28 am
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 331 yards, Kareem Hunt ran for 102 yards and a touchdown, and the Chiefs overcame more red-zone woes to beat the Saints 26-13 on a big night for Kansas City’s professional sports teams. Just as the Chiefs were moving to 5-0, the Royals were beating the Yankees 4-2 in New York to even their AL Division Series at a game apiece. Derek Carr threw for 185 yards with two touchdowns and a pick for New Orleans before leaving with an oblique injury. It occurred with about 9 1/2 minutes left, when Carr was hit on a fourth-down incompletion as he tried to rally New Orleans from a 23-13 deficit.
October 8, 2024 4:33 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Two games into this postseason, those big-money deals for Aaron Judge and Carlos Rodón haven’t paid any October dividends for the New York Yankees. Judge mustered little at the plate again Monday night and Rodón failed to last four innings in his first playoff start with New York during a 4-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals that squared their best-of-five AL Division Series at one apiece. Game 3 is Wednesday night in Kansas City. Given a 1-0 lead going into the fourth, Rodón immediately squandered it by serving up a leadoff homer to Salvador Perez on a 2-0 slider that left the $162 million pitcher shaking his head. Judge is 1 for 7 with four strikeouts and no RBIs in the series.
October 8, 2024 4:30 am
CLEVELAND (AP) — Kerry Carpenter hit a three-run homer off Cleveland’s All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase in the ninth inning as the Detroit Tigers blanked the Guardians 3-0 in Game 2 to even their AL Division Series at one game apiece. Carpenter connected for a 423-foot shot with two outs off Clase, who had not given up a run since Aug. 30 and led the league with 47 saves. Detroit ace Tarik Skubal pitched seven shutout innings. Carpenter’s homer was the first runs of the series for the Tigers, who have been finding ways to win for months. They’re at it again and will now head home to Comerica Park for Games 3 and 4 on Wednesday and Thursday with a chance to advance.
October 8, 2024 4:24 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — No. 22 Pittsburgh is off to the program’s best start since 1991. The Panthers are 5-0 heading into a visit from new ACC member Cal. Pitt’s rise has been fueled by a new-look offense led by Alabama transfer quarterback Eli Holstein and undersized running back Desmond Reid. The 5-foot-8 Reid is second in the nation in all-purpose yards while Holstein, a redshirt freshman, is averaging three touchdown passes a game. Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi says he’s encouraged by his team’s start but says the Panthers aren’t getting caught up in the attention their hot start has produced. Next up for Pitt is a visit from new ACC member California.
