July 24, 2023 4:46 am
HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Brian Harman is a major champion and it was never in doubt. The 36-year-old American captured the British Open at Royal Liverpool. He started the day with a five-shot lead and no one ever got closer than three on a rainy Sunday in England. Harman led the final 51 holes of this British Open. The one time it got tight on the front nine he made consecutive birdies. The rest of the day was a soggy walk on the links. Harman won for only the third time in his career. He had gone 167 tournaments since his last PGA Tour title.
July 23, 2023 6:54 am
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Endy Rodríguez hit his first major league homer, five Pittsburgh pitchers combined on a five-hitter and the Pirates defeated the Los Angeles Angels 3-0 to snap their four-game winning streak. Rodríguez sent a full-count slider from Gerardo Reyes into the elevated stands in right-center leading off the sixth inning. The 23-year-old Rodríguez became the youngest Pirates catcher to homer since Jason Kendall in August 1997 against the Marlins. Bryan Reynolds and Carlos Santana had RBI hits as Pittsburgh won for only the fourth time in 17 games this month.
July 23, 2023 6:55 am
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) — Scott Rolen is an old-school baseball guy, but he’s grateful for the analytics of today’s game. They may have helped him get voted into the Hall of Fame. Making it on his sixth try, Rolen will be inducted Sunday at Cooperstown. The seven-time All-Star and eight-time Gold Glove winner was selected on 76.3% of ballots cast by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. In his first year of eligibility, Rolen received just 10.2%, the lowest first-ballot percentage of a player later elected. Fred McGriff, elected unanimously by the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee, also is being inducted Sunday. The five-time All-Star helped Atlanta win the 1995 World Series.
July 22, 2023 3:28 am
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani allowed four home runs for the first time in his major league career while pitching six-hit ball into the seventh inning and earning the mound victory in the Los Angeles Angels’ 8-5 win over Pittsburgh. Pirates rookie Henry Davis became the first major league player to homer twice off Ohtani while getting three total hits. The Angels bailed out Ohtani with their own power display. Mike Moustakas hit a three-run homer and Trey Cabbage hit his first major league homer in the fourth before Zach Neto and Taylor Ward homered in the fifth.
July 22, 2023 3:52 am
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Fresh-faced newcomer Sophia Smith teamed with captain Lindsey Horan to give the United States a balanced performance as the Americans breezed to another opening victory at the Women’s World Cup. Smith scored twice and the two-time defending champions beat tournament first-timers Vietnam 3-0 Saturday for the Americans’ 13th straight victory in a World Cup match. Smith, who turns 23 next month and is playing in her first tournament, is the second-youngest U.S. women’s player to score multiple goals in a World Cup game. Horan, the team’s co-captain with Alex Morgan, added a goal for the favored Americans, who have won four World Cups overall and are vying for an unprecedented three-peat in this year’s tournament.
July 21, 2023 4:35 am
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.
July 21, 2023 4:34 am
HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Goodbye, sun. Hello, traditional British Open weather. Thick clouds, wind and a few rain drops greet the second round at Royal Liverpool on Friday. The demanding test remains the same. Emiliano Grillo, Tommy Fleetwood and South African amateur Christo Lamprecht share the lead at 5-under 66. Grillo is the only one playing in the morning. The wind is typical, and so is the rain this year. The test after one day is the bunkers. They must be avoided at all costs. Rory McIlroy also plays in the morning. He starts five shots behind the leaders.
July 20, 2023 2:12 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ji Man Choi and Jared Triolo hit two-run singles in a five-run seventh inning helped by an overturned call, and the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-5 and stop a five-game losing streak. Pittsburgh trailed 4-0 in the fifth before Nick Gonzales’ run-scoring single and Jake Suwinski’s RBI double against Aaron Civale. The seventh was extended when a video review determined Bryan Reynolds beat the throw to first, avoiding an inning-ending double play. Choi and Triolo followed with their run-scoring base hits.
July 20, 2023 1:36 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Coming off a breakout season, outside linebacker Alex Highsmith has signed a new contract that will keep him with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the next five seasons. The two sides announced the deal on Wednesday, a week before the team reported to training camp. The 25-year-old Highsmith was in the final year of his rookie contract and this will extend it through 2027. A third-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft, Highsmith has played in 49 career games, starting 38. He has 179 tackles, 110 of them solo stops. He led the team with a career-high 14 1/2 sacks last season.
July 20, 2023 4:32 am
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets reported for training camp Wednesday with massive expectations and plenty of cameras watching their every move. They’ve got Super Bowl goals and are the subject of this year’s “Hard Knocks” series, adding to what was already expected to be a summer in the spotlight. Cornerback D.J. Reed said the energy feels different from last year and there’s more excitement. Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams said Rodgers brings a spark to everyone. The Jets are trying to end a 12-year postseason drought that is the longest active skid in the NFL.
