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.
July 20, 2023 4:31 am
HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Matthew Jordan not only hit the opening tee shot in the British Open, he has set the early target. Jordan has been a member at Royal Liverpool since he was a teenager. The R&A selected him to get the 151st Open started. And then he took it from there. Jordan had three birdies on the front nine and reached 2-under par at the turn. Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka are among those also playing in the morning. Rory McIlroy plays in the afternoon. No one has reached 3 under so far.
July 19, 2023 2:21 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Right-hander Paul Skenes, taken by Pittsburgh with the first pick in this month’s amateur draft, agreed to a contract that includes a $9.2 million signing bonus. The amount is the highest for a drafted player, topping the $8,416,300 Detroit agreed to with first baseman Spencer Torkelson, the top pick in 2021. Skenes helped LSU to this year’s NCAA title after transferring from Air Force. He was selected Most Outstanding Player of the College World Series after going 12-2 with a 1.69 ERA and 0.75 WHIP in 19 starts with 209 strikeouts in 122 2/3. innings.
July 18, 2023 4:33 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Josh Naylor homered twice, including a three-run shot that keyed a five-run first inning against All-Star Mitch Keller, and drove in six runs and the Cleveland Guardians rolled to a 10-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Naylor’s first homer gave the Guardians a 4-0 lead with none out in the first inning after Keller had thrown just seven pitches. Keller was making his first appearance since pitching one inning in last week’s All-Star Game in Seattle. In the ninth, Naylor connected again for a two-run blast, his 15th of the season, off Yohan Ramirez.
