August 11, 2022 3:50 am
PHOENIX (AP) – Rodolfo Castro had two hits to spark the offense one night after a smartphone faux pas, and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-4. The 23-year-old Castro mistakenly left his phone in the back pocket of his baseball pants during Tuesday’s game, and it came flying out on a headfirst slide into third base. On Wednesday, he left his phone in the clubhouse but certainly remembered to bring his bat. Mitch Keller threw 5 1/3 solid innings as Pittsburgh improved to 5-4 in August.
August 11, 2022 3:53 am
CLEVELAND (AP) – Deshaun Watson will start Cleveland’s exhibition opener at Jacksonville while waiting to learn if the NFL will succeed in keeping him off the field much longer. Watson is potentially facing a year-long suspension for alleged sexual misconduct. He’s playing Friday night against the Jaguars. It’s the quarterback’s first game since Jan. 3, 2021, his final one with the Houston Texans. The three-time Pro Bowler sat out last season after demanding a trade and before he was accused of assault and harassment by two dozen women during massage therapy sessions in Texas. Watson was suspended six games last week for violating the personal conduct policy, but the league wanted a tougher penalty and appealed. An arbitrator chosen by Commissioner Roger Goodell is reviewing the case.
August 11, 2022 3:51 am
TORONTO (AP) – Serena Williams lost her first match since telling the world she is ready to leave professional tennis. No one knows exactly how many more matches Williams will play before walking away. The 23-time Grand Slam champion exited the National Bank Open on Wednesday night with a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Belinda Bencic. The second-round match at the hard-court tuneup for the U.S. Open came a day after the 40-year-old Williams announced “the countdown has begun” on her playing career, saying she wants to have another child and pursue business interests. She made it sound as if her final goodbyes could come at the U.S. Open. It begins Aug. 29 in New York.
August 10, 2022 3:46 am
PHOENIX (AP) – Pittsburgh infielder Rodolfo Castro lost his phone on the field and the Pirates were stymied by rookie Tommy Henry in a 6-4 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Henry was sharp in his Chase Field debut, allowing a run on four hits in seven innings. Castro made a different kind of noise after being called up from Triple-A Indianapolis. The second baseman walked in the fourth inning and went to third on Oneil Cruz’s single. Castro slid headfirst into the bag to beat the throw and the impact sent his phone flying from his back pocket. Third base umpire Adam Hamari immediately saw the phone and pointed to it on the ground. The 23-year-old Castro picked up the phone and handed it to Pirates third base coach Mike Rebelo, who had an exasperated look on his face before taking it.
August 10, 2022 3:50 am
BEREA, Ohio (AP) – NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says he feels the league needed to keep pushing for a year-long suspension for Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson because of his “egregious” and “predatory behavior” toward women. Goodell was addressing the league’s decision to appeal a six-game suspension given to Watson by Sue L. Robinson, a former federal judge appointed by the NFL and NFL Players Association as an independent league disciplinary officer. Robinson found Watson violated the league’s conduct policy after he was accused by two dozen women of sexual assault or harassment while he played for Houston.
August 10, 2022 3:49 am
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – A federal judge in California has ruled three golfers who joined Saudi-backed LIV Golf will not be able to compete in the PGA Tour’s postseason. U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman made her decision in San Jose after attorneys for the sides each spoke about an hour.The golfers were seeking a temporary restraining order, which Freeman denied. Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford claimed they should be able to play where they want to. They are among 10 players who filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour last week – including Phil Mickelson.
August 10, 2022 2:59 am
(AP) – Serena Williams says she is preparing to step away from tennis after winning 23 Grand Slam titles, turning her focus to having another child and her business interests. “I’m turning 41 this month, and something’s got to give,” Williams wrote in an essay released Tuesday by Vogue magazine. Williams said she does not like the word retirement and prefers to think of this stage of her life as “evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me.” Williams is playing this week in Toronto, at a hard-court tournament that leads into the U.S. Open. The year’s last Grand Slam event begins in New York on Aug. 29.
August 9, 2022 3:50 am
PHOENIX (AP) – Zac Gallen pitched seven dominant innings, Ketel Marte had a crucial two-out, two-RBI single in the eighth and the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0 . Gallen gave up just three hits and two walks while striking out eight. The seven innings matched a career high he’s reached 13 times in the big leagues. He threw just 89 pitches but manager Torey Lovullo opted to bring in lefty Joe Mantiply for the eighth. The decision worked. Mantiply retired the Pirates in order in the eighth and Ian Kennedy handled the ninth for his seventh save.
August 9, 2022 10:28 am
CINCINNATI (AP) – The home of the Cincinnati Bengals will no longer carry the name of team founder and NFL pioneer Paul Brown. It will now be known as Paycor Stadium. Paycor is a Cincinnati-based maker of human resources software. The company has bought the naming rights to the stadium in a deal announced Tuesday. The development wasn’t a surprise. Team owner Mike Brown – the 86-year-old son of Paul Brown – told reporters last month that selling the naming rights was necessary for the Bengals to be able to compete as a small-market team.
August 9, 2022 3:51 am
The PGA Tour is asking a federal judge not to allow three suspended players from LIV Golf to take part in the FedEx Cup playoffs, the tour’s lucrative postseason. Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford are seeking a temporary restraining order in federal court in California. A hearing is set for Tuesday. The first FedEx Cup playoff event starts Thursday in Tennessee. The tour says in an opposition filing that the LIV players knew they were ineligible for the postseason two months ago and are just now filing for an emergency stay.
