June 25, 2021 3:45 am
ST. LOUIS (AP) – Bryan Reynolds had a three-run homer among his three hits, Chad Kuhl pitched six strong innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates snapped a nine-game losing streak against the St. Louis Cardinals with an 8-2 victory. Adam Frazier and Phillip Evans also homered for Pittsburgh in its first win over St. Louis since Sept. 18, 2020. Kuhl allowed one run and three hits in six innings to improve to 2-3 in 10 career starts against the Cardinals. St. Louis has lost four in a row and 15 of its last 20 since June 2. Carlos Martínez allowed five runs and five hits with seven walks in five innings.
June 25, 2021 3:28 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers have cut six-time Pro Bowl guard David DeCastro. The surprising move means the team’s entire offensive line will be revamped heading into the 2021 season. The 31-year-old DeCastro had one year remaining on the five-year, $50-million contract he signed in 2017. The Steelers selected DeCastro in the first round in 2012 and he quickly became one of the league’s most dominant linemen, twice being named first-team All-Pro.
June 25, 2021 3:29 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers are staying home for training camp. The team says it will not go to Saint Vincent College for the second straight summer after the NFL declined the organization’s plan. The Steelers say they are “disappointed” they will not be returning to the small school in Latrobe, about an hour from downtown Pittsburgh. It has served as the team’s camp since 1966. The defending AFC North champions will instead split time between Heinz Field and their training complex on the city’s South Side.
June 25, 2021 3:50 am
MONTREAL (AP) – The Montreal Canadiens are going to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1993, the last time a Canadian-based team won the title. Artturi Lehkonen scored 1:39 into overtime and Carey Price stopped 37 shots as the Canadiens knocked out the Golden Knights, 3-2 in Game 6 of the semifinals. Nick Suzuki gained the Vegas zone and slipped a pass to his left to Lehkonen, who lifted a shot beating Robin Lehner high on the short side. The goal came after Price stopped former teammate Max Paccioretty. Cole Caufield and captain Shea Weber also scored for the Habs, who have won 11 of 13 since they trailed three games to one in the opening round against the Maple Leafs. Montreal will make its playoff-leading 35th Stanley Cup Final appearance with a shot to add to its 24 championships. The Canadiens will take on the winner of Friday’s Game 7 between the Lightning and Islanders.
June 24, 2021 3:30 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Yasmani Grandal hit a two-run double and the Chicago White Sox stopped a five-game losing streak, beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3, Leury Garcia added a home run as the AL Central leaders ended their longest skid of the season. Chicago starter Dylan Cease bounced back from rough outing to work 5 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run while striking out seven. Liam Hendricks pitched a perfect ninth for his 19th save of the season.
June 24, 2021 3:49 am
UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) – The New York Islanders have forced a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Final as they try to advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1984. Anthony Beauvillier scored 78 seconds into overtime to cap the Islanders’ comeback in a 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Islanders had to wipe out a 2-0 deficit to force OT before Beauvillier ended his 10-game goal drought. Brayden Point scored for the ninth straight game to give the Lightning a 1-0 lead in the first period. Anthony Cirelli made it 2-0 late in the second, giving Tampa Bay 12 consecutive goals in the series. But Jordan Eberle sparked the comeback by scoring less than two minutes later. Scott Mayfield tied it midway through the third before Beauvillier set up a winner-take-all meeting with the Lightning in Tampa on Friday. Mat Barzal had two assists and Semyon Varlamov stopped 22 shots for the Islanders.
June 24, 2021 3:51 am
UNDATED (AP) – NFL players must decide by July 2 if they plan to opt out of playing this season due to COVID-19 concerns, though voluntary opt-outs will not be paid any stipend this year.
In a memo sent to clubs Wednesday and obtained by The Associated Press, the league and the NFL Players Association agreed that only high-risk players will receive a stipend of $350,000. Voluntary opt-outs got a $150,000 stipend in 2020. A total of 67 players opted out last year before vaccines were available.
June 23, 2021 3:50 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) – The Montreal Canadiens are within one victory of their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since winning it all in 1993. The Habs own a three-games-to-two lead in the semifinals after Carey Price turned back 26 shots in a 4-1 win over the Golden Knights in Las Vegas. Price blanked the Knights until former teammate Max Paccioretty beat him in the third period, after Montreal had built a 3-0 lead. Nick Suzuki secured the victory with an empty-netter after setting up goals by Eric Staal and Cole Caufield. Jesperi Kotkaniemi put the Canadiens ahead to stay 8:45 into the game.
Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 22 shots for the Golden Knights, who will try to stave off elimination in Montreal on Thursday.
June 23, 2021 3:51 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Creighton men’s basketball program has been placed on two years’ probation and docked scholarships each of the next two seasons by the NCAA. The organization investigated allegations that a former assistant coach accepted cash from a management agency. The NCAA says Creighton athletic director Bruce Rasmussen violated ethics rules after he conducted his own investigation without notifying or coordinating with the compliance office. The penalties are the latest in a wide-ranging FBI probe into college basketball corruption that has ensnared numerous coaches and several high-profile schools.
June 22, 2021 3:48 am
UNDATED (AP) – Major League Baseball has started its crackdown on sticky stuff and foreign substances. Umpires are now doing regular checks of all pitchers for tacky substances that could be used to doctor baseballs. That was long against the rules but rarely enforced until now. Jacob deGrom was the first pitcher inspected under the new directive that took effect Monday. In the opener of the New York Mets’ doubleheader against Atlanta, the two-time Cy Young Award winner passed when inspected after the first and fifth innings. Any pitchers using illegal substances will be ejected and then suspended 10 games.
