October 8, 2021 3:49 am
MONTREAL (AP) – Canadiens goaltender Carey Price has voluntarily entered the NHL/NHL Players’ Association joint player assistance program. The move comes less than a week before the season begins and just three months after he backstopped Montreal to the Stanley Cup Final. The 34-year-old Price will be away from the team while he takes part in the program for at least 30 days.
Price’s wife says on social media that Price is putting his mental health and family first. Montreal general manager Marc Bergevin says the teams backs Price and would urge anyone needing help to get it.
October 7, 2021 3:46 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Chris Taylor has put the Los Angeles Dodgers into the NL Division Series. Taylor slammed a two-out, two-run homer off Alex Reyes in the bottom of the ninth to give the Dodgers a 3-1 triumph over the St. Louis Cardinals. Reyes entered the game after Cody Bellinger was issued a two-out walk by losing pitcher T.J. McFarland. A wild pitch by Max Scherzer scored Tommy Edman and gave the Cardinals the lead in the first inning. It remained 1-0 until Justin Turner unloaded a home run off Adam Wainwright in the bottom of the fourth. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts put the outcome in the hands of his bullpen after Scherzer was lifted with two on and one out in the fifth. The LA bullpen came through with 4 2/3 shutout innings, allowing just two hits while fanning six. Wainwright allowed four hits and two walks with five strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings. The two clubs were a combined 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position until Taylor’s blast. The Dodgers get to face the 107-win San Francisco Giants, who say Logan Webb will start Game 1 on Friday. Webb won the NL West clincher on Sunday, hitting a two-run homer and working into the eighth inning. Kevin Gausman gets the starting nod for the Giants in Game 2.
October 7, 2021 3:52 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) – The San Diego Padres have fired Jayce Tingler, who presided over the biggest collapse in franchise history just a season after finishing second in voting for NL Manager of the Year.
General manager A.J. Preller announced the move three days after the Padres finished 79-83 and in third place in the NL West, 28 games behind San Francisco. Tingler’s fate was sealed during a brutal freefall that saw the Padres go from a one-game lead for the NL’s second wild-card spot on Sept. 9 to being eliminated from playoff contention with seven games left.
October 7, 2021 3:44 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger says he knows he needs to play better to help the team snap a three-game losing streak. Roethlisberger is ranked 27th in the league in quarterback rating and has thrown as many interceptions as touchdowns. The 18-year-veteran also is dealing with a hip injury suffered in a loss to Green Bay. Roethlisberger says he is not quitting on the season and believes the accuracy issues he’s dealing with are fixable. The 1-3 Steelers host the 3-1 Broncos at Heinz Field in Week 5.
October 6, 2021 3:44 am
BOSTON (AP) – The Boston Red Sox have earned themselves a few days in Florida. The Bosox have moved into the AL Division Series by thumping the Yankees, 6-2 in the wild-card game. Xander Bogaerts and Kyle Schwarber belted early homers and Alex Verdugo drove in three runs to back a sterling performance by Nathan Eovaldi. Bogaerts set the tone with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first, two innings before Schwarber’s solo blast. Verdugo padded Boston’s lead with an RBI double and a two-run single. Eovaldi allowed a run and four hits while striking out eight over 5 1/3 innings, blanking New York until Anthony Rizzo homered in the sixth. Gerrit Cole was pulled with two on and no out in the third, charged with three runs and four hits. Giancarlo Stanton had three of New York’s six hits, including a ninth-inning homer. The ALDS begins Thursday in St. Petersburg as the Bosox take on the league-leading Tampa Bay Rays.
October 6, 2021 3:42 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington says he is seeing signs of improvement at the major-league level. The Pirates finished in last place in the NL Central for a third straight season while the organization focused on restocking talent at the minor league level. Cherington says the team’s relentlessness and 13-12 record over the final 25 games offered proof manager Derek Shelton’s message is getting through.
October 6, 2021 2:45 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin’s confidence in quarterback Ben Roethlisberger remains strong despite a 1-3 start. Tomlin says the 39-year-old Roethlisberger is “absolutely” the right quarterback for the Steelers. Roethlisberger has struggled with accuracy at times this season and has thrown as many interceptions as touchdowns. Tomlin says Roethlisberger is dealing with a hip injury that could limit his practice time ahead of a visit from Denver in Week 5.
October 5, 2021 3:43 am
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) – Justin Herbert threw for three touchdowns, Austin Ekeler rushed for 117 yards and scored twice and the Los Angeles Chargers knocked the Las Vegas Raiders from the unbeaten ranks with a 28-14 victory. Los Angeles, 3-1 for the first time since 2014, is part of a three-way tie atop the AFC West with Las Vegas and Denver. The Raiders’ loss leaves the Arizona Cardinals as the NFL’s lone undefeated team after four weeks. Herbert, who completed 25 of 38 passes for 222 yards, accounted for all of his TDs in the first half as the Chargers built a 21-0 halftime lead. The Raiders scored on their first two possessions of the second half to draw within a touchdown, but Ekeler gave Los Angeles some breathing room with an 11-yard scoring run.
October 5, 2021 3:40 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers are scrambling for answers following a 1-3 start. Pittsburgh’s latest setback came in a 27-17 loss to Green Bay. The defeat dropped the Steelers two games behind AFC North rivals Cleveland, Cincinnati and Baltimore a month into the season. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger says the team needs to look inward for answers. Pittsburgh welcomes Denver to Heinz Field in Week 5.
October 5, 2021 3:46 am
Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer has apologized to his family, his team and owner Shad Khan for actions he called “just stupid.” A video surfaced Saturday night showing a woman dancing close to Meyer’s lap. Another video appears to show Meyer touching the woman’s behind. The 57-year-old Meyer called a team meeting to address his actions and vowed to “own it.” He says his actions were “just stupid.’
