July 1, 2021 3:50 am
DALLAS (AP) – The NCAA has cleared the way for athletes to profit off their fame and celebrity. The move comes just as legislation is set to become law in a dozen states that would allow for that kind of compensation. The NCAA wants to have federal laws or its own rules regarding the issue known as NIL but was forced to seek a temporary solution. The decision applies to more than 450,000 athletes across all three divisions of the NCAA.
July 1, 2021 3:46 am
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Will Bednar and Landon Sims combined on a one-hitter, Mississippi State scored early and built on its lead, and the Bulldogs won their first national championship with a 9-0 victory over Vanderbilt in the deciding third game of the College World Series finals. Bednar was working on three days’ rest and walked three of the first five batters he faced before retiring 15 in a row. He turned the game over to the Bulldogs’ star closer to start the seventh. It’s Mississippi State’s first national title in a team sport.
July 1, 2021 3:49 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – The Tampa Bay Lightning lead the Stanley Cup Final two games to none after beating the Montreal Canadiens 3-1 on Wednesday night. Andrei Vasilevskiy made a playoff career-high 42 saves to keep the defending champions in the game and Blake Coleman scored the Game 2 winner on a highlight-reel diving buzzer beater in the second period. Montreal outshot Tampa Bay 43-23 and was the better team for much of the night. But the Lightning beat Carey Price three times and showed they can lean on great goaltending and score opportunistic goals much like the Canadiens. Game 3 is Friday night in Montreal.
June 30, 2021 3:44 am
DENVER (AP) – German Marquez came within three outs of what would have been a record-tying eighth no-hitter this season before allowing Ka’ai Tom’s single leading off the ninth inning in the Colorado Rockies 8-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 26-year-old Venezuelan right-hander faced one batter over the minimum. Jacob Stallings was hit in the left ribs by a knuckle-curve with a 1-2 count and one out in the second inning, and Phillip Evans checked his swing and walked on a 3-2 slider that went low and outside with one out in the fifth. Kevin Newman then grounded into an inning ending double play.
June 30, 2021 3:45 am
UNDATED (AP) – Seattle Mariners pitcher Hector Santiago has become the first player disciplined under Major League Baseball’s crackdown on grip-enhancing foreign substances, receiving a 10-game penalty. The punishment was announced two days after Santiago was ejected from a game at the Chicago White Sox. Santiago has appealed the decision to MLB special adviser John McHale Jr., allowing him to play until the appeal is decided.
June 30, 2021 3:47 am
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) – Time is running out as Serena Williams continues her quest for a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title. The 39-year-old Williams had to retire in the first set after she hurt her leg in an Wimbledon opening-round match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus. Williams slipped on the grass while hitting a forehand in the fifth game. She received a medical timeout and was in the seventh game when her knee buckled, causing her to crumple to the grass. She was in tears as she walked to the net to concede. Williams hasn’t won a Slam since 2017, keeping her one off the record held by Margaret Court.
June 29, 2021 3:45 am
DENVER (AP) – Kyle Freeland pitched five scoreless innings before leaving with an apparent leg injury suffered while running the bases, Elias Diaz homered and the Colorado Rockies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-0. Yonathan Daza had an RBI triple and an over-the-shoulder catch of Erik Gonzalez’s deep flyball to the center field warning track. The game was dubbed “Opening Day 2.0” after the lifting of all pandemic-induced attendance restrictions at 50,000-seat Coors Field. The Pirates had six hits, all singles. Freeland (1-2) allowed three hits and struck out seven in his seventh start of the season. Daniel Bard got the save.
June 29, 2021 3:47 am
DENVER (AP) – The Pittsburgh Pirates have optioned right-hander Max Kranick to Triple-A Indianapolis, a day after he pitched five perfect innings to win his major league debut. The Pirates, who are using a six-man rotation, recalled right-hander Cody Ponce from Indianapolis. Kranick retired all 15 batters he faced Sunday against the St. Louis Cardinals before a lengthy rain delay forced him from the mound. The Pirates went on to win 7-2. Kranick became the first pitcher since 1893 to leave after at least five innings with a perfect game intact in his MLB debut.
June 29, 2021 3:51 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – The Tampa Bay Lightning are three wins away from joining the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers as the only expansion teams to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. Nikita Kucherov provided a pair of third-period goals and registered an assist as the Lightning whipped the Montreal Canadiens, 5-1 in Tampa. Kucherov put the Bolts up 3-1 early in the third period with a fluky goal that Canadiens defenseman Ben Chiarot tried to bat down with his hand before it wound up in the net. He scored again at 11:25 of the third, then assisted on Steven Stamkos’ power-play goal that made it 5-1 with just over a minute to go. Kucherov leads all playoff scorers with 23 assists and 30 points. Eric Cernak and Yanni Gourde also scored, and Brayden Point had three assists. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 18 shots and blanked the Canadiens until Chiarot scored on a deflection off Sergei Sergachev late in the second period. Game 2 is Wednesday in Tampa.
June 28, 2021 3:51 am
ST. LOUIS (AP) – Max Kranick pitched five perfect innings in his major league debut before a 64-minute rain delay forced him from the game, and the Pittsburgh Pirates went on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2. In a season in which there have already been a modern-day record seven no-hitters, Kranick made a bid for perhaps the most unlikely premiere performance of all-time.The 23-year-old righty, who had never pitched above the High-A levels of the minors until this season, set down all 15 batters he faced. Kranick struck out three and threw only 50 pitches. The Pirates led 7-0 when the rain forced a halt. Duane Underwood Jr. relieved to begin the sixth. He set the side down in order in the sixth before giving up a leadoff double to Dylan Carlson to begin the seventh.
