August 24, 2019 11:40 am
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) – The U.S. men’s basketball team has lost for the first time in nearly 13 years, falling to Australia 98-94 in a pre-World Cup exhibition game on Saturday. Patty Mills scored 30 points for Australia, which rallied from a 10-point deficit in the second half. It was the first loss for the U.S. in a major international tournament or exhibition since the 2006 world championship semifinals against Greece. The Americans won the bronze medal game of that tournament, and then were unbeaten through the cycles for the 2007 FIBA Americas, 2008 Olympics, 2010 World Cup, 2012 Olympics, 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics. Add all that up, and it was a 78-game winning streak for the U.S. – the longest in program history. And it’s now over. USA Basketball is No. 1 in FIBA’s world rankings, but so far in the run-up to this World Cup – with most of the top NBA All-Stars deciding to not play this summer – the Americans have not looked like a lock for more gold. They beat Spain by nine in Anaheim, California on Aug. 16, needed a big second half to defeat Australia by 16 on Thursday, and then let a second-half lead slip away Saturday. Playing against his San Antonio coach, U.S. coach Gregg Popovich, Mills scored nine consecutive points for the Australians in the fourth quarter to help the hosts pull away. Kemba Walker scored 22 points for the U.S., and Harrison Barnes scored 20.
August 24, 2019 4:10 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pablo Reyes hit a game-ending RBI single, driving in pinch-runner Joe Musgrove, and the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied to beat the Cincinnati Reds 3-2 on Friday night. Pittsburgh won for just the ninth time in 39 games since the All-Star break by chipping away at Reds closer Raisel Iglesias (2-9). The Pirates put together three straight singles to start the ninth, the last a flare to shallow center by Adam Frazier that scored pinch-runner Erik Gonzalez. A sacrifice bunt by Jacob Stallings moved Musgrove to third and Reyes sent a drive to the gap in left-center to give Pittsburgh its eighth straight home victory over the Reds. Felipe Vazquez (4-1) picked up the win by pitching a scoreless top of the ninth. Cincinnati rookie Aristides Aquino hit his 12th homer of the month and an RBI double in the eighth while going 3 for 4 to boost his batting average to .338. Aquino’s drive to the first row of seats in center off Mitch Keller leading off the second gave him a dozen homers in 22 games, the fastest player to reach that total in major league history. The 24-year-old Aquino then put Cincinnati in position for its third straight win when he ripped a tiebreaking double to left in the eighth off Keone Kela. Aquino’s 12 homers since making his 2019 debut on Aug. 1 are two short of the club record for most home runs in a month, trailing the 14 Hall of Famer Frank Robinson hit in August 1962 and Greg Vaughn matched in September 1999. Keller, Pittsburgh’s top pitching prospect, put together the best start of his young career. The 23-year-old struck out nine in six-plus innings.
August 23, 2019 3:51 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Pirates are parting ways with veteran catcher Francisco Cervelli, who has been hampered by multiple concussions this season. The club announced Thursday it requested unconditional release waivers for the 33-year-old Cervelli. He’s played just 34 games this season. Pittsburgh general manager Neal Huntington says the club wants give Cervelli – who recently completed a rehabilitation assignment – an opportunity to sign with another team rather than sit the bench. The last-place Pirates have split the catching duties between Elias Diaz and Jacob Stallings. Cervelli is in the final season of a three-year, $31-million contract extension he signed in 2016. He spent four-plus seasons with Pittsburgh after being acquired in 2014 in a trade with the New York Yankees. He hit .295 in 130 games in 2015 for a team that won 98 games and reached the National League playoffs for the third straight year.
August 22, 2019 3:41 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Minnesota Wild have hired Bill Guerin as their new general manager. Guerin won two Stanley Cups as a player and two more titles in the front office with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He is the fourth GM in Minnesota’s 19-year history. He takes over for Paul Fenton, who was fired three weeks ago by owner Craig Leipold. Guerin spent the last five seasons as assistant general manager of the Penguins.
August 21, 2019 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – Star receiver Antonio Brown was back on the field for the Oakland Raiders on Tuesday after missing the previous practice as part of his dispute with the league and union over his helmet. Brown took part in a walkthrough without wearing a helmet and then went into the weight room as the rest of his teammates stretched. Brown came back out toward the end of the stretch but wasn’t wearing a helmet like all of his teammates who were practicing. Brown didn’t attend practice Sunday as he works to find a helmet that he’s comfortable using and that meets safety standards set by the NFL and NFLPA.
August 20, 2019 3:49 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Asdrubal Cabrera hit the last of Washington’s four home runs and drove in five runs, and three relievers combined for 6 2/3 innings of one-hit ball as the Nationals thumped the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-0 on Monday night. Adam Eaton, Matt Adams and Trea Turner also connected for the Nationals, who have scored 79 runs in their last eight games while going 7-1. They’ve scored 43 times in their past three, including a 15-14 loss. Adams added two doubles and had four RBIs. Juan Soto had four of Washington’s 15 hits and walked, reaching base in all five plate appearances. Javy Guerra (2-1) pitched 3 2/3 perfect innings in relief of Joe Ross, who departed in the fourth inning. Ross was hit in the left knee by a one-hopper off the bat of Josh Bell. Kyle McGowin and Tanner Rainey finished the four-hitter with one inning each for Washington’s 11th shutout of the season. The Nationals scored four runs off Trevor Williams (5-6) in each of the first two innings. Williams was removed after the second and was charged with eight runs – six earned – while giving up six hits and three walks. Pittsburgh fell to 7-28 since the All-Star break. Eaton homered with one out it the first and Adams added a two-run blast following a sacrifice fly by Cabrera. Turner’s three-run homer highlighted the second, which included an RBI double by Adams. The Nationals moved within five games of first-place Atlanta, which was idle, in the NL East and continue to lead the wild-card standings. Cabrera hit a two-run double in the fifth and scored on Adams’ double as the Nationals ran the lead to 11-0. He added a two-run homer in the ninth. Bell’s single off Ross’ knee in the fourth gave the Pirates runners at first and third with one out. However, Guerra got Colin Moran to hit into a double play.
August 19, 2019 3:52 am
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) – Jose Quintana pitched seven crisp innings, Anthony Rizzo hit a two-run homer and the Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Sunday night in the MLB Little League Classic. Nicholas Castellanos and Jason Heyward also connected as Chicago earned its second straight win since consecutive heartbreaking losses to the Phillies and Pirates. The Cubs took two of three in the unusual weekend set and remain in a virtual tie with St. Louis for the top spot in the NL Central. It was the first road series win for Chicago since May 17-19 against Washington.
August 18, 2019 8:03 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Mason Rudolph guided a long first-half touchdown drive to perhaps nudge ahead of Josh Dobbs in the race to be the backup behind Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Kansas City Chiefs 17-7 on Saturday night. Rudolph finished 10 of 15 for 77 yards while Dobbs completed 6 of 11 for 95 yards with a red-zone interception on a night the Steelers (2-0) opted to keep several key starters on the sideline, from quarterback Roethlisberger to Pro Bowl offensive linemen David DeCastro and Maurkice Pouncey to rookie linebacker Devin Bush. Kansas City coach Andy Reid suggested Patrick Mahomes would play most of the first half. Not quite. The reigning NFL MVP – who directed a touchdown in his lone drive in Kansas City’s preseason opener last week – did little during two series of work following a thunderstorm that forced the opening kickoff to be pushed back nearly an hour. Mahomes completed just 2 of 5 passes for 11 yards, a far cry from his previous visit to Heinz Field, when he threw for six touchdowns in a Week 2 win last September that served as a harbinger of the season to come. Mahomes’ best play during his cameo may have been his decision to slide during an 8-yard scramble, something he didn’t do a week ago when he lowered his shoulder against Cincinnati rather than step out of bounds. Chad Henne found Mecole Hardman for a 17-yard touchdown late in the first half for Kansas City (1-1), which managed a lone touchdown a week after putting up 38 against the Bengals. Hardman, a second-round pick, has two touchdowns in two weeks and his rapid emergence could give Reid another option to play with in what could be the NFL’s most potent offense. Pittsburgh chose to give the 37-year-old Roethlisberger the night off. Rudolph, a third-round pick a year ago who is hoping to supplant Dobbs as the top backup, was given the start instead. Playing with a group that included Pro Bowl running back James Conner and star wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, Rudolph struggled early to gain some momentum. It wasn’t until Rudolph found himself playing with the reserves that he started to get going. He directed a 14-play, 89-yard drive in the second quarter, a series that ended with a 14-yard sprint to the end zone by Jaylen Samuels. Dobbs started off brilliantly, hitting Washington for a 40-yard gain. He couldn’t sustain the momentum, thanks in part to an interception in the end in which he overthrew Diontae Johnson. The ball sailed into the arms of Kansas City’s Charvarius Ward to cut short a scoring chance late in the first half. Johnson, a third-round pick, ended up scoring in the fourth quarter when he made a diving grab in the end zone on a heave from fourth-stringer Devlin Hodges.
August 16, 2019 3:44 am
MASON, Ohio (AP) – Roger Federer suffered his quickest loss on the ATP Tour since 2003. Federer made numerous mistakes during the 62-minute match, a 6-3, 6-4 loss to 21-year-old qualifier Andre Rublev at the Western & Southern Open near Cincinnati. Federer has won the tournament a record seven times, but he fell to an opponent who has just one other victory against a top-five opponent. Meanwhile, Nick Kyrgios has been fined $113,000 by the ATP after his second-round match at the Western & Southern Open. The tour announced the penalties a day after Kyrgios insulted chair umpire Fergus Murphy and left the court to smash two rackets during a three-set loss to Karen Khachanov.
August 16, 2019 12:16 am
Defending champion Chinese Taipei scored nine times over the final four innings on the way to a 9-1 win over Bay County, MI, in the World Series championship game. Sun, Yi Lei held the North Zone champions to one run and four hits over 6.1 innings to get the win. The teams went scoreless to the fourth inning, each sending just one batter over the minimum to the plate. Chinese Taipei loaded the bases with one out then scored the game’s first run on Yang, Yu Cheng’s sacrifice fly to center. After a wild pitch, Hsu, Shao Yu singled to left, scoring a pair of runs. A fifth inning error allowed the winners to plate two unearned runs. Tseng, Yi Wei pushed the lead to 6-0 with an RBI single in the sixth. Two doubles, a single, two walks and a strikeout/wild pitch combined to extend the margin to 9-0. Bay County finally got on the board with two singles, a ground out and a balk. Chinese Taipei has now won 16 consecutive World Series games and 10 championships since 1994.
