July 16, 2019 3:45 am
ST. LOUIS (AP) – Miles Mikolas pitched an eight-hitter and Tyler O’Neill hit a pair of two-run homers, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to a 7-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night. It was the first complete game this season and second overall for Mikolas (6-9), who lasted just four innings in his last start before the All-Star game. He struck out three and walked none while throwing 100 pitches. It was first complete game by a Cardinals pitcher this season. Mikolas had the only one last year on May 21 against Kansas City. Mikolas pitched out of three jams. In the fifth with two outs, he gave up singles by Corey Dickerson and Kevin Newman. A balk put runners on second and third. Mikolas got Jacob Stallings to ground out, ending the inning. In the sixth, he allowed one-out singles to Adam Frazier and Brian Reynolds, his third hit. Starling Marte grounded into an inning-ending double play. He also hit into a double play in the first inning. In the seventh, Colin Moran doubled with one out and was stranded at third. St. Louis has won three games in a row. O’Neill had his first career multi-homer game, and drove in four runs for the second time in the last three games. He also singled to finish with three hits. The Pirates have lost four consecutive games.
July 15, 2019 3:48 am
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) – Novak Djokovic has become the first man in 71 years to win Wimbledon after facing match points in the final, coming back to beat Roger Federer in an unprecedented fifth-set tiebreaker Sunday. The top-seeded Serb outlasted Federer 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 13-12 in a match that lasted nearly five hours to win his fifth championship at the All England Club and second in a row. The triumph earned Djokovic his 16th Grand Slam trophy, moving him closer to the only men ahead of him in tennis history: Federer with 20, and Rafael Nadal with 18. Federer, who turns 38 next month, has won Wimbledon eight times dating to 2003, and this was his record 12th appearance in the title match. But Djokovic is now 3-0 against Federer in Wimbledon finals and 4-0 against him in five-setters. This is the first year Wimbledon has used deciding-set tiebreakers.
July 14, 2019 7:34 am
CHICAGO (AP) – Jon Lester homered, tied a career high with three RBIs and pitched effectively into the seventh inning to lead the Chicago Cubs past the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-4 on Saturday. All-Star catcher Willson Contreras’ three-run homer and Lester’s two-run single off the left-field wall were the big hits in the Cubs’ seven-run first inning. The 35-year-old left-hander connected for his third career home run – all with the Cubs at Wrigley Field – for the NL Central leaders. Lester (9-6) allowed three runs on eight hits, while striking out six and walking none in 6 2/3 innings. Addison Russell drove in two runs as the Cubs won for the fourth time in five games. Starling Marte hit a pair of solo shots to give him three homers in two days in Chicago. Jung Ho Kang launched a long solo homer. Chicago sent 12 batters to the plate in the first and chased Pittsburgh starter Jordan Lyles (5-6) after only two outs. Anthony Rizzo beat a shift with a dribbling RBI single to left to start the scoring before Contreras hit his 19th homer to the basket in right-center. After Lester drove in two more, Javier Baez added an RBI double. Lyles yielded seven runs on four hits and four walks before being replaced by Chris Stratton. Lester’s homer to left made it 8-0 in the third. Russell singled in two runs in the fourth to open it to 10-0. Kang homered in the fifth and Marte connected in the sixth. Lester was replaced by Brandon Kintzler with in the seventh after the Pirates stroked three singles to made it 10-3. Marte homered again in the eighth off Randy Rosario.
July 13, 2019 4:18 am
The Cubs downed the Pirates, 4-3 on Jason Heyward’s RBI single in the bottom of the eighth. Kris Bryant hit a solo homer to spark a three-run seventh, but the Cubs blew the 3-0 lead before earning their third win in its last four games. Starling Marte’s three-run blast tied it in the eighth for the Pirates.
July 12, 2019 3:23 pm
Roger Federer will play for a record-extending ninth Wimbledon title in his 12 final at the All England Club after beating Rafael Nadal 7-6 (3), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Centre Court.
The 20-time Grand Slam singles champion will face Novak Djokovic for the title on Sunday. Federer’s serve served him well against his Spanish rival, who won their last meeting at Wimbledon in the 2008 final – taking the epic fifth set 9-7 as darkness descended. The Swiss great finished with 14 aces this time and landed 69% of his first serves. Federer won his record eighth Wimbledon title in 2017, but lost to Djokovic in the final in both 2014 and 2015.
July 12, 2019 1:34 pm
Novak Djokovic has reached the Wimbledon final for the sixth time. The defending champion came through a tough match against Roberto Bautista Agut on Centre Court 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Djokovic is a four-time champion at the All England Club and will play either Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal on Sunday for another title. Federer and Nadal were to play next on Centre Court.
Djokovic was broken once in the second set, allowing Bautista Agut to even the score. But the top-seeded Serb saved two break chances in the third set and won easily in the fourth, though he needed five match points in the final game to close it out. With the victory, Djokovic has reached his 25th Grand Slam final. He won 15 of the previous 24.
In the Wimbledon final, Djokovic is 4-1. His only loss was against Andy Murray in 2013.
July 12, 2019 3:43 am
UNDATED (AP) – James Harden and Russell Westbrook are teammates again. A person with knowledge of the situation says the Oklahoma City Thunder have traded Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul in a shakeup of top point guards. The person adds that the Thunder also are getting first-round picks in 2024 and 2026, plus the right to swap first-rounders in two other seasons. Westbrook and Harden were Thunder teammates, part of a team along with Kevin Durant that went to the 2012 NBA Finals and lost to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat.
July 11, 2019 3:51 am
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) – The top three men’s seeds have advanced to Friday’s Wimbledon semifinals, which means a 40th meeting between No. 2 Roger Federer and No. 3 Rafael Nadal. Federer knocked off eighth seed Kei Nishikori, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 to become the first player to earn 100 victories at a single Grand Slam event. Federer was broken in his opening service game but didn’t have much trouble after that. Nadal set up a much-anticipated rematch by beating Sam Querrey 7-5, 6-2, 6-2. Nadal was broken when serving for the first set at 5-4. But he converted his fourth break point in the next game and saved three break points at 6-5 before finally clinching the set. Nadal is 24-15 all-time against Federer, including a 10-3 mark in Grand Slams. They haven’t met at Wimbledon since the 2008 final, when Nadal won 9-7 in the fifth set as dusk descended. Friday’s other semifinal match will have defending champion and top-ranked Novak Djokovic against No. 23 Roberto Bautista Agut. Djokovic trailed 4-3 in the opening set before winning the next 10 games in a 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 victory over David Goffin. It will be Djokovic’s ninth trip to the semifinals as he seeks his fifth Wimbledon title. Agut reached his first Grand Slam semifinal by beating Guido Pella (PAY’-uh), 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. The Spaniard broke Pella in the opening game of the first two sets, and then again for a 2-1 lead in the fourth. Thursday’s women’s semifinals will have Serena Williams versus Barbora Strycova after seventh seed Simona Halep takes on No. 8 Elina Svitolina.
July 11, 2019 3:48 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Penguins center Matt Cullen has retired after a 21-season career that included three Stanley Cup titles. The 42 year-old won a Cup with Carolina in 2006 and then consecutive titles with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017. Cullen had 266 goals, 465 assists and 502 penalty minutes over 1,516 games with Anaheim, Florida, Carolina, the New York Rangers, Ottawa, Minnesota, Nashville and Pittsburgh. He also had 19 goals and 39 assists in 132 career playoff games.
July 10, 2019 3:53 am
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) – Serena Williams had to grind out a tough match against fellow American Alison Riske to reach her 12th Wimbledon singles semifinal. The 23-time Grand Slam champion split her first two sets before pulling out a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 win over 55th-ranked Riske. The 37-year-old Williams trailed 3-1 in the first set and was tied 3-3 in the third before a service break put her in control. The 11th-seeded Williams next faces Barbora Strycova , who reached her first Grand Slam semifinal at age 33 with a 7-6, 6-1 victory over No. 19 Johanna Konta of Britain.
Williams also teamed with Andy Murray to win their second-round mixed doubles match in straight sets over Fabrice Martin and Raquel Atawo. Seventh seed Simona Halep will take on No. 8 Elina Svitolina in Thursday’s other semifinal match at Wimbledon. Halep defeated Zhang Shuai of China 7-6, 6-1 to get to her second semifinal at Wimbledon. Svitolina will make her debut in that round at any major tournament following her 7-5, 7-4 victory against Karolina Muchova.
