August 8, 2019 3:46 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Keston Hiura hit two home runs and drove in three runs Wednesday night, powering the Milwaukee Brewers to an 8-3 win and three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Hiura hit a two-run homer with two out in the first inning for an early 2-0 lead. He sent a fastball from Trevor Williams 388 feet over the wall in right-center. His second homer, the 13th of his rookie season, was a solo shot that made the score 6-1 in the fifth. He also had a double in the third inning. It was Hiura’s first multi-homer game, and came as he had just three hits in his first 21 at-bats in August. The Brewers moved past the St. Louis Cardinals and into second place in the NL Central, three games behind the division-leading Chicago Cubs. Milwaukee entered the series mired in a four-game losing streak, and had lost six of seven. The Pirates fell to 4-21 since the All-Star break. Junior Guerra (5-3) picked up a second win in as many nights. He allowed one hit and one walk in two innings in relief of Drew Pomeranz, who gave up one run in three innings. Pomeranz was pressed into duty after Zach Davies was placed on the 10-day injured list with back spasms Monday. Williams (4-5) allowed six runs on eight hits in five innings after shutting out Milwaukee in 19 straight innings. The Brewers had not scored off Williams since scoring one run on three hits in a 1-0 win on Sept. 19, 2017. Jacob Stallings got Pittsburgh on the board with a solo homer, his third of the season, in the third inning. Bryan Reynolds and Starling Marte had RBI singles in the seventh to cut it to 8-3.
August 7, 2019 3:43 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Yasmani Grandal had two doubles and an RBI and the Milwaukee Brewers, without a resting Christian Yelich, beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 on Tuesday night. Grandal drove in Ryan Braun with a double to left-center, the first hit off Pirates starter Steven Brault, in the fifth inning, before scoring when Trent Grisham grounded into a double play as the Brewers moved out to a 2-0 lead. Grandal doubled again in the seventh inning off Francisco Liriano (4-3), giving Milwaukee runners on second and third with no outs. A one-out walk to Grisham loaded the bases, and Braun scored on a sacrifice fly by Orlando Arcia to give Milwaukee a 3-2 lead. Grandal had one hit in his first 19 at-bats in August before his first double Tuesday. Yelich sat one day after getting four hits, including two home runs, in Milwaukee’s 9-7 win over Pittsburgh on Monday. The day off was intended to manage a nagging back injury Yelich has been dealing with this season, manager Craig Counsell said. The Brewers won their second straight after losing four in a row. The Pirates are last in the NL Central after falling to 4-20 since the All-Star break. Grisham scored after being caught in a rundown and tagged at home in the ninth. Pirates catcher Elias Diaz was called for setting in the base path without receiving the ball, and Grisham’s run made it 4-2. Junior Guerra (4-3) relieved Milwaukee starter Chase Anderson with two outs in the sixth. He got Pablo Reyes to fly out with runners on first and third. Anderson allowed two runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings. Matt Albers allowed one run in the ninth before getting Kevin Newman to line out and stranding Reyes at third. It was Albers’ second save. Brault, who gave up two runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings, was perfect through four innings before walking Braun to lead off the fifth. He came off the injured list after last pitching July 5, when he sustained a shoulder strain against Milwaukee. Bryan Reynolds cut it to 2-1 in the sixth with a home run, his 11th, off Anderson that traveled 410 feet into bushes beyond centerfield. Jose Osuna tied it at 2-2 with a double past third baseman Mike Moustakas, driving in Starling Marte.
August 6, 2019 3:51 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Veteran defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk has signed a one-year, $1.75 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Lightning vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced the deal Monday. Shattenkirk played 73 games for the New York Rangers last season, finishing with two goals and ranking first among the team’s defensemen in assists (26) and points (28). The 30-year-old has spent nine seasons in the league, also playing for Washington, St. Louis and Colorado. He has 75 goals, 349 points and 368 penalty minutes during his career of 609 games. He was an All-Star with the Blues in 2015 and has five goals and 34 points in 60 career playoff games.
August 5, 2019 3:56 am
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) – Veteran wide receiver Jordy Nelson is retiring as a member of the Green Bay Packers. The 34-year-old Nelson played in Green Bay from 2008-2017, winning a Super Bowl with the team before spending last season with the Oakland Raiders. Nelson had 550 receptions and 69 touchdown catches in his 10 seasons in Green Bay. He made the Pro Bowl in 2014, missed the 2015 season with a knee injury and was named the 2016 Comeback Player of the Year. He played in 15 games for Oakland last year, finishing with 63 receptions for 739 yards and three TDs.
August 3, 2019 1:39 pm
CANTON, Ohio (AP) – The Pro Football Hall of Fame welcomes eight new members Saturday night in Canton, Ohio. Former players being enshrined are tight end Tony Gonzalez, defensive backs Champ Bailey, Ed Reed and Ty Law, center Kevin Mawae and senior selection Johnny Robinson, a defensive back who helped the Chiefs win Super Bowl 4. They are joined by two are contributors: the late owner of the Denver Broncos, Pat Bowlen, and Gil Brandt, former personnel director for the Dallas Cowboys, now the NFL’s top draft consultant.
August 3, 2019 1:32 pm
(AP) – The Pro Football Hall of Fame will expand the number of potential inductees to 20 in 2020 as part of the NFL’s celebration of its 100th season. Hall president David Baker said Friday five modern-day players, 10 seniors, three contributors and two coaches could be elected next year. The modern-day group would continue to be decided by the 48 selection committee voters on the day before the Super Bowl in February. The other 15 would be voted on as one bloc, not individually, by the selection committee.
August 2, 2019 3:49 am
CANTON, Ohio (AP) – Hours after visiting a hospital because of a kidney stone, Vic Fangio won a football game. The new coach of the Denver Broncos saw a late interception set up rookie Juwann Winfree’s 15-yard touchdown catch Thursday night, and his team edged the Atlanta Falcons 14-10 in the Hall of Fame game to open the NFL’s preseason. Yes, it was an exhibition game – the real first test comes Sept. 9 at Oakland. Still, Fangio served two decades as an NFL assistant before getting his chance to run a team. So this truly was a debut. Trey Johnson’s interception of Matt Schaub’s pass after the Atlanta backup quarterback was pressured set up Denver at the Falcons 38 with 5:21 remaining. A 14-yard pass interference call on fourth down against Rashard Causey kept Denver in it, but the Broncos were hurt by a holding penalty against rookie Ryan Crozier. Unfazed, rookie Brett Rypien hurled a pass into the right corner of the end zone, where it was deflected and Winfree latched onto it with 1:26 remaining. Fangio also became the first coach to utilize the new rule allowing challenges of pass interference calls. Late in the second quarter, Linden Stephens was called for a 43-yard defensive penalty. Officials upheld the call. Both teams had eight-play first-half drives for touchdowns. Denver’s was finished by Khalfani Muhammad’s 3-yard run up the middle. Atlanta tied it with a precise two-minute drill guided by first-year quarterback Kurt Benkert, who is seeking a backup job to Matt Ryan. Benkert took the Falcons 61 yards in 1:17, hitting running back Brian Hill with a 3-yard touchdown pass. Benkert conducted another impressive series in the third period, going 56 yards in 12 plays to Giorgio Tavecchio’s 27-yard field goal for a 10-7 lead. Benkert headed to the locker room early in the fourth quarter with a toe injury. He went 19 of 34 for 185 yards. Otherwise, it pretty much was a slopfest marred by dropped passes, penalties and missed assignments. Then again, how much can be expected in such an early preseason game?
August 1, 2019 3:44 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Astros have added a six-time All-Star to their already-solid starting rotation. Houston has picked up Zack Greinke for a starting five that includes 14-game winner Justin Verlander and major league strikeout leader Gerrit Cole. The Diamondbacks have received four minor leaguers for Greinke, who took the mound for Wednesday’s game against the Yankees.
Greinke is 10-4 with a 2.90 ERA this season. Also at the major league trade deadline:
– The Indians have confirmed their three-team swap that sends pitcher Trevor Bauer to Cincinnati and brings Yasiel Puig to Cleveland. The Indians also got lefty Scott Moss from the Reds and outfielder Franmil Reyes, lefty Logan Allen and infield prospect Victor Nova from San Diego. The Padres acquired outfielder Taylor Trammel from the Reds.
– Atlanta picked up relievers Shane Greene and Mark Melancon in separate deals, along with backup catcher John Ryan Murphy. The Giants got right-handed reliever Daniel Winkler and a minor league pitcher for Melancon, and the Tigers received two minor leaguers in the Greene swap.
– The Diamondbacks have acquired right-hander Mike Leake from the Mariners for a minor leaguer. Arizona also picked up rookie right-hander Zac Gallen from the Marlins for minor league shortstop Jazz Chisholm.
– The Athletics have acquired starter Tanner Roark from the Reds for outfield prospect Jameson Hannah.
– Milwaukee has acquired left-hander Drew Pomeranz and righty Ray Black from the Giants for infield prospect Mauricio Dubon. San Francisco also obtained second baseman Scooter Gennett from the Reds for a player to be named.
– The Cubs have obtained outfielder Nicholas Castellanos from the Tigers for two minor league pitchers.
July 29, 2019 3:48 am
LONG POND, Pa. (AP) – Denny Hamlin had enough fuel to pull away off the final restart in an overtime finish for his fifth victory at Pocono Raceway. Hamlin raced to his third victory of the season and 34th overall in NACAR Cup Series race, giving Joe Gibbs Racing its 11th win in 21 races this season. Hamlin held off teammate Erik Jones, who needed a win to secure a spot in the playoffs.
JGR driver Martin Truex Jr. was third, followed by William Bryon and Kyle Larson
July 29, 2019 3:46 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Michael Conforto sparked New York’s offense with a two-run homer in a six-run first inning against Chris Archer, and the Mets held on to beat the reeling Pittsburgh Pirates 8-7 Sunday to match their longest winning streak this season at four games. Jason Vargas (6-5) won a third straight start for the first time since last August, and the Mets completed a three-game sweep. New York improved to 10-5 since the All-Star break, passing Cincinnati, Colorado and Pittsburgh in the standings. The Mets (50-55) started Sunday six games back in the NL wild-card race with six teams in front. Pittsburgh was 2 1/2 games off the NL Central lead at the break but has lost 14 of 16, including eight in a row. Given a 6-0 lead, Vargas allowed three runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings. He could be dangled by the Mets ahead of Wednesday’s trade deadline along with fellow starters Noah Syndergaard and Zack Wheeler. Vargas, a 36-year-old left-hander, can become a free agent after the World Series unless his $8 million club option for 2020 is exercised. Wheeler can go free this fall but Syndergaard is far more valuable – he can’t become a free agent until after the 2021 season. Jacob deGrom, Wheeler and Steven Matz got the victories earlier in the Mets’ streak. New York starting pitchers had not won four straight games since Robert Gsellman, Matt Harvey, Seth Lugo and Rafael Montero in September 2017. New York led 8-3 in the ninth before Bryan Reynolds had a two-run homer off Tyler Bashlor and Jose Osuna hit a two-run drive against Edwin Diaz, who got the next two outs for his 23rd save in 27 chances. Archer (3-8) allowed five hits and four walks in five innings, raising his ERA to 5.58. He is 0-3 in his last nine starts, 0-4 on the road this season and has allowed 25 home runs, second in the major leagues to 28 off Houston ace Justin Verlander. Archer is 28-47 since the start of 2016 after going 32-32 in his first four seasons. He threw 48 pitches in the first, falling behind when Conforto hit an opposite-field drive to left and reached 20 homers for the third straight season. Todd Frazier, J.D. Davis and Amed Rosario had RBI singles, and Aaron Altherr added a sacrifice fly. The inning was prolonged when third baseman Jung Ho Kang failed to catch Archer’s throw on a bunt. Altherr entered as a pinch hitter for Jeff McNeil, who was hit on the right shin by a pitch earlier in the inning. Jacob Stallings hit a solo homer for the Pirates, who closed to 6-3 in the fifth inning but were hurt by a sloppy game that included three errors and three unearned runs. Stallings appeared to lose track of outs while running the bases in the fourth, possibly costing a run; Osuna dropped a foul pop near first for an error; reliever Francisco Liriano failed to cover first on Robinson Cano’s rounder to the right side, leading to an usual 3-6-4 double play; and two-time Gold Glove Starling Marte was charged with an error for failing to catch Conforto’s flyout in what became a two-run sixth.
