Update on the latest sports
APMLB-SCHEDULE
Phils take opener
UNDATED (AP) — The New York Yankees lost three more players to COVID-19 testing on Friday before dropping the opener of their series with Boston.
Eduardo Rodriguez struck out eight while holding the Yankees to two hits over 5 2/3 innings of the Red Sox’s 4-0 shutout. Tanner Houck pitched the final three innings, closing out Boston’s three-hitter for his first big league save.
Christian Arroyo belted a two-run homer and J.D. Martinez delivered a solo shot as the Bosox beat the Yanks for the eighth straight time.
The game began hours after outfielder Aaron Judge, third baseman Gio Urshela (ur-SHEH’-luh) and catcher Kyle Higashioka were added to the COVID-19 injured list. They joined pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga (loh-AY’-sih-gah), Nestor Cortes Jr. and Wandy Peralta on the list.
In other major league action on Friday:
— The Astros are 5-0 versus the White Sox this season after winning their latest battle of division leaders, 7-1 in Chicago. Lance McCullers allowed a triple and a double on his first two pitches before settling in, allowing no other hits over seven innings to improve to 7-2. Michael Brantley homered and Myles Straw drove in three runs as the Astros improved to a big league-best 43-22 against teams with a .500 or better record.
— The Athletics pulled out a dramatic 5-4 win over the Indians on Jed Lowrie’s two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Mitch Moreland homered for Oakland and Matt Olson and Andrus each had three hits, but the A’s were held silent offensively after building an early 3-0 lead. Bradley Zimmer hit a go-ahead homer in the seventh for Cleveland, which had its three-game winning streak snapped.
— Mitch Haniger had three hits, including a two-run homer that helped the Mariners top the Angels by a 6-5 margin. Flexen is 9-3 after a seven-inning performance, allowing only one run on six hits with two strikeouts. Kyle Seager also went deep for the Mariners, who blew most of a 6-2 lead in the ninth before winning for the fourth time in five games.
— All-Star Game MVP Vladimir Guerrero Jr. banged out his 29th and 30th home runs as the Blue Jays buried the Rangers, 10-2. Teoscar (tay-AHS’-kur) Hernández, Marcus Semien and Randal Grichuk (GRIH’-chuhk) added third-inning homers to back Robbie Ray, who held Texas scoreless over 6 2/3s. Bo Bichette, had two RBI singles and went 2-of-5.
— Austin Meadows singled home the tiebreaking run in the 10th inning to send the Rays past the Braves, 7-6. The Rays tied the game at 6-6 in the eighth with two runs off Chris Martin. Freddie Freeman had four hits, including a two-run homer in the fifth.
— The Royals hammered the Orioles, 9-2 behind four RBIs from Nicky Lopez. He cleared the bases in the second inning with a two-run single and again in the seventh with a two-run double. Whit Merrifield went 4 for 5 with three RBIs for Kansas City.
— The Giants were 7-2 winners at St. Louis as Mike Yastrzemski (ya-STREHM’-skee) hit a pair of home runs and Logan Webb pitched four strong innings as a spot starter. Webb was a last-minute starter for the Giants after Kevin Gausman was placed on the Family Medical Emergency List. LaMonte (lah-MAHNT’) Wade Jr.’ hit a three-run home run off Adam Wainwright to break a 1-1 tie in the fifth.
— Jake Cronenworth drove in four runs during his first career cycle and the Padres set a franchise scoring record in a 24-8 blowout of the Nationals. Wil Myers had two homers including a grand slam as part of San Diego’s 22-hit assault. Tommy Pham was 4-for-6 with a homer, two RBis and five runs scored.
— Julio Urías (oo-REE’-uhs) became the first 12-game winner with help from Will Smith in the Dodgers’ 10-4 romp over the Rockies. Smith drove in four runs in support of Urias, who was reached for four runs and seven hits over 5 2/3 innings. The Rockies were without manager Bud Black, first base coach Ron Gideon, scheduled starting pitcher Antonio Senzatela and three other players due to contact tracing.
— Willie Adames (ah-DAH’-mihs) hit a two-run homer and a two-run double as the Brewers thumped the Reds, 11-6. Luis Urias (oo-REE’-uhs) hit a solo homer to spark Milwaukee’s five-run eighth, shortly before Adames doubled home a pair. Avisail (av-ih-sah-EEL’) Garcia also homered for the Brewers, whose lead in the NL Central is up to five games over Cincinnati.
— Kyle Hendricks won his 10th consecutive decision by limiting the Diamondbacks to a run and six hits over six innings of the Cubs’ 5-1 victory. Hendricks picked up his 12th win about an hour after Dodgers ace Julio Urias became the year’s first 12-game winner. Pinch hitter Jason Heyward hit a two-run homer for the Cubs, who also received solo shots from All-Star Kris Bryant Patrick Wisdom.
— Bryan Reynolds homered and Adam Frazier hit a two-run single to lead the last-place Pirates to their third victory in five meetings with the Mets this season, 4-1. The benches cleared after Mets starter Marcus Stroman jumped high in the air when John Nogowski lined out to first base to end the inning. The NL East leaders collected just three hits and saw their lead in the NL East cut to three games over Philadelphia.
— The Phillies won for the eighth time in 11 games as Travis Jankowski drove in four runs to lead a 5-2 win against Miami in the opener of a doubleheader. Jankowski’s three-run double in the first inning put the Phillies ahead to stay. Matt Moore struck out nine while pitching into the fifth inning, allowing two runs and six hits.
— The Marlins dominated Game 2 as Jesús Aguilar (AG;-yoo-lahr) and Starling Marte provided their runs in a 7-0 rout of the Phillies. Aguilar homered and drove in four runs, while Marte went deep with three RBIs. Winning pitcher Jordan Holloway didn’t allow a hit in five innings of relief after being recalled from the minors.
— The Tigers-Twins doubleheader in Detroit has been postponed due to rain. The first game will be made up as part of a split doubleheader on Saturday, with the second game being made up as an afternoon game on Monday, Aug. 30.
MLB-NEWS
Nats’ Castro placed on leave
UNDATED (AP) — Nationals infielder Starlin Castro has been placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball under its domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.
The administrative leave can last up to seven days but has been extended for players under the policy in the past while MLB investigates an allegation. Castro was placed on the restricted list June 16 due to what manager Dave Martinez at the time said were “family matters.”
In other MLB news:
— Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor (lihn-DOHR’) left Friday’s game against the Pirates in the fifth inning with soreness on his right side. Lindor winced after grounding out to second base. He took a few steps out of the batter’s box but then peeled off toward the Mets’ dugout on the first base side.
— Giants minor leaguer Drew Robinson is retiring and will join the club’s front office as a mental health advocate. Robinson, survived a suicide attempt last year that took his right eye and has been outspoken about his ordeal and positive strides.
NFL-NEWS
NFL’s Richard Sherman ‘deeply remorseful’ after arrest
UNDATED (AP) — NFL free-agent defensive back Richard Sherman said Friday that he is “deeply remorseful” following his arrest on accusations of drunkenly crashing his SUV in a construction zone and trying to break in to his in-laws’ suburban Seattle home this week.
Sherman was arraigned on five criminal charges that also include reckless endangerment of road workers and malicious mischief.
Police reports say Sherman was belligerent, had been drinking heavily and spoke of killing himself when he left his home in the Seattle suburb of Maple Valley late Tuesday.
In other NFL news:
—New Orleans Saints starting defensive tackle David Onyemata has been given a six-game suspension after being notified by the NFL he tested positive for a banned substance. Onyemata says in a post on a verified social media account that he suspects the test result stemmed from his use of a supplement that he mistakenly believed was permissible.
— Wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. has announced his retirement after 14 NFL seasons. Ginn played 193 regular-season games with six teams, grabbing 412 passes for 5,742 yards and 33 touchdowns. He also returned four punts and three kickoffs for touchdowns.
GOLF-BRITISH OPEN
Oosthuizen leads Open
SANDWICH, England (AP) — A record-setting start has kept Louis Oosthuizen (OOST’-hay-zehn) atop the leaderboard through two rounds of the British Open at Royal St. George’s.
Oosthuizen followed his opening-round 64 with a 5-under 65 that leaves him 11 under, the best 36-hole total in British Open history. He shrugged off his first bogey of the week to take a two-stroke lead over former PGA champion Collin Morikawa.
Oosthuizen broke away from a three-way tie with a birdie-birdie-eagle run from the 12th hole.
Jordan Spieth (speeth) is three off the lead following a 67 as he seeks his fourth major championship. Also lurking is two-time major champion Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world, who shot 65.
Four-time major champion Rory McIlroy made the cut. He shot back-to-back even-par rounds, leaving him 11 strokes behind Oosthuizen.
NBA-NEWS
Lillard wants Blazers to be more competitive
UNDATED (AP) — Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard said Friday he has not requested a trade but wants the team to be more urgent in its pursuit of a championship.
The All-Star guard added that he expects to be with the Blazers next season, but made clear that he feels it needs to be with more talent around him.
Lillard praised Portland as a great city with great fans and said there is pride that the organization is a perennial playoff team.
Also around the NBA:
— A person familiar with the process says the Wizards are offering their head coaching job to Wes Unseld Jr. A deal with the Nuggets associate head coach will bring him back to the organization that his father led to an NBA championship. Unself would replace Scott Brooks, who was fired after three playoff appearances in five seasons.
NHL-RED WINGS-ISLANDERS TRADE
Isles get cap relief, deal Leddy to Wings
UNIONDALE, N.Y. (AP) — The New York Islanders have gained some much-needed salary cap space by sending defenseman Nick Leddy to the Detroit Red Wings for forward Richard Panik.
Leddy has one year left on a contract that has an average annual salary of $5.5 million a season. The deal gives New York more room to sign its three key free agents.
The Red Wings are picking up 50% of Panik’s salary.
The Islanders have Adam Pelech (PEH’-lehk), Ilya Sorokin (sah-ROH’-kihn) and Anthony Beauvillier (boh-VIH’-lee-ay) as restricted free agents. Casey Cizikas (sih-ZEE’-kihs) and Kyle Palmieri are their top unrestricted free agents.
OLYMPICS-NEWS
Love is latest to withdraw from Olympics
UNDATED (AP) — Kevin Love has withdrawn from the Olympics because of a calf injury, forcing the U.S. men’s basketball team to replace two players on its roster.
A person with knowledge of the details says veteran center JaVale McGee and Spurs guard Keldon Johnson will be added to the 12-man roster. Love’s withdrawal comes a day after the Americans announced that Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal would miss the Olympics because he was in health and safety protocols.
In other Olympics news:
— WNBA star Liz Cambage has withdrawn from Australia’s Olympic women’s basketball team because of the anxiety she’s been feeling about living and competing inside the restrictive bubble in place for the Tokyo Games. Cambage says the prospect of having no friends, no family, no fans and no support system outside of the squad during the Games is “terrifying for me.”
— Nneka Ogwumike (ah-GWOO’-mih-kay) and Elizabeth Williams have filed appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in a last-ditch effort to play for Nigeria in the upcoming Olympics, according to two people familiar with the situation. The players were notified earlier this week by FIBA (FEE’-bah) that their petition to play for the African nation had been denied because they played for the U.S. national program for too long.
— Officials are searching for a Ugandan athlete who went missing in western Japan. The case is raising questions over Japanese organizers’ oversight of Olympic participants amid local coronavirus concerns. The missing 20-year-old, was training as part of the nine-member Ugandan team. Teammates realized he was absent Friday when his saliva test sample wasn’t delivered and they found his hotel room empty.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-OBIT-ILLINOIS ROUNDTREE
Ex-Illini star Roundtree, paralyzed in accident, dies at 23
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Former Illinois football star Bobby Roundtree has died at the age of 23. Roundtree was partially paralyzed by a spinal cord injury he suffered in a swimming accident two years ago in his native Florida.
Roundtree played two seasons for the Illini, starting as a freshman and becoming one of the top pass rushers in the Big Ten as a sophomore in 2018. He had 11.5 sacks in his two seasons.
