Update on the latest sports
APOLYMPICS
Lee wins all-around gymnastics gold for U.S.
TOKYO (AP) — Sunisa Lee became the fifth straight American woman gymnast to claim the Olympic title in the women’s all-around. She edged Rebeca Andrade of Brazil in an entertaining and hotly contested final while Simone Biles watched from the stands.
Lee’s total of 57.433 points was just enough to top Andrade. The Brazilian earned the first gymnastics all-around medal by a Latin American athlete but missed out on gold when she stepped out of bounds twice during her floor routine.
Russian gymnast Angelina Melnikova earned bronze two days after leading ROC to gold in the team final.
In other Olympic action:
— American swimmer Caeleb Dressel claimed the first individual Olympic gold medal of his career. Dressel held off the defending Olympic champion, Australia’s Kyle Chalmers, in the 100-meter freestyle with a furious sprint to the wall. The winning time was an Olympic record of 47.02 seconds.
— A few hours later, Dressel returned to the pool to tie an Olympic record in preliminaries of the 100-meter butterfly. Dressel touched first in the last of eight heats with a time of 50.39 seconds, equaling the mark set by Singapore’s Joseph Schooling when he won gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
— China surprised the U.S. and Australia with a world-record performance in the women’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay.
— After anchoring the United States to a silver medal in the 4×200 free relay during the morning session, Katie Ledecky returned to the Tokyo Aquatics Centre in the evening to post the top qualifying time in the 800-meter freestyle — 8 minutes, 15.67 seconds. Another American, Katie Grimes, was the second-fastest qualifier. Ledecky will be going for her second gold medal of these games and sixth individual medal overall, which would be the most of any female swimmer.
— Allison Schmitt has entered rare territory with her swim in the women’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay. Schmitt became only the fourth American female swimmer to win 10 Olympic medals in her career. She earned a silver for her leadoff leg at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre.
— Bobby Finke of the United States captured gold in the debut of the men’s 800-meter swimming freestyle event.
— The U.S. women’s volleyball team won its third straight match at the Olympics and is assured of a spot in the quarterfinals. The Americans beat Turkey in their third pool play match to join Italy at 3-0 in Pool B.
— Novak Djokovic is into the medal rounds of the Olympic tennis tournament. The top-ranked Serb rolled past home favorite Kei Nishikori of Japan 6-2, 6-0 to reach the semifinals and extend his bid for a Golden Slam. Steffi Graf in 1988 is the only tennis player to achieve the Golden Slam by winning all four Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic gold in the same calendar year.
— American world-champion pole vaulter Sam Kendricks will miss the Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19. Kendricks’ dad posted on social media that his son had no symptoms but was informed while in Tokyo that he tested positive and was out of the competition.
Coming up on Friday’s Olympic schedule:
— Two-time Olympic gold medalist Lilly King, who won a bronze medal in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke earlier this week, will be a gold medal contender alongside Annie Lazor in the women’s 200-meter breaststroke.
— Three-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Murphy, who won bronze this week in the men’s 100-meter backstroke, will attempt to win a second consecutive gold medal in the men’s 200-meter backstroke.
MLB-SCHEDULE
Scherzer wins in what may be his last Nationals start
UNDATED (AP) — Max Scherzer delivered a signature performance in what might be his last start for the Nationals, allowing three hits in six innings as Washington beat the Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 in the opener of a doubleheader. Yan Gomes hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the seventh inning for Washington, which is dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak that forced Wednesday night’s game at Philadelphia to be postponed. Scherzer allowed a fourth-inning homer to J.T. Realmuto while striking out five and walking three on 88 pitches. Kyle Finnegan stepped into the closer’s role and struck out two in the seventh for his first career save.
Elsewhere in the majors:
— Austin Riley concluded his big week at Citi Field by hitting a two-run homer and finishing with three RBIs, and the Atlanta Braves inched closer to the NL East-leading New York Mets with a 6-3 victory. The Braves won three games in the unusual four-day, five-game series in New York to move within four games of the Mets.
— ¬Joey Votto has set a Cincinnati Reds franchise record by homering in six consecutive games. Votto went deep again as Cincinnati beat the Chicago Cubs 7-4. The 37-year-old Votto homered six times in the four-game series at Wrigley Field, and has eight home runs over his record stretch. Votto’s 20th homer of the season was a two-run shot in the first, when he hit a fastball from Alec Mills into the center field bleachers.
—Carlos Hernandez pitched six scoreless innings, Salvador Perez homered again and the Kansas City Royals beat the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox 5-0. Perez put the Royals ahead with his 25th homer, a two-run shot in the first inning off Carlos Rodon. Kansas City won three out of four games in the series that ended with a blistering matinee. It was 95 degrees at the start of the game with a heat index of 106.
MLB-NEWS
Blue Jays get Brad Hand
UNDATED (AP) — The Toronto Blue Jays have acquired closer Brad Hand from Washington, getting some bullpen help from a skidding Nationals team that has turned into a trade-deadline seller. The 31-year-old Hand is 5-5 with a 3.59 ERA and 21 saves in 26 opportunities for the Nationals. The Blue Jays sent catcher Riley Adams to Washington. Toronto entered Thursday at 50-48, good for fourth place in the tough AL East. The Blue Jays are 4 1/2 games back of the second AL wild card.
In other deals as the trade deadline approaches:
— The Indians probably can’t catch the Chicago White Sox, so they’re helping their AL Central rival. Cleveland traded second baseman Cesar Hernandez to the first-place White Sox in return for minor league pitcher Konnor Pilkington. The White Sox lead the Indians by 8 1/2 games. They’ve been in the market for a second baseman since starter Nick Madrigal suffered a season-ending hamstring tear on June 10. In Hernandez, Chicago is getting a Gold Glove defender who can bat leadoff and drive in runs. The 31-year-old is hitting .231 in his second season with the Indians with eight home runs and 47 RBIs in 96 games.
— Reliable reliever Ryan Tepera is heading from the North Side to the South Side. The struggling Chicago Cubs traded the 33-year-old right-hander to the AL Central-leading White Sox for minor league lefty Bailey Horn, giving the Sox some bullpen help for the rest of the season and maybe the playoffs, too. It was the second trade of the day for the White Sox, who also acquired slugging second baseman Cesar Hernandez from the Cleveland Indians. Tepera is 0-2 with a 2.91 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 43 1/3 innings this season and has allowed just one home run over his last 36 appearances.
— All-Star slugger Joey Gallo’s trade to the New York Yankees from the Texas Rangers has been completed. The deal gives the heavily right-handed Yankees a much-needed powerful lefty bat. New York acquired Gallo, left-hander Joely Rodriguez and cash from the Rangers for minor league right-hander Glenn Otto and infielders Ezequiel Duran, Trevor Hauver and Josh Smith.
NBA-NEWS
NBA’s Jaxson Hayes arrested in Los Angeles police struggle
UNDATED (AP) — Los Angeles police say New Orleans Pelicans center Jaxson Hayes was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest after a struggle with officers responding to a report of a domestic dispute.
A police statement Thursday says officers found Hayes in the front yard of a home early Wednesday and ordered him to stay outside but he repeatedly tried to get in and a struggle ensued. Officers used a Taser and other force before handcuffing him.
The department says the 21-year-old was treated for unspecified injuries before being booked into jail. He was later released on bond. Police say a woman declined to cooperate with the investigation. The Pelicans say they’re working with the NBA and Hayes’ representatives to gather more information.
NHL-NEWS
Saad to Blues, Perry to Lightning: Recent champs add winners
UNDATED (AP) — The St. Louis Blues have signed forward Brandon Saad to a five-year, $22.5 million contract. Saad won the Stanley Cup with Chicago in 2013 and 2015 and is heading to his fifth NHL organization.
The two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning have also agreed to terms with Corey Perry on a two-year deal. Perry won the Cup with Anaheim in 2007. He is joining the team he lost to in the final each of the past two years. Perry was with Dallas in 2020 and Montreal this past season.
The Dallas Stars have signed two more free agents. Defenseman Jani Hakanpaa and veteran forward Michael Raffl will be with the Stars next season.
Elsewhere in the NHL:
—The back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning have signed veteran winger Corey Perry to a $2 million, two-year contract. Perry faced the Lightning in the Stanley Cup Final in each of the past two seasons. He was with the Dallas Stars in 2020 and the Montreal Canadiens this year. He has played 16 years in the NHL, his first 14 with Anaheim. He won the Cup with the Ducks in 2007.
NFL-NEWS
Falcons place Fowler on reserve/COVID-19 list
UNDATED (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons have placed defensive end-outside linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Coach Arthur Smith would not say whether Fowler tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The team previously this week placed tight end Lee Smith, offensive lineman Willie Wright, defensive tackle John Atkins and defensive end Kobe Jones on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Fowler is in his second year with the Falcons after signing a three-year contract with $29 million guaranteed. He had just three sacks with 23 tackles and one forced fumble in 14 games last season.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
—Browns center and NFLPA President JC Tretter feels the NFL is trying to shame players by urging teams to require vaccinated and unvaccinated players to wear different colored wristbands. He called the idea “nonsensical.” Tretter said it’s easy to identify who isn’t vaccinated because those choosing not to get the shots are required to wear masks and follow other protocols. Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said he didn’t want to divide his team with the wristbands.
— A person with direct knowledge of the deal says the New York Jets and quarterback Zach Wilson have agreed to terms on his four-year rookie contract. The No. 2 overall pick in the NFL draft in April missed the first two days of training camp practices while the two sides hammered out details. The deal is worth $35.15 million and includes a signing bonus of $22.9 million and a fifth-year team option.
—Washington Football President Jason Wright tells The Associated Press the organization has substantially narrowed the list of potential names for the team. He would not say how many are still being considered other than to note it’s a small list. The unveiling is expected before the 2022 NFL draft. Wright says Washington has logo renderings and other elements to go with the name possibilities.
