Update on the latest sports
APMLB-SCHEDULE
Garcia sets rookie HR record in 7-6 Rangers win over Angels
UNDATED (AP) — — Adolis Garcia set a Texas Rangers rookie record for home runs and RBIs in a 7-6 win over the Los Angeles Angels. The Rangers didn’t lead in the game until Brock Holt’s two-run double in the eighth off Jimmy Herget. Shohei Ohtani got his 99th RBI on his AL-leading eighth triple as the Angels battered around in a five-run first inning. Garcia’s two-run homer in the fifth gave him 31 homers and 90 RBIs. That broke his tie with Pete Incaviglia, who had 30 homers and 88 RBIs in his 1986 rookie season.
Elsewhere around the majors:
— Dylan Carlson homered twice, once from each side of the plate, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3. Carlson’s homers made a winner out of J.A. Happ, who entered the game 0-3 in his last five starts against the Brewers. Happ gave up 3 runs and struck out 9 in 6 1/3 innings to improve his record to 10-8. It was his longest outing since St. Louis acquired him from the Minnesota Twins on July 30. Batting from the left side, Carlson ambushed a 93-mph pitch from Milwaukee reliever Miguel Sánchez for a two-run homer to give the Cardinals a 4-3 lead in the sixth. Sánchez took the loss.
MLB-NEWS
Yankees put Voit on IL with sore left knee, recall RHP Abreu
TORONTO (AP) — The New York Yankees have placed slugger Luke Voit on the 10-day injured list with a sore left knee. New York recalled right-hander Albert Abreu from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Voit underwent knee surgery in March. He limped back to the dugout after running to first base in a pinch-hit appearance in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s 6-5 loss at Toronto.
Voit is batting .239 with 11 homers and 35 RBI in 68 games. He hit a major league-leading 22 home runs in last year’s 60-game season.
MLB-CARDINALS-WILD-CARD STARTER
Cardinals name Wainwright as NL wild-card game starter
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Shildt has named Adam Wainwright as the starter in the NL wild-card game against either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Francisco Giants.
Wainwright is 17-7 with a 3.08 ERA this season and has won 10 of his last 11 decisions. The 40-year-old righthander is no stranger to the postseason with 28 appearances throughout his career, including earning the save in the World Series clincher against the Detroit Tigers in 2006.
The Cardinals clinched the second wild-card spot earlier this week and will face either the Dodgers or Giants, whichever does not win the NL West, in the winner-take-all game next Wednesday.
NFL-SCHEDULE-JAGUARS/BENGALS
Winless Jags face Bengals on Urban Meyer’s return to Ohio
CINCINNATI (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars look for their first win when they play the Bengals tonight in Cincinnati.
The Bengals are 2-1 for the first time since 2018. Quarterback Joe Burrow is healthy and rediscovering the chemistry he had with receiver Ja’Marr Chase when they were teammates on LSU’s 2019 national championship team.
Jacksonville is trying to avoid losing its 19th consecutive game.
Former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer now coaches Jacksonville. He’s returning to his home state for the first time since making the jump to the NFL.
Meyer was a proud member of the Buckeye State long before he became the Buckeyes’ coach and led the team to the 2014 national championship. He was born in Toledo, grew up in Ashtabula (ash-tuh-BYOO’-luh) rooting for the Bengals, went to college at Cincinnati, played safety for the Bearcats and got his first coaching job at nearby Saint Xavier High School in 1985.
Now, he’s about to face a Cincinnati team filled with former Buckeyes, starting with Burrow, who ended up transferring to LSU and winning the 2019 Heisman Trophy. Cornerback Eli Apple, safety Vonn Bell, defensive end Sam Hubbard and offensive tackle Isaiah Prince also played for Meyer during his seven-year tenure at Ohio State.
NFL-NEWS-GIANTS-WILSON
Giants sign troubled tackle Isaiah Wilson to practice squad
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — The New York Giants have signed troubled tackle Isaiah Wilson to their practice squad. The move gives the former first-round draft pick another chance to overcome off-the-field issues and make it in the NFL.
Wilson was taken 29th overall in last year’s draft by the Tennessee Titans out of Georgia. He missed time with COVID-19 and legal problems and played only three snaps on offense and one on special teams.
The Titans traded him to Miami in March. Wilson was waived by the Dolphins 11 days later after showing up late for meetings and failing to show for workouts he had scheduled. He has faced numerous drug and alcohol charges in Tennessee and Georgia, including some stemming from a high-speed police chase.
Elsewhere around the majors:
— Indianapolis Colts running back Marlon Mack has requested a trade as his playing time has been reduced this season. Mack was the starter for two seasons before tearing his Achilles tendon in last season’s opener and losing the job to rookie Jonathan Taylor. He was expected to split carries with Taylor this season but instead appears to have fallen behind Nyheim Hines on Indy’s depth chart. The 25-year-old Mack produced his only 1,000-yard season in 2019.
— The Tennessee Titans already have a second replacement kicker on the roster with the first on injured reserve. Now they have a second punter. Three-time Pro Bowl punter Brett Kern was limited Wednesday with an injured right groin muscle that kept him out of Thursday’s practice. So the Titans signed punter Johnny Townsend to the roster after working out some punters. Special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman says they’ll be going day by day with this situation. Kern wound up on injured reserve last season. The Titans used two different punters before Kern returned.
NCAA-JOINT FINAL FOUR
NCAA to look into holding both Final Fours in same city
UNDATED (AP) — The NCAA is exploring the idea of holding a joint Final Four. That would mean both the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments would play their semifinals and title games in the same city on the same weekend.
There is no guarantee it will happen and the earliest it could take place is 2027. The Final Fours from 2027-31 for both tournaments will be announced next fall.
Combining the tournaments was one of the recommendations stemming from an external review of gender equity issues at the tournaments. The NCAA earlier this week said the women’s tournament can start using “March Madness” in marketing and branding this season.
SUPER BOWL-PERFORMERS
Dre, Snoop, Eminem, Blige, Lamar to perform at Super Bowl
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar will perform for the first time together on stage at the 2022 Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show.
The NFL, Pepsi and Roc Nation announced today that the five music icons will perform on Feb. 13 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The five music artists have a combined 44 Grammys. Eminem has the most with 15.
The 2022 game will be the first time the Super Bowl has been played in the Los Angeles area since 1993.
