MLB:
The National League East and West races are a little closer this morning following the Milwaukee Brewers' win at San Francisco, coupled with the Los Angeles Dodgers' victory over Atlanta.
Corbin Burnes furnished an RBI single and held San Francisco to a run and four hits over six innings of the Brewers' 3-1 verdict over the Giants. Burnes struck out nine and walked none while lowering his ERA to 2.27.
Omar Narvaez singled home a run and scored a run to help the Brewers hand the Giants their third loss in four games since a three-game sweep of the Mets last week.
The Dodgers homered four times while building a 5-0 lead by the third inning of a 5-3 win over the Braves. Max Muncy, Will Smith and Mookie Betts hit solo shots before Corey Seager added a two-run blast, all off Drew Smyly.
Julio Urias picked up his major league-leading 15th win with six strong innings, blanking Atlanta until Jorge Soler and Freddie Freeman hit consecutive homers in the sixth.
The Giants' lead in the NL West is down to 1 1/2 games over the Dodgers. The Braves find themselves just 3 1/2 games in front of Philadelphia in the NL East. Milwaukee stretched its lead in the NL Central to 9 1/2 games over Cincinnati.
Checking out Monday’s other major league action:
Bryce Harper hit a first-inning homer and the Phillies earned their fourth straight win by outscoring the Nationals, 7-4. Harper went 2 for 5 and is hitting .404 with seven homers and 12 RBIs in 16 games against his former team this season. Brad Miller also went deep and Ronald Torreyes added a bases-loaded triple for Philadelphia, which improved to 7-1 at Nationals Park this season.
Jon Lester allowed one hit while pitching into the seventh inning of the Cardinals’ 3-1 win over the Reds. Lester retired 16 consecutive batters after giving up his only hit, Kyle Farmer’s homer leading off the second. Paul Goldschmidt put the Redbirds ahead to stay with a two-run shot in the first inning before the Cards closed within 2 1/2 games of the second NL wild card.
San Diego is within a half-game of the Reds for the second NL wild card after Fernando Tatis Jr. delivered a homer, double and three RBIs in the Padres' 7-5 win over the Diamondbacks. Chris Paddack gave up one run over 4 2/3 innings in his return from the injured list, his first outing since July 27. D-backs rookie starter Tyler Gilbert was hit hard by the Padres a little more than two weeks after he threw a no-hitter against them.
Brandon Lowe hit his career-high 31st homer on the first pitch from Boston starter Nick Pivetta, igniting the Rays’ 6-1 win over the Red Sox. Wander Franco extended his on-base streak 30 games with a two-run single. Luis Patiño pitched neatly into the sixth inning, allowing a Bobby Dalbec homer and little else as Tampa Bay earned its eighth consecutive win, putting the Rays 35 games over .500 for the first time in franchise history.
Tampa Bay's lead in the AL East is up to seven games following the Yankees' 8-7 loss to the Angels. Shohei Ohtani banged out his major league-leading 42nd home run and Juan Lagares singled home the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning. Lagares also hit an RBI triple and Jack Mayfield launched a grand slam as Los Angeles dealt New York its third straight loss since a 13-game winning streak.
Houston’s 4-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners puts the Astros six games ahead of second-place Oakland in the AL West. The Astros trailed 3-2 until Kyle Tucker and Jake Meyers hit RBI singles in the eighth inning. Tucker had two RBIs to help the Astros overcome homers by Jose Marmolejos and Dylan Moore.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. drove in four runs with his 37th and 38th homers to support Robbie Ray as the Blue Jays dumped the Orioles, 7-3. Ray was reached for two runs and just four hits while fanning 10 over seven innings to win for the first time in his last six starts. The Orioles have dropped four straight and 23 of their last 25.
A.J. Alexy won his major league debut pitching one-hit ball through five shutout innings of the Rangers’ 4-3 victory against the Rockies. Alexy allowed only a second-inning double to C.J. Cron and three walks. DJ Peters, Leody Taveras and Nick Solak homered in consecutive innings for Texas.
Bailey Ober pitched six solid innings and Josh Donaldson slammed a two-run homer to help the Twins beat the Tigers, 3-2. Ober struck out five while holding the Tigers to two runs on five hits. Losing pitcher Casey Mize gave up three runs on five hits , including Donaldson’s 21st home run of the season.
Boston left-hander Martín Pérez and right-hander Matt Barnes have become the latest Boston Red Sox players impacted by COVID-19.
Both pitchers were put on the COVID-19 injured list before Monday’s game at Tampa Bay.
Infielder-outfielder Kiké Hernández and infielder Christian Arroyo both tested positive last week and were placed on the COVID-19 injured list on Friday. Manager Alex Cora said Hernández and Arroyo are both feeling OK.
The team is going through the MLB coronavirus protocols that include contact tracing and testing.
Also around the majors:
Giants starter Alex Wood tested positive for COVID-19 and is experiencing symptoms. Manager Gabe Kapler says Wood isn’t feeling well as he deals with headaches and a sore throat. Right-hander Johnny Cueto was scratched from his scheduled start for San Francisco on Monday against Milwaukee because of cold and flu-like symptoms. Cueto was put on the COVID-related injured list, but there’s a chance he could start on Tuesday after testing negative.
Angels two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani will not take the mound for Tuesday’s game against the Yankees in order to give his right hand extra time to heal. Angels manager Joe Maddon also said outfielder Mike Trout is experiencing soreness in his right calf after running the bases on Saturday. Maddon says discussions about shutting down the three-time AL MVP for the rest of the season are rapidly approaching.
Indians catcher Wilson Ramos will require season-ending surgery for torn ligaments in his left knee. Ramos tore his ACL and MCL in the seventh inning of Cleveland’s win over the Red Sox on Sunday.
TENNIS-US OPEN:
Naomi Osaka is off to a good start as she tries to repeat as the U.S. Open women’s champion.
Osaka struggled early before posting a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Marie Bouzkova. It was tied at 4-all in the first set until Osaka won the next seven games to take a 5-0 lead in the second set.
Helped by a serve that reached 120 mph, Osaka saved all eight break points she faced and accumulated a 34-10 edge in total winners.
Osaka didn’t play at Wimbledon after pulling out of the French Open following the first round for mental health reasons.
Simona Halep and Garbiñe Muguruza have pulled out tough two-set victories in the opening round.
The 12th-seeded Halep defeated Camila Giorgi, 6-4, 7-6 before the No. 9 Muguruza ousted Donna Vekic, 7-6, 7-6.
In other Day 1 action at the Open:
Second seed Aryna Sabalenka lost a second-set tiebreaker before beating Nina Stojanovic, 6-0 in the third.
No. 16 Angelique Kerber and No. 21 Coco Gauff each dropped their opening set before advancing. Gauff led 5-3 in the first before losing the next six games.
loane Stephens needed 2 hours, 10 minutes to edge Madison Keys in a rematch of her victory in the 2017 final.
Three-time runner-up Victoria Azarenka has moved into the second round, winning the final 11 games of a 6-4, 6-0 victory.
Fifth seed Elina Svitolina and No. 8 seed Barbora Krejcikova stormed into the second round with straight-sets victories.
Carla Suárez Navarro was eliminated, a year after revealing she had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Suárez Navarro was beaten by No. 26 seed Danielle Collins 6-2, 6-4.
A 20-year-old wild-card entry from Atlanta has tied the women’s U.S. Open serve speed record of 129 mph set by Venus Williams 14 years ago. Alycia Parks hit that mark in her first career Grand Slam main-draw match, a 6-3, 7-5 first-round loss to Olga Danilovic on Court 13.
Stefanos Tsitsipas withstood a tough test from 2012 U.S. Open champion Andy Murray, emerging with a 2-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory after nearly five hours. The No. 3 seed from Greece is among the group of young challengers to top-ranked Novak Djokovic.
No. 5 Andrey Rublev and No. 11 Diego Schwartzman advanced to the men’s second round in straight sets.
Brandon Nakashima knocked out fellow American and 19th seed John Isner in straight sets.
Other first-round winners on the men’s side include eighth seed Casper Ruud and 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov.
Australian Open runner-up Jennifer Brady has withdrawn from the tournament due to an injury. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga also withdrew.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
New Texas coach Steve Sarkisian says his starting quarterback for this weekend’s season opener against No. 23 Louisiana-Lafayette will be Hudson Card, who has one career pass completion.
While Card will get the start, Sarkisian said that Casey Thompson will also be in the mix for the No 21 Longhorns.
Card has been wowing his teammates and coaches with his throws in practice since last season. Thompson’s electric performance in the Alamo Bowl, however, had Texas fans thinking they’d found their future quarterback.
Elsewhere in college football:
Second-ranked Oklahoma and Tulane have announced that their season opener this weekend has been moved from New Orleans to Norman, Oklahoma, in the fallout from Hurricane Ida. The Sooners said conditions in New Orleans were not favorable to host a game this weekend.
Southeastern Conference teams that don’t have enough available players will have to forfeit games this year.
The league released its policy on dealing with COVID-19 issues during the 2021-22 season in all sports on Monday. Unlike last season, the short-handed team will have to forfeit and will take a loss in the SEC standings for regular season games. The scheduled opponent will be credited with a win.
NFL:
The displaced New Orleans Saints have begun to practice in Arlington, Texas, after Louisiana was hit hard by Hurricane Ida.
Saints players and staff, along with about 120 family members, relocated to North Texas in advance of the storm.
Coach Sean Payton says the Saints will practice through Wednesday at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. That is before a previously planned break before the start of the regular season.
The Indianapolis Colts have put starting quarterback Carson Wentz, starting center Ryan Kelly and starting receiver Zach Pascal on the reserve/COVID-19 list. They join two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Eric Fisher on the list after Fisher tested positive last week.
Three-time All-Pro Quenton Nelson came off the list Monday, four days after he was deemed a close contact to Fisher.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
Fully vaccinated players will be required to get tested for COVID-19 weekly instead of every 14 days as part of the revised protocols for the regular season agreed upon by the NFL and NFLPA. The weekly testing applies also for fully vaccinated Tier 1 and 2 staff. There’s an option for a second test for those who want it, according to a memo sent to clubs and obtained by The Associated Press on Monday.
49ers rookie quarterback Trey Lance will miss one week of practice after injuring a finger on his throwing hand during Sunday’s exhibition game. Lance remained in the game after the hit but got more tests done Monday that coach Kyle Shanahan said showed a “small chip fracture” in the finger. Shanahan said Lance is unable to take snaps and needs to rest for about seven days before he can return.
Knee surgery is scheduled for Vikings on-the-rise tight end Irv Smith Jr., who is expected to be sidelined at least a few games. Coach Mike Zimmer says the injury to Smith’s meniscus occurred sometime Friday during Minnesota’s exhibition game at Kansas City.
The Seahawks added depth to their biggest position of concern, acquiring cornerback Sidney Jones IV from the Jaguars. Seattle is expected to send Jacksonville a late-round draft pick in the deal.
Lions backup quarterback Tim Boyle broke his right thumb in the team’s preseason finale and needs surgery. Lions coach Dan Campbell says the team is hopeful it is not a season-ending injury.
The Giants have acquired center Billy Price from the Bengals for defensive lineman B.J. Hill. Neither player was projected to be a starter this season.
The Bills have dealt defensive end Darryl Johnson to the Panthers for a sixth-round pick in the 2022 draft. Johnson proved to be the odd-man out at a pass-rushing position after Buffalo drafted Greg Rousseau and Carlos Basham.
HOCKEY-WOMEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP:
The United States women’s hockey team has advanced to the gold medal game at the world championship for the 20th time.
Alex Carpenter and Abbey Murphy scored in the second period of the Americans’ 3-0 shutout of Finland. The five-time defending champions will take on Canada, which beat the U.S., 5-1 in group play last week.
The Canadians reached the title game with a 4-0 victory over Switzerland.
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