MLB:
The Los Angeles Dodgers are still alive in the NL Championship Series after snapping out of their hitting funk while getting an outstanding performance from six relievers.
Chris Taylor slammed three home runs and drove in six as the Dodgers clobbered the Braves, 11-2 in Game 5, sending the series back to Atlanta. Taylor belted two-run homers in the second and fifth innings before delivering a solo shot. He overshadowed teammate AJ Pollock, who provided a solo shot and a three-run blast.
Taylor had four of the Dodgers’ 17 hits, while Pollock, Trea Turner and Cody Bellinger had three apiece.
The LA bullpen limited Atlanta to three runs while striking out nine over 8 1/3 innings. Dodgers relievers allowed their team to rebound after starter Joe Kelly left with an injury in the first inning, shortly after giving up a two-run homer to Freddie Freeman.
Losing pitcher Max Fried was lifted with two out in the fifth, charged with five runs and eight hits.
Game 6 is Saturday in Atlanta.
Braves slugger Jorge Soler struck out as a pinch-hitter after being cleared for COVID-19.
Dodgers infielder Justin Turner is done for the season following a hamstring injury sustained in Wednesday’s loss.
It will be Luis Garcia starting for the Astros against Boston’s Nathan Eovaldi in Game 6 of the AL Championship Series on Friday.
Astros manager Dusty Baker announced his pitching selection Thursday afternoon as his team holds a three-games-to-two lead in the series. García started Game 2 and gave up a grand slam in the first inning before leaving with no outs in the second because of discomfort in his right knee.
NBA:
The Atlanta Hawks have begun their season in much the same manner they ended the previous regular season.
Cam Reddish scored 20 points and Trae Young added 19 in the Hawks’ 113-87 rout of Luka Doncic and the Mavericks. Atlanta added to a seven-point, halftime lead by outscoring Dallas, 35-20 in the third quarter. Young scored 12 points and dished out nine assists in the decisive period.
Reddish led a stellar effort from the deep Hawks bench, which contributed 44 points.
Doncic was held to 18 points on 6-of-17 shooting, to go along with 11 rebounds and seven assists.
Checking out the rest of the NBA action:
Tyler Herro scored 27 points in 24 minutes off the bench as the Heat blew out the Bucks, 137-95. Miami took control for good by outscoring the defending NBA champs, 40-17 in the first quarter. Bam Adebayo provided 20 points and 13 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler chipped in 21 points.
Stephen Curry hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 56.8 seconds remaining as part of his 45-point performance in the Warriors' 115-113 triumph over the Clippers. Damion Lee hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 5:55 remaining and scored 11 points off the bench for Golden State. Paul George had 29 points, 11 rebounds and six assists in the Clippers’ season opener.
The NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team team is actually a 76-man roster following a tie in the voting.
The list of newcomers announced Thursday include Dominique Wilkins and Bob McAdoo, who were curiously left off the top-50 team 25 years ago.
The other newcomers announced on Thursday are Dennis Rodman, Ray Allen, Dwyane Wade, Jason Kidd, Kobe Bryant, Gary Payton and Paul Pierce, along with Stephen Curry, Reggie Miller, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.
Chinese broadcaster and NBA partner Tencent is not showing current or archived Boston Celtics games on its platforms, in apparent response to comments that Celtics center Enes Kanter made to advocate Tibetan independence.
Kanter, as part of a series of social media posts, also called Chinese President Xi Jinping a “dictator.”
Kanter was wearing shoes emblazoned with the words “Free Tibet” during Wednesday night’s game.
It’s not immediately clear how long Tencent’s plans to not air the Celtics would last.
NFL:
The Cleveland Browns put together just enough offense with quarterback Baker Mayfield and running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt out with calf injuries.
Third-string back D’Ernest Johnson rushed for 146 yards in guiding the Browns’ offense in a 17-14 victory over Denver. Johnson scored on a 4-yard run in the first half and picked up 52 yards on seven carries as the Browns chewed up the final 5:17.
Case Keenum threw for a TD and was 21 of 33 for 199 yards in his first start in two years.
Denver quarterback Teddy Bridgewater threw a pair of TD passes and gutted it out while playing with foot and quadriceps injuries. He finished 23 of 33 for 187 yards with one interception.
The Broncos finished the game without linebacker Von Miller because of a sprained ankle.
The Browns improved to 4-3, while the Broncos dropped their fourth in a row since a 3-0 start.
The Green Bay Packers have signed veteran outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus in hopes of boosting not only their pass rush but their championship hopes.
A first-round pick by the Houston Texans in 2012, Mercilus had 57 sacks in nine-plus seasons. He has three sacks this season, but only one season of eight-plus sacks.
The Texans released the 31-year-old this week.
Elsewhere around the NFL:
Wide receiver/return specialist Andre Roberts signed with the Chargers after being released earlier this week by the Texans. Roberts is in his 11th season and is one of the league’s top kick and punt returns.
Former Cowboys offensive lineman Brandon Knight says he’s taking a break from football to address his mental health. Knight went from the Cowboys to Baltimore via waivers this week, but he did not report to the Ravens.
A Congressional committee is seeking documents and information from the NFL regarding the investigation into the Washington Football Team and how the league handled it. The House Committee on Oversight and Reform said today it sent a letter to Commissioner Roger Goodell requesting by Nov. 4 all documents and communication about the probe into the workplace culture within the team. Lawyers representing 40 former employees of the Washington Football Team have urged the league to immediately release the full findings of the investigation.
NHL:
The Florida Panthers are 4-0 for the first time in team history.
Sam Bennett scored the go-ahead goal and Sergei Bobrovsky recorded his 300th NHL win as the Panthers dumped the Avalanche, 4-1. Bennett’s power-play goal put the Panthers ahead 2-1 midway through the second period.
Anton Lundell had a goal and an assist for Florida, which also received goals from Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart.
Jesperi Kotkaniemi scored his first goal for Carolina in his return to Montreal, helping the Hurricanes beat the winless Canadiens, 4-1. Sebastian Aho had two goals and an assist against the Habs, who are 0-5 just months after reaching the Stanley Cup Final.
Daniel Sprong set up the Capitals’ first goal and scored on a second-period breakaway to lead a 4-1 victory over the Devils. Evgeny Kuznetsov scored for the third time in two games for Washington, which also received goals from Anthony Mantha and Dmitry Orlov in improving to 3-0-1.
The Blue Jackets pulled out a 3-2 win over the Islanders on Patrik Laine’s goal 1:49 into overtime. Elvis Merzlikins made 28 saves as Columbus improved to 3-1.
Alexis Lafrenière furnished the tiebreaking goal with 9:07 remaining in the third period of the Rangers’ 3-1 verdict over the Predators. Filip Chytil and Barclay Goodrow also scored and Igor Shesterkin made 28 saves in New York’s third win in a row.
The Flames blanked the Red Wings, 3-0 as Jacob Markstrom made 33 saves in his ninth career shutout. Erik Gudbranson set up second-period goals by Elias Lindholm and Andrew Mangiapane before Matthew Tkachuk pushed a shot into an empty net.
Jason Dickinson, Tanner Pearson and Brock Boeser each scored their first goals of the season to help the Canucks defeat the winless Blackhawks, 4-1. Thatcher Demko made 29 saves and Conor Garland added an empty-netter with 1:02 left to secure Vancouver’s first victory in four games.
Logan Couture and Kevin Labanc scored in the second period of the Sharks’ 2-1 win over the Senators. James Reimer finished with 30 saves for the 3-0 Sharks.
The Jets got their first win of the season as Kyle Connor scored twice and added an assist in a 5-1 downing of the Ducks. Pierre-Luc Dubois had a goal and assist as Winnipeg won while top forwards Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele were in COVID-19 protocol.
Connor McDavid went over the 200-goal threshold for his career by scoring twice in Edmonton's 5-1 thumping of the Coyotes. Zach Hyman also tallied twice for the 4-0 Oilers.
NHL:
Devils forward Jack Hughes is sidelined indefinitely with a dislocated left shoulder suffered in Tuesday’s game against Seattle.
The Devils say the top pick in the 2019 NHL draft has begun physical therapy and will not need surgery at this time.
The team says Hughes will be re-evaluated next week.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
SMU has continued its perfect start to the season.
Tanner Mordecai leads the nation with 29 touchdown passes after tossing three more to lead the 21st-ranked Mustangs to a 55-26 romp over Tulane. Mordecai had 300 of his career-high 427 yards by halftime.
The Mustangs are a victory away from their second 8-0 start in the past three seasons as they get ready to play three of the next four games on the road, a stretch that ends with a trip to No. 2 Cincinnati.
The American Athletic Conference will add UAB, Texas-San Antonio, Rice, North Texas, Charlotte and Florida Atlantic to the league.
The AAC is replacing three schools that are scheduled to depart for the Big 12 Conference and is growing to 14 teams.
The additions all come from Conference USA, leaving that league both searching for new members and trying to fend off other poachers. The Sun Belt has said it is interested in expanding beyond its current 10 football members and some of C-USA’s remaining eight schools would be geographic fits.
PGA:
Japanese golfer Hiroshi Iwata topped the leaderboard heading into the second round of the PGA’s Zozo Championship.
Iwata fired a 7-unduer 63 that gives him a one-stroke lead over Joaquin Niemann and 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama on the Narashino Country Club course.
Matt Wallace is two strokes back and one ahead of Brendan Steele.
LPGA:
Jin Young Ko missed extending an LPGA Tour scoring record in the rain while her South Korean compatriots packed the first-round leaderboard of the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea.
Ko had 14 straight rounds in the 60s. That tied her with Annika Sorenstam and So Yeon Ryu for the most in tour history. But Ko finished with a 1-under 71 after a birdie on the 18th hole at LPGA International Busan. Ko was seven strokes behind leader Na Rin An’s 64.
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