TENNIS
Emma Navarro has eliminated former No. 1 Naomi Osaka in Wimbledon's third round. The 19th-seeded Navarro won 6-4, 6-1 at Centre Court yesterday. Navarro had never been past the second round at a Grand Slam tournament until this season. She made it to the third round at the Australian Open and the fourth round at the French Open. The 23-year-old American won the 2021 NCAA title for the University of Virginia. She prepares for matches by typing notes into her phone with mental reminders rather than tactical suggestions. Navarro will face Diana Shnaider on Friday for a berth in the fourth round.
Andy Murray is getting set to finish his Wimbledon career by playing men's doubles and mixed doubles. Although there are those who wonder whether he might really be ready to retire. The 37-year-old from Scotland is scheduled to play doubles alongside his older brother at Centre Court on Thursday. Murray also received a wild-card invitation from the All England Club on Wednesday to play mixed doubles with 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu. He pulled out of singles because of a back operation on June 22. Murray won two of his three Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon. He says he is planning to retire after the Paris Olympics, which start later this month.
MLB
Andrew Abbott took a two-hit shutout into the seventh inning and reliever Fernando Cruz got Aaron Judge to ground into a pivotal double play, pitching the Cincinnati Reds past the struggling New York Yankees 3-2. Noelvi Marte hit a two-run homer and Stuart Fairchild also connected for the Reds, who handed Carlos Rodón his fourth straight loss. They’ve won consecutive one-run games at Yankee Stadium to ensure their first series victory since June 6-9. Cincinnati was 0-4-2 in its previous six series since taking three of four games from the Cubs. New York lost for the 12th time in 16 games and fell to 0-5-1 in its last six series. Abbott allowed one run and three hits in 6 1/3 innings, improving to 5-1 in his past six starts.
James Wood singled home the go-ahead run in his third major league game, Luis García Jr. hit two homers and the Washington Nationals rallied to beat the New York Mets 7-5 on Wednesday night. Wood, Washington’s top prospect who made his debut this week, drove in Lane Thomas with a hit off Jake Diekman in the seventh, then stole his first career base moments later. He also singled and scored in the sixth, part of the Nationals’ comeback from a five-run deficit. Jacob Barnes (4-2) threw a perfect seventh in relief of Mitchell Parker to get the victory as the Nationals ended a three-game skid and won for just the second time in their last nine. The Mets fell back to .500.
Ceddanne Rafaela tripled, doubled and drove in three runs, Brayan Bello limited Miami to a run over 6 2/3 innings and the Boston Red Sox beat the Marlins 7-2 on Wednesday night. Rafael Devers and Masataka Yoshida each had two hits and two RBIs to help the Red Sox win their third straight after a three-game slide. In his first start since June 25, Bello (8-5) gave up seven hits, walked one and struck out seven. Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran and left fielder Rob Refsnyder robbed Miami’s Josh Bell of extra base hits with standout defensive plays. Duran ran and tracked down Bell’s drive at the wall in the sixth, and Refsnyder dove to catch a line drive in the eighth.
Edmundo Sosa broke a tie with a sacrifice fly in the eighth, Whit Merrifield followed with an RBI single and the Philadelphia Phillies topped the struggling Chicago Cubs 5-3. Trea Turner easily scored from third on Sosa’s 261-foot fly to put the Phillies ahead. All-Star Alec Bohm hit a two-run homer and finished with two hits as the Phillies won their third straight. Philadelphia backup catcher Rafael Marchán also hit a homer. Matt Strahm (4-1) pitched the seventh and got the win. Pete Crow-Armstrong drove in two runs with a pair of doubles for the last-place Cubs, who dropped their third straight.
Colin Rea pitched seven innings, Christian Yelich homered and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Colorado Rockies 3-0 on Wednesday night. Rea (8-2) gave up six hits while striking out four and walking none in his fourth victory in five starts. William Contreras and Brice Turang each had three hits to help the Brewers win for the eighth time in 10 games and extend their lead over St. Louis in the NL Central to seven games. Yelich hit a 446-foot home run in the first inning off a sinker from Dakota Hudson (2-12). Yelich is 7 of 14 with three home runs and nine walks in 23 career plate appearances against Hudson.
Christian Walker hit a go-ahead homer in the fourth inning and a three-run blast in the ninth — his 16th and 17th career shots at Dodger Stadium — and the Arizona Diamondbacks overcame a rough start to rout Los Angeles 12-4. Gabriel Moreno and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. added two-run homers for Arizona, down 4-1 before Diamondbacks starter Cristian Mena retired a batter in his major league debut. Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernández hit back-to-back homers in the first for the NL West-leading Dodgers. Walker went 4 for 5, falling a triple shy of the cycle, with four RBIs and three runs. He has 20 home runs this season. Arizona pounded out 16 hits.
Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz hit run-scoring singles on consecutive pitches in the 10th inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates rallied to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4. Willson Contreras’ two-run homer in the eighth off Pittsburgh's Colin Holderman tied the score 3-3. Alec Burleson’ put St. Louis ahead with a 10th-inning sacrifice fly off Aroldis Chapman. Andrew McCutchen drew a one-out walk from Andrew Kittridge, and Reynolds and Cruz got hits off JoJo Romero.
David Peralta hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the seventh inning for his first of the season in the San Diego Padres’ 6-4 victory over the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night. The 427-foot drive into the Texas bullpen in right-center helped give the Padres their 10th win in 13 games. San Diego ended Texas' three-game home shutout streak on Manny Machado’s two-run shot in the third. Jurickson Profar had two hits on the night he was named an All-Star for the first time as an NL starter. The nod came almost 12 years after Profar made his major league debut as a 19-year-old for the Rangers, with him in the city of his original team, and where the All-Star Game will be held July 16.
Erick Fedde allowed one run in six innings, Martin Maldonado homered and drove in three runs, and the Chicago White Sox routed the Cleveland Guardians 8-2. Fedde (6-3) retired the final 12 batters he faced, allowing three hits with three strikeouts. Lenyn Sosa matched his career-high with three hits and Luis Robert Jr. had a pair of hits and scored twice for the White Sox. Guardians starter Gavin Williams (0-1) went four innings in his season debut after missing three months with right elbow inflammation. Brayan Rocchio hit a solo homer for Cleveland.
Jose Altuve hit a tiebreaking single in a four-run seventh inning, Yordan Alvarez homered for the third straight game and the Houston Astros beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-2 on Wednesday night for their 11th win in 13 games. Houston’s Yainer Diaz reached base four times and drove in three as the Astros handed the struggling Blue Jays their 11th loss in 15. Alvarez doubled home a run in the third, led off the sixth with a solo homer, came around to score after being intentionally walked in the seventh, and capped his night with an RBI double in the eighth. He finished 3 for 4 with three RBIs.
Carson Kelly hit a grand slam and Wenceel Pérez followed with a home run to back Keider Montero’s first major league win as the Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins 9-2. Riley Greene and Matt Vierling hit two-run homers, and Greene, Colt Keith and Akil Baddoo tripled for the Tigers, who had lost five of six. Kelly’s homer, his sixth of the season and fourth in 10 games, came on a 1-0 fastball from David Festa in the third and put Detroit ahead 4-0.
Michael Wacha allowed one run on two hits over six innings, Salvador Perez drove in a pair of runs and the Royals held on to beat the Rays 4-2 on Wednesday night. James McArthur left runners on second and third to end the eighth inning, then came back for the ninth and watched Kyle Isbel make a great defensive play to pick up his 15th save. Wacha walked three and struck out eight, and the only run he allowed came on Isaac Paredes’ homer in the first. It was his eighth consecutive start allowing two earned runs or fewer. Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino also drove in runs to push Kansas City to its AL-leading 31st home win. Ryan Pepiot allowed two runs on four hits over four innings to take the loss for Tampa Bay.
Joey Estes pitched Oakland’s first individual shutout in more than three years and the Athletics beat the Los Angeles Angels 5-0. Estes (3-3) threw 68 of his 92 pitches for strikes, limiting Los Angeles to five singles and a walk with four strikeouts in the first complete game of his career. The right-hander induced three double plays and struck out Taylor Ward swinging to end the game. It was the 16th complete game in the majors this season, 10 of them shutouts. The last Oakland pitcher to accomplish the feat was Sean Manaea, who blanked the Mariners on June 2, 2021. Brent Rooker and Max Schuemann homered for Oakland.
Ryan O’Hearn had a key two-out, two-run double and later added a solo home run, Dean Kremer threw five shutout innings in his first start since late May, and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Seattle Mariners 4-1. Baltimore won for the sixth time in seven games and continued Seattle’s recent side that has seen a 10-game lead in the AL West dwindle down to two. The Mariners lost for the 10th time in 13 games. O'Hearn's double was the big blow in a three-run inning for Baltimore. He later hit his 11th homer. Cal Raleigh homered for Seattle for its only run. Craig Kimbrel picked up his 21st save and 438th of his career, moving into fourth place on the all-time saves list.
Chris Sale allowed only three hits in six innings to earn his 11th win while leading the Atlanta Braves to a 3-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants. Austin Riley doubled in two runs in the fifth inning. Sale improved to 11-3 to tie Kansas City’s Seth Lugo for the most wins in the majors. Sale recorded nine strikeouts while allowing one run. Sale did not allow a hit before Curt Casali lined a single to center field with two outs in the fifth. Adam Duvall’s run-scoring double off Jordan Hicks gave Atlanta a 1-0 lead in the second.
All-Star Game starting lineups were announced Wednesday. The Yankees’ Aaron Judge and Juan Soto have been named to the outfield, while the Phillies sent first baseman Bryce Harper, third baseman Alec Bohm, and shortstop Trea Turner to the July 16th matchup in Arlington, Texas.
Shohei Ohtani has become the first player elected to start at designated hitter in four straight All-Star Games. He'll be joined by Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge as the only holdovers from last year in the lineups for the July 16 game at Arlington, Texas. Philadelphia could have three of the four National League infielders after fans voted shortstop Trea Turner and third baseman Alec Bohm to start alongside first baseman Bryce Harper, whose has a leg injury. Major League Baseball said this is the first time each league has had no more than one player repeat as an elected starter since fan balloting resumed in 1970.
WNBA
Kahleah Copper scored 34 points, including a late 3-pointer, and Brittney Griner added 24 points to help the Phoenix Mercury beat the Dallas Wings 104-96. Copper hit a pull-up jumper, Brittney Griner followed with a jumper that gave Phoenix the lead for good at 8-6 with 6:48 left in the first quarter. The Wings cut their deficit to 91-89 when Natasha Howard made two free throws with 4:27 left but they would get no closer. Diana Taurasi finished with 16 points and Allen scored 14 for Phoenix. Cloud added 10 points and 10 assists. Howard finished with a career-high 36 points and 11 rebounds for Dallas and Arike Ogunbowale scored 26 points.
NBA
Court papers indicate that former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter will be charged with a federal felony connected to the sports betting scandal that spurred the NBA to ban him for life. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn filed what’s known as a criminal information sheet on Tuesday. The document doesn’t specify a court date or the charge or charges. But it does show the case is related to an existing prosecution of four gamblers charged with conspiring to cash in on tips from a player about his plans to exit two games early. The Associated Press sent voice and email messages to Porter’s lawyer on Wednesday.
LeBron James is coming back for a record-tying 22nd season in the NBA, one in which the league’s all-time scoring leader could share the floor with his son Bronny as teammates with the Los Angeles Lakers. James has agreed to a two-year contract to remain with the Lakers, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations. The second year of the deal is at James’ option and means he could become a free agent again next summer, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced publicly. The Lakers did announce that Bronny James already has signed his first NBA contract. It is a four-year deal.
SOCCER
Rookie Alonso Martínez scored a goal in each half and Matt Freese had three saves to lead New York City FC to a 2-0 victory over CF Montreal. Martínez took a pass from fellow rookie Hannes Wolf in the 9th minute and connected with a right-footed shot from the center of the box for the only goal Freese would need on the way to his fourth clean sheet of the season for New York City (11-8-2). Martínez netted his eighth goal of the campaign — in the 56th minute — with assists from Wolf and James Sands. Wolf has six assists on the season, while Sands’ helper was his second and the fourth of his career. Jonathan Sirois saved five shots in goal for Montreal (5-9-7).
Giacomo Vrioni scored twice in the first half and the New England Revolution held on for a 2-1 victory over Atlanta United. Vrioni used defender DeJuan Jones’ first assist of the season to find the net in the 11th minute and 19-year-old Noel Buck’s first helper of the campaign in the 45th to give New England (7-11-1) a two-goal lead at halftime. Vrioni has scored five of his seven goals this season in the last four matches. Atlanta United (6-9-6) avoided a shutout when Daniel Ríos scored in the first minute of second-half stoppage time. Defender Ronald Hernández notched his first assist of the season and the second of his four-year career on Ríos’ fourth netter this season.
Hugo Cuypers scored two goals in the closing minutes — including one in stoppage time — and Gastón Giménez also scored a goal late to help the Chicago Fire rally and beat the Philadelphia Union 4-3. Cuypers sandwiched goals in the 82nd minute and the second minute of stoppage time around a goal by Giménez in the 89th to cap the scoring. The Fire's Maren Haile-Selassie opened the scoring in the 30th minute. Chris Donovan tied it with a goal in the 38th, Dániel Gazdag gave Philadelphia the lead in first-half stoppage time and Jack McGlynn scored in the 49th to make it 3-1. Philadelphia (4-9-8) has lost five games in a row and is winless in eight straight.
Teenager Benjamin Cremaschi scored late in the second half to rally Inter Miami to a 2-1 victory over Charlotte FC, extending a club-record unbeaten run on the road to eight. Inter Miami (14-3-5) maintained a two-point lead in the Supporters’ Shield race over FC Cincinnati with its fourth straight 2-1 victory despite playing all four without Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez. Inter Miami took a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute on a goal by Robert Taylor with an assist from defender Jordi Alba. Charlotte (9-8-5) pulled even in the 41st minute when Patrick Agyemang used second-year defender Jere Uronen’s fifth assist of the season and career to score his sixth goal. That was it until Cremaschi, 19, scored in the 86th.
Pavel Bucha scored two goals — the 26-year-old midfielder’s first multi-goal game in MLS — to help FC Cincinnati beat D.C. United 3-2. D.C. United (4-10-8) in winless in 10 consecutive games dating to a 3-2 win over Atlanta United on May 11. Bucha slid to beat goalkeeper Tyler Miller to the ball and poke it into the net to give Cincinnati a 2-1 lead in the 39th minute. Bucha made it 3-1 when he ran onto a ball played Yamil Asad and scored from the center of the area in the 63rd. Martín Rodríguez scored his first MLS goal in the 24th minute and Gabriel Pirani added a goal in the 69th for D.C. United. Cincinnati's Kevin Kelsy opened the scoring in the 10th minute.
Martin Ojeda scored a goal and Orlando City beat Toronto FC 2-1 to extend Toronto losing streak to five games. Facundo Torres played a cross that Toronto’s Nicksoen Gomis redirected into the net in the for an own goal that gave Orlando (6-9-6) a 2-1 lead in the 45th minute. Toronto (7-12-3) in winless in eight consecutive games. Derrick Etienne Jr. scored from point-blank range to give Toronto a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute. Ojeda headed home an entry, played Iván Angulo, from the top of the 6-yard box to make it 1-1 in the 27th.
Ryan Gauld had assists on goals by Brian White, Mathias Laborda and Sebastian Berhalter to propel the Vancouver Whitecaps to a 3-1 victory over Minnesota United. Vancouver (9-7-4) jumped out to a 2-0 lead just 17 minutes into the match before handing Minnesota United (8-8-5) its fifth loss in a row. White used an assist from Ryan Gauld to score in the 4th minute. It was the ninth goal this season for White, who scored three times in a come-from-behind 4-3 victory over St. Louis City last time out. The Whitecaps took a two-goal lead when Gauld and Sebastian Berhalter notched assists on defender Mathias Laborda’s second goal of the season. Minnesota United pulled within a goal by halftime after Bongokuhle Hlongwane found the net in the 30th minute.
Hosei Kijima scored his first goal in MLS, Eduard Löwen also scored a goal and St. Louis City beat the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0 to snap a nine-game winless skid. Löwen, on the left side, slipped a shot between a pair of defenders, past the outstretched hand of goalkeeper Will Yarbrough and into the net to give St. Louis (4-7-10) a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute. Kijima scored on a volley off a set piece to make it 2-0 in the 41st. San Jose (3-16-2) has lost seven games in a row and is winless — with just one tie — in 10 straight.
Christian Ramírez and Diego Rossi each scored a goal to help the Columbus Crew beat Nashville SC 2-0. Juan “Cucho” Hernández lofted a perfectly-placed entry to Ramírez, who headed home the finish from point-blank range to give Columbus a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute. Rossi slipped behind the defense and ran onto a through ball played by Yaw Yeboah before rolling a shot into the net to make it 2-0 in the 65th. Columbus (10-3-6) has won three consecutive games by a combined score of 11-1. The Crew had 58% possession and outshot Nashville 20-8, including 7-3 on target. Patrick Schulte had three saves for Columbus. Joe Willis stopped five shots for Nashville. Kickoff was delayed more than 2 hours due to inclement weather in the area.
Andrés Gómez had a goal and two assists, the second on Braian Ojeda’s first career goal to rally Real Salt Lake to a 3-2 victory over the Houston Dynamo. Houston (8-7-6) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 8th minute when Ibrahim Aliyu used the first assists this season from Sebastian Kowalczyk and defender Franco Escobar to score his sixth goal of the campaign. Gómez pulled Real Salt Lake (11-3-7) even in the 22nd minute with his 11th goal this season. Bode Hidalgo notched his first assist of the season and the second of his career on the score. Rookie Matt Crooks and Gómez set up Diego Luna for a goal in the 42nd minute to give Real Salt Lake a 2-1 lead at halftime.
COPA AMERICA
Lionel Messi’s leg injury was the only major obstacle that fell into Argentina’s path while it rolled through group play and into the Copa America quarterfinals. Bigger challenges await the defending champions, and they’re hoping Messi will be there to lead the way in perhaps his final international tournament. The 15-time Copa America champion Albiceleste top the list of eight teams still alive in the Americas’ biggest soccer tournament when quarterfinal play gets underway. With the host Americans and Mexico eliminated in group play, the spotlight shifts firmly to the South American powerhouses determined to raise the trophy.
EURO 2024
Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Kylian Mbappé is not just a clash of soccer icons but a clash of generations. They’ll go head to head when Portugal plays France in the Euro 2024 quarterfinals on Friday, and their heavyweight meeting just got a little bit bigger after Ronaldo said this would be his last European Championship. There’s now a definitive specter of finality to Ronaldo’s long, headline-grabbing Euros adventure that could be brought to an end by Mbappé. The France captain is the heir apparent to Ronaldo and Lionel Messi after their long-time dominance of the sport. Mbappé grew up with pictures of Ronaldo on his bedroom wall.
Richard Petty has a record 200 wins in the NASCAR Cup Series to go along with seven championships. The Hall of Fame driver known as “The King” and his family have been with the stock car series since its inception in 1948. He turned 87 this week and says his family should be hailed for something far bigger than anything it did in NASCAR. Petty wants the family legacy to be the Victory Junction Gang Camp, which was opened in 2004 for chronically ill children as a way to honor his late grandson.
Jessica Campbell will become the first woman to work on the bench of an NHL franchise after the Seattle Kraken hired her as an assistant coach Wednesday. Campbell has spent the past two seasons working as an assistant coach for Seattle’s AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley alongside head coach Dan Bylsma, who was hired in late May to take over the head job with the Kraken. Campbell was a decorated player in the NCAA, the Canadian Women’s Hockey League and Canada’s women’s national team, with whom she won silver at the 2015 world championship.
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