U.S. OPEN
Coco Gauff's U.S. Open title defense is off to a successful start. The 20-year-old American beat Varvara Gracheva 6-2, 6-0 in just 66 minutes on Monday. Gauff had lost two matches in a row on hard courts before arriving in New York, where she won last year's championship for her first Grand Slam trophy. Other winners on Day 1 included No. 7 Zheng Qinwen, No. 14 Madison Keys, No. 4 Alexander Zverev, No. 6 Andrey Rublev, No. 8 Casper Ruud and Americans Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton. Shelton beat 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem, who is retiring after the season.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old Iva Jovic from California is the youngest American to win a women’s main-draw match at the U.S. Open since 2000. She eliminated 2023 Australian Open semifinalist Magda Linette of Poland 6-4, 6-3 yesterday. Katrina Scott of the U.S. was 16 when she won a match at the U.S. Open four years ago. Last year, Mirra Andreeva of Russia was 16 when she did it. Here’s one indication of Jovic’s youth: She still is planning to enter the junior event later in the tournament. Here’s another: Jovic is still in school, taking online courses through a program she described as “convenient and ... very lenient.”
Novak Djokovic has started his bid for a record 25th Grand Slam title and tied Roger Federer with his 89th match win at the U.S. Open by defeating qualifier Radu Albot of Moldova 6-2, 6-2, 6-4. The second-seeded Djokovic again wore a gray sleeve over his surgically repaired right knee Monday night. He was competing for the first time since claiming an Olympic gold medal three weeks ago at the Paris Games, the last significant achievement that was missing from his resume. Djokovic improved to 18-0 in first-round matches at Flushing Meadows and is now 89-13 overall at the hard-court tournament he won a year ago.
Does American tennis have a pickleball problem? Even as the U.S. Open opened this week with more than a million fans expected for the sport’s biggest showcase, the game’s leaders are being forced to confront the fact that the nation’s fastest-growing sport is actually pickleball, which has seen participation boom 223% in the past three years. The U.S. Tennis Association is flipping the script on pickleball by promoting its own short-court version of tennis called “red ball tennis.” Backers bill it as the ideal way for people of all ages to get into tennis, and say the best place to try it is on pickleball courts.
Fans at the U.S. Open now have the freedom to do what fans at other sporting events take for granted. They can get out of their seats and move around during the action. Etiquette at tennis matches has long demanded that no one gets in or out during a game. But under a new policy instituted this year, people with tickets for certain sections at every court can move around whenever they want, even during play. Fans who spoke to The Associated Press on Monday said they liked the change. For players, it takes a little getting used to, but most don't see it as a big deal.
MLB
Gleyber Torres hit a leadoff homer, Aaron Judge made a spectacular defensive play and the New York Yankees beat Washington 5-2 to spoil the major league debut of prized Nationals prospect Dylan Crews. Judge added his 1,000th career hit as New York won for the fifth time in six games, moving two ahead of idle Baltimore atop the AL East. Austin Wells and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also went deep for the Yankees to back Nestor Cortes. Anthony Volpe had a double and two singles, scoring twice on sacrifice flies by DJ LeMahieu. Alex Verdugo also had three hits. Crews, the third-ranked prospect in baseball, batted second for Washington and went 0 for 3 with a walk. He struck out with two runners in scoring position in the sixth.
George Springer hit a three-run home run — his second homer of the day — to key a five-run fifth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays took two games from fading Boston by posting a 7-3 victory in the second game to send the Red Sox to their fifth straight loss. In the first game during the afternoon, Danny Jansen’s former team beat his current one, when Springer cleared the Green Monster with a 416-foot home run and seven Toronto pitchers combined on a four-hitter to beat the Red Sox 4-1 in the completion of a game that was suspended by rain in June. Jansen made history as the first major leaguer to play for both teams in the same game, starting it as the Toronto catcher on June 26, when it was halted. The backup catcher was traded to Boston on July 27.
Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen became the first player in Major League Baseball history to appear in the same game for both teams when he took the field for Boston in the resumption of a rain-delayed game he started for Toronto back in June. Jansen was in the Blue Jays' lineup at catcher and batting in the second inning on June 26 when the game was suspended. He was traded to the Red Sox last month, and on Monday he took his position behind the plate as pinch-hitter Daulton Varsho completed an at-bat that Jansen started.
Bryce Harper hit a game-ending RBI single in the 10th inning off Houston closer Josh Hader, and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Astros 3-2 in a matchup of division leaders. Brandon Marsh homered for Philadelphia, which won its third straight. Shay Whitcomb had a pair of RBIs for Houston, which defeated Philadelphia in the 2022 World Series. With runners on first and second and no outs, Harper lined the first pitch he saw from Hader to right field to score automatic runner Kyle Schwarber. Matt Strahm worked a scoreless 10th for Philadelphia with help from center fielder Johan Rojas, who made a diving catch for the final out.
Meantime, the Mets were off last night. They continue a road trip with the first of three against the Diamondbacks at 9:40 tonight in Phoenix.
Matt Olson hit a three-run homer and a two-run double in the first two innings against Bailey Ober before the game was stopped by a thunderstorm, and the Atlanta Braves beat the sputtering Minnesota Twins 10-6. Max Fried endured the 86-minute delay to finish five innings for his first win since June 23. Travis d’Arnaud hit a two-run homer and Marcell Ozuna had two runs and two RBIs for the Braves in an emphatic end to Ober’s streak of 11 straight quality starts. He gave up four runs before getting an out.
Salvador Perez hit a grand slam and drove in a career-high six runs as the Kansas City Royals completed a doubleheader sweep of Cleveland, beating the Guardians 9-4 to pull within one game of first in the AL Central. Bobby Witt Jr.’s 27th homer — and 11th since July 19 — snapped a tie in the eighth inning and sent the Royals to a 4-3 win in the day game. In Game 2, Perez hit a solo homer in the fifth inning and connected for his sixth career slam in the sixth. Kansas City was nine games back in early July, but have chipped away at Cleveland’s lead by posting an AL-best 22-13 record since the break. The Guardians dropped to 0-8 in doubleheaders this season.
Spencer Torkelson hit a three-run homer during a five-run seventh inning, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago White Sox 6-3 to complete a four-game sweep and drop the majors’ worst team to 31-101. Parker Meadows led off the seventh with a homer off Jared Shuster that tied the game at 2-all. Jace Jung hit a go-ahead RBI single before Torkelson greeted Justin Anderson with a 439-foot drive to center field that made it 6-2. The White Sox have lost eight of nine and recorded their 31st blown save, the most in the majors. Torkelson finished 3 for 5, falling a triple short of the cycle.
Randy Arozarena smacked a three-run homer against his former team, Bryce Miller allowed two hits and tied a career high with 10 strikeouts over seven innings, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-1. Jorge Polanco added a solo home run, his 13th longball of the season, and backup infielder Leo Rivas added a two-out RBI single as the Mariners improved to 3-1 under new manager Dan Wilson. Miller’s 10 strikeouts matched the mark he’s reached four times in his career, the last coming in April against the Braves. Josh Lowe had the only success against Miller with a solo homer in the second inning and a single in the fifth.
Dansby Swanson hit a grand slam to cap an eight-run sixth inning, and the Chicago Cubs had eight stolen bases – their most in a game in more than 100 years -- on the way to an 18-8 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Swanson’s slam came off Domingo German, was the third of the shortstop’s nine-year career and pushed the Cubs’ lead to 9-2. The Cubs last had eight steals in 1913. Rookie center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong led the way with three stolen bases as the Cubs won for the seventh time in 10 games. That raised his season total to 26 in 93 games.
Manny Machado homered and drove in three runs, rookie Jackson Merrill also had three RBIs and the San Diego Padres defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 7-4. Rookie starter Randy Vásquez went six innings for the win, allowing two runs and six hits. Machado hit a two-run homer in the first and an RBI double in the fifth. He also scored three times. Merrill, who launched a game-ending homer Sunday against the New York Mets, delivered a two-run single in the third and an RBI single in the fifth. The Padres are 25-8 since July 20, a .758 winning percentage. That ties them with Arizona for the best record in the majors during that span. San Diego is a game behind the Diamondbacks for the top National League wild card.
Ryan McMahon hit a tiebreaking homer in the sixth inning, and the Colorado Rockies beat the Miami Marlins 3-2 in a matchup of the National League’s worst teams. Colorado and Miami are both rebuilding and fielded lineups featuring young players. Griffin Conine, the son of former Marlins franchise icon Jeff Conine, made his major league debut as a pinch-hitter in the fifth inning. He struck out. McMahon led off the sixth against Edward Cabrera with a 438-foot drive to center field, his 17th homer of the season. It was the only extra-base hit of the game.
WOMEN’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Breanna Stewart scored 21 points, Courtney Vandersloot added 16 and the New York Liberty used a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter to pull away from the Phoenix Mercury 84-70. Sabrina Ionescu scored five points as the Liberty, starting with Stewart's turnaround jumper from the foul line, turned a 64-57 lead into a 17-point advantage midway through the fourth quarter. Leonie Fiebich contributed a 3-pointer, her only basket of the game. The Liberty hit 12 3-pointers and outscored Phoenix 14-3 at the foul line. Brittney Griner scored 22 to lead the Mercury but had seven of their 20 turnovers. Those turnovers cost Phenix 28 points and the bench was outscored 15-4.New York was 12 of 29 behind the arc to Phoenix's 5 for 22.
Kelsey Mitchell scored 29 points, including the clinching free throws with 5 seconds left, Caitlin Clark added 19 points and the Indiana Fever disappointed a record Atlanta crowd by holding off the Dream 84-79. In the closing seconds, without a timeout, Atlanta missed two 3-pointers but grabbed two offensive rebounds before fumbling the ball away, which led to Mitchell’s free throws. Atlanta trailed by as many as 18 early in the second half and got within two before a five-point possession blunted the rally. Clark had four 3-pointers, tying the rookie record of 85 by Atlanta’s Rhyn Howard in 2022. Tina Charles scored 21 to lead Atlanta, which moved the game to the home of the Atlanta Hawks and set an attendance record of 17,608.
Brittney Sykes scored 20 points, including the winning free throws with 1.1 seconds left, and the Washington Mystics picked up their fourth road win, handing the Seattle Storm just their fourth home loss, 74-72. The Mystics got a big boost from their reserves with Emily Engstler scoring 12 points and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough adding 11. Jewell Loyd led Seattle (18-11) with 16 points. Neither team had a double-digit lead and the difference in the fourth quarter was never more than four points. Ogwumike pulled Seattle into a tie at 72 with 55.2 seconds to go and the teams traded misses, with Sykes rebounding the Storm miss with 12.5 to go and headed for the bucket before getting fouled by Diggins Smith as she attempted the game-winning shot.
The Paralympic Games are set to open Wednesday as some 4,400 athletes with disabilities, permanent injuries or impairments prepare to compete for 549 medals across 22 sports over 11 days. Paris just hosted the Olympics and it again provides the backdrop for what promises to be a spectacle. Many of the same venues are hosting Paralympic competitions. Historic square Place de la Concorde, which hosted skateboarding, breaking and 3x3 basketball during the Olympics, will host the opening ceremony.
NFL
Three people familiar with the deal say All-Pro wide receiver CeeDee Lamb has ended his holdout with the Dallas Cowboys by agreeing to a $136 million, four-year contract. Lamb is going into the last year of his rookie contract after being drafted 17th overall in 2020. He is a close second to Minnesota receiver Justin Jefferson as the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. Lamb led the NFL in receptions last season with 135 and was second in yards receiving with 1,749 and third in touchdown receptions with 12.
Dak Prescott figures to get paid one way or another. The star Dallas quarterback would love for that to be with the Cowboys, but the question lingers in the final year of his current contract. Russell Wilson is in Pittsburgh after two mostly miserable years in Denver. The end of the line could be near for the former Seattle star. Wilson hasn't been announced as the starter by the Steelers, who traded for Justin Fields after adding Wilson. The look and feel of the hot seat is a bit different for Prescott and Wilson, among others in potential make-or-break situations, but it’s a hot seat nonetheless.
NASCAR
NASCAR will take its top Cup Series international for the first points-paying race outside the United States next year with a June stop in Mexico City. The Cup Series will race at storied Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and have a Tuesday morning news conference in Mexico City to discuss the event. The Cup race will be June 15 and NASCAR’s second-tier Xfinity Series and NASCAR Mexico Series will be part of the weekend. The Cup Series has never gone international in the modern era for anything besides exhibition races. It held exhibitions in Japan between 1996 and 1998, and once in Australia in 1988. The only two points-paying Cup races previously held internationally were in Canada, in 1952 and 1958.
Austin Dillon’s overly aggressive victory at Richmond Raceway won’t land him a spot in the Cup Series playoffs. A NASCAR appeal officer on Monday upheld the sanctioning body’s decision to revoke Dillon’s automatic postseason berth that came with his controversial win at Richmond on Aug. 11. Dillon intentionally wrecked Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano coming out of the final turn to take the checkered flag for his first victory in two years. Three days later, NASCAR announced that Dillon’s victory “crossed a line.” Richard Childress Racing appealed. A NASCAR “final appeal officer” upheld the penalties and said race data indicated “that more likely than not a rule violation did occur.”
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