A big eighth-inning rally allowed the New York Yankees to increase their lead in the American League East. The Yanks trailed 3-2 before homering twice for six runs in their final at-bat to whip the second-place Rays, 8-3.
Aaron Judge put New York ahead with a two-run blast before Didi Gregorius followed with a grand slam. David Hale pitched two scoreless innings for the Yankees, beginning with an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the seventh against Travis d'Arnaud. The outcome puts the Yankees six games ahead of Tampa Bay.
The Mets picked up their third straight win by getting five scoreless innings out of their beleaguered bullpen in a 3-2 victory at Minnesota. Michael Conforto was 4-for-4 with a tiebreaking, RBI single in the fifth and a run scored as New York cut the Twins’ lead in the AL Central to six games over Cleveland. Edwin Diaz loaded the bases in the ninth before getting Nelson Cruz to pop up for the final out.
Andrew Cashner was roughed up in his Red Sox debut as Toronto coasted to a 10-4 win at Fenway Park. Teoscar Hernández hit a three-run homer off Cashner, who was chased in the sixth and was reached for six runs on eight hits. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had three hits for the Blue Jays, who dropped the Red Sox 10 games off the AL East lead.
Matt Adams and Juan Soto homered to support rookie Austin Voth as the Nationals ripped the Orioles, 8-1. Voth (1-0) allowed one run and four hits over six innings following his recall from Double-A Harrisburg before the game. Washington has won 13 of its last 16 and owns the NL’s third-best record after hammering their geographical rivals.
The Phillies blew a 6-5 lead in the ninth before Bryce Harper supplied a two-run, walk-off double to give them a wild 9-8 victory over the Dodgers. Matt Beaty hit a three-run homer off Philadelphia closer Hector Neris in the top half, but pinch-hitter Andrew Knapp doubled and scored on Scott Kingery’s single before Harper capped his five-RBI night with the game-winning hit. Harper also belted a three-run homer as the Phils ended the Dodgers’ three-game winning streak.
Elsewhere on major league diamonds, the Angels are 5-0 since the All-Star break after Albert Pujols hit a bases-clearing double during a six-run first that sparked a 7-2 win over the Astros. Jake Marisnick was drilled between the shoulder blades by Angels reliever Noe Ramirez in the sixth inning, nine days after Marisnick bowled over Los Angeles catcher Jonathan Lucroy to cause a concussion and a broken nose. The Astros’ lead in the AL West is down to 4 ½ games over Oakland.
The Athletics won their fifth in a row as All-Star Matt Chapman homered and had five RBIs in a 9-2 thrashing of the Mariners. Matt Olson followed Chapman's fifth-inning drive with a solo homer that extended his hitting streak to 11 games. Daniel Mengden allowed one run and four hits over seven innings.
Oscar Mercado homered for the third time in two games and Zach Plesac combined with three relievers on a one-hitter as the Indians dumped the Tigers, 8-0. The no-hitter ended when Nicholas Castellanos singled leading off the fifth inning. Mercado hit a two-run shot and Francisco Lindor added a two-run double in a five-run second inning.
The Royals clobbered the White Sox, 11-0 as Glenn Sparkman pitched a five-hitter for his first career complete game. Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier both had three hits including a home run in Kansas City’s fourth win in five games since the All-Star break. Merrifield raced to an inside-the-park homer down the right-field line in the fourth inning after Cam Gallagher doubled.
Rookie Alex Young allowed one run and three hits over 5 1/3 innings to help the Diamondbacks thump the Rangers, 9-2. Ketel Marte's two-run single in the fifth inning broke a 1-1 tie, and Ildemaro Vargas added a two-run home run in the sixth on his 28th birthday. Losing pitcher Lance Lynn entered the game 12-4 overall and 8-0 at home before surrendering five runs on eight hits over six innings.
Kyle Schwarber’s homer in the bottom of the 10th gave the Cubs a 4-3 triumph over the Reds. Robel Garcia and Kris Bryant also connected as Chicago took a 2 ½-game lead over Milwaukee in the NL Central. Eugenio Suárez homered for Cincinnati, which fell to 7-4 against Chicago this season.
Christian Yelich blasted his second career grand slam and Keston Hiura and Lorenzo Cain each added solo home runs to highlight the Brewers’ 13-1 pounding of the Braves. Brandon Woodruff allowed one earned run and struck out seven in 6 2/3 innings to move to 11-3 and pitch Milwaukee to just its third win in 11 games. Bryse Wilson surrendered four earned runs on six hits in four innings as Atlanta ended a five-game winning streak and saw its lead in the NL East shrink to 6 ½ games over Washington.
Colin Moran’s infield single in the ninth drove in the go-ahead run as the Pirates beat the Cardinals, 3-1 to end a four-game skid. Starling Marte was hit in the back by a pitch leading off Pittsburgh’s two-run ninth and came around to score on Moran’s hit. Pittsburgh starter Dario Agrazal held St. Louis to a run and five hits while pitching into the seventh.
Alex Dickerson had a career-best four hits, including the go-ahead, RBI single while the Giants scored four in the 10th to beat the Rockies, 8-4. Mike Yastrzemski homered, doubled and had three RBIs in San Francisco’s fourth straight win. Trevor Story and Ian Desmond homered for the Rockies, who erased a 4-1 lead in the ninth before losing for the 10th time in 12 games.
Brian Anderson hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Starlin Castro had a bases-loaded triple in the sixth to give the Marlins an 11-3 lead in a 12-7 drubbing of the Padres. Harold Ramirez had two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored, while Garrett Cooper hit his 11th homer and a two-run single to help Miami deal San Diego its fourth straight loss. Jordan Yamamoto is 4-0 after allowing two earned runs and throwing 99 pitches to get through five innings.
In MLB news, the Texas Rangers have welcomed back an All-Star to their lineup. Hunter Pence was activated from the injured list after missing 23 games since June 17 because of a strained right groin. His return comes one week after the injury robbed him of a chance to start as the American League designated hitter in the All-Star Game at Cleveland. Pence hit .294 with 15 home runs and 48 RBIs in his 55 games before getting hurt. Rangers manager Chris Woodward said Pence would only be the DH for at least a week. The Rangers also optioned outfielder Willie Cahoun to Triple-A Nashville, promoted pitcher Taylor Guerrieri from the same club and placed reliever Jesse Biddle on the 10-day injured list with left shoulder fatigue.
The Indians say pitcher Corey Kluber will throw a bullpen session on Wednesday, his first mound appearance since breaking his right arm on May 1. He is scheduled to throw 20 fastballs at Progressive Field before Cleveland's game against the Tigers. The two-time Cy Young Award winner is on the 60-day injured list.
Phillies outfielder Jay Bruce had to leave Tuesday’s game in the third inning after straining his right oblique. Bruce appeared to injure himself on a checked swing, grabbing his side and departing after a trainer came out to see him. Bruce is batting .230 with 24 homers and 57 RBIs with the Phillies and Mariners this season.
Infielder Matt Carpenter has landed on the Cardinals’ 10-day injured list with a right foot contusion. Carpenter was injured while fouling a pitch off the top of the foot during Monday’s 7-0 win over the Pirates. He is batting .215 with 10 homers and 29 RBIs this year.
The Twins have activated first baseman C.J. Cron and left fielder Eddie Rosario before tonight’s game against the New York Mets. Cron sat out five games with right thumb inflammation, and Rosario was out for 13 games with a sprained left ankle. The Twins also designated right-handed reliever Mike Morin for assignment and put outfielder Byron Buxton on the seven-day injured list for players with concussion-like symptoms.
NBA
The Philadelphia 76ers have confirmed their contract extension with All-Star guard Ben Simmons a deal believed to be worth $170 million over five years. Simmons was the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2016 but didn’t make his NBA debut until the 2017-18 season. The former Rookie of the Year was an All-Star for the first time last season and has averaged 16.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.9 assists as a pro.
The Knicks have finalized contracts with Marcus Morris and Reggie Bullock, two of their offseason additions. Morris averaged 13.9 points and 6.1 rebounds in 75 games last season for Boston, his fifth straight season scoring more than 10 points per game.
Forward Kelly Oubre Jr. re-signed with the Suns, accepting a multiyear deal. Oubre was solid for Phoenix last season after being acquired from Washington in December, averaging 16.9 points and 4.9 rebounds in 40 games.
The Kings have signed free agent forward Richaun Holmes, who averaged 8.2 points, 4.7 boards and 1.1 blocks for the Suns last season. The Athletic reported Holmes will be paid $10 million over the next two seasons.
The Bucks have announced that they have signed free agent forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo, the older brother of Milwaukee forward and NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. The elder Antetokounmpo joins the team on a guaranteed two-year, minimum contract.
NHL
The Capitals have taken care of their biggest remaining offseason priority by re-signing restricted free-agent forward Jakub Vrana to a two-year, $6.7 million contract. Vrana just completed his most productive season, registering career highs of 24 goals, 23 assists, 47 points and four game-winning goals in 82 games.
The Chicago Blackhawks have traded Artem Anisimov to Ottawa for Zack Smith in a swap of 31-year-old forwards. Anisimov played four seasons for the Blackhawks, scoring 77 goals and adding 78 assists in 291 games. He provided 15 goals and 37 points last season. The Russian has also played with the Rangers and Blue Jackets over 11 NHL seasons. Smith played 70 games last season for the Senators, scoring nine goals and adding a career-high 19 assists.
Veteran defenseman Michael Del Zotto is staying with the Ducks after accepting a one-year package. Centers Chase De Leo and Justin Kloos also signed with Anaheim, as did defenseman Chris Wideman.
The Wild have re-signed three restricted free agents, including forward Ryan Donato. He had four goals and 16 points in 16 games for Minnesota after being acquired from Boston. The Wild also inked forward Nico Sturm and defenseman Carson Soucy.
A person with direct knowledge tells The Associated Press that Seattle's NHL expansion team is close to an agreement with Hockey Hall of Famer Ron Francis to become its first general manager. The club is set to begin play in the fall of 2021 as the NHL's 32nd team.
SPORTS BETTING
New York joined the growing list of states allowing wagering on sports after Rivers Casino and Resort in Schenectady cut the ribbon on its new betting lounge Tuesday. The state's entry comes more than a year after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the ban that had restricted sports betting outside of Nevada. Other upstate casinos plan to begin offering sports betting in the coming weeks and months. Tioga Downs Casino Resort in the Southern Tier has announced plans to offer sports wagering starting Friday.
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