Gleyber Torres and Brett Gardner each homered and drove in three runs as the Yankees blew out the Indians in Game 1 of their AL Wild Card Series, 12-3.
Aaron Judge set the tone with a two-run blast off Shane Bieber just two batters into the game. Giancarlo Stanton also homered to back a sharp performance by Gerrit Cole, who struck out 13 and held the Indians to two runs and six hits over seven innings. Bieber was tagged for seven runs over just 4 2/3 innings after compiling a major league-best 1.63 ERA during the regular season.
In other AL Wild Card Series openers:
Blake Snell was sharp in the Rays' 3-1 win over the Blue Jays, striking out nine while holding Toronto to one hit over 5 2/3 scoreless innings. Snell no-hit the Jays until Alejandro Kirk led off the sixth with a single. Manuel Morgot gave Tampa Bay a 3-0 lead with a two-run homer in the seventh. Willy Adames brought in the game's first run by walking with the bases loaded.
Lucas Giolito was outstanding in the Chicago White Sox's first postseason game in 12 years. Giolito carried a perfect game into the seventh inning of his postseason debut to pitch the White Sox to a 4-1 win against Oakland. Giolito's perfect game bid ended with Tommy La Stella's leadoff single in the seventh, and the Chicago hurler left after allowing a run and two hits with eight strikeouts over seven-plus frames. José Abreu's two-run homer was sandwiched around solo shots by Adam Engel and Yasmani Grandal. The Athletics' lone run came on an eighth-inning grounder.
The Astros scored three times in the ninth to hand the Twins their major league-record 17th consecutive postseason loss, 4-1. Jose Altuve drew a bases-loaded walk to force in the go-ahead run following a two-out error by Twins shortstop Jorge Polanco. Michael Brantley added a two-run single to cap the rally and back winning pitcher Framber Valdez, who pitched five scoreless innings in relief of Zack Greinke. Valdez allowed only a pair of ninth-inning hits before getting a game-ending double-play grounder.
In MLB news:
Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson is missing the AL Wild Card Series against Houston because of a nagging injury to his right calf. Donaldson missed 30 games this season with a muscle strain and was removed from Minnesota's game after the first inning on Friday with cramping. The 2015 AL MVP worked out with the team on Monday, but he was still experiencing soreness and unable to fully push off on his leg.
The Astros and first baseman Yuli Gurriel have agreed to a one-year contract with an option for 2022. The deal guarantees $7 million, a cut of nearly 20% from his 2020 contract.
Major League Baseball has started the process of contracting minor league affiliates. It announced that the Appalachian League is being converted to a college summer circuit for rising freshmen and sophomores. The agreement between MLB and the minor leagues expires Wednesday. MLB has proposed cutting minor league affiliates from 160 to 120 next year. The Appalachian League had been an affiliated minor league with professional players since 1911.
WNBA
A’ja Wilson had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Angel McCoughtry added 20 points and the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces held off the No. 7 seed Connecticut Sun 66-63 to advance to the franchise’s second WNBA Finals. Las Vegas will play on Friday against Seattle, which advanced to its second championship series in three seasons on Sunday after sweeping Minnesota. The Aces’ franchise hadn’t reached the finals since doing so as the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2008. Alyssa Thomas, dealing with a shoulder injury, had 22 points and 10 rebounds for Connecticut.
NFL
The Tennessee Titans have suspended in-person activities through Friday after the NFL says three team players and five personnel tested positive for the coronavirus. The first COVID-19 outbreak of the NFL season jeopardizes the Titans' game against Pittsburgh this weekend and also caused Minnesota to suspend in-person activities. The Titans beat the Vikings 31-30 in Minneapolis two days ago. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said his team has been "given a mandate" to prepare as if the game will be played on time.
In other NFL news:
The Denver Broncos have named Brett Rypien as their starting quarterback for Thursday's game against the New York Jets. Rypien is the nephew of former Washington quarterback Mark Rypien. He'll become the ninth quarterback to start for the Broncos since Peyton Manning retired following Denver's win in Super Bowl 50.
The Falcons have placed cornerback Darqueze Dennard on the reserve/injured list with a hamstring injury. Atlanta had to play without safety Ricardo Allen and rookie cornerback A.J. Terrell in Sunday's loss to the Bears.
The Chargers have placed Chris Harris Jr. on injured reserve with a foot injury suffered during a 21-16 loss to the Panthers. The cornerback is the fifth defensive starter for the Chargers to end up on IR this season.
COLLEGE SPORTS
The University at Buffalo says 19 football players are among 25 athletes to have tested positive for the coronavirus. Athletic director Mark Alnutt says five members of the women's volleyball team and one women's soccer player also tested positive. Alnutt says the athletes have been placed in isolation and are doing well.
In other virus-related developments:
West Virginia University will allow the general public to attend football games at a reduced capacity next month. WVU athletic director Shane Lyons said attendance will be limited to about 15,000 fans — or 25% capacity — starting with the Oct. 17 home game against Kansas.
Purdue University has suspended 14 students — 13 of them athletes — for violating the Protect Purdue Pledge by attending a party Saturday in a residence hall. The students must vacate the dormitory by Wednesday though they can file an appeal.
La Salle has cut seven sports, effective at the end of the academic year. The move will affect approximately 130 athletes.
TENNIS
Top seed Novak Djokovic won his opening-round match at the French Open, dropping just five games in a straight-sets victory. No. 13 seed Andrey Rublev lost two tiebreakers before taking the next three sets to beat American Sam Querrey. Other winners include fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, ninth seed Denis Shapovalov, women's second seed Karolina Pliskova, No. 4 Sofia Kenin and No. 8 Aryna Sabalenka.
NASCAR
Kentucky Speedway officials say the track has lost its spot on NASCAR's schedule. The Speedway made the announcement ahead of NASCAR's release of venues and dates for next year. Kentucky held its first Cup Series race in 2011 and has hosted a tripleheader in recent years with races in NASCAR's Cup, Xfinity and Truck Series. Its last NASCAR race was this past July.
THOROUGHBRED RACING
The House has approved a bill to create national medication and safety standards for the horse racing industry to discourage use of performance-enhancing drugs that can lead to horse injuries and deaths. Approval of the “Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act” comes after the racing industry has been hit by a series of doping scandals and a rash of horse fatalities in recent years. The bill, which was sponsored by New York Democratic Congressman Paul Tonko, would empower an independent authority to set uniform standards for medication, track safety and testing of horses. It now goes to the Senate, where Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and New York Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand have introduced similar legislation. The New York Racing Association is urging the Senate to pass the House-approved bill.
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