NFL:
The Pro Football Hall of Fame has welcomed seven new members. They include running backs LaDainian Tomlinson and Terrell Davis, quarterback Kurt Warner, sackmaster Jason Taylor and kicker Morten Andersen.
The other inductees were Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, a contributor, and Seahawks safety Kenny Easley, a senior nominee.
Warner recalled his days as a grocery store employee just before signing with the Rams and winning two MVP awards and one Super Bowl. He mentioned how a Wheaties box with Dan Marino on the cover inspired him to find a way back into football.
Davis delivered his speech during a burst of rain that temporarily thinned the crowd, Davis talked about once "staring down the barrel of a shotgun" as a troubled teenager.
Tomlinson called for Americans to be open-minded and open-hearted, then paid tribute to former greats Jim Brown, Walter Payton and Emmitt Smith.
Taylor said he couldn't believe he was in Canton and mentioned his former agent, calling the late Gary Wichard the father he never had.
Andersen joined Jan Stenerud as the only placekickers to be inducted following a 25-year career with five teams. The Denmark native delivered an often hilarious speech emphasizing how strange the adjustment to kicking a ball that was not round could be.
Jones admitted in his speech that before buying the Cowboys, he had "become afraid of business heights" after having several failed enterprises. But he also had learned, "Don't let anyone know you are scared and just keep on keeping on."
Easley was the first to be inducted Saturday, 20 years after his first nomination to the Hall. He thanked members for welcoming him into their exclusive club.
MLB:
Boston's division lead remains three games over the Yankees after Chris Young homered twice and collected five RBIs in the Red Sox's sixth straight win, 6-3 against the White Sox. Young's tiebreaking, three-run homer came in the fifth inning after Andrew Benitendi was walked intentionally with two out.
Doug Fister won his second straight start since opening the year 0-5, giving up three runs and eight hits while fanning seven over 6 1/3 innings.
The Yanks kept pace by thumping the Indians, 8-1 in Cleveland. Jacoby Ellsbury laced a bases-loaded triple and rookie Aaron Judge slammed his 35th home run, a three-run shot in the seventh to cap the scoring.
Luis Severino struck out nine over 6 2/3s, scattered two hits and blanked the Indians after Michael Brantley's first-inning homer. Severino is 4-0 with a 0.71 ERA in his last four starts.
Justin Turner, Clay Bellinger and Logan Forsythe drove in two runs apiece as the Dodgers mauled the Mets, 8-0 to complete an emphatic seven-game season sweep. Turner and Bellinger each hit two-run blasts for Los Angeles, which slammed 25 home runs while outscoring the Mets 57-15 in the season series. Hyun-Jin Ryu struck out 10 and held the Mets to one hit over seven innings to help the Dodgers pad their lead in the NL West to 15 1/2 games over Colorado.
The Chicago Cubs needed some help from the Tampa Bay Rays to stay atop the National League Central.
The Cubs still own a half-game lead over Milwaukee despite their 9-4 loss to the Nationals. Washington erased a 4-1 deficit and pulled ahead when Matt Wieters belted a grand slam in a five-run eighth. Wieters finished with five RBIs.
Brian Goodwin added a solo shot in the ninth and drove in two runs as the Nationals took the rubber match of the three-game series.
The Brewers remain second in the division after Steven Souza Jr. unloaded a walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Rays past Milwaukee, 2-1. The Brewers wasted a nice outing by Jimmy Nelson, who struck out nine and allowed only one run and six hits over eight innings.
The Rays were shut out in the first two games of the series before staying 5 ½ games behind the AL East-leading Red Sox.
Cleveland's lead in the AL Central is down to 2 ½ games after second-place Kansas City split a doubleheader with Seattle.
In Game 1, Nelson Cruz was 3-for-4 with a pair of homers and four RBIs as the Mariners outscored the Royals, 8-7. Cruz deposited a three-run shot over the wall in left-center to put Seattle ahead 7-0 in the second inning. Danny Valencia and Kyle Seager also went deep to help the Mariners withstand home runs by Whit Merrifield and Mike Moustakas.
The Royals cruised in the nightcap as Melky Cabrera ripped a three-run homer and was 3-for-4 with four RBIs in a 9-1 pounding of the Mariners. Eric Hosmer was 3-for-5 with three ribbies and three runs scored to back Jake Junis, who limited Seattle to a run and four hits over eight innings. Merrifield homered in both ends of the twinbill.
Elsewhere around the majors:
— Jonathan Schoop, Chris Davis and Trey Mancini hit back-to-back homers in a four-run first that jumpstarted the Orioles' 12-3 pounding of the Tigers. Joey Rickard and Manny Machado also connected for the Orioles, who led 8-0 after four innings and cruised to their seventh win in nine games. All five home runs were hit off Anibal Sanchez, who yielded a career-high tying eight runs and 10 hits in three-plus innings.
— The Astros were in danger of their seventh loss in nine games until they erupted for four runs in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Blue Jays, 7-6. Alex Bregman tied it with a two-out, two-run triple and scored on Juan Centeno's walk-off single. Jose Altuve and Carlos Beltran each had three hits and an RBI for Houston, which leads the AL West by 15 games over the Mariners.
— The Rockies had a chance to move 1 ½ games ahead of Arizona for the first NL wild-card spot, but Cameron Rupp changed that with a two-run double in the ninth to give the Phillies a 3-2 comeback win at Colorado. Greg Holland had converted 34 of 35 save opportunities before Rupp provided his third hit of the game, one inning after being thrown out at the plate. Charlie Blackmon's third double of the game put the Rockies ahead, 2-1 in the seventh.
— Jeff Samardzija won his third consecutive start and the Giants roughed up Patrick Corbin for six runs in a 6-3 victory over the Diamondbacks. Hunter Pence hit a two-run single, Nick Hundley drove in a pair and Jarrett Parker added a solo homer to help San Francisco win the rubber match of the three-game set. The Diamondbacks gave up three unearned runs and lost for the fourth time in seven games.
— The Cardinals fell behind 3-0 in the first inning before putting together a four-run second and a nine-run fourth to clobber the Reds, 13-4. Jose Martinez belted a grand slam in the fourth for the Redbirds, who also got two RBIs apiece from Matt Carpenter, Randal Grichuk and Luke Voit while pulling within 3 ½ games of the NL Central-leading Cubs. Adam Wainwright struggled in his first start since coming off the disabled list, lasting just three innings and surrendering Joey Votto's three-run blast.
— The Pirates beat the Padres, 5-4 on a 12th-inning homer by Sean Rodriguez. Pittsburgh squandered a 4-2 lead in the ninth before Rodriguez delivered just a day after being reacquired from the Braves. Jose Osuna hit a three-run double for the Pirates, who are within 4 ½ games of the NL Central lead.
— Max Kepler and Brian Dozier smacked two-run homers in the second before Eddie Rosario launched a third-inning blast to power the Twins past the Rangers, 6-5. Jose Berrios managed last five innings and improve to 10-5 after being tagged for five runs in the top of the first. Adrian Beltre and Joey Gallo homered for Texas.
— Bruce Maxwell's two-run single completed a five-run, two-out comeback in the eighth inning of the Athletics' 11-10 win against the Angels. The Angels led 10-5 after the sixth but couldn't hold on against an A's team that hammered them with 18 hits, including three home runs and six doubles. Khris Davis crushed a three-run homer to spark the rally.
— Jose Urena allowed a run while tossing three-hit ball over six innings of Miami's 4-1 verdict over the Braves. Marcell Ozuna's three-run blast helped the Marlins avoid a three-game sweep. Lucas Sims settled down following the Marlins' four-run first, working six innings but falling to 0-2 in two starts since being recalled last week.
Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis has been activated from the disabled list after being sidelined since before the All-Star break with a strained right hamstring.
Kipnis is batting .229 with eight home runs and 26 RBIs in 67 games after going 0-for-4 Sunday against the Yankees.
Cleveland made roster room by sending infielder Erik Gonzalez to Triple-A Columbus.
In other baseball news:
— The Royals have put All-Star catcher Salvador Perez on the 10-day disabled list with a strain on the right side of his chest. Perez was injured on a swing in the sixth inning Friday.
— The Yankees have placed slumping designated hitter Matt Holliday on the disabled list with a lower back issue. The move was expected after Holliday tweaked his back while swinging on Friday night.
— The Mariners have acquired All-Star first baseman Yonder Alonso from the Athletics for minor league outfielder Boog Powell. Alonso is hitting .266 with 17 doubles, 22 home runs and 49 RBI. Powell hit .194 in 23 games with three stints with Seattle this year.
— Former All-Star closer Glen Perkins says he believes he is finally getting close to joining the Twins after more than 13 months of rehab following shoulder surgery. Perkins will join Double-A Chattanooga in Birmingham, Alabama, on Thursday for three planned outings.
— Former Phillies All-Star catcher Darren Daulton has died at 55. Daulton was diagnosed in 2013 with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that also took the lives of his former teammate Tug McGraw and former coach John Vukovich. He played 14 1/2 of his 15 major league seasons with Philadelphia, went to three All-Star games and led the NL with 109 RBIs in 1992.
NFL:
The Dolphins have landed another quarterback.
A person familiar with the situation says free agent quarterback Jay Cutler has agreed to terms on a contract with Miami.
Cutler is expected to compete with Matt Moore for the starting job while Ryan Tannehill remains out with a left knee injury that could sideline him for the entire season.
Dolphins coach Adam Gase was offensive coordinator for the Bears when Cutler had a career-best quarterback rating with them in 2015. The 34-year-old Cutler didn't receive much interest once he left Chicago following last season.
In other NFL news:
— The NFL has slapped Falcons cornerback Jalen Collins with a 10-game suspension without pay. It will mark the second straight year Collins will have to miss the opener for a violation of the league's policy on performance enhancers.
— Buffalo Bills starting left tackle Cordy Glenn has returned to practice and feels reassured after having a nagging left foot injury examined by a specialist. Glenn expects to be ready for the start of the regular season.
NASCAR:
Martin Truex Jr. held off Matt Kenseth with a late gamble to win the Monster Energy Cup race at Watkins Glen.
Truex stayed on the course during the closing laps while others either went to the pits or eventually ran out of fuel. He assumed the lead and outdueled Kenseth on the final lap in winning for the fourth time this season.
Brad Keselowski had a big lead but was forced to pit with three laps to go.
Rookie Daniel Suarez was third, followed by Denny Hamlin and Clint Bowyer. Pole-sitter Kyle Busch was seventh.
WOMEN'S BRITISH OPEN:
I.M. Kim has earned her first major title by capturing the Women's British Open by two shots over Jodi Ewart Shadoff.
Kim shot a 1-under 71 and finished 18 under in her third career victory, all coming in the last two months. The win comes five years after she missed a 14-inch putt that would have given her a victory at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
Shadoff put pressure on Kim by closing with a 64. Michelle Wie shot a 66 to end up in a third-place tie with Caroline Masson and Georgia Hall.
PGA:
Hideki Matsuyama fired a 9-under 61 to erase a two-shot deficit and take the PGA's Bridgestone Invitational at Akron, Ohio.
Matsuyama birdied his last three holes and tied the course record held by Jose Maria Olazabal, Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia. It was the lowest final round in four decades at Firestone Country Club.
Matsuyama's 16 under total was five strokes better than Zach Johnson. Charley Hoffman was third at minus-10.
Paul Goydos birdied the first playoff hole to win the 3M Championship over Gene Sauers.
It's the first PGA Tour Champions win of the season for Goydos and fifth of his career.
Both Goydos and Sauers shot 66 in regulation to get to 20-under 196 at the TPC Twin Cities.
NYRA:
Whitney Stakes favorite Gun Runner came out on top on Saturday at Saratoga. With a time of 1:47, the horse, jockeyed by Florent Geroux, beat out Keen Ice and Jose Ortiz, and Breaking Lucky with Luis Contreras.
Winchell Thoroughbreds and Three Chimney's Gun Runner was in fine fettle Sunday morning following his 5 ¼-length domination in Saturday's Grade 1, $1.2 million Whitney - a performance made all the more memorable by a wayward horseshoe that mystifyingly made its way into the chestnut colt's tail.
"He's fabulous, happy with himself, came back great," reported Gun Runner's Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.
TRACK-WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP:
Usain Bolt was beaten in his final 100-meter race, losing to American Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman at the world championships in London.
In a tight finish, Bolt was punished for his slow start and Gatlin fought back to nip everyone at the line in 9.92 seconds. Coleman took silver in 9.94 seconds while Bolt got bronze in 9.95.
Bolt is calling it quits at age 30 and lost to a man five years his senior.
Because of his doping past, Gatlin was booed in London even after the race.
CYCLING:
Two-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador says he will retire next month after he rides in the Spanish Vuelta.
Contador announced his plan to stop racing on a video posted on Instagram. The Spanish rider says the Vuelta "will be my last race as a professional cyclist."
The 34-year-old Contador has been one of cycling's top riders for the past decade in a contentious career.
He accumulated seven grand tour titles, winning the Spanish Vuelta three times and the Giro d'Italia twice.
Contador won the Tour de France in 2007 and 2009. He was stripped of a third Tour title in 2010 and banned for two years for doping.
The Vuelta starts Aug. 19.
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