It took 11 innings, but the Houston Astros were able to even the American League Championship Series at a game apiece. Carlos Correa delivered a walk-off, solo homer off J.A. Happ in the 11th inning to give the Astros a 3-2 triumph over the New York Yankees.
It was just Houston’s second hit since George Springer tied the game with a solo blast in the fifth inning off Adam Ottavino. Correa also opened the scoring with an RBI double in the second inning off Yankees starter James Paxton, who lasted just 2 1/3 innings. The lead held up until Justin Verlander surrendered his first hit of the night, a two-run homer by Aaron Judge in the fourth. Verlander struck out seven and gave up five hits over 6 2/3 innings. Josh James struck out the only batter he faced in the 11th inning to get the win. Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton was held out of the starting lineup due to a quad injury. Game 3 is Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Gerrit Cole is slated to pitch for Houston that night against Luis Severino.
In MLB news, Cardinals manager Mike Shildt and St. Louis' analytics department are wondering what happened to the juiced baseball. Shildt says the team's front office has found the ball is flying 4 ½ fewer feet on average in the postseason, raising more questions about the makeup of the baseballs after hitters clubbed a record 6,776 home runs in the regular season — a rise attributed to unusually far-flying balls. The numbers don't leave much doubt, says data journalist Rob Arthur. He was among the first to suggest tweaks to the ball may have caused home runs to spike as early as 2015, and he thinks something is off with this year's October model, too. Arthur published a story Thursday at Baseball Prospectus showing projected home runs were down 50% through Wednesday's games compared to what would have been expected in the 2019 scoring environment. Major League Baseball released a statement Thursday claiming the balls haven't changed since the regular season.
NFL
Sam Darnold returned to the Jets’ lineup and threw for a pair of TDs in a 24-22 victory over the Cowboys. Darnold finished 23 of 32 for 338 yards, including a 92-yard touchdown toss to Robby Anderson after missing New York’s three previous games due to mononucleosis. The Jets led 21-9 in the fourth quarter before improving to 1-4 under new coach Adam Gase. Dak Prescott was 28 of 40 for 277 yards, and Ezekiel Elliott finished with 105 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries for the 3-3 Cowboys.
Stefon Diggs was the star in the Vikings’ 38-20 win over the Eagles, catching seven passes for 167 yards and three touchdowns. Diggs scored on first-half passes that covered 51 and 62 yards, becoming the first player since Randy Moss in 2000 to post two touchdown receptions of 50-plus yards in one game for the Vikings. Kirk Cousins passed for a season-high 333 yards and four touchdowns as the 4-2 Vikes dropped the Eagles to 3-3.
The Redskins were winners in their first game under interim coach Bill Callahan as rookie Terry McLaurin caught two touchdown passes from Case Keenum in a 17-16 victory over the 0-6 Dolphins. Adrian Peterson more than doubled his season rushing total with 118, and Keenum passed for 166 yards and no interceptions after missing last week’s game with a foot injury. The Dolphins had a chance to win it after Ryan Fitzpatrick hit DeVante Parker for an 11-yard score with six seconds left, but Kenyan Drake couldn't handle Fitzpatrick's quick throw in the flat on the ensuing 2-point conversion try.
James Conner scored two touchdowns and Devin Bush recovered a pair of turnovers as the Steelers knocked off the Chargers, 24-17. Conner had his first game with both a rushing and receiving touchdown and accounted for 119 scrimmage yards. Devlin Hodges completed 15 of 20 for 132 yards and benefited from a strong ground game highlighted by Benny Snell’s 75 yards on 17 carries.
The Kansas City Chiefs have followed their impressive 4-0 start with back-to-back losses at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs built a 17-3 lead in the first quarter and led 24-23 midway through the final period before absorbing a 31-24 loss to Houston. DeShaun Watson put the Texans ahead for good with his second rushing touchdown of the game, a one-yard run with 6:17 remaining. He made it a seven-point game by throwing to DeAndre Hopkins for a two-point conversion after engineering a 93-yard drive that chewed up 8 ½ minutes. Watson threw for 280 yards and a touchdown for the 4-2 Texans, with Hopkins catching nine passes for 55 yards. Carlos Hyde added 116 yards rushing and a touchdown against the team that traded him to Houston before the start of the season. Patrick Mahomes finished with 273 yards passing and three touchdowns, though he also threw his first interception of the season.
The 49ers are 5-0 for the first time since 1990 after Jimmy Garoppolo passed for 243 yards and ran for a touchdown in a 20-7 silencing of the Rams. George Kittle had eight catches for 103 yards for San Francisco, which held Los Angeles to 165 total yards. Jared Goff was 13 of 24 for a career-low 78 yards for the 3-3 Rams, who played without running back Todd Gurley.
Lamar Jackson ran for a career-high 152 yards and a touchdown, threw for 236 yards and guided the Ravens past the winless Bengals, 23-17. Jackson was 21 for 33 through the air without an interception as Baltimore moved to 4-2 and dropped Cincinnati to 0-6. Bengals QB Andy Dalton was 21 for 39 for 235 yards and scored on a 2-yard run with 1:28 left.
The Seahawks are 5-1 after pulling out a 32-28 win at Cleveland on Chris Carson’s one-yard run with 3 ½ minutes remaining. Russell Wilson connected with Jaron Brown for two scores, and Seattle's cool quarterback scampered 16 yards for a TD. The Browns scored touchdowns on their first three possessions before Baker Mayfield was picked off three times. Cleveland is 2-4.
In London, Christian McCaffrey scored two touchdowns and the Panthers turned Jameis Winston’s five interceptions into 17 points for a 37-26 win over the Buccaneers. Carolina tied a team record with seven takeaways and earned its fourth straight victory since an 0-2 start. Kyle Allen finished 20 for 32 for 227 yards, two TDs and no interceptions to improve to 5-0 as a starter in his career. Winston was 30 of 54 for 400 yards and one TD for the 2-4 Bucs.
The Saints are 4-0 without Drew Brees after Teddy Bridgewater found Jared Cook for a 4-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter to lead New Orleans past the Jaguars, 13-6. Bridgewater was 24 of 36 passing for 240 yards for the 5-1 Saints. Gardner Minshew was sacked twice, hurried often and threw his first interception as a starter while completing just 14 of his 29 passes for 163 yards. Jacksonville dropped to 2-4.
Denver’s defense chased Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota before finishing with seven sacks and three interceptions in a 16-0 shutout of the Titans. Mariota was just 7 of 18 passing for 63 yards, two picks and three sacks before giving way to Ryan Tannehill in the second half. Brandon McManus hit three field goals and Phillip Lindsay ran for a touchdown as the 2-4 Broncos dealt the 2-4 Titans their fourth loss in five games.
Kyler Murray threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns in the Cardinals’ 34-33 triumph over the Falcons. Arizona blew a 27-10 lead before Murray connected with David Johnson on a 14-yard scoring play with 5:12 remaining. Atlanta looked like it would tie the game with 1:53 left after Matt Ryan hit Devonta Freeman on a 12-yard touchdown pass, but 44-year-old Matt Bryant missed left on the extra point to send the 1-5 Falcons to their fourth straight loss. The Cards are 3-2-1.
NHL
The Pittsburgh Penguins are coming back home after scoring 14 goals during their two-goal road trip. The Pens followed Saturday’s 7-4 rout of the Wild by blasting the Jets, 7-2 in Winnipeg. Zach Aston-Reese had a pair of goals and added an assist in Pittsburgh’s third straight win since a 1-2 start. Sam Lafferty and Jake Guentzel also had two goals apiece to back Tristan Jarry, who made 27 saves for the win. Mathieu Perreault and Mark Scheifele scored for the Jets.
Paul Stastny scored twice on the power play and Marc-Andre Fleury handled 36 shots as the Golden Knights beat the Kings, 5-2 to complete a sweep of back-to-back games. Max Pacioretty added a power-play goal for Vegas, which went 3-for-3 with the man advantage after going just 3-for-17 with the extra attacker.
The Sharks skated to a 3-1 win over the Flames as Tomas Hertl had a goal and an assist. Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc also scored and Logan Couture had two assists as San Jose won its second straight following an 0-3-0 start.
GYMNASTICS
Simone Biles broke the all-time record for most medals by any gymnast at the world championships by winning the balance beam competition Sunday. It's the 24th world championship medal for Biles, breaking a tie on 23 with the Belarusian men's gymnast Vitaly Scherbo. Biles scored 15.066 on the beam after a near-flawless routine, opting for a simpler dismount than the double-double she performed earlier in the championships.
NASCAR
Sunday’s NASCAR playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway has been red-flagged because of rain. NASCAR called the red flag at the end of the first stage of Sunday's race. They are scheduled to pick up the race Monday afternoon. Hendrick driver William Byron won the first stage, with teammates Alex Bowman and Jimmie Johnson right behind him.
PGA
Lanto Griffin has qualified for the Masters by capturing the Houston Open. Griffin took the lead with a 35-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole and sank a 6-foot par on the final hole for a 3-under 69 and a one-shot victory over Mark Hubbard and Scott Harrington. None of the three had won on the PGA Tour. Harrington missed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th and shot 67.
Jerry Kelly closed with a 7-under 65 to win the SAS Championship and close the gap in the Charles Schwab Cup as the PGA Tour Champions heads into its postseason. Kelly ran off five straight birdies on the front nine at Prestonwood Country Club to take control. Two birdies late in the final round gave him some breathing room, and he closed with a bogey for a one-shot victory over David McKenzie, who shot 63. Kelly moved to within $221,430 of Scott McCarron in the Schwab Cup. Points are double in the three playoff events.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Once again, Clemson has dropped in the poll after earning a victory. The defending CFP champions have slipped to third despite Saturday’s 45-14 win over Florida State. LSU slipped past the Tigers win, a convincing 38-24 win against Florida. Clemson has the nation’s longest current winning streak at 21 games. Alabama remains No. 1 for the second straight week since unseating Clemson at the top of the poll. Ohio State and Oklahoma round out the top five and are followed by Wisconsin, Penne State, Notre Dame, Florida and Georgia. The Bulldogs dropped from third to 10th by losing to South Carolina, 20-17 in double-overtime.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Hall of Fame basketball coach Jim Calhoun is denying sexual discrimination allegations made by a former associate athletic director at the University of Saint Joseph, the Division III school where he now works. The former UConn coach says he never "knowingly treated any woman unfairly because of her gender" and he fully supports women's rights and equality. Jaclyn Piscitelli says she was fired from the West Hartford school after complaining about the conduct of men in the athletic department.
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