“THE SCOREBOARD” MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL SCOREBOARD ALL-STAR GAME AMERICAN LEAGUE 4 NATIONAL LEAGUE 0 =========================== MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD NO GAMES SCHEDULED =========================== WNBA SCOREBOARD SUN 90 FIRE 87 MYSTICS 79 TEMPO 62 =========================== NBA SUMMER LEAGUE SCOREBOARD ROCKETS 90 76ERS 64 NETS 115 KINGS 83 GRIZZLIES 106 WARRIORS 85 BULLS 99 WIZARDS 87 NUGGETS 106 THUNDER 103 LAKERS 99 CLIPPERS 85 =========================== WORLD CUP SOCCER SCOREBOARD TUESDAY SPAIN 2 FRANCE 0 =========================== INDIANA HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL CONFERENCE SCHEDULES https://scoreboard.homestead.com/football/teams.htm#load =========================== NFL TRAINING CAMP DATES TEAM SITE LOCATION ROOKIES VETERANS ARIZONA CARDINALS STATE FARM STADIUM GLENDALE, ARIZ. 7/22 7/22 ATLANTA FALCONS ATLANTA FALCONS TRAINING FACILITY FLOWERY BRANCH, GA. 7/24 7/28 BALTIMORE RAVENS UNDER ARMOUR PERFORMANCE CENTER OWINGS MILLS, MD. 7/24 7/28 BUFFALO BILLS ST. JOHN FISHER UNIVERSITY ROCHESTER, N.Y. 7/21 7/28 CAROLINA PANTHERS BANK OF AMERICA STADIUM CHARLOTTE, N.C. 7/21 7/22 CHICAGO BEARS HALAS HALL LAKE FOREST, ILL. 7/25 7/28 CINCINNATI BENGALS PAYCOR STADIUM CINCINNATI 7/25 7/28 CLEVELAND BROWNS CROSSCOUNTRY MORTGAGE CAMPUS BEREA, OHIO 7/23 7/28 DALLAS COWBOYS MARRIOTT RESIDENCE INN OXNARD, CALIF. 7/28 7/28 DENVER BRONCOS BRONCOS PARK POWERED BY COMMONSPIRIT ENGLEWOOD, COLO. 7/22 7/28 DETROIT LIONS MEIJER PERFORMANCE CENTER ALLEN PARK, MICH. 7/25 7/28 GREEN BAY PACKERS LAMBEAU FIELD GREEN BAY, WIS. 7/27 7/28 HOUSTON TEXANS HOUSTON METHODIST TRAINING CENTER HOUSTON 7/21 7/28 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS GRAND PARK WESTFIELD, IND. 7/27 7/28 JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS MILLER ELECTRIC CENTER JACKSONVILLE, FLA. 7/25 7/28 KANSAS CITY CHIEFS MISSOURI WESTERN STATE UNIVERSITY ST. JOSEPH, MO. 7/24 7/28 LAS VEGAS RAIDERS INTERMOUNTAIN HEALTH PERFORMANCE CENTER HENDERSON, NEV. 7/23 7/28 LOS ANGELES CHARGERS THE BOLT EL SEGUNDO, CALIF. 7/23 7/28 LOS ANGELES RAMS LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY LOS ANGELES 7/25 7/25 MIAMI DOLPHINS BAPTIST HEALTH TRAINING COMPLEX MIAMI GARDENS, FLA. 7/21 7/28 MINNESOTA VIKINGS TCO PERFORMANCE CENTER EAGAN, MINN. 7/26 7/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS NEW BALANCE ATHLETICS CENTER FOXBOROUGH, MASS. 7/21 7/24 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS OCHSNER SPORTS PERFORMANCE CENTER METAIRIE, LA. 7/28 7/28 NEW YORK GIANTS QUEST DIAGNOSTICS TRAINING CENTER/THE GREENBRIER EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J./WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.V. 7/23 7/28 NEW YORK JETS ATLANTIC HEALTH JETS TRAINING CENTER FLORHAM PARK, N.J. 7/25 7/28 PHILADELPHIA EAGLES JEFFERSON HEALTH TRAINING COMPLEX PHILADELPHIA 7/28 7/28 PITTSBURGH STEELERS SAINT VINCENT COLLEGE LATROBE, PA. 7/28 7/28 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS SAP PERFORMANCE FACILITY SANTA CLARA, CALIF. 7/18 7/25 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS VIRGINIA MASON ATHLETIC CENTER RENTON, WASH. 7/17 7/24 TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS ADVENTHEALTH TRAINING CENTER TAMPA, FLA. 7/27 7/28 TENNESSEE TITANS VANDERBILT HEALTH FOOTBALL CENTER NASHVILLE, TENN. 7/23 7/28 WASHINGTON COMMANDERS COMMANDERS PARK ASHBURN, VA. 7/24 7/28 ====== 2026 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS PRE-SEASON SCHEDULE WEEK DATE OPPONENT TV / TIME (ET) WEEK 1 THU, AUG 13 @ NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS LOCAL (7:30 PM) WEEK 2 SAT, AUG 22 VS. ATLANTA FALCONS LOCAL (1:00 PM) WEEK 3 SAT, AUG 29 VS. DETROIT LIONS LOCAL (1:00 PM) ===== 2026 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE WEEK DATE OPPONENT TIME (ET) TV / STREAMING 1 SUN, SEPT 13 VS. BALTIMORE RAVENS 1:00 PM CBS 2 SUN, SEPT 20 @ KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 8:20 PM NBC 3 SUN, SEPT 27 VS. HOUSTON TEXANS 1:00 PM CBS 4 SUN, OCT 4 @ WASHINGTON COMMANDERS 9:30 AM NFL NET 5 SUN, OCT 11 @ PITTSBURGH STEELERS 1:00 PM CBS 6 SUN, OCT 18 VS. TENNESSEE TITANS 1:00 PM FOX 7 SUN, OCT 25 @ MINNESOTA VIKINGS 1:00 PM CBS 8 SUN, NOV 1 @ JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 1:00 PM CBS 9 SUN, NOV 8 VS. DALLAS COWBOYS 1:00 PM FOX 10 SUN, NOV 15 VS. MIAMI DOLPHINS 1:00 PM CBS 11 THU, NOV 19 @ HOUSTON TEXANS 8:15 PM PRIME VIDEO 12 SUN, NOV 29 VS. NEW YORK GIANTS 1:00 PM FOX 13 BYE WEEK 14 SUN, DEC 13 @ PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 1:00 PM FOX 15 SUN, DEC 20 @ TENNESSEE TITANS 1:00 PM CBS 16 TBD – FLEX VS. CINCINNATI BENGALS TBD TBD 17 SUN, JAN 3 @ CLEVELAND BROWNS 1:00 PM FOX 18 TBD – FLEX GAME VS. JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS TBD TBD ======================================= NATIONAL SPORTS HEADLINES/RELEASES WORLD CUP SOCCER SPAIN SHUTS DOWN FRANCE AND KYLIAN MBAPPÉ, ADVANCES TO THE WORLD CUP FINAL WITH A 2-0 VICTORY ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Spain’s defensive prowess and swagger were just too much for an attacking trio led by France great Kylian Mbappé, and just enough to get the 2010 champions into another World Cup final. The Spanish team managed a record sixth shutout in seven games so far, winning 2-0 in the semifinals Tuesday against one of the most prolific scorers in World Cup history. Teenager Lamine Yamal certainly was correct when he said France should fear Spain. That despite FIFA’s top-ranked team being led by Mbappé — their captain with 20 goals in his 20 World Cup games before the semifinals — Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise, who has a tournament-high five assists. “We were up against one of the best national teams in the world, but today, they were facing the best team in the world,” Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said. Mikel Oyarzabal scored from the penalty spot after a heady play by Yamal drew a foul, and Pedro Porro added another goal to put Spain in its second World Cup final. A day after his 19th birthday, Yamal was denied a goal on a close offside call that came soon after Porro’s give-and-go with Dani Olmo in the 58th minute had put Spain up 2-0. But it was Yamal’s smart play against a veteran defender that gave Spain the early lead. Spain will face either defending champion Argentina or England on Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey, across the river from New York City. “So difficult to get to this moment, but we want more,” Spain midfielder Rodri said. “We want to win this World Cup.” After trying to become only the third team to reach three consecutive World Cup finals, France instead will play in the third-place game in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday. “Spain has been able to defend well,” departing France coach Didier Deschamps said through a translator. “They’ve closed out all the spaces and also we’ve made some technical mistakes. So it is difficult to create problems when the technical level is below standard.” Argentina and England play Wednesday in Atlanta in the second powerhouse semifinal match. This win on soccer’s biggest stage marked the third summer in a row that Spain beat France in a tournament semifinal match. Yamal scored in a 2-1 win in the 2024 European Championship semifinals just days before his 17th birthday, and La Roja won 5-4 in Nations League play last year. Yamal was quick to point out that France should be concerned after Spain’s quarterfinal win over Belgium set up another semifinal matchup. “It’s a team who loves to have control of the game, control of the ball. That’s what we let them do,” said Mbappé, who got none of his three shots on target. “It’s difficult when you don’t change the play of Spain.” Spain has outscored opponents 12-1 since a scoreless draw against surprising Cape Verde to open group play. The lone goal allowed by goalkeeper Unai Simón was in the quarterfinal game against Belgium that snapped his World Cup record of 650 scoreless minutes. This World Cup run has extended Spain’s unbeaten streak in regular time to 37 matches (28 wins and nine draws) since March 2024. That broke the country’s previous record of 35 in a row from 2007-09. The loss broke France’s record-matching streak of six consecutive World Cup wins, which the team also accomplished in the 2018 and 2022 tournaments. Oyarzabal’s penalty kick in the 22nd minute came after Yamal drew a foul when kicked by defender Lucas Digne. After a poor first touch with his head, Digne was trying to clear the ball when Yamal raced in from behind to challenge in the penalty area. The ball hit off the elbow of the leaping teen before he was kicked by Digne, playing in his 63rd game for France only six days before his 33rd birthday. Oyarzabal’s fifth goal of this year’s World Cup marked the first time either team had trailed in their seven games in this tournament. It was his 30th goal in 60 international games for Spain. For the second goal, Porro broke free and received a pass back from Olmo, who got the touch just before getting knocked off his feet by defender Dayot Upamecano. “We knew that we’re a very tough team, we’re doing things really well,” Porro said. France allowed only two goals in its first six games in this tournament. Spain had two other real scoring chances in the first half. There was the a free kick from just beyond the box after Adrien Rabiot drew a yellow card for a foul on Olmo in the eighth minute. Alex Baena’s kick went directly into the wall of French players. After France goalkeeper Mike Maignan’s attempted clearing pass in the 38th minute instead went straight to Baena, there were several quick passes before Fabian Ruiz’s close-range shot was denied on a nifty play by Upamecano. Mbappé, who is tied with Argentina great Lionel Messi with a tournament-high eight goals and leads the race for the Golden Boot on the assist tiebreaker, still has the third-place match to add to his tally. Messi has two games left in his sixth World Cup to try to win the Golden Boot and also increase his overall record of 21 goals at the tournament. “As the captain, I have to take all the responsibility and I have no problem with that,” Mbappé said. “We wanted to go to the final. We didn’t go.” ========================================== BASEBALL NEWS AL ALL-STARS SCORE EARLY, SHUT OUT NL ON 3 HITS PHILADELPHIA — It took Cody Bellinger seven years to get back to the Midsummer Classic. Now he’s part of a select club in the event’s history. Bellinger and New York Yankees teammate Ben Rice hit consecutive RBI singles during a three-run first inning, and the American League pitched a three-hitter in a 4-0 victory over the National League in the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday night. With Bellinger driving in two, he was ultimately named the game’s MVP, joining fellow Yankees Derek Jeter (2000), Mariano Rivera (2013) and Giancarlo Stanton (2022) who have earned the honor. The game’s MVP award was introduced in 1962. “It’s special, man,” said Bellinger, who appeared twice previously in the event with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017 and 2019. “I mean, you know, wearing this jersey, I feel proud wearing it. It comes with a lot. And I just try to put my best foot forward every day and give it everything I got.” Miguel Vargas of the Chicago White Sox added an eighth-inning solo shot in his All-Star debut as the AL avenged a 7-6 loss to the NL by swing-off tiebreaker in 2025. There haven’t been consecutive wins by the same side in the exhibition since the AL won nine in a row from 2013 to 2022.Sports media Toronto Blue Jays ace Dylan Cease struck out the side in the bottom of the first in his All-Star debut. The Kansas City Royals’ Michael Wacha, Minnesota Twins’ Joe Ryan and Cleveland Guardians’ Cade Smith fanned two batters each in respective shutout innings of relief. “It’s the game now,” said Blue Jays and AL manager John Schneider. “Guys’ stuff is unbelievable. To see Luis Arraez strike out and Yandy Diaz strike out a couple times. It’s just kind of like, you never see it. So it speaks volumes to how good these guys are.” Tampa Bay Rays slugger Junior Caminero exited in the third after taking a 1-0 offering from the St. Louis Cardinals’ Riley O’Brien to the left hand. He underwent X-rays, which were negative, and Caminero said he expects to be available on Friday when the regular season resumes. “In the moment I was just scared, right?” Caminero said through an interpreter. “Kind of in that situation right then and there you’re thinking the worst, and I honestly thought something might have been broken, but look, you know, thank you to God that everything’s fine and you know, now it’s just a little bit sore, but we’re all good.”Baseball It was a rough night for the hometown Philadelphia Phillies, beginning when starter Cristopher Sanchez worked into first-inning trouble. After a leadoff strikeout, the Houston Astros’ Yordan Alvarez singled, and the Athletics’ Shea Langeliers walked. Sanchez made a nice play on a chopper in front of the mound to retire the next batter, but then walked the bases loaded before Bellinger and Rice both hit hard grounders up the middle to make it 3-0. Phillies hitters Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh and Bryce Harper combined to finish 0-for-5 on the evening with four strikeouts. Harper also lost an ABS challenge during his at-bat. Then again, there were only five total NL baserunners. The Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman and Cincinnati Reds’ Sal Stewart both worked walks. The New York Mets’ Juan Soto singled in his second at-bat, the Chicago Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong singled in the eighth and the Miami Marlins’ Otto Lopez singled with two outs in the ninth. National League batters totaled 15 strikeouts, the AL had 12 to go along with seven hits. Philadelphia closer Jhoan Duran received his ceremonial, strobe light-aided entrance with one out in the final frame and retired the final few batters in the top of the ninth. But even his showing lacked some ballpark energy, with many of the announced crowd of 43,916 already having departed. It was an underwhelming end for an event resoundingly embraced by its host. Philadelphian recording artists Patti LaBelle and Boyz II Men as well as Jennifer Hudson were among the pregame and in-game entertainment. There were also appearances by former Phillies All-Stars Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. Schneider, who grew up in nearby Princeton, N.J., even greeted Boyz II Men in the visiting dugout. “Everything was really cool, but awesome to shake their hand and say, hey, huge fan. You know what I mean?” he said. “A-46-year-old dude saying, hey, huge fan. But everything about tonight was pretty special.” Early on, fans roared in approval of their hometown stars, and booed a few select participants, notably Yankees and Mets players, and Home Run Derby winner Jordan Walker of St. Louis, who defeated Schwarber in the event Monday night. ===== RED SOX ADD VETERAN OF JAHMAI JONES TO MIX IN TRADE WITH TIGERS The Boston Red Sox added a right-handed batter to their outfield platoon on Tuesday by acquiring Jahmai Jones from the Detroit Tigers for a player to be named later. In a corresponding move, the Red Sox optioned outfielder Nate Eaton to Triple-A Worcester. The Tigers designated Jones, 28, for assignment last Thursday after he batted .137 (13-for-95) with two home runs and seven RBIs in 57 games for Detroit this season. Jones is a career .214 hitter with 10 homers and 41 RBIs in 198 regular-season games for the Los Angeles Angels (2020), Baltimore Orioles (2021), Milwaukee Brewers (2023), New York Yankees (2024) and Tigers (2025-26). The Angels selected Jones in the second round of the 2015 MLB Draft. He joins a Red Sox roster with left-handed-hitting Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu and Masataka Yoshida rotating through the lineup in the outfield and at designated hitter.Baseball content Eaton, 29, is 4-for-32 (.125) with one homer and five RBIs in 14 games for Boston this season. He is a career .221 hitter with three homers and 22 RBIs in 127 games for the Kansas City Royals (2022-23) and Red Sox (2025-present). The right-handed hitter is batting .283 with five homers and 22 RBIs, a .348 on-base percentage and .450 slugging percentage in 48 games for Worcester this season. ===== SHOHEI OHTANI TO BE AVAILABLE FOR DODGERS’ WEEKEND SERIES AT YANKEES AFTER FLUID DRAINED FROM KNEE PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani will be a designated hitter at a minimum for this weekend’s series at the New York Yankees after having fluid drained from his left knee. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday that Ohtani had the procedure to relieve irritation following Sunday’s game and that the four-time MVP was taking a few days of vacation before the season’s second half. Roberts said the two-way star did not receive an injection. Two-time World Series champion Los Angeles opens the second half Friday for the start of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium. “He’s going to be in the lineup,” Roberts said before managing the National League in the All-Star Game. Ohtani is batting .293 with 22 homers and 58 RBIs while going 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 85 2/3 innings over 14 starts. The four-time MVP skipped Tuesday’s All-Star Game. Ohtani last pitched on July 3. It isn’t yet clear whether he will pitch against the Yankees. “We haven’t decided that yet,” Roberts said. ===== BASEBALL UNION HEAD CRITICIZES MLB SALARY CAP AD CAMPAIGN, SAYS CLAIMS OF ECONOMIC WOE ARE PERVERSE PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The head of baseball’s players’ union chastised management on Tuesday for its advertising campaign in support of a salary cap while Commissioner Rob Manfred maintained the proposal was developed in response to fans. Bruce Meyer, who took over when Tony Clark was forced out in February, said the sport was thriving despite assertions by Major League Baseball that massive change is needed. “I have watched over the last few years the owners, the commissioner’s office, try to convince fans, the consumers of their product, that the product is broken,” Meyer said ahead of the All-Star Game. “The supposed stewards of the game have spent an inordinate amount of time trying to convince those same fans that they don’t have hope or they shouldn’t have hope or that the product that they’re paying to consume in record numbers is somehow broken. I think it’s perverse.” Management in May proposed a salary cap system, which players say they will never accept. MLB launched a “Level the Field” campaign claiming fans support a cap that contains a floor. “In order for this game to reach its full potential we need to continue to address concerns that our fans have, particularly concerns that go to the core of what we’re about, that is competitive balance,” Manfred said in a separate question-and-answer session. Attendance has averaged 29,230 this season, up 1.2% from 28,895 through similar dates last year. MLB is on pace for its highest attendance since 2017. “We need to make sure that fans in markets at the beginning of the season have a realistic belief that their team has a chance to win,” he added. “I think that we need a system where fans, particularly in smaller markets, can have some hope that the players that are signed and developed by their organizations can actually stay there through free agency and honestly I think we need a system where there is a more robust free agent market, so if you don’t want to go to New York or Los Angeles, you have a realistic opportunity to get a viable free agent contract.” Fans have responded positively to MLB’s changes in the 2020s, which include expanded playoffs in 2022, a pitch clock in 2023 and an appeals system to robot umpires for strike zone decisions this year. “We got that momentum by listening to our fans and making changes that, candidly, the MLBPA was not interested in,” Manfred said. “Those changes have paid off in terms of creating that momentum, and the best way to lose momentum is to stand still.” No small-market team has won the World Series since the 2015 Kansas City Royals. The Los Angeles Dodgers, coming off their second straight title, had a $323.3 million opening-day payroll for their 40-man roster and a $163.7 million tax for a $487.1 million total. Cleveland had the lowest payroll at $75.5 million. “It defies human experience to ask a fan to think that the bottom end of that gap has the same opportunity to win as the top,” Manfred said. “There is no question, OK, that everybody in any sport is not going to win once every 30 or 32 years depending on how many teams you have, but the data in our sport is stark. Your opportunity to make the playoffs if you are a larger-market team is dramatically higher and your opportunity to proceed to the subsequent rounds, that advantage grows with each round.” Meyer said unions for players in the NFL, NBA and NHL agreed to caps under duress. “In one way or the other they were broken or forced into it,” he said. “I believe that this system is bad for players and would be for generations to come.” Baseball’s five-year labor contract expires Dec. 1 and management is expected to immediately start a lockout, the sport’s 10th work stoppage since 1972. No games have been lost since a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 caused the World Series to be canceled for the first in 90 years. “Teams in every market across the league can afford to compete,” Meyer said. “Many of them are choosing not to. From our standpoint, that’s the biggest problem in the game right now.” Meyer said owners want a cap to guarantee profits and increase franchise values, a system he called “subsidized mediocrity.” “They don’t want it because they’re just so concerned about the fans,” he said. “If they were so concerned about the fans, they would listen to the fans all across baseball who are literally chanting ‘Sell the team.’ They want their owners to sell the team because they feel they’re not competing.” Manfred did not want to comment on whether he thought President Donald Trump, who said he supports a cap, would attempt to intervene in bargaining. “It would be wildly, wildly inappropriate for me to speculate about what the president of the United States might do or not do in a hypothetical situation,” he said. Manfred defended MLB’s advertising campaign supporting a cap. “Sometimes the other side may not be completely accurate or fair in terms of their recitation and what’s going on,” he said. ===== DISCUSSIONS FOR MAJOR LEAGUERS IN 2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPICS IN EARLY STAGES PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Discussions for major leaguers to play in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics baseball tournament remain in the early stages, with players used to top hotels wanting to be assured of accommodations. Major League Baseball has envisioned an extended 11-day All-Star break. The last regular-season games before the break would be on July 9, followed by the All-Star Game on July 11, likely at San Francisco, and the Olympic tournament at Dodger Stadium from July 13-19. The season would resume July 21. “In general our players want to play in the Olympics. They’re patriotic, and for them it’s a special opportunity, and we want them to have that opportunity,” union head Bruce Meyer said Tuesday ahead of the All-Star Game. “Having said that, we want to make sure that they have things like travel and accommodations, and things that they deserve based on who they are.” Five entities are involved in the negotiations: Major League Baseball, the players’ association, the International Olympic Committee, the LA28 local organizing committee and the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Meyer characterized discussions as early. “We’re focused on player quality of life,” Meyer said. The United States qualified automatically as host, and the Dominican Republic and Venezuela earned berths based on their finish in this year’s World Baseball Classic. Asia and Europe/Oceania will have one spot each and the sixth nation will be determined during a final qualifying tournament. “We went down the road on LA 2028 because we saw it as a unique opportunity to market the sport with our very, very best players,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said. “It is a disruptive undertaking for us. Put money to one side, you’re disrupting your entire season, and if we’re going to undertake that effort we want our very best out there so that people see how great our game really is.” MLB wants player participation to be mandatory for those chosen along with those picked for future All-Star Games. “The proposals they made in terms of what the discipline would be, the ramifications of a player who doesn’t want to do that, in our view were extreme,” Meyer said. Meyer said San Francisco would be the 2028 All-Star Game site, but Manfred said MLB hasn’t made a final determination. MLBPA says it is not a federal target Meyer gave a brief update on the federal investigation into One Team Partners, a licensing company the MLBPA founded with the NFL Players Association. “It’s our understanding that the MLBPA and its current staff are not and have never been targets of this ongoing investigation,” he said. Robot umpires Manfred is happy with the Automated Ball-Strike System, which began this year with teams able to challenge strike zone decisions. There are no plans to use ABS for all ball/strike calls. “We’re letting the dust settle on the challenge system,” he said. “Who knows what’s next? I really don’t have a plan on that.” Cincinnati has been the most successful challenging team, winning 64.4%, followed by Arizona (62.2%), Detroit (60.4%), the Athletics (57.5%) and Texas (56.7%). Pittsburgh had been the least successful at 41%, and just above are Cleveland (43.7%) the Chicago White Sox (47%), Washington (47.1%) and San Francisco (48.4%). Clubs have been successful on 53.2% of the 6,040 challenges. Batters have won 47.9% of 2,810 challenges and fielders (catchers and pitchers) 58% of 3,230. Eliminating high school players from amateur draft Manfred detailed why MLB has proposed banning an amateur in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico from signing until he was at least 20 years old by the Sept. 1 of his signing year and two years removed from the graduating year of his high school class. “Seventy to 75% of our players are college players now,” he said. “That is a dramatic change in the way that baseball operations people think about colleges.” MLB also wants to encourage players to get higher education. “Talking players out of going to college, I’m not sure I agree with that just in terms of the overall development of the human being,” he said. ======================================== NFL NEWS NFL SUSPENDS COWBOYS DE CHARLES SNOWDEN 3 GAMES The NFL suspended Dallas Cowboys defensive end Charles Snowden for the first three games of the 2026 regular season on Tuesday. NFL Network reported the suspension is related to a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy. Snowden, now 28, was arrested while a member of the Las Vegas Raiders in December 2024 and charged with driving under the influence, a misdemeanor as a first-time offender. Las Vegas police said his blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit after he was found asleep in his SUV. He initially pled not guilty, but in January entered a no-contest plea. He was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and attend coroner’s and DUI courses. The charge will be reduced to reckless driving on the condition that he completes his plea agreement. Snowden played 15 games with nine starts at defensive end for the Raiders last season, making 28 tackles with three sacks, five tackles for loss, two passes defended and one interception. He has career totals of 67 tackles, 4.5 sacks, eight tackles for loss, six passes defended and one interception in 33 games (18 starts) for the Chicago Bears (two games in 2021) and Raiders (2024-25). He also spent time in 2022 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ practice squad. Snowden was waived by the Raiders in May and signed a one-year, $1.1 million contract with the Cowboys on June 18. He is allowed to participate in all preseason activities, including training camp and games, with the suspension taking effect when rosters reduce to 53 players. The Cowboys open the season Sept. 13 with a visit to the New York Giants, followed by a home game on Sept. 20 against the Washington Commanders and a Sept. 27 clash with the Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ===== ILLINOIS SENATOR: BEARS ’50-50′ TO STAY IN STATE The Chicago Bears might be progressing with plans for a stadium in Indiana, but one Illinois lawmaker thinks the battle to keep the franchise is far from over. State Sen. Sue Rezin said Tuesday that she considers the Bears’ stadium search a close race between staying in Illinois and moving across the state line. Her assessment came about five weeks after the team’s board approved a proposed development in Hammond, Ind. “I would give it a 50-50 chance to have the Bears stay in Illinois,” Rezin said during a legislative update. The Bears have not selected a specific Hammond site or finalized a relocation. Their renewed interest in Indiana followed another legislative session that ended without an agreement addressing the tax and infrastructure issues tied to a new stadium in Illinois. Rezin, the Illinois Senate’s deputy minority leader, said lawmakers are still working toward a solution that could make an in-state project viable. “It comes down to a legislative fix in Springfield to allow the Bears to be able to invest the kind of money that they want to build out the stadium, whether it’s in the suburbs or downtown Chicago,” Rezin said. If the team stays in Illinois, Rezin believes Arlington Heights remains the most practical destination. The Bears paid $197.2 million in 2023 for the 326-acre site formerly occupied by Arlington International Racecourse, giving them enough space for a stadium and surrounding entertainment district. “I think if they do stay in Illinois, they more than likely will be in the suburbs just because they purchased a couple hundred acres there and it’s easier to build out the transportation and the logistics for the Bears stadium as well,” Rezin said. The Bears currently play at Soldier Field, their home since 1971. They have considered both a new stadium near the lakefront and the Arlington Heights property, but disagreements over public infrastructure support and long-term property taxes have slowed progress. Indiana has responded with a financing framework designed to attract the franchise to Hammond. The Bears’ board vote represented its most significant step toward an out-of-state move, though the team has stopped short of saying it will leave Illinois. ===== BIJAN ROBINSON OF THE FALCONS IS VOTED AS THE TOP RUNNING BACK IN THE NFL BY AN AP PANEL The expectations for Bijan Robinson were high as soon as he entered the NFL in 2023 as the first running back taken with a top-10 pick in five years. Robinson made an impact almost from the start with the Atlanta Falcons and then took his game to another level last season when he led the NFL in yards from scrimmage and was picked as the All-Pro running back. That production helped Robinson win the honor of being named the top running back in the league by The Associated Press. A panel of eight AP pro football writers ranked the top five players at running back, basing selections on current status entering the 2026 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second- through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points. Robinson got three first-place votes, one second and was the only player named on all eight ballots to win the voting with 41 points. San Francisco’s Christian McCaffrey got two first-place votes and finished second with 33 points, with Baltimore’s Derrick Henry also getting two first-place votes and coming in third with 30 points. The other first-place vote went to Saquon Barkley, who finished fourth, with Detroit’s Jahmyr Gibbs coming in fifth. Indianapolis’ Jonathan Taylor and Buffalo’s James Cook also received votes. 1. Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons Robinson, the eighth pick in 2023, is one of the top dual-threat backs in the league, finishing fourth in the league in rushing last season with 1,478 yards to go along with 820 yards receiving. He became the second player ever with at least 1,400 yards rushing and 800 yards receiving in the same season, joining Steven Jackson, who did it in 2006. Robinson led the NFL with 2,298 yards from scrimmage and scored 11 TDs on the season. 2. Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers McCaffrey has established himself as the most dangerous receiving threat out of the backfield and is a focal point of Kyle Shanahan’s passing game in San Francisco. McCaffrey wasn’t the explosive runner last season as he had been earlier in his career, rushing for 1,202 yards and averaging just 3.9 yards per carry. He more than made up for that with 102 catches for 924 yards as he nearly became the first player ever with two seasons with at least 1,000 yards rushing and receiving. McCaffrey generated an NFL-best 119 first downs, matching the most for any player in the past 15 seasons. 3. Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens People have been waiting for Henry to shows signs of decline as he reached his 30s but it hasn’t been evident yet. Henry has topped 1,500 yards rushing in each of the past two seasons after turning 30, with his five 1,500-yard seasons tied with Barry Sanders for the most ever. Henry ranked second in the NFL last season with 1,595 yards rushing and is 10th all-time with 13,018 yards. He set a record last season with his seventh 200-yard game and has a record-tying four seasons with at least 15 TD runs. 4. Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles Barkley took a step back from his record-setting 2024 season when his 2,504 yards rushing in the regular season and playoffs were the most ever as Philadelphia’s offense was less potent last season. He still managed to rush for 1,140 yards and scored nine total TDs to earn some support in this voting. 5. Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions Gibbs has been a scoring machine since entering the league with Robinson in 2023, when he was picked four spots later at No. 12 overall. Gibbs’ 49 career touchdowns are the most ever for a player before turning 24 years old, topping the previous mark of 47 set by Lions legend Barry Sanders. Gibbs rushed for 1,223 yards and added 616 more receiving last season when he scored 18 overall TDs. ===== FRED WARNER OF THE 49ERS IS VOTED AS THE TOP OFF-BALL LINEBACKER IN THE NFL BY AN AP PANEL Fred Warner managed to play only six games last season for the San Francisco 49ers before a broken right ankle ended his season prematurely in Week 6. Warner’s play up until that point and his all-around dominance over the past several years still was enough to help him earn the honor of being named the top off-ball linebacker in the NFL by The Associated Press. A panel of eight AP pro football writers ranked the top five players at off-ball linebacker, basing selections on current status entering the 2026 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second- through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points. Warner got six first-place votes and won the voting with 60 points. Detroit’s Jack Campbell got the other two first-place votes and finished second with 39 points. Philadelphia’s Zack Baun was third, Carolina’s Devin Lloyd was fourth, and Miami’s Jordyn Brooks and Baltimore’s Roquan Smith tied for fifth. Green Bay’s Zaire Franklin, Seattle’s Ernest Jones IV, Tennessee’s Cedric Gray, Kansas City’s Nick Bolton, Cleveland’s Carson Schwesinger and Bobby Wagner also received votes. 1. Fred Warner, San Francisco 49ers Warner had been a first-team All-Pro from 2022-24, as well as 2020, as the leader of San Francisco’s defense. Warner is the prototypical linebacker for the modern game as he excels in both pass coverage and stopping the run. Warner is the only player currently on an NFL roster with at least 10 career sacks, interceptions and forced fumbles. In his last three healthy seasons, Warner had 393 tackles, seven interceptions, 28 passes defensed and nine forced fumbles. 2. Jack Campbell, Detroit Lions The Lions surprised some watchers when they used the 18th overall pick to draft Campbell in 2023 out of Iowa. Campbell quickly showed why that was a shrewd decision. He’s been a key component of Detroit’s defense since his rookie year and took his game to a new level in 2025 when he was named first-team All-Pro after becoming the first player since at least 2000 to have at least 160 tackles and five sacks in a season. The Lions rewarded Campbell with an $81 million, four-year extension earlier this offseason. 3. Zack Baun, Philadelphia Eagles Baun followed up his breakthrough 2024 season, when he helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl, with another strong campaign as he firmly established himself as one of the game’s top linebackers. Baun had struggled to get on the field on defense as an edge rusher his first four seasons in New Orleans, but has been a star at linebacker on Vic Fangio’s defense in Philadelphia. He was an All-Pro in 2024 and made his second straight Pro Bowl last season after recording 123 tackles, seven passes defensed, seven tackles for loss and 3 1/2 sacks. 4. Devin Lloyd, Carolina Panthers The 2022 first-round pick by Jacksonville had a breakthrough season last year with the Jaguars that earned him a three-year, $45 million contract from Carolina in the offseason. Lloyd’s five interceptions were tied for the most by any linebacker in the last 12 seasons and he had a 99-yard return for a TD after picking off a pass from Patrick Mahomes. 5. (tie), Jordyn Brooks, Miami Dolphins Brooks was a rare bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season for the Dolphins as he earned All-Pro honors for the first time in his career. The former first-round pick by Seattle has stepped up his game after being signed in free agency by Miami before the 2024 season. He led the NFL with 183 tackles last season, including 99 solo tackles. ===== HOUSTON TEXANS CO-FOUNDER JANICE MCNAIR DIES AT 89 HOUSTON (AP) — Janice S. McNair, who alongside her late husband Robert “Bob” McNair brought the NFL back to Houston after the Oilers left for Tennessee by founding the Texans, has died. She was 89. “It is with profound sadness that we announce Houston Texans co-founder and senior chair Janice S. McNair passed away peacefully in Houston this afternoon with her family by her side,” the Texans said in a statement on Tuesday. After her husband Bob died in 2018 following a battle with both leukemia and squamous cell carcinoma, Janice took over the Texans organization as owner. McNair’s son, Cal, was approved as primary owner of the team in 2024. “Mom was exceptional. She exuded kindness, radiated joy, had an endless amount of hope and love, and lived an incredible life centered around faith, family, philanthropy and football,” Cal said in a statement. “I remain honored to lead this franchise and build on the foundation my parents set when they brought football back to Houston. Mom leaves an indelible mark on our family, our team and our community, and her giving spirit will always be embedded in the fabric of our organization. While I’m heartbroken, I take great comfort in knowing she is now reunited with my dad, her favorite teammate.” Janice McNair grew up in South Carolina, and moved to Houston with Bob in 1960. Bob McNair made his fortune as the founder of Cogen Technologies, an energy company which was sold to Enron in 1999 for $1.5 billion. The couple was committed to charity in the city, including causes such as The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, The Robert and Janice McNair Educational Foundation in Forest City, North Carolina, and the Houston Texans Foundation. Janice is survived by four children, 16 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren, according to the team. ===== POLICE CLOSE INVESTIGATION INVOLVING JETS QB GENO SMITH New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith will not be charged for a June incident in which a woman accused him of battery, the Davie, Fla., police department said Tuesday. The investigation is no longer active. On June 21, a woman called 911, claiming to have been assaulted by Smith at his home. The woman, who identified herself as his ex-girlfriend, later posted a video of the encounter on social media. The video did not include evidence of an assault. No one was arrested or detained at the scene, though the woman was trespassed from Smith’s home. The official report cited a lack of witnesses and surveillance footage to corroborate the allegations, and neither Smith nor the woman provided requested follow-up statements to the police. That left the responding officer “unable to determine the primary aggressor in the physical altercation,” according to the report. “No further investigative steps can be reasonably taken with the information presently available,” read the supplemental case report obtained by ESPN. “Any future investigative action is contingent on additional information or evidence being brought forward.” The original incident report referenced two scratches to the right side of Smith’s face and a knot on the back of his head. It also detailed a small cut on the woman’s right hand and a bruise on her left arm. The woman uploaded a video to Instagram accusing Smith of beating her and neglecting his 6-year-old son. The boy’s mother, a different woman, later defended Smith in her own Instagram video. Smith has not commented publicly on the incident; neither have the Jets. The NFL could still discipline the 35-year-old if it determines he violated the league’s personal conduct policy. “We are aware of the matter, and the club has been in contact with the league,” an NFL spokesman said in a statement. Smith, who played for the Jets from 2013-16, was reacquired by the club in a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders in March. ============================================ COLLEGE FOOTBALL MICHIGAN ATHLETIC DIRECTOR WARDE MANUEL SAYS HE’S BEEN FIRED BY SOCIAL MEDIA 3 TIMES IN 10 YEARS ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Embattled Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel on Tuesday addressed the latest round of reports about his potential exit from the university, saying he has had conversations about a potential buyout. “I think I’ve been fired by social media three times in my ten years here,” Manuel said during a previously scheduled interview on The Big 1050 WTKA. Multiple media outlets recently suggested his job is in jeopardy amid investigations into the culture of the department and fired football coach Sherrone Moore’s relationship with his former executive assistant. The investigations have cost the university about $12 million, and it may not release all the related reports. “Documents related to these attorney-directed investigations are privileged and confidential and protected by attorney-client privilege,” school spokesman Paul Corliss said Tuesday. “Maintaining the confidentiality of these documents preserves the integrity of the investigative process, protects the privacy of those who participated and helps safeguard those individuals from potential retaliation.” Michigan’s board has a meeting on Thursday, where the publicly accessible agenda does not mention Manuel or the investigations. “I have four years left on my contract,” said Manuel, who acknowledged talks about a possible buyout. “I don’t know what the future is going to be. “I do feel confident in the things I have done here at Michigan. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished.” Manuel said he has helped the Wolverines have their best 10-year stretch, winning this year’s national championship in men’s basketball along with recent football, men’s and women’s gymnastics NCAA titles, 95 Big Ten championships and 4,000-plus student-athletes earning academic all-conference honors. Michigan also has had a string of scandals under his watch. Manuel fired Moore for having an inappropriate relationship with his executive assistant, who sued the school earlier this month. The football program is on NCAA probation, was tarnished by a sign-stealing scheme and has seen many former staffers have run-ins with the law, including Matt Weiss, who is charged with hacking into the computer accounts of thousands of college athletes to find intimate images. Manuel is also named in a lawsuit — along with the university, its board, a former school president and Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti — filed by fired assistant football coach Chris Partridge that claims Michigan knew about the sign-stealing scandal nearly a year before the public did. The 58-year-old Manuel, who played football at Michigan under the late Bo Schembechler and was on the track team, was hired to lead the department in 2016. He signed a contract extension at Michigan in 2024 that runs through June 2030. Manuel, a New Orleans native, previously served as athletic director at Connecticut and Buffalo after working in Michigan’s athletic department in various roles from 1996 to 2005. ===== BRIAN KELLY OPEN TO COACHING RETURN: ‘LOT MORE TO GIVE’ Brian Kelly is not ready to declare his coaching career finished. The former Notre Dame and LSU head coach said he remains open to several possibilities, including taking an assistant or coordinator position after more than three decades leading his own programs. “I don’t think I’ve closed any doors in my own mind,” Kelly said during an appearance on The Independent: A Notre Dame Football Podcast. “And I think that’s the most important thing. I’m very open-minded about what the opportunities might be for me. I have a lot more to give.” Kelly, 64, was fired by LSU midway through his fourth season in Baton Rouge last October. He has spent the months since focusing on his health and reconnecting with former players and coaches, something the pace of running a major college program rarely allowed him to do. His offseason stops have included a visit with Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur, who previously worked for Kelly at Notre Dame. Kelly also plans to return to Grand Valley State, where he began his head coaching career and won two Division II national championships.Sports Coaching & Training A visit to Notre Dame is also expected. Kelly coached the Fighting Irish from 2010-21 before leaving for LSU while Notre Dame was still in contention for the College Football Playoff. Kelly said he wants his return to South Bend to demonstrate support for current coach Marcus Freeman and the direction of the program. “I just want to show that I have 100% faith and confidence in what they’re doing and how they’re doing it,” Kelly said. “Not that they need me to validate in any way.” Kelly praised Freeman for succeeding in one of college football’s most demanding jobs despite having no previous head-coaching experience. He identified Freeman’s willingness to listen and adjust as one of his greatest strengths. Kelly, who owns a 200-76 career Division I record with stops at Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and LSU, is expected to remain connected to the sport through broadcasting during the 2026 season, calling Mountain West games for CBS. It gives him an opportunity to study how college football continues to change before deciding whether to return to the sideline.Soccer He said a future job would not necessarily have to come as the head coach of a national championship contender. After 35 seasons running programs, Kelly appears willing to consider a different role if the right opportunity emerges. ===== KICKOFF GAME ANNOUNCES ‘MULTIMILLION DOLLAR’ NIL DEAL WITH AUBURN BEFORE OPENER AGAINST BAYLOR ATLANTA (AP) — The Aflac Kickoff Game on Tuesday announced a name, image and likeness deal with Auburn leading up to the Tigers’ game against Baylor on Sept. 5. The Peach Bowl and the Kickoff Game say the deal is worth “multimillion” dollars and marks the first time a neutral-site college football game has incorporated NIL compensation for student-athletes. The NIL agreement also will involve third-party entities. According to the announcement, as many as two dozen Auburn student-athletes will promote the game through social media posts, public appearances, advertisements, in-game promotions and branding opportunities. “In the new NIL era of college football, this will be an innovative way to create wins for the teams, programs and student-athletes,” said Peach Bowl Inc. CEO David Epps in a statement. “This new model is a true win-win scenario where Auburn and its student-athletes get a financial boost in the NIL space. At the same time, it’s a potential game changer for neutral-site games like ours who want to bring added value to participating teams and make it a more attractive and lucrative opportunity.” Auburn opened its 2025 season with a 38-24 win at Baylor. This year’s rematch originally was scheduled as an Auburn home game. The teams agreed to move the game to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, also the home of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and the Peach Bowl. The Kickoff Game is the nation’s longest-running neutral-site game and will be televised by ABC at 3:30 p.m. EDT. Auburn will be making its fourth appearance in the Kickoff Game. It will be Baylor’s first appearance. Peach Bowl Inc. operates the Peach Bowl as well as the Kickoff Game. ======================================= MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL POST-DUSTY MAY DEPARTURE, L.J. CASON TRANSFERRING FROM MICHIGAN Guard L.J. Cason is transferring away from Michigan following the departure of Dusty May, according to a Monday On3 report. Cason, a rising junior, was a reserve for the national champion Wolverines, though he saw his minutes increase substantially over his freshman season. Cason’s minutes rose from 11.8 to 18.6, while his scoring average increased from 4.3 ppg to 8.4. His 2025-26 season was cut short, however, due to an ACL injury he suffered against Illinois on Feb. 27. May left the Wolverines late last month, taking over the top coaching job for the Dallas Mavericks. Assistant Mike Boynton was tabbed the interim coach, with the interim designation removed when he was given a two-year contract on Friday. ========================================= NBA NEWS WIZARDS SHUT DOWN NO. 1 PICK AJ DYBANTSA FOR REST OF SUMMER LEAGUE The Washington Wizards decided they had seen enough from the top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and shut down forward AJ Dybantsa for the rest of the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, The Athletic reported Tuesday. Dybantsa played two games in a Wizards uniform, averaging 25.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists. The 19-year-old was the top pick out of BYU. The Wizards also shut down second-year players Will Riley and Tre Johnson, who have also been productive. Riley averaged 25.0 points in two games and Johnson scored 26 points in the one he played. The Wizards’ summer league players had five days of camp in Washington, D.C. before departing for Las Vegas. The Wizards have not won more than 18 games in any of the past three seasons. Washington last made the playoffs in 2020-21 and last won a playoff series in 2016-17 when they advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals. ========================================= NHL NEWS PENGUINS SIGN F NICK ROBERTSON TO 2-YEAR, $6.5M DEAL The Pittsburgh Penguins signed veteran forward Nick Robertson to a two-year, $6.5 million contract on Tuesday. Robertson, acquired on July 1 from Toronto for a 2028 fourth-round draft pick, was rewarded for posting a career-high 16 goals and 16 assists in 78 games last year with the Maple Leafs. A second-round draft pick by Toronto in 2019, Robertson compiled 48 goals and 40 assists over 234 regular-season games in parts of six seasons with the Maple Leafs. The California native also appeared in 13 Stanley Cup playoff games and notched two goals with one assist. ========================================== GOLF NEWS BRITISH OPEN RETURNS TO ROYAL BIRKDALE AND PGA TOUR HOLDS TOURNAMENT IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC The Royal & Ancient BRITISH OPEN Site: Southport, England. Course: Royal Birkdale. Yardage: 7,223. Par: 70. Prize money: TBA ($17 million in 2025). Winner’s share: TBA ($3.1 million in 2025). Television: Thursday-Friday, 1:30 a.m. to 4 a.m. (Peacock), 4 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (USA Network); Saturday, 5 a.m to 7 a.m. (USA Network), 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. (USA Network), 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. (NBC). Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler. Last year: Scheffler closed with a 3-under 68 at Royal Portrush to win by four shots and capture the third leg of the career Grand Slam. Notes: Scheffler will try to become the ninth player since 1934 to win a major in three consecutive years. He is coming off a missed cut in the Scottish Open, his first missed cut in nearly four years. … Padraig Harrington, David Duval, Stewart Cink and Justin Rose are the only ones in the field to have played an Open at Royal Birkdale in 1998, 2008 and 2017. … Jordan Spieth won the last time at Royal Birkdale in 2017 to get the third leg of Grand Slam at age 23. He has only two PGA Tour victories since winning the Open. … This will be the first time since 1991 that none of the four majors had either Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson. … The British Open hasn’t had a back-to-back winner since Harrington in 2008, the longest stretch of the four majors. … Rory McIlroy at the Masters is the only player to win a major this year while being ranking among the top 10 in the world. … Royal Birkdale did not host the British Open until 1954, the last English links course added to the rotation. Next year: St. Andrews. Online: https://www.theopen.com/ PGA Tour CORALES PUNTACANA CHAMPIONSHIP Site: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Course: Puntacana Resort (Corales). Yardage: 7,670. Par: 72. Prize money: $4 million. Winner’s share: $720,000. Television: Thursday-Friday, 12:30-3:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, noon to 3 p.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 4-6 p.m. (Golf Channel). Defending champion: Garrick Higgo. FedEx Cup leader: Scottie Scheffler. Last week: Tom Kim won the Genesis Scottish Open. Notes: The tournament typically is held in the spring and was opposite the RBC Heritage the last two years. Now it is opposite the British Open. … Austin Eckroat and Davis Riley are in the field after both played Sunday in the Scottish Open. Brian Campbell and Charley Hoffman were among those at the Scottish Open who missed the cut. … Blades Brown is in the field as a special temporary member. His best shot at the PGA Tour is through the Korn Ferry Tour, which is off this week. … The sponsor exemptions include Sangmoon Bae, who has been trying to get back on track since his mandatory military service in South Korea a decade ago. … Presidents Cup captain Brandt Snedeker is playing. He won the last opposite-field event in Myrtle Beach in May. … The tournament is co-sanctioned by the European tour. The field includes Marcus Helligkilde, who withdrew from the “Last Chance Qualifier” to get into the British Open. Next week: 3M Open. Online: https://www.pgatour.com/ LPGA Tour Last week: Haeran Ryu won the Amundi Evian Championship. Next week: ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open. Race to CME Globe leader: Nelly Korda. Online: https://www.lpga.com/ ___ European tour Last week: Tom Kim won the Genesis Scottish Open. Next tournament: Danish Golf Championship on Aug. 13-16. Race to Dubai leader: Patrick Reed. Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/ ___ Korn Ferry Tour Last week: Ross Steelman won The Blue Championship. Next week: NV5 Invitational. Points leader: Doc Redman. Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour ___ PGA Tour Champions Last week: Zach Johnson won the Kaulig Companies Championship. Next week: Senior British Open. Charles Schwab Cup leader: Stewart Cink. Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions ___ LIV Golf League Last tournament: Tyrrell Hatton won LIV Golf Andalucia. Next week: LIV Golf UK. Points leader: Jon Rahm. Online: https://www.livgolf.com/ ===== NO LONGER ‘SO BAD AT GOLF,’ RORY MCILROY EAGERLY AWAITS THE OPEN Two short days ago, Rory McIlroy was admonishing himself in the short rough at The Renaissance Club in Scotland. After hooking a 6-iron into thick rough at the Scottish Open when his target was the 16th green directly in front of him, the Northern Ireland native blurted out: “Oh, my god. I’m so bad at golf!” Fortunately for fans counting on McIlroy, the six-time major winner, to make a run at his second Open Championship this week at Royal Birkdale Golf Club, he did not feel quite the same way about his game as of Tuesday afternoon. “It’s funny,” McIlroy told reporters in Southport, England. “I felt really good the first two days in Scotland and then felt like my game just sort of deteriorated as the week went on. Even though I shot a good score on Sunday, it didn’t feel very good.” Because McIlroy needed to play nearly two full rounds Sunday to complete his T7 finish — the result of a weather delay on Saturday — he didn’t expend energy touring Royal Birkdale on Monday. That might have been the best thing for him. “Yeah, I’ve done a good bit of work the past couple days,” he said. “Again, getting the TrackMan out, seeing what my numbers are, and just trying to match up the feels of my swing with what I’m seeing. “Also, like I played 30 holes on Sunday. I felt a little bit tired yesterday, so I didn’t make it on the course, but that allowed me a bit more time to hit some balls and dig into the swing a little bit. Felt good on the range. Felt good out on the course today. Definitely trending in the right direction.” McIlroy tends to be heading in the right direction when the Open comes around. This is the 17th Open for the 37-year-old, who won at Royal Liverpool in 2014 and owns six top-five and eight top-10 finishes, including a T4 in 2017 at Royal Birkdale. Royal Birkdale has changed extensively since then — there are three new holes and changes to the other 15 holes thanks to a massive renovation — and McIlroy likes the adjustments. But the World No. 2 is also curious to see how golfers attack a course that has changed dramatically over the last few weeks due to the heat wave engulfing much of Europe. “When I was here a couple weeks ago, the rough was a lot more penal than it’s going to be this week,” McIlroy said. “It’s definitely burnt out a lot. “There may be certain instances where — you know, the big thing, especially off the tee here, is the fairway bunkers and avoiding those. You might see some guys being more aggressive off the tee, taking driver, trying to take the fairway bunkers out of play. OK, it might be in the rough, but it’s not that penal, so you get a wedge in your hand and you can figure it out from there.” Isn’t figuring it out half the fun of links golf? McIlroy says yes … and no. “I think what we all know, even going back to (the U.S. Open at) Shinnecock a few weeks ago: When you give professional golfers options and you can create a little bit of doubt in their minds in terms of should I play this shot or that shot, that’s when things start to get fun, especially for the viewer,” McIlroy said. “Not so much for us but … “That, to me, is the sign of a good championship test.” ===== ENGLAND’S AARON RAI RETURNS TO OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP TO HERO’S WELCOME Jack Nicklaus sent a handwritten letter to him. The British royal family tweeted at him. “I couldn’t quite believe that when I saw it,” Aaron Rai said Tuesday, recalling the correspondence he received two months ago after winning the PGA Championship in Pennsylvania in May. And the return to Europe by the 31-year-old Englishman has shown him just what the victory meant back home. Imagine the reaction he would receive should he win The Open Championship, which begins Thursday at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England. The Wolverhampton native stayed in the United States to compete on the PGA Tour for six weeks after claiming his first major victory on May 14 at Aronimink Golf Club. He has been back across the pond for just two weeks. Journalists from Wolverhampton, India — where his parents and his wife, Guarika, were born — and elsewhere swooned over him during a pre-tournament news conference on Tuesday at Royal Birkdale. “People sent me articles and got a feel of how it was received in England, which was great and a lot warmer than what I would have ever expected and more widespread than I would have thought,” Rai said. “But in terms of purely the local area, I think because I was so far away with being in Florida and playing a lot of events, I didn’t really get a sense of how that felt or the magnitude of it in that respect.” Rai would have no such trouble understanding the magnitude if he were to win the Open. When he was a teenager, he and his father attended an Open practice round at Muirfield — but Rai started paying attention to the Open much sooner. “They used to show highlights on BBC in the evenings,” Rai said. “We used to watch it from 5-6 years old. I remember David Duval winning (in 2001 at Royal Lytham and St. Annes). I used to support Tiger Woods a lot. It was great to see David win, but I was supporting Tiger. That’s what sticks out, that Tiger didn’t win that one… “Obviously I’m British, and this is a home Open, so very, very special tournament.” As soon as Rai arrived back in England, he took a spin around Royal Birkdale. When he missed the cut last week at the Scottish Open, he returned to The Open course on Saturday to get a jump on this week’s preparation. “It’s definitely changed quite a bit in the last two weeks,” Rai said. “It was quite green. It was quite lush when I came here and relatively soft as well, fairways and greens. So it was quite a surprise playing a few holes on Sunday, seeing it as brown as what it was in the space of, I think, 10 days. I think it plays phenomenally. It’s a great layout. Obviously a huge amount of history at Birkdale. It’s a real iconic Open venue.” At some point, though, every conversation about the Open with a talented English golfer turns to the fact that the last Englishman to win the Open was Nick Faldo in 1992. His victory at Muirfield that year was his third Open championship. Does Rai, regarded by DraftKings as a 70-1 shot to win the Claret Jug, feel any homegrown pressure that seems like it compounds each year the streak goes unbroken? “Firstly, there’s always pressure every single week no matter what tournament it is. I think most of that is self-imposed,” Rai said. “Some of it is where you’re playing and what event that it is. Obviously this is a major championship. It’s a huge event in its own right. So there’s always that element of pressure that is there.” THE BRITISH OPEN: HOW TO WATCH, BETTING ODDS FOR GOLF’S FINAL MAJOR OF 2026 SOUTHPORT, England (AP) — The oldest championship in golf is now the last major of the year. The British Open dates to 1860 and returns this year to Royal Birkdale, and it’s already different from anything the world’s best players have seen this year. The links course along the Lancashire coast of England is yellow and brown, the sure sign of a fast and firm test. Scottie Scheffler is trying to become the first repeat winner of the British Open since Padraig Harrington won in 2007 and 2008 — the second one also was at Royal Birkdale. He also can become only the third player in the last 20 years to go three straight years winning a major. There are favorites and there are inspirations, such as David Howard, the 27-year-old Irish amateur who didn’t even expect to be alive at this stage in his career, much less playing in the Open. Even though Royal Birkdale did not join the British Open rotation until 1954, this is the 11th time it has hosted golf’s oldest major. And its roll call of champions rivals any other links course. All but one champion at Birkdale is either in the World Golf Hall of Fame or will be. Here’s what to know going into the 154th edition of the British Open: When does the British Open start? The British Open starts Thursday, and it is the longest day in golf, starting at 6:35 a.m. local time with the last group teeing off at 4:21 p.m. The British Open and the Masters are the only majors that start only from the first tee. How can I watch the British Open? This will be the 10th year for NBC Sports to be the lead broadcast network in the United States, and it will be wall-to-wall coverage. For the weekday rounds in Eastern Daylight Time, Peacock will carry The Open from 1:30 a.m. to 4 a.m., with USA Network taking over from 4 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. USA Network will broadcast it from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. on Saturday, followed by NBC from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. The final round will be an hour earlier. USA Network will start at 4 a.m. to 7 a.m., with NBC picking it up from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Who’s playing the British Open? The 156-man field has players from nearly 30 countries and is the most global of the four majors. Only 20 players have come from 36-hole qualifying that took place two weeks ago at four links courses in the U.K. The other “qualifiers” were leading players from 15 tournaments held on every main tour in the world and every continent on which golf is played. The last to qualify was Joe Dean, who won an 18-hole “Last Chance Qualifier” held Monday at Royal Birkdale. Who are the favorites? Scottie Scheffler has been the betting favorite at every major this year, and the British Open is no exception. But the margins are smaller for the world’s No. 1 player whose last win was in January. BetMGM Sportsbook has Scheffler at +750, narrowly ahead of Masters champion Rory McIlroy at +850. The English hopes, Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick, are at +1400. Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele are at +2500. Who’s worth rooting for? Look no further than David Howard, an Irish amateur who came through qualifying to get into his first major. A trained mechanic, Howard was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis — a rare condition for which there is no cure — when he was 7. It’s only because of recent medical advances that the life expectancy for those with the disease is longer than their mid-20s. He takes up to 30 tablets a day to prevent infection and help digest food properly. His father, John, will be on his bag this week. What’s at stake? The winner is introduced as the “Champion Golfer of the Year” and receives the silver claret jug, the oldest trophy in golf. Scheffler had to officially return the claret jug to the R&A on Tuesday. The winner is exempt to the British Open through his 55th birthday, and he is exempt into the other three majors for the next five years. What’s the forecast? Bad weather can dog the British Open, but not this week. It has been warm and sunny all week and those should be the conditions when play begins on Thursday, with the forecast for temperatures of up to 25 degrees Celsius (77 Fahrenheit) for the first round and 25 C (75 F) on Friday. It gets slightly cooler over the weekend, but there should still be plenty of sun. What happened last year? Scottie Scheffler won by four shots in the British Open’s second visit to Royal Portrush in six years to capture his second major of 2025 — after the PGA Championship — and the third leg of the career Grand Slam. What kind of history does Royal Birkdale have? Royal Birkdale joined the British Open rotation in 1954, the last addition among courses in England. But it’s regarded as the best in England, and in 72 years this is the 11th time hosting the championship. But it’s not quite the same course as when Jordan Spieth won in 2017. The par-3 14th hole is gone. No. 14 is now a par 5 that used to be the 15th hole. And it’s followed by an entirely new par-3 15th that can play as long as 241 yards. ===== JON RAHM: ‘CONFIDENCE IS ALWAYS HIGH’ AHEAD OF THE OPEN Three years have passed since Jon Rahm won a major, the most recent celebration coming at the 2023 Masters when Scottie Scheffler put the green jacket on the Spaniard at Augusta National. Rahm won the U.S. Open in 2021, and has ties for second at the PGA Championship (2026) and The Open Championship (2023) also high on his resume. While he said he enters The Open on Thursday at Royal Birkdale with plenty of confidence, he knows just how difficult it will be to hoist the Claret Jug on Sunday. “God, it’s hard. It’s very hard,” Rahm said of winning a major in his pre-tournament news conference on Tuesday in Southport, England. His attitude is far from defeated, however. “Confidence is always high,” said Rahm, 31. “I think as a player you have to have that belief in yourself, that things are always going to be good, so feeling good. Very excited to be here.” Royal Birkdale last hosted The Open in 2017, when Jordan Spieth (12-under) finished three strokes ahead of Matt Kuchar. The next champion will have different challenges than those Spieth faced. Since then, the course has been re-imagined. But one challenge remains constant: the wind, which is going to impact club selection. “It’s one of the venues that I remember as being a fantastic championship venue, historically very difficult one,” Rahm said. “Weather-wise, very unusual week. Looking forward to see what the challenge presents because I think we’re going to see a bit of everything, see 6-irons off tees, drivers and long irons into par-4s. It should be a really fun one.” Rahm has just one more day to review the course before teeing off Thursday at 5:09 a.m., paired with Spieth and Tommy Fleetwood of England. They follow the star-studded group of Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau and Englishman Tyrrell Hatton. There will be a lot of eyes on those two groups. Rahm’s eyes will be on factors such as pin placement, the speed of the greens and how the flag whips in the wind. Rahm, a former World No. 1, now competes in the LIV Golf League and on the DP World Tour. Given those experiences of worldwide travel, he was asked if he’d like to see the PGA Tour add another major abroad. “I wouldn’t know the logistics of that. I don’t know who can decide what a new major becomes or is now a major, he said. “That would be interesting to see a major happen in other parts of the world, in other continents, I mean. Golf being a global game and as big as it is, it’s something that could be explored for sure.” ===== SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER HITS THE RESET BUTTON FOR THE BRITISH OPEN AFTER A RARE MISSED CUT SOUTHPORT, England (AP) — Scottie Scheffler finally heard about the text his PGA Tour friend never sent, a reminder that even the No. 1 player in golf with four majors and more than 20 victories doesn’t know everything. It was a list of things to do on the weekend after missing the cut. “He was like: ‘Hey, you can practice at the facilities. You can still go to the gym. You can also go to the next tournament.’ It was basically all my options,” Scheffler said Tuesday ahead of the British Open. “He never sent it to me, but he told me about it.” The reason the text was created — without being sent, to Scheffler’s disappointment — was missing the cut at the Scottish Open, his first missed cut in nearly four years, a streak of 78 consecutive cuts that was the longest since Tiger Woods set the record (142) from 1998 to 2005. Frustrating, yes. Despair? Hardly. “You never want to have a weekend off, but going into a tournament when you’re defending, there’s always a bit more stuff to do,” Scheffler said. “So it wasn’t the worst thing in the world.” Among his duties was officially returning the claret jug he won last year at Royal Portrush, a ritual the Royal & Ancient has turned into a ceremony. Then, it was playing an exhibition with Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose and others. But key to Scheffler’s early arrival was Royal Birkdale, which has hosted the British Open more than any other links course in England since it first joined the rotation in 1954. He had never seen it. Scheffler had not seen conditions like this — a combination of yellow and brown, which translates to firm and fiery in a links vocabulary. St. Andrews came close in 2022, but Jon Rahm recalls the greens still being soft enough to allow for low scoring. Scheffler ticked off two items on his friend’s list — he went to the gym in Scotland and then headed to the next tournament. That allowed him time to play 18 holes on Sunday, and to limit his energy in sunbaked Blighty to nine holes on Monday and Tuesday. His general assessment: “The ball is just going to run forever.” Is it driver to take it over the bunkers and possibly reach the green on the 393-yard, downwind 16th hole, or hit iron off the tee? Is the redesigned fifth hole at 321 yards worth trying to reach with a pond to the right, a series of bunkers short and a wee part of a wee burn to the left? “On each hole there’s a good bit of strategy. There’s a decent amount of thinking,” Scheffler said. “If it wasn’t as firm as it is now, there would be as much decision-making. But I think with the firmness, it creates a whole lot more challenges.” Rose is among four players — and at 45, the youngest — to have played Royal Birkdale three times in the Open dating to 1998. He was a 17-year-old amateur that year, full of joy and optimism when he holed out a wedge for birdie on the 18th to tie for fourth. He didn’t finish in the top 50 his two times as a professional. Rose certainly has more experience than Scheffler, but only to a point. “A links course is interesting because you never really get to know them that well,” Rose said. “Like 2008 I think it was, weather was dreadful. It was wet. You might have been hitting 2-irons and 3-woods into par 4s, and now you could be flicking 52-degree wedges. “A golf course can play so differently decade to decade when we come back that you never really get to know the course that well.” Scheffler said he felt at peace about his game, and he certainly looked the part. His game didn’t look deplorable in the Scottish Open, just a matter of not hitting it terribly close and not making many putts and then moving on. It was no less frustrating — Scheffler is a killer when it comes to competing, which is one reason he has been No. 1 longer than anyone since Woods — but it was filled with perspective. “I don’t think it hurts as much as coming close to winning and finishing second,” Scheffler said. “I felt like coming in second at Travelers hurt more than missing the cut, but missing the cut is significantly more frustrating is how I would describe it.” He’s had plenty of experience finishing second. Scheffler’s lone victory this year was his first tournament in January at The American Express. Since then, he has had four runner-up finishes, including the Masters. The most recent was a playoff loss to Viktor Hovland at the Travelers Championship two weeks ago when Scheffler missed a 4-foot slider. “I think just towards the end of the season, you get a little tired,” Scheffler said. “I got a couple days off, reset the mind, reset the body, and just kind of get back to feeling even and at peace. I’ve had a very solid year, but like I said, frustrating at times because I’ve been close and I haven’t been able to get it done like I have been in years past. “I’m excited to try and defend my title this week.” That hasn’t been done at the British Open since 2008 when Padraig Harrington won at Royal Birkdale. One week could change Scheffler’s outlook on the year. But it’s a week that presents a test the likes of which he hasn’t seen all year. ======================================== AUTO RACING WEEKLY All Times Eastern NASCAR CUP SERIES Window World 450 In-Season Challenge – Round 4 Site: North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Track: North Wilkesboro Speedway. Race distance: 450 laps, 281.25 miles. Schedule: Saturday, practice, 4 p.m., qualifying, 4:30 p.m.; Sunday, race, 7 p.m. (TNT). Last year: The event marks the first points-paying series race at North Wilkesboro Speedway since September 1996. Last race: Ryan Blaney paced the field for 171 laps and weathered both a lengthy rain delay and a 3-wide battle in overtime to earn the win. Next race: July 26, Speedway, Indiana. Online: http://www.nascar.com NASCAR O’REILLY AUTO PARTS SERIES Last race: Justin Allgaier outlasted a crash-filled race interrupted by 13 cautions and four red flags to collect his sixth victory of the season and the 34th win of his career. Next race: July 25, Speedway, Indiana. Online: http://www.nascar.com NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES Faith Fest 250 Site: North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Track: North Wilkesboro Speedway. Race Distance: 250 laps. 156.25 miles. Schedule: Saturday, race, 12:30 p.m. (FS1). Last year: Chandler Smith emerged victorious after a wild overtime finish, using an aggressive final-lap pass to secure the win. Last race: Grant Enfinger snapped a 40-race winless streak with his first victory of the season and the 13th of his career, surviving a chaotic race that included an 18-minute red flag. Next race: July 24, Indianapolis. Online: http://www.nascar.com FORMULA 1 Moët & Chandon Belgian Grand Prix Site: Stavelot, Belgium Track: Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. Race distance: 44 laps. 191.4 miles. Schedule: Friday, practice, 7:30 a.m., practice, 11 a.m.; Saturday, practice, 6:30 a.m., qualifying, 10 a.m.; Sunday, race, 9 a.m. (APPLE TV). Last year: Oscar Piastri led a dominant 1-2 finish in a rain-soaked and heavily delayed race, beating teammate Lando Norris to extend his championship lead while Max Verstappen claimed Sprint honors earlier in the weekend. Last race: Charles Leclerc led from the opening lap to beat George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, while pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli faded out after a late mechanical issue and post-race penalty. Next race: July 26, Mogyoród, Hungary. Online: http://www.formula1.com NTT INDYCAR SERIES Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix Site: Lebanon, Tennessee. Track: Nashville Superspeedway. Race distance: 300 laps. 399 miles. Schedule: Saturday, practice, 10 a.m., qualifying, 3 p.m., final practice, 6 p.m.; Sunday, race, 5:30 p.m. (FOX). Last year: Josef Newgarden delivered a hometown triumph by edging Álex Palou by just over half a second for his first victory of the season and the only win of his 2025 campaign. Last race: Pato O’Ward took the lead on Lap 42 after Christian Lundgaard ran wide exiting Turn 2, then stayed out front the rest of the caution-free race to secure the victory. Next race: August 9, Portland, Oregon. Online: http://www.indycar.com NHRA DRAG RACING DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge Site: Sonoma, California. Track: Sonoma Raceway. Race distance: 1/4 mile. Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 5:30 p.m., qualifying, 8:10 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, 11:45 a.m., qualifying, 12:20 p.m., qualifying, 2:30 p.m., qualifying, 2:50 p.m.; Sunday, race, 11 a.m. Next race: July 26, Kent, Washington. Online: http://www.nhra.com WORLD OF OUTLAWS WORLD OF OUTLAWS KNIGHT BEFORE THE KINGS ROYAL WORLD OF OUTLAWS 43RD KINGS ROYAL WORLD OF OUTLAWS FEDERATED AUTO PARTS SIX NATIONS SHOWDOWN Next race: July 22 – 26. Online: http://worldofoutlaws.com ======================================== TENNIS NEWS WTA ROUNDUP: PAULA BADOSA EARNS UPSET WIN IN ROMANIA Paula Badosa of Spain knocked out fourth-seeded Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina 6-3, 6-1 on Tuesday to reach the second round of the UniCredit Iasi Open in Romania. Kalinina committed eight double faults and held serve just twice across the two sets. Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse also made an early exit, with Spain’s Kaitlin Quevedo eliminating the sixth seed 6-3, 6-1. Quevedo saved 12 of the 14 break points she faced and broke Ruse six times. Third-seeded Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine survived two tiebreakers to beat Turkish lucky loser Ipek Oz 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5), while No. 5 seed Panna Udvardy of Hungary outlasted Spain’s Leyre Romero Gormaz 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. French No. 8 seed Elsa Jacquemot and No. 9 seed Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan also advanced in straight sets. Other winners included Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek, Armenia’s Elina Avanesyan, Mayar Sherif of Egypt, Alevtina Ibragimova and Elena Pridankina of Russia and Poland’s Katarzyna Kawa. Athens Open Top-seeded Clara Tauson of Denmark recovered from a slow start to defeat Japanese qualifier Nao Hibino 7-5, 6-4 in the opening round in Greece. Tauson fell behind by a break in the first set but worked her way back, eventually converting four break points for the match while limiting Hibino to two. No. 2 seed Ann Li had a more comfortable afternoon, sweeping Maria Timofeeva of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-1 in 79 minutes. Third-seeded Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic also advanced in 79 minutes, beating Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova 6-3, 6-3. Seventh-seeded Czech Tereza Valentova cruised past Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas 6-1, 6-2. Italian lucky loser Miriana Tona earned her first WTA main-draw victory by beating Greek wild card Sapfo Sakellaridi 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2 in a match lasting three hours, eight minutes. France’s Carole Monnet, Russia’s Alina Korneeva and Belarus’ Aliaksandra Sasnovich also won their matches. ===== ATP ROUNDUP: STAN WAWRINKA BIDS FAREWELL TO GSTAAD Portugal’s Jaime Faria held off Stan Wawrinka 6-7 (8), 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday in the first round of the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, marking the 41-year-old’s final match on the clay in his homeland. Wawrinka has said he will retire after this season. The three-time Grand Slam champion was presented with a gift of new skis by tournament organizers after his nearly two-hour, 38-minute affair, in which he smashed 16 aces but went 0-for-6 in break-point chances. Greek veteran Stefanos Tsitsipas took down Peruvian No. 5 seed Ignacio Buse 6-4, 6-4, winning 37 of his 48 service points (77.1%) along the way. No. 6 seed Juan Manuel Cerundolo rallied past Zdenek Kolar of the Czech Republic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, while Frenchman Quentin Halys, German Yannick Hanfmann, Kazakhstan’s Aleksandr Shevchenko and Swiss wild card Jerome Kym also advanced. Nordea Open No. 8 seed Sebastian Baez dropped the first set before charging past Swedish hopeful Max Dahlin 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in Bastad, Sweden. The other seeded players in action all held firm, as No. 5 seed Nuno Borges of Portugal beat French wild card Moise Kouame 6-4, 6-2; No. 6 Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands beat Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel 7-6 (0), 6-4; and No. 7 Thiago Agustin Tirante of Argentina eliminated Austria’s Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4. Other winners included Germany’s Daniel Altmaier, Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili, Bulgarian wild card Grigor Dimitrov, Argentina’s Lautaro Midon, Paraguay’s Adolfo Daniel Vallejo and Italians Andrea Pellegrino and Stefano Travaglia. Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag France’s Titouan Droguet won 11 of the final 12 games of his match to steamroll No. 5 seed Alexander Blockx of Belgium 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 in Umag, Croatia. No. 7 seed Camilo Ugo Carabelli of Argentina avoided a similar fate as Blockx when he rallied from down a break in the second set to edge German qualifier Marko Topo 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 6-3. Also advancing were Spaniards Pablo Carreno Busta and Daniel Merida, Argentines Roman Andres Burruchaga and Federico Agustin Gomez, Alex Molcan of Slovakia and Juan Carlos Prado Angelo of Bolivia. =========================================== INDIANA SPORTS HEADLINES/RELEASES INDIANA FEVER INDIANAPOLIS (July 14, 2026) — Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for Week 8 of the 2026 WNBA season, it was announced today. This past week Mitchell scored a cumulative 112 points, averaging 28.0 points per game, the highest in the entire league across said period. Scoring 25+ points in each of last week’s four games, Mitchell extended her streak to six consecutive 25+ scoring games, the third longest streak of such games in WNBA history. Mitchell helped lead the Fever to a 3-1 record last week, all part of a four-game road trip which included two wins over reigning champion Las Vegas Aces and one over the Phoenix Mercury. On July 12, against the Aces, Mitchell set a new franchise record for most consecutive double-digit scoring games, surpassing the previous record set by Tamika Catchings between 2003 and 2004. In the same game Mitchell moved up the WNBA all-time leaderboard, passing Katie Douglas (727) for the seventh most all-time in three pointers made with 729. This is the fifth time in her career Mitchell has won Player of the Week, and her first win of the season. With her selection, Mitchell joins Tamika Catchings (22) as the only Fever players to win five or more Player of the Week awards. ===== Indiana Fever vs. Golden State Valkyries Wednesday, July 15, 2026 Gainbridge Fieldhouse | 8:00 p.m. ET BROADCAST INFO TV: USA – Meghan McPeak (play-by-play), Tamika Catchings (analyst), Ruth Riley Hunter (guest analyst), Edona Thaqi (sideline reporter) WTHR/Fever Direct – Pat Boylan (play-by-play), Debbie Antonelli (analyst), Kelsie Kasper (sideline reporter) Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan – John Nolan (play-by-play), Bria Goss (analyst) PROBABLE STARTERS Indiana Fever (14-9) Guard – Caitlin Clark Guard – Kelsey Mitchell Forward – Lexie Hull Forward – Monique Billings Center – Aliyah Boston Golden State Valkyries (17-7) Guard – Veronica Burton Guard – Kaila Charles Forward – Kayla Thornton Forward – Cecilia Zandalasini Center – Kiah Stokes GAME PREVIEW The Fever host the Golden State Valkyries on Wednesday as they open a four-game homestand against the winners of seven straight. Golden State’s seven-game winning streak marks a franchise record, and the Valkyries are winners of 11 of their last 13 contests heading into Indianapolis. Gabby Williams leads the Valkyries in scoring with 15 points per game, but missed her first game of the season on Friday with a back injury. Her status for Wednesday’s game is in question, but Golden State rosters a slew of other players that can be productive in her absence. Veronica Burton averages double-figures at just over 12 points per game, and Kayla Thornton is a versatile forward that gives the Valkyries more options on the wing. Janelle Salaun has been impressive in her second season as well, and has led Golden State in scoring four times. The Valkyries have tied the Aces for best record in the WNBA at 17-7. Indiana looks to halt Golden State’s streak on Wednesday by extending its own. The Fever have won two games straight, and four of their last five. Kelsey Mitchell has been an offensive machine, and she’s led Indiana in scoring in six straight games. Her season average is up to 22.7 points per game – good for third in the WNBA. Caitlin Clark is ninth, and Aliyah Boston’s 17.3 points per game land her at 14th in the league. The three top-15 scorers make up the core of Indiana’s elite offense. A strong Fever offense meets Golden State’s elite defense on Wednesday. The Valkyries defensive rating is second in the WNBA, and Indiana’s offensive rating is first. The two squads are second and third in net rating, trailing only the Minnesota Lynx. The Fever have a challenging foe on Wednesday to open their homestand, then follow it with back-to-back contests on Friday and Saturday. After matching up with the Valkyries, Indiana will host Seattle and New York over the weekend. ====================================== INDY ELEVEN Indy Eleven has signed defender Nabi Kibunguchy, pending league and federation approval. Per club policy, terms of the deal will not be disclosed. Fans can follow team news on Indy Eleven social channels and IndyEleven.com. The Sacramento, California, native was selected 18th overall in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft by Minnesota United. He signed his first professional contract with them and was loaned to his hometown USL Championship side Sacramento Republic for the remainder of the 2021 season. Kibunguchy started 13 of 16 matches for the Republic, recording a goal, an assist, and five chances created in 1,155 minutes. He scored his first USL-C goal in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time to give his team a 2-2 draw at eventual league champion Orange County SC on July 24, 2021. He made his MLS debut with Minnesota United in 2022 when Sean McAuley was an assistant coach, starting MLS regular-season contests vs. Houston and Colorado Rapids and two U.S. Open Cup games. He also started 15 matches for Minnesota United 2 in MLS NEXT that year, scoring four goals in 1,304 minutes. In 2023, Kibunguchy continued MLS NEXT play for Orlando City B, earning a short-term call-up to Orlando City of MLS in September. For Orlando City B, he scored four goals in 23 matches, including a brace in a 2-2 shootout victory over NYCFC II. Kibunguchy made his international debut for the Kenya National Team in a 2026 World Cup qualifier on November 20, 2023. He returned to Orlando City B in 2024, playing all 2,340 minutes in 26 starts while recording seven chances created, 15 shots, 19 fouls won, and 45 clearances. ===== Defender Makel Rasheed became the ninth different Indy Eleven player to earn USL Championship “Team of the Week” honors this season after helping the Boys in Blue to their fourth shutout in the past five matches in all competitions, a 2-0 victory over Charleston Battery on Saturday. Rasheed has started the last five games, helping his team allow just one goal in that span. Indy Eleven broke the scoreless tie in the 82nd minute when captain Aodhan Quinn played a free kick to the edge of the six where the 6’5 Rasheed headed it across to the far post for Josh O’Brien to volley home for Rasheed’s second assist this season. The 25-year-old Rasheed completed 38 of 42 passes overall while winning 6 of 8 duels and notching one blocked shot, four clearances and three interceptions defensively. The Boys in Blue defense is tied for second in the league with 12 goals allowed in 12 league contests after goalkeeper Eric Dick recorded his 34th career shutout on Saturday. Rasheed has made an impact in his first season for Indy Eleven, converting the winning penalty kick in the Prinx Tires USL Cup shootout at Lexington SC on June 20, after recording his first assist at Birmingham FC on April 19. He started in his Boys in Blue debut in the season opener at Brooklyn FC, leading the team with 14 duels won, 10 aerial duels won, and 10 clearances. Rasheed began his collegiate career with three seasons at the University of Indianapolis, before playing his final two years at Xavier. The Boys in Blue have won four of their last five in USL-C play to improve to 6-3-3. Indy Eleven travels to Miami FC on Wed. July 15 at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. The next home game for the Boys in Blue is “Princess Night” on Saturday, July 25 at 7 p.m. vs. Loudoun United FC. Fans can meet their favorite princesses including the 2026 Indiana State Fair Queen, create magical crafts, get their face painted, and join the halftime Princess Parade. Fans can purchase a “Princess Pack” with four tickets, free parking, $20 in Concession Vouchers, and a 20% Merchandise Discount, along with access to the Fun Zone/Kids Activation Area for just $49. Ticket options include the new Desnuda Tequila Deck, Family Four-Packs, and Flex Mini-Plans. Located on the East Deck, the Desnuda Tequila Deck has an exclusive full-service bar and high-top seating providing panoramic pitch-side views for 50 people. It’s a social experience offering a wonderful place to hang out and take in the game! Desnuda Tequila Deck seats start at $59 and include one FREE cocktail and bottomless chips, salsa, and guac. The Family Four-Pack is available for all 2026 home games and can be purchased online only. Priced at just $49, the Family Four-Pack includes four tickets, FREE parking, $20 in Concession Vouchers, and a 20% Merchandise Discount, along with access to the Fun Zone/Kids Activation Area. ===== INDIANA SMALL COLLEGE SPORTS WEB SITES UINDY ATHLETICS: https://athletics.uindy.edu/ MARIAN ATHLETICS: https://muknights.com/ INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/ EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/ WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/ FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/ ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/ ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/ DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/ HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/ MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/ HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/ OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/ ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/ IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/ IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/ PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/ INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/ ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/ GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/ HOLY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/ VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index ============================================= TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY 1900: Billy Barnie, veteran manager in the American Association and the National League, dies at the age of 47. He last managed the Brooklyn Bridegrooms, in 1898. Noodles Hahn follows up his no-hitter with a nine-hitter, but still shuts out the St. Louis Cardinals, 9 – 0. In the minor league American League, Detroit Tigers manager George Stallings, afraid that his home crowd would injure umpire Joe Cantillon after the previous day’s hostilities, refuses to let him work, and is ready to forfeit today’s game to the Cleveland Lake Shores. But Lake Shores manager Jimmy McAleer agrees to play using reserve player Sport McAllister as the ump, and Detroit wins, 6 – 1. 1901 – Christy Mathewson, 22 years old, of the New York Giants pitches a no-hitter, blanking the St. Louis Cardinals, 5 – 0, at League Park. Matty saves his own no-hitter in the 6th when an Otto Krueger hit caroms off 1B John Ganzel’s glove to Mathewson, who throws back to first base for a 3-1-3 putout. 1902 – At Cincinnati, Christy Mathewson starts a triple play in the 2nd inning, but then leaves trailing, 6 – 0. The loss leaves the New York Giants pitcher with a 6-8 record. 1903: In a showdown game at Pittsburgh, the New York Giants score three runs in the top of the 9th to take a 3 – 2 lead, but the Bucs tie it up against Christy Mathewson. No runs are scored again till the 14th when New York scores three off Ed Doheny to give Matty his sixth win of the year over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Matty strikes out 11 and scatters ten hits. With ground rules limiting hits into the crowds to three bases, Cy Young drives home Lou Criger in the 10th inning for a 4 – 3 win over the visiting Cleveland Naps. Addie Joss takes the loss. 1904 – Sam Mertes drives in four runs on four hits, including a home run, to lead the New York Giants to a 5 – 2 win over the Cincinnati Reds’ Bob Ewing. Christy Mathewson, with relief help from Joe McGinnity, is the winner. 1905 – In New York, the Giants open a four-game series against the second-place Pittsburgh Pirates by staking Joe McGinnity to a 6 – 0 lead. But the Bucs score two in the 6th and five runs in the 7th inning before Iron Joe is lifted. Christy Mathewson shuts out Pittsburgh over the last 2 2/3 inning and the Giants score a deuce in the 9th on a two-run homer by George Browne. Browne is carried off the field by the ecstatic fans after the 8 – 7 win. Pittsburgh takes the nitecap, 3 – 0, behind Deacon Phillippe’s four-hitter. Honus Wagner secures the victory with a two-run homer onto the elevated tracks in the 8th inning. 1907 – The Chicago White Sox pound the New York Highlanders, 15 – 0, the second time this season they’ve beaten New York by that score. They’ll beat them in 1950 by the same score, which will be the Yanks team record for most runs by an opponent in a shutout until 2004. 1908: The Pittsburgh Pirates tie the Boston Doves in the 9th and win in the 10th, 3 – 2, when Fred Clarke is hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. The Bucs take the National League lead by a half-game. In Chicago, the New York Giants pound Three-Finger Brown and two relievers to win, 11 – 0, and move into second place. The Chicago Cubs drop two places to third. 1909 – Ty Cobb has two inside-the-park homers to lead the Detroit Tigers to a sweep of the Washington Nationals. Detroit wins, 9 – 5 and 7 – 0. 1911: The Cincinnati Reds swap Fred Beck, last year’s co-leader in homers in the National League, to the Philadelphia Phillies, and include Bill Burns with him. The Phils send Bert Humphries to the Reds. Beck was acquired from the Boston Rustlers in March, but hit just .184 for Cincy. He was the second Brave in four years to lead the NL in homers and then get shipped to the Reds in the off-season. The other, Dave Brain, lasted just 16 games with the Reds in 1908. Fred Merkle drives in four runs on a single and three-run homer and the New York Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 4 – 1. Christy Mathewson tops Harry Gaspar, and has now beaten the Reds 20 straight times. 1912 – A U.S. team defeats the Swedish Västerås Baseball Club, 13 – 3, in a one-game Olympic exhibition in Stockholm, Sweden. 1913: Veteran Three-Finger Brown, sold to the Cincinnati Reds over the winter after a 5-6 year with the Chicago Cubs, loses his match-up with New York Giants rival Christy Mathewson, 4 – 2. Matty walks none to run his streak to 61 innings. Jake Stahl, hobbled by a foot injury, resigns as Boston Red Sox manager. C Bill Carrigan replaces him. 1914 – At Fenway Park, Dutch Leonard shuts out the Cleveland Naps, 4 – 0. Umpire Tom Connolly, tiring of the taunting from the Boston Red Sox bench, ejects eight Boston players. 1915 – In the first game of a doubleheader with the Washington Senators, St. Louis Browns rookie George Sisler goes all the way, allowing six hits in winning, 5 – 2. 1916 – The Boston Red Sox play their fourth doubleheader in six days, losing the opener, 2 – 1, to the St. Louis Browns. Tilly Walker’s RBI double in the 8th gives Boston its first score in 28 innings. Boston breaks out in the second game, pounding four Brownie pitchers for 18 hits to win, 17 – 4. Babe Ruth picks up the win, leaving after six innings. 1917 – The New York Yankees send Lee Magee to the St. Louis Browns for Armando Marsans. 1920 – Babe Ruth ties his 1919 record of 29 home runs with a game-winner in the 13th to beat the St. Louis Browns, 13 – 10. Two days later, he will break it by hitting two off Chicago White Sox P Dickie Kerr. 1925 – The Philadelphia A’s go back into the lead with a sweep over the Chicago White Sox, 9 – 7 and 11 – 5. 1932 – In the second game of a doubleheader, Satchel Paige pitches the first no-hitter in Greenlee Field as the Pittsburgh Crawfords defeat the New York Black Yankees, 6 – 0. Three Hall of Famers support Paige: Oscar Charleston at first base, Judy Johnson at third, and Josh Gibson in left field. Ted Radcliffe, who pitched in the first game, is behind the plate for Paige’s gem. 1934: Waite Hoyt, now with the Pittsburgh Pirates, has a one-hitter against the Boston Braves, winning, 5 – 0. Lou Gehrig returns to 1B and goes 4 for 4, including three doubles, off Schoolboy Rowe, but the New York Yankees lose to the Detroit Tigers, 8 – 3. 1936: After an absence of several weeks, manager Mickey Cochrane rejoins the Detroit Tigers in New York, as they split a doubleheader with the Yankees. The Tigers take the opener, 5 – 1, then lose, 7 – 4, as New York maintains its nine-game lead. Cochrane will suffer a relapse and coach Del Baker will take over on the 21st. Cincinnati plays the first Ladies Night game, beating the Brooklyn Dodgers, 5 – 3. At Pittsburgh, the New York Giants lose the opener, 5 – 4, when reliever Carl Hubbell walks in the winning run. With the loss, the Giants are 11 games in back of the leading Chicago Cubs. New York rebounds in the second game, winning, 14 – 4, behind Bill Terry. Terry, playing on an injured knee, collects a single, double and triple. The Giants will win 39 of their next 47 games. 1937 – The Philadelphia Athletics snap a 15-game losing streak, beating the Chicago White Sox, 3 – 1. 1938 – Terry Moore returns to the St. Louis Cardinals lineup following his June 11th concussion. He gets three hits to help St. Louis snap an eight-game losing streak. 1939 – A disputed call on a fly ball down the left field foul line at the Polo Grounds touches off a melee in which New York Giants Billy Jurges and umpire George Magerkurth spit at each other. Both will be fined $150 and suspended for ten days. National League President Ford Frick announces that two-foot screens are to be installed inside all foul poles to prevent future arguments. The American League will eventually also adopt the rule. The Giants lose, 8 – 4, to the Cincinnati Reds, and will add another eight in a row to take them out of contention. 1942 – “There is no rule, formal or informal, against the hiring of Negro players,” says Judge Landis in response to an editorial in the New York Daily Worker newspaper. 1948 – The Boston Braves stop the host Chicago Cubs, 2 – 1, behind Johnny Sain, then battle to a 1 – 1 tie in 13 innings in the nitecap. Alvin Dark’s hitting streak of 23 games is stopped in the opener, but he has two hits and scores the run in the second game. Bob Rush pitches all 13 innings for the Bruins. 1950 – The Colonial League ceases operation, citing the competition of television and radio as the cause of its failure. 1951: Philadelphia Athletics lefty Sam Zoldak pitches a one-hitter against the Chicago White Sox, winning, 5 – 0, in the second game of a doubleheader. Chico Carrasquel has the lone safety, a dribbler between SS and 3B. Zoldak also drives in two runs. Bob Hooper is the winner for the A’s in the first game, helping the cause with a three-run homer. The A’s lose Ferris Fain when he grounds out in the opener and, in disgust, kicks first base, breaking his foot. Fain is leading the American League with a .337 average. He’ll return on August 21st. Happy Chandler completes his contract as baseball commissioner, but fails to win the owners’ support for a renewal. 1952: Johnny Vander Meer, 38, of the Beaumont Roughnecks in the Texas League pitches a no-hitter. In 1938 he pitched two consecutive major league no-hitters, still a record. The Cleveland Indians’ power hitters dazzle the New York Yankees with a triple steal in the 1st inning as Al Rosen scores, Larry Doby goes to third, and Luke Easter, in his only major-league theft, goes to second. Walt Dropo continues his streak in the opening game of a doubleheader, going 4 for 4 against the Washington Senators’ Walt Masterson. In the second game, he gets three hits in his first three at bats to run his streak to 12 straight hits. He goes 4 for 5 with five RBI, but Washington wins both games, 8 – 2 and 9 – 8. 1954 – Philadelphia Phillies CF Richie Ashburn walks five times in a 2 – 1 loss to the Cincinnati Redlegs. 1956: Wally Burnette of the Kansas City A’s shuts out the Washington Senators, 8 – 0, in his first start. Hank Aaron of the Milwaukee Braves hits in the second game of a doubleheader sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Braves winning, 3 – 2 and 4 – 1. This is the start of a 25-game hitting streak for Aaron, the longest of the season. 1957 – Masaichi Kaneda reaches 2,000 career strikeouts, the first player in Nippon Pro Baseball to have whiffed that many. 1959 – Gus Bell collects two doubles and three singles in the Cincinnati Redlegs’ 11 – 5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in St. Louis. 1960: At Briggs Stadium, Mickey Mantle cracks a three-run homer off Don Mossi, but the Detroit Tigers rally to win, 8 – 4. San Francisco Giants first baseman Willie McCovey’s “invisible triple” causes umpire Frank Dascoli to call a twenty-four minute fog delay at Candlestick Park, but the Los Angeles Dodgers go on to win, 5 – 3. Brooks Robinson goes 5 for 5, hitting for the cycle, to lead the Baltimore Orioles to a 5 – 2 win over the Chicago White Sox. With three hits yesterday, Robinson has eight straight hits. His 9th-inning triple off reliever Turk Lown seals the win for Milt Pappas over starter Billy Pierce. 1964: Whitey Ford’s 2 – 0 win over the Baltimore Orioles raises the New York Yankees to first place. The Minnesota Twins’ Mudcat Grant tosses a 6 – 0 shutout against the Washington Senators, despite allowing 13 Nat hits. The record for most hits allowed in a nine-inning shutout is 14, done twice before. In the first of two with the Cleveland Indians, Wes Stock wins his 12th straight game, all in relief, 5 – 3. The Kansas City A’s take the nightcap, 3 – 2. 1967: St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson’s right fibula is fractured by a Roberto Clemente line drive during a 6 – 3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Gibson will be sidelined until Labor Day. Kansas City A’s pinch-running specialist Allan Lewis ties the major-league record with two steals as a pinch runner in one inning. Lewis does his double in the 7th inning of a 3 – 2 loss at the Minnesota Twins. 1969: The New York Mets rough up Fergie Jenkins for three home runs, including Al Weis’s second in two days, to beat the Chicago Cubs, 9 – 5. The Cubs now lead New York by 3 1/2 games. At the end of the game Tom Seaver jumps out of the dugout and clicks his heels several times, mocking Ron Santo’s gesture of the day before. The Mets will win tomorrow as well. With President Richard Nixon attending his fifth game of the season, the Washington Senators beat the Detroit Tigers again, 7 – 3. The Tigers pull off the first triple play of the year when Ed Brinkman grounds to 3B Don Wert. Tim Cullen, hitting .206, drives in four runs with a single, double and home run. Cincinnati Reds 1B Lee May hits four homers against the Atlanta Braves in a doubleheader split. May hits a pair in each game, driving in five runs in each. The Reds lose the lidlifter, 9 – 8, then take the second game, 10 – 4. Reggie Smith collects five straight hits in the opener, stretching his hitting streak to 21, and leading the Boston Red Sox to a 7 – 6 win over the New York Yankees. He gets another hit in the nitecap, a 4 – 1 win by New York’s Stan Bahnsen (5-10), but his hit streak will stop tomorrow. 1971 – The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the San Diego Padres, 4 – 3, in a marathon thriller. Pittsburgh ties the game in the bottom of the 9th, 13th, and 16th innings before winning it on a Roberto Clemente home run in the 17th. 1973: The Minnesota Twins connect for three consecutive home runs in the 8th against the Cleveland Indians, and all are needed in the 7 – 6 win. George Mitterwald, Joe Lis and Jim Holt homer, all off Gaylord Perry. Before 41,411 in Detroit, California Angels ace Nolan Ryan hurls his second no-hitter of the season in taming the Detroit Tigers, 6 – 0. Ryan fans 17 batters, the most ever in a nine-inning no-hitter, including eight straight, but only one over the last two innings. Nolan’s arm stiffens while watching his team rally for five runs in the top of the 8th. With two outs in the 9th, Norm Cash, who struck out his three other times at bat, comes to bat wielding a piano leg. Umpire Ron Luciano points out the illegality and Cash then pops out using a regulation bat. Ryan’s eight strikeouts in a row ties the American League record he set last year. Jim Perry of the Tigers becomes the only starting pitcher to be on the losing end of three no-hitters with today’s loss to Ryan. Perry was the losing pitcher in no-hitters thrown by Vida Blue on September 21, 1970 and by Steve Busby on April 27th of this year. 1975 – The National League rallies for three runs in the 9th inning to win the All-Star Game at Milwaukee, 6 – 3. The Chicago Cubs’ Bill Madlock and the New York Mets’ Jon Matlack share the game’s MVP award. 1978: Seattle’s Larry Milbourne homers from both sides of the plate in a 7 – 6 win over the Cleveland Indians. These will be Milbourne’s only home runs all season, spanning 93 games and 234 at bats. Pete Rose collects a hit in his 28th straight game, setting a Cincinnati Reds club record (post-1900) as the Reds beat the New York Mets, 7 – 5. His hit comes off Craig Swan. On the 18th, he’ll hit in his 31st straight game to top the all-time Reds record set by Elmer Smith in 1898. 1979 – The Geneva Cubs score 15 runs in the 9th inning to cap a 29 – 4 romp over the Utica Blue Jays in a New York-Pennsylvania League game. Scott Fletcher paces the attack with two singles, four doubles, a home run, and eight RBI. 1980 – In an 11 – 7 Cincinnati Reds win over the Montreal Expos, Johnny Bench belts homer #314, establishing a new mark for home runs by a catcher, and #347 overall. The round tripper comes off David Palmer. Bench breaks Yogi Berra’s record and will hold the mark until surpassed by Mike Piazza. 1982 – The Detroit Tigers collect nine hits and drop 11 runs on the Minnesota Twins in the 1st inning, en route to an 18 – 2 smackdown of the Twins. Dan Petry is the winning pitcher. Tom Brookens and Alan Trammell hit back-to-back home runs off reliever John Pacella. 1985 – During the first day of the All-Star break before the Mid-summer Classic to be played in Minneapolis, the Players’ Association sets an August 6th strike date. The union will keep its word, but the season will resume two days later. 1986 – At the Houston Astrodome, the American League wins the 1986 All-Star Game, 3 – 2, for its second triumph in the last 15 years. AL starter Roger Clemens pitches three perfect innings to win the game’s MVP Award. Fernando Valenzuela pitches two innings for the National League striking out his first five batters, including his fellow countryman, Teddy Higuera; it will be Higuera’s only at-bat in the major leagues. 1987 – The Cleveland Indians fire manager Pat Corrales, replacing him with bullpen coach Doc Edwards. Cleveland is in last place in the American League East, 23 games behind the leaders, after finishing 84-78 in 1986. 1988: For the second time this season, Red Sox fireballer Roger Clemens strikes out sixteen Kansas City Royals. The doubleheader sweep over Kansas City marks Joe Morgan’s Boston managerial debut. California’s Bob Boone catches his 2,000th major league game as the Angels beat the Detroit Tigers, 6 – 4. 1989 – Jeff Reardon saves his 250th game as the Minnesota Twins beat the Boston Red Sox, 3 – 2. 1991: The New York Mets trade pitcher Ron Darling and minor league P Mike Thomas to the Montreal Expos in exchange for pitcher Tim Burke. Seattle’s Edgar Martinez just misses hitting for the cycle for the second game in a row. He strokes a single, double, and triple in a 5 – 1 win over the New York Yankees. On the 14th, he had two singles, a triple and a home run against the Cleveland Indians. 1992 – The Seibu Lions reach base with 14 consecutive hitters in the 5th inning following a double play lined into by Koji Akiyama. Overall, they set a NPB record with 13 hits that inning against the Daiei Hawks. 1993 – Breaking Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks’ previous record of 277, Cal Ripken hits his 278th homer as a shortstop, the most ever hit by a major leaguer playing that position. 1994: In the second game of a doubleheader against the San Diego Padres, the New York Mets’ Bret Saberhagen goes ten innings, striking out 11, giving up five hits and allowing no runs. Consistent with his record-setting season, he walks none. In the 1st inning at Comiskey Park, Chicago White Sox manager Gene Lamont accuses Cleveland Indians slugger Albert Belle of using a corked bat, and umpire Dave Phillips confiscates the bat and stores it in the umps’ dressing room. In a Mission Impossible caper revealed in 1999, the Indians’ Jason Grimsley crawls 100 feet along a ceiling, drops down into the dressing room, and exchanges Belle’s bat for one of Paul Sorrento’s. After the 3 – 2 Indians win, the switch is discovered to the consternation of the umps and the White Sox. The Indians subsequently turn over one of Belle’s bats and Belle is given a ten-day suspension, later reduced to seven games. 1995 – The Ukrainian national team wins its first European Championship game. They had begun the 1995 European Championship 0-6, as had fellow newcomer Slovenia. Slovenia goes up, 6 – 4, after three innings against Vladimir Kadiev but Oleg Venger relieves and Ukraine rallies off Tine Zaletel to win, 11 – 10, scoring the winning run in the bottom of the 9th. Igor Kovalenko has four runs and four RBI while falling a triple shy of the cycle, while Jani Malovic drives in four in a losing cause. 1996 – Cal Ripken is shifted to 3B after playing 2,216 consecutive games at SS for the Baltimore Orioles, but his consecutive game streak remains intact at 2,243 games. Baltimore defeats the Toronto Blue Jays, 8 – 6. Ripken’s replacement at short, Manny Alexander, will manage just a broken-bat single in 18 at bats and after six games at 3B, Cal will return to shortstop. 1997: In Cincinnati, Ray Lankford hits two upper-deck homers, a first for Cinergy Field, to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 7 – 4 win over the Cincinnati Reds. The Montreal Expos announce the retirement of all-time saves leader Lee Smith. The Kansas City Royals trade OF Jon Nunnally and IF-OF Chris Stynes to the Cincinnati Reds for pitchers Hector Carrasco and Scott Service. Despite a sluggish performance, Hideki Irabu wins his second major league start, leading the New York Yankees over the Cleveland Indians, 12 – 6. Irabu gives up five runs and nine hits in five innings, allowing homers to Tony Fernandez, Marquis Grissom, and Matt Williams. Cecil Fielder, the Yank’s 270-pound DH, tries to score from first on a double and his head-first slide results in a broken right thumb. Fielder will miss eight weeks. Visiting San Francisco scores 13 runs in the 7th inning – the most in the National League since the Dodgers scored 15 in the 1st inning against the Reds in 1952 – to coast to a 16 – 2 win over the Padres. The Giants send 19 men to the plate in the 7th and face 80 pitches in the 52-minute inning. They score seven runs before J.T. Snow grounds out for the first out. Five Giants score two runs each, including starting pitcher Kirk Rueter (6-4). The only player not to score is Snow, who Ks with the bases loaded for the second out. 1999: The Rangers tie the major league record with walks by three consecutive pinch hitters (Rusty Greer, Rafael Palmeiro and Lee Stevens) in the bottom of the 9th against the Diamondbacks. The Rangers win, 3 – 2. The Athletics defeat the Giants, 11 – 9, in a game in which San Francisco OF Barry Bonds sets an all-time major league record by receiving his 294th intentional walk. Henry Aaron held the previous mark. It is possible someone such as Babe Ruth drew more intentional walks in the years before the statistic was tracked. For the first time in franchise history, the Mariners play a home game outdoors. Under an open retractable roof, Seattle’s debut at the $517.6 million Safeco Field becomes forgettable as closer Jose Mesa squanders a 9th-inning lead by walking four batters, resulting in a 3 – 2 defeat to the Padres. A crowd of 44,607 is on hand. The Brewers postpone their game as a gesture of respect for the three workers who died when a huge crane collapsed lifting a portion of the roof for the team’s new stadium, Miller Park, yesterday. The crane broke in half as it lifted the 400-ton load, damaging the partially-completed stadium. 2000: The American Tobacco Company’s near-mint condition 1909 Honus Wagner card goes for $1.1 million in an eBay online auction. The high bidder will pay $1.265 million including a 15 percent buyer’s premium for the 91-year-old card of the Hall of Fame Pirate shortstop. Other high-priced items in the auction include a baseball autographed by the entire 1919 Chicago “Black Sox” team, including Shoeless Joe Jackson, as well as the umpires who worked the final game of the 1919 World Series, which sells for $93,666, including a 15 percent buyer’s premium. The ball’s value, believed to be the most for such an item, is unusually high because the autographs include that of Jackson, who was considered illiterate and usually only signed legal documents. A ball signed by the 1919 Reds goes for $11,208, while a baseball autographed by Babe Ruth sells for $76,020. A contract from Jackson’s sale of his Chicago pool hall to teammate Lefty Williams, sells for $36,098; the contract, dated October 6, 1921, is for just $1. The White Sox defeat the Cardinals, 15 – 7, scoring nine runs in the 7th inning. OF Eric Davis goes 5 for 5 for St. Louis. 2001: Behind Mike Piazza’s three hits and three RBIs, the Mets win, 5 – 2, over Toronto as both teams celebrate Negro League Tribute Day by wearing old Negro League uniforms. The Mets wear that of the NY Cubans, 1947 Negro National League champs, while the Blue Jays are in the uniforms of the Chatham All-Stars. In Pittsburgh, the Pirates wear the Homestead Grays’ treads and the Royals wear Monarchs uniforms. Umpires file a grievance against Major League Baseball, saying the commissioner’s office is pressuring them to call more strikes by keeping track of total pitch counts. As part of these efforts, cameras were installed over the weekend, July 13th and 14th, at Shea Stadium to track each pitch. Fenway Park and Shea are the only parks with the tracking system, which is similar to that used on FOX’s broadcasts, but major league officials hope to have four more by September. The battle of two first-place teams draws 59,470 at Philadelphia as the Yanks lose a sloppy game to the Phils, 9 – 3. In the 5th, Jimmy Rollins takes second base on a passed ball, then swipes third for his 26th straight successful steal. Jorge Posada has three passed balls and should have been charged with a fourth, while Derek Jeter makes a critical error. Posada will lead the majors in PBs this year with 18. Brian Lawrence pitches a complete game 5 – 1 win over the Angels, and the Padres reward him after the game by sending him down to Portland (Pacific Coast League). The move is to make room for Brian Tollberg, out since May 6th when he broke a finger on a comebacker from Sean Casey. 2002: The Phillies slug three home runs in a eight-run 9th inning to come from behind and overtake the Expos, 11 – 8. Reds P Chris Reitsma hurls a five-hitter, shutting out the Brewers, 2 – 0. The win ends a streak of 151 starts by Cincinnati pitchers without a complete game. 2005: At Miller Park, Mike Stanton’s first appearance in a Washington Nationals uniform is a memorable one as the southpaw balks home the winning run. Chris Magruder scores from third base in the bottom of the 10th, giving the Brewers a 4 – 3 victory thanks to the call made by first base umpire Paul Schreiber. The Royals establish the longest losing streak by any big league franchise to play in Kansas City. Their 16th consecutive loss, an 11 – 3 decision to the Mariners, is one more than the 1884 Unions, the first team to play professionally in the “City of Fountains.” With an RBI double off Joel Pineiro at Safeco Field, Rafael Palmeiro becomes the 26th player to collect 3,000 career hits. The Orioles first baseman joins Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and Eddie Murray as one of only four major leaguers to record 3,000 hits and 500 home runs during their career. Within the next couple of weeks, Palmeiro will test positive for steroid use, greatly tarnishing his accomplishments. 2007: The Philadelphia Phillies lose the 10,000th game in franchise history, against 8,810 wins. They are the first professional sports club to reach that level, 319 games ahead of the Braves. Adam Eaton takes this defeat, in which the Cardinals smack six homers, two by Albert Pujols. Adam Wainwright gets the win. Guillermo Moscoso of the Oneonta Tigers throws a perfect game against the Batavia Muckdogs. It is the first perfect game in the New York-Penn League in over 30 years and the first nine-inning perfect game in the circuit in 51 years. 2008 – The American League defeats the National League, 4 – 3, in 15 innings at the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. It is the first extra-inning win ever for the AL after seven losses and one tie. The two teams combine for a record seven steals, six of them by the American League. The game goes 4 hours and 50 minutes, also a record. 2009 – Three-time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez, who last pitched in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, signs a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. The right-hander, who has been slowed by injuries the past three seasons, will first head to the disabled list and is not expected to play for another three weeks. 2010: Unused in the All-Star Game, Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum starts his team’s first game after the break and pitches a shutout over the Mets for his 50th career win, 2 – 0. R.A. Dickey is the loser in spite of a solid effort of his own. The White Sox’s hot streak has not been affected by the three-day layoff, as they beat one of their chief rivals in the AL Central, the Minnesota Twins, 8 – 7. John Danks gives up six runs with two outs in the 2nd inning, but the Sox grind back into the lead. J.J. Putz makes his 23rd straight scoreless appearance in relief in the Pale Hose’s ninth straight win. Mat Latos’s excellent season is in jeopardy as he goes on the disabled list for an unusual reason. The Padres righthander, who has ten wins this year, strained a muscle in his left side while attempting to hold back a sneeze last week. 2011: UCLA pitcher Trevor Bauer is named recipient of the 2011 Golden Spikes Award. The third overall pick of last June’s amateur draft went 13-2 with a 1.25 ERA and 203 strikeouts in his last season as a collegiate player. Jeff Karstens needs only 83 pitches to throw a shutout as Pittsburgh defeats Houston, 4 – 0. The win moves the Pirates into first place in the NL Central as the Cardinals and Brewers both lose; they have not been in first this late in a season since 1997. The Braves defeat Washington, 11 – 1, behind the pitching of Tim Hudson, to claim the 10,000th win in franchise history, dating back to the 1876 Boston Red Caps. They are the third team to reach the milestone, following the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs. Martin Prado hits a three-run homer in his first game since June 9th. The Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners are two teams going in opposite directions. The Rangers’ 4 – 0 win, behind Colby Lewis, is their ninth in a row, while Seattle drops its seventh straight, putting them 9 1/2 games back of the AL West-leading Rangers. 2012: Ben Sheets makes a successful return to the big leagues, a few days short of two years since his last game before undergoing Tommy John surgery. He keeps the Mets scoreless over six innings as the Braves win, 6 – 1. The game features the ejection of Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen, who starts arguing with home plate umpire C.B. Bucknor during a 6th-inning mound visit; the Braves score all their runs in that inning, highlighted by Freddie Freeman’s three-run homer off Johan Santana. An incident over pine tar marks Washington’s 4 – 0 win over Miami at Marlins Park. Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen objects to the amount of the black substance on rookie Bryce Harper’s bat in the 1st inning, complaining to umpire Marty Foster, who asks Harper to use another weapon next time. When Harper comes back to the plate in the 4th, he mockingly points his bat at Guillen, who explodes with a string of shouts in his direction. After the game, the fiery skipper explains that he found Harper’s gesture disrespectful and unprofessional. 2013 – Yoenis Cespedes, although not named to the American League All-Star team, wins the Home Run Derby by defeating Bryce Harper in the final round. The Cuban slugger blasts 17 homers in the opening round, and bests the young Harper in the final round, 9-8, while using up only four of his nine outs. 2014 – The American League wins the 2014 All-Star Game, 5 – 3, over the National League. In his last appearance in the Mid-Summer Classic, Derek Jeter leads off the game with a double and scores on a triple by Mike Trout. Jeter goes 2 for 2, while Trout adds an RBI double in the 5th to win the game’s MVP Award. 2015 – The International League wins the AAA All-Star Game, 4 – 3, over the Pacific Coast League. Peter O’Brien hits a two-run homer to put the PCL ahead, 3 – 1, in the bottom of the 8th, but in the ninth PCL pitcher Jon Edwards loads the bases with none out. Kyle Roller hits a two-run single and Tyler Henson singles in the winning run. O’Brien and Roller are named their respective league’s player of the game. 2016 – The Central League wins the 2016 NPB All-Star Game 1, 5 – 4, thanks to homers from Yoshitomo Tsutsugo (game MVP), Wladimir Balentien and Hayato Sakamoto. Shintaro Fujinami gets the win and Shota Nakazaki the save. Two CL rookies get hits, the first time two rookies have hits in the same NPB All-Star Game; Shun Takayama and Yasutaka Tobashira are the impressive freshmen. 2017: Cody Bellinger continues his outstanding season by becoming the first rookie in Dodgers history to hit for the cycle in a 7 – 1 win over the Marlins. Alex Wood is the winner, improving to 11-0 on the year. It takes 16 innings for the Yankees to defeat Boston, 4 – 1, at Fenway Park. The Yankees are trailing 1 – 0 in the top of the 9th after an excellent start by Chris Sale, but Matt Holliday ties the game with a homer against Craig Kimbrel. A line drive single by Didi Gregorius against Doug Fister in the 16th finally puts New York ahead in a game that takes just short of six hours to complete. The Pacific League takes the second 2017 NPB All-Star Game, 3 – 1, to complete a sweep. Seiji Kobayashi is the first player in 47 years to homer on the first pitch he ever sees in a NPB All-Star Game, going deep off Chihiro Kaneko, but the rest of the fireworks go to the PL, including homers by Alfredo Despaigne and Daichi Suzuki and a triple by Suzuki. Despaigne is named MVP after a 3-for-4 day. The Softbank Hawks become the first PL team to have the MVP in both NPB All-Star Games in one year as Seiichi Uchikawa won the honor yesterday. 2018 – The 2018 Futures Game is played at Nationals Park ahead of the 2018 All-Star Game and it features a barrage of homers, with eight long balls being hit as the United States team prevails, 10 – 6, over the World team. Yusniel Diaz hits two homers for the World team, and he is almost matched by Taylor Trammell of the U.S., who hits one out and has a second ball bounce off the centerfield fence for a stand-up triple. Trammell is named the recipient of the Larry Doby Award as the game’s MVP. 2019: Brandon Crawford has a great day for the Giants as he hits three homers and drives in nine runs to lead his team to a doubleheader sweep of the Rockies. Crawford goes 5-for-6 in the first game, a 19 – 2 Giants win, and ties the team record with eight RBIs, then adds a solo homer in a 2 – 1 win in the second game. He goes back-to-back in both games, preceding Mike Yastrzemski’s long ball in the 1st inning of the opener, and following Stephen Vogt in the 4th inning of the nitecap. Travis d’Arnaud also hits three homers, but they all come in one game as he leads Tampa Bay to a 5 – 4 win over the Yankees at New Yankee Stadium. His three-run shot with two outs in the 9th off closer Aroldis Chapman pulls victory from the jaws of defeat as he accounts for all of the Rays’ runs. 2021: The first game of the second half of the MLB season, a make-up contest between the Yankees and Red Sox, is postponed when three pitchers on the Yankees test positive for COVID-19 as health and safety protocols are put in place. All three players have been vaccinated, and the Yankees as a team are above the 85% vaccination threshold. It is the eighth postponement of a game because of the coronavirus this season, but the first since April 19th. In what many observers describe as the start of a fire sale following a big tumble since the beginning of June, the Cubs trade OF Joc Pederson to the Braves in return for a minor league prospect, 1B Bryce Ball. 2022: Major League Baseball agrees to settle a long-standing lawsuit, originally filed in 2014 on behalf of Aaron Senne, and now covering some 23,000 retired minor league players, alleging violations of minimum wage laws. MLB will pay a settlement of $185 million to keep the suit from reaching trial, after initial rulings from the judge in charge had gone against it. While this sounds like a lot, it is little in comparison to the $450 million it pays annually in bonuses for newly-signed players, and represents an amount of barely $5,000 per plaintiff. All players who appeared in the California League or in instructional leagues in Florida or Arizona between 2011 and 2017 (with some variations in dates) are eligible. But a law passed by Congress in 2018 has since made MLB exempt from federal minimum wage laws, meaning the settlement won’t serve as a precedent going forward. One former minor leaguer who will benefit a lot from the settlement is lead attorney Garrett Broshuis, who will take in a significant chunk of the $55 million part of the settlement directed to the lawyers who pushed the case. In his last start before the All-Star break, veteran Clayton Kershaw is better than ever, taking a perfect game into the 8th inning against the Angels before Luis Rengifo breaks up the bid with a lead-off double. It is already the second time this season that the Dodgers’ ace has been perfect through seven innings, the other coming in his first start on April 13th. Kershaw completes the 8th inning without allowing another hit to earn his seventh win, 9 – 1, after Reyes Moronta allows a meaningless run in the 9th. 2023 – The Brewers pitch their third consecutive shutout to regain first place in the NL Central for the first time in 3 1/2 weeks. Freddy Peralta leads the way, allowing just a broken bat single to Jake Fraley in six innings of work, and three relievers complete the one-hitter for a 3 – 0 win over the Reds. 2024 – Teoscar Hernandez is the winner of the Home Run Derby, defeating Bobby Witt Jr. in the final round when Witt’s last swing bangs near the top of the left-centerfield wall at Globe Life Field, leaving Witt one homer short of forcing a swing-off between the two finalists. 2025 – The National League wins the 2025 All-Star Game, 7 – 6, at Atlanta’s Truist Park, the first All-Star Game to be decided by a swing-off. The NL takes a 6 – 0 lead in the game, only to see the American League claw back and tie the game in the top of the 9th. Kyle Schwarber is the hero of the swing-off, going deep on all three of his swings, to give the NL an insurmountable 4-3 lead with a batter left to go. Schwarber is named the winner of the Ted Williams Award. Births[edit] 1833 – Alfred T. Goshorn, executive (d. 1902) 1851 – John Clapp, catcher, manager (d. 1904) 1857 – George Derby, pitcher (d. 1925) 1858 – Bill Geiss, infielder (d. 1924) 1858 – Jack Kerins, infielder, manager; umpire (d. 1919) 1864 – Art McCoy, infielder (d. 1904) 1865 – Joe Dowie, outfielder (d. 1917) 1871 – Dan McGann, infielder (d. 1910) 1874 – Mike Heydon, catcher (d. 1913) 1876 – Pete Dowling, pitcher (d. 1905) 1878 – Guy Sample, minor league pitcher and manager (d. ????) 1880 – Jack Robinson, catcher (d. 1921) 1891 – Jim Breton, infielder (d. 1973) 1892 – Bubbles Hargrave, catcher (d. 1969) 1893 – Red Oldham, pitcher (d. 1961) 1904 – Ray Wolf, infielder (d. 1979) 1905 – Shirley Povich, writer (d. 1998) 1907 – Bill Byrd, pitcher; All-Star (d. 1991) 1909 – John Jackson, pitcher (d. 1956) 1909 – Red Kellett, infielder (d. 1970) 1909 – Jake Powell, outfielder (d. 1948) 1915 – John Antonelli, infielder (d. 1990) 1915 – John Davis, infielder (d. 2002) 1915 – Yonekichi Naya, NPB outfielder (d. 1944) 1915 – Lefty Scott, pitcher (d. 1964) 1916 – Doyt Morris, outfielder (d. 1984) 1917 – Heishichi Sato, NPB pitcher (d. 2007) 1918 – Bernell Longest, infielder (d. 1984) 1919 – Pete Jones, catcher (d. 1992) 1923 – Bruce Edwards, catcher; All-Star (d. 1975) 1923 – Curtis Brown, infielder (d. 1999) 1923 – Marion Fricano, pitcher (d. 1976) 1924 – Bob Barthelson, pitcher (d. 2000) 1924 – Perry Roberts, minor league infielder-pitcher (d. 1970) 1925 – Bob Wellman, outfielder (d. 1994) 1926 – Jesse Levan, infielder (d. 1998) 1928 – Julián Ladera, minor league pitcher (d. 1973) 1930 – Makizo Itoh, NPB pitcher 1930 – Betty Wagoner, AAGPBL outfielder 1931 – Bob Will, outfielder (d. 2011) 1933 – Takeo Yoshizawa, NPB catcher (d. 1971) 1934 – Alan Bower, minor league pitcher (d. 2012) 1934 – Fred Hill, college coach (d. 2019) 1934 – Takeji Mimoto, NPB pitcher 1935 – Donn Clendenon, infielder (d. 2005) 1935 – Bob Miller, pitcher (d. 2022) 1935 – Akira One, NPB pitcher 1936 – Herb Anderson, minor league infielder (d. 2014) 1936 – Gene Leek, infielder 1937 – Ryuzo Kaoku, NPB outfielder 1938 – Al Frioni, minor league pitcher (d. 2011) 1938 – Masami Kamiya, NPB catcher 1939 – Tadahiro Goto, NPB outfielder 1939 – Mike Shannon, infielder (d. 2023) 1940 – Yasuhiko Kawamura, NPB pitcher (d. 2012) 1942 – Don Bosch, outfielder 1943 – Dave Adlesh, catcher (d. 2016) 1943 – Katsutoshi Ito, NPB infielder 1946 – Ron Diorio, pitcher 1946 – Kazutomo Ueki, NPB pitcher 1947 – Masaji Ishizuka, NPB catcher 1947 – Enrique Romo, pitcher 1948 – Osamu Uetsuji, NPB pitcher 1950 – Tomoyasu Hagino, Japanese national team pitcher 1951 – Enrique Cruz, Dominican national team infielder 1954 – Greg Jemison, minor league outfielder 1954 – Yong-seok Ku, South Korean national team infielder 1957 – Joe Hicks, minor league infielder 1964 – Steve Cummings, pitcher 1964 – Jong-suk Kim, KBO pitcher 1965 – Scott Livingstone, infielder 1965 – Kirt Manwaring, catcher 1965 – Yukio Matsunaga, NPB pitcher 1966 – Benny Castillo, minor league outfielder and manager 1966 – Brett Merriman, pitcher 1966 – Ron Mullins, minor league pitcher 1968 – Tim Garland, minor league outfielder and coach 1968 – Ken Juarbe, minor league pitcher 1968 – Rudolf Razhigaev, minor league pitcher 1970 – Joey Long, pitcher 1971 – James Baldwin, pitcher; All-Star 1971 – Tim Harikkala, pitcher 1972 – Wilson Delgado, infielder 1972 – Omar Luis, Cuban league pitcher 1974 – Toshiyuki Hesaka, NPB pitcher 1974 – Masahiro Sakumoto, NPB pitcher 1974 – Hiroshi Tobe, NPB pitcher 1976 – Luis Atocha, Ecuadorian national team outfielder 1978 – Miguel Olivo, catcher 1978 – Alvaro Paz, Guatemalan national team outfielder 1979 – Kazuyuki Hoashi, NPB pitcher 1980 – Reggie Abercrombie, outfielder 1980 – Jung Bong, pitcher 1980 – Chris Denorfia, outfielder 1980 – Leoš Kubát, Hoofdklasse pitcher 1980 – Nick Neugebauer, pitcher 1981 – Ryan Basner, minor league pitcher 1982 – Fernando Nieve, pitcher 1982 – Seung-hwan Oh, pitcher 1982 – Ryan Wagner, pitcher 1983 – Nusit Phiromya, Thai national team catcher 1984 – Anthony Claggett, pitcher 1984 – Brandon Gomes, pitcher 1984 – Ryosuke Morioka, NPB infielder 1984 – Kris Watts, minor league catcher 1985 – David Carpenter, pitcher 1985 – Robbie Tolan, minor league outfielder 1986 – Jorge Balboa, Italian Baseball League pitcher 1986 – Cesar Rojas, minor league pitcher 1986 – Juan Apodaca, minor league catcher 1987 – Shuichi Furukawa, NPB pitcher 1987 – Han-yong Lim, KBO outfielder 1987 – Nicholas Romero, minor league infielder 1988 – Takumi Horikoshi, Japanese national team outfielder 1989 – Blake Hassebrock, minor league pitcher 1989 – Jin-hyuk No, KBO infielder 1989 – Lennart Weller, Bundesliga infielder 1990 – Joan Abreu, minor league infielder 1990 – Sherman Johnson, infielder 1990 – Kyle Kubitza, infielder 1990 – Javier Liere, Guatemalan national team pitcher 1990 – T.J. Oakes, minor league pitcher 1990 – Peter O’Brien, outfielder 1990 – Mac Williamson, outfielder 1991 – Mark Appel, pitcher 1991 – Elvis Araujo, pitcher 1991 – Kenta Imamiya, NPB infielder 1991 – Hiromi Oka, NPB outfielder 1992 – Ayaka Deguchi, Japanese women’s national team infielder 1992 – Phil Ervin, outfielder 1992 – Wen-Ching Hsieh, Taiwan women’s national team pitcher 1992 – José Murillo IV, minor league infielder/pitcher 1993 – Kevin Luciano, Puerto Rican national team infielder 1993 – Brian O’Keefe, catcher 1993 – Masataka Yoshida, outfielder 1994 – Dominick Golubiewski, Bundesliga infielder 1994 – C.J. Hinojosa, minor league infielder 1994 – Ramon Laureano, outfielder 1994 – Emmanuel Ramírez, pitcher 1995 – Jordan Edmonds, Great Britain national team outfielder 1995 – Matt Hardy, minor league pitcher 1996 – Kevin Padlo, infielder 1997 – Landon Knack, pitcher 1997 – Takashi Umino, NPB catcher 1998 – Marius Balandis, Lithuanian national team pitcher 1998 – Oliver Dunn, Thai national team infielder 1999 – Cole Henry, pitcher 1999 – Kohei Wong, Singaporean national team infielder 2000 – Paolo Brossier, French Division I outfielder 2000 – Daita Miyagi, NPB pitcher 2000 – Mason Pelio, minor league pitcher 2003 – Hugo Charavet, French Division I catcher 2003 – Keita Horikoshi, NPB pitcher 2003 – Trần Trung Kiên, Vietnamese national team infielder 2004 – Huayu Du, Chinese national team pitcher 2004 – Dong-heon Kim, KBO catcher 2004 – Chih-Hao Shu, CPBL pitcher 2004 – Samuel Zavala, minor league outfielder 2005 – Carlos Castillo, Salvadoran national team infielder Deaths[edit] 1893 – John Grady, minor league catcher (b. 1860) 1897 – Emilio Sabourín, winter league manager (b. ~1854) 1899 – H.D. Stanwood, umpire (b. 1845) 1900 – Billy Barnie, catcher, manager (b. 1851) 1902 – Pat Whitaker, pitcher (b. 1865) 1916 – Ira Belden, outfielder (b. 1874) 1922 – Charlie Kuhns, infielder (b. 1876) 1928 – Al Sauters, infielder (b. 1868) 1936 – Ted Goulait, pitcher (b. 1889) 1937 – Tully Sparks, pitcher (b. 1874) 1939 – Ed Biecher, outfielder (b. 1875) 1941 – Clarence Currie, pitcher (b. 1878) 1941 – Frank Isbell, infielder (b. 1875) 1950 – Biddy Dolan, infielder (b. 1881) 1954 – Chris Mahoney, pitcher (b. 1885) 1957 – Rip Wade, outfielder (b. 1898) 1965 – Harry Fanwell, pitcher (b. 1886) 1966 – Tommy McMillan, infielder (b. 1888) 1968 – Eddie Kearse, catcher (b. 1916) 1969 – Burt Ingwersen, college coach (b. 1898) 1970 – Emilio Palmero, pitcher (b. 1895) 1971 – Takeo Yoshizawa, NPB catcher (b. 1933) 1972 – Howie Jones, outfielder (b. 1897) 1973 – Jim Murray, pitcher (b. 1894) 1974 – Claud Derrick, infielder (b. 1886) 1976 – Paul Gallico, writer (b. 1897) 1978 – Deacon Meyers, pitcher (b. 1899) 1979 – Joe Grugan, college coach (b. 1917) 1979 – Garrell Hartman, outfielder (b. 1913) 1979 – John Holland, general manager (b. 1910) 1987 – Lee Ballanfant, umpire (b. 1895) 1987 – Bill Ricks, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1919) 1988 – Clyde Beck, infielder (b. 1900) 1991 – Bert Convy, minor league outfielder (b. 1933) 1991 – Eishoku Nagakawa, NPB pitcher (b. 1956) 1991 – Johnny Vergez, infielder (b. 1906) 1996 – Floyd Stahl, college coach (b. 1899) 1997 – Loel Passe, announcer (b. 1917) 2001 – Bruce Swango, minor league pitcher (b. 1937) 2005 – Nobuo Osawa, NPB infielder (b. 1916) 2006 – Howdy Groskloss, infielder (b. 1906) 2006 – Dick Phillips, Negro League pitcher (b. 1930) 2008 – Fumiki Ishida, NPB pitcher (b. 1966) 2008 – Dave Morrow, minor league catcher (b. 1960) 2010 – Billy Loes, pitcher; All-Star (b. 1929) 2013 – Akira Ishii, NPB outfielder (b. 1939) 2014 – Oscar Brito, minor league pitcher (b. 1959) 2014 – Bill Dumpson, pitcher (b. 1930) 2017 – Bob Wolff, broadcaster (b. 1920) 2019 – Don Koonce, minor league pitcher (b. 1948) 2019 – Dany Valdespino, Cuban league manager (b. ????) 2023 – Yoandy Garlobo, Cuban league infielder (b. 1977) 2024 – Nelson Chittum, pitcher (b. 1933) 2025 – Beverly Steuert, AAGPBL pitcher (b. 1934) ============================================= TV SPORTS TODAY (All times Eastern) Schedule subject to change and/or blackouts Wednesday, July 15 AWARDS SHOW 8 p.m. ABC — The 2026 ESPY Awards: From New York GOLF 4 a.m. (Thursday) USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, First Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England NBA BASKETBALL 3:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Indiana vs. Minnesota, Las Vegas 4 p.m. ESPNU — Summer League: Orlando vs. Philadelphia, Las Vegas 5:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: New Orleans vs. Cleveland, Las Vegas 6 p.m. ESPNU — Summer League: Phoenix vs. Detroit, Las Vegas 7:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Milwaukee vs. Charlotte, Las Vegas 8 p.m. ESPN2 — Summer League: Boston vs. Sacramento, Las Vegas 9:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Utah vs. San Antonio, Las Vegas 10:30 p.m. ESPN — Summer League: Washington vs. L.A. Clippers, Las Vegas SOCCER (MEN’S) 3 p.m. FOX — FIFA World Cup Knockout Stage: TBD, Semifinal, Atlanta SOCCER (WOMEN’S) 8 p.m. ESPN — NWSL: Washington at NJ/NY Gotham FC SOFTBALL 8 p.m. ESPNU — Athletes Unlimited: Spark at Volts 10 p.m. CBSSN — Athletes Unlimited: Talons at Cascade WNBA BASKETBALL 8 p.m. USA — Golden State at Indiana _____ Thursday, July 16 GOLF 4 a.m. USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, First Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England Noon GOLF — DP World/PGA Tour: Corales Puntacana Championship, First Round, Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Golf Course), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic 4 a.m. (Friday) USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Second Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England MLB BASEBALL 7 p.m. ESPN — N.Y. Mets at Philadelphia NBA BASKETBALL 4 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Dallas vs. Oklahoma City, Las Vegas 4:30 p.m. ESPNU — Summer League: Brooklyn vs. Houston, Las Vegas 6 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: L.A. Lakers vs. Chicago, Las Vegas 7 p.m. ESPN2 — Summer League: Golden State vs. New York, Las Vegas 8 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Memphis vs. Atlanta, Las Vegas 9 p.m. ESPN2 — Summer League: Toronto vs. Miami, Las Vegas 10 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League: Portland vs. Denver, Las Vegas SOFTBALL 7 p.m. CBSSN — Athletes Unlimited: Bandits at Blaze 10 p.m. MLBN — Talons at Cascade WNBA BASKETBALL 7 p.m. NBATV — Portland at Chicago 9 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — New York at Dallas _____ Friday, July 17 AUTO RACING 7:30 a.m. APPLE TV — Formula 1: Practice, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium 11 a.m. APPLE TV — Formula 1: Practice, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium 6:30 a.m. (Saturday) APPLE TV — Formula 1: Practice, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium GOLF 4 a.m. USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Second Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England Noon GOLF — DP World/PGA Tour: Corales Puntacana Championship, Second Round, Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Golf Course), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic 5 a.m. (Saturday) USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Third Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England MLB BASEBALL 1 p.m. MLBN — Tampa Bay at Boston (1:35 p.m.) 7 p.m. MLBN — Regional Coverage: L.A. Dodgers at N.Y. Yankees (7:05 p.m.) OR Pittsburgh at Cleveland (7:10 p.m.) 7:07 p.m. APPLE TV — Chicago White Sox at Toronto 10 p.m. MLBN — Regional Coverage: St. Louis at Arizona (joined in progress) (9:40 p.m.) OR Washington at Athletics (joined in progress) (9:40 p.m.) NBA BASKETBALL 6:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 7 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 8:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 9 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 10:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 11 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas SOFTBALL 8 p.m. ESPN2 — Athletes Unlimited: Volts at Cascade WNBA BASKETBALL 7:30 p.m. ION — TBA 10 p.m. ION — Connecticut at Phoenix _____ Saturday, July 18 AUTO RACING 6 a.m. APPLE TV — Formula 1: Practice, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium 10 a.m. APPLE TV — Formula 1: Qualifying, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium FS1 — NTT IndyCar Series: Practice, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 11:30 a.m. FS1 — INDY NXT Series: Practice, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 12:30 p.m. FS1 — NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series: Faith Fest 250, North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, N.C. 3 p.m. FOX — NTT IndyCar Series: Qualifying, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 4:30 p.m. FS2 — INDY NXT Series: Qualifying, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 6 p.m. FS2 — NTT IndyCar Series: Final Practice, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn GOLF 5 a.m. USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Third Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England 7 a.m. NBC — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Third Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England Noon GOLF — DP World/PGA Tour: Corales Puntacana Championship, Third Round, Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Golf Course), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic 4 a.m. (Sunday) USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Final Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England LACROSSE (MEN’S) 2 p.m. ABC — PLL: Carolina vs. Denver, Fairfield, Conn. MIXED MARTIAL ARTS 8 p.m. ESPN2 — PFL: Main Card, Austin, Texas MLB BASEBALL 2 p.m. MLBN — Regional Coverage: Minnesota at Chicago Cubs (2:20 p.m.) OR Miami at Milwaukee (4:10 p.m.) 5:30 p.m. MLBN — Regional Coverage: Texas at Atlanta (joined in progress) (4:10 p.m.) OR Miami at Milwaukee (joined in progress) (4:10 p.m.) 8 p.m. FOX — Regional Coverage: L.A. Dodgers at N.Y. Yankees (8:08 p.m.) OR San Francisco at Seattle (8:08 p.m.) NBA BASKETBALL 4:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 5 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 6:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 7 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 8:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 9 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas 10:30 p.m. PRIME VIDEO — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Round Robin, Las Vegas SOCCER (MEN’S) Noon CBS — USL Championship: TBA 5 p.m. FOX — FIFA World Cup: TBD, Third-Place Match, Miami Gardens, Fla. SOCCER (WOMEN’S) Noon ABC — NWSL: Seattle at NJ/NY Gotham FC 2 p.m. CBS — NWSL: Portland at Denver 4 p.m. NWSL: North Carolina at Bay FC SOFTBALL 4 p.m. ESPN2 — Athletes Unlimited: Talons at Bandits 6 p.m. ESPNU — Athletes Unlimited: Spark at Blaze 10 p.m. CBSSN — Athletes Unlimited: Volts at Cascade WNBA BASKETBALL 8 p.m. CBS — New York at Indiana _____ Sunday, July 19 AUTO RACING 9 a.m. APPLE TV — Formula 1: Moët & Chandon Belgian Grand Prix, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium 1 p.m. FS1 — INDY NXT Series: Music City Grand Prix, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 5:30 p.m. FOX — NTT IndyCar Series: Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix, Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn 7 p.m. TNT — NASCAR Cup Series: Window World 450, In-Season Challenge – Round 4, North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, N.C. BEACH VOLLEYBALL 1 p.m. CBS — AVP: League Week 6, New York BIG3 BASKETBALL 2 p.m. CBS — Week 5: Detroit Amps vs. Houston Rig Hands, Chicago Triplets vs. LA Riot, DMV Trilogy vs. Boston Ball Hogs, Dallas Power vs. Miami 305, Chicago GOLF 4 a.m. USA — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Final Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England 7 a.m. NBC — DP World/PGA Tour: The Open Championship, Final Round, Royal Birkdale Golf Club, Southport, England 4 p.m. GOLF — DP World/PGA Tour: Corales Puntacana Championship, Final Round, Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Golf Course), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic LACROSSE (MEN’S) 3 p.m. ABC — PLL: New York vs. Boston, Fairfield, Conn. MLB BASEBALL 12:15 p.m. PEACOCK — Chicago White Sox at Toronto 4 p.m. MLBN — Regional Coverage: St. Louis at Arizona (4:10 p.m.) OR Detroit at L.A. Angels (4:07 p.m.) 7 p.m. NBC — L.A. Dodgers at N.Y. Yankees (7:20 p.m.) PEACOCK — L.A. Dodgers at N.Y. Yankees (7:20 p.m.) NBA BASKETBALL 9 p.m. ESPN — Summer League Playoffs: TBD, Championship, Las Vegas SOCCER (MEN’S) 3 p.m. FOX — FIFA World Cup: TBD, Final, East Rutherford, N.J. SOFTBALL Noon ESPN2 — Athletes Unlimited: Spark at Blaze 8 p.m. MLBN — Athletes Unlimited: Talons at Bandits WNBA BASKETBALL 1 p.m. ABC — Los Angeles at Dallas 4 p.m. CBS — Chicago at Atlanta 7 p.m. ESPN — Connecticut at Phoenix About The Author troyderengowski61@gmail.com See author's posts Post navigation THE INDIANA SRN “SPORTSPAGE” TUESDAY JULY 14, 2026
