AP National Sports

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — His team was down by eight at halftime, and Miami coach Erik Spoelstra went into the locker room ready to deliver a big speech. Turns out, one wasn’t needed. Jimmy Butler decided to let his play do the talking. Butler scored 27 of his 41 points

By DAVID SMALE Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Brady Singer outdueled Davis Martin as the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader. The White Sox won the first game 3-0. Singer (1-0) had his best outing since last September 5, when he threw seven

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer CLEVELAND (AP) — Mike Moustakas drew the third straight walk in the 10th inning by Cleveland reliever Nick Sandlin to force in a run, and the Cincinnati Reds hung on for a 5-4 win over the Guardians. Moustakas was down to his last strike before taking three straight pitches

By MATT CARLSON Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Keegan Thompson combined with three relievers on a five-hitter, and the Chicago Cubs shut out the Pittsburgh Pirates for the second straight game, a 7-0 win that extended their winning streak to a season-best four. Jonathan Villar hit a go-ahead, solo homer in the third and added

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Mike Clevinger’s first major milestone after a year off from elbow surgery was simply getting back to the big leagues. Next was to pitch without restrictions and become a trusted member of San Diego’s rotation. Clevinger seems back to form — and poised to help the

By KYLE HIGHTOWER AP Sports Writer BOSTON (AP) — The Astros tied the MLB record for most home runs in an inning, hitting five off Red Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi as part of a nine-run second to help Houston rout Boston 13-4. Yordan Alvarez, Kyle Tucker, Jeremy Peña, Michael Brantley and Yuli Gurriel all went

By NOAH TRISTER AP Baseball Writer BALTIMORE (AP) — Aaron Judge homered twice after his first-inning drive bounced off the new left-field wall at Camden Yards, and the New York Yankees topped the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 for their 20th win in 23 games. Judge came within a few feet of a three-homer game. His bid

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Shakira Austin, the No. 3 overall pick in last month’s draft, scored 12 of her career-high 20 points in the second half as the Washington Mystics pulled away for a 84-68 win over the Dallas Wings. The 6-foot-5 Austin made 9 of 11 from the field, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked

By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — According to a person familiar with the situation, the Charlotte Hornets have scheduled second interviews with Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach Darvin Ham and Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson this week for their head coaching vacancy. The team is also scheduled to interview former

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer CLEVELAND (AP) — Mike Moustakas drew the third straight walk in the 10th inning by Cleveland reliever Nick Sandlin to force in a run, and the Cincinnati Reds hung on for a 5-4 win over the Guardians. Moustakas was down to his last strike before taking three straight pitches

NEW YORK (AP) — DeWanna Bonner made her season debut for Connecticut and scored 12 of her 16 points in the decisive first half and the Sun beat the New York Liberty 92-65. Natasha Heideman had a season-high 15 points, Brionna Jones scored 14, Jonquel Jones 13 and Alyssa Thomas had 12 points and four

By IAN HARRISON Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — José Berríos and two relievers combined on a six-hitter, George Springer provided all the offense with a bases-loaded triple, and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Seattle Mariners 3-0. Berríos (3-2) snapped a two-start losing streak and matched his season-high by pitching seven innings. The right-hander allowed

By DICK SCANLON Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Kevin Kiermaier, Brett Phillips and Randy Arozarena each homered and drove in two runs, Shane McClanahan struck out seven in seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Detroit Tigers 8-1. Ji-Man Choi also drove in two runs for the Rays, who broke Detroit’s

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Rhyne Howard scored 19 points, Cheyenne Parker added 17 and the Atlanta Dream beat the Indiana Fever 101-79. Erica Wheeler had a season-high 16 points and rookie Kristy Wallace added a career-best 15 for Atlanta. Wallace was a second-round pick out of Baylor in 2018 and made her WNBA debut in the

By ANDREW SELIGMAN AP Sports Writer CHICAGO (AP) — The Orlando Magic won the NBA draft lottery and landed the No. 1 overall pick for the first time since they got Dwight Howard nearly two decades ago. Orlando finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference at 22-60 and missed the playoffs for the

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer The State Department said Tuesday that it still pushing to have regular contact with WNBA star Brittney Griner of the Phoenix Mercury, who has been detained in Russia for nearly three months. A consular official was able to meet with Griner last week, when her pre-trial detention in Russia