AP National Sports

By ERIC TUCKER and MATTHEW LEE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has determined that WNBA star Brittney Griner is being wrongfully detained in Russia, meaning the United States will more aggressively work to secure her release even as the legal case against her plays out, two U.S. officials said Tuesday. Griner was

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer The WNBA will honor Phoenix star Brittney Griner with a floor decal and allow the Mercury to pay her without it counting against the team’s salary cap, the league announced Tuesday. The All-Star center remains in Russia after being detained following her arrival at a Moscow airport on Feb.

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer Selecting allrounders to captain England’s test cricket team hasn’t always worked so well in the past but Ben Stokes is sure he can make it work. Stokes accepted the biggest job in English cricket last week and it sparked concerns that the captaincy will weigh heavy on a player

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer DOVER, Del. (AP) — Dover Motor Speedway held its first event under new management. The track traditionally held two NASCAR weekends, but moved one race date last season to Nashville Superspeedway. Dover hosted one race weekend in 1969 and 1970, and then held two races every season from 1971

By The Associated Press A look at what’s happening around the majors today: ___ DUSTY 2K Astros manager Dusty Baker tries for his 2,000th win as a major league manager when Houston hosts Seattle. Only 11 skippers have reached the mark so far. The 72-year-old Baker posted his 1,999th victory when Houston blanked the Mariners

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — There’s nobody on the Miami Heat roster that knows Philadelphia guard James Harden better than P.J. Tucker. They got further acquainted in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Tucker set the tone of the night for Miami by playing full-court defense against his former Houston

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Phillip Danault capitalized after a miscue by Edmonton goalie Mike Smith and scored the tiebreaking goal late in the third period, leading the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-3 win over the Oilers on Monday night in Game 1 of the opening-round playoff series. Smith tried to clear the puck from

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Phillip Danault scored at 14:46 of the third period, leading the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night in Game 1 of the teams’ first-round playoff series. Trevor Moore and Alex Iafallo each had a goal and assist for the Kings. Brandon Lemieux also

By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — David Perron had a hat trick and an assist to lead the St. Louis Blues past the Minnesota Wild 4-0 in Game 1 of their first-round series. Perron missed the playoffs last year with COVID-19. Ryan O’Reilly scored, Torey Krug added three assists and

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — After a brief hiatus, the Phoenix Suns that bulldozed through the regular-season schedule made an appearance on Monday night. Deandre Ayton scored 25 points, Devin Booker added 23 and the top-seeded Suns rolled to a 121-114 win over the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of the

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Baseball Writer OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays believe in their potent offense, and manager Kevin Cash can’t wait for his club to start consistently slugging. A solid win to start a nine-game trip sure provided a glimpse of how things can go when everyone in the lineup gets

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer The WNBA will honor Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner with a floor decal, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Monday night. The league’s Board of Governors also approved Phoenix paying Griner’s $228,000 salary — the WNBA max — and not have it count against

By MIKE FITZPATRICK AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Austin Riley homered, Max Fried won his third straight outing and the Atlanta Braves cooled off the New York Mets with a 5-2 victory in the first of 19 meetings between the NL East rivals this season. Travis d’Arnaud had three hits and three RBIs

MIAMI (AP) — Zac Gallen outpitched Pablo López as the Arizona Diamondbacks built a lead and held on to beat the Miami Marlins 5-4 Monday night. David Peralta homered, singled twice and drove in three runs, and Daulton Varsho hit two doubles for the Diamondbacks, who have won five of seven. Arizona’s Jordan Luplow had

By IAN HARRISON Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — Gleyber Torres homered early, then hit a go-ahead single in the ninth inning as the New York Yankees won their 10th straight game, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 3-2. Giancarlo Stanton singled off Yimi Garcia to begin the New York ninth, ending a streak of four perfect