AP National Sports

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Natisha Hiedeman had 19 points, Brionna Jones scored 18 and Alyssa Thomas added a double-double to power the Connecticut Sun to an 86-79 victory over the Minnesota Lynx. Hiedeman hit five 3-pointers and had five assists for Connecticut (19-9). Jones grabbed eight rebounds and Thomas finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — Keibert Ruiz had three hits, including a go-ahead single in the eighth inning, and the Washington Nationals avoided a three-game sweep by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-3. Pinch-hitter Lane Thomas led off the eighth with a double against All-Star left-hander Joe Mantiply, and Ruiz brought him

By The Associated Press Washington star Juan Soto is sure to get asked about his near future during a three-game series at Dodger Stadium that starts Monday night. As the Aug. 2 trade deadline approaches, there’s been increased speculation Soto could be on the move. Soto was serenaded with chants of “Future Dodger!” during the

SONOMA, Calif. (AP) — Brittany Force raced to her fourth Top Fuel victory of the season and 15th overall in a record-setting Sunday in the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals. Force had a 3.709-second run at 335.48 mph to beat Mike Salinas in the final round and move ahead of him for the season lead. She

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — First-place finisher Denny Hamlin was disqualified when his No. 11 Toyota failed inspection, giving Chase Elliott the NASCAR Cup Series victory Sunday at Pocono Raceway. Joe Gibbs Racing had Hamlin’s car and runner-up Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Toyota both disqualified. Hamlin lost his record

By RONALD BLUM AP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball made what was termed a “final offer” for an international draft, increasing proposed money for the first year in 2024 by $10 million to $191 million. The move came one day after the players’ association made a proposal that remained at $260

DEL MAR, Calif. (AP) — Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert had two victories on the opening weekend of Del Mar’s summer meet, three weeks after his 90-day suspension ended. Havnameltdown won by 2 1/4 lengths in his first career start in Sunday’s $80,000 fourth race at the seaside track north of San Diego. The

MICHAEL WAGAMAN Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Martín Pérez allowed four hits over seven strong innings to extend his dominant undefeated streak and beat fellow All-Star Paul Blackburn, leading the Texas Rangers to an 11-8 victory over the Oakland Athletics. Pérez (8-2) had six strikeouts and won his career-best eighth straight decision. The first-time

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan set a world record hardly anyone saw coming, crossing the line in the semifinal heat of the women’s 100-meter hurdles Sunday in 12.12 seconds at the world championships. The 25-year-old, who finished fourth at last year’s Olympics, held her arms out in

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — Keibert Ruiz had three hits, including a go-ahead single in the eighth inning, and the Washington Nationals avoided a three-game sweep by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 4-3. Pinch-hitter Lane Thomas led off the eighth with a double against All-Star left-hander Joe Mantiply, and Ruiz brought him

SEATTLE (AP) — Tina Charles scored 27 points, becoming the fourth player in WNBA history to top 7,000 in a career, and the Seattle Storm beat the Atlanta Dream 82-72. Charles sank 9 of 13 shots — 4 of 7 from 3-point range. She added 15 rebounds for her second straight double-double. Charles, with 7,013

By SHANE LANTZ Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña hit back-to-back home runs off Robbie Ray to begin the game, and the Houston Astros roughed up the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner in an 8-5 victory over the Seattle Mariners that completed a three-game sweep.Martín Maldonado had three RBIs from

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Sports Writer SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Only a couple days after being traded, Matthew Tkachuk already feels at home in Florida. The newly acquired Florida forward’s parents are building a home about an hour from where the Panthers play their home games. He has familiarity with the Panthers, is already friends

By STEVE MEGARGEE AP Sports Writer MILWAUKEE (AP) — Andrew McCutchen’s tiebreaking, two-run double capped a two-out rally in the eighth inning that gave the Milwaukee Brewers a 10-9 victory over the Colorado Rockies. Rowdy Tellez hit a tying single before McCutchen hit the go-ahead double off Alex Colomé. The Rockies scored a run and

IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford threw to receivers in practice Sunday for the first time since Los Angeles’ Super Bowl victory. Stafford had an injection in his throwing elbow early in the offseason to treat an unspecified injury with which he played late last season. He avoided any serious throws during minicamps

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Denny Hamlin became the winningest driver at Pocono Raceway on Sunday. He won for the seventh time in his career and passed Jeff Gordon on the career list. Hamlin won for the third time this season and tied Tony Stewart on the NASCAR’s career

SALINA, Kan. (AP) — Karrie Webb held off Annika Sorenstam on Sunday in the Senior LPGA Championship for her first senior title. The 47-year-old Webb closed with a 5-under 67 for a four-shot victory at Salina Country Club. It was set up for a duel between the two Hall of Fame players who were rivals

By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer BLAINE, Minn. (AP) — Tony Finau shot a 4-under 67 to win the 3M Open by three strokes, erasing a five-stroke deficit with 11 holes left as Scott Piercy tumbled out of the lead down the stretch at windy TPC Twin Cities. Piercy followed his tournament-record 54-hole score with

By JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer BOSTON (AP) — Raimel Tapia had three hits and drove in four runs, giving him 10 RBIs for the series, and Vladimir Guerrero had four hits for the Toronto Blue Jays as they pounded the bumbling Boston Red Sox 8-4 to complete a three-game sweep. Two days after Tapia

By AVERY OSEN Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kris Bubic went seven strong innings, Hunter Dozier and MJ Melendez had late-inning RBIs and the Kansas City Royals beat Tampa Bay 4-2, winning a series against the Rays for the first time in five years. Dozier snapped a 2-all tie with two outs in