Sports
49ers look to pick up steam in clash vs. NFC West-rival Cards
Sep 29, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) walks off the field after the game against the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images The San Francisco 49ers will try to string two wins together for the first time this season on Sunday when they host the Arizona Cardinals in Santa Clara, Calif.
The 49ers (2-2) used a strong defensive performance to stop a two-game slide with a 30-13 victory over the New England Patriots last Sunday.
Arizona (1-3) played its past three games at home, following up a decisive victory over the Los Angeles Rams with losses to the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders.
The setback to the Commanders was a 42-14 rout at the hands of former Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who now is Washington’s offensive coordinator.
“I told (the team), ‘You have a game like that and you think you’ve got to blow it all up, tear it all down and we’re so far away. We’re really not,'” Arizona second-year coach Jonathan Gannon said earlier this week. “We’re close but not there yet with how the last game went.”
Gannon mentioned two areas the Cardinals must correct: their third-down conversion attempts and stopping opponents on their third-down tries.
The Lions converted 50 percent of their third-down situations (6 for 12) in a 20-13 win over Arizona.
The Cardinals then allowed the Commanders a 75 percent success rate (9 for 12) on third down.
Arizona’s offense, conversely, went 1 for 9 (11.1 percent) on third-down attempts against the Lions and 4 for 11 (36.4 percent) versus the Commanders.
“I know that any offense — in Pop Warner to the NFL — has a better chance converting when it’s third-and-manageable, so we have to do a better job there,” Gannon said.
The promising news for the Cardinals is the 49ers’ defense is allowing the seventh-highest third-down conversion rate in the league at 46.0 percent.
Another encouraging development is rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. reeling in 14 receptions for 239 yards and four touchdowns over the past three weeks.
The 49ers had six players fail to participate in practice on Wednesday.
The list included tight end George Kittle (ribs), linebackers Fred Warner (ankle) and Dee Winters (ankle), wide receivers Jacob Cowing (shoulder) and Chris Conley (oblique), and defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos (ribs).
Another four players were limited: defensive linemen Jordan Elliott (knee) and Kevin Givens (triceps), safety Talanoa Hufanga (ankle) and linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (calf).
Defensive lineman Kalia Davis (knee) finally might play for the 49ers this week after the team opened the practice window Wednesday for the 2022 sixth-round draft pick.
Davis sustained a knee injury that required surgery in the preseason opener at the Tennessee Titans on Aug. 10.
Defensive lineman Nick Bosa said the possibility of Davis playing against the Cardinals is “huge,” especially after the news of the 49ers likely not having defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (partially torn triceps) the rest of the season.
“We needed a little help with depth,” Bosa said of the defensive line. “Hopefully, (Davis) works in slow, but I think if his body is in good shape, then we already know what he can do as a player.”
The 49ers’ defensive line was a significant factor in the win over New England.
Givens recorded 2.5 sacks, Maliek Collins added 1.5, and Evan Anderson and Bosa each had one.
“I thought the defense as a whole, and especially the D-line, really rose to the occasion for that game,” San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Astros put RHP Spencer Arrighetti (foot) on 15-day IL
Jul 8, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Spencer Arrighetti (41) throws a pitch against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images In the thick of the American League West and AL wild-card races, the Houston Astros placed right-handed starter Spencer Arrighetti on the 15-day injured list Saturday with nerve irritation in his foot.
Arrighetti, 26, left Friday’s start against the Chicago White Sox after one inning and 33 pitches due to the foot issue.
In a corresponding move, Houston recalled left-handed reliever Bryan King from Triple-A Sugar Land.
In 17 starts this season, Arrighetti is 7-5 with a 4.60 ERA, allowing six or more earned runs in three of his final four starts before the All-Star break. The 2021 sixth-round pick, who debuted with Houston in 2024, is 15-23 with a 4.66 ERA in 53 games (52 starts).
The 29-year-old King has made 42 relief appearances with the Astros in 2026, posting a 2-3 record with a 3.40 ERA. Across his three MLB seasons, all with Houston, he is 8-7 with a 2.91 ERA in 138 relief outings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Athletics activate star Nick Kurtz (thumb) from IL
![Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) takes first base as Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) misses a catch during the first inning] at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, July 8, 2026.](https://dailyfacthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/29355296.jpg)
Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) takes first base as Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) misses a catch during the first inning] at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, July 8, 2026. The Athletics activated All-Star first baseman Nick Kurtz from the 10-day injured list prior to Saturday’s road game against the Minnesota Twins.
Kurtz sustained a right thumb capsule sprain and was placed on the IL on July 10 and the injury forced him to miss the All-Star Game. He had been elevated to American League starter when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (back) of the Toronto Blue Jays backed out.
Kurtz is batting second and serving as the designated hitter on Saturday.
Kurtz exited a 6-1 loss at Detroit on July 8 after 1 1/2 innings after he appeared to hurt the hand while trying to field a throw in the bottom of the first. The following day, he was the designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in a 4-1 loss to the Tigers.
Kurtz, 23, is batting .266 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 92 games. He was the unanimous 2025 AL Rookie of the Year with a .290 batting average, 36 home runs and 86 RBIs in just 117 games.
Third baseman Max Muncy was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move. He was recalled by the A’s earlier this week and went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts in two games.
Muncy, 23, is batting .223 with five homers and 20 RBIs over 48 games. He has a .218 average in 111 big league games over the past two campaigns.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Davis Alexander, Alouettes look to extend East cushion vs. Tiger-Cats
Nov 16, 2025; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; Montreal Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander (10) looks to pass during the fourth quarter against the Saskatchewan Roughriders during the 112th Grey Cup Championship at Princess Auto Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Fedyck-Imagn Images With a healthy Davis Alexander at the controls, the Montreal Alouettes have a chance to run away with the East Division pretty quickly.
When Montreal hosts the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday night, it has a chance to take a three-game lead and earn the tiebreaker with a victory.
Most of that is because Alexander has – to this point – stayed off the injured list after playing just eight games last year due to a hamstring injury. Alexander has rolled up huge numbers for the Als (5-1), passing for 2,181 yards and 11 touchdowns while setting a new CFL record by throwing 336 straight passes without an interception.
Head coach Jason Maas said he and Alexander came to an understanding that he had to curb his scrambling style to be of maximum use to the club.
“He’s very smart about how he plays and what he decides to do,” Maas said. “There’s a reason he has played (six) straight games. These things, after you’ve had one, they can reoccur and it takes a lot of time to get over them.”
While Montreal is soaring with its quarterback at 100 percent, Hamilton (3-3) got back into the win column last week when its third starting quarterback in three weeks gave the offense a big lift in a 24-23 win over Toronto.
Tre Ford hit on 21 of 27 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 109 yards on 10 attempts. The Tiger-Cats struggled mightily on offense in back-to-back losses to Winnipeg and Saskatchewan, largely because star QB Bo Levi Mitchell broke his ankle in the third quarter against Winnipeg.
“Using my legs is going to be an asset for my team,” said Ford, a former starter in Edmonton before being benched last year for Cody Fajardo. “Having legs definitely helps … being able to extend plays, run around and get first downs.”
It was really helpful last week when tackles Trevor Reid and Quinton Barrow left with injuries, forcing rookie tight end Max Mang into emergency duty as a guard.
–Field Level Media
Astros put RHP Spencer Arrighetti (foot) on 15-day IL
Athletics activate star Nick Kurtz (thumb) from IL
