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Celtics eke out Game 3 win vs. Sixers, regain series lead

NBA: Boston Celtics at Philadelphia 76ersApr 24, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) drives to the basket against Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George (8) during the first half at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Jayson Tatum scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter as the visiting Boston Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 108-100 on Friday in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series.

Jaylen Brown matched Tatum with 25 points, while Payton Pritchard added 15 points for the second-seeded Celtics, who lead the best-of-seven series 2-1. Derrick White and Nikola Vucevic each chipped in 11 points for Boston.

Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points on 12-of-31 shooting for the seventh-seeded Sixers, who will attempt to even the series Sunday night when the teams reconvene back in South Philly.

Paul George (18 points) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (17) also made key contributions for the hosts, while VJ Edgecombe pitched in with 10 points but shot just 5 of 17, including 0 of 7 from long range. Edgecombe grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.

Early in the third quarter, the Sixers embarked on a 12-0 run to turn a 64-55 deficit into a three-point lead. The Celtics regained the advantage shortly thereafter and went on to lead 79-74 after three quarters, thanks to two 3-pointers by Pritchard late in the session.

Philadelphia trailed 84-80 early in the fourth before Maxey made a tough fadeaway and a 3-pointer to put the Sixers ahead by a point.

However, the visitors responded with eight straight points. Brown found White for a layup before scoring the final four points of the burst, guiding Boston to a 92-85 edge with 5:39 remaining.

George and Andre Drummond helped bring the Sixers within 97-96 with 2:19 left, but Tatum answered with a 3-pointer. Following another Philadelphia bucket, Pritchard drained a 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer to make it 103-98 with 1:17 to go.

Philadelphia again made it a one-possession game, but Tatum swished a long 3-pointer with 26.6 seconds left to punctuate his dynamic performance.

Boston made seven 3-pointers in the first quarter en route to a 29-24 lead after 12 minutes.

The Celtics went ahead by double digits early in the second quarter as Baylor Scheierman’s 3-pointer made it 41-31. The Sixers chipped away and got within 47-45 with two minutes left in the half before Boston made a mini-push to bring a 54-47 lead into the locker room.

–Field Level Media

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Walk-filled 3rd inning helps Pirates beat Reds, snap 4-game skid

Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (9) tags out Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez (55) on his way to second in the third inning between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Saturday, August 1, 2026.Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (9) tags out Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez (55) on his way to second in the third inning between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Saturday, August 1, 2026.

Pittsburgh starter Braxton Ashcraft threw five solid innings and Jake Mangum had two hits and a run to lift the visiting Pirates to a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday.

Ashcraft (11-4) allowed one run on two hits with one walk and five strikeouts before a 106-minute weather delay preceded the bottom of the sixth inning.

Bryan Reynolds, Esmerlyn Valdez, Nick Gonzales and Henry Davis finished with an RBI apiece for the Pirates, who snapped a four-game losing streak.

Gregory Soto pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 14th save. Three Pittsburgh pitchers combined to hold Cincinnati to three hits. The Pirates recorded six hits.

Pittsburgh took a 3-0 lead in the third despite collecting only one hit. Davis drew a leadoff walk, Mangum singled and Brandon Lowe coaxed a walk to load the bases. Reynolds and Valdez drew consecutive bases-loaded walks to make it 2-0.

Gonzales followed with a fielder’s choice to plate Brandon Lowe and give the Pirates a three-run lead. As a steady rain fell throughout the inning, the grounds crew briefly tended to the mound.

Cincinnati got on the board in the fifth when Jose Trevino opened the frame with an opposite-field homer to right.

The Pirates extended their advantage to 4-1 in the sixth when Davis feathered an RBI single into shallow center, just beyond the reach of a diving TJ Friedl.

The Reds, who were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, threatened in the fourth. Sal Stewart was hit by a pitch before being forced out at second on JJ Bleday’s fielder’s choice. Nathaniel Lowe singled to center and, after Noelvi Marte popped out, Bleday advanced to third when no one covered second on Ashcraft’s pickoff attempt. But Eugenio Suarez struck out to end the inning.

Elly De La Cruz lined a rocket to center to open the eighth, but Mangum chased it down and made a leaping catch.

Reds starter Andrew Abbott (5-7) allowed three runs on three hits while matching a season high with five walks over five innings. He struck out one.

–Field Level Media

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Hunter Goodman (2 HRs, 5 RBIs), Rockies rough up Royals

Aug 1, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman (15) celebrates with center fielder Brenton Doyle (9) in the dugout after hitting a three run home run during the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn ImagesAug 1, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman (15) celebrates with center fielder Brenton Doyle (9) in the dugout after hitting a three run home run during the third inning against the Kansas City Royals at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Hunter Goodman homered twice and drove in five, Willi Castro also went deep and the Colorado Rockies beat the Kansas City Royals 12-6 in Denver on Saturday night.

TJ Rumfield finished with three hits and three RBIs, Kyle Karros had two hits and two RBIs and Jake McCarthy also had two hits for Colorado, which won its 44th game of the season, eclipsing last year’s victory total with 51 games remaining.

Jac Caglianone, Salvador Perez homered and John Rave all went deep and Tyler Tolbert and Nick Loftin had two hits each for Kansas City, which pulled outfielder Lane Thomas from the game in the middle of the fourth inning. Multiple outlets reported Thomas had been traded to Atlanta along with left-hander Bailey Falter.

Rockies starter Ryan Feltner worked out of a jam in the first inning but couldn’t escape trouble in the second. Isaac Collins led off with a triple to the gap in right-center and one out later scored on Michael Massey’s sacrifice fly to left.

Tolbert started the third with a double to right and stole second, and two outs later Caglianone hit his 18th home run of the season. Perez followed with his 16th homer to give the Royals a 4-0 lead.

Feltner (4-5) allowed four runs on eight hits over six innings.

Kansas City starter Luinder Avila faltered in the third when Colorado sent 11 batters to the plate. The Rockies loaded the bases with two walks and a single, then Karros drove in the first two with a double and Rumfield made it 4-3 with a single.

Goodman capped the scoring with his 32nd home run of the season, breaking his franchise mark for homers by a catcher in a season that he set last year, and gave Colorado a 6-4 lead.

Avila (5-4) was charged with six runs on four hits in 2 2/3 innings.

Colorado added to the lead in the fourth on Rumfield’s RBI single. Castro hit a solo homer in the fifth, his 12th, to make it 8-4.

Goodman extended his franchise record with a leadoff homer in the seventh and drove in another run in the Rockies’ three-run eighth. The Royals scored twice in the ninth.

-Field Level Media

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Red Sox stay hot with another win over Dodgers

Aug 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Payton Tolle (70) throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Navarro-Imagn ImagesAug 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Payton Tolle (70) throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Navarro-Imagn Images

Ceddanne Rafaela hit two home runs, Andruw Monasterio doubled and scored the go-ahead run in the eighth inning and the visiting Boston Red Sox slipped past the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2 on Saturday.

Left-hander Payton Tolle gave up two runs on nine hits over six innings with seven strikeouts as the Red Sox opened August with a victory after they went 21-4 in July to set a franchise record for a full month with a .840 winning percentage.

Right-hander Justin Slaten (2-4) replaced Tolle and pitched the seventh inning before left-hander Aroldis Chapman pitched the ninth inning for his 27th save as Boston played without first baseman Willson Contreras as a precaution after he was hit in the helmet by a pitch on Friday.

After winning the first two games in the series, the Red Sox are 5-1 on a seven-game road California road trip that included a stop to face the Athletics.

Teoscar Hernandez hit a home run among his three hits for the Dodgers, who lost for the fourth time in their past six games. Freddie Freeman also had three hits and has seven multi-hit games over his last nine contests.

Los Angeles right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto (11-7) continued a run of solid pitching since the All-Star break by allowing three runs on four hits over eight innings but still took the loss. The Dodgers had 10 hits to four for the Red Sox but were hitless in four at-bats with runners in scoring position and stranded seven.

Boston took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Rafaela hit his first home run of the game on a drive to left-center field against Yamamoto.

The Dodgers took a 2-1 lead in the second inning on Hernandez’s two-run home run to right field. It was his 10th of the season and second in three games.

Boston tied the score 2-2 in the third on another home run from Rafaela. It was his 14th of the season and his third in a span of four at-bats going back to the series opener on Friday.

Monasterio doubled to lead off the eighth, went to third on a Jarren Duran bunt single and scored on a double-play grounder by Connor Wong.

–Field Level Media

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