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Rookie LHP Riley Martin (elbow) sent to 15-day IL

MLB: Chicago Cubs at Philadelphia PhilliesApr 14, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Riley Martin (51) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Chicago Cubs rookie left-hander Riley Martin was placed on the 15-day injured list due to left elbow inflammation on Sunday.

Martin, selected by Chicago in the sixth round of the 2021 MLB Draft, and was elevated to the Cubs roster in early April as the team’s No. 28 prospect, per MLB Pipeline. Martin, 28, has dished scoreless relief innings in seven of his last eight appearances with 10 strikeouts. He has a 2.16 ERA and two walks in 8 1/3 innings.

The move, retroactive to Friday, adds to a pile of injury troubles in Chicago, as Martin became the seventh since the regular season began, and the 11th pitcher since the start of spring training. In response to Martin’s injury, the Cubs recalled lefty Charlie Barnes from Triple-A Iowa

“The next guy’s got to do his job,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “We’ve had a number of guys get opportunities. We’ve got guys coming back soon, so that’s a good thing. But again, the injuries … they have an effect eventually.”

Barnes, 30, is 0-0 with a 9.00 ERA, three walks and one strikeout in three innings in his lone appearance for Chicago this season on April 13 in a 13-7 loss at Philadelphia.

In other moves on Sunday, the Cubs selected Yacksel Rios from Iowa and designated fellow right-hander Vince Velasquez for assignment.

Chicago has lost two in a row to Los Angeles coming off a 10-game win streak, and prepares for a three-match series against the host San Diego Padres.

-Field Level Media

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Rockies deliver shutout to finish doubleheader sweep of miserable Mets

MLB: Colorado Rockies at New York Mets Game 2Apr 26, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Chase Dollander (32) pitches in the third inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Chase Dollander threw seven scoreless innings in the longest outing of his career as the visiting Colorado Rockies completed a doubleheader sweep of the sinking New York Mets with a 3-0 win in Sunday’s nightcap.

Four Rockies pitchers combined on a four-hitter in a 3-1 win in the opener. The doubleheader was necessitated by a rainout Saturday.

Troy Johnston had an RBI single in the second inning of the nightcap and Hunter Goodman hit a two-run homer one inning later for Colorado, which swept a series from the Mets in New York for the first time since 2018 to improve to 13-16.

The Rockies didn’t record their 13th win last season until June 12, when they improved to 13-55 on their way to a 43-119 finish.

The Mets have lost 15 of 17 – their worst 17-game stretch since a 2-15 skid from Aug. 28 through Sept, 13, 2004.

New York scored one run or fewer in a traditional doubleheader Sunday for the first time since Oct, 3, 2015, when the Mets scored one run while being swept by the Washington Nationals.

Dollander (3-2), who made his first start of the season after six long relief outings, allowed five hits and two walks while striking out seven over a career-high 105 pitches.

The scoreless start was the first of Dollander’s career, though he threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings as a bulk reliever and earned the win in a 3-2 victory over the Houston Astros on Apr. 16.

Dollander wriggled out of a two-on, two-out jam in the first when he got MJ Melendez to fly out. Carson Benge and Ronny Mauricio singled to open the fifth, but Tyrone Taylor lined into a double play before Dollander retired Bo Bichette on a grounder.

Seth Halvorsen threw a hitless eighth before Zach Agnos worked around Melendez’s one-out double in the ninth to notch his second save.

The struggling Kodai Senga (0-4) took the loss after allowing three runs on three hits and three walks while striking out three in 2 2/3 innings. Senga has given up 17 runs (16 earned) over 8 1/3 innings in his last three starts.

–Field Level Media

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Carson Hocevar avoids Big One at Talladega, nabs 1st Cup Series win

NASCAR: Cup Series-Practice & QualifyingMar 29, 2026; Martinsville, Virginia, USA; Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar (77) during practice at Martinsville Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Carson Hocevar told his fans on Instagram during the week he would win at Talladega Superspeedway.

He finally did his part to perfection on Sunday.

The Spire Motorsport driver recorded his first NASCAR Cup Series win, pulling away from Chris Buescher off the final turn in a three-lap shootout to win the wreck-ridden Jack Link’s 500 in Talladega, Ala.

The high-speed, 188-lap drafting race was interrupted by a chaotic accident on Lap 115 in Stage 2 that eliminated many competitors, but the two drivers ran side-by-side until Erik Jones, running third, wrecked with seven laps left.

Hocevar’s No. 77 Chevrolet then beat Buescher’s No. 17 Ford by 0.114 seconds for his first Cup win in his 91st start, becoming the 13th driver to notch his first-ever victory at the Alabama track.

As cars wrecked coming to the final flag, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott and Zane Smith navigated their way to finish third through fifth, respectively.

Hocevar celebrated by sitting on his Chevy’s door, with his body halfway hanging out, and waved to the fans as he slowly drove by the flagstand then pointed the car nose-first against the wall and did a celebratory burnout.

But it took a moment or two to get it right.

“I’ve had this thought up for a while and I’ve messed it up every which way not to do it,” said Hocevar, who led Chevy to its fifth win in the past nine starts at Talladega and second overall in 2026. “I didn’t care if it took me 20 minutes or whatever, I was going to figure out how to do it.”

The 23-year-old Portage, Mich., native took to the social media platform this week and told his fans a win was in store.

“I knew we were going to win, and we did,” he said.

In typical Talladega fashion, the 2.66-mile superspeedway produced several different leaders moving back and forth, including Chad Finchum, making his second start in 2026, coming from the back in his No. 66 Ford along with Cody Ware and leading his first NASCAR laps as the race became 10 circuits old.

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs led after the field pitted in three different large groups — a wild session full of mistakes, which featured JGR teammates Denny Hamlin cited for speeding and Chase Briscoe for a safety violation as he roared the pits.

After the varying pit strategies and infractions played out in Stage 1, Ryan Preece’s No. 60 took the checkers for the top points as RFK Racing led the charge. Teammates Brad Keselowski and Buescher were second and fourth, respectively, while Joey Logano was third, Ryan Blaney fifth and Josh Berry sixth — all in Fords.

The Big One, Talladega’s massive crash, occurred on Lap 115 in Stage 2 as the front of the pack got together when second-place Ross Chastain turned leader Bubba Wallace to start the season’s biggest track mayhem by far.

While the front four cars of Chastain, Preece, Buescher and Christopher Bell all drove away unscathed as bedlam unfolded behind them, 26 cars were sent spinning and sliding in a wreck that forced a red-flag condition of nearly 10 minutes.

In hard two-wide racing to end Stage 2, Chastain held off Bell while Buescher, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Todd Gilliland rounded out the first five under the checkers.

–Field Level Media

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Thunder set sights on 3rd straight 1st-round sweep in Game 4 vs. Suns

NBA: Playoffs-Oklahoma City Thunder at Phoenix SunsApr 25, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Oso Ighodaro (11) shoots over Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren (7) in the second half during game three of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be aiming for a third consecutive first-round playoff series sweep when they take the court Monday night in Phoenix.

The Suns have a different task — avoiding being swept in the first round for the second consecutive postseason appearance.

One of the teams will get their way when the Thunder and Suns collide again in Game 4 of the best-of-seven Western Conference series.

Defending NBA champion Oklahoma City moved into position for another sweep with Saturday’s 121-109 victory in Game 3 at Phoenix.

Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a career-playoff-high 42 points on stellar 15-of-18 shooting. He also made 11 of 12 free throws.

“I’m just not surprised anymore with him,” Thunder guard Alex Caruso said of Gilgeous-Alexander. “I kind of have grown to expect it — and that might be a detriment to him and his greatness, because I do get to see it every single night. But it really is magnificent to see just his mentality. He’s eternally optimistic and he’s just a killer with his competitive mindset.”

Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 34.7 points and 8.0 assists in the series. He has scored 79 points in the last two games.

“I’m very fortunate to be in this position. But regardless of who’s out there, I get to go out there and play my game,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “That’s just the role I have on this team, and my coaches and teammates do a really good job of letting me be in my space.”

The Suns were incapable of slowing down Gilgeous-Alexander in Game 3 no matter what they tried to do defensively.

“Some of the shots were incredibly difficult,” Suns coach Jordan Ott said. “We know he can make some of those shots.

“We tried different matchups, tried to take it out of his hands. He got to the area where it’s a little harder to take it out of his hands when he just rises up over us. Give him credit. He had us spinning tonight.”

Phoenix is hoping to have guards Devin Booker (ankle) and Grayson Allen (hamstring) in good form for Game 4.

Booker left Game 3 for a time after injuring his left ankle in the third quarter. He finished with 16 points and seven assists.

Allen was back on the floor for the first time since April 10 and had seven points in 17 minutes. He made just 2 of 8 field-goal attempts and was clearly not 100%.

“I’m not worried about a percentage,” Allen said Sunday when asked to rate his health. “I felt good enough to go and good enough to contribute so we gave it a shot.”

Dillon Brooks led Phoenix with 33 points in Game 3 and has 63 points over the past two games. He has made 12 of 28 3-point attempts in the series.

Booker’s series high is 23 points and the Suns could use one of his vintage high-scoring efforts in the bid to stay alive.

Booker said it won’t be easy to derail the Thunder.

“Overall, they’re a well-oiled machine,” Booker said. “They’re champs for a reason. They know what they want to get every time down the floor and they definitely know what they’re doing on defense. We have some growing and some learning to do in those departments.”

Phoenix will again be without big man Mark Williams (foot). Guard Jordan Goodwin (calf) is questionable.

Thunder star Jalen Williams (left hamstring) remains unlikely to return during this series, no matter how long it lasts. He was hurt in Game 2.

–Field Level Media

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