Sports
Rays hope homecoming, Nick Martinez help snap skid vs. trending Angels
May 22, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Nick Martinez (28) follows through on a pitch against the New York Yankees during the sixth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images The Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Rays open a three-game series Friday night in St. Petersburg, Fla., and the two American League clubs are trending in the opposite direction of the positions they occupy in the standings.
Holding down last place in an AL West where every team is under .500, Los Angeles has played its best baseball lately, including a season-high four-game winning streak that started with a home sweep of the Texas Rangers last weekend.
In Detroit on Thursday, manager Kurt Suzuki’s squad won for the fifth time in six outings with a 7-1 shellacking of the AL Central’s last-place Tigers.
Mike Trout had two doubles, two RBIs and two walks, while Vaughn Grissom finished with a double and two RBIs as the Angels captured their second straight series after losing nine of their prior 10.
Facing a Tampa Bay team that has lost four straight, the Angels will be without first baseman Nolan Schanuel (left calf inflammation) after he landed on the 10-day injured list Wednesday before a 4-0 loss to the Tigers.
“I think it’ll be a lot better, because I’ve been playing on it banged up for a little while now,” said Schanuel, 24, who is batting .262 with four homers and 24 RBIs in 49 contests. “I’ve just kind of been dealing with the pain, and it just got too much for me, and I think once it heals up, I hope it’ll go better than it’s been.”
With wins over Texas and the Chicago White Sox in his past four starts, Angels rookie right-hander Walbert Urena (2-4, 2.58 ERA) will make his eighth start as he faces Tampa Bay for the first time.
The AL East-leading Rays, who are facing their first AL West opponent, are happy to leave the Northeast and return to Florida.
After splitting two games at the New York Yankees, the Rays limped out of Baltimore 1-4 on their road trip after enduring an 11-2 trouncing Wednesday from the Orioles, who outscored Tampa 26-10 in the three-game sweep.
Suddenly, a Tampa Bay pitching staff that had largely shut down the majors is starting to show some cracks as the bats have cooled down.
Following the split against the Yankees, which broke a streak of eight consecutive series wins, manager Kevin Cash’s frontrunners flubbed the series with the O’s.
In the opener, they wasted three extra-inning leads in a disappointing 9-7 defeat in 13 innings. On Tuesday, they lost reliever-turned-starter Griffin Jax, who was struck in the middle of the back on a line drive by Leody Taveras and is day to day.
Left-hander Steven Matz surrendered five runs in the first and ultimately six total over three innings in his second start — and his worst for the team — since returning from the IL.
Series-opening starter Nick Martinez (4-1, 1.51) and his dazzling changeup line up for Friday.
“I don’t think any team goes into it thinking like, ‘Oh, he’s not going to throw his changeup,'” Cash said of the righty. “They know it’s coming, but it’s been that good.”
Per MLB.com, the 35-year-old Martinez is the 17th pitcher since 1900 to craft 10 straight starts yielding two runs or fewer to start a season.
In 14 appearances (nine starts) against the Angels, he is 3-3 with a 2.88 ERA and 0.99 WHIP.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Mercury aim to beat Liberty, gain split of 2-game set
May 27, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; New York Liberty guard Marine Johannes (23) reacts after scoring a basket against the Phoenix Mercury during the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images The New York Liberty and Phoenix Mercury will meet for the second time in three days when they face off Friday night in New York.
For the Mercury (2-6), the goal is snapping a losing streak that is now at four games after an 84-74 loss to the Liberty (4-4) on Wednesday.
Team unity is key for the Mercury in getting back on track, according to Natasha Mack, who tied her career-high of 14 points in the team’s latest loss and is optimistic despite the tough stretch.
“We just have to stick together and continue building on what we’re doing now,” Mack told reporters afterward. “It’s getting better. We see it. But we just have to give a little bit more.”
The Liberty are coming off a much-needed win to avoid their first 3-5 start since 2022. A franchise-record 23-0 run in the third quarter was key in ending a three-game losing streak.
New York knows it will be tough to duplicate that success a second time against Phoenix.
“They’re going to come out with a little bit more intensity. They’re going to be a little more focused,” New York’s Jonquel Jones said after the win. “So, we have to also take it to another level, but it does feel good to be in the win column. And to play the right way, like win the right way. Not just going out there and things kind of luckily happening in the right way for us.”
Jones finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double.
Marine Johannes led the Liberty with 21 points and five assists, hitting a career-best seven 3-pointers and reaching the 1,000-point mark for her career. She’s averaging 12.6 points per game.
Her effort was big, especially with Sabrina Ionescu out with back soreness. Ionescu has played in only one game this year.
Kahleah Copper poured in 19 points to lead the Mercury and is now 10th all-time in scoring in Phoenix history with 1,370 points. Cooper is averaging 18.8 points per contest.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Sparks hope others can make up for loss of Kelsey Plum vs. Mystics
May 17, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby (5) drives past Toronto Tempo guard Marina Mabrey (3) and forward Teonni Key (7) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images The Los Angeles Sparks were beginning to show signs of recovery from a slow start, only to see Kelsey Plum injure her ankle.
The Sparks will be without Plum for at least a week and hope they can find enough offense to compensate for the WNBA’s top scorer Friday night when they visit the Washington Mystics in a matchup of .500 teams.
Plum sprained her ankle in practice on Tuesday. Since she will not get revaluated until next Tuesday, she’ll also miss Saturday’s game at Connecticut and possibly Tuesday’s visit from Las Vegas. Plum has scored at least 25 in five games so far and leads the league at 26.8 points per game.
Los Angeles (3-3) is playing for the first time since Plum scored 38 points, including 24 in the second half, during Saturday’s 101-95 win at the Aces. Plum shot 12 for 17 and had nine assists, leading her coach Lynne Roberts to call her night “the most unselfish 38 points I’ve ever seen.
“But everybody, I could go down the whole roster,” Roberts said. “Just a total team win. Really proud of just the toughness.”
Los Angeles has scored at least 95 points in four straight games after opening the season with losses to Las Vegas and Indiana.
Without Plum, the Sparks are hoping Nneka Ogwumike can return after missing Saturday’s game with a hand injury. Ogwumike is averaging 15.6 points to start her second stint with the Sparks and practiced earlier this week.
The Sparks will also lean more on Dearica Hamby (18.5 ppg). She contributed 16 on Saturday after getting 27 two days earlier.
Washington (3-3) is attempting to earn consecutive victories for the first time in the early going. After losing by a combined 35 points to Dallas and Seattle, the Mystics earned a 78-64 win at Seattle on Wednesday.
The Mystics held the Storm to 34.9% shooting, marking the third time they allowed below 40%.
“I think (Wednesday) was a reflection of the players’ commitment to the Mystics and our DNA,” Washington coach Sydney Johnson said.
Washington also won despite a quiet showing from leading scorer Sonia Citron, who averages 17.2 points but was held to seven points for the second time in three games.
Without Citron’s production, the Mystics benefited from a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds from Shakira Austin. The Mystics also integrated Michaela Onyenwere into their lineup after the forward missed the first four games with a knee injury; she contributed 14 points.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Knicks C Mitchell Robinson breaks pinky finger, status for NBA Finals unclear
May 19, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) reacts to missing a free throw against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the third quarter of game one of the eastern conference finals during the 2026 NBA playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson broke his right pinky finger earlier this week and there is no timetable for his return, according to multiple reports on Thursday.
The Knicks are playing in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, beginning Wednesday against the winner of the Western Conference finals. Oklahoma City plays Thursday night against host San Antonio with a 3-2 lead on the Spurs in the best-of-seven series.
Robinson, 28, had eight points and 10 rebounds in 18 minutes in the Knicks’ 130-93 win over the host Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4 on Monday to sweep their way to the Eastern Conference championship.
It is unclear how and when Robinson was injured, per the reports.
The main backup to six-time All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns, Robinson is averaging 5.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 14.2 minutes per game while shooting a league-leading 73.7% from the field (28 of 38) in 13 playoff games as a reserve. He also has made only 13 of 43 free-throw attempts (30.2%).
During the regular season, Robinson averaged 5.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 19.6 minutes in 60 games (16 starts) and finished eighth in voting for NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
New York’s third-string center is second-year player Ariel Hukporti, a 7-footer who played in 54 regular-season games (five starts) and averaged 2.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 9.2 minutes.
For his career, Robinson averages 7.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 23.4 minutes in 397 regular-season games (215 starts).
The longest-tenured Knicks player, Robinson was selected by New York in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft out of Western Kentucky.
–Field Level Media
Mercury aim to beat Liberty, gain split of 2-game set
Sparks hope others can make up for loss of Kelsey Plum vs. Mystics
