Sports
Sydney Taylor drills four 3s as Sky defeat Sparks
Jul 17, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Sky guard Sydney Taylor (12) goes up for a shot against Los Angeles Sparks forward Emma Cannon (32) during the first half at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images Sydney Taylor kept her hot streak rolling, knocking down four 3-pointers and pouring in 19 points as the Chicago Sky won their second in a row with a 96-82 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday night in Chicago.
The undrafted rookie star shot 6-of-10 from the field on her way to reaching double figures for the sixth game in a row and the 12th time in the last 13 outings.
Kamilla Cardoso recorded her ninth double-double of the year with 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Sky (8-16), who had five players in double figures and sent the Sparks (10-14) to their third consecutive loss.
Natasha Cloud tallied 15 points, while Jacy Sheldon finished with 14 off the bench. Azura scored 12 points, while Cloud handed out nine of Chicago’s 27 assists.
The win overshadowed a big moment for Nneka Ogwumike, who surpassed Sparks legend Lisa Leslie as the franchise’s all-time leader in points, now standing with 6,281 points. Ogwumike finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, reaching double figures for the 10th consecutive game.
Dearica Hamby tallied 18 points and Erica Wheeler scored 12 for Los Angeles, which has lost its last five road games.
Los Angeles won the first meeting of the season against Chicago, beating the Sky 102-87 on July 10, and the Sparks led 8-2 early in this one as Ogwumike drove and knocked down a jumper over a defender with 6:54 left in the first quarter to reach her scoring milestone.
Chicago answered with a 7-0 run, grabbing a 9-8 lead on a 3-pointer from Taylor with 4:45 remaining.
The Sparks led 17-16 after one, but Taylor hit a pair of 3-pointers to fuel a 14-2 run that allowed the Sky to surge in front 30-19. Taylor also scored on a jumper in the lane before Cordoso capped the spurt on a layup with 7:01 to play.
Wheeler got Los Angeles within 10 at 44-34 with 1:07 to play, but Gabriela Jaquez answered with a 3-pointer of her own and Chicago went on to lead 49-36 at halftime.
The Sky outscored the Sparks 33-19 in the second quarter, capitalizing on 12 turnovers and a 23-0 advantage in bench points.
Chicago had its lead cut to 65-59 with 1:24 to play in the third after two free throws from Ariel Atkins, but the Sky held a 69-63 advantage after three and opened the fourth on a 9-0 run.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Orioles, RHP Kyle Bradish agree to 5-year extension
Jun 28, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Kyle Bradish (38) pitches in the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images The Baltimore Orioles agreed to a five-year contract extension with right-handed starter Kyle Bradish on Saturday.
The deal is worth $90 million, per ESPN. Per the report, the length of the contract buys out Bradish’s last two years of arbitration and the first three seasons of what would have been his free agency.
The 29-year-old has been a strong starter for the Orioles over the past five seasons, turning in a 3.50 ERA, 1.206 WHIP and 485 strikeouts across 465 innings with a 25-24 record.
This season, Bradish’s output has been in line with his career numbers, going 6-9 with a 3.61 ERA, 1.351 WHIP and 106 strikeouts in 107 1/3 innings.
“Keeping players of Kyle’s caliber in an Orioles uniform is an important part of our long-term vision,” Orioles owner David Rubenstein said in a statement. “We are grateful to Kyle for his commitment to our organization and to Baltimore. Thanks to (president of baseball operations and general manager) Mike Elias and the entire baseball operations department for their dedication throughout this process.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Matthew Boyd, Nico Hoerner lead Cubs past Twins
Jul 18, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch (29) hits a home run during the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images Matthew Boyd threw six quality innings and Nico Hoerner delivered the fifth four-hit game of his career on Saturday afternoon, helping the Chicago Cubs earn a 6-2 victory over the visiting Minnesota Twins.
Boyd (6-1) allowed one run on three hits, striking out four and walking one for the Cubs, who won their sixth game in nine tries and evened the weekend series after losing 5-2 on Friday. Michael Busch homered, while Pedro Ramirez and Miguel Amaya each drove in a pair of runs.
Taj Bradley (9-4) allowed five runs on seven hits across five innings, striking out six and walking three for the Twins, who saw their three-game winning streak come to an end. Kody Clemens hit two solo home runs for Minnesota, which will search for its three-game series win at Wrigley Field since Sept. 2020 on Sunday.
Chicago opened the scoring in the bottom of the first, as Busch launched his 12th home run of the season – a 402-foot shot to the right field bleachers.
Minnesota evened the score in the second on Clemens’ 17th homer of the year.
After Bradley allowed Hoerner’s one-out single and Ramirez’ walk, Amaya’s two-run double gave the Cubs a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the second.
Chicago tacked on two more runs in the third. Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ both worked walks off Bradley, before Hoerner’s RBI single and Ramirez’ run-scoring double made it 5-1.
Mike Paredes threw a scoreless sixth in relief of Bradley.
Caleb Thielbar took over for Boyd in the seventh, allowing Clemens’ second home run of the game, cutting Minnesota’s deficit to 5-2. The 391-foot blast cemented Clemens’ second multi-homer game of the year.
In the bottom of the seventh, Ramirez drove in another run with a single to push the margin back to four.
Jacob Webb threw the ninth, surrendering Josh Bell and Victor Caratini’s back-to-back singles to begin the frame. Brooks Lee then singled to center, but both Bell and Lee were caught in a rundown, resulting in a double play. Webb then got Clemens to strike out to end the game.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Yankees, Dodgers postponed due to heavy rain
Jul 18, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; A view of the field after the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium was postponed. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images The game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees was postponed due to heavy rain on Saturday and the teams will play a split doubleheader a day later.
Rain was projected throughout the New York area, and the game was postponed roughly three hours before the 8:08 EDT first pitch. It is the second time this season the Yankees had a Saturday night FOX game postponed due to rain after being postponed June 6 against Boston.
The first game will start at 12:35 EDT followed by the second game which will air on NBC/Peacock at 7:20 EDT.
The teams share a mutual off-day on Thursday, but the Dodgers are slated to visit the White House and will be honored for their second straight World Series title before returning to New York to face the Mets.
Ryan Weathers was scheduled to pitch for the Yankees and oppose Emmet Sheahan. Both players are likely to pitch Sunday while Cam Schlittler and Yoshinobu Yammamoto were slated to pitch for Sunday night’s contest.
Los Angeles opened the series with a 2-1 victory when Max Muncy hit a go-ahead two-run homer off Gerrit Cole in the seventh inning and Roki Sasaki touched triple digits several times in 5 2/3 innings.
The Yankees are 13-16 in their past 29 games. They will play the first of three doubleheaders over their final 65 games as they also play a doubleheader against Boston Aug. 29 and two games against Tampa Bay on Sept. 22.
–Field Level Media
Orioles, RHP Kyle Bradish agree to 5-year extension
Matthew Boyd, Nico Hoerner lead Cubs past Twins
