Sports
Cards' Sonny Gray looks to continue torrid stretch vs. Pirates
Sep 12, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Sonny Gray (54) pitches against Cincinnati Reds pinch hitter Amed Rosario (38) during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images In a season full of disappointment for the St. Louis Cardinals, Sonny Gray is beginning to meet the expectations that came shortly after he signed a three-year, $75 million contract.
Gray (13-9, 3.75 ERA) has allowed just three runs on nine hits over 19 innings in his past three starts. The right-hander struck out 20 batters and walked only three during that span.
Gray will try to extend his strong finish Wednesday when the Cardinals face the Pittsburgh Pirates in the third contest of a four-game series in St. Louis.
The Cardinals (76-75) recorded a 4-0 win on Monday night and a 3-1 victory on Tuesday.
In July, Gray posted a 6.75 ERA over a span of four starts. Since then, he has allowed two runs or fewer in six of eight starts.
“It’s about trusting your work and not getting caught up in knowing that even when I was struggling, a lot of it was just one (poor) inning or one mistake,” Gray said. “It’s about continuously adapting pitch usage, pitch location and pitch selection. It’s about adapting at all times. That will never stop if you want to continue to be good.
“And sometimes it’s just about getting out of my own way and letting others help.”
Gray retired the first 15 batters he faced in his most recent start, a 6-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
“I felt like I was really close to being really, really good,” Gray said after that game. “I’m happy with the overall performance and the adjustments I was able to make. But, still, I feel like I’m really close to being really good.”
Gray earned a 4-2 victory over the Pirates on June 12. He held them to one run on four hits in seven innings while striking out nine and walking one.
He is 5-4 with a 3.99 ERA in 11 career outings against Pittsburgh, including 10 starts.
The Pirates (71-80) have yet to announce their starting pitcher for Wednesday’s game.
During its last rotation spin, Pittsburgh turned to right-hander Luis Ortiz (6-6, 3.45) in this slot. But in his most recent start, Ortiz allowed seven runs (four earned) on five hits — including two homers — in four innings of an 8-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals.
Ortiz made one relief appearance against the Cardinals on July 2, striking out four batters in two innings while allowing one run on three hits. He did not record a decision in that game, however he is 0-2 with a 14.63 ERA in four career appearances (three starts) versus St. Louis.
The Pirates have plugged infield/outfield prospect Nick Yorke into the lineup as they continue to build for next season and beyond. He started at second base in the first two games of this series and delivered his first three big-league hits Tuesday.
“What I want to do the most is just help out wherever I can,” Yorke said after getting his first call-up. “Whether it’s, you know, on defense, on whatever position they want me to play, you know, at the dish, whatever it is. I just want to help.”
Infielder/outfielder Oneil Cruz was out of the starting lineup Tuesday for the second straight game while resting his sore ankle. Michael A. Taylor started in center field in his place, but Cruz came off the bench as a pinch-hitter.
Reliever Kyle Nicolas also was ruled out of Tuesday’s game with back soreness. He exited Monday night’s game after facing one batter.
“I think we’ll have a better idea in the next 24 hours,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Tuesday. “He’s still a little bit sore today, so we’re still evaluating him.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Williams sisters to play doubles Saturday at Wimbledon
Jul 6, 2015; London, United Kingdom; Serena Williams (USA) and Venus Williams (USA) hug at the net after their match on day seven of The Championships Wimbledon at the AELTC. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images Serena and Venus Williams will play their Wimbledon first-round doubles match on Saturday after organizers gave Serena time to recover from a knee injury.
The sisters, who won the grass-court Grand Slam doubles title six times (most recently in 2016), take on Argentina’s Solana Sierra and Colombia’s Camila Osorio at the All England Club.
Playing her first singles match in nearly four years on Tuesday, the 44-year-old Serena tweaked her knee in the first set of a 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 loss to Australia’s Maya Joint.
Tournament director Jamie Baker told the Associated Press the first-round doubles match was pushed back to give Serena “as much time” as possible to recover. All other first-round matches in the Ladies’ Doubles draw were contested Thursday and Friday.
“We want her to play if she … possibly can,” Baker said Friday.
Venus, 46, and Serena last played doubles at the 2022 U.S. Open, losing in the first round to Linda Noskova and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic.
The winner of Saturday’s match will face ninth-seeded Ellen Perez of Australia and Demi Schuurs of the Netherlands in the second round.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tigers' Jack Flaherty, Rangers' Kumar Rocker have momentum after rough starts to season
Jun 28, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers pitcher Jack Flaherty (9) pitches in the first inning against the Houston Astros at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images Following a short stint on the injured list, Detroit Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty didn’t allow a run in his return. He’ll look to build off that outing when his team plays the middle contest of a three-game series against Texas on Saturday afternoon in Arlington, Texas.
Flaherty recorded nine strikeouts in his five-inning start against the visiting Houston Astros on Sunday. The only negative was that Flaherty required 94 pitches to get that far. The Tigers wound up losing 7-5 in 10 innings.
“Still needed a better job to find a way to get some quick outs. Some quick outs, quicker ABs,” said Flaherty, who was on the injured list due to a left peroneal strain, a tendon injury along his lower leg. “They did a good job of getting the two strikes, and fouling some pitches off and making at-bats go a little bit longer.”
It was just the second time this season Flaherty (1-8, 4.97 ERA) had gone at least five innings without giving up a run. He started against the Rangers on May 1 and was pulled after 3 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on five hits while issuing three walks.
In five career starts against Texas, Flaherty is 1-1 with a 4.18 ERA.
After starting their road trip with a three-game sweep of the New York Yankees, the Tigers lost the opener of this series, 10-4, on Thursday. The teams didn’t meet on Friday due to the Australia-Egypt World Cup match played at nearby AT&T Stadium.
Detroit trailed 5-0 before fifth-inning homers by Colt Keith and Hao-Yu Lee cut the deficit to two runs. The Tigers’ bullpen failed to keep them within striking range.
“We’re chasing it from behind. That’s a tough recipe, but we did give ourselves a chance,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “They were able to get out of it and then tack on runs.”
The Rangers’ victory was their seventh in the last eight games and gave them at least a share of the AL West lead for the fifth straight day. Their run total on Thursday matched their season high.
“At the end of the day, everybody in here wants to win,” said Texas outfielder Evan Carter, who went 2-for-2 with a homer off the bench. “I think everybody’s showing up in the field every single day, everybody’s got their own unique skill sets, and we go out there trying to compete and grind and do whatever we can to help the team win every single day. I think that’s a collective thing that everybody here feels. Nobody here is playing for themselves, and I think that shows on the field.”
The Rangers pounded out 17 hits despite not having Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford or Brandon Nimmo due to injuries. The Rangers are hopeful Nimmo can play this weekend. He sprained his AC joint when he slammed into a wall while making a catch on Sunday.
Kumar Rocker (2-6, 3.83) is slated to start on Saturday as fellow right-hander Cal Quantrill (3-0, 3.31), who has spent most of this season in a relief role, was pushed back to Sunday’s game.
Rocker has walked 31 batters and entered Friday tied for the major league high with six wild pitches in 80 innings over 16 games (14 starts) this season. He hasn’t won since May 19.
In his most recent outing on Sunday, Rocker threw six scoreless innings while allowing four hits and one walk and striking out five in a no-decision against the host Toronto Blue Jays.
“He’s on the attack really with the fastball today,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said after the game. “I thought his fastball command was one of the best he’s had in a while. Really kept (the Blue Jays) off guard throwing in and outside to righties and lefties. The slider is real; he can throw at any time to strike guys out.”
Rocker is 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA and seven strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings over two starts against the Tigers. He faced host Detroit on May 2 and yielded five runs on seven hits in two innings in taking the loss.
Texas selected Rocker third overall in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: England-Mexico start time Sunday moving due to storm risk
June 30, 2026; Mexico City, Mexico; Mexico’s Julian Quinones is thrown in the air in celebration by teammates after the match as Mexico qualify for the round of 16 stage of the World Cup. Mandatory Credit: Eloisa Sanchez-Reuters via Imagn Images The start time for the World Cup round of 16 match between England and host Mexico on Sunday is likely to move up to avoid inclement weather, according to multiple reports on Friday.
The kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. local time in Mexico City, 1 a.m. in the United Kingdom. FIFA has discussed moving up the kickoff six hours to 12 p.m. at Azteca Stadium, which would be 7 p.m. in the UK and 2 p.m. Eastern time, per the reports.
Mexico’s 2-0 victory over Ecuador in the round of 32 on Tuesday in Mexico City was delayed due to rain.
France’s group-stage match with Iraq on June 22 was paused under tournament safety rules when lightning strikes are detected within eight miles of the stadium, resulting in an automatic 30-minute delay to play.
England defeated the Democratic Republic of the Congo 2-1 on Wednesday in Atlanta to advance to the round of 16.
Fans of the Three Lions in Great Britain probably would prefer the earlier start time. Licensing laws were relaxed to allow pubs in the United Kingdom to stay open until 5 a.m. local time.
FIFA might also move the kickoff time for Brazil’s round of 16 match with Norway at 4 p.m. Eastern on Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J., to avoid a potential overlap with the match in Mexico City.
–Field Level Media
Williams sisters to play doubles Saturday at Wimbledon
Tigers' Jack Flaherty, Rangers' Kumar Rocker have momentum after rough starts to season
