Sports
Forward-thinking Red Sox take momentum into series vs. Cardinals
Boston Red Sox pitcher Connelly Early (71) throws a pitch in the second inning of the MLB Interleague game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Boston Red Sox at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, March 29, 2026. The game was scoreless after three innings. Finally, the Boston Red Sox have a turn in the right direction.
Back-to-back victories over the Milwaukee Brewers have the Red Sox feeling good as they turn their attention to another National League Central opponent, with the opener of a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.
Strong pitching performances set the stage for Boston’s two latest victories, as left-hander Garrett Crochet and right-hander Sonny Gray each pitched 6 1/3 innings en route to their respective 3-2 and 5-0 decisions. Now, manager Alex Cora looks to southpaw Connelly Early (0-0, 2.89 ERA) to continue the trend.
“We will pitch. We’re going to be better,” Cora said. “And for this team to make it to October, we have to pitch. And we will.”
Though the Red Sox lost his first two starts of 2026 by 3-2 scores, Early has picked up where he left off as a rookie last September. The 24-year-old has allowed just three runs and struck out 10 through 9 1/3 innings, including four innings of two-run ball in his start Saturday against the San Diego Padres.
Across four starts late last season, Early was 1-2 with a 2.33 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 19 1/3 frames.
“Stuff-wise, he’s really good,” Cora said earlier this season. “He slows down the moments, and he’s getting better.”
Like Gray did after Crochet, Early will look to help the Red Sox continue building momentum from their first series win. There were more positive signs, too, as Wilyer Abreu continued his hot start (.383 average) with a 2-for-4 effort on Wednesday, and Trevor Story erased an 0-for-16 funk with a four-game hit streak and three straight multi-RBI performances.
“(The slow start is) already in the past. We’ve got to move forward,” catcher Carlos Narvaez said. “We won the series. That’s all that matters now. We’ve got six on the road.”
The Cardinals return home with momentum themselves, having followed up a 7-6, 10-inning triumph on Tuesday with a convincing 6-1 effort on Wednesday against the Washington Nationals.
It has been a stretch to remember for 23-year-old outfielder Jordan Walker, who homered in all three games against Washington and four of the last five, giving him 12 RBI and a 1.049 OPS for the season.
“Man, I always feel like I can do it,” Walker said. “But just working with the guys all day … (my confidence) is just going through the roof right now and I’ve got to get it to stay there.”
On top of Walker continuing his recent exploits, Alec Burleson went 3-for-4 with three RBI and starter Michael McGreevy (1-1) pitched six solid innings to lead to Wednesday’s win. It was just the second of seven St. Louis victories that did not require a comeback effort.
“It’s a very complete team. That’s how it feels,” McGreevy said. “Everything you want out of a baseball team. You’ve got great defenders behind you. You’ve got great offense. I never felt like we were out of any game on this road trip.”
Manager Oliver Marmol agrees.
“The style of play, how we’re winning these ballgames, has been consistent,” he said. “More proud of that than anything.”
However, the struggles of Dustin May (0-2, 15.95) have been a sore spot for St. Louis thus far, as the veteran righty has been touched up for 13 runs on 17 hits in just 7 1/3 innings. He lasted just 3 1/3 and allowed seven runs last Saturday in an 11-6 setback to the host Detroit Tigers.
May made six appearances (five starts) for the Red Sox late last season. His only career appearance against them was a five-inning losing effort on July 27, just four days before the Los Angeles Dodgers traded him to Boston.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Bucs adding CBs Chase Lucas, Kemon Hall
Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chase Lucas (26) after the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are adding to their depth at cornerback with one-year contracts for free agents Chase Lucas and Kemon Hall, according to reports on Thursday.
Lucas, 29, has agreed to join the Bucs, per NFL Network, after recording nine tackles in 15 games last season for San Francisco. He played on 53% of the 49ers’ special teams snaps (204) and 10% of the defensive snaps (98).
He has played in 33 regular-season games for the Detroit Lions (2022-23) and 49ers (2025) as well as a total of four playoff games and has 15 career tackles.
Detroit selected Lucas in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Arizona State.
Hall, 28, is signing with Tampa Bay, per an ESPN report, after playing in four games last season for the Tennessee Titans and making nine tackles. He was in on 64% of the special teams snaps (70) and 30% of the defensive snaps (66).
He has played in 28 career games for the Los Angeles Chargers (2021-22), Dallas Cowboys (2024) and Titans (2025) and has 24 career tackles and one forced fumble.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tigers CF Parker Meadows hospitalized after collision
Apr 9, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows (22) collides with left fielder Riley Greene (31) on a fly ball hit by Minnesota Twins designated hitter Josh Bell (not pictured) in the eighth inning at Target Field. Meadows left the game. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images Detroit Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows will be hospitalized overnight in Minneapolis after being carted off the field due to a scary collision in the bottom of the eighth inning of a game against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday afternoon.
Meadows was playing center field and Riley Greene was playing left field when Twins hitter Josh Bell hit a slicing fly ball toward the left-center field gap. Both outfielders converged on the ball, and Greene made the catch but his head clipped the side of Meadows’ face as the players collided.
Meadows fell to the outfield grass and remained still for a few moments as teammates and trainers came to check on him. He rolled onto his back as trainers attended to him.
“That was an ugly, scary one, and there’s a lot of concern for him,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said after Detroit’s 3-1 loss. “When we got out there, it looked like he had bit his lip or inside his mouth, so there was some blood, and he was pretty out of it. …
“Those are scary collisions. You don’t know what you’re going to get when you get there. Obviously we’re going to get him checked out for everything, but this one worries me.”
Eventually, Meadows was able to sit up and gingerly get to his feet. He walked slowly a few steps to a cart that trainers had requested to take him off the field.
Greene was deeply concerned after the contest.
“It was a terrible feeling,” Greene said. “I still feel terrible.”
Javier Baez moved from shortstop to center field to replace Meadows. Kevin McGonigle entered the game to play shortstop.
Meadows went 0-for-3 and is hitting .250 with two RBIs and three stolen bases in 12 games. The 26-year-old is in his fourth season with the Tigers.
The Tigers open a three-game series against the visiting Miami Marlins on Friday and it’s still to be determined if Meadows will be able to play during the series.
But Detroit right-hander Jack Flaherty knows it’s not too soon for everyone to pull for Meadows.
“You just hope everybody has thoughts and prayers with him, and he’s going to be all right,” Flaherty said. “He’s a tough guy. We continue to pray over him. Tough way to end the series. Just pray to God for Parker. He’s as good of a guy as they come. Scary situation.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rory McIlroy taps into Masters champion confidence to spark rally
April 9, 2026; Augusta, Ga.; Rory McIlroy hits his tee shot on the fifth hole at Augusta National. Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images AUGUSTA, Ga. — Rory McIlroy admitted he hasn’t felt the same at “certain” golf tournaments since completing the career grand slam 12 months ago, but all the same old feelings came rushing back on the first tee at Augusta National on Thursday.
And that’s a good thing, in his estimation.
“It’s the Masters. If I felt absolutely nothing on that first tee, that’s not a good sign,” he said after carding a 5-under-par 67 on Thursday to take a share of the lead. “So, it was nice to feel my hand shaking a little bit when the tee went into the ground and struggle to put the ball on top of the tee.
“So, I knew I was feeling it. That’s a good thing. That’s why we want to be here. We want to be able to try to play our best golf when we’re feeling like that.”
McIlroy entered Thursday with an average opening-round score of 71.7 in 17 previous Masters appearances. He appeared to be well on his way in that direction while missing his first six fairways with his driver and relying heavily on his short game to save several pars.
Sitting at even par just off the fairway on the eighth hole, that’s when McIlroy said the pre-Masters champion version of him might have started to lose confidence in his swing.
“It started pretty scrappy. I was hitting out of the trees a little bit the first seven holes,” he said. “Sometimes here that would lead me to get tentative and a little ‘guidey,’ and I kept swinging, just trusting that I’m going to find it eventually.
“So, maybe that was a little bit different.”
Rather than trying to get all of a 5-wood from the first cut off the eighth fairway, McIlroy choked down on a 3-wood and rolled it up to the center of the green. He two-putted for birdie, and the momentum shift was on. McIlroy would go 5 under for his final 11 holes of the day.
He said earlier in the week that winning a Masters makes it easier to win a second one. McIlroy is now just the seventh Masters champion to hold at least a share of the first-round lead the following year. The list also includes Jack Burke Jr. (1957), Arnold Palmer (1961), Gary Player (1962), Jack Nicklaus (1966), Jose Maria Olazabal (1995) and Jordan Spieth (2016).
“It’s hard to say because there’s still shots out there that you feel a little bit tight with, and you just have to stand up and commit to making a good swing and not worry about really where it goes,” he said.
“But I think it’s easier for me to make those swings and not worry about where it goes when I know that I can go to the Champions Locker Room and put my green jacket on and have a Coke Zero at the end of the day.”
McIlroy has also said repeatedly that he has things he still wants to accomplish in golf. He has declined to provide specifics other than to say the goal posts “keep nudging a little bit further and further out of reach.”
Asked if repeating as Masters champion was one of those goals, McIlroy said that “certainly wasn’t at the forefront of my mind when I started 2026.” But he did admit that it was a good sign that those nerves returned on the first tee at Augusta National.
“I was nervous, I was anxious just like I always am on that first tee,” he said. “It’s the first round of the 16 most important rounds of the season. It would be worrisome if I didn’t feel that way, because it still means something to me.”
–Derek Harper, Field Level Media
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Reports: Bucs adding CBs Chase Lucas, Kemon Hall
