Sports
Kyle Hendricks aims to extends Cubs' perfect mark vs. Nats
Sep 15, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks (28) pitches in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Kyle Hendricks is starting to feel like himself again.
The Cubs right-hander has put a rocky first half behind him to find his footing, and he will attempt to keep rolling on Saturday afternoon when Chicago continues a four-game series with the visiting Washington Nationals.
Since the start of August, Hendricks is 1-2 with a 4.68 ERA. However, the ERA was inflated by an Aug. 28 start against the Pittsburgh Pirates in which he allowed six runs in just 1 2/3 innings.
Excluding that outing, Hendricks has surrendered 12 runs (11 earned) in his past 31 innings, good for an ERA of 3.19. All that comes after he went 3-9 with a 6.86 ERA through the end of July.
Hendricks (4-11, 6.25 ERA) was especially strong last time out, earning a win against the Colorado Rockies on Sunday after giving up just one run on two hits in six innings.
“I can’t thank (the Cubs) enough,” Hendricks said. “All the way to the top, they just kept giving me opportunities that I didn’t deserve, to be honest with you. All the way through this year. I’m just so thankful and grateful just to keep going.”
In 10 career starts against Washington, Hendricks is 4-2 with a 2.70 ERA.
The Nationals (68-86) plan to counter with left-hander MacKenzie Gore (9-12, 4.17).
Gore is coming off a Sunday win against the Miami Marlins. He lasted six innings in that outing, yielding one run, which was unearned, and two hits.
Saturday marks Gore’s fourth career start against Chicago, which has pinned the southpaw with a 1-2 record and a 7.04 ERA.
If Gore wants to end his career-long woes against the Cubs (79-75), he will need some help from a Washington offense that was held to five hits in a 3-1 loss on Friday. The defeat was the Nationals’ fifth in a row.
Rookie James Wood, the Nationals’ No. 3 hitter, smacked a solo shot in the eighth inning, but the top five batters in Washington’s lineup combined to go 1-for-16 (.063).
“This is kind of the time where you’ve got to buckle in and just make that last push,” Wood said. “I know the offseason is close, but you can’t really be focused on that when we’ve still got games on the table.”
A late push is just what Chicago needs with its playoff chances dwindling. The Cubs sit six games behind the New York Mets in the chase for the final National League wild card.
Even if the Cubs make a historic rally into the postseason, doing so through the wild-card race isn’t acceptable to Chicago second baseman Nico Hoerner.
“This is a team and an organization that should not be set up for competing for wild cards,” Hoerner said. “Definitely, you want to be the class of your division, and we weren’t that this year. The division being clinched (by the Milwaukee Brewers) on Sept. 18 is significant.”
Fortunately for the Cubs, they have dominated the Nationals in 2024, winning all five games between the teams.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Astros place OF Joey Loperfido (quad) on injured list
Apr 11, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Houston Astros left fielder Joey Loperfido (10) is congratulated by teammates in the dugout after scoring a run during the second inning against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images The Houston Astros placed outfielder Joey Loperfido on the injured list with a right quad strain on Sunday and recalled right-hander Jayden Murray from Triple-A Sugar Land.
Loperfido, 26, was batting .259 with six RBIs in 20 games this season. He started at least one game in all three outfield positions.
Traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2024 and then re-acquired via trade in February, Loperfido is a career .249 major league hitter with eight home runs and 45 RBIs in 142 games over three seasons.
Murray, 29, had one appearance earlier this season and has a 2.63 ERA in 10 games over the past two seasons for the Astros. His addition increases Houston’s staff to 13 pitchers.
Also on Sunday, the Astros traded minor league right-hander Wilmy Sanchez to the New York Yankees for infielder Braden Shewmake, a former first-round draft pick of the Atlanta Braves in 2019.
In 31 major league games for the Braves and Chicago White Sox, Shewmake, 28, is batting .118 with a home run and four RBIs.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bryson DeChambeau (wrist) WDs from LIV Golf Mexico City
Apr 10, 2026; Augusta, Georgia, USA; Bryson DeChambeau reacts after his ball rolled down the slope on the 18th green during the second round of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Grace Smith-Imagn Images Bryson DeChambeau cited a wrist injury on Sunday for the reason he withdrew prior to the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City on Sunday in Naucalpan, Mexico.
“I experienced some discomfort in my wrist during (Saturday’s round) and have decided to withdraw from the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City to prevent further injury,” DeChambeau wrote on X. “Not how I wanted this week to go, but wishing the Crushers a strong finish. I’m going to take a few days to get evaluated and hope to be ready for LIV Golf Virginia.”
DeChambeau entered the final round at 2-over-par 215 at Club De Golf Chapultepec, 16 strokes behind leader Jon Rahm of Spain. DeChambeau hasn’t been too shy about complaining about the course conditions of the event, doing so on Friday for the second straight year.
DeChambeau, 32, prevailed in a playoff in consecutive weeks in March by winning at both LIV Golf Singapore and LIV Golf South Africa. The two-time U.S. Open champion has won five LIV Golf titles.
–Field Level Media
Sports
ATP roundup: Ben Shelton shows love of clay, wins BMW title
Ben Shelton connects with the ball during his second-round match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., Friday, March 6, 2026. Ben Shelton rolled to his second title of the year, winning the BMW Open with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Italy’s Flavio Cobolli at Munich, Germany.
Shelton won 85% of his first-serve points on the clay surface and saved all six break points he faced to win his fifth career title and first since Dallas earlier this year. Shelton showed his form early when he broke Cobolli’s serve twice in the first three games of the match.
With the second set tied 5-5, Shelton broke Cobolli again and won on serve on his first match point. Shelton became the first American man since 2009 to win three ATP 500 titles.
“I have big ambitions for the clay courts,” Shelton said in his post-match interview. “It is a surface I want to get better on each year. It is slowly becoming one of my favorite surfaces to play on.”
Barcelona Open
Arthur Fils of France held off a late charge from Russia’s Andrey Rublev to record a 6-2, 7-6 (2) victory in the final of the tournament.
Fils won his first title since returning in February after missing eight months because of a back injury.
Fils was well on his way to victory after cruising in the first set and leading 5-2 in the second before Rublev dug in his heels. Rublev broke Fils’ serve to pull within 5-4 in the second set, then staved off one match point to make it 5-5.
Rublev broke serve again to lead 6-5 in the second set before Fils finally regained control and finished off the match in a tiebreak.
“The end of the second set was just about the mental (pressure),” Fils said. “The whole match was a bit tough because I was a bit tight. I played well for a set and a half, but when I had to close, I started to think a little. But I’m very happy with the way I played the tiebreak.”
–Field Level Media
Astros place OF Joey Loperfido (quad) on injured list
Bryson DeChambeau (wrist) WDs from LIV Golf Mexico City
