Sports
MLB roundup: Giants explode for 9 runs in 11th vs. Cubs


Jung Hoo Lee belted a two-run homer in the third inning and added an RBI single during a nine-run 11th, lifting the visiting San Francisco Giants to a 14-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday.
Matt Chapman added a two-run single in the 11th to join Lee with a three-hit performance. Heliot Ramos had four hits, two RBIs and two runs for the Giants, who squandered a two-run lead in the ninth inning. The Giants erupted for 16 hits en route to their fourth win in five games.
Patrick Bailey’s single to center off Ryan Pressly (2-2) plated Christian Koss, and Brett Wisely’s bunt allowed Ramos to give San Francisco a 7-5 lead. Pressly walked his next batter before hitting Willy Adames with a pitch to drive in another run. Singles by Lee, Chapman and Wilmer Flores extended the Giants’ advantage to 12-5. Ramos’ RBI double and Bailey’s sacrifice fly capped the scoring against Pressly, who allowed nine runs (eight earned) on five hits without getting an out.
Erik Miller (2-0), who allowed Kyle Tucker’s game-tying RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning, permitted one hit in 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
Mariners 5, Athletics 3
Cal Raleigh delivered a go-ahead two-run, pinch-hit single with one out in the top of the ninth inning to help Seattle claim a win vs. the Athletics in West Sacramento, Calif.
Julio Rodriguez had three hits, including a homer, for the Mariners. Miles Mastrobuoni had two hits for Seattle, which scored three times in the ninth to halt a two-game slide.
Miguel Andujar had two hits and two RBIs, including the tiebreaking single in the eighth inning that gave the Athletics the 3-2 lead. Brent Rooker had three hits, two runs, two steals and one RBI and Tyler Soderstrom also had three hits for the Athletics, who lost for just the fourth time in the past 14 games.
Angels 8, Blue Jays 3
Yoan Moncada’s three-run home run highlighted a six-run eighth inning to lift Los Angeles over Toronto in Anaheim, Calif.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer for the Angels, and Jo Adell also homered. Logan O’Hoppe had three hits, including an RBI single in the eighth. Tyler Anderson got a no-decision after throwing 6 2/3 innings and allowing two runs on six hits and one walk, striking out seven.
George Springer and Anthony Santander homered for Toronto.
Brewers 4, Astros 3
Jake Bauers homered to cap a four-run first inning, rookie Chad Patrick took a shutout into the seventh and Milwaukee held off visiting Houston.
Rhys Hoskins’ hit a two-run double in the first and scored on Bauers’ homer. Patrick (2-3), who had lost his previous three starts, allowed just one hit through six innings before giving up a three-run homer to Brendan Rodgers with two outs in the seventh. Patrick allowed three runs on four hits in 6 2/3 innings, striking out six and walking one.
Trevor Megill finished with a perfect ninth for his fourth save in five opportunities.
Diamondbacks 5, Mets 1
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had three hits, including a homer, and drove in two runs while Zac Gallen recorded his first home victory of the season and Arizona beat New York in Phoenix.
Gurriel’s two-run homer off Mets starter David Peterson (2-2) in the sixth inning gave the Diamondbacks a 4-1 lead, and Gallen and the bullpen did the rest. Gallen (3-4) gave up two hits and struck out six in seven innings, his longest start of the season.
Pete Alonso had the Mets’ RBI when he walked with the bases loaded and two outs in the third, after Gallen gave up a single to Francisco Alvarez and walked Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto.
Marlins 5, Dodgers 4 (10 innings)
Jesus Sanchez hit a walk-off single in the 10th inning as the Marlins beat Los Angeles in Miami.
Miami’s Cal Quantrill allowed one run in five innings. Los Angeles’ Tony Gonsolin allowed two runs in five innings. Liam Hicks added a two-run homer in the fifth for Miami. Jesus Tinoco (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings for the win.
The Dodgers were led by Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman, who each homered and had two RBIs.
Cardinals 2, Pirates 1
Alec Burleson cracked a two-out, two-run double in the sixth as host St. Louis and Matthew Liberatore outdueled Pittsburgh and Paul Skenes.
Liberatore (3-3) allowed just three hits and one run while fanning eight over seven innings as he extended the Cardinals’ winning streak to a season-high four games. Skenes (3-4) matched zeroes with Liberatore for five innings before allowing Burleson’s game-winner. He surrendered two runs, three hits and four walks over six innings while whiffing six.
Pittsburgh’s Ke’Bryan Hayes (2-for-4) was the only player with multiple hits. He drove in Oneil Cruz in the top of the sixth to give the Pirates a brief lead, but the Pirates wound up dropping their sixth game in a row.
Yankees 12, Padres 3
Austin Wells hit a grand slam that capped a 10-run seventh inning for New York, which emphatically snapped a three-game losing streak with a rout of visiting San Diego.
The Yankees avoided their season-high fourth straight loss and denied the Padres a seventh straight win by teeing off against Adrian Morejon (1-1) and Wandy Peralta. Aaron Judge homered in the fourth off former teammate Michael King to extend his on-base streak to 32 games.
Padres star Jackson Merrill returned from a hamstring injury to go 2-for-4. The 2024 All-Star had last played on April 6. King, who was acquired from the Yankees in December 2023 as part of the Juan Soto trade, allowed two runs on three hits in six innings.
Phillies 8, Rays 4
Zack Wheeler allowed two runs and four hits over seven innings to help Philadelphia double up host Tampa Bay in the opener of their three-game series.
Wheeler (3-1) struck out nine and didn’t walk a batter for the third time in eight starts this season. Nick Castellanos singled, doubled, homered and drove in four runs while Kyle Schwarber homered and Alec Bohm also homered.
Tampa Bay starter Drew Rasmussen (1-3) allowed three runs on five hits in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out two and walked two. Yandy Diaz homered for the Rays before leaving in the sixth inning with an apparent injury after an awkward swing and miss.
Twins 9, Orioles 1
Pablo Lopez threw five quality innings and Byron Buxton homered and drove in four as Minnesota hammered Baltimore in Minneapolis.
Lopez (3-2) allowed one run on two hits while striking out 11 and walking one. Carlos Correa went 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs as Minnesota won the series opener and its third consecutive game.
Cade Povich (1-3) surrendered six hits and five runs while striking out four during his six-inning stint to take the loss. Ryan Mountcastle drove in the lone Baltimore run with a fourth-inning double. The first baseman was one of just three Orioles to record a hit as Baltimore lost its third straight.
Rangers 6, Red Sox 1
Nathan Eovaldi pitched six strong innings and Texas collected 16 hits en route to a win in Boston in soggy conditions.
Eovaldi (3-2) limited the Red Sox to one run on five hits to lower his ERA to 2.03. He walked one and struck out seven. Josh Smith and Adolis Garcia each had three hits for the Rangers, who took control by scoring five runs in the fourth inning.
Boston’s Lucas Giolito (0-1) made his second start of the season and surrendered six runs on 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings. He walked one and struck out two. The Red Sox had six hits and struck out 12 times.
Braves 2, Reds 1 (10 innings)
Marcell Ozuna singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th to give Atlanta a second straight win over visiting Cincinnati.
With runners on first and second, Ozuna lined a single to left field off reliever Lyon Richardson (0-1), who had been recalled from Triple-A Louisville earlier in the day. The hit scored automatic runner Alex Verdugo without a throw.
Raisel Iglesias (2-2) was the winning pitcher for the Braves. The win was the third straight for Atlanta and the fourth loss in a row for the Reds.
Nationals 10, Guardians 9 (Game 1)
Jose Tena smacked a two-run double to break a tie as Washington recovered with a big seventh-inning rally to defeat visiting Cleveland in the first game of a doubleheader.
James Wood hit a two-run homer and Jacob Young also drove in two runs for the Nationals, whose four-run outburst in the seventh countered Cleveland’s six-run breakout in the top of the inning.
Nolan Jones hit a home run and double while Carlos Santana racked up three hits for the Guardians. In the ninth, the Guardians had runners on first and third with one out when Gabriel Arias hit a sacrifice fly to cut the margin to 10-9. Brayan Rocchio lined out to left field to end the game as Kyle Finnegan notched his 12th save.
Guardians 9, Nationals 1 (Game 2)
Carlos Santana belted a three-run homer in the sixth inning, helping Cleveland salvage a split of its doubleheader at Washington.
Daniel Schneemann also went deep and joined Santana in scoring on a wild pitch for the Guardians, who won for the sixth time in eight games. Austin Hedges also went deep in the win.
The offense was more than enough for Ben Lively (2-2), who allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out three in 5 1/3 innings.
Royals 4, White Sox 3
Bobby Witt Jr.’s long walk-off single capped host Kansas City’s two-run rally in the ninth inning that featured multiple defensive misplays by Chicago, which included a pop fly that conked off second baseman Chase Meidroth’s head.
Kansas City starter Seth Lugo allowed two runs on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings. Kyle Isbel hit a solo homer, Vinnie Pasquiantino and Freddy Fermin posted two hits apiece and Taylor Clarke (1-0) retired all four batters he faced for the Royals, who earned their fourth straight win and their ninth straight home win over the White Sox.
Chicago starter Sean Burke allowed four hits and three walks with two strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings. Matt Thaiss, Andrew Vaughn, Brooks Baldwin and Josh Rojas notched two hits apiece. Cam Booser (0-3) allowed three hits and two runs (one earned) while getting just one out in the ninth.
–Field Level Media
Sports
A'ja Wilson has no shortage of motivation after Aces' early exit in '24


LAS VEGAS — Entering her eighth season in the WNBA, Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson is poised to build on what was arguably the most dominant individual campaign in league history.
Wilson joined Cynthia Cooper (1997) as the second player in league history to win a unanimous MVP award and joined an exclusive club as the fourth player to win the award three times. She averaged 26.9 points and 11.9 rebounds per game last season and set the all-time single-season mark for points (1,021) and rebounds (451).
Unfortunately for Las Vegas, injuries and fatigue from their two previous championship runs mounted and resulted in the team’s worst regular-season record (27-13) since 2019. The Aces’ three-peat hopes ended with a 76-62 home loss to the New York Liberty to drop their semifinal series 3-1.
It’s that loss on her home floor that served as Wilson’s motivation this offseason.
“Losing sucks, especially on your home court,” Wilson said “It still kind of burns a little bit, but I’ve used that as fuel to help my teammates understand how hard it is to win in this league. Yes, we can celebrate the two championships. They were great. But for us to move forward, we have to understand how hard this league is and value the basketball and the little things. I think that’s what we lacked last season, so we’re going to make sure that we can show up better than we did.”
While the Aces appeared to be on top of the world heading into their potential three-peat campaign in 2024, the reality inside the locker room was that both the internal and external pressure to win another championship had become suffocating. A common theme across media day was the fact that the team feels less pressure entering the 2025 season, a sentiment Wilson shared as the unquestioned leader of the team.
“(Three-peat talks) obviously impacted us, because it’s like, y’all think we don’t want to win? We’re trying as well,” Wilson said.
“I would definitely say it’s refreshing this year. I feel like this is one of my only years where it feels like there’s no weight. There’s a lot of weight to be defending champs. It’s a lot of weight to be trying to win one. We don’t have that. We actually have a clean slate to really dial into getting back to who we are culturally, like, in our system and everything.”
Leading the Aces back to the top of the mountain for a third time in four years is one of a few historically significant achievements Wilson can collect this upcoming season. Wilson could also become the first four-time MVP in league history, though the meaning of that is something she hasn’t quite allowed herself to ponder yet.
“I haven’t given it much thought, but it would be a blessing to have my name in that conversation,” Wilson said. “Every year, I try to be better than I was the year before just to give myself a chance in this league. Because the league is getting better. We’re growing. At this point, you just want to maintain your stamina. You want to maintain your mental, all of that, because the season gets hard. I can’t think too much about that just yet, but I’m definitely going to try to be better than I was last year.”
As Aces coach Becky Hammon put it, fans can expect to see an even better version of Wilson this season.
“What I see is, she went and got better,” Hammon said. “Which is hard to do when you’re already the best, but it speaks to her work ethic, her desire and her mindset this whole offseason. We talked a lot this offseason. She’s a busy lady, but I can tell you what she always does is her workouts. She’s always getting her workouts in. That comes first and foremost, she never gets her priorities jumbled up.”
When Hammon was asked what a player like Wilson would possibly need to improve after last season’s campaign, the coach did not feel like revealing too much.
“There was (something for Wilson to improve), and she did,” Hammon said. “I’m not going to tell you what it was. Actually, there were two things.”
–Will Despart, Field Level Media
Sports
Jacob Wilson joins Aaron Judge in spotlight for Yankees-A's series


The top two hitters in the majors square off Friday night when the New York Yankees face the Athletics in the opener of a three-game series in Sacramento, Calif.
It’s no surprise to see Yankees star Aaron Judge off to a superb start after winning American League MVP honors last season. He has a major league-best .400 batting average and entered Thursday’s play tied for the big-league lead with 12 homers and 34 RBIs.
But who had Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson ranking second in the majors at .357 as the season nears the quarter pole? Wilson has played in just 64 career games and quickly has solidified himself as a future All-Star, perhaps even this season.
Sharing the marquee board with Judge seems quite surreal for the 23-year-old shortstop who was the No. 6 overall pick of the 2023 draft.
“It’s a great feeling, for sure,” Wilson said of his name being mentioned with Judge. “Obviously, everybody has seen what he is doing. It’s pretty incredible watching him do his thing on a daily basis. To be up there with him is pretty cool for me.
“I’m excited to play against him this week and see what it looks like in person.”
Wilson had his first career four-hit game during Wednesday’s 6-5 home loss against the Seattle Mariners and has six multi-hit outings in the past eight games. He went 8-for-14 with one game-winning hit in the three-game series against the Mariners and is 16-for-34 (.471) with four walks during the eight-game stretch.
The hot hitting led to Athletics manager Mark Kotsay moving Wilson to the leadoff spot on Wednesday. Kotsay indicated Wilson may be sticking at the top of the lineup.
“I think you’ll see Jacob up there now,” Kotsay said. “Jacob’s earned it. … Jacob has shown enough over the last week. He’s walking and taking pitches, and, obviously, swinging the bat really well.”
Judge arrives in Sacramento in the midst of a four-game funk in which he is 2-for-15.
The two-time MVP just went 1-for-10 in a three-game home series against the San Diego Padres, but the one hit was a homer.
Judge grew up 50 miles south of Sacramento in Linden and starred for Linden High but wasn’t highly sought by major league teams. The then-Oakland Athletics selected him in the 31st round in 2010.
Judge instead went the college route and starred for Fresno State. He was chosen in the first round (32nd overall) by the Yankees in the 2013 draft.
Trent Grisham was one of the heroes of Wednesday’s 4-3, 10-inning win over the Padres. He hit a tying two-run pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning.
Grisham had two homers and five RBIs in the series against the Padres — one of his former teams — and already has 10 long balls in just 89 at-bats. He hit just nine last season in 179 at-bats.
“I’m having fun with the guys, I would say that more than anything,” Grisham said. “The clubhouse is really good in here, led by Cap (Judge). So, I would say the guys have been the most enjoyable part.”
New York is starting right-hander Will Warren (1-2, 5.65 ERA) in Friday’s series opener. Right-hander Osvaldo Bido (2-2, 4.71) will be on the mound for the Athletics.
Warren, 25, struck out a career-high eight in 4 2/3 innings while losing to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. He gave up five runs (three earned) and seven hits. Warren hasn’t previously faced the Athletics.
Bido, 29, received a no-decision against the Miami Marlins last Saturday when he gave up four runs on three hits over five innings. He is winless (0-1) over his last three starts. Bido hasn’t faced the Yankees.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao coming out of retirement


Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao plans to end his retirement and return to the ring on July 19 against Mario Barrios in Las Vegas, ESPN reported Thursday.
Pacquiao, 46, will be fighting for the first time since losing a unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugas in 2021.
The fight will be for Barrios’ WBC welterweight championship belt. Barrios turns 30 on May 18.
Pacquiao is an eight-division champion who is slated to be inducted into the boxing Hall of Fame in June. He reportedly will formally announce his return to boxing next week. The report stated that Pacquiao has been cleared to compete by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
In recent years, Pacquiao has been focusing on his political career in the Philippines.
The boxer nicknamed “PacMan” has a 62-8-2 record with 39 knockouts during his career. He won his first major title — the WBC flyweight crown — at age 19 in 1998.
Pacquiao was 54-3-2 prior to turning 33 and 8-5 afterward. One of those losses was to Floyd Mayweather Jr. via unanimous decision in 2015, a bout that reportedly drew nearly $400 million in pay-per-view sales.
Barrios (29-2-1, 18 knockouts) fought to a 12-round, split-decision draw against Abel Ramos last November. This will be his third defense since winning the title by beating Ugas in 2023.
–Field Level Media