Sports
Orioles try to stay hot in second half as Astros open homestand
Jul 12, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles players celebrate after a game against the Kansas City Royals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images The Baltimore Orioles and Houston Astros begin the next phase of the season after the All-Star break with Friday night’s game in Houston.
Somehow, these teams have managed to reach this stage of the schedule still in playoff contention in the American League.
Remaining in that position will need some adjustments, but there doesn’t appear to be a lack of optimism.
The Orioles hope to pick up where they left off before the All-Star break as they ride a season-best four-game winning streak, including the last three games against the visiting Kansas City Royals.
“Our guys are in a great groove now,” manager Craig Albernaz said. “A good break for the boys and come back ready to go in Houston.”
Baltimore will be on the road for the first time since a July 5 game at Cincinnati.
Houston, which begins the post-break stretch with six consecutive home games, has lost three of its last four games.
“We’ve got to walk into the clubhouse every single day believing that we can win, preparing ourselves to win and execute, doing the small things that we do very well,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “If we do that, we’re going to stay in this fight.”
The Orioles have received notable starting pitching for chunks of the past month and that has boosted the team’s confidence.
“When they’re doing their thing and they’re mowing guys down and they’re getting quick outs, it kind of helps us,” Baltimore infielder Jeremiah Jackson said. “It kind of jump-starts us to go score some runs.”
The Astros will send right-hander Peter Lambert to the hill. Lambert (8-5, 3.14 ERA) has won his last two outings, including a 9-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on July 11 when he allowed one run on three hits over six innings while striking out seven. His only career meeting against the Orioles came back in April, when he allowed two runs on two hits in 4 1/3 innings in a loss to Baltimore.
The Orioles will counter with right-hander Dean Kremer (1-2, 4.09). Kremer made two starts in July after missing more than two months with a quad strain. In his last start before the break, Kremer went five innings, allowing four runs on six hits with four strikeouts in a 9-7 loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Kremer is 4-0 with a 2.59 ERA in six career starts against Houston.
Cristian Javier started Houston’s most recent game but only lasted three innings Sunday at Texas. Since the Astros rely heavily on their bullpen, Javier was asked if he would be willing to switch to a relief role.
“Of course,” Javier told the Houston Chronicle. “I’m here just to try to do the best I can do out there and try to help the team in any way possible.”
The Astros were active during the break, trading pitchers Lance McCullers Jr., who was part of two World Series championships with the team, and Colton Gordon to the Milwaukee Brewers. However, McCullers has been on the injured list for nearly two months with a shoulder ailment, so he wasn’t part of the recent rotation.
The Orioles placed infielder Blaze Alexander on the 10-day IL after he suffered a nondisplaced fracture of his left hand when he was hit by a pitch Sunday. He’s batting .312 in 82 games. Baltimore recalled infielder Christian Encarnacion from Triple-A Norfolk in a corresponding move.
“Especially the way he has been swinging the bat, definitely a gut punch,” Albernaz said of losing Alexander.
The Orioles won two of three meetings with the Astros in Baltimore at the end of April. The Astros avoided a series sweep by winning the second game of an April 30 doubleheader that was scheduled after a postponement the day before. The winning pitcher for Houston that day was McCullers.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Nolan Arenado moves closer to 2,000 hits as D-backs beat Cards
Jul 18, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) hits a two-run double against the St. Louis Cardinals in the third inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images Nolan Arenado drove in two runs and moved within two hits of 2,000 for his career to lead the host Arizona Diamondbacks to a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday in Phoenix.
Arenado was 2-for-4 and Ketel Marte 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored for the Diamondbacks, who evened the three-game series at a game each and have won five of their last six.
Jimmy Crooks homered and J.J. Wetherholt was 2-for-4 with a run scored for the Cardinals, who have lost two of their last three.
Arizona starter and winner Brandon Pfaadt (4-1) allowed two runs on six hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out three in 5 1/3 innings. All four wins have come in four starts since he returned from Triple-A Reno on June 30 and his ERA in those games is 2.14
St. Louis starter Dustin May (5-7) gave up five runs and eight hits with four walks and six strikeouts over five innings in taking the loss.
Crooks’ solo homer came with one out in the ninth off Arizona closer Paul Sewald, who nonetheless picked up his 23rd save. Crooks’ third homer was estimated at 443 feet and landed deep into the right field stands.
The Diamondbacks took a 1-0 lead in the second on an opposite-field RBI single to right-center field by James McCann.
Arizona plated three runs with two out in the third to make it 4-0.
Marte scampered home from third on May’s wild pitch to make it 2-0. After Gabriel Moreno’s single and a walk to Max Kepler, Arenado lined a two-run double into the left field corner.
Marte’s RBI single in the fourth stretched the lead to 5-0.
The Cardinals scored twice in the sixth on a run-scoring single by Jordan Walker and an RBI fielder’s choice grounder from Masyn Winn.
The Diamondbacks placed outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. on the 10-day injured list with a right adductor strain before the game. Catcher Adrian Del Castillo was recalled from Triple-A Reno to replace Gurriel Jr. on the roster.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rangers rally in 6th to edge Braves
Jul 18, 2026; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Texas Rangers pitcher Jacob Latz (67) reacts with catcher Kyle Higashioka (11) after defeating the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images Brandon Nimmo had three RBIs, including two that gave Texas the lead in the crucial four-run sixth inning, helping the visiting Rangers come from behind to beat the Atlanta Braves 7-6 on Saturday.
Nimmo went 2-for-5 to lead the Rangers’ 12-hit attack and secure a bounce-back win after Friday’s 15-1 loss. The victory evened the series between the two division leaders at one game apiece.
Texas batted around in the sixth inning to take a 7-5 lead. Evan Carter hit a two-run homer, his eighth, off reliever Tyler Kinley (5-4), to tie the game. Nimmo finished the rally with a two-run bases-loaded single against Dylan Lee.
Texas starter MacKenzie Gore (6-8) pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed five runs on six hits, one walk and three hit batsmen. He struck out seven.
Jacob Latz got the final four outs to earn his 19th save.
Atlanta starter Owen Murphy lasted only 2 2/3 innings in his first major league start. He allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks, striking out two.
Former Brave Joc Pederson wasted no time getting the Rangers on the scoreboard. He hit the fourth pitch of the game into the right field stands for a 419-foot home run. It was his 16th homer and the fourth leadoff homer.
The Braves scored four times in the second inning. Eli White hit a two-run homer, his fifth, Drake Baldwin singled in a run and Ozzie Albies drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
Texas narrowed the lead to 4-3 with two runs in the third inning. Kyle Higashioka reached on a fielding error by left fielder Mauricio Dubon and scored on Wyatt Langford’s single. Nimmo then added an RBI single. Texas loaded the bases, but reliever Dylan Dodd kept them from scoring further when White made a long sliding catch near the right-field line.
Atlanta got one run back in the bottom half when Michael Harris II hit a solo homer, his 17th.
The Braves got a run in the seventh when Harris singled and scored on Dubon’s double.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Bukayo Saka hat trick as England top France in wild third-place match
July 18, 2026; Miami Gardens, Florida, U.S.; England’s Bukayo Saka celebrates scoring their third goal. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Bukayo Saka recorded a hat trick and Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa and Jude Bellingham also scored goals as England produced a wild and crazy 6-4 victory over France in the World Cup third-place match on Saturday at Miami Gardens, Fla.
France star Kylian Mbappe scored twice to raise his total to 10 goals in this World Cup and 22 in his World Cup career. The former gives him a two-goal lead in the Golden Boot competition and the latter surpasses the career mark held by Argentina’s Lionel Messi (21).
Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele also scored goals for Les Bleus.
Both teams fell into the third-place match after semifinal losses earlier in the week. England blew a late lead in a 2-1 loss to Argentina and France was roundly outplayed in a 2-0 loss to Spain.
It looked like another long day for France after they dug a 4-0 halftime deficit before the match switched from one-sided to pinball-like excitement.
Mbappe steered France’s comeback bid by putting France on the board in the 48th minute when he received a pass from Michael Olise and sent a left-footed shot past England goalkeeper Dean Henderson.
Six minutes later, the French added another as Barcola drilled a right-footed shot past Henderson.
Mbappe was back it in the 66th minute when he sent a left-footed shot into the corner of the net. That tally made him the first player to score 10 goals in a single World Cup since Germany’s Gerd Muller in 1970.
Later, Malo Gusto was called for a foul in the box with a takedown of England’s Djed Spence in the 85th minute.
Bellingham lined up to take the penalty kick but then ceded to Saka, who stood at the spot in the 87th minute and sent a left-footed grounder into the right corner for the hat trick to give the England a 5-3 lead.
The goal proved crucial as Dembele knocked a left-footed shot into the left corner of the goal in the sixth minute of second-half stoppage time to make it a one-goal match.
But Bellingham put a lid on the match with a stellar drive down field and he navigated toward the goal and booted in a right-footed shot in the eighth minute of stoppage time. It was Bellingham’s seventh goal of the World Cup.
England’s first-half barrage began with Rice’s goal two minutes, 14 seconds into the match, the second-fastest tally in the country’s World Cup history.
Rice intercepted a soft pass by France’s Desire Doue in the midfield and dribbled in and booted a hard right-footed shot past Mike Maignan.
Rice took a corner kick in the 18th minute and delivered a boot that Konsa headed inside the far post for a 2-0 lead.
The Three Lions scored again on Saka’s goal in the 37th minute. Maignan stopped the initial shot by Marcus Rashford but was well out of the net. Saka took a rebound shot that hit off a defender. Rashford then had the ball and slid it over to Saka, who sent a left-footed shot off a defender close to the net and it caromed into the goal.
Saka scored again in the first minute of first-half stoppage time by sending a left-footed shot into the right corner of the net.
Henderson made five saves for England and Maignan had four stops for France.
–Field Level Media
Nolan Arenado moves closer to 2,000 hits as D-backs beat Cards
Rangers rally in 6th to edge Braves
