Sports
Reds aim to continue dimming Braves' playoff hopes
Sep 17, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds outfielder TJ Friedl (29) high fives shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) after the victory over the Atlanta Braves at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images The Atlanta Braves will try to rebound after blowing a four-run lead in a critical loss as they oppose the host Cincinnati Reds in the second game of a three-game series on Wednesday.
If the Braves (81-70) don’t reach the playoffs for the first time since 2017, the Reds will have played a major role. Cincinnati (74-78) has won all four meetings this season, with just two games remaining in the season set.
The Braves blew a 5-1 lead on Tuesday in the series opener and fell 6-5 to the Reds. With the Mets routing the Washington Nationals 10-1 and the Diamondbacks losing to the Colorado Rockies 8-2, the Braves are two games back of New York and Arizona for the final two National League wild-card spots.
Injuries might finally be catching up to the Braves, who captured the 2021 World Series and won 100-plus games in 2022 and ’23. The team lost staff ace Spencer Strider to an elbow injury in April, right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. to a torn ACL in May, shortstop Ozzie Albies to a fractured wrist in July and third baseman Austin Riley to a hand injury in August.
Albies might be able to return this weekend after homering in his first rehab game on Tuesday.
In their loss to the Reds on Tuesday, the Braves went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 14 on base, including the tying run in scoring position in the ninth.
“It’s hard,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “We’ve been talking about it all year, really. We were talking about it before all the injury bugs started, really. But you know what, honestly, that’s not an excuse. We are what we are, we got our guys, and they’re all capable of doing the job. It’s just, I think, about not trying too hard and adjusting in some situations.”
Once a candidate for the National League triple crown, Braves designated hitter Marcell Ozuna has slumped lately, going 26 games without a home run.
The Reds, meanwhile, are enjoying the spoiler role, having won three of their past four games, all against playoff contenders. Spencer Steer belted a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh inning to cap the Tuesday comeback.
“I think we can hopefully string together a really good couple weeks here in the season and have our heads held high going to the offseason,” Steer said. “We know what we’re capable of. And when we play clean baseball in all phases of the game, I think we’re really tough to beat. So I think that’s gonna be a big focus for us going forward.”
It was Steer’s 20th homer of the season to go along with his 25 steals. Steer and Elly De La Cruz, with 24 homers and 64 stolen bases, are the first Cincinnati teammates since Barry Larkin and Eric Davis in 1996 to reach 20-plus homers and 20-plus steals in a season.
The Braves will send rookie right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach (6-7, 3.73 ERA) to the mound on Wednesday. Schwellenbach earned a win in his latest outing, allowing four hits and two runs over six innings in a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday. Schwellenbach has never faced Cincinnati.
The Reds will counter with one of their hottest pitchers, right-hander Jakob Junis (4-0, 2.73 ERA), making his fourth start as part of the injury-riddled Cincinnati rotation. Junis allowed three hits and one run over five innings on Thursday in a no-decision against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Junis is 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA in three career games (two starts) against the Braves, all while he was with the San Francisco Giants the previous two years.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Courage transfer M Manaka Matsukubo to Chelsea
May 8, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; North Carolina Courage midfielder Manaka Matsukubo (34) controls the ball against the Orlando Pride in the second half at Inter&Co Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images The North Carolina Courage transferred 2025 NWSL Midfielder of the Year Manaka Matsukubo to Chelsea FC on Friday.
The 21-year-old Japan international signed a five-year contract with the English club, which competes in the Women’s Super League.
“I’m so excited to be joining Chelsea, a club with a lot of history,” Matsukubo said in a Chelsea press release. “As a small child, I followed Chelsea because it is a club everyone in the world knows about.
“The club has a strong history of winning trophies and has done so well at the top of the game, so I couldn’t pass up this opportunity, and I want to help continue this club’s tradition of winning trophies for years to come.”
Matsukubo joined the Courage on loan in 2023. She tallied 19 goals and 10 assists in 58 matches with North Carolina, including 11 goals last season and five goals through nine matches in 2026.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Yankees place Carlos Rodon on IL, reinstate Trent Grisham, Ryan McMahon
Jun 23, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone (17) takes the ball to relieve pitcher Carlos Rodon (55) in the sixth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images The New York Yankees returned center fielder Trent Grisham and third baseman Ryan McMahon to their active roster prior to Friday’s home game against the Minnesota Twins.
To make room for them on the 26-man roster, left-handed starting pitcher Carlos Rodon was placed on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation and utility man Oswaldo Cabrera was sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Grisham, 29, has not played since June 12 due to a hamstring strain and was on the 10-day IL. The Yankees’ frequent leadoff hitter has posted a .232/.341/.406 slash line with eight home runs, 35 RBIs and six stolen bases in 66 games this season.
McMahon, 31, has not been in the Yankees’ lineup since June 21 due to ear and throat issues and was on the 10-day IL. An All-Star in 2024 with the Colorado Rockies, McMahon has delivered a .210 batting average, eight homers and 23 RBIs in 69 games this year.
Rodon, a three-time All-Star including in 2025, hits the injured list after one of his best starts of the year. The 33-year-old surrendered one hit and no earned runs over five innings on Sunday at Boston. In nine starts this season, Rodon has fashioned a 4-2 record and 3.30 ERA with 52 strikeouts and 26 walks over 46 1/3 innings. He began the season on the IL following offseason elbow surgery and later injured his hamstring in March before making his season debut on May 10.
He was slated to start Saturday against the Twins.
Cabrera, 27, appeared in three games while McMahon was sidelined. He went 0-for-9 with two sacrifice bunts in his 11 plate appearances.
–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
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Courage transfer M Manaka Matsukubo to Chelsea
