Sports
Runs in short supply for White Sox, Royals in series
Apr 6, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Kansas City Royals catcher Carter Jensen (22) runs the bases after hitting a solo home run off Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Peyton Pallette (41) during the sixth inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images The Kansas City Royals are scuffling at the plate, but their starting pitching continues to keep them competitive on the young season.
Ageless veteran Michael Wacha will look to continue his solid mound start to 2026 when the Royals aim to win back-to-back contests for the first time since the start of the month on Saturday against the visiting Chicago White Sox.
Kansas City snapped a three-game losing streak and evened this four-game set thanks to seven stellar innings and a career-high 11 strikeouts from Kris Bubic in a 2-0 victory over Chicago on Friday. Now, it’s Wacha’s turn to help the Royals build on that triumph and post consecutive victories for the first time since a three-game run March 29-April 1.
Wacha (1-0, 0.69 ERA) had to skip a turn in the rotation because of an illiness. However, the right-hander, who turns 35 in July, returned Monday to allow his only run in 13 innings — a solo homer — and two other hits through seven innings of the Royals’ 4-2 victory at Cleveland.
“It’s Michael Wacha, he’s such a dog,” teammate Jonathan India told the Royals’ official website.
“He comes to the field every day with a good attitude and works his butt off.”
Wacha is 6-2 with a 2.98 ERA in 11 career starts versus the White Sox.
Though the Royals have totaled just five runs, 18 hits and gone 0-for-28 with runners in scoring position over the last four games, their starting pitchers again rank among the major-league best with a 2.84 ERA.
“We know (pitching is) our strength, especially the starting pitching,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said.
“We feel really good about them.”
Kansas City pitchers have an exceptional 1.85 ERA while winning 23 of the last 26 home games versus Chicago. Though the teams have split the first two games of this series, the White Sox have managed just seven hits over the past two days, and were held to two Friday.
“It’s a big park, it’s tough to hit here,” White Sox catcher Edgar Quero, batting .176 after going 0-for-3 on Friday, told the White Sox official website.
However, Chicago’s Anthony Kay pitched 5 2/3 innings of the team’s 2-0 win on Thursday, and Davis Martin yielded two runs over seven strong frames on Friday.
Scheduled White Sox starter Erick Fedde (0-2, 4.09 ERA) has been solid while going 1-1 with a 2.93 ERA in three career starts against the Royals.
After allowing four runs (three earned) through five innings of his 2026 debut at Miami, the right-hander rebounded to yield two runs over six innings of a 2-1 loss to Baltimore on Monday. Fedde has received just two runs of support while on the mound in those two outings.
Kansas City star Bobby Witt Jr. is 2-for-9 versus Fedde, but he’s batting .462 with 19 RBIs and 13 extra-base hits during a 23-game hitting streak versus the White Sox.
Fedde has never faced the Royals’ Carter Jensen, who clubbed his team-high fourth home run Friday.
Chicago’s Lenyn Sosa has hit safely in four of the last five games. He’s 2-for-9 versus Wacha.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Diamondbacks use 7-run seventh to blast past Guardians
Aug 1, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks right fielder Corbin Carroll (7) hits a three-run home run during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images Geraldo Perdomo hit a go-ahead solo homer and Corbin Carroll belted a three-run shot in a seven-run seventh inning, powering the Arizona Diamondbacks to a 12-8 victory over the host Cleveland Guardians on Saturday night.
Perdomo smacked the first pitch thrown by reliever Hunter Gaddis (1-3) into the right field stands and Carroll went deep against Franco Aleman. James McCann added a two-run double and Ildemaro Vargas had an RBI single as Arizona seized a 9-2 advantage.
The Diamondbacks, who trailed 2-0 entering the fifth, won their fourth straight game to remain in the second wild-card spot in the National League. They are an NL-best 14-5 since July 9.
Gerardo Carrillo (2-0) tossed two scoreless innings for the victory. Gaddis, Aleman, Will Dion and Tim Herrin were torched for 10 runs in the final three frames.
Arizona extended its lead to 10-2 on a solo homer by Nolan Arenado in the eighth before Paul Sewald gave up five runs in the bottom of the inning without retiring a batter.
Perdomo finished with a career-high tying four hits along with three RBIs.
Steven Kwan had a two-run single and Chase DeLauter homered in the eighth for Cleveland, which fell to .500 for the first time since May 10 but remains tied for the third and final wild-card spot in the American League with the Minnesota Twins.
Arizona catcher Gabriel Moreno went 0-for-6, ending his on-base streak at 27 games. He also had safely reached in a franchise-record 46 consecutive starts.
The Diamondbacks tied the game at 2-2 in the fifth, scoring two runs (one earned) against All-Star Parker Messick. First baseman Rhys Hoskins made a diving stop of a grounder by Perdomo, but inexplicably threw the ball to no one at the bag.
Hoskins put the Guardians up 2-0 in the first with a two-run homer off Kohl Drake. The 424-foot blast to center scored DeLauter, giving Hoskins all three of Cleveland’s RBIs in the first 16 innings of the interleague series.
Messick labored throughout his 91-pitch outing, lasting a season-low 4 1/3 innings and remaining winless at home since May 13. The left-hander gave up six hits, two runs (one earned), walked one and struck out six.
Drake went four innings, allowing two runs on five hits with one walk and a career-high six strikeouts in his third appearance. The lefty made his major league debut on July 21 against the Athletics.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Warriors bringing back key reserve Gary Payton II
Apr 7, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (0) makes a layup past Sacramento Kings center Maxime Raynaud (42) in the third quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images Gary Payton II is returning to the Golden State Warriors on a one-year contract for the veteran minimum of $3.9 million, according to multiple reports on Saturday.
Payton, 33, is a 6-foot-2 guard with the athleticism to play in the frontcourt. He’s coming off one of his best seasons after dealing with injuries in earlier seasons. Payton averaged a career-high 7.5 points along with 3.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 15.6 minutes in a career-best 73 games (one start) last season.
He averages 5.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 steals and 15.1 minutes in 343 regular-season games (52 starts) for the Milwaukee Bucks (2016-18), Los Angeles Lakers (2018), Washington Wizards (2019-20), Warriors (2020-22, 2023-present) and Portland Trail Blazers (2022-23).
He won the NBA championship with the Warriors in the 2021-22 season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Walk-filled 3rd inning helps Pirates beat Reds, snap 4-game skid
Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (9) tags out Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez (55) on his way to second in the third inning between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Saturday, August 1, 2026. Pittsburgh starter Braxton Ashcraft threw five solid innings and Jake Mangum had two hits and a run to lift the visiting Pirates to a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday.
Ashcraft (11-4) allowed one run on two hits with one walk and five strikeouts before a 106-minute weather delay preceded the bottom of the sixth inning.
Bryan Reynolds, Esmerlyn Valdez, Nick Gonzales and Henry Davis finished with an RBI apiece for the Pirates, who snapped a four-game losing streak.
Gregory Soto pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 14th save. Three Pittsburgh pitchers combined to hold Cincinnati to three hits. The Pirates recorded six hits.
Pittsburgh took a 3-0 lead in the third despite collecting only one hit. Davis drew a leadoff walk, Mangum singled and Brandon Lowe coaxed a walk to load the bases. Reynolds and Valdez drew consecutive bases-loaded walks to make it 2-0.
Gonzales followed with a fielder’s choice to plate Brandon Lowe and give the Pirates a three-run lead. As a steady rain fell throughout the inning, the grounds crew briefly tended to the mound.
Cincinnati got on the board in the fifth when Jose Trevino opened the frame with an opposite-field homer to right.
The Pirates extended their advantage to 4-1 in the sixth when Davis feathered an RBI single into shallow center, just beyond the reach of a diving TJ Friedl.
The Reds, who were 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, threatened in the fourth. Sal Stewart was hit by a pitch before being forced out at second on JJ Bleday’s fielder’s choice. Nathaniel Lowe singled to center and, after Noelvi Marte popped out, Bleday advanced to third when no one covered second on Ashcraft’s pickoff attempt. But Eugenio Suarez struck out to end the inning.
Elly De La Cruz lined a rocket to center to open the eighth, but Mangum chased it down and made a leaping catch.
Reds starter Andrew Abbott (5-7) allowed three runs on three hits while matching a season high with five walks over five innings. He struck out one.
–Field Level Media
Diamondbacks use 7-run seventh to blast past Guardians
Reports: Warriors bringing back key reserve Gary Payton II
