Sports
Thieves take down Heretics to win CDL Stage 3 Minor
YMCA member Austin Manengu works the keyboard as he plays a game of Fortnite during the unveiling of the new gaming lab at the Maplewood Family YMCA in Rochester Thursday, June 20, 2024. YMCA of Greater Rochester in partnership with Metro Sports & Entertainment Group will open two gaming labs for youth and teens this year. The Los Angeles Thieves won a best-of-five semifinal match and then rallied from a 2-1 deficit to win the grand final of the Call of Duty League Stage 3 Minor on Sunday.
Los Angeles beat OpTic Texas 3-2 in the semis and met the Miami Heretics in the grand final later in the day. The Thieves lost two straight maps before ripping off three wins in a row to clinch the championship and the $20,000 reward.
All 12 CDL teams competed in the tournament in a single-elimination bracket, seeded based on teams’ standing following Major 2. All matches were best-of-five until the best-of-seven grand final.
On Sunday, the Thieves beat Texas 250-216 on Den Hardpoint and 6-2 on Gridlock Search and Destroy to get the semifinals started. OpTic answered back with a 3-2 win on Scar Overload and a 250-216 result on Colossus Hardpoint to force the winner-take-all fifth map. The Thieves sailed away, 6-2 on Fringe Search and Destroy.
Meanwhile, Miami swept FaZe Vegas 3-0 in the other semifinal match, taking Colossus Hardpoint 250-224, Fringe Search and Destroy 6-3 and Den Overload 4-3.
The Thieves opened the grand final with a 250-199 triumph on Sake Hardpoint, before the Heretics prevailed 6-3 on Fringe Search and Destroy and moved ahead with a narrow 7-6 win on Exposure Overload.
That’s when Los Angeles flipped the script as it won 250-161 on Colossus Hardpoint, 6-2 on Scar Search and Destroy and 5-2 on Scar Overload to put the tournament away.
Call of Duty League’s Stage 3 Minor prize pool
1. $20,000, 30 CDL points — Los Angeles Thieves
2. no money, 20 CDL points — Miami Heretics
3-4. no money, 10 CDL points — OpTic Texas, FaZe Vegas
5-8. no money, no CDL points — Toronto KOI, G2 Minnesota, Riyadh Falcons, Paris Gentle Mates
9-12. no money, no CDL points — Carolina Royal Ravens, Cloud9 New York, Vancouver Surge, Boston Breach
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rockies stifle Mets to clinch series in doubleheader opener
Apr 26, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; Colorado Rockies first baseman Troy Johnston (20) hits an RBI single in the fourth inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images Troy Johnston had an RBI single in the fourth inning and hit into the tie-breaking, run-scoring double play in the sixth Sunday afternoon for the visiting Colorado Rockies, who beat the skidding New York Mets 3-1 in the opener of a doubleheader.
Jose Quintana (1-2) tossed 5 1/3 solid innings for the Rockies, who have won the first two games of the three-game set to lock up their third series win of the season. Colorado finished 43-119 last season and didn’t win its third series until July 18-20, when it took two of three from the Minnesota Twins.
Jake McCarthy added an insurance RBI single in the seventh for Colorado.
Tyrone Taylor homered in the fifth for the Mets, who have lost 14 of 16.
Quintana allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out five. The 37-year-old left-hander, who played for the Mets from 2023-24, threw 31 pitches in the first, when he walked Bo Bichette and Luis Robert Jr. and allowed a single to Mark Vientos to load the bases with one out.
But Quintana wriggled out of the jam by striking out Marcus Semien and Brett Baty. That began a stretch of 11 straight batters retired by Quintana, who set down the final four batters he faced after Taylor’s homer.
Juan Mejia retired all five batters he opposed before the Mets threatened in the eighth against Jaden Hill, who gave up one-out singles to Francisco Alvarez and Bichette before walking Juan Soto. But Hill got Robert to pop out to first and struck out Vientos.
Victor Vodnik threw a perfect ninth to close out the four-hitter and earn his fourth save.
McCarthy and Edouard Julien had two hits each for the Rockies.
Nolan McLean (1-2) gave up two runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over five innings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Astros awaken to salvage finale, end Yankees' 8-game win streak
Apr 26, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez (44) hits a double during the fifth inning against the New York Yankees at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images Spencer Arrighetti worked seven strong innings, Christian Walker produced a three-hit game with a home run and the Houston Astros salvaged the finale of their three-game series against the visiting New York Yankees with a 7-4 victory on Sunday.
Arrighetti (3-0) remained unbeaten in three starts after opening the season with Triple-A Sugar Land. He allowed three hits, walked one and posted eight strikeouts on 96 pitches, 64 for strikes.
Walker finished 3-for-4 with four RBIs while Isaac Paredes went 2-for-4 with a homer, three runs and three RBIs. Yordan Alvarez also produced a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a pair of runs.
Paul Goldschmidt doubled twice and scored for the Yankees, who rallied for three runs with two outs in the ninth but had their eight-game winning streak snapped.
Arrighetti retired the Yankees in order in the top of the first, fourth and fifth innings. He worked around a one-out single from Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the second and stranded two runners after issuing a hit-by-pitch and a two-out walk in the third. Arrighetti retired nine consecutive batters before Aaron Judge clubbed a two-out homer in the sixth. Judge hit his 10th home run on his 34th birthday.
The Astros quickly pounced on Yankees right-hander Luis Gil (1-2), with Walker firing the first salvo on a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the first that plated Paredes. Walker, who homered in his final plate appearance in the ninth inning on Saturday, delivered the Astros a 2-0 lead with his seventh homer this season.
Two innings later, Paredes smacked his third home run off the left field foul pole, plating Alvarez and doubling the Houston lead to 4-0. Alvarez rallied from an 0-2 hole against Gil that extended the inning before Paredes capped the two-out rally by driving a 1-0 sinker 364 feet.
Alvarez chased Gil with a double to right that pushed Carlos Correa, who walked leading off the fifth, to third base. Paredes greeted Yankees reliever Paul Blackburn with an RBI single that scored Correa, and Walker followed with a two-run double to left-center for a 7-0 lead.
Gil allowed six runs on five hits and three walks in four-plus innings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Jose Tena's HR in 10th helps Nationals edge White Sox
Apr 26, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Washington Nationals pitcher Foster Griffin (22) throws the ball against the Chicago White Sox during the first inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images Jose Tena hit a pinch-hit solo home run in the 10th inning after CJ Abrams provided a go-ahead sacrifice fly as the visiting Washington Nationals defeated the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Sunday.
Both pitching staffs allowed just four hits. Paxton Schultz worked around Tristan Peters’ RBI single in the bottom of the 10th for his first save.
Nationals left-hander Foster Griffin delivered his second consecutive quality start, scattering two hits in seven shutout innings. Griffin walked two and struck out a career-high eight.
Chicago righty Sean Burke shined, as well, limiting the Nationals to three hits in 7 1/3 innings with zero walks and four strikeouts.
After both clubs scored at least three runs in the first two games of the series, offense was a dicey proposition as Griffin and Burke matched zeroes for much of the afternoon.
The White Sox nearly gave Burke an early lead after opener Bryan Hudson pitched a scoreless bottom of the first. Chase Meidroth opened the game with a single, advanced to second on a balk and took third on a wild pitch. But Griffin struck out the side to keep Meidroth from scoring.
Tanner Murray contributed a one-out single in the second and Drew Romo walked two batters later before the rally faded. Griffin hit Colson Montgomery with a pitch in the fourth inning before recovering to retire 11 of the next 12.
Burke yielded a two-out double to Jacob Young in the second and a two-out single to James Wood in the third but kept the Nationals off the scoreboard. Romo, Chicago’s catcher, caught Wood stealing to end the threat in the second.
Burke mowed through the next 15 Washington batters after that, with a four-pitch seventh inning highlighting his dominance. Nasim Nunez broke the streak with a leadoff single in the ninth, stole second and advanced to third on a sacrifice fly. Reliever Sean Newcomb got two popouts to end the inning.
Chicago was unable to score in the bottom of the ninth. Everson Pereira singled with one out for the team’s first hit since the second and went to second on an errant pickoff attempt but was stranded.
Murray left the game with an apparent left-shoulder injury while making a diving catch on Abrams’ sacrifice fly to left field.
Richard Lovelady (1-1) pitched a scoreless ninth for the victory.
Seranthony Dominguez (1-3) took the loss.
–Field Level Media
