Sports
Three-run inning carries Athletics past host Diamondbacks
Jul 20, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Athletics pitcher Jeffrey Springs (59) throws in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images Jeff McNeil delivered a tiebreaking pinch-hit, two-run single during a three-run seventh inning and the Athletics’ bullpen made it stand up in a 5-2 victory over the host Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix on Monday night.
Tommy White went 4-for-5 with a run scored in his third major league game to help the Athletics win for just the third time in their past 18 games.
Jacob Wilson and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer both had a homer among their two hits. Tyler Soderstrom and Lawrence Butler also had two hits as the A’s racked up 15 overall.
Ketel Marte smacked a two-run homer for the Diamondbacks, who lost for just the second time in the past eight games. Geraldo Perdomo had two hits for Arizona.
Nolan Arenado ripped a double into the left field corner in the fifth inning for his 2,000th career hit.
Arenado becomes the sixth active player in the 2,000-hit club. The others are Freddie Freeman, Jose Altuve, Andrew McCutchen, Paul Goldschmidt and Manny Machado.
Diamondbacks All-Star Corbin Carroll right elbow) sat out one day after being injured. The Athletics lost Kuroda-Grauer (testicular contusion) after hitting his first career home run and Colby Thomas (left wrist contusion) during the contest.
Luis Medina (2-1) gave up one hit and struck out two in two scoreless innings of relief for the A’s.
Jose Suarez pitched a flawless eighth. Hogan Harris allowed a bloop single to Gabriel Moreno to start the ninth and walked Tyler Locklear with two outs before fanning Ryan Waldschmidt for his third strikeout of the inning to record his seventh save.
The game was tied at 2 in the seventh when the Athletics received singles from Shea Langeliers, Butler and White to load the bases with two outs against Kevin Ginkel (3-3).
McNeil followed with a two-run single to center to score Langeliers and Butler. With Henry Bolte at the plate, Ginkel unleashed a wild pitch to score White. McNeil was running on the play and stole second and continued to third due to the errant pitch.
Jeffrey Springs of the A’s gave up two runs and six hits over five innings. He struck out two and walked one as his winless stretch continued to 16 straight starts.
Arizona Mitch Bratt gave up two runs and eight hits over 4 2/3 innings. He struck out four and walked one in his third big league start.
Kuroda-Grauer hit the first pitch of the second inning from Bratt over the wall in left-center. It traveled 416 feet.
In the fifth, Wilson hit the inning’s first pitch 399 feet to left to make it 2-0.
Arizona tied the game in the bottom of the sixth as Jorge Barrosa led off with a double to left-center and Marte followed with a 402-foot homer inside the left field foul pole.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Marlins All-Star RHP Max Meyer (neck) goes on IL
Jul 18, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Miami Marlins pitcher Max Meyer (23) throws a pitch during the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images The Miami Marlins placed All-Star right-hander Max Meyer on the 15-day injured list Monday due to a neck strain.
The move is retroactive to Sunday.
Meyer departed after three innings of Saturday’s start against the Milwaukee Brewers. He gave up two runs and three hits before exiting.
Meyer, 27, struggled despite having off since July 7. He didn’t pitch in last Tuesday’s All-Star Game.
Meyer (9-1, 2.68 ERA) has made 20 starts and pitched a career-high 111 innings. He has 121 strikeouts.
He entered the season with 25 games of big-league experience.
“We are in uncharted territory with this, but also, we don’t have any concern as much as, we do the responsible thing is just to be aware and cognizant of we do have a young athlete that is and already has surpassed a number of career highs,” Marlins manager Clayton McCullough told reporters.
Miami recalled right-hander Zach Brzykcy from Triple-A Jacksonville. He gave up one run in two innings in his lone appearance for the Marlins on June 30.
Overall, Brzykcy has made 33 major relief appearances and is 0-1 with a 9.68 ERA.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Spain new No. 1 in FIFA rankings; Norway are biggest climber
Spain midfielder Rodri (16) holds up a trophy after the FIFA World Cup Final game at MetLife Stadium, Jul 19, 2026, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. Spain overtook Argentina for the No. 1 spot in the FIFA men’s world rankings Monday, as expected after La Roja defeated the defending champions 1-0 in the World Cup final on Sunday.
Argentina were the No. 1 team in the world rankings as of the last official rankings update on June 11, the day the 48-team World Cup began in Mexico. Spain entered the tournament No. 2.
France and England remained third and fourth, respectively, despite England’s 6-4 triumph over the French in the World Cup third-place match. France still had enough of a cushion in the total points column to absorb that head-to-head defeat.
Brazil and Morocco moved past Portugal for the fifth and sixth spots. Portugal lost 1-0 to regional rival Spain in the round of 16.
Mexico climbed four spots in the 10th position after their strong showing at the World Cup. They went 3-0-0 in the group stage and blanked Ecuador 2-0 in the round of 32 before England pulled out a 3-2 win in the next round in Mexico City.
The United States also inched up one spot to No. 16 after winning their group and shutting out Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32. The Americans’ tournament ended in a disappointing 4-1 defeat at the hands of Belgium, who are now ranked eighth in the world.
But the biggest climbers were none other than Erling Haaland and Norway, who moved up 12 spots to No. 19.
The Vikings became one of the darlings of the tournament after getting through to the knockouts and upsetting Brazil in the round of 16. Their tournament also ended at the hands of England, 2-1 in the quarterfinals, but it was Norway’s furthest World Cup run in their history.
The nation with the largest drop since June, Tunisia, also moved 12 spots. They now sit back at No. 57 after being the only African nation out of 10 in the field not to qualify for the knockouts.
FIFA Men’s World Rankings (as of July 20, 2026)
1. Spain
2. Argentina
3. France
4. England
5. Brazil
6. Morocco
7. Portugal
8. Belgium
9. Netherlands
10. Mexico
11. Colombia
12. Germany
13. Croatia
14. Switzerland
15. Italy
16. United States
17. Japan
18. Senegal
19. Norway
20. Uruguay
21. Denmark
22. Iran
23. Austria
24. Egypt
25. Ecuador
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Lionel Messi to miss next two Inter Miami games, All-Star Game
Argentina forward Lionel Messi (10) is trapped by Spain midfielder Rodri (16) during the FIFA World Cup 2026 final between Argentina and Spain at New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday, July 19, 2026, in East Rutherford, NJ. Lionel Messi and Inter Miami FC teammate Rodrigo De Paul will not play in the MLS club’s next two games, ESPN reported on Monday.
Both Messi and De Paul played in all eight matches for Argentina in the World Cup. Messi started all eight contests and played all 120 minutes in Sunday’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the final.
Also according to the report, both players, who were selected to the MLS All-Star Game on July 29, will not compete in the contest against the Liga MX All-Stars.
Messi skipped the 2025 MLS All-Star Game without league approval and was suspended for Inter Miami’s next regular-season match. Miami has informed the league that Messi will miss this year’s game, per ESPN.
FIFPRO, the global representative organization for pro soccer players, has recommended a 21-day rest period at the end of each season for health reasons.
In 2025, FIFA and FIFPRO agreed to a 72-hour rest period between matches for the World Cup.
Messi and De Paul will not play against the Chicago Fire on Wednesday and CF Montreal on Saturday.
Miami plays at home against Columbus on Aug. 1, then competes in the Leagues Cup from Aug. 5-12 before returning to MLS action on Aug. 15. Barring injury, the two players would miss three MLS games that fall within the 21-day window.
Messi scored eight goals and added four assists in the World Cup, finishing second to France’s Kylian Mbappe in the Golden Boot race.
Inter Miami sit in second place in the MLS Eastern Conference standings with a 9-2-4 record, five points behind first-place Nashville SC.
–Field Level Media
Marlins All-Star RHP Max Meyer (neck) goes on IL
Spain new No. 1 in FIFA rankings; Norway are biggest climber
