TORONTO (AP) — Justin Turner hit two home runs, Danny Jansen added a solo homer and the Toronto Blue Jays held on to beat the Kansas City Royals 6-5 on Monday night. Turner hit a two-run home run in the first inning and had a leadoff homer in the third. It was the 16th multihomer game of his career. Jansen also connected in the third, his second. The Blue Jays scored more than five runs for the first time in 21 games, ending a streak that dated back to a 9-8 loss at Yankee Stadium on April 6.
TORONTO (AP) — Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez was scratched from Monday’s lineup against the Blue Jays because of a tight back. An eight-time All-Star and the MVP of Kansas City’s World Series triumph in 2015, Perez is batting .340 with seven home runs. He was tied for second in the AL with 26 RBIs heading into Monday’s games. Perez had been scheduled to bat fourth against Toronto. Instead, designated hitter Nelson Velázquez moved from sixth to fourth. Freddy Fermin took over behind the plate, batting sixth.
BALTIMORE (AP) — Gunnar Henderson led off the first inning with a homer to become the youngest player in major league history with 10 home runs before May 1 and the Baltimore Orioles defeated the New York Yankees 2-0 in the opener of a four-game series. Grayson Rodriguez threw 5 2/3 shutout innings for Baltimore, which won the first meeting of the season between the top teams in the AL East. New York left 10 runners on base and was 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. Henderson's home run off Clarke Schmidt tied him with the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout for the major league lead.
DETROIT (AP) — The game between the Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Cardinals has been postposed Monday night because of inclement weather. The teams will play a straight doubleheader on Tuesday. The first game will start at 3:40 p.m. Pitchers Kenta Maeda and Jack Flaherty were scheduled to start Monday and Tuesday for Detroit. Matt Manning has been brought up twice this year for doubleheaders and could do so again on Tuesday. Pitchers Steven Matz and Kyle Gibson are expected to start for the Cardinals.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have signed Travis Kelce to a new two-year, $34.25 million contract. That's according to a person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition on anonymity because the terms of the deal had not been released. The new deal ensures Kansas City will have its star tight end as it tries to win an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl. Chiefs general manager Brett Veach says Kelce will remain the highest-paid tight end in the NFL. The 34-year-old Kelce is already the Chiefs' career leader in receiving yards. And his relationship with pop icon Taylor Swift has taken him to a new level of celebrity.
UNDATED (AP) — Jason Kelce will join ESPN’s “Monday Night Countdown” after retiring from the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this year, according to a person with knowledge of the deal. The person confirmed the deal to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity on Monday because it was not expected to be announced until the ESPN/Disney upfront presentation to advertisers on May 14. The Athletic was the first to report on Kelce’s choice. Kelce is expected to replace Robert Griffin III, who would continue with the network as a college football analyst. Kelce played 13 years for the Eagles. He was the most sought after former player by the networks for the upcoming season. He participated in last year’s NFL Broadcasting and Media Workshop.
DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray scored a game-high 32 points Monday night despite a strained left calf and sank the game-winning shot with 3.6 seconds remaining as the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets again bounced LeBron James from the playoffs with a 108-106 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5.James’ two free throws tied it at 106 with 26 seconds left and the Nuggets, just as they did in Game 2, eschewed the timeout and Murray took the ball on a high screen and roll to his left, shaking Austin Reaves and he crossed through the lane and swished the 14-footer. It was Murray’s buzzer beater that won Game 2.
DENVER (AP) — The futures of LeBron James and Darvin Ham with the Los Angeles Lakers remain murky. One might choose to leave and the other might not have a choice. For James, the decision is his on whether he wants to wear purple and gold again in his 22nd NBA season. For Ham, it’s about whether the team brings him back for a third season as coach after back-to-back series losses to Denver. Big decisions loom after the defending champion Nuggets eliminated Los Angeles from the playoffs with a 108-106 win in Game 5 on Monday.
MIAMI (AP) — Derrick White scored a career-high 38 points, Jayson Tatum added 20 points and 10 rebounds, and the Boston Celtics beat the Miami Heat 102-88 to take a 3-1 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series. Jaylen Brown scored 17 points and Jrue Holiday had 11 for the top-seeded Celtics, who lost Kristaps Porzingis in the first half to what the team said was a right calf injury. Bam Adebayo finished with 25 points, 17 rebounds and five assists for Miami, which had a sellout crowd but played again without injured starters Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jalen Williams highlighted a 24-point performance with a back-breaking 3 with three minutes left, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the New Orleans Pelicans 97-89 to complete a four-game sweep of their first-round playoff series. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma City, which trailed by five in the fourth quarter before suddenly seizing control with a combination of stifling defense and opportunistic shooting. Giddey and Holmgren each scored 14 points. Holmgren also had nine rebounds. CJ McCollum scored 20 for New Orleans. But the Pelicans hit just eight of 34 shots from 3-point range. New Orleans stayed close despite usual high-scoring wing Brandon Ingram missing 12 of 14 shots and finishing with just eight points.
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. Soccer Federation and its Mexican counterpart dropped their joint bid to host the 2027 Women’s World Cup and said they instead will focus on trying to host the 2031 tournament. The decision left a proposal from Brazil and a joint Germany-Netherlands-Belgium plan competing to be picked for 2027 by the FIFA Congress that meets May 17 in Bangkok. The USSF said the 2031 bid will call for FIFA to invest equally in the men’s and women’s World Cups. FIFA said last year it planned to spend $896 million in prize money for the 2026 World Cup after devoting $110 million for last year’s women’s tournament.
MONDAY SCORES
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
St. Louis at Detroit 6:40 p.m. (Postponed)
Final Tampa Bay 1 Milwaukee 0
Final Oakland 5 Pittsburgh 1
Final Seattle 2 Atlanta 1
Final L.A. Angels 6 Philadelphia 5
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Baltimore 2 N.Y. Yankees 0
Final Toronto 6 Kansas City 5
Final Minnesota 3 Chicago White Sox 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Washington 7 Miami 2
Final Chicago Cubs 3 N.Y. Mets 1
Final Cincinnati 5 San Diego 2
Final L.A. Dodgers 8 Arizona 4
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Final Boston 102 Miami 88
Final Oklahoma City 97 New Orleans 89
Final Denver 108 L.A. Lakers 106
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final Florida 6 Tampa Bay 1