KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Brady Singer pitched five effective innings, MJ Melendez hit a two-run homer and the Kansas City Royals broke loose early to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-5 for their first victory of the season. Nicky Lopez had a two-run triple and Bobby Witt Jr. delivered a pair of RBI singles as the Royals opened a 7-0 lead in the fourth against José Berríos and gave Matt Quatraro his first win as manager. Singer allowed just two hits — doubles by Matt Chapman — with three walks and three strikeouts. He is 7-0 with a 1.68 ERA in his last 10 starts at Kauffman Stadium dating to June 26 last year.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Ronald Acuña Jr. hit a three-run homer Monday night, leading the Atlanta Braves to an 8-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. Acuña, who was an All-Star selection last season, finished with a 3-for-4 night with a double and a single. He also drew a walk and scored two runs. Paul Goldschmidt, the 2022 NL MVP, hit his first home run of the season along with a single. He hit 35 homers last season for St. Louis. Nolan Gorman and Tyler O’Neill each had two hits. Charlie Morton (1-0) pitched 5 1/3 innings to notch the win.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — On a night that felt more Wrigley Field than Dodger Stadium, Jason Heyward made himself right at home. The former Cubs outfielder slammed a two-run homer — his first in a Dodgers uniform — to cap a seven-run rally with two outs in the fifth inning, and Los Angeles beat the Colorado Rockies 13-4 on Monday. The game-time temperature was 55 degrees — well under the Los Angeles average of 73 in April — with a cold, 13 mph wind that gusted through the stadium and blew bits of trash onto the outfield warning track.
HOUSTON (AP) — Adama Sanogo powered UConn to the school's fifth national title with a 76-59 victory over San Diego State. Sanogo had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskies, who became the fifth team since the bracket expanded in 1985 to win all six NCAA Tournament games by double-digits on the way to a championship. UConn built a 16-point lead late in the first half, then held on for a wild ride down the stretch. The Aztecs trimmed the lead to five with 5:19 left, but Jordan Hawkins answered with a 3 to trigger a 9-0 run and put the game out of reach. Keshad Johnson led San Diego State with 14 points.
HOUSTON (AP) — Adama Sanogo led the way for Connecticut as it claimed its fifth NCAA championship. The big man from Mali was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four after Monday night's 76-59 win against San Diego State. He had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Huskies. It marked his fourth double-double in six tournament games. Sanogo had been the constant for the team all season as its leading scorer and rebounder. He also thrived while managing a strict fast from dawn until sunset to observe Ramadan.
HOUSTON (AP) — Jim Nantz could fill an evening weaving tales of the great games and buzzer-beaters he’s had the privilege to call over a storytelling career that made his the voice of March Madness for nearly four decades. But when asked about his favorite moments as he prepared for the 354th and final game of that journey, he wanted to talk about underdogs. It's the teams that don't get much time in the limelight that Nantz works overtime for. He wants to tell their stories the right way. It makes this year's Final Four a fitting time to go out. It was filled with teams nobody expected. A storyteller's paradise, Nantz called it. Even though this is it for basketball, the 63-year-old broadcaster will stay on CBS for golf and football coverage.
BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — LSU’s 102-85 victory over Iowa in Sunday’s national championship game was the most-viewed NCAA women’s basketball game on record. There were 9.9 million viewers on ABC and ESPN2 according to fast national numbers by Nielsen. The total audience is a 103% jump over last year, when South Carolina defeated UConn and averaged 4.85 million on ESPN and ESPN2. The audience on Sunday at one point peaked at 12.6 million. The record ratings come as the NCAA is deciding whether to separate the women’s tournament or keep it as part of the championships TV package that includes at least 24 sports.
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Grant McCasland says it's been a remarkable journey for him back to Texas Tech as the new basketball coach. He was the program's director of basketball operations while getting his master's degree on the Lubbock campus from 1999-2001. That is also where he met his wife. The 46-year-old McCasland was introduced as the Red Raiders' new coach three days after being named to the position. Athletic director Kirby Hocutt says the search committee evaluated more than 35 candidates for the position. McCasland spent the last six seasons with North Texas, which last week won the NIT championship.
UNDATED (AP) — Former Indiana Hoosiers coach Bob Knight has been released from a hospital in Bloomington, Indiana. His son, Pat Knight, says he returned home after he was admitted with an illness over the weekend. Pat Knight issued a statement thanking people for their thoughts and prayers while asking them to respect the family's privacy. The 82-year-old Knight won three national championships at Indiana before he was fired in September 2000 after grabbing a student by the arm in violation of the school's zero-tolerance policy. He was hired by Texas Tech in 2001 and retired in 2012 with a then-Division I record 899 career wins.
SEATTLE (AP) — Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon was suspended for five games and fined by Major League Baseball for his altercation with a fan last week. Rendon says he is dropping his appeal after his suspension was reduced to four games. Rendon grabbed a fan’s shirt through the bars of a railing last week and exchanged words with him before appearing to take a swipe at the bill of the man’s ballcap and walking into the tunnel.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — British Open champion Cameron Smith refers to Augusta National as his happy place. He arrived with a little trepidation now that he's with LIV Golf. Smith says he found it was business as usual. He says there's a lot of clamor at the Masters about LIV Golf players competing against PGA Tour loyalists. That much was clear when a practice round tee sheet listed Bryson DeChambeau playing with Tiger Woods. Turns out that wasn't the case. Smith says it's important that LIV players contend at the Masters. He says LIV players are wrongly accused of not playing real golf.
NGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Snoop Dogg stepped up in an emergency during a weekend that saw World Wrestling Entertainment set a two-night attendance record for their signature event before being sold and Roman Reigns remaining the undisputed champion. Snoop Dogg was co-hosting a segment between matches at SoFi Stadium with wrestler Mike “The Miz” Mizanin when he goaded Mizanin into an impromptu match with Shane McMahon. McMahon tore his quad when he did a leapfrog maneuver while trying to avoid Mizanin. Snoop stepped in as a pinch wrestler and completed the match.
WASHINGTON (AP) — First lady Jill Biden says she wants to see the defeated Iowa women’s basketball team invited to the White House as well as the national title winner Louisiana State University. She watched LSU’s 102-85 victory from the stands on Sunday night. The first lady, during a visit to the Colorado state capital in Denver, praised Iowa’s sportsmanship and congratulated both teams on their performance. She says the champions were sure to be invited to the White House and then added that she was going to tell the president that “Iowa should come, too, because they played such a good game.”
MONDAY SCORES
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (10)UConn 76 (18)San Diego St. 59
INTERLEAGUE
Final San Francisco 12 Chicago White Sox 3
Final Minnesota 11 Miami 1
Final Tampa Bay 6 Washington 2
Final N.Y. Yankees 8 Philadelphia 1
Final Pittsburgh 7 Boston 6
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Kansas City 9 Toronto 5
Final Baltimore 2 Texas 0
Final Detroit 7 Houston 6
Final L.A. Angels 7 Seattle 3
Final Cleveland 12 Oakland 11
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Milwaukee 10 N.Y. Mets 0
Final Cincinnati 7 Chicago Cubs 6
Final Atlanta 8 St. Louis 4
Final San Diego 5 Arizona 4
Final L.A. Dodgers 13 Colorado 4
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final SO Vegas 4 Minnesota 3
Final Dallas 5 Nashville 1
Final Seattle 8 Arizona 1