KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bobby Witt Jr. had two homers, a double and four RBIs as the Kansas City Royals beat the Boston Red Sox 8-4 Wednesday night and salvaged the final game of a three-game series. Witt had his fourth multi-homer game of the season, getting the Royals on the scoreboard in the first with his 21st homer. Witt’s second homer of the game was a 421-foot blast to center field in the sixth inning. He also added a two-run double. The Royals have homered in 13 consecutive games, tied for the second-longest streak in club history. Cole Ragans (9-7) allowed four runs, one earned, on six hits in 6 1/3 innings, striking out seven and walking two.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Nolan Arenado and Alec Burleson each had two hits and drove in two runs to help the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-2 on Wednesday night. Erick Fedde (8-5) pitched five innings for the victory. Willson Contreras and Masyn Winn also had two hits apiece for the Cardinals. After a rocky debut after being acquired from the Chicago White Sox, Fedde rebounded in his first start at home. He allowed a run on four hits with six strikeouts and a walk. Ryan Helsley pitched the ninth for his majors-leading 36th save in 39 opportunities. Josh Lowe had two hits for the Rays and scored a run.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered three times and tied a career high with seven RBIs in the Philadelphia Phillies' 9-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night. Schwarber hit his 27th homer of the season leading off the ninth against Michael Grove. It was his second career three-run homer game, the last coming in 2021. The seven RBIs are the most by a Phillies player since Carlos Ruiz had that many against Atlanta in 2012. Schwarber had a three-run blast in the sixth that gave Philadelphia an 8-4 lead. He led off the game with a two-strike shot off Gavin Stone.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs are sticking to their routine for preseason games when the Super Bowl champs take the field Saturday against the Jacksonville Jaguars. “Ones for a quarter, twos in the second quarter, threes the third quarter, the fours in the fourth quarter,” Reid said Wednesday on how he plans to split up playing time against the Jaguars. “We’ll just keep with that.”
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker said Wednesday he was “very intentional” in the comments he made during a polarizing college commencement speech in May and that he stands behind what he said then. During the speech at a private Catholic liberal arts school in Atchison, Kansas, the three-time Super Bowl champion told the graduating class that most of the women receiving degrees were probably more excited about getting married and having children, and that some Catholic leaders were “pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America.” Butker also assailed Pride month and President Joe Biden’s stance on abortion.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The debate about whether the NFL will expand the regular season once again seems to have been resolved and now it’s a matter of how soon the league adds an 18th game. Commissioner Roger Goodell has talked openly about it, union chief Lloyd Howell recently told the Washington Post that the NFLPA is open to doing it before the current collective bargaining agreement expires after the 2030 season. Players seem resigned to the inevitability no matter how they might personally feel. The bigger question now might be what concessions can players get to agree to a longer season.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — The NCAA says former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh had impermissible contact with recruits and players while access was restricted during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has handed him a four-year show-cause order if he wants to return to college coaching. The NCAA says Harbaugh engaged in unethical conduct, failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance and violated head coach responsibility obligations. Harbaugh left the national-championship winning Wolverines to coach the Los Angeles Chargers. The NCAA has already given Michigan three years of probation, a fine and recruiting limits in the same case.
OLYMPICS
PARIS (AP) — U.S. men's basketball coach Steve Kerr knows something unexpected is going to happen when his team plays against Serbia in the semifinals of the Paris Olympics. Maybe Serbia will change its lineup. Maybe Nikola Jokic will play the entire game. Or maybe the surprise will be that there’s no surprise at all. Whatever the case, Kerr knows the Americans have to be ready for anything. The U.S. will look to reach the gold-medal game for the 18th time in its 20 Olympic appearances when it faces Serbia in the semifinals of the Paris Games on Thursday night. France will play Germany in the other semifinal.
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Quincy Hall became the latest American to electrify Olympic track and field with an out-of-nowhere comeback, sprinting from far behind in the 400 meters to reel in three runners and capture the gold medal. Hall, buried in fourth place as the runners rounded the last bend, outran the runner on his outside, then two more to the inside to cross the line in 43.40 seconds, the fourth-fastest time ever. Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith finished second and Muzala Samukonga of Zambia finished third. Hall is the first American since LaShawn Merritt in 2008 to win the one-lap race. His victory came an evening after American Cole Hocker came from behind late to beat the favorites in the men’s 1500.
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Who was that masked person? It was Raven Saunders, of course — the theatrical American shot put standout who uses the pronouns they and them and brings their own distinctive style to every meet they attend. Saunders was throwing Thursday at the Olympics, wearing a full-faced black mask and bronze sunglasses and their hair dyed neon green on one side and purple on the other. Saunders refers to this as the “Hulk” look, one that helps them feel like a superhero getting ready to hurl that 8.8-pound hunk of metal. They recorded a throw of 18.62 meters on their final attempt to secure a spot for Friday’s final.
PARIS (AP) — A’ja Wilson scored 20 points and Jackie Young added 15 points to help the U.S. beat Nigeria 88-74 in the quarterfinals, extending its record winning streak to 59 consecutive Olympic wins. Breanna Stewart also had 13 for the Americans, who haven’t lost since the 1992 Barcelona Games and are now two victories away from an unprecedented eighth consecutive gold medal. They will face a familiar foe in Australia in the semifinals on Friday night. The Opals routed Serbia 85-67. The other medal round game will feature host France playing Belgium.
PARIS (AP) — Boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan has advanced to the gold-medal bout in the women’s featherweight division at the Paris Olympics. She beat Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey 5:0 for her third consecutive victory in the tournament while dealing with widespread scrutiny regarding misconceptions about her gender. Both Lin and Imane Khelif have responded to the scrutiny generated by the International Boxing Association's decision to disqualify them from last year's world championships by going on two of the best runs of their careers in Paris. Lin again used her superior height and technique to beat the more physical Kahraman. Lin will fight for gold on Saturday, taking on Julia Szeremeta of Poland.
PARIS (AP) — Every single thing Simone Biles has done at the Paris Olympics has been spotlighted. She won four medals, had an online feud with a former teammate and a social media post that appeared to take a swipe at presidential candidate Donald Trump. Her TikToks regularly draw millions of views and her revelation that she’d gotten Botox made headlines. Biles is the most decorated gymnast of all-time and America’s golden girl. She has a unique ability to retain her staying power beyond Olympic cycles, in part because of her remarkable career achievements. But it is also her authenticity that has made her relatable, inspirational and liked by millions around the world.
WEDNESDAY SCORES
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Final Arizona 7 Cleveland 3
Final Chicago Cubs 8 Minnesota 2
Final Arizona 5 Cleveland 3
Final St. Louis 5 Tampa Bay 2
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Houston 6 Texas 4
Final Oakland 3 Chicago White Sox 2
Final N.Y. Yankees 5 L.A. Angels 2
Final Baltimore 7 Toronto 3
Final L.A. Angels 8 N.Y. Yankees 2
Final Kansas City 8 Boston 4
Final Detroit 6 Seattle 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final San Francisco 7 Washington 4
Final Miami 6 Cincinnati 4
Final Milwaukee 8 Atlanta 5
Final San Diego 9 Pittsburgh 8
Final N.Y. Mets 5 Colorado 3