KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Dominic Smith scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in the sixth inning on a call that was overturned on a challenge, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 6-5. Smith doubled to open the sixth and moved to third on a single to center field by Eric Sogard. After David Hamilton struck out looking, Smith charged home on a pitch by KC’s Seth Lugo that bounced in front of the plate and got away from catcher Salvador Perez. Perez chased the ball to the backstop, wheeled and threw to Lugo, who appeared to tag Smith for an apparent out. The Red Sox challenged the call, which was overturned on review.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Victor Scott II and Tommy Pham each hit two-run homers, Sammy Gray pitched seven innings and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 on Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series. Scott, who was recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Sunday, hit his first big league homer in the four-run second inning. Pham added a double in a 2-for-4 night. Brandon Lowe hit a two-run homer in the first inning for the Rays, who were visiting St. Louis for the first time since Aug. 27, 2017.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Andrew Benintendi hit a two-run homer and the Chicago White Sox snapped their American League record-tying losing streak at 21 game, beating the Oakland Athletics 5-1. Jonathan Cannon gave up one run over six innings on Tuesday to end his personal drought while helping the White Sox to their first victory since early July. Chicago on Monday matched the longest losing streak since the 1988 Baltimore Orioles lost 21 in a row, falling to the Athletics 5-1. The NL record since 1900 is held by the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies, who lost 23 straight.
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Houston pitcher Framber Valdez lost a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth inning when Texas slugger Corey Seager hit a two-run homer in the Astros’ 4-2 victory over the Rangers. Valdez was on the verge of his second no-hitter in just more than a year when Seager sent the first pitch he saw in the ninth, an 85 mph slider, into the stands in right field. It was Seager’s fourth homer in four games. The 30-year-old left-hander cruised through eight innings but finally began to stumble in the ninth. Valdez Robbie Grossman before Ezequiel Duran grounded into the second Texas double play of the game. Josh Smith kept the Rangers alive with another walk, setting up Seager’s 24th homer.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Two weeks after the San Francisco 49ers reported to training camp there has been no change in the status of Brandon Aiyuk despite trade rumors swirling around the star disgruntled wide receiver. Aiyuk is still taking part in meetings but not practicing as he waits for a long-term contract from San Francisco or a trade. His representatives are talking to other teams to see if any that Aiyuk wants to play for will pay him the salary he wants and give the Niners appropriate compensation in a trade.
UNDATED (AP) — Women’s college basketball teams are a step away from getting financially rewarded for success in the NCAA Tournament. The Division I Board of Directors agreed to introduce a proposal to give performance units to teams that make March Madness. Units represent revenue from the NCAA's lucrative media rights deal. They have long been a part of the men's tournament. Under the new media rights deal with ESPN, women’s basketball is valued at $65 million per tournament — roughly 10 times more than in the contract that ends this year. If approved in January, the plan would take effect in 2025.
OLYMPICS
PARIS (AP) — There was a moment where Brazil might have thought it had a chance. It trailed the U.S. by only eight midway through the second quarter. A big deficit had turned into something rather manageable. The moment was short-lived. A 21-2 run turned things into their predictable blowout state and for the 20th time in 20 Olympic appearances, the U.S. will play for a medal. Devin Booker led a balanced front with 18 points and the Americans had little trouble with Brazil in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics, winning 122-87.
LYON, France (AP) — Sophia Smith scored in extra time and the U.S. women's national team secured a spot in the gold medal match at the Paris Olympics with a 1-0 victory over Germany. The Americans, undefeated in France under new coach Emma Hayes, will be vying for their fifth gold medal in their sixth appearance in the Olympic women's soccer final. The United States will play the Brazil, which defeated Spain 4-2 in the later game. Germany will play Spain for the bronze.
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — American Cole Hocker pulled the upset of the Olympics on Tuesday night, outracing both favorites Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Josh Kerr to the finish line in the 1,500 meters. Hocker won the race in an Olympic record 3 minutes 27.65 seconds, pulling from fifth to first over the final 300 meters to beat his personal best by more than 3 seconds. He beat Kerr by .14 seconds, while Ingebrigtsen, who set the pace through the first 1200 meters, ended up in fourth behind American Yared Nuguse.
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Gabby Thomas has sped to the win in the women’s 200 meters at the 2024 Olympics. She finished in 21.83 seconds Tuesday night to add a gold to the bronze she took home in the event from Tokyo three years ago. The 27-year-old Harvard graduate, who has a Masters in public health, took the lead for good at the curve and was never challenged in the final stretch. She grabbed her head with both hands after winning. Thomas beat 100-meter champion Julien Alfred by 0.25 seconds. Brittany Brown of the U.S. got the bronze.
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — A secret algorithm and a coach obsessed with numbers are behind Italy’s recent relay success on the track. Italy has been able to contend with the much faster Americans and the more talented Jamaicans on a consistent basis lately because of Filippo Di Mulo. The coach has broken down baton exchanges into a math-based science that is all meticulously recorded in his nearly 25-year-old database. The Sicilian coached the Azzurri to 4x100 gold in Tokyo, silver at last year’s world championships, another gold at the recent European Championships. His team remains a contender in Paris when the men’s 4x100 gets underway with Thursday’s heats followed by the final on Friday.
TUESDAY SCORES
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Arizona at Cleveland 4:10 p.m. (Postponed)
Final St. Louis 4 Tampa Bay 3
Final Chicago Cubs 7 Minnesota 3
AMERICAN LEAGUE
L-A Angels at N-Y Yankees 7:35 p.m. (Postponed)
Final Toronto 5 Baltimore 2
Final Houston 4 Texas 2
Final Boston 6 Kansas City 5
Final Chicago White Sox 5 Oakland 1
Final Detroit 4 Seattle 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final San Diego 6 Pittsburgh 0
Final Cincinnati 8 Miami 2
Final Washington 11 San Francisco 5
Final Milwaukee 10 Atlanta 0
Final Colorado 6 N.Y. Mets 3