KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Matt Olson and Austin Riley hit consecutive home runs in a four-run first inning and the Atlanta Braves went deep five times in a 10-3 rout of the Kansas City Royals. Sam Hilliard, Sean Murphy and Ronald Acuna Jr. also homered for the Braves, with Hilliard hitting a 448-foot drive beyond the bullpen in right in the second inning. Murphy had three RBIs. Brady Singer allowed four of the homers and gave up eight runs and 10 hits in five innings as his ERA rose to 7.88.Braves manager Brian Snitker was ejected in the second inning for arguing.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jake Woodford and three relievers scattered eight hits, Nolan Gorman drove in two runs, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0. Woodford gave up seven hits in 5 1/3 innings but only one for extra bases, a double by Austin Hedges leading off the fifth. He retired the next three batters to escape that jam. Zach Thompson worked 1 2/3 innings for the win, striking out four. Drew VerHagen was perfect in the eighth, and Giovanny Gallegos followed suit in the ninth for his first save. Johan Oveido was outstanding for Pittsburgh, allowing one run in seven innings, striking out 10.
SEATTLE (AP) — Jarred Kelenic homered for the fourth consecutive game and Ty France extended his hitting streak to 11 games in the Seattle Mariners’ 5-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night. Kelenic connected in the second inning against Austin Gomber (0-3) to give the Mariners a 2-1 lead and extend his hitting streak to a career-high eight games. Kelenic is the first Mariners player 23 or younger to homer in four straight games since Ken Griffey Jr.’s MLB record tying eight-game homer streak in 1993.
TORONTO (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays lost their first game following a record-tying 13-0 start as Colin Poche forced in two runs with bases-loaded walks and second baseman Brandon Lowe made a key error in a four-run fifth inning that lifted the Toronto Blue Jays to a 6-3 win. George Springer hit a leadoff home run and Bo Bichette had five hits and an RBI. Toronto’s 13-0 record matched the 1982 Atlanta Braves and 1987 Milwaukee Brewers, trailing only the 20-0 start by the 1884 St. Louis Maroons of the Union Association.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs. The Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament. Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson. The Wolves seized the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance. The Wolves had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in the first round. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points.
MIAMI (AP) — Max Strus and Jimmy Butler scored 31 points apiece, and the Miami Heat got into the playoffs by rallying in the final minutes to beat the Chicago Bulls 102-91 in an Eastern Conference play-in game Friday night. Tyler Herro added 12 points and Bam Adebayo grabbed 17 rebounds for Miami, which trailed by six midway through the final quarter. DeMar DeRozan led the Bulls with 26 points and nine assists.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Quinn Ewers’ mullet is gone. The big arm is still there. So is the competition that comes with the big name of Manning behind it. Texas wraps spring practice Saturday with the Longhorns’ annual scrimmage, allowing the first real look at the biggest quarterback battle in the Big 12. And while the focus has been on Ewers and early-enrolled freshman Arch Manning, second-year player Maalik Murphy is making a push as well. Manning is the son of Cooper Manning and nephew of famous former NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Silicon Valley city councilman has been charged with perjury after he allegedly lied about leaking a grand jury report to the San Francisco 49ers last year that detailed a purportedly unethical relationship between the team and the city council. That's according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office. Santa Clara City Councilmember Anthony Becker is accused of providing the secret report titled “Unsportsmanlike Conduct: Santa Clara City Council” to the team’s former top spokesperson and a local media outlet in 2022, days ahead of its official release. Becker then allegedly lied about the leak. Becker did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday. The team says it has cooperated with prosecutors.
FRIDAY SCORES
INTERLEAGUE
Final Cleveland 4 Washington 3
Final Detroit 7 San Francisco 5
Final Atlanta 10 Kansas City 3
Final Seattle 5 Colorado 3
Final N.Y. Mets 17 Oakland 6
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Minnesota 4 N.Y. Yankees 3
Final Toronto 6 Tampa Bay 3
Final Boston 5 L.A. Angels 3
Final Baltimore 6 Chicago White Sox 3
Final Texas 6 Houston 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Miami 5 Arizona 1
Final Philadelphia 8 Cincinnati 3
Final St. Louis 3 Pittsburgh 0
Final Milwaukee 11 San Diego 2
Final Chicago Cubs 8 L.A. Dodgers 2
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Final Miami 102 Chicago 91
Final Minnesota 120 Oklahoma City 95
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final Buffalo 5 Columbus 2
Final Colorado 4 Nashville 3