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Professional Sports

Kucherov shines, Lightning beat Islanders 4-2 in Game 2 The Tampa Bay Lightning are running out of superlatives to describe the playmaking ability of NHL playoff scoring leader Nikita Kucherov. by FRED GOODALL, AP Sports Writer Published Jun. 16 2021 @ 12:00am

Goldschmidt hits game-ending HR, Cardinals beat Marlins 2-1 ST. LOUIS — Paul Goldschmidt hit a game-ending homer in the ninth inning and drove in both St. Louis runs as the Cardinals beat the Miami Marlins 2-1 on Tuesday night. St. Louis has won two in a row against the Marlins after dropping nine-of-10 overall. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:52pm

Mize, Cabrera help Tigers send Royals to 5th straight loss KANSAS CITY — Casey Mize turned in his eighth quality start in his last nine games, Miguel Cabrera got two more hits and the Detroit Tigers beat Kansas City 4-2 Tuesday night, the Royals' fifth straight loss. Mize (4-4) allowed three runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings. Gregory Soto pitched the ninth for his sixth save in as many chances. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:50pm

MLB threatens pitchers with 10-game bans for altering balls NEW YORK — Pitchers will be ejected and suspended for 10 games for using illegal foreign substances to doctor baseballs in a crackdown by Major League Baseball that will start Monday. The commissioner's office, responding to record strikeouts and a league batting average at a more than half-century low, said Tuesday major and minor league umpires will start regular checks of all pitchers, even if opposing managers don't request inspections. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:47pm

DeChambeau-Koepka spat overshadowing tough U.S. Open course SAN DIEGO — Torrey Pines has had its share of conflict through the years involving some of the top players in golf. Just not during such a taxing major as the U.S. Open. Think back to 2003 at the Buick Invitational when Phil Mickelson was quoted in a magazine interview as saying Woods played inferior equipment and was the only player good enough to overcome "the equipment he's stuck with." by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:46pm

Mickelson at home and running out of time for elusive U.S. Open title SAN DIEGO — Phil Mickelson accepted a special exemption from the USGA with reason to believe this might be his last shot to finally win a U.S. Open. Now he gets five more years, courtesy of his stunning victory last month at the PGA Championship that made him the oldest winner in 161 years of the majors. The clock is still ticking, though. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:45pm

Rahm preparing for U.S. Open after positive COVID-19 test SAN DIEGO — The hard part, at first, was having to walk off the course with a six-shot lead and no chance to finish the tournament. Learning on national TV he had tested positive for COVID-19 didn't help, either. Once the initial shock wore off, Jon Rahm shifted his focus away from the course. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:44pm

Richardson signs with Vikings MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Vikings signed defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson before their minicamp began Tuesday, bringing back a proven interior pass rusher in the latest part of their offseason makeover. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 11:31pm

Young leads ATL rally past Sixers with Embiid hurting ATLANTA — Trae Young overcame a cold start, scoreing 25 points including a floater that gave Atlanta the lead with 1:17 remaining, and the Hawks rallied to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 103-100 Monday night, tying the Eastern Conference semifinal at 2. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:30am

Familiarity and respect among coaches left in NHL playoffs When Barry Trotz's Washington Capitals knocked out Jon Cooper's Tampa Bay Lightning on the way to the Stanley Cup in 2018, the two coaches talked that summer about how it all went down. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:20am

Jags moving slow with Lawrence The Jacksonville Jaguars expect quarterback Trevor Lawrence to be fully cleared to practice by training camp next month. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:15am

O'Neill hits tiebreaking double, Cards top Marlins 4-2 ST. LOUIS — Tyler O'Neill doubled home the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning and the slumping St. Louis Cardinals beat the Miami Marlins 4-2 on Monday night to halt a three-game slide. Adam Wainwright tossed six effective innings and Paul Goldschmidt had two hits and an RBI as the Cardinals won for only the third time in 14 games. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:08am

Tigers lose 2 pitchers to injuries, end 3-game skid, beat Royals KANSAS CITY — Detroit starter Matthew Boyd and reliever Alex Lange both exited with injuries and the Tigers still ended a three-game losing streak, beating the Kansas City Royals 10-3 Monday night. Willi Castro, Robbie Grossman and Niko Goodrum homered for Detroit. Miguel Cabrera got three hits and drove in two runs, with his RBI single keying a four-run first inning. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:05am

No Tiger as U.S. Open returns to Torrey Pines The strongest memory from the last U.S. Open at Torrey Pines was accompanied by three words that explain what golf was like then and now. The scene was the 18th hole in the final round of 2008. The consequences were as clear as the late afternoon sky over San Diego in June. by Associated Press Published Jun. 15 2021 @ 12:00am

A family affair at the U.S. Open for Ortiz brothers Carlos Ortiz was so tired from playing 30 holes in one day at the rain-soaked Memorial that he plopped down on the seat of a golf cart. Before long, he remembered to pull out his phone to check the scores. Alvaro Ortiz was playing a Korn Ferry Tour event. Exhausted to the point Carlos could barely think straight, his little brother was never too far from his mind. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 11:59pm

Larson appears to be unstoppable at Hendrick CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Everybody knew Kyle Larson was going to win races once he started driving Rick Hendrick's cars. But this? This looks like a driver capable of chasing down the modern-era record of 13 wins in a season set in 1975 by Richard Petty and tied in 1998 by Larson's childhood idol Jeff Gordon. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 11:57pm

Give Djokovic his due as he paves his 'own path' The question put to Novak Djokovic after he won the French Open for his 19th Grand Slam title, moving within one of rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for the men's record, was whether he ever was resigned to not being able to catch them. The context: Entering the 2011 season, Federer owned 16 major championships, Nadal nine and Djokovic one. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 11:56pm

UEFA defends itself from claims of pressure to play NYON, Switzerland — UEFA defended itself Monday from claims that Denmark players were put under pressure to resume their European Championship game against Finland after Christian Eriksen collapsed on the field. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 11:56pm

Eriksen's teammates to 'play for Christian' at Euro 2020 COPENHAGEN — Christian Eriksen had a simple message for his Denmark teammates when he spoke to them from the hospital for the first time following his collapse at the European Championship. "He told us to look forward, and to look forward to the game on Thursday," Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg said Monday. "That meant a lot. It gave me a form of energy." by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 11:54pm

Cubs finish off series sweep of Cardinals CHICAGO — Zach Davies tossed two-hit ball into the seventh inning to outduel Carlos Martinez, and the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 on Sunday night to complete a three-game sweep. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 12:01am

Olson, Chapman power Athletics past Royals OAKLAND, Calif. — Oakland's slugging Matts have a running joke how one is usually hot when the other's not. Lately, both are driving the ball — and they combined for three home runs Sunday. by Associated Press Published Jun. 14 2021 @ 12:01am

"He was gone': Eriksen's heart stopped before being resuscitated COPENHAGEN — Denmark's team doctor said Sunday that Christian Eriksen's heart stopped and "he was gone" before being resuscitated with a defibrillator at the European Championship. Eriksen collapsed during Denmark's opening Euro 2020 group game Saturday against Finland and was given lengthy medical treatment before regaining consciousness. by Associated Press Published Jun. 13 2021 @ 11:59pm

Larson wins his second NASCAR All-Star race FORT WORTH, Texas — Kyle Larson was back in the NASCAR All-Star race, and got another $1 million by winning it again. Larson held off a hard-charging Brad Keselowski during the final 10-lap shootout Sunday night at Texas, after a slippery three-wide pass to get back in front and push Hendrick Motorsports to its second consecutive win, and 10th overall, in the annual non-points race with a seven-figure prize. by Associated Press Published Jun. 13 2021 @ 11:53pm