Longoria homers in return to Oracle Park, but SF Giants get last laugh to beat NL West leaders

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Longoria homers in return to Oracle Park, but SF Giants get last laugh to beat NL West leaders SAN FRANCISCO — Evan Longoria, who called Oracle Park home for five seasons, hammered a 436-foot home run onto the netting in center field on the second pitch he saw Friday night in his return with the Arizona Diamondbacks. His former teammates took the slugging from there, though.A line drive shot from rookie catcher Patrick Bailey, who hadn’t played above High-A during Longoria’s tenure in a Giants uniform, put the finishing touches on a five-run sixth inning that proved to be the difference in the San Francisco’s 8-5 win to start a three-game weekend series against the leaders of the National League West.With their 11th win in their past 12 games, the Giants (43-33) pulled within 2½ games of the D-backs (46-31) for the division lead. Brandon Crawford made a sensational diving play behind the bag at second base to record the final out, clinching Camilo Doval’s National League-leading 21st save.After scoring at least seven runs in seven of the first eight ga...

Kansas’ GOP attorney general moves to block transgender people from changing their birth certificates

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Kansas’ GOP attorney general moves to block transgender people from changing their birth certificates TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ GOP attorney general moves to block transgender people from changing their birth certificates.Source

Conforto drives in 4 runs to back Webb in the Giants’ 8-5 victory over the Diamondbacks

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Conforto drives in 4 runs to back Webb in the Giants’ 8-5 victory over the Diamondbacks SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Michael Conforto hit a pair of two-run doubles, Patrick Bailey homered to back Logan Webb’s third straight winning start and the San Francisco Giants beat the road-weary Arizona Diamondbacks 8-5 on Friday night.Webb (7-6) gave up four runs on five hits, struck out five with two walks in his latest gem. The Giants are 4-0 over his last four outings, winning for the 11th time in 12 games dating to June 11.J.D. Davis hit a tying double in the fifth to make it 4-4 and chase Arizona right-hander Zach Davies (1-4), who lost his third straight start.Corbin Carroll had an RBI groundout in the top of the fifth that briefly put Arizona ahead before Conforto came through again.Evan Longoria homered in the second against his former San Francisco club. But with runners on second and third and two outs in the eighth, Tyler Rogers retired Longoria on a called third strike to escape the threat. Camilo Doval pitched the ninth for his 21st save, getting shortstop Brandon Crawford...

AP’s Global Week in Pictures: June 17 – June 23

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

AP’s Global Week in Pictures: June 17 – June 23 June 17 – June 23, 2023From revelers celebrating the Summer Solstice, near Salisbury, England, to Saudi special force members, warming up for a parade in preparation for the annual Hajj pilgrimage to people cremating relatives who died during a scorching heat wave in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, this photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images from around the world made or published by the Associated Press in the past week.The selections were curated by AP photo editor Subramoney Iyer in New Delhi.Follow AP visual journalism:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apnews/AP Images on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_ImagesSource

Nneka Ogwumike scores 20, Los Angeles rallies from 17-point deficit to beat Dallas

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Nneka Ogwumike scores 20, Los Angeles rallies from 17-point deficit to beat Dallas LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points, Destanni Henderson had a career-high 18 points and the Los Angeles Sparks rallied from 17 points down to beat the Dallas Wings 76-74 on Friday night.Los Angeles took its first lead with 2:28 left in the fourth quarter on a free throw by Chiney Ogwumike. Sparks guard Jordin Canada made two free throws with 54.1 seconds left for a 76-74 lead and the Wings had a shot-clock violation at the other end for its 18th turnover. Canada had a jumper rattle out and Dallas secured the rebound and raced the other way, but Crystal Dangerfield’s runner at the buzzer did not hit the rim.Canada also scored 18 points for Los Angeles (6-7), which snapped a three-game losing streak. Los Angeles missed its first 10 3-pointers and finished 2 of 18 from distance. But the Sparks made 22 of 25 free throws compared to 13 of 17 for Dallas.Natasha Howard had 23 points and 12 rebounds for Dallas (6-7). Arike Ogunbowale scored 14 of her 16 points in the fi...

Mariners score 7 in the 8th to cap a 13-1 win over the Orioles

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Mariners score 7 in the 8th to cap a 13-1 win over the Orioles BALTIMORE (AP) — Logan Gilbert allowed two hits in seven innings, Teoscar Hernández and Tom Murphy homered and the Seattle Mariners routed the Baltimore Orioles 13-1 on Friday night in a game that started 100 minutes late because of rain.Murphy hit a two-run shot off Kyle Gibson (8-5) to cap a four-run third for Seattle, and Gilbert (5-4) had an outstanding night on the mound. He struck out just five but induced plenty of weak contact.“I think when I’m at my best it’s pretty effortless, and just kind of smooth and easy, and that’s how it felt tonight,” said Gilbert, who was perfect in innings three through six. “It’s kind of what we were working on in the midweek bullpen, and happy to take it into the game.”American League batting leader Austin Hays singled in the second for Baltimore’s lone hit until Anthony Santander homered in the seventh.The Mariners were already comfortably ahead before they added seven runs in the eighth. Hernández, Ty France and ...

Dodgers edge defending champion Astros 3-2 as LA fans rain down boos on Altuve and Bregman

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Dodgers edge defending champion Astros 3-2 as LA fans rain down boos on Altuve and Bregman LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Busch doubled in the go-ahead in the fourth inning, Mookie Betts homered and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Houston Astros 3-2 in an acrimonious game on Friday night.The first interleague meeting since 2021 between the defending World Series champion Astros and the Dodgers, who led baseball with 111 wins last season, was filled with acrimony.Most of the players from Houston’s 2017 World Series championship team are gone, but that didn’t stop Dodgers fans from expressing their lingering resentment from the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal that season.The Astros’ lineup was introduced to boos, with the loudest derision saved for Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman. The crowd of 49,795 chanted “Cheater! Cheater!” in between heavy booing during their at-bats. Altuve and Bregman were a combined 0 for 6. Bregman walked twice.Astros manager Dusty Baker said before the game that he hoped the atmosphere “is more subdued.”“They say time heals all wounds and somebody has...

Los audaces movimientos de William como nuevo príncipe de Gales

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Los audaces movimientos de William como nuevo príncipe de Gales (CNN) — Es el heredero al trono británico, está casado con Catalina, princesa de Gales, y es padre de un trío que complace a las multitudes. Pero, ¿cuánto sabes realmente sobre el hombre que ahora ostenta el título de príncipe de Gales?Nueve meses después de su nombramiento, el príncipe de Gales, que el miércoles celebró su 41 cumpleaños, concedió una entrevista al Sunday Times británico en la que habló de sus motivaciones y de la evolución de sus funciones reales. Era la primera vez desde que se convirtió en heredero al trono que William hablaba con la prensa, su primera entrevista con un periódico, y no rehuyó algunas de las preguntas más difíciles que se le plantearon.El quid de la entrevista fueron sus esfuerzos por combatir el problema de las personas sin hogar en el Reino Unido, un tema al que se dedica desde hace mucho tiempo, y que tal vez arraigó en su infancia de la mano de su difunta madre.William opina que hay muchos malentendidos y muchos juicios con respecto a có...

Ohtani hits MLB-best 25th homer, goes back-to-back with Trout, but Díaz rallies Rockies past Angels

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Ohtani hits MLB-best 25th homer, goes back-to-back with Trout, but Díaz rallies Rockies past Angels DENVER (AP) — Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout hit back-to-back homers at Coors Field, but Elias Díaz’s go-ahead grand slam in the eighth inning rallied the Colorado Rockies past the Los Angeles Angels 7-4 on Friday night.Jurickson Profar launched a leadoff homer for the Rockies, who snapped their longest losing streak of the season at eight games. Díaz doubled and finished with three hits. His 426-foot drive to center field marked the first grand slam by a Rockies player since Díaz went deep in Philadelphia on Sept. 10, 2021. Ohtani smashed his major league-leading 25th home run and was a triple shy of the cycle. He has at least one extra-base hit in 10 consecutive road games, a franchise record and the longest such streak in the majors since 2009.Ohtani’s tiebreaking solo shot in the fifth was followed by Trout’s 16th of the season, giving Los Angeles a 4-2 lead. Both drives traveled a projected 434 feet.It was the ninth time the two superstars have hit back-to-back home r...

Bogaerts, Soto and Kim homer to back Musgrove in the Padres’ 13-3 win over the Nationals

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 11:51:10 GMT

Bogaerts, Soto and Kim homer to back Musgrove in the Padres’ 13-3 win over the Nationals SAN DIEGO (AP) — Xander Bogaerts, Juan Soto and Ha-Seong Kim hit home runs and Joe Musgrove threw seven strong innings to lead the San Diego Padres to a 13-3 victory against the Washington Nationals on Friday night.The superstar-laden Padres, who have struggled at the plate most of the season to tumble into fourth place in the NL West, scored in double digits in consecutive games for the first time this year. They won 10-0 at San Francisco on Thursday to avoid a four-game sweep.Bogaerts hit a three-run shot, Soto connected to drive in two runs and Kim hit his first career leadoff homer. Soto and Kim each had three RBIs.Bogaerts, the $280 million shortstop who has been bothered by a sore left wrist, capped the six-run fifth inning with a two-out shot into the left-field seats off Patrick Corbin, his eighth. His last homer came exactly a month earlier, at Washington. Kim hit a two-run single and Manny Machado had an RBI groundout that inning.Kim drove Corbin’s third pitch over t...