Yankees Astros Baseball

New York’s Juan Soto celebrates after hitting an RBI single in the ninth inning of the Yankees’ 4-3 win over the Astros on Sunday in Houston. Kevin Cox/Associated Press

BASEBALL

Juan Soto had three hits capped by an RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning that lifted the New York Yankees to a 4-3 win Sunday that completed an opening four-game sweep of the Astros in Houston.

With the score 3-3, Gleyber Torres singled off closer Josh Hader (0-1) with two outs in the ninth inning and stole second base. Soto then singled on a line drive to left field.

Soto hit .529 (9 for 17) with four RBI in his first games with the Yankees after his trade from San Diego, helping New York to its first 4-0 start since 2003 and just its fourth since 1950.

• Trea Turner capitalized on a third out overturned on replay with a tying single and Alec Bohm drove in the two runs in the seventh inning to rally the Philadelphia Phillies over the Atlanta Braves 5-4 in Philadelphia.

The win settled some nerves among the grumbling sports faithful in Philly after Atlanta decisively won the first two games.

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• Justin Turner homered and drove in four runs as the Toronto Blue Jays gained a spit of a four-game series by beating the Tampa Bay Rays 9-2 in St. Petersburg, Florida.

• Reid Detmers gave the Angels some much-needed effectiveness on the mound, allowing one run in five innings to help Los Angeles avoid a season-opening sweep with a 4-1 win over the Orioles in Baltimore.

• Pitchers Génesis Cabrera of the Toronto Blue Jays and Yohan Ramírez of the New York Mets were suspended for three games each by Major League Baseball on Sunday for their actions in separate games.

And Mets Manager Carlos Mendoza was suspended for one game as a result of Ramírez’s actions, Major League Baseball senior vice president for on-field operations Michael Hill said.

• Right-hander Jake Cousins was acquired by the New York Yankees from the Chicago White Sox for cash.

The 29-year-old Cousins had a 4.82 ERA in 9 1/3 innings over nine relief appearances for Milwaukee last year, allowing five runs, 10 hits and 10 walks with seven strikeouts He was 3-2 with a 6.35 ERA in 29 relief appearances for Triple-A Nashville and Sugar Land and the Arizona Complex League Brewers.

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NASCAR

CUP SERIES: Denny Hamlin won the race off pit road with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. after a caution with two laps to go and won in overtime at Richmond Raceway.

Truex dominated the second half of the NASCAR Cup Series race and seemed poised to hold off challenges by Joey Logano and Hamlin for the final two laps when Kyle Larson got nudged from behind on the front straightaway and skidded into the infield, causing the caution.

Hamlin’s victory was his second this season, the fifth of his career at what he considers his home track, and the 53rd of his career, but it left Truex unhappy with several drivers involved.

The victory pulled the four Gibbs Toyota teams even with the four Chevrolet teams from Hendrick Motorsports with three victories each through seven races.

BASKETBALL

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NBA: Nikola Jokic had 26 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists for his 22nd triple-double of the season, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-101 in Denver to snap a two-game home losing streak.

Jokic got his 128th career triple-double despite dealing with a sore right wrist that nearly kept him out of Friday’s loss to Minnesota.

• Victor Wembanyama’s celebratory tossing of a basketball into the stands was costly.

The NBA fined the San Antonio rookie $25,000 for the act, which came at the end of Friday’s 130-126 overtime win for the Spurs over the New York Knicks.

GOLF

PGA TOUR: Stephan Jaeger won his first PGA Tour event in his 135th attempt, closing with nine straight pars for a 3-under 67 and avoiding a playoff when Scottie Scheffler missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the final hole of the Houston Open.

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Scheffler was trying to become the first player in seven years to win three straight starts on the PGA Tour, and he was right there with a chance. He two-putted for birdie from 20 feet on the par-5 16th and missed from 12 feet for birdie on the 17th.

His 5-foot birdie putt to force a playoff missed to the left, and Scheffler had to settle for a 68 and a runner-up finish.

EUROPEAN TOUR: Keita Nakajima of Japan chose to focus on the European tour instead of a smaller American circuit and made the decision pay off Sunday when he closed with a 1-over 73 to win the Hero Indian Open in New Delhi.

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS: Retief Goosen hit into the water on the par-5 18th hole and saved par to win The Galleri Classic in Rancho Mirage, California, with a 3-under 69 and with plenty of help from the blunders of Steven Alker.

LPGA TOUR: Top-ranked Nelly Korda became the first LPGA Tour player in eight years to win three straight starts, shooting a 7-under 65 on a soggy day for a two-stroke victory in the Ford Championship in Gilbert, Arizona.

TENNIS

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MIAMI OPEN: Jannik Sinner’s strong 2024 continued as he won the Miami Open with 6-3, 6-1 victory over 11th seed Grigor Dimitrov in Miami Gardens, Florida.

In a flawless display on a 79-degree afternoon, Sinner, the 2024 Australian Open champion, moved to 22-1 on the year in winning the Miami Open for the first time. Sinner had been runner-up twice in 2021 and 2023.

SOCCER

WOMEN’S ENGLISH LEAGUE CUP: Emma Hayes, the incoming coach of the U.S. women’s national team, appeared to push Arsenal Coach Jonas Eidevall and later complained about “male aggression” after Chelsea’s quadruple bid ended with defeat in the Women’s English League Cup final.

Arsenal won 1-0 in extra time after Stina Blackstenius scored in the 116th minute at Molineux.

Hayes appeared to push Eidevall and say something to him as he went to shake her hand after the final whistle.

When questioned later, the Chelsea coach said “I’m not down for male aggression on the touchline.”

PREMIER LEAGUE: Everton reported losses of 89.1 million pounds ($112.5 million) in its latest accounts.

Its losses for the 2022-23 season went up from 44.7 million pounds in the previous campaign.


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