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3 questions for the Raptors heading into the second half
The Raptors face a lot of questions heading to the second half of the NBA season, including the futures of Masai Ujiri & Kyle Lowry.
The Raptors face a lot of questions heading to the second half of the NBA season, including the futures of Masai Ujiri & Kyle Lowry.
Raptors beat the Magic behind career nights from Yuta Watanabe and Paul Watson.
Norman Powell hit a driving layup with 22.8 seconds remaining gave Portland a 107-106 lead, setting the stage for three former Raptors to take a crack at winning the game.
The Yankees have entered last place. Fans weren't happy.
Joe Buck will show off his broadcasting skills on "Jeopardy."
A video appeared to show Donald pushing people away from the man who filed an assault complaint against him.
A ridiculous fight broke out at a golf charity event after one man reportedly accused another of stealing his phone.
Canucks GM Jim Benning confirms Brazil's P.1 variant was responsible for the team's COVID-19 outbreak and details the impact it had on the players and staff.
Canada's Corey Conners notched six birdies on his back nine to take the lead after his second round of the RBC Heritage on Friday.
Nate Diaz is not impressed by Conor McGregor.
Toronto Raptors forward Paul Watson Jr. didn't smile much while he was torching the Orlando Magic for a career-high 30 points. Afterwards, he discussed his personality and how being in COVID-19 protocols impacted him. (e
The retired running back is lending his voice to try to help members of Black and Hispanic communities make more informed decisions about receiving COVID-19 vaccines.
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VANCOUVER — Heading into a new season, Vancouver Whitecaps coach Marc Dos Santos is frustrated. Just days before the Whitecaps are set to kick off their Major League Soccer campaign, he has yet to hold a training session with his full squad. National duty, visa issues and quarantine have kept several players from joining training camp at the club's temporary home in Sandy, Utah. “My frustration is not having everyone here, together, working together. That’s frustrating as a coach," Dos Santos said. "But it’s things we have to deal with." Every player who's been in training is ready to compete, he said, and there's a sense of excitement and anticipation about who's yet to come. "When you have so many guys that are not in, it also gives you a picture and an idea of how much our team can improve in the process of getting everybody at speed and everybody ready to play," the coach said. A choppy pre-season is just the latest hurdle Dos Santos and his group have to overcome. Last year, the Whitecaps weathered a string of injured goalkeepers, repeated COVID-19 interruptions, and a border closure that forced the team to relocate to Portland, Ore. The campaign ended with a 9-14-0 record and the 'Caps three points shy of a playoff spot. It's a result the club can build on, said midfielder Russell Teibert. "This season will present challenges but I think we’ve been through so much as a team from last year up until now that we’re able to take any challenge and turn any obstacle into an experience and a good experience," he said. The Whitecaps don't know how long they'll be stationed in Utah, or whether there will be fans in the stands when they finally return to B.C. Place. It's another odd season, but the team is still eager to get back on the field and play, said Maxime Crepeau. “The locker room is craving for it, I’m craving for it, individuals are craving for it. Because at the end of the day, that’s what we live on, it’s the game day, it’s the adrenalin, it’s beating the opponent," said the goalkeeper who played just four games last season before suffering a fractured thumb. Despite the season-ending injury, Crepeau stayed with the team when they moved to Portland. The team has grown close and the personal foundation they've built will help their play on the field this season, Crepeau said. “I’m really confident," he said. "There’s an atmosphere on the field with the guys it’s going to be tough to beat us this year and we want to be in the face of the opponent. That’s what we want. We bring it up every single day.” The core will be bolstered by off-season acquisitions like striker Deiber Caicedo, midfielder Caio Alexandre and right-back Bruno Gaspar. Caicedo, a 21-year-old Colombian, has already started for find rhythm with his teammates, particularly fellow forwards Lucas Cavallini and Cristian Dajome. "Right away we adapted with each other and we gelled," Cavallini said of the trio. "(Caicedo and Dajome are) two talented players, two fast, quick players that we need and that’s going to help this team a lot." Cavallini comes into his second MLS season in fine form. The 28-year-old Toronto native contributed three goals as Canada crushed the Cayman Islands 11-0 in World Cup qualifying action last month, and had two in Vancouver's 3-2 pre-season win over the Chicago Fire last week. The burly striker — known as "El Tanque" — took some time to find his scoring touch last season but finished the year with six goals in 18 appearances. Cavallini said he's changed his game coming into this season, looking to get more involved in the play and be on the ball more. "That’s the maturity I have nowadays," he said. "Hopefully we can benefit from that." Cavallini will be an important piece Sunday when the 'Caps open their season against the Portland Timbers. Portland finished the 2020 regular season third in the West with an 11-6-6 record and already have already played a pair of Champions League games this year. The 'Caps know they're in for stiff competition to start 2021, but the squad is ready, Cavallini said. "The team is fit, the team is ready, the team is hungry," he said. "We’ve just got to put everything on the pitch on Sunday. Obviously Portland is always a tough team, always good players but I feel that this year we can beat them." WHITECAPS AT A GLANCE LAST SEASON: Vancouver (9-14-0) finished three points outside of a playoff spot in the Western Conference. It was the third year in a row that the club has missed the post-season. TEMPORARY DIGS: Sandy, Utah, home of Real Salt Lake. MOVED ON: The Whitecaps have parted ways with forward Fredy Montero, midfielder David Milinkovic, and goalkeepers Evan Bush and Bryan Meredith. Defender Jasser Khmiri and midfielder Simon Colyn are out on loan. NEW ADDITIONS: Forwards Deiber Caicedo and David Egbo, midfielder Caio Alexandre, defenders Javian Brown and Bruno Gaspar, and goalkeeper Evan Newton have joined Vancouver this year. PLAYOFF PRESSURE: The 'Caps have not made the post-season under Marc Dos Santos, who's heading into the third and final year of his contract. Bucking the trend is a must for the coach this season. SIDELINED: Vancouver's back end will be thin to start the campaign. Defenders Ali Adnan (visa), Gaspar (quarantine) and Erik Gody and Derek Cornelius (both injured) will all miss Sunday's game. Midfielders Leonard Owusu (injured) and Alexandre, and forward Egbo (quarantine) are also unavailable. PLAYERS TO WATCH: Gaspar, an Angolan international, is on loan from Sporting CP in Portugal. Brazilian Alexandre is billed as a creative box-to-box midfielder. Goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau returns from a fractured thumb that kept him sidelined for all but four games last season. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 16, 2021. Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
After trying to block a pass, Donovan Mitchell landed and rolled his right ankle hard on the court on Friday afternoon.
Max Scherzer climbs the all-time strikeout list, plus Corey Seager hit a go-ahead homer in the 12th on this edition of FastCast
Condensed Game: Corey Seager's two-run homer helps lift the Dodgers over the Padres in an 11-6 win in extras
SAN DIEGO — Corey Seager hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer on Tim Hill’s first pitch of the 12th inning and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 11-6 Friday night in a tense, entertaining first matchup this season between NL West rivals who have visions of deep playoff runs. It took 4 hours, 57 minutes to decide this one, which ended early Saturday morning. The benches emptied after Dodgers reliever Dennis Santana hit Jorge Mateo with a pitch to put runners on the corners with one out in the 10th. Trent Grisham walked to load the bases, but Santana struck out Fernando Tatis Jr. to escape. The teams met for the first time since the Dodgers swept San Diego in their Division Series last year en route to winning the World Series. The Padres responded by beefing up their rotation, trading for Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove. Darvish and Snell are scheduled to pitch in the final two games of the three-game series. Seager homered with Mookie Betts on second base after making the last out of the 11th. The Dodgers added three more runs in the inning, including a sacrifice fly by reliever David Price (1-0) that was caught by Musgrove, who took over in left field after the Padres ran out of relievers. Left fielder Jurickson Profar moved to second base as infielder Jake Cronenworth came on to pitch. He got the final two outs, including striking out Betts to end the inning. Hill (0-2) allowed five runs, three earned, in 1 1/3 innings. After the Dodgers went ahead 6-5 in the ninth when Justin Turner singled in Betts, the Padres tied it with two outs in the bottom half when Eric Hosmer singled home Manny Machado. NATIONALS 1, DIAMONDBACKS 0 Kyle Schwarber hit a game-ending homer in the ninth inning, giving Washington a win over Arizona after Max Scherzer passed Cy Young on baseball’s career strikeouts list. The lefty-batting Schwarber connected on a 2-1 pitch from left-hander Alex Young (0-3), sending a drive to right that travelled an estimated 463 feet for his first homer for Washington. Brad Hand (1-0) worked a scoreless ninth for the win. The Nationals allowed just three hits. Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young Award winner, struck out the side in the seventh while passing Cy Young to move into 22nd place on baseball’s strikeout list. He finished with 10 on the day, giving him 2,808 for his career. RAYS 8, YANKEES 2 NEW YORK (AP) — Brandon Lowe hit a two-run double in the first inning off opener Nick Nelson (0-2), and AL champion Tampa Bay kept up its domination of New York, setting off frustrated fans who caused a brief interruption. The young, athletic Rays spurted to an 8-0, seventh-inning lead and beat the Yankees for the 16th time in their last 21 meetings, including during last year’s Division Series. New York walked seven Rays, had just three hits, struck out 14 times and made three errors that led to three unearned runs. The game was stopped for about 2 minutes, 15 seconds with Clint Frazier batting in the bottom of the eighth when about a half-dozen balls were thrown on the field from the pandemic-limited crowd of 10,202 on a cool, breezy night with a 45-degree temperature at game time. Michael Wacha (1-1) lowered his ERA from 7.00 to 4.20, allowing one hit in six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts and two walks. ATHLETICS 3, TIGERS 0 OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Frankie Montas allowed two hits in six sharp innings and Oakland won its sixth straight game by beating Detroit. After opening the season with six consecutive losses, the roller-coaster A’s (7-7) are back at .500 thanks to their follow-up winning streak. Oakland joined the 1991 Mariners and 1915 White Sox as the only teams to have both a six-game winning streak and six-game losing streak in the first 14 games of a season, according to SportRadar. Montas (2-1) walked one and struck out seven during an impressive 100-pitch outing. Mitch Moreland and Sean Murphy had two-out RBI hits in the fourth against José Ureña (0-3). Matt Chapman homered in the eighth, and Lou Trivino got his second save. MARINERS 6, ASTROS 5 SEATTLE (AP) — Ty France hit a game-ending RBI single, lifting Seattle to its third straight win. Mitch Haniger had three hits for the Mariners for the second time this week. France and Kyle Seager each drove in two runs. The Mariners trailed 5-4 before Evan White connected for a solo drive in the eighth. J.P. Crawford and Haniger opened the ninth with walks against Ryne Stanek (0-1), and France’s drive against Ryan Pressly landed on the warning track in right-centre and hopped over the wall. Anthony Misiewicz (2-0) worked a scoreless inning for the win after returning from the 10-day injured list earlier in the day. ANGELS 10, TWINS 3 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Justin Upton hit a grand slam in the seventh inning, and Jared Walsh homered and drove in three runs in the Angels’ victory. Mike Trout delivered a go-ahead, two-run single as the Angels returned from a .500 road trip and opened a six-game homestand with a prolific offensive performance. Aaron Slegers (1-0) got the win. Upton’s eighth career slam off Caleb Thielbar was part of a six-run, six-hit rally in the seventh. Mitch Garver had a two-run double and Josh Donaldson added a go-ahead single in the sixth for the Twins, who opened a six-game California road swing with their sixth loss in seven games. Randy Dobnak (0-3) got the loss. PHILLIES 8, CARDINALS 2 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Zach Eflin pitched into the eighth inning and J.T. Realmuto hit a two-run homer, leading Philadelphia past St. Louis. Eflin (1-0) allowed six hits, struck out six and walked none in seven-plus innings. The lanky right-hander retired 12 straight batters at one point and exited after surrendering a two-run homer to Justin Williams in the eighth. Cardinals righty Carlos Martinez (0-3) gave up six runs and five hits in five innings. The Phillies jumped ahead 6-0 in the second with their biggest inning of the season. Nine straight batters reached safely after Martinez got the first out. BRAVES 5, CUBS 2 CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Wright plunked four Chicago batters but still left with the lead after a last-minute call-up, and Will Smith stranded the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning for Atlanta. Wright was recalled from the club’s alternate site to replace Drew Smyly, who was scratched and placed on the 10-day injured list with left forearm inflammation Friday morning. Wright hit four batters, including Javier Báez twice, but limited Chicago to two runs and three hits over 4 1/3 innings. He also doubled for his first career hit. Four relievers, including winner Josh Tomlin (2-0), kept the Cubs scoreless until Smith entered for the ninth. Atlanta’s closer walked the bases loaded with two outs before striking out Joc Pederson to cap his third save in three tries. Willson Contreras homered off Wright as the Cubs lost their second straight and fifth of six. The first four runs came off Chicago starter Zach Davies (1-2). MARLINS 4, GIANTS 1 MIAMI (AP) — Starling Marte snapped an eighth-inning tie with a three-run homer and Miami defeated San Francisco. Jazz Chisholm Jr. also homered for the Marlins. Marte’s shot to left-centre field off reliever Wandy Peralta sent Miami to its fifth victory in six games. Pinch-hitter Jesús Aguilar began the decisive rally with a one-out walk against reliever Matt Wisler (0-2). Corey Dickerson’s single advanced pinch-runner Magneuris Sierra to second. Anthony Bass (1-2) pitched a perfect eighth and Yimi García closed with a scoreless ninth for his third save. ORIOLES 5, RANGERS 2 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rio Ruiz and D.J. Stewart homered, Jorge López struck out eight in five innings and Baltimore topped Texas for its latest road win. No. 9 hitter Freddy Galvis had two extra-base hits and scored twice for the Orioles, who improved to 5-2 on the road this season. They were 1-6 on their first homestand, and had to play two doubleheaders against Seattle in the previous three days after a couple of postponements. A week after getting no-hit by San Diego Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove, the Rangers didn’t have a hit off López (1-2) until David Dahl and Nick Solak started the fifth with back-to-back homers. Those were the only hits allowed by López, who had given up 11 runs over 8 2/3 innings in his first two starts. César Valdez, the fourth Baltimore reliever, worked around two baserunners in the ninth for his third save in four chances. Rangers right-hander Mike Foltynewicz (0-3) allowed five runs and seven hits over five innings. REDS 10, INDIANS 3 CINCINNATI (AP) — Joey Votto hit a two-run homer to cap a seven-run third inning and Cincinnati cruised past Cleveland. Jeff Hoffman (2-1) gave the Reds another solid start, surrendering just a run and seven hits through six innings and helping himself with a looping RBI single in the third. Nick Castellanos homered in the sixth inning for the Reds, who struck first in the weekend battle of Ohio. Amed Rosario and Jordan Luplow homered for Cleveland, and Josh Naylor had three hits. Indians starter Logan Allen (1-2) didn’t make it out of the third inning. He gave up five runs on three hits, but reliever Phil Maton surrendered the big hits to Suárez and Votto before getting out of the inning. PIRATES 6, BREWERS 1 MILWAUKEE (AP) — JT Brubaker struck out eight in six impressive innings and Pittsburgh extended its recent surge by beating Milwaukee. Colin Moran and Gregory Polanco homered for the Pirates, who have followed a six-game skid by winning five of seven. Adam Frazier added a two-run triple. Brubaker (2-0) yielded one run and four hits, lowering his ERA to 1.76 in three starts this season. The right-hander didn’t walk anybody, though he did hit three batters. Adrian Houser (1-2) allowed three runs in 4 1/3 innings, ending Milwaukee’s franchise-record streak of eight straight games in which its starting pitchers worked at least five innings while allowing no more than one run. Brewers starters posted an 0.59 ERA during that stretch. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB The Associated Press
SAN DIEGO — Corey Seager hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer on Tim Hill's first pitch of the 12th inning and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 11-6 Friday night in a tense, entertaining first matchup this season between NL West rivals who have visions of deep playoff runs. It took 4 hours, 57 minutes to decide this one, which ended early Saturday morning. The benches emptied after Dodgers reliever Dennis Santana hit Jorge Mateo with a pitch to put runners on the corners with one out in the 10th. Trent Grisham walked to load the bases, but Santana struck out Fernando Tatis Jr. to escape. The teams met for the first time since the Dodgers swept San Diego in their Division Series last year en route to winning the World Series. The Padres responded by beefing up their rotation, trading for Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove. Darvish and Snell are scheduled to pitch in the final two games of the three-game series. Seager homered to centre field, his second, with Mookie Betts on second base after making the last out of the 11th. The Dodgers added three more runs in the inning, including a sacrifice fly by reliever David Price (1-0) that was caught by Musgrove, who took over in left field after the Padres ran out of relievers. Left fielder Jurickson Profar moved to second base as Jake Cronenworth took over on the mound. He got the final two outs, including striking out Betts to end the inning. Hill (0-2) allowed five runs, three earned, and four hits in 1 1/3 innings. After the Dodgers went ahead 6-5 in the ninth when Justin Turner singled in Betts, the Padres tied it at 6 with two outs in the ninth when Eric Hosmer singled home Manny Machado. The Padres had tied the game at 5 on Profar's opposite-field, two-run double to left in the eighth inning off Corey Knebel. Tatis returned from the 10-day injured list in a big way when he homered to centre field off Buehler for a 2-1 lead in the fifth. But Tatis' throwing error from shortstop contributed to the Dodgers scoring three runs in the sixth on two singles, a walk and a wild pitch. With runners on first and third and two outs, Tatis made a nice diving stop of Chris Taylor's RBI infield single and his throw to second went past Cronenworth, who was late covering the bag. Max Muncy scored on the error and Taylor scored on Keone Kela's wild pitch for a 4-2 lead. Zach McKinstry hit an RBI double in the eighth for a two-run lead. Padres rookie Luis Campusano hit an RBI single off Walker Buehler in the second and Dodgers rookie Luke Raley tied it with one out in the fifth when he hit his first homer, off Dan Altavilla. Raley made his big league debut a week earlier and got his first hit Wednesday night, a double against Colorado. Buehler allowed two runs and seven hits in six innings while striking out four and walking one. Padres rookie Ryan Weathers, the son of former big league pitcher David Weathers, made his first career start and held the Dodgers to one hit in 3 2/3 scoreless innings while striking out three and walking two. Weathers made his major league debut with 1 1/3 scoreless innings in Game 1 of the NLDS when the Padres had to turn to their bullpen after Mike Clevinger left with an elbow injury. NO-NO CEREMONY Before the game, Musgrove, who grew up in suburban El Cajon, was honoured for throwing the first no-hitter in Padres history, at Texas on April 9. “After 8,206 games, the Padres have a no-hitter, brought to us by a native son,” Padres owner Peter Seidler said during a ceremony at home plate that included Musgrove's family and girlfriend. Musgrove was presented with a framed No. 44 jersey signed by his teammates and a check for $8,206 for his favourite charity, the Challenged Athletes Foundation. TRAINER'S ROOM Dodgers: CF Cody Bellinger has a hairline fracture in his left fibula. Manager Dave Roberts offered no timetable for his return. Bellinger was injured when he was spiked on a close play at first base at Oakland on April 5. Padres: Tatis was activated from the 10-day injured list. He had been sidelined with a partially dislocated left shoulder sustained while striking out on a violent swing April 6. To make room, utility man Tucupita Marcano was optioned to the alternate training site. UP NEXT Dodgers: LHP Clayton Kershaw (2-1, 2.89 ERA) is scheduled to start Saturday night. He is 21-7 with a 2.03 ERA in 40 career starts against the Padres, including 9-3 with a 1.83 ERA in 17 starts at Petco Park. Padres: RHP Yu Darvish (1-0, 3.06) starts against one of his former teams. ___ More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports Bernie Wilson, The Associated Press
Dodgers beat Padres in thrilling 12-inning battle.