Update on the latest sports
HORSE RACING-KENTUCKY DERBY
Baffert gets record seventh Derby win with Media Spirit
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Bob Baffert has become the winningest trainer in the 147-year history of the Kentucky Derby.
Baffert claimed his seventh victory in the Run For The Roses as Medina Spirit fought off three challengers in the stretch to win by a half-length.
Jockey John Velazquez earned his fourth Derby victory aboard the dark brown colt that was purchased as a yearling for $1,000 and cost current owner Amr Zedan $35,000. Going off at 12-1, Media Spirit paid $26.20, $12 and $7.60 after running the 1 1/4-mile race in 2:01.02.
Mandaloun finished second and returned $23.00 and 13.40. Hot Rod Charlie was another half-length back in third and paid $5.20 to show. Essential Quality finished fourth after going off as the 5-2 favorite.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Jazz regain West lead, Nuggets pass Clippers
UNDATED (AP) — The top of the NBA’s Western Conference standings has changed a bit since Saturday morning. The Utah Jazz are back atop the conference by a half-game over Phoenix, and the Denver Nuggets have moved a half-game ahead of the Clippers for the third seed.
In Salt Lake City, Bojan (BOY’-ahn) Bogdanovic drained six 3-pointers while scoring 34 points as the Jazz beat the Raptors, 106-102. Rudy Gobert (goh-BEHR’) added 13 points and 16 rebounds to help Utah win for just the second time in five games.
Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles added 15 points apiece, with Ingles grabbing 16 rebounds.
The Nuggets went into Los Angeles and came away with a 110-104 victory over the Clippers. Nikola Jokic (nih-KOH’-lah YOH’-kihch) contributed 30 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in Denver’s fifth straight win.
The Nuggets are 9-1 since Jamal Murray went down with a torn ACL in his left knee on April 12.
Paul George paced the Clippers with 20 points and Rajon Rondo (RAH’-zhahn RAHN’-doh) added 18. Kawhi (kah-WY’) Leonard returned to the L.A. lineup after missing nine of the past 10 games due to right foot soreness and had 16 points.
Checking out Saturday’s other NBA action:
— Dorian Finney-Smith hit a go-ahead 3-pointer in the final seconds of the Mavericks’ 125-124 thriller against the Wizards. Luka Doncic (DAHN’-chihch) finished with 31 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high 20 assists to help Dallas pull even with the Lakers for fifth in the West. Russell Westbrook had 42 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Wizards, who lost for just the third time in 15 games.
— Trae Young scored 33 points and the Hawks snapped a three-game slide by rallying for a 108-97 win against the Bulls. Clint Capela had 20 points and 11 rebounds for Atlanta, which trailed by double-digits early in the second half before embarking on a 13-0 run. John Collins delivered a 3-pointer that put the Hawks ahead for good.
— Kendrick Nunn scored 22 points and Duncan Robinson had 20 in the Heat’s 124-107 win over the Cavaliers, putting Miami in a tie for sixth in the East. Robinson made 6 of 9 3-pointers, making him the fastest NBA player to reach 500 threes in a career at 152 games. Trevor Ariza (ah-REE’-zah) scored 18 points and Bam Adebayo (ad-eh-BY’-oh) collected 13, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Heat, who are in a three-way battle with Atlanta and Boston for fifth, sixth and seventh in the conference.
— Rookie standout LaMelo Ball returned from a 21-game absence with 11 points, leading the Hornets to a 107-94 victory over the Pistons. Ball had surgery to repair a broken wrist sustained on March 20. Terry Rozier led Charlotte with 29 points, including a 3-pointer to beat the shot clock and help stave off Detroit’s final rally late in the fourth quarter.
— Domantas Sabonis (doh-MAHN’-tahs sah-BOH’-nihs) had a triple-double by halftime and the Pacers flirted with the largest margin of victory in league history before settling for a 152-95 laugher against the Thunder. Sabonis finished with 26 points, 19 rebounds and 14 assists in Indiana’s highest-scoring game since joining the NBA in 1976. The Pacers led by 67 points with 4:12 remaining one off the league mark.
— Cole Anthony buried a 27-foot, contested 3-pointer with one-tenth of a second remaining to send the Magic to a 112-111 win over the Grizzlies. Anthony scored a career-best 26 points and added eight rebounds and six assists for Orlando. Dillon Brooks scored 23 points and Ja (jah) Morant added 22 points and seven assists for the Grizzlies, who led by 20 in the second half.
— Stephen Curry bounced back from a rough first half with 23 of his 30 points in the third quarter of the Warriors’ 113-87 thrashing of the Rockets. Curry was just 2 for 12 in the first half, then didn’t even need to play in the fourth quarter after the Warriors outscored the Rockets 39-12 to take an 88-67 lead. Andrew Wiggins had 20 points for Golden State, and Mychal Mulder and Jordan Poole both added 17 off the bench.
— Zion Williamson scored nine of his 37 points in overtime and the Pelicans came back to beat the Timberwolves, 140-136. Lonzo Ball had a career-high 33 points, tied a career best with eight 3-pointers, and grabbed 11 rebounds.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Pens pass Caps, Isles clinch
UNDATED (AP) — There’s been another standings shakeup in the NHL’s East Division. The Penguins are back in first place, two points ahead of Washington and four in front of the New York Islanders. The Bruins are five back and on the verge of clinching a Stanley Cup playoff berth.
Bryan Rust scored two unassisted goals in the Penguins’ 3-0 win over the Capitals in Washington. Rust’s second goal of the game was the 100th of his career.
Tristan Jarry stopped 23 shots in his second shutout of the season.
The Islanders have wrapped up a playoff berth with a 3-0 shutout of the Rangers.
It’s the seventh shutout of the season by Semyon Varlamov, and his fourth versus the Blueshirts this season. Anthony Beauvillier (boh-VIH’-lee-ay) scored twice, Mat Barzal (bahr-ZAL’) had a breakaway goal and Josh Bailey assisted on all three tallies.
Craig Smith’s hat trick highlighted the Bruins’ 6-2 win over the Sabres, leaving Boston 7-1-0 against Buffalo this season. Nick Ritchie added a goal and an assist to back rookie goalie Jeremy Swayman, who made 17 saves in his eighth start. David Krejci (KRAY’-chee) had three assists, all on Smith’s goals as the B’s won for the ninth time in 11 games.
Elsewhere on NHL ice:
— Dougie Hamilton scored on a breakaway with 52.1 seconds showing on the clock in overtime, lifting the Hurricanes to a 2-1 victory against the Blue Jackets. Alex Nedeljkovic (neh-DEHL’-koh-vihch) picked up the assist on the winning play and stopped 31 shots as the Central Division leaders extended their points streak to 10 games. Teuvo Teravainen (TAY’-voh tehr-ah-VY’-nehn) tied it for Carolina.
— Anthony Duclair had two goals and an assist in the Panthers’ third straight win, 5-4 versus the Blackhawks. Aleksander Barkov scored his team-leading 25th goal and had an assist as Florida improved to 8-2-1 in its last 11 and remained two points behind first-place Carolina in the Central Division. Barkov, Duclair and Owen Tippett connected in a 1:06 span bridging the second and third periods after Chicago had tied it at 2.
— Sam Gagner scored to end an eight-round shootout and give the Red Wings a 1-0 victory over the Lightning. Thomas Greiss (grys) handled 33 shots in his second shutout of the season and 15th of his career. Greiss appeared to allow a third-period goal by Ondrej Palat (AHN’-dray pah-LAHT’), but the score was negated by goaltender interference.
— Erik Haula (HAH’-lah) scored 3:32 into overtime to give the Predators a 1-0 victory over the Stars. Juuse Saros (YOO’-see SAH’-rohs) made 28 saves as Nashville won for the third time in four games. The Stars fell three points behind the Predators for the final Central Division playoff berth.
— Jonathan Marchessault (MAHR’-sheh-soh) scored on a power play at 3:04 of OT, and Marc-Andre Fleury moved into a tie for the third on the NHL’s all-time wins list as the Golden Knights nipped the Coyotes, 3-2. William Karlsson and Mark Stone scored to put Vegas up, and Fleury blanked Arizona for the first two periods. The outcome allowed Vegas to maintain its four-point lead over Colorado in the West Division.
— Nathan MacKinnon bounced back from a rare scoreless night with a goal and an assist to lead the Avalanche past the Sharks, 4-3. MacKinnon ended his 15-game points streak Friday night and failed to get a shot on goal for the first time in 264 games. Mikko Rantanen scored his 28th of the season and added an assist for Colorado, while and Devan Dubnyk (DOOB’-nihk) stopped 22 shots against his former team.
— Kevin Fiala (fee-A’-lah) scored 2:16 into overtime to complete the Wild’s rally in a 4-3 triumph over the Blues. Nico Strum and Jonas Brodin scored late in the third period to force overtime for Minnesota, which won for the first time in three games. Mats Zuccarello had a goal and an assist as the Wild ended the Blues’ four-game winning streak.
— Auston Matthews leads the league with 38 goals after burying two more in the Maple Leafs’ fifth consecutive win, 5-1 against the Canucks. The 23-year-old sniper’s second of the night was his league-best 12th game-winner and his 17th goal in his last 17 contests. Jack Campbell stopped 26 shots for the North Division leaders.
— The Oilers dumped the Flames, 4-1 behind Connor McDavid’s goal and two assists. Ethan Bear, Josh Archibald and Darnell Nurse also scored for the Oilers, who finished with a 6-4 record against the Flames. Leon Draisaitl (DRY’-sy-tul) assisted on all four goals and Mike Smith made 29 saves as Edmonton dropped Calgary eight points out of a playoff berth with six games to play.
— Cole Caufield’s first career NHL goal was a big one as he scored in overtime to complete the Canadiens’ 3-2 come-from-behind victory over the Senators. Tyler Toffoli (tah-FOH’-lee) and Jeff Petry (PEE’-tree) each scored and added an assist in the second comeback victory in as many nights for Montreal. Goals by Tim Stutzle (STOOT’-sul) and Thomas Chabot (shah-BAHT’) gave Ottawa a 2-0 lead.
— Ryan Miller made 23 saves to win the final home start of his 18-year NHL career, guiding the Ducks to a 6-2 win over the Kings. Danton Heinen and Jacob Larsson had a goal and two assists in Anaheim’s first regulation home win in 24 games.
— Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 30 shots and the Devils claimed their third straight win since a 10-game skid by topping the Flyers, 4-1. Jesper Bratt, Janne Kuokkanen (YAH’-nee KWOH’-kah-nehn), Nico Hischier (HEE’-shee-ur) and Yegor Sharangovich (yeh-GOHR’ shar-an-GOH’-vihch) all scored for New Jersey.
NHL-CANUCKS-VIRTANEN
Canucks’ Virtanen on leave amid sexual misconduct inquiry
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — The Vancouver Canucks have placed right wing Jake Virtanen (vur-TAN’-ehn) on leave following allegations of sexual misconduct.
The team said in a statement Saturday it “does not accept sexual misconduct of any kind and the claims as reported are being treated very seriously.” The Canucks add there will be an independent investigation.
MLB-SCHEDULE
Yanks stay hot
UNDATED (AP) — The New York Yankees continue to roll since a 7-13 start to the season.
Aaron Judge had three hits and three RBIs as the Yankees downed the sputtering Tigers, 6-4. Gleyber (GLAY’-bur) Torres also drove in three runs as the Yankees won for the sixth time in seven games and improved to 13-14.
James Taillon (TY’-ahn) allowed one run, three hits and struck out eight over five innings for his first victory in exactly two years.
Detroit has the majors’ worst record at 8-20.
In other major league action:
— Tim Anderson launched a grand slam and Leury (lay-OOR’-ee) García drove in three runs from the No. 9 spot in the lineup, sending the White Sox past the Indians, 7-1. Lance Lynn allowed three runs over five innings in his return from the injured list for Chicago, which has won seven of nine.
— Andrew Benintendi (behn-ihn-TEHN’-dee) homered twice and Danny Duffy allowed a run over seven innings as the Royals hammered the Twins, 11-3. Salvador Perez homered and drove in three runs to help Kansas City improve to an AL-best 16-9.
— Isiah Kiner-Falefa (KY’-nur fuh-LEH’-fuh) homered and had an RBI triple among his trio of hits as the Rangers dumped the Red Sox, 8-6. Willie Calhoun’s three hits for Texas included a two-run homer.
— Matt Harvey won his third straight start and the Orioles took advantage of Oakland’s sloppy play to score six runs in the third inning of an 8-4 win. The Athletics made two errors and threw a pair of wild pitches to help Baltimore break loose before DJ Stewart added a two-run home run in the sixth.
— Jose Urquidy (ur-KEE’-dee) scattered four hits over seven shutout innings of the Astros’ 3-1 victory against the Rays. Houston scored three times in the first inning as Alex Bregman hit an RBI single and Yuli Gurriel had a two-run single in the Astros’ eighth win in 10 games since a 1-9 skid.
— Jacob Walsh homered in back-to-back innings while the Angels were building an 8-0 lead in a 10-5 dismantling of the Mariners. Mike Trout homered for the 28th time in Seattle, and Anthony Rendon (rehn-DOHN’) contributed a two-run double and a two-run homer.
— Travis Shaw’s RBI single capped the Brewers’ three-run 11th in a 6-5 comeback over the Dodgers. Shaw also homered in Milwaukee’s third straight win over Los Angeles.
— Dom Nuñez belted a grand slam and the Rockies banged out 18 hits in a 14-6 romp over the Diamondbacks. Trevor Story had three hits that included a two-run homer, and Ryan McMahon drove in four for Colorado.
— Blake Snell earned his first win as a Padre, backed by Manny Machado’s early three-run homer in a 6-2 victory over the Giants. Pinch-hitter Jurickson Profar (JUR’-ihk-sehn PROH’-fahr) connected on a solo homer in the eighth inning and Jake Cronenworth added a two-run single as San Diego pulled away.
— Nick Hoerner poked a go-ahead single in the sixth inning and the Cubs’ bullpen shut down the Reds in a 3-2 win. Hoerner drove in Javier Báez with one of his three hits, a two-out single to center field off reliever Sean Doolittle to complete Chicago’s rally from a 2-0 deficit.
— Jack Flaherty improved to 5-0 and Paul DeJong (deh-YUHNG’) smacked a three-run homer in the first inning of the Cardinals’ 12-5 thumping of the Pirates. Flaherty (5-0) struck out nine allowing three runs on six hits, good enough to win his fifth straight start.
— The Mets coughed up a 4-0 lead before Michael Conforto hit a tiebreaking home run in the ninth inning of a 5-4 triumph over the Phillies. Conforto also had a two-run double in a four-run first inning against former teammate Zack Wheeler, but the Phils tied it in Alec Bohm’s (bohmz) two-run blast.
— The Blue Jays came away with a 6-5 win over Atlanta on Randal Grichuk (GRIH’-chuhks) RBI single in the 10th inning. George Springer hit his first two homers with Toronto, including a tying, solo blast in the seventh.
— Patrick Corbin owned a 10.47 ERA before ending his 10-game losing streak that dated to last season, pitching seven solid innings in the Nationals’ 7-2 win over the Marlins. Josh Bell hit a bases-loaded double and drove in four runs, Yan Gomes (yahn gohmz) had a two-run homer and Josh Harrison had three hits as Washington won its third straight.
MLB-NEWS
Baseball keeps swinging and missing
UNDATED (AP) — Major league batters are hitting just .232 overall through April, down from .252 two years ago and under the record low of .237 set in the infamous 1968 season that resulted in a lower pitcher’s mound.
Strikeouts have averaged 9.06 per team per game, on pace to set a record for the 13th consecutive full season
In other baseball news:
— The Dodgers will offer fully vaccinated-only sections for each game during their upcoming nine-game homestand against the Mariners and Diamondbacks starting May 11. Seats will be located on the right field side in the loge and reserve levels, and to encourage area residents to get vaccinated the Dodgers are offering a 20% discount.
NFL-PACKERS-RODGERS
Packers CEO acknowledges meeting Rodgers to discuss concerns
UNDATED (AP) — Green Bay Packers CEO Mark Murphy says he is “very much aware” of quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ concerns with the organization and acknowledges team officials have flown out to meet with the reigning MVP on multiple occasions.
Murphy added that the Packers want to keep Rodgers in Green Bay in 2021 and beyond. He discussed the Rodgers situation in a column posted on the Packers’ website on Saturday.
ESPN reported Thursday that Rodgers has indicated he doesn’t want to return to the Packers.
PGA-VALSPAR CHAMPIONSHIP
Burns, Bradley continue to share lead
PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) — Sam Burns and Keegan Bradley continue to share the PGA’s Valspar Championship lead through three rounds.
Both fired 69s that leave them at 14 under, one shot ahead of Max Homa.
Burns had a three-shot lead with five holes to play but had to make an 8-foot bogey putt on the 18th hole just to keep a share of the lead.
