MLB-PLAYOFFS
Cardinals advance, await Giants
UNDATED (AP) β The St. Louis Cardinals are going to the National League Championship Series after beating Clayton Kershaw once again. And the San Francisco Giants have earned a trip to St. Louis by winning their NL division series against the top-seeded Washington Nationals.
Matt Adams launched a go-ahead, three-run homer in the seventh inning to lift the Redbirds past the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2 in Game 4 of the NL division series. Kershaw had a one-hit shutout until Matt Holiday and Jhonny Peralta (JAH’-nee peh-RAHL’-tah) opened the bottom of the seventh with back-to-back singles. Adams followed with a blast just two pitches later to chase Kershaw and put the Redbirds in the NLCS for the fourth straight year.
The seventh inning also was the kiss of death for Kershaw in Game 1. He entered that frame last Friday with a 6-2 lead and left trailing 7-6 before he was eventually charged with eight runs in 6 2/3 innings. He is 1-5 with a 5.12 ERA in 11 postseason games, and 0-4 with a 6.14 ERA in five games against the Cardinals.
The Cardinals got 3 1/3 shutout innings from the bullpen, although closer Trevor Rosenthal made things interesting by putting two runners on base before getting Carl Crawford to hit a series-ending grounder.
Marco Gonzales worked the seventh to pick up the victory.
The Giants allowed just four hits and scored the tiebreaking run on a wild pitch in the seventh inning to take Game 4 of their series 3-2 over the Nationals. That puts San Francisco in the NLCS for the third time in five seasons.
The Giants won without the benefit of an RBI hit. They went ahead 2-0 in the third inning on Gregor Blanco’s bases-loaded walk and Joe Panik’s RBI grounder following a throwing error by pitcher Gio Gonzalez. The Nationals eventually tied the game before Panik scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch by reliever Aaron Barrett in the seventh inning.
San Francisco almost scored a second run in the seventh while Barrett was issuing an intentional walk. Barrett uncorked a pitch that went to the backstop, causing Buster Posey to break for the plate. The ball bounced directly to catcher Wilson Ramos (RAH’-mohs), who threw to Barrett at the plate to nail Posey.
The extra run wasn’t missed after Santiago Casilla worked a scoreless ninth to finish the series.
Giants starter Ryan Vogelsong gave up just two hits in 5 2/3 innings and left with a 2-1 lead. He was in line to get the win until Bryce Harper hit a game-tying solo homer off Hunter Strickland.
Gonzalez was lifted for a pinch-hitter after working just four innings. He was reached for a pair of unearned runs and four hits.
Game 1 of the NLCS is Saturday in St. Louis.
NBA-NUGGETS/FARIED
Nuggets ink Faried to extension
DENVER (AP) β A person with knowledge of the situation tells The Associated Press that Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (fah-REED’) has agreed to a four-year, $50 million contract extension.
Denver had until Oct. 31 to negotiate a new contract for Faried or he would have become a restricted free agent next summer.
Faried averaged a career-high 13.7 points last season, and he also grabbed 8.6 rebounds per game.
Yahoo Sports and The Denver Post were the first to report the details of the agreement.
NFL-LIONS/PRATER
DETROIT (AP) β The Detroit Lions have signed Matt Prater (PRAY’-tur) to a one-year deal in their latest effort to fix their early kicking woes. The Broncos cut ties with Prater earlier this month, when the 30-year-old kicker was about to come off a four-game suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. Prater made 25 of 26 field goals last season, including a record-setting 64-yarder against Tennessee.
Prater joins the Lions after Nate Freese (freez) and Alex Henery combined to miss eight of 12 field goal attempts.
NFL-OWNERS
NFL owners set to meet
NEW YORK (AP) β NFL owners will meet today to discuss the league’s personal conduct policy, vote on the sale of the Buffalo Bills and look at further international play. These are critical meetings for the owners, with Commissioner Roger Goodell (guh-DEHL’) under fire for his handling of the Ray Rice case, and with several high-profile player arrests involving domestic abuse.
Their discussions of social responsibility and the personal conduct policy initiatives will overshadow approval of the purchase of the Bills. That transaction is considered certain, with three-quarters of the teams needing to vote in favor of the sale to Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula (peh-GOO’-luh).
The owners also will receive reports on the league’s games in London, three this year for the first time, with two still to come. The NFL has an eye on adding more London games, perhaps as soon as next season.
NFL-LASERS
League investigation in laser pointers goes on
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) β The NFL is attempting to shed light on who allegedly shined a laser pointer at Buffalo Bills players at Detroit’s Ford Field last weekend. A league spokesman says the league is investigating the Bills’ complaint and attempting to identify the person responsible. Quarterback Kyle Orton and holder Colton Schmidt said they had a laser directed at them during Buffalo’s 17-14 win over the Lions on Sunday.
Signora says the league will share the results of its investigation with police. All four North American major professional sports leagues bar the use of laser pointers at their facilities.
NFL-PETERSON
Vikings’ back to plead not guilty
HOUSTON (AP) β A spokeswoman for Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson’s attorney says he plans to plead not guilty to a child abuse charge during his first court appearance in Texas since his indictment last month. Peterson is scheduled to be in court today in Conroe, located north of Houston.
Peterson says he never intended to harm his 4-year-old son by spanking him with a tree branch earlier this year.
NFL-CARDINALS-QUARTERBACKS
Cards get QB help
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) β Arizona has signed quarterback Dennis Dixon to their practice squad with their situation at that position uncertain.
Carson Palmer is coming back from a nerve problem in his shoulder and backup Drew Stanton is recovering from a concussion. That leaves rookie Logan Thomas as the only healthy quarterback on the 53-man roster for the 3-1 Cardinals.
Dixon played for Pittsburgh while Arizona head coach Bruce Arians was offensive coordinator there. He was in training camp with the Buffalo Bills this season but was cut on Aug. 25.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-KENTUCKY-RAPE CHARGE
Kentucky player charge with rape
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) β Kentucky freshman defensive end Lloyd Tubman has been arrested and charged with first-degree rape. The school says he has been suspended indefinitely.
The Lexington-Fayette County jail’s website says Tubman was being held on a first-degree rape charge.
The university says in a release that the 6-foot-5, 225-pound Tubman was arrested by campus police following an incident last week at a residence hall on campus.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Colorado coach fined
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) β The Pac-12 conference has reprimanded and fined Colorado coach Mike MacIntyre $10,000 for conduct toward the officials following the Buffaloes’ loss to Oregon State on Saturday. MacIntyre was yelling at the officials as he chased them off the field following the loss. Security officials had to turn him away.
Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott called MacIntyre’s actions “completely unacceptable.”
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-HALL OF FAME
Induction day at Hall
ATLANTA (AP) β Former quarterbacks Tommie Frazier and Danny Wuerffel (WUR’-ful) are among 12 players and two coaches who were enshrined last night in the College Football Hall of Fame. Frazier led Nebraska to consecutive unbeaten national title seasons in 1994-95, and Wuerffel won the 1996 Heisman and guided Florida to a national championship that season. The induction class includes Heisman winners Vinny Testaverde (tehs-tah-VUR’-dee) and Wisconsin running back Ron Dayne.
SOCCER-DONOVAN
Donovan to captain US team
BOSTON (AP) β Landon Donovan will be the captain of the United States on Friday in his national team finale. U.S. coach Jurgen (YUR’-gihn) Klinsmann says the 32-year-old Los Angeles Galaxy forward will start and play about 30 minutes against Ecuador in the exhibition at East Hartford, Connecticut.
Donovan is the US career scoring leader with 57 goals and 58 assists. He is retiring after the Major League Soccer season.
AUTO RACING-F1
Update on F1 driver
TOKYO (AP) β Formula One driver Jules Bianchi (ZHOOLS bee-AHN’-kee) remains in critical but stable condition in a Tokyo hospital after being in a crash during Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix. The 25-year-old had emergency surgery for a severe head injury on Sunday after his car hit a crane that was sent to recover another vehicle.
Bianchi’s family provided the update.
AUBURN
Man found guilty of shooting two former Auburn players
OPELIKA, Ala. (AP) β A jury has convicted a man of capital murder in the shooting deaths of two former Auburn University football players and a third man. Desmonte Leonard now faces a possible death sentence.
The 24-year-old was charged with fatally shooting ex-Auburn players Ed Christian and Ladarious Phillips at party in Auburn in June 2012. DeMario Pitts was also slain, and three other people were wounded.
OBIT-BRADEN
Tennis star passes away
LOS ANGELES (AP) β Vic Braden, a tennis player in the late 1940s and early ’50s who became one of the nation’s top tennis teaching professionals, has died from complications of congestive heart failure. He was 85.
Braden died Monday at his home in Orange County, California.
