NFL-BRADY WINS
Patriots earn first victory of 2015
NEW YORK (AP) β The battle between the NFL and Tom Brady is not over. Commissioner Roger Goodell (guh-DEHL’) says the league will appeal the decision by U.S. District Judge Richard Berman that ruled in favor of Brady and erased his four-game suspension for “Deflategate.”
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy says the league will not seek an emergency stay of Berman’s decision. That leaves Brady free to start the season while the appeals court considers the case.
The Patriots open Sept. 10 against Pittsburgh.
Brady’s availability for the season opener already has affected business in Las Vegas. The Patriots were favored by three points when it appeared Brady wouldn’t be available. Now that he’s eligible to play, the Pats are favored by seven.
In his ruling, Berman came out forcefully in Brady’s favor. The judge chastised the NFL for its handling of the scandal that erupted after the AFC championship game in January, when officials discovered during the first half that Brady used underinflated footballs. New England beat the Indianapolis Colts 45-7 then won the Super Bowl two weeks later.
NFL-BRADY NO SHOW
Brady no show at preseason finale
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) β Tom Brady was not in uniform for the New England Patriots’ final preseason game, a 12-9 loss to the New York Giants.
Several fans chanted “BRADY, BRADY,” when the team came out of the locker room into the bowl of the stadium, but the quarterback was nowhere to be seen. One sign read: “Justice Prevails. Go Pats!” Another had: “Free Brady.”
The Gillette Stadium speakers also played The Who’s “I’m Free.” From the rock opera “Tommy,” of course.
In other news coming out of the final exhibition games before next week’s season openers:
β Tim Tebow (TEE’-boh) threw two touchdown passes and an interception in his final opportunity to make Philadelphia’s roster, and the Eagles fell to the New York Jets 24-18. Tebow is competing with Matt Barkley for the Eagles’ No. 3 quarterback job.
β Marcus Mariota (mar-ee-OH’-tah) threw a 59-yard touchdown pass to Harry Douglas to cap his only series, and the Tennessee Titans wrapped up the preseason by beating the Minnesota Vikings 24-17.
β Myles White made a case for a spot on the Packers’ injury-stricken receiving corps with two touchdowns, and Green Bay finished the preseason with a 38-10 win over the New Orleans Saints.
β Indianapolis Colts defensive lineman Art Jones will have surgery on his injured left ankle. Colts coach Chuck Pagano provided the update following Indy’s 9-6 loss to Cincinnati in their traditional preseason finale.
β David Fales made his case to be Chicago’s third-string quarterback, throwing two touchdown passes in the Bears’ 24-0 whitewash of Cleveland.
NFL-BRONCOS-WARD SUSPENDED
Broncos safety suspended
DENVER (AP) β Pro Bowl safety T.J. Ward has been suspended for Denver’s opener against Baltimore over a nightclub incident that happened more than 15 months ago.
Ward was charged with misdemeanor assault and disturbing the peace for allegedly throwing a glass mug at a female bartender at a Denver strip club in May 2014. Those charges were later dropped.
The incident came shortly after Ward signed a four-year, $22.5 million deal in Denver.
Ward is the second Denver defender to get suspended. Derek Wolfe received a four-game ban for violating the NFL’s drug policy.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-MICHIGAN
Wolverines open Harbaugh era with loss
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) β Running back Devontae Booker had 124 combined yards and a touchdown and Utah spoiled Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan coaching debut, beating the Wolverines 24-17.
Harbaugh faced many of the same issues the Wolverines had under former coach Brady Hoke (HOHK) after moving to Michigan from the San Francisco 49ers.
Harbaugh came as advertised β blue long-sleeved shirt, blue cap with the block “M,” khakis and lanyard with whistle attached. Unfortunately for Michigan fans, the team didn’t look drastically different than the 2014 version. The quarterback struggled and the run game was nonexistent. That spelled trouble for the offense.
Quarterback Jake Rudock beat out Shane Morris for the start and the Iowa transfer had a reputation for limiting turnovers. Rudock promptly threw three picks against Utah, and finished 27 for 43 for 279 yards and two touchdowns. Michigan was held to 355 total yards, gaining only 76 on the ground.
Afterward, Harbaugh said his team played “tentative.”
T25-SCHEDULE
Horned Frogs win opener on the road…Arizona wins but loses linebacker
UNDATED (AP)β Heisman Trophy hopeful Trevone Boykin threw for 246 yards and a touchdown and ran for 92 yards and another score to help No. 2 TCU outlast Minnesota 23-17 in a tough road opening victory to a season filled with high expectations.
Boykin started his Heisman push by completing 26 of 42 passes. But he also threw an interception and the Horned Frogs had a difficult time getting their frenetic offense rolling against Minnesota’s determined defense. Their 23 points were their fewest scored since Nov. 9, 2013.
The Horned Frogs shared the Big 12 title last year, but were left out of the four-team playoff field. Their No. 2 preseason ranking is a school best.
Jaden Oberkrom made three field goals, including a 53-yarder, and Josh Doctson had eight catches for 74 yards and a touchdown for TCU.
In other AP Top-25 action:
β Freshman Marcus Marshall ran for 184 yards and two long touchdowns in his college debut, Patrick Skov scored three TDs in his first game at Georgia Tech, and the No. 16 Yellow Jackets romped to a 69-6 victory over Alcorn State. Georgia Tech scored on its first seven possessions against the overmatched Braves.
β No. 23 Arizona beat Texas-San Antonio 42-32 but it was a costly victory. Arizona All-America linebacker Scooby Wright injured his left knee in the first quarter and did not play afterward. Wildcats QB Anu Solomon threw for 229 yards and four TDs.
MLB-SCHEDULE
Nats enjoy a laugher…CarGo takes over NL home run lead
UNDATED (AP) β The Washington Nationals broke out their bats in the opener of their crucial seven-game homestand. They rapped out 18 hits in handing the Atlanta Braves their ninth straight loss, 15-1. The Braves have lost 20 of their last 23.
Ryan Zimmerman has been as hot as the summertime weather in Washington. The Nationals first baseman had two singles, a double and a sacrifice fly in driving in four runs. He has 23 RBIs in his last 11 games.
The Braves tried to pitch around Bryce Harper, but it cost them. Harper drew four walks and scored four times. He joined Larry Doby (1951), Joe Morgan (1973) and Rickey Henderson (1989) as the only players to score four runs without an official at-bat since 1914, according to STATS.
In other games:
β Taylor Jungmann pitched six strong innings and the Milwaukee Brewers finished a three-game sweep of Pittsburgh 5-3, beating the Pirates for the sixth straight time. The loss dropped the Pirates 6Β½ games behind the NL Central-leading Cardinals.
β Carlos Gonzalez homered twice for the second straight night, Chris Rusin pitched a complete game and the Colorado Rockies routed the reeling San Francisco Giants 11-3. The Giants are now seven back in the wild card hunt. Gonzalez hit a pair of two-run homers to take the NL lead with a career-high 35. He finished with four hits and drove in four runs to lead Colorado’s season-high 19-hit effort.
__ San Diego erupted with four runs in the eighth inning and beat NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers 10-7. The big hit was a two-run go-ahead home run by Jedd Gyorko. __ AL Central-leading Kansas City mauled Detroit 15-7 behind a 20-hit attack. Kendrys Morales had a home run among his four hits and drove in four. Ben Zobrist went 4 for 6 with a home run and two RBIs.
β J.B. Shuck’s pinch-hit, two-run triple in the seventh inning lifted the White Sox past Minnesota 6-4. Chicago rallied from three-runs down after Eddie Rosario hit a grand slam. The Twins drop 1 1/2 games back of Texas for the second AL wildcard berth.
US OPEN-DAY 4
Murray rallies from 2 sets down…Woz loses
NEW YORK β Andy Murray rallied from down two sets to win his second-round match at the U.S. Open.
The third-seeded Murray beat 35th-ranked Adrian Mannarino 5-7, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1, dominating the last three sets. Murray is 35-1 in Grand Slam second-round matches, with the only loss coming in his U.S. Open debut a decade ago.
It was the eighth time in his career Murray came back to win from two sets.
On the women’s side, 2014 U.S. Open runner-up Caroline Wozniacki (wohz-nee-AK’-ee) lost to 149th-ranked Petra Cetkovska 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (1).
Second seed Simona Halep (HAL’-ehp) advanced to the third round with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Kateryna Bondarenko. Petra Kvitova (kuh-VIHT’-oh-vuh), the fifth seed, easily beat a second straight opponent ranked outside the top 100, pounding American Nicole Gibbs 6-3, 6-4 in 70 minutes to reach the third round.
French Open champ Stan Wawrinka (vah-VRINK’-ah) made it into the third round, but not without a battle. He was pushed to a 7-6, 7-6, 7-6 win over 19-year old Chung Hyeon.
Andy Murray rallied from down two sets to win his second-round match at the U.S. Open. The third-seeded Murray beat 35th-ranked Adrian Mannarino 5-7, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1, dominating the last three sets.
Lleyton Hewitt couldn’t keep his last U.S. Open going a little longer. The 2001 champ rallied from two sets down and had a pair of match points but wasn’t able to complete the comeback, losing to fellow Australian Bernard Tomic (TAHM’-ihk) 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5 in near 3 1/2 hours in a second round match. Hewitt has announced he plans on retiring following next January’s Australian Open.
Men’s second seed, Roger Federer, cruised into the third round by beating Steve Darcis in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2, 6-1.
US OPEN-DRONE
Drone crashes into empty stands
NEW YORK (AP) β A drone buzzed over the court during a U.S. Open match in Louis Armstrong Stadium last night and crashed into an empty section of seats.
U.S. Tennis Association spokesman Chris Widmaier said no one was injured and that the New York Police Department was “conducting an ongoing investigation.”
The black device flew diagonally through the arena during the next-to-last game of 26th seed Flavia Pennetta’s straight sets victory in a second-round match.
HORSE RACING
Triple Crown winner not done
NEW YORK (AP) β The owner of American Pharoah says the Triple Crown winner will run again before he is retired at the end of the year. Ahmed Zayat tweeted “The champ deserves another chance!”
After American Pharoah finished second in the Travers Stakes on Saturday Zayat said his “gut feeling” was retirement. But after a four-hour meeting with trainer Bob Baffert and others, Zayat decided to keep going.
American Pharoah has won eight of 10 races and earned nearly $6 million.
AUTO RACING-SAFETY
F1 champ discusses closed cockpits
MONZA, Italy (AP) β Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton is giving serious thought to the possibility of closed cockpits, in the wake of the recent death of IndyCar driver Justin Wilson. Wilson died a week and a half ago after being hit in the helmet by debris from another car. That came a month after F1 driver Jules Bianchi (bee-ANG’-kee) died following nine months in a coma from a massive head injury in a crash last October.
Hamilton says he knows after decades of open-wheel, open cockpit racing, it’s tough to change minds.
GOLF-POLITICS
PGA cancels Grand Slam
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (AP) β The PGA of America will not hold its Grand Slam of Golf for the major champions this year. The 36-hole exhibition was supposed to be played in October at Trump National in Los Angeles. The PGA and Donald Trump agreed that it would move away from Trump’s course after he received criticism for his remarks about Mexican immigrants while launching his candidacy for U.S. president.
The PGA had been looking for a replacement golf course with suitable dates but now says it will cancel the event because of the timing and logistics required to stage the exhibition at the “highest standards.”
SPORTS-MEDIA
ESPN extends Schilling’s suspension
BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) β ESPN says commentator Curt Schilling won’t appear on the air for the next month in the wake of his anti-Muslim tweet.
ESPN says Schilling won’t be on telecasts for the rest of the regular season or the American League wild-card game on Oct. 6.
The former star pitcher was pulled by ESPN from coverage after he retweeted a post that compared Muslims and Nazi-era Germans.
