Joey Votto went deep for a Reds-record sixth game in a row. That includes his six homers in the four-game series against the Cubs that Cincinnati wrapped up with a 7-4 win Thursday.

Votto's 20th homer of the season was a two-run shot in the first, when he hit a fastball from Alec Mills (4-4) into the center field bleachers.

Chicago went ahead 3-2 lead before the Reds roughed up Mills in the sixth to go ahead to stay. After loading the bases with no outs, Tucker Barnhart drove in two runs on a soft groundball that went through the middle of the infield for a 4-3 lead.

Cincinnati added three runs off the Cubs bullpen in the seventh, with Kyle Farmer and Aristides Aquino each driving in a run and a Chicago error allowing a third to score.

The Cubs scored three runs off Castillo (5-10), who had only given up three runs total in his previous four starts. Patrick Wisdom hit his 16th home run in the fourth, and Wilson Contreras belted a two-run shot in the fifth.

Castillo finished with eight strikeouts in six innings, allowing seven hits.

Ian Happ hit a home run in the ninth off Reds reliever Heath Hembree.

Carlos Hernandez pitched six scoreless innings, Salvador Perez homered again and the Kansas City Royals beat the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox 5-0 on a blistering Thursday afternoon.

Perez put the Royals ahead with his 25th homer, a two-run shot in the first inning off Carlos Rodon (8-5).

Hernandez (2-1) allowed just four hits, with one walk and four strikeouts. The right-hander allowed two baserunners in an inning only once, and only one runner reached third against him.

Rodon gave up four runs on eight hits over four taxing innings - the Royals had two hits in each of those innings. He struck out four without a walk.

The White Sox offense was dormant without three starters in the lineup, getting shut out for the sixth time this season. Jose Abreu (stiff neck) and Eloy Jimenez (right groin tightness) missed because of injury while Tim Anderson had a scheduled day off.

Perez hit his first-inning homer 446 feet to left-center. Michael A. Taylor, who had the game-ending RBI single the previous night, led off the second with a 432-foot homer to the same general area. Hunter Dozier and Taylor each added a sacrifice fly.

Richard Lovelady had two scoreless innings of relief for the Royals and Wade Davis pitched a scoreless ninth to wrap up Kansas City's fifth shutout.

It's been a busy summer for new Clinton Maroons Football Coach Ron Bass.

After being hired in May to his first head coaching position, and then filling out his staff, it was straight into summer workouts with his new team.  The former Tri-Valley Defensive Coordinator says the Maroons players are responding well in workouts...

Preparations for the season continue to amp up as the calendar turns into August, and the looming Central Illinois Conference season.  Coach Bass expects the C-I-C to be as tough as ever...

Coach Bass and the Clinton Maroons travel to Lincoln for a non-conference matchup in Week 1 of the 2021 IHSA Football season on Friday, August 27th.
 

Most successful high school football programs - and sports programs in general - have their coaches teaching in some capacity in the school. 

First-year Clinton High School football coach Ron Bass will be teaching at Clinton Junior High School. He talked about his passion for teaching and developing relationships with that age group.

Coach Bass indicates being a head coach has a lot more responsibility attached to it besides the football strategy. Coach Bass joined Jared White on the WHOW Morning Show Monday of this week. 

Franmil Reyes homered twice, the first a second-inning blast that bounced out of Progressive Field and almost dinged a bicyclist pedaling on a street next to the park, and Cleveland beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Wednesday.

Reyes' leadoff homer in the second glanced off the pedestrian bridge in left field and landed on the plaza area between the ballpark and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The ball traveled an estimated 446 feet.

Reyes wasn't done. He finished off Cleveland's three-homer inning in the third with his 19th of the season, a 421-foot drive to center.

Cesar Hernandez and Jose Ramirez also homered in the inning for Cleveland, which avoided dropping under .500 for the first time since May 1. Hernandez's two-run homer gave Cleveland a 3-2 lead. He had a sacrifice fly in the fourth.

Kwang Hyun Kim (6-6) gave up all four homers and lost for the first time since June 20, breaking a stretch of wins in five straight starts. Reyes' second homer ended the day for Kim, who allowed five runs in 2 2/3 innings.

Plesac (6-3) gave up two runs in five innings. He made his fourth start since coming off the injured list July 8 after missing six weeks with a broken right thumb.

Dylan Carlson led off the third with his 11th homer. Yadier Molina's two-out single gave St. Louis a first-inning lead, but Kim's short outing was costly.

Joey Votto homered twice for the second consecutive day, going deep in his fifth straight game to match a Cincinnati record as the Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 8-2 on Wednesday night.

Tyler Mahle tossed six scoreless innings for the Reds, who beefed up their bullpen again by acquiring right-hander Mychal Givens from Colorado before the game. Tyler Stephenson and Shogo Akiyama each had two RBIs, and Jesse Winker doubled twice and drove in a run.

Newly acquired relievers Luis Cessa and Justin Wilson followed with a scoreless inning each in their Reds debuts before Ryan Hendrix allowed two runs in the ninth, on RBI singles by David Bote and Ian Happ.

Nico Hoerner and Patrick Wisdom each had two hits for fading Chicago. The Cubs have dropped two straight and seven of 11.

Davies (6-7) was tagged for four runs and seven hits. The wiry right-hander struck out eight but walked four.

Michael A. Taylor's two-out single in the bottom of the 10th inning drove Hunter Dozier home from second base as the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 3-2 on Wednesday night.

The Royals had tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth when Salvador Perez hit his 24th homer, a solo shot to left-center off AL saves leader Liam Hendriks.

Scott Barlow (3-3), who took over in the 10th as the fifth Royals pitcher, struck out two and walked one. Ryan Burr (2-1) pitched the final inning for Chicago.

White Sox starter Lucas Giolito allowed one run on four hits in six-plus innings, walking one and striking out seven. 

Kris Bubic allowed two runs on five hits in six-plus innings for Kansas City. He walked one and struck out three.

The White Sox scored twice in the fifth. Bubic gave up singles to Andrew Vaughn, Leury Garcia and Danny Mendick on a hit up the middle that scored Vaughn. Center fielder Taylor's throw home was off line, but catcher Perez threw to second. Garcia scored when Whit Merrifield chased Mendick back to first.

The Royals finally scored when Giolito allowed back-to-back doubles to Perez and Jorge Soler to start the seventh.

Clinton High School football coach Ron Bass is hitting the ground running and has his staff filled out.

Coach Bass is very excited about his staff and the energy and experience they bring to the table. While he's excited about his staff, he's been very impressed with the way the student-athletes are buying in.

As Coach Bass takes over his first head coaching job, he recently discussed with Regional Radio News the challenges that come with that as well as the philosophies he's introducing to the program. We'll hear more from the Maroons coach throughout the week on Regional Radio News.

Eloy Jimenez launched  a go-ahead, three-run homer in the eighth inning that sent the Chicago White Sox over the Kansas City Royals 5-3 Tuesday night.

After hitting a single in his first at-bat, he came up in the eighth after a two-out intentional walk to Jose Abreu with Chicago trailing 3-2.

Jimenez connected for a 459-foot drive to left-center off Kyle Zimmer (4-1) to cap a four-run rally.

Yoan Moncada had an RBI grounder in the eighth that got Chicago within 3-2.

Reynaldo Lopez (1-0) picked up the win in relief. Liam Hendriks earned his 25th save.

The Royals wasted a stellar effort by Brad Keller, who allowed one run on four hits over seven innings. 

Adam Wainwright won in his first appearance at Progressive Field, Paul DeJong hit a go-ahead homer and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cleveland Indians 4-2 Tuesday night.

DeJong's two-out, two-run drive in the seventh inning off Bryan Shaw (3-5) put St. Louis in front 3-2. Harrison Bader also homered, doubled twice and stole a base as the Cardinals moved back over .500 at 51-50.

Wainwright went seven innngs giving up our hits, including a two-run homer to Jose Ramirez. He struck out eight and walked two.

Cal Quantrill matched his season high with six innings for the Indians, allowing four hits, including Bader's homer.

Yadier Molina went 0 for 4 after a three-game absence with a stiff neck.

Joey Votto continued his power surge with two home runs and started a dazzling double play Tuesday night as the Cincinnati Reds pulled away to a 7-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez also connected as the Reds won for the third time in five games.

Cincinnati rookie Vladimir Gutierrez (5-3) pitched 6 1/3 innings of five-hit ball to earn the win.

Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Patrick Wisdom went deep for the Cubs, who have lost six of 10.

Cubs starter Adbert Alzolay (4-11) allowed three home runs in five innings.

Trailing 4-2 in the third, the Cubs mounted a rally before Votto ran from his first base position and reached across the tarp down the right field line to catch a foul pop by Willson Contreras, then turned and threw quickly to home plate, where catcher Tyler Stephenson tagged Rafael Ortega for the final out of the inning.

After the double play, Gutierrez retired 10 of the next 12 batters before Ian Happ hit a bloop double and Wisdom drew a pinch-hit walk with one out in the seventh.

Alzolay allowed a season-high seven hits in five innings, including an RBI single by Kyle Farmer in the second.

In May Clinton High School hired Ron Bass to lead the high school football program. 

Typically a window of adjustment that can span around six months, Coach Bass is cramming all of that into a brief three-month window. He calls it a whirlwind but is adjusting and is excited to get to work with the student-athletes of Clinton.

Coach Bass comes to Clinton High School by way of Tri-Valley High School. He tells Regional Radio News he is a central Illinois guy through-and-through attending high school in the Bloomington/Normal area and played college football in southern Illinois before returning to central Illinois to coach.

Coach Bass joined the voice of the Clinton Maroons Jared White on the WHOW Morning Show Monday. We'll hear more from Coach Bass throughout the week in sports on Regional Radio.

Pinch-hitter Javier Baez hit a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Chicago Cubs a 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night.

Joey Votto homered for the third time in three games and drove in three runs for Cincinnati. Kyle Farmer added a homer as the Reds' winning streak against Chicago ended at four.

Patrick Wilson walked after a nine-pitch at-bat to start the bottom of the ninth, pinch-hitter Ian Happ drew a pass an out later and Nico Hoerner loaded the bases when he was hit by a pitch by Heath Hembree (2-5).

Amir Garrett came on and allowed the game-winning hit.

Kimbrel (2-3) struck out three straight to end the top of the inning after putting two men on.

Kyle Hendricks, who'd gone at least six innings in 13 straight starts, lasted only 4 1/3 and surrendered the first five runs and nine hits while walking two and striking out four.

Miley lasted just as long, giving up seven hits, three earned runs and five walks.

Jorge Soler hit two home runs for the second straight game and the Kansas City Royals extended their winning streak to six games with a 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Monday night.

Mike Minor allowed two runs on three hits over six innings. He walked two and struck out seven. 

Scott Barlow worked the final two innings and picked up his sixth save.

Dallas Keuchel (7-4) took the loss after surrendering three solo home runs. He allowed four runs on six hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out three.

Soler hit the first Keuchel pitch of the second inning for his 12th home run, and his fifth in the last six games. Soler's blast went 449 feet to dead center. In his next at-bat, Soler hit another home run, this one 413 feet to left. 

The White Sox got two runs in the sixth. Minor walked the lead-off batter, Seby Zavala. Zavala advanced to third on Tim Anderson's double to the wall in left. Both runners scored when Andrew Vaughn singled down the right-field line.

The White Sox got a run in the ninth when Adam Engel singled in Yoan Moncada.

Harrison Bader and Dylan Carlson homered during a seven-run burst in the fourth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds 10-6 on Sunday.

Nolan Arenado hit his 20th home run and tripled, and Tyler O'Neill also connected for the Cardinals.

Cincinnati starter Sonny Gray (2-6) was tagged for a career-high eight runs, allowing eight hits and a walk in 3 1/3 innings.

The Cardinals trailed 3-2 in the fourth before the first five batters reached base, including Bader's three-run shot halfway up the lower deck in left-center field. Bader raised his right fist in triumph as he rounded second base.

Andrew Knizner followed with a double and Carlson hit a drive deep into the visitors' bullpen.

Adam Wainwright (7-6) on Tuesday will make his first career appearance at Progressive Field in Cleveland, boosting to 33 the number of ballparks in which he's pitched regular-season games. Houston's Joe Smith leads active players with 37 ballparks.

Lance Lynn allowed one run over six innings and hit a two-run single to lift Chicago to a 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday night as the White Sox avoided a sweep in this series between division leaders.

Lynn (10-3) allowed six hits, struck out six and walked none, outdueling Brandon Woodruff in a matchup of All-Star right-handers. Lynn, who lowered his ERA to 1.91, also keyed a decisive three-run second inning with his bat - his first hit since 2017.

Michael Kopech pitched a scoreless inning for Chicago and Liam Hendricks tossed two for his 24th save in 28 chances.

The White Sox, who lead the AL Central by nine games, mustered just enough offense after dropping the first two games against the NL Central-leading Brewers by a combined score of 13-2.

The White Sox scored all three runs in the second with two outs. Brian Goodwin walked and Leury Garcia singled. Seby Zavala followed with an RBI single, with both runners advancing on the throw. Lynn then lofted a single on an 0-2 count into shallow right field to score two more runs.

The White Sox head to Kansas City for a four-game series starting Monday. LHP Dallas Keuchel (7-3, 4.22 ERA) starts for Chicago. He is 6-1 with a 2.48 ERA in 11 career starts against the Royals. LHP Mike Minor (7-8, 5.45) starts for Kansas City.

Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and David Bote homered, Trevor Williams pitched effectively into the seventh inning, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-1 on Sunday.

Bryant and Bote each hit two-run shots as Chicago took two of three in the series.

Williams (4-2) struck out six and allowed five hits with no walks over 6 1/3 innings in his first scoreless outing of the season. It was the right-hander's second start (and third appearance) since missing five weeks following an appendectomy.

After Willson Contreras led off the bottom of the first with a walk, Bryant stroked an 0-1 pitch into the center-field bleachers. It was Bryant's 17th homer and first since July 3. He is one of several Chicago players who could be traded before Friday's deadline.

Rizzo followed with a solo shot for a 3-0 lead. It was his 240th homer with the Cubs, passing Aramis Ramirez for sixth place on the team's career list.

Craig Kimbrel, another likely trade target, came on to get the final out for his 23rd save.

Kyle Hendricks (12-4, 3.61) looks to become the first 13-game winner in the majors Monday night in the opener of a four-game home series with Cincinnati. LHP Wade Miley (8-4, 2.72) starts for the Reds.

Max Kepler homered for a second straight game, Jorge Polanco also went deep, and the Minnesota Twins beat the Chicago White Sox 7-2 on Wednesday night.

The Twins beat the AL Central leaders for just the fourth time in 16 games. They bounced back after Chicago rallied late to win Tuesday's game and came out on top after losing five of six.

Michael Pineda (4-5) went five innings, allowing one run and four hits, in his first win since May 26. He was 0-3 in his previous four starts.

Dillon Cease gave up three runs and seven hits in five innings. The 25-year-old right-hander is 0-3 in his last four starts.

Adam Engel had an RBI single in the third. Andrew Vaughn doubled in a run in the eighth. But the White Sox lost after winning nine of 11.

The White Sox open a three-game series at NL Central-leading Milwaukee on Friday night, with RHP Lucas Giolito (8-6, 3.90 ERA) pitching for Chicago against Brewers RHP Freddy Peralta (7-3, 2.39 ERA).

Yadier Molina doubled home the winning run against All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel to give St. Louis a 3-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night.

Adam Wainwright pitched seven strong innings for the Cardinals. Harrison Bader and Dylan Carlson each hit an RBI double in the seventh to put St. Louis ahead 2-1.

Bader also robbed Willson Contreras of an early two-run homer.

Chicago tied it in the ninth on pinch-hitter Eric Sogard's run-scoring double off Giovanny Gallegos.

Paul Goldschmidt started the bottom of the 10th as the automatic runner on second base. Nolan Arenado drew a walk from Kimbrel (1-3), who got the final out in the ninth for the Cubs. Molina then hit a drive to right field for a ground-rule double and his ninth career game-ending hit.

Anthony Rizzo began the top of the 10th on second and went to third on a single by Javier Baez that chased John Gant. But on a forceout at second, Rizzo stopped halfway down the line and was tagged out in a rundown for a double play.

T.J. McFarland (1-0) earned his first win with the Cardinals.

Bader, who went 3 for 4, has hit safely in 12 of his last 14 games while notching five multi-hit efforts in his last seven games.

Adbert Alzolay (4-9, 4.59 ERA) will make his 17th start of the season Thursday and second against St. Louis. He is 0-2 with a 2.45 ERA in three career starts against the Cardinals.

Kwang Hyun Kim (5-5, 2.87) has not allowed a run in 21 innings, the longest streak by a St. Louis pitcher this year. Kim, who has won four straight starts, went six innings to beat the Cubs 6-0 at Wrigley Field on July 10.

Jose Abreu doubled and tripled early, then homered to cap a five-run rally in the eighth inning that vaulted the Chicago White Sox over the Minnesota Twins 9-5 Tuesday night.

Abreu hit his 18th homer, a three-run drive that sent the AL Central-leading White Sox to their fourth win in five games.

Abreu connected off Hansel Robles (3-5) shortly after the Twins seized their first lead in the top half on a two-run homer by Jorge Polanco off reliever Ryan Burr. Minnesota has lost five of six.

Liam Hendriks pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his 24th save in 28 chances and secure the win for Burr (2-0).

The White Sox were held to one hit from the fourth until rookie Andrew Vaughn had a pinch-hit single in the eighth off reliever Jorge Alcala that made it 5-all. Billy Hamilton, who entered in the seventh as a pinch-runner, singled home the go-ahead run before Abreu homered.

Yoan Moncada also homered for Chicago, his third in the last four games after going homerless in his previous 26 games.

Abreu hit an RBI double in the first inning. His triple skipped past diving left fielder Luis Arraez in the third preceded Moncada's homer off rookie Bailey Ober.

White Sox starter Dallas Keuchel, making his first start since July 9, pitched five innings of four-hit ball.

Michael Kopech relieved Keuchel but surrendered a home run to Josh Donaldson, his 15th, to start the sixth to pull Minnesota within 4-3. Kopech was bailed out of a jam in the seventh when left fielder Brian Goodwin made a diving catch to rob Nelson Cruz of a hit with the tying and go-ahead runners on base.

Max Kepler homered off Keuchel in the second to snap an 0-for-16 slump.

White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson went hitless in five at-bats, ending his hitting streak at 16 games.

The Twins will send RHP Michael Pineda (3-5, 4.11 ERA) to the mound, while the White Sox will counter with RHP Dylan Cease (7-5, 4.15). Hear tonight's action on WHOW.

Ian Happ triggered a six-run rally in the ninth inning, and the Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-6 in a matchup of NL Central rivals.

Chicago snapped a two-game losing streak by rallying against St. Louis closer Alex Reyes, who converted his first 22 saves opportunities this season.

Javier Baez added a two-run hit in the middle of the rally.

Chicago sent 10 batters to the plate in the ninth and capitalized on three walks, an error and a missed third strike.

Baez trimmed the deficit to 6-5 with a two-run single off Reyes, Happ followed with a two-run double to put his team up 7-6.

Nolan Arenado, Jose Rondon and Tommy Edman homered for St. Louis, which had won three in a row.

Craig Kimbrel picked up his 22nd save in 24 opportunities. He set the side down in order in the ninth and fanned Paul Goldschmidt to end the game.

Dillon Maples (1-0) picked up the win with a scoreless inning.

Reyes (5-4) gave up three runs on two hits.

The Cubs entered the ninth inning with just three hits. Patrick Wisdom reached safely on a wild-pitch third strike to kick-start the comeback. Sergio Alcantara and Anthony Rizzo drew bases-loaded walks to trim the deficit to 6-3 and set the stage for Happ's heroics.

St. Louis starter Johan Oviedo was looking for his first win in 17 career starts. He allowed one run on three hits over five-plus innings. The Cuban-born right-hander struck out five and walked one. He was removed after giving up a leadoff single to Baez to begin the sixth.

Kyle Hendricks (12-4, 3.65 ERA) will face RHP Adam Wainwright (7-6, 3.71) in the third game of the four-game set on Wednesday. Hendricks has won his last 10 decisions and has gone at least six innings in each of his last 12 starts. Wainwright has recorded 17 career wins against the Cubs, the most of any active pitcher.

Dylan Carlson homered and drove in four runs, Jake Woodford pitched 5 2/3 strong innings in his first start of the season, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs 8-3 on Monday night.

Woodford (2-1), who was recalled from Triple-A Memphis prior to the game, struck out six and didn't allow a walk. Woodford pitched out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the fifth by getting Ian Happ to ground into a double play, which scored Patrick Wisdom for the only run he allowed.

John Gant pitched the final 2 1/3 innings of relief as the Cardinals ran their winning streak to three games.

Three Cubs errors, including two straight by Javier Baez at shortstop, led to four runs for the Cardinals in the fourth. Alec Mills didn't help his cause by walking Carlson with the bases loaded, and Paul Goldschmidt extended his hitting streak to 14 games with a bases-loaded infield single, giving St. Louis a 5-0 lead.

Carlson and Goldschmidt hit home runs off Keegan Thompson in the sixth. It was the fourth time this season the Cardinals hit back-to-back homers, but first since April 19.

Carlson's single scored Harrison Bader to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead in the third. Carlson's four RBIs tied a career high set earlier this season, on April 7 against Miami.

The Cubs will send RHP Trevor Williams (3-2, 5.51 ERA) against the Cardinals in the second game a of four-game series on Tuesday night. Williams came off the IL from an appendectomy on July 6 and allowed seven runs on 3 2/3 innings to Philadelphia that night. The Cardinals have not announced a starter.

As heard on WHOW, Nelson Cruz hit a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning after tying the game with a solo homer in the sixth, and the Minnesota Twins beat the Chicago White Sox 3-2 Monday in the first game of a doubleheader.

Jorge Polanco added an RBI single in the eighth as Minnesota ended a three-game losing streak and beat division rival Chicago for just the third time in 13 games.

Gilberto Celestino, the Twins' automatic runner at second, advanced to third in the eighth on Luis Arraez's single off Garrett Crochet (2-5). Josh Donaldson hit a sharp grounder to Jake Burger at third. Burger slipped, and Celestino was able to return to third, leaving the bases loaded.

After Trevor Larnach struck out, Cruz hit his fly to center off Ryan Burr to put Minnesota ahead. Polanco's single made it 3-1.

Tyler Duffey (2-2) pitched a scoreless seventh, working around two walks, for the win.

Tim Anderson homered for the third straight game and extended his hitting streak to a career-high 16. Anderson was Chicago's automatic runner in the eighth and scored on Jose Abreu's double, but Hansel Robles held on for his 10th save in 12 chances.

Rookie Gavin Sheets hit a game-ending three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh, giving the Chicago White Sox a 5-3 win over the Minnesota Twins in the second game of a doubleheader on Monday.

Aaron Bummer (2-4) pitched a scoreless seventh. Then the White Sox broke through against Berrios in the bottom half.

Mitch Garver homered in his first two at-bats of the nightcap after returning from a serious groin injury.

Garver, activated from the 10-day injured list between games, hit a solo shot off Reynaldo Lopez in the second. He followed with a longer solo homer to right-center off Matt Foster in the fourth. 

The White Sox have won eight of 10.

White Sox CF Luis Robert will begin a rehab assignment with Class A Winston-Salem on Wednesday. He has been out since suffering a torn right hip flexor on May 2.

Minnesota RHP Bailey Ober (1-1, 5.45) faces Chicago LHP Dallas Keuchel (7-3, 4.25) on Tuesday.

As heard on WHOW, Carlos Rodon allowed one hit through seven dominant innings, Yoan Moncada and Tim Anderson hit solo homers and the Chicago White Sox topped the Houston Astros 4-0 on Sunday.

Danny Mendick and Adam Engel added RBI singles, and the White Sox stymied Astros hitters for the second straight game after losing their first five this season to Houston - and being outscored 34-9 in those contests. Chicago has won seven of eight to move to the top of the American League standings.

After Lucas Giolito tossed a three-hitter on Saturday for the White Sox, Rodon followed up with a statement of his own.

Abraham Toro's sharp single past Mendick at second in the third inning was the only hit off Rodon (8-3) and accounted for Houston's only baserunner. The big left-hander struck out 10 in this meeting of division leaders.

Liam Hendriks finished with a 1-2-3 ninth to complete the combined one-hitter. Rodon reached double digits in strikeouts for the fourth time this season and 11th time in his career.

Chicago hosts Minnesota in a doubleheader Monday. Lance Lynn (9-3, 1.99) will start the first game for the White Sox, his first outing since signing a two-year, $38 million contract extension. La Russa said he hadn't decided on a starter for the second game, but said RHP Reynaldo Lopez (0-0, 0.00) was in the mix.

Harrison Bader put St. Louis ahead with a checked-swing single off the glove of Giants first basemen LaMonte Wade Jr. in the seventh inning, and the Cardinals went on to a 2-1 victory over San Francisco on Sunday.

The Cardinals won the season series, taking two out of three against the Giants in both series them.

Matt Carpenter hooked a ground-rule double down the right-field line off former teammate John Brebbia (0-1) in the seventh. Jose Rondon was brought in to pinch-run, and he advanced to third on a flyout by Paul DeJong. With the infield in, Bader hit a grounder that deflected off Wade's glove, scoring Rondon.

Bader is now 6 for 14 over his last five games.

Alex Reyes got the final three outs for St. Louis, setting a major league record by converting his 24th straight save chance to start his career. LaTroy Hawkins held the previous record of 23.

Paul Goldschmidt singled to left in the fourth inning to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. It's the longest streak by any Cardinal this season.

Jake Woodford (1-1, 4.62) will start against RHP Alec Mills (4-2, 4.84) and the Chicago Cubs for the start of a four-game series Monday night in St. Louis. After three relief appearances versus Chicago, Woodford will be making his first career start against the Cubs.

Merrill Kelly threw eight efficient innings, Eduardo Escobar hit a two-run homer and the Arizona Diamondbacks avoided a three-game sweep with a 6-4 win over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.

Kelly (6-7) needed just 75 pitches to navigate the Cubs' lineup through eight innings and threw 59 strikes.

Kelly was helped by two spectacular catches by Kole Calhoun. The right fielder made a diving grab on Patrick Wisdom's sinking line drive in the second inning and saved an extra-base hit in the third when he chased down Anthony Rizzo's long drive into the right-field corner.

Willson Contreras - who had the big two-run homer in the ninth off Soria on Saturday - struck out looking on a full-count breaking ball right down the middle to end Sunday's game.

Cubs starter Zach Davies gave up two runs over 4 2/3 innings. He gave up six hits, walked four and struck out three. 

The Cubs stay on the road and start a four-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday. Chicago will start RHP Alec Mills (4-2, 4.84 ERA). He will face St. Louis RHP Jake Woodford (1-1, 4.62).

Collin Morikawa is the champion golfer of the year.

Morikawa captured the British Open on Sunday for his second major championship in two years. It was his first time playing the British Open, just like it was his first time playing the PGA Championship when he won at Harding Park last year.

The 24-year-old American played the final 31 holes at Royal St. George’s without a bogey. Starting the final round one shot behind, he closed with a 66 for a two-shot victory over Jordan Spieth.

For Louis Oosthuizen, it was more heartbreak. The South African fell out of the lead with a bunker-to-bunker bogey on the par-5 seventh hole. He was four behind Morikawa at the turn and never could catch up.

Oosthuizen was runner-up in the last two majors. He tied for third with U.S. Open champion Jon Rahm.

With darkness closing in, Aric Almirola sprung to life late Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and pulled off a surprise for Stewart-Haas Racing’s victory of the year.

The race was delayed nearly two hours by rain and NASCAR called it early due to darkness, leaving it eight laps shy of its scheduled conclusion.

Almirola raced to his third career Cup victory and first since 2018 and was the first driver out of the SHR pack that includes Kevin Harvick, Cole Custer and Chase Briscoe to take the checkered flag.

He broke up the Team Penske party — Brad Keselowksi and Ryan Blaney had a fun back-and-forth for the lead at one point — and Christopher Bell could not catch him.

Two Illinois pitchers were selected on the final day of the 2021 MLB Draft. RHP Andrew Hoffmann was selected in the 12th round, No. 367 overall by the Atlanta Braves and LHP Nathan Lavender was selected in the 14th round, No. 412 overall by the New York Mets.

Hoffmann was the leader of the Illinois pitching staff this past season. He went 3-0 with a 2.87 ERA over 62.2 innings pitched in 11 starts. An All-Big Ten third team selection, Hoffmann became only the sixth Illini pitcher since 1980 to not suffer a loss in a season with a minimum of 10 starts.

The Plainfield, Illinois, native spent only one season in an Illini uniform. He began his career in 2019 at Division I Oakland before transferring to John A. Logan Community College in 2020.

Lavender also had a strong year on the mound for the Illini in 2021. After missing the 2020 season with an injury, Lavender finished the year 7-2 with a 4.11 ERA over 57.0 innings pitched in 13 appearances with nine starts. Lavender came out of the bullpen at the beginning of the season before transitioning to a starting role.

He led the conference in strikeout to walk ratio with 79 strikeouts to only 15 walks (5.27). His seven victories were also tied for the most in the Big Ten. Lavender began the season with a 5-0 record to become the first Illini pitcher to do so since RHP John Kravetz in 2015.

An Academic All-Big Ten selection in 2021, Lavender spent three years in the Illinois program. 

For the first time in 28 years, the Bradley baseball team had two selections in the top 10 rounds of the Major League Baseball Draft. Left-handed pitcher Brooks Gosswein (Barrington, Ill.) was selected in the fourth round (124 overall) by the Chicago White Sox before right-handed pitcher Theron Denlinger (Cuba City, Wis.) followed his teammate to the White Sox in the seventh round (215 overall).
 
Gosswein is Bradley's highest draft pick in 15 years as Brandon Magee was selected 120th overall in 2006 by the Toronto Blue Jays. Overall, it marks the first time since 1993 that Bradley has featured two selections in the first 10 rounds of the draft (Bryan Rekar and Joel Moore were selected in the second and third round, respectively, by the Rockies).
 
A four-year standout with the Braves, Gosswein appeared in 49 games during his collegiate career, totaling 11 wins on the mound and striking out 139 batters in 167.1 innings. During the 2021 campaign, Gosswein led the Braves with 53 strikeouts, while ranking second on the team with 52.2 innings pitched and was just one off the team leader in wins with four.
 
Gosswein was named the Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week on March 1 after pitching seven innings of shutout ball and just two hits allowed against Ball State.

A two-time All-Missouri Valley Conference honoree, Denlinger appeared in 42 games as a reliever during his career. He ranks third in school history with 13 career saves, striking out 48 batters in 44 innings of work.
 
During the 2021 campaign, Denlinger ranked second in the Missouri Valley Conference with six saves, while striking out 21 players in 17.2 innings.

Illinois State left-handed ace pitcher Colton Johnson was slected in the 16th round by the Oakland A's.

Riley Martin, a senior left-handed pitcher at Quincy University, was taken by the Cubs in the sixth round. 

Adam Engel hit a three-run homer in the 10th inning and the Chicago White Sox rolled into the All-Star break Sunday with a 7-5 victory over Baltimore to complete a season sweep of the Orioles.

Andrew Vaughn homered twice for the White Sox, who have won five in a row and 10 of 13 overall. Chicago leads the AL Central by eight games over Cleveland.

The White Sox went 7-0 against Baltimore this season. It is the first time in franchise history Chicago has swept a season series of at least seven games against any team, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Pinch-hitter Trey Mancini's two-out, two-run homer in the Orioles ninth made it 4-all. He'll take part in the All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday night at Coors Field in Denver.

Chicago swept a series at Camden Yards for the first time since 2005.

Chicago returns home after the All-Star break on Friday for a three-game series against the Astros. The White Sox suffered a four-game sweep at Houston last month.

The Chicago Cubs got an extended All-Star break when Sunday's game against St. Louis was postponed because of rain.

It sounds as if they could use the extra time off.

Cubs manager David Ross said the team had internal conversations a day after catcher Willson Contreras appeared to criticize some of his teammates' effort during a 6-0 loss to the Cardinals.

The Cubs have dropped 13 of 15, falling from a tie for first in the NL Central to a tie for third in the division with the Cardinals. After they finished with six hits Saturday night, Contreras said he felt like everyone was distracted, probably because of the upcoming All-Star break.

Sunday's rainout will be made up as part of a split doubleheader on Sept. 24. The start time for the second seven-inning game is pending discussions with city officials.

St. Louis (44-46) hits the All-Star break with its own issues. It is just 9-13 in its past 22 games, but manager Mike Shildt touted the team's recent offensive improvement as reason for optimism.

Next up for St. Louis is a seven-game homestand, beginning Friday night against NL West-leading San Francisco. Chicago hits the road for a seven-game trip, starting Friday night at last-place Arizona.

Sunday afternoon, baseball's best and brightest prospects convened at Coors Field for the 2021 Futures Game, MLB's annual showcase of the stars of tomorrow. The National League bested the American League to earn an 8-3 win highlighted byCubs prospect Brennan Davis going deep twice and taking home the game's MVP honors.

This marks the second time a Cubs prospect has won the Futures Game MVP. Kyle Schwarber took the honors in 2015 due to a triple and two RBI. It's fair to say this is the biggest Futures Game any Cubs prospect has had with the two bombs, though.

Davis, 21, was the Cubs' second-round pick in 2018 out of high school. He's progressed to the Double-A level this season, where he's hitting .278/.381/.481 with 10 doubles, four homers, 14 RBI, 22 runs and three steals. 

MLB's annual amateur draft's first round concluded Sunday. The Pirates held the No. 1 pick and used it on Louisville catcher Henry Davis. Right-hander Jack Leiter went second overall to the Rangers and his Vanderbilt teammate Kumar Rocker was the 10th overall pick to the Mets. 

UC-Santa Barbara right-handed pitcher Michael McGreevy was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals at No. 18 overall. McGreevy has received comparisons to Cleveland's ace (and the 2020 American League Cy Young Award winner) Shane Bieber that stem from them both pitching for the Gauchos. McGreevy offers a big, athletic right-handed frame who has demonstrated excellent control, as evidenced by his career four percent walk rate. His arsenal could well feature four average or better pitches at maturation, including a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a curveball that might be his best offering.

The Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox picked back to back at 21 and 22 respectively. The Cubs selected Kansas State left-handed pitcher Jordan Wicks. One scout described Wicks as a "less-athletic Marco Gonzales" during the preseason. It fits.

Wicks is a command-and-changeup left-hander who is held as a safe, no-frills selection. His low-90s fastball has good carry and his cambio is one of the best in the class.

Factor in above-average control, and you have the makings of at least a back-end starter. Teams would like to see more from his breaking balls, with his slider showing greater promise than a curve that gets caught in-between too often to be an effective offering.

The White Sox selected tall and athletic prep shortstop Colson Montgomery. Montgomery is on the older side for a high school draftee, as he'll celebrate his 20th birthday before beginning his first full professional season. Expect Montgomery to engender countless Corey Seager comparisons whenever he's selected because of his size (he's listed at 6-foot-4), position, and powerful left-handed swing.

Eastern Illinois shortstop Trey Sweeney was selected 20th overall by the New York Yankees. 

Former Illinois State standout and current Indians prospect, Owen Miller's brother Noah was selected by the Twins in the competitive balance round at 36th overall. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 41 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in the NBA Finals' return to Milwaukee, and the Bucks pounded Phoenix 120-100 on Sunday night, cutting the Suns' lead to 2-1.

Back in front of his own fans and free of the loud counts he's been hearing on the road, Antetokounmpo went 13 of 17 at the line. 

Chris Paul had 19 points and nine assists, but the Suns got next to nothing from his star backcourt mate. Booker shot 3 for 14, scoring just 10 points.

Jrue Holiday bounced back from two poor games in Phoenix with five 3-pointers and 21 points to get the Bucks going again onto the comeback trail, having already overcome one 2-0 deficit in this postseason. Khris Middleton added 18.

Game 4 is Wednesday night, with the series guaranteed to go back to Phoenix afterward.

Brad Miller hit three home runs in a game for the first time in his career, and the Philadelphia Phillies routed the sinking Chicago Cubs 8-0 on Thursday night.

Miller hit a solo drive in the third inning and added two-run homers in the fifth and seventh innings.

With a chance at joining the other 18 players who have hit a record four home runs in a game, Miller popped up in the ninth. He grounded out in his first at-bat.

Eflin (4-6) settled into pitch six solid innings as the Phillies took three of four games at Wrigley. Didi Gregorius added a two-run shot and All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto scored on a double steal.

The Cubs lost for the 12th time in 13 and dropped to 43-45 as they struggled at the plate without injured stars Kris Bryant and Javier Baez.

It was 24th time a Phillies batter hit three homers in a contest and the first since Jayson Werth tagged Toronto for three in May 2008.

Miller homered early to left-center off Alzolay (4-9), who lost his fifth straight start.

Kyle Hendricks (10-4, 3.83) takes the mount against St. Louis LHP Wade LeBlanc (0-1, 4.24) in a Friday afternoon game at Wrigley.

Devin Booker scored 31 points, Chris Paul had 23 and the Suns beat Milwaukee 118-108 on Thursday night to take a 2-0 series lead.

The Suns have never been closer to an NBA title.

Booker made seven 3-pointers and the Suns went 20 for 40 behind the arc. Bridges scored 27 points, and Paul finished with eight assists.

The Suns surged ahead late in the first half, withstood Giannis Antetokounmpo's all-around effort to bring the Bucks back, and walked off winners again as fans swung orange rally towels all around them.

Antetokounmpo had 42 points and 12 rebounds in his second game back after missing two games because of a hyperextended left knee.

The Suns never even had a lead in the NBA Finals until their 118-105 victory in Game 1. They dropped the first two games in both 1976 and 1993, their only other appearances, and didn't win more than two games in either series.

Jrue Holiday played more aggressively but didn't shoot a whole lot better than in Game 1, scoring 17 points but hitting only 7 for 21. Khris Middleton was 5 for 16, forcing Antetokounmpo to carry an even heavier load on his sore left leg.

It adds up to the Bucks having to overcome a 2-0 deficit for the second time this postseason. They did it against the Brooklyn Nets in the Eastern Conference semifinals, but had some help when first James Harden and then Kyrie Irving were injured.

Now they are facing a Suns team loaded with weapons all over the lineup, and showed off all of them in their highlight play.

They whipped the ball all around the perimeter for the final basket of the first half. It went from Paul to Booker to Jae Crowder to Bridges, back to Crowder to Paul, then over to Crowder and once again Bridges. He then finally fed it inside to Ayton, who scored while being fouled with 14.9 seconds left for a 56-45 lead at the break.

The Bucks could only dream of having that many guys involved. Antetokounmpo's 15 field goals were more than twice as many as any other Milwaukee player.

Phoenix opened a 65-50 lead with a good start to the third, but Antetokounmpo - and pretty much only Antetokounmpo - kept the game from getting away from the Bucks. He scored 20 of the Bucks' 33 points in the third, the first 20-point period in the finals since Michael Jordan against the Suns in 1993.

Milwaukee got it all the way down to six in the fourth, but Paul nailed a 3-pointer and Bridges had a basket to quickly push the lead back to double digits.

Milwaukee outscored Phoenix 20-0 in the paint in the first quarter, but eight of the Suns' nine baskets were 3-pointers and they were behind just 29-26.

Only two fouls - both on the Suns - were called in a clean quarter. Antetokounmpo took the only two free throws, making one and shooting an airball on the second as fans continued counting, as they have in Bucks' road games during the playoffs to show that he often doesn't appear to shoot them within the allotted 10 seconds.

It was tied at 41 with just under five minutes left in the half before the Suns surged ahead with precision offense and some shutdown defense. They finished with a 15-4 run, the Bucks managing just a pair of baskets by Antetokounmpo.

He tried to fire up his teammates with some screaming on the bench during a timeout, but he couldn't put the ball into the basket for them. The Bucks were a dismal 6 for 25 in the period, missing 10 of their 12 3-point tries.

Middleton finished with 11 points. 

Nolan Arenado and Edmundo Sosa homered to back Adam Wainwright's fourth straight winning decision, Paul Goldschmidt hit a two-run single in the fourth inning, and St. Louis beat San Francisco 6-5 on Tuesday night.

St. Louis left fielder Dylan Carlson made a tremendous game-ending catch at the wall with runners on first and third.

Yadier Molina added a run-scoring single in the seventh before Sosa connected in the eighth. The Giants scored twice in the bottom half, getting Mike Yastrzemski's RBI single and a double by Wilmer Flores.

Genesis Cabrera allowed two baserunners in the ninth, including a four-pitch walk to Donovan Solano, then gave way to Justin Miller one out later and he finished for his first save after Carlson's catch on a long fly by Jason Vosler.

Arenado hit a two-run homer in the first off Johnny Cueto (6-5) before Brandon Crawford's two-run single in the third tied it.

Wainwright (7-5) came out on top pitching opposite Cueto for the fifth time, having beaten the Giants right-hander twice when he was with Cincinnati while losing two starts in 2016 - Cueto's first year in San Francisco.

Crawford had an RBI double with one out in the fifth but Wainwright escaped further damage.

Johan Oviedo (0-4, 5.14 ERA) still seeks his first win of the season pitching the series finale for St. Louis opposite Giants LHP Alex Wood (7-3, 3.89), trying to win his third straight decision.

As heard on WHOW, Carlos Rodon pitched six strong innings and the Chicago White Sox took advantage of sloppy play by the Minnesota Twins to win 4-1 on a rainy Tuesday night.

Catcher Zack Collins, making the start after Yasmani Grandal went on the injured list earlier in the day with a torn tendon in his left knee, had a two-run single in the second inning after two walks and two errors by the Twins.

Headed to his first All-Star game next week, Rodon (7-3) allowed one run on seven hits. He struck out eight and didn't walk a batter as Chicago snapped a three-game losing streak.

Michael Kopech pitched a scoreless seventh and Liam Hendriks pitched the fin

al two innings for his 22nd save.

Collins' single in the second was the only hit Chicago would put up in seven innings against Minnesota starter Jose Berrios (7-3). Just one of the runs was earned against Berrios, who struck out 10 batters.

Lance Lynn (8-3, 2.02 ERA) starts the afternoon series finale for Chicago on Wednesday. Minnesota will activate RHP Michael Pineda (3-4, 3.70) from the injured list to start. Pineda has been out since June 13 with right elbow inflammation. Lynn is 1-0 with two earned runs allowed in 11 innings against the Twins this season.

The fourth edition of The Match ended in another loss for the team of Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady as the duo of Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers convincingly won 3&2 on Tuesday evening in Big Sky, Montana. The Match 4, a head-to-head match play charity golf event, featured plenty of golf, a bit of trash talk and incredible views of The Reserve at Moonlight Basin.

The front nine didn't foreshadow an eventual early exit for Mickelson and Brady as the match was all square with the pairs making the turn. However, DeChambeau and Rodgers built a lead in style on the back nine en route to their eventual win as Rodgers caught fire with his putter, draining birdies on 10, 11 and 12 to go 3-up in a flurry.

Mickelson and Brady got one back at the 15th after DeChambeau and Rodgers found trouble in the woods. In fitting fashion, though, it was Rodgers who came up clutch in a big spot. After using DeChambeau's approach at the par-3 16th, Rodgers grabbed his putter and sunk the match-winning 10-foot birdie after Brady's attempt from twice the distance missed.

Mickelson and Brady went 1-up at the fourth and again at the seventh but could not muster any additional magic. DeChambeau's 480-yard drive on the 777-yard par-5 eighth set his team up to even the match before the floodgates opened on the back nine. That drive broke DeChambeau's career-long, according to the golfer, though Bryson wasn't satisfied given the elevation created an opportunity to go past 500 yards.

Mickelson fell to 2-2 all-time in The Match with an 0-2 record when paired with Brady, who apologized to Lefty for letting him down after the round. The duo previously lost to Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning in May 2020.

Bryce Harper homered and tied a career-high with five hits, Andrew McCutchen smacked a grand slam and Philadelphia handed Chicago its 11th straight loss, beating the Cubs 15-10 on Tuesday night.

Rhys Hoskins also went deep. The Phillies jumped on Jake Arrieta (5-9) after beating Chicago 13-3 the previous night and finished two shy of a season-high with 16 hits.

The Cubs, meanwhile, extended their worst skid since they dropped 12 in a row in May 2012. They remained winless since Zach Davies and three relievers combined to no-hit the Dodgers in Los Angeles on June 24. And with Arrieta failing to make it through the second inning in his second straight start, they fell into a huge hole.

Harper hit his seventh homer in 13 games when he crushed a three-run drive in the seventh, extending the lead to 15-4. He finished with a season-high four RBIs.

McCutchen, the game's fourth batter, smacked his third career grand slam and second this season in the first inning.

Hoskins chased Arrieta with a two-run double in the second, making it 7-0, and hit the left-field scoreboard with a drive leading off the seventh. Jean Segura chipped in with four hits and four runs.

Nola (6-5) went six innings, allowing four runs and six hits. He struck out eight and walked one, and the Phillies withstood a shaky effort by their struggling bullpen.

The Phillies send All-Star RHP Zack Wheeler (6-4, 2.05 ERA) to the mound, while the Cubs go with RHP Alec Mills (3-2, 4.85). Wheeler pitched shutout ball into the eighth Friday in a 10-inning, 4-3 win over San Diego. Mills is coming off a tough-luck loss at Cincinnati last week, when the Reds beat the Cubs 2-1.

Chris Paul had 32 points and nine assists in an NBA Finals debut that was well worth the wait, Devin Booker scored 27 points and the Suns beat the returning Giannis Antetokounmpo and his Milwaukee Bucks 118-105 on Tuesday night in Game 1.

Paul scored 16 points during a sensational third quarter that had Phoenix fans who waited 28 years to see the NBA Finals again screaming in delight.

Paul was 6 for 7 and made all three 3-pointers in the third quarter.

Deandre Ayton added 22 points and 19 rebounds to continue his breakout stretch of play in his first postseason.

Antetokounmpo had 20 points and 17 rebounds after missing two games with a hyperextended left knee. Khris Middleton scored 29 points, but the Bucks will have to play from behind again after dropping Game 1 for the third straight series.

The series opener was the first NBA Finals game in Phoenix since Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls won their third straight championship here in Game 6 in 1993. The Suns, who came into the NBA with the Bucks in 1968, made their only other finals appearance in 1976.

Game 2 is Thursday.

As heard on WHOW, rookie Bailey Ober pitched five scoreless innings for his first major league victory, Max Kepler homered twice and the Minnesota Twins held off the Chicago White Sox 8-5 on Monday night.

Ober (1-1) hit the milestone in his seventh career start, with seven strikeouts and two hits and three walks allowed. In two previous turns against the White Sox, he gave up nine runs in 7 1/3 innings. 

Kepler hit a two-run home run in the second, and a two-run triple by Nick Gordon helped the Twins build a 6-1 lead in the sixth inning against Dylan Cease (7-4).

The White Sox were more worried afterward about catcher Yasmani Grandal, whose return from a two-game absence to tightness in his left calf went sour when he hurt the muscle again on a checked swing in the sixth. Grandal hopped out of the box and writhed around in the grass before being helped off, in too much pain to finish the at-bat, and he was on crutches afterward.

The AL Central leaders surged back with a four-run seventh, getting a two-run single by Garcia against Caleb Thielbar and a two-run triple by Yoan Moncada off Tyler Duffey.

Moncada was thrown out at the plate trying to score on a chopper to third for the first out of the inning, and then the Twins turned to their best reliever to take back control. Taylor Rogers got five outs, four by strikeout, in a superb six-batter appearance.

Hansel Robles pitched a scoreless ninth for his eighth save. Kepler recorded his 10th career multihomer game when he took Ryan Burr deep in a two-run eighth that gave the Twins some room for Robles to work.

Carlos Rodon (6-3, 2.37 ERA) will take the mound on Tuesday night, his first turn since being selected for his first All-Star Game and his last before the break. Jose Berrios (7-2, 3.52 ERA) will pitch the middle game of the series. Berrios is 12-2 with a 2.77 ERA in 18 starts facing the White Sox. Hear tonight's action on The Big 1520 AM/92.3 FM/106.5 FM WHOW.

Kwang Hyun Kim pitched seven scoreless innings, Matt Carpenter hit a two-run triple in the seventh for the first runs of the game and St. Louis snapped San Francisco's three-game winning streak by beating the Giants 5-3.

Kim (3-5) allowed three hits with two strikeouts and two walks.

Donovan Solano and Steven Duggar hit RBI singles in the ninth against Alex Reyes, but San Francisco's comeback bid fell short.

Gausman didn't allow a hit until Nolan Arenado's one-out single in the seventh that started a two-run rally in what had been a scoreless game. After Yadier Molina struck out, Tommy Edman singled before Carpenter's triple.

Arenado, an NL All-Star, added an RBI single in the eighth.

Adam Wainwright (6-5, 3.49 ERA), who has allowed two or fewer runs in five straight starts, pitches in San Francisco for the first time since a 5-2 loss on Sept. 19, 2016. The Giants counter with RHP Johnny Cueto (6-4, 4.00), looking to bounce back from a loss at Arizona.

Odubel Herrera hit a three-run homer, and the Philadelphia Phillies went deep five times while handing the Cubs their 10th straight loss with a 13-3 romp on Monday night.

Andrew Knapp, Didi Gregorius, Rhys Hoskins and Alec Bohm also connected.

The Cubs remained winless since Zach Davies and three relievers combined to no-hit the Dodgers in Los Angeles on June 24. They also extended their worst losing streak since a 12-game slide in May 2012.

The Cubs were tied with Milwaukee for the NL Central lead prior to their tailspin. Now, they are 8 1/2 games behind the first-place Brewers and third in the division.

Herrera's drive against Kohl Stewart capped a six-run eighth that broke open a 4-2 game. Bohm also drew a bases-loaded walk and two more came in when third baseman Eric Sogard misplayed Ronald Torreyes' grounder.

Knapp led off the third with his second homer, and Gregorius added a solo shot against Davies in the fourth. Hoskins and Bohm went back to back against Sogard in the ninth.

Andrew McCutchen had three hits and scored two runs. He delivered a tiebreaking double in the sixth, and the Phillies scored twice in the inning after Ross got ejected by plate umpire Nic Lentz following a heated argument.

The Cubs (42-43) fell below .500 for the first time since they were 19-20 in mid-May. With All-Star Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Baez in the final seasons of their contracts, Chicago is looking more like a potential seller than buyer prior to the July 30 trade deadline.

Jake Marisnick homered for Chicago, and Davies lasted five innings, allowing two runs and four hits.

Jake Arrieta (5-8, 5.57 ERA) tries again to get back on track for Chicago, while Aaron Nola (5-5 4.44 ERA) gets the ball for Philadelphia. Arrieta got tagged in a 15-7 loss at Milwaukee last week after a seven-run first by the Cubs. He is 0-4 with a 7.82 ERA in seven starts since winning at Pittsburgh on May 25. Nola gave up seven runs in a loss to Miami last week.

Elias Diaz delivered a two-out run-scoring single in the ninth on an afternoon German Marquez struck out 11 and was picked for his first All-Star team, helping the Colorado Rockies rally for a 3-2 win Sunday over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Diaz sent a 3-2 pitch from All-Star closer Alex Reyes (5-3) into left and Joshua Fuentes, who had reached on a single and advanced on a wild pitch, beat the throw home with a head-first dive.

Trevor Story tied the game at 2-apiece with a sacrifice fly in the eighth. Story added a solo homer in the first.

Rockies reliever Justin Lawrence (1-0) earned the win by pitching out of a jam in the ninth. He got pinch-hitter Yadier Molina to ground into an inning-ending double play.

St. Louis has lost 22 of 33 games following a 30-22 start. Runs were at a premium in this four-game series, with St. Louis outscoring the Rockies by a 15-14 margin.

Marquez kept the Cardinals off-balance in striking out a season-high 11. Harrison Bader was the only one to solve Marquez, lining a knuckle-curve on an 0-2 count over the fence in left for a two-run homer in the second.

The hard-throwing righty was coming off a gem against Pittsburgh last Tuesday when he took a no-hit bid into the ninth before allowing a leadoff single.

Marquez has pitched most of the season like an All-Star, which will be on his home field on July 13,after he earned a spot Sunday. Marquez became the first Rockies starter to make the All-Star team since Ubaldo Jimenez in 2010.

Marquez got the best of fellow All-Star and former teammate Nolan Arenado, striking him out twice.

Arenado, who played eight seasons in Colorado, didn't have the most productive return to Coors Field. Over the four-game series, he went 2 for 14 with no homers or RBIs. Arenado did receive a round of applause before stepping into the batter's box Sunday - and will be back to the park for the All-Star Game.

Carlos Martinez was cruising along until one out in the fourth when trainers came out to check on him. Martinez was taken out due to a bruised right thumb he suffered while at the plate.

Story's homer in the first was his sixth in 12 games. The Rockies shortstop is finding his swing just in time for the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game next week.

Jeimer Candelario had three hits and Akil Baddoo drove in two runs as Detroit built a big lead, and the Tigers withstood Jose Abreu's three-run homer in the ninth inning in a 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday.

Detroit won the final two games of the series for its first series win over the White Sox since Sept. 3-5, 2018. The Tigers are 29-22 from May 8 on but are just 38-46 overall.

Tigers reliever Gregory Soto switched to another glove from his locker, then struggled. Billy Hamilton and Tim Anderson singled, and Abreu hit his 14th homer with one out. Soto struck out Brian Goodwin and walked Leury Garcia.

Jose Cisnero relieved and needed one pitch for his fourth save in five chances, retiring Andrew Vaughn on a lineout to right.

Tyler Alexander (1-1) allowed one hit in 2 1/3 scoreless innings to win in relief of rookie Matt Manning, who gave up two runs and seven hits in 2 2/3 innings.

Lucas Giolito (6-6) dropped to 1-2 in his last six starts. He allowed six runs and a season-high 10 hits in five innings, and he is 0-3 in four starts against Detroit this season.

Baddoo reached on an infield single in the first, stole second and scored on Robbie Grossman's groundout. Harold Castro hit an RBI single in the second, and Baddoo hit a two-run double for a 4-0 lead.

Chicago closed in the third on Abreu's RBI single and Garcia's sacrifice fly.

Candelario hit an RBI double in the fifth and scored on Erc Haase's single for a 6-2 lead.

Amir Garrett put himself in a jam one out in the ninth inning and Cincinnati clinging to a 3-2 lead against the Chicago Cubs.

Garrett walked Ian Happ on four pitches and surrendered a pinch-hit single to Eric Sogard.

Willson Contreras then bounced to third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who started a game-ending double play that closed out the Cubs' ninth straight loss.

Cincinnati earned its fourth straight win and pulled within seven games of NL Central-leading Milwaukee. The Cubs scored a total of five runs in the weekend series, dropping all three games by one run. They closed out a 1-9 trip, losing every game after throwing a no-hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Reds' beleaguered bullpen held the Cubs scoreless for the third straight day. After Wade Miley gave up 10 hits through 6 2/3 innings, Art Warren (2-0), Brad Brach and Garrett closed it out.

Chicago went 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners on base.

Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks pitched six innings of one-run ball. He allowed five hits, struck out five, and walked none.

Chicago jumped in front with one run in each of the first two innings. Javier Baez singled in Kris Bryant in the first. Then Jake Marisnick smashed a one-out triple over the head of Tyler Naquin in the center in the second and scored on Hendricks' two-out single up the middle.

Cincinnati got one back on Tucker Barnhart's RBI double in the second, and then went ahead to stay with two runs in the seventh.

The Reds loaded the bases against Dan Winkler (1-1), who hit Jonathan India with one out to push across the tying run. Another run scored on Jesse Winker's infield out before Andrew Chafin struck out Nick Castellanos to end the inning.

The transfer market received a high-profile late addition on Thursday when Illinois big man Kofi Cockburn entered the portal on deadline day for players wishing for immediate eligibility at their new schools next season. Cockburn earned second-team All-American honors from CBS Sports as a sophomore while averaging 17.7 points and 9.5 rebounds for an Illini squad that earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Cockburn is also going through the NBA's pre-draft process and has not withdrawn his name from professional consideration. If he does return to college basketball and transfers from Illinois, Cockburn would be one of the game's most impactful transfers in the season ahead. Though he lacks an outside shot, the 7-footer is one of the most dominant interior players in the nation.

Losing Cockburn to another school would be a tough blow for Illinois as the Illini are also losing leading scorer Ayo Dosunmu to the NBA Draft and promising young guard Adam Miller to LSU via transfer from last season's 24-7 squad. Illinois assistants Chin Coleman and Orlando Antigua also left the program for Kentucky, which has been an active force in recruiting transfers following a dismal 9-16 season.

Zack Collins hit a tiebreaking homer in the sixth inning and the Chicago White Sox scored at least seven runs for the fourth straight game, completing a three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins 8-5 on Thursday.

Chicago got four runs off Minnesota's bullpen after the Twins erased a 3-0 deficit. The AL Central-leading White Sox won their fourth straight after losing seven of nine.

Collins broke a 4-4 tie when he hit a fastball from Jorge Alcala (1-3) into the left-center field bleachers. Jose Abreu drove in another run in the sixth, and Danny Mendick and Collins drove in two more in the seventh.

Michael Kopech (3-0) pitched a scoreless sixth and Garrett Crochet struck out Miguel Sano to escape a bases-loaded jam in the seventh. Ryan Jeffers drove in a run in the ninth off of White Sox closer Liam Hendricks in a non-save situation.

Chicago has scored 35 runs over four games after scoring 20 in its previous eight.

The White Sox secured their second straight home-series sweep of the Twins this season, the first time the team has swept back-to-back home series against Minnesota since 1995. Chicago is 8-1 against its division rival this season.

Minnesota's bats came alive in the fifth after Chicago starter Carlos Rodon retired the previous 10 batters. Alex Kirilloff scored from second on Gilberto Celestino's single after Brian Goodwin's throw from left field went to the backstop. Andrelton Simmons drove in a run off a double, Josh Donaldson hit a sacrifice fly to tie it and Nelson Cruz gave the Twins a 4-3 lead on a single to left.

Rodon escaped the fifth inning by striking out Sano. He allowed four runs in five innings, striking out nine.

Goodwin started scoring in the second inning when he hit a home run for the second straight day, hitting a curveball off of Twins starter Jose Berrios to the right-center bleachers. Chicago added two home runs after hitting six as a team the night before.

Chicago scored two more runs in the third when Yasmani Grandal drove in a run on a ground ball single and Andrew Vaugh drove in a run on a sacrifice fly to take a 3-0 lead.

Berrios allowed three earned runs on 10 hits in five innings. The loss put Minnesota 14 1/2 games behind Chicago in the AL Central at 33-46.

Lance Lynn (7-3, 2.06 ERA) starts for Chicago at Detroit on Friday. The White Sox are starting a nine-game road trip before the All-Star break. Lynn will be fresh after only pitching three innings against Seattle on Saturday before rain suspended the game.

Elias Diaz hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Colorado Rockies a rain-delayed 5-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night, spoiling Nolan Arenado's return to Coors Field.

Arenado went hitless in four at-bats during his first game in Denver since Colorado traded him to St. Louis in the offseason. He popped out to first in his first two trips to the plate and grounded out in his last two.

When he walked to the plate in the first inning, Arenado got a mostly warm reception from the crowd. The star third baseman tipped his helmet to the fans and then tapped his chest and pointed to the stands.

Brendan Rodgers also homered and Daniel Bard (4-4) got the win in relief for the Rockies, who have won four straight.

Gallegos retired the first two batters to start the ninth and had Diaz in a hole before he hit one 424 feet into the seats in left. It was the first walk-off homer of his career and his fifth of the season.

Rodgers gave Colorado a 2-1 lead with a two-run shot in the second inning, his fifth of the season.

Paul Goldschmidt, who has hit well against the Rockies, hit his 26th career homer against them to tie it in the third. It was his 12th of the season.

Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright extended his mastery of Colorado. In 17 games - 13 starts - he has a 1.72 career ERA against the Rockies, and at Coors Field he has a 2.42 ERA in seven games, six starts.

Wainwright kept up his workhorse trend with 110 pitches, eclipsing the 100-pitch mark for the fourth straight game and ninth time this season. He retired 12 of the last 13 batters he faced to keep the game tied.

Antonio Senzatela nearly matched Wainwright, going seven strong innings before turning it over to the Colorado bullpen.

The start of the game was delayed 58 minutes due to rain.

Harrison Bader was activated from the 10-day injured list and started in center field. St. Louis optioned outfielder Lars Nootbaar to Triple-A Memphis. Bader missed 34 games with a right rib hairline fracture sustained diving to attempt to catch a line drive May 24 at the Chicago White Sox.

Johan Oviedo (0-4, 5.23 ERA) will face Colorado RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-5, 5.81) in the second of a four-game series on Friday night.

Road America owns a reputation as one of the nation’s foremost road courses yet hasn’t hosted NASCAR’s premier Cup Series since the 1950s.

That changes on the Fourth of July in a coup for a Wisconsin track that bills itself as “America’s national park of speed” but until this year couldn’t land a Cup date. NASCAR drivers can’t wait for the opportunity to race Sunday at Elkhart Lake.

Road America, which opened in 1955, is located on 640 acres about halfway between Milwaukee and Green Bay. The course is just over 4 miles long, features 14 turns and is surrounded by about 1,600 campsites.

For all its history, Road America only hosted NASCAR’s premier series once before, when Tim Flock won a rainy Grand National event back in 1956. The track wanted the top series back but could not get one of the elusive 36 race dates.

The track also benefited from NASCAR’s decision to add more road courses and variety to the Cup Series schedule. NASCAR had three road courses on its Cup Series schedule from 2018 to 2020, and never had more than two in any year before that.

This year’s schedule has seven.

Yasmani Grandal hit a three-run shot and a towering two-run drive, and the Chicago White Sox went deep six times to pound the Minnesota Twins 13-3 Wednesday night.

Rookie Andrew Vaughn smacked a two-run homer and had three RBIs. Gavin Sheets hit his first career home run in his second game as Chicago won its third straight.

Jose Abreu and Brian Goodwin added solo shots to help first-place Chicago expand its lead over Cleveland in the AL Central despite missing injured sluggers Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert for most of the season.

Grandal's 14th career multihomer game gave him 14 homers for the season. The White Sox catcher is batting just .186, but his timely power along with 59 walks have helped.

Dylan Cease (7-3) cruised to his fourth victory in five starts, allowing three hits and striking out seven in six innings. Josh Donaldson and Nelson Cruz connected for solo homers off the 25-year-old right-hander, but Cease mixed a repertoire that ranges from 97-plus mph fastballs to 77 mph changeups.

Gilberto Celestino added a solo shot in the eighth.

Abreu's homer was just the second for the slumping 2020 AL MVP in 26 games. Sheets, who made his major league debut Tuesday, also had a single and is 4 for 8 with four RBIs so far.

Twins rookie Bailey Ober (0-1) lasted just 3 1/3 innings in his sixth career start, allowing five runs on four hits, including three homers.

Donaldson homered in the first inning for a second straight day, then struck out twice before exiting. He was booed loudly during his first two plate appearances after touching off a war of words with White Sox ace Lucas Giolito on Tuesday.

Donaldson appeared to yell ''not sticky anymore'' after a two-run drive off Giolito on Tuesday in Chicago's 7-6 win and suggested that Giolito had benefitted from the use of foreign substances prior to Major League Baseball's crackdown last week.

On Wednesday, Donaldson smacked a 1-1 pitch deep to left for a solo shot and early 1-0 Twins lead. The crowd of 16,803 chanted profanely at Donaldson as he trotted quickly around the bases - then directly and silently to the dugout.

Giolito and Donaldson met after Tuesday's game. Donaldson claimed on Wednesday that Giolito was among ''like 150 guys'' on a list of pitchers he suspected had been using illicit grip enhancers to generate more spin on their pitches.

Goodwin and Vaughn homered in the second to give Chicago a 3-1 lead. Abreu went deep in the third, and Vaughn's sac fly in the fourth made it 5-1.

Grandal's first homer got the White Sox rolling during a six-run fifth that put the game away. Twins center fielder Nick Gordon leaped at the wall and had the ball in his glove, but it rolled out and over the fence.

Tim Anderson singled in a run, and Sheets went deep to right-center to make it 11-1.

After Cruz homered in the sixth, Grandal blasted his second homer in the bottom half.

Jose Berrios (7-2, 3.41) takes the mound against Carlos Rodon (6-3, 2.06) in the series finale Thursday afternoon.

Student-athletes across the state can now receive compensation while in school after Gov. Pritzker signed the Endorsement Rights Act into law.

The Endorsement Rights Act grants student-athletes control over their name, image, and likeness or voice for the first time in state history through NIL legislation. University of Illinois Athletic Director Josh Whitman said the legislation is a "new era."

So far, only six states - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, Mississippi, and Texas allow student-athletes to receive compensation for their name, image, and likeness. SB 2338 takes effect on July 1, 2021.

Kwang Hyun Kim won for the first time in 11 starts, pitching five solid innings and helping himself with a two-run double as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-4 Wednesday for a three-game sweep.

Kim (2-5) had lost five straight decisions since his last win on April 23. He stranded six runners through his first four innings, giving up just an RBI single to Asdrubal Cabrera.

Kim retired his last five batters. He struck out five, walked three and allowed three hits as the Cardinals won for the fourth time in their last five games.

Alex Reyes earned his 20th save in as many opportunities. Arizona lost its fourth in a row.

Kim's opposite-field double to left in the second scored Yadier Molina and Edmundo Sosa to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead. The two RBIs were Kim's first in the majors, and it was also the first extra-base hit for the 32-year-old lefty - he was 1 for 15 in the big leagues before that.

Paul Goldschmidt and Tyler O'Neill each doubled twice and singled, and Molina had a pair of hits. All three players drove in a run.

The Diamondbacks scored three in the eighth on just one hit. Two runs scored on a walk and a wild pitch by Ryan Helsley after he inherited a bases-loaded, one-out situation from Roel Ramirez, who was making his season debut. It is the 20th bases loaded walk allowed by Cardinals pitching this season.

Riley Smith (1-4) gave up four runs over three innings in his first start since May 14. The Diamondbacks were swept for the 13th time this season.

Arizona lost its fourth straight on the road since winning Saturday at San Diego to end a record 24-game road losing streak. The Diamondbacks are a major league-worst 22-60, including 10-36 away from home.

Adam Wainwright (6-5, 3.59 ERA) gets the start of a four-game series at the Colorado Rockies and RHP Antonio Senzatela on Thursday night. Wainwright has five straight quality starts and went 4-1 in June.

Highly touted Milwaukee prospect Aaron Ashby got roughed up for seven runs in the first inning of his big league debut, but Luis Urias homered twice as the Brewers rallied to rout the Chicago Cubs 15-7 Wednesday for their eighth straight win.

The Brewers swept the three-game series and increased their NL Central lead to six games over Chicago. The Cubs lost their sixth in a row.

Willy Adames hit a grand slam during an eight-run burst in the fourth inning that put Milwaukee ahead 14-7. His error at shortstop helped the Cubs break loose at the start against Ashby.

The Angels also rallied to win Wednesday after allowing seven runs in the first inning to the Yankees, making it the first day since at least 1900 when two teams allowed seven or more runs in the first inning and rallied to win, according to STATS.

The 23-year-old Ashby was charged with seven runs, four of them earned, on four hits and three walks. Of his 39 pitches, only 18 were strikes.

Willson Contreras led off the game with a single and the Cubs loaded the bases with no outs. Javier Baez hit a two-run single, Adames' misplay let another run score and bunt single produced a run.

After a double steal, a run-scoring wild pitch and two walks, Ashby exited with the bases loaded, two outs and trailing 5-0. Miguel Sanchez relieved and gave up a two-run single to Patrick Wisdom.

Five Brewers relievers combined for 8 1/3 scoreless innings. Trevor Richards (3-0) wound up with the win.

Urias had his first multi-homer game in the majors and finished with three hits and four RBIs.

Jace Peterson drove in three runs with a pair of singles.

Slumping outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. had his second multi-hit game in the series and just his fifth of the season.

Milwaukee tries to continue its winning streak behind RHP Corbin Burnes (3-4, 2.53 ERA), who gets the start in the first of a four-game series against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Burnes got a no-decision his last time out despite holding the Rockies to a run over six innings. He's 3-0 with a 3.19 ERA in 15 career games against Pittsburgh.