MLB:
In baseball, in the American League, the Yankees edged Cleveland 5-4, the Red Sox were off last night they start a series against Tampa Bay tonight at Fenway Park, Minnesota bested Texas 10-1, Toronto slid past Detroit 5-4, the Angels won against Tampa Bay 5-1, Oakland beat Houston 3-1, and it was Kansas City over Seattle 4-3.
In the National League, the Mets topped Washington 9-7, St. Louis beat Pittsburgh 5-1, Atlanta edged the Cubs 4-3 in 11 innings, Colorado crushed Philadelphia 11-2, and it was San Diego over the Dodgers 6-0.
The All-star break begins on Monday when the Home Run Derby is expected to take place at 8 p.m.
Cardinals’ rookie shortstop Aledmys Diaz will replace his teammate Matt Carpenter on the National League roster for next week's All-Star game. Carpenter is on the 15-day disabled list after leaving Wednesday's game against Pittsburgh with a strained right oblique. In an American League roster change, Indians hurler Corey Kluber has been added to the squad after Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada was placed on the disabled list due to a back injury.
In other big league news:
— Mets pitcher Matt Harvey could be done for the season after a specialist determined the one-time All-Star has symptoms consistent with thoracic outlet syndrome. General Manager Sandy Alderson announced the diagnosis today and said a decision on surgery is likely to come in the next few days before the All-Star break. Harvey is off to the worst start of his major league career, going 4-10 with a 4.86 ERA in 17 starts.
— The Boston Red Sox have acquired infielder Aaron Hill and cash from the Milwaukee Brewers for minor leaguers Aaron Wilkerson and Wendell Rijo to Milwaukee. The 34-year-old Hill is batting.283 with eight homers and 29 RBIs in 78 games this season. The acquisition comes after Red Sox third baseman Travis Shaw left last night's game with a bruised left foot.
NBA:
Time's up for the old NBA shot clock. The league will debut a new timing system and shot clock this week in Las Vegas during the NBA Summer League, which will then be integrated into all 29 arenas for the 2016 to 2017 season.
The league says Thursday the new clock will feature the game clocks, 24-second and timeout, the first time they have all been in one piece of hardware. Developed by Swiss watchmaker Tissot, the league's official timekeeper, the timing system will allow for clearer footage to assist referees and the Replay Center, and provides a benefit to some fans. The clock's LED glass is nearly transparent when in use, giving fans behind the baskets a view to the court that was previously obstructed. The NBA introduced the shot clock for the 1954 to 55 season and it has been positioned on top of the backboard since 1977.
Kevin Durant has been introduced by the Golden State Warriors after signing a two-year contract that's worth over $54 million. Durant said his meeting with the Warriors' brass and new teammates Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson last Friday had a "great vibe throughout the whole day." He joins a Warriors team that came back from a 3-1 deficit to beat Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference finals before blowing a 3-1 lead in the Finals against Cleveland.
In other NBA news:
— Dwyane Wade says his decision to leave Miami to sign with the Chicago Bulls felt "surreal." The 12-time All-Star guard made the comment while co-hosting 'Live with Kelly" a day after coming to a free agent agreement with the Bulls. He spent his entire 13 year NBA career with the Heat, helping them to three NBA titles and winning the league's MVP award in 2006.
— Dallas wasted no time avoiding a repeat of last year's fiasco when they thought they had an agreement with DeAndre Jordan, only to have him decide to stay with the Clippers. Owner Mark Cuban tweeted a picture of Harrison Barnes playfully handcuffed to president of basketball operations Donnie Walsh moments after the free agent signing period opened. The former Golden State forward signed a four-year, $94 million deal as soon as the rules allowed, shortly after midnight.
— The Mavericks also have completed a trade with Golden State for center Andrew Bogut (BOH'-gut). Each team will get a future second-round draft pick in the deal.
— A person familiar with the deal confirms that the Portland Trail Blazers have agreed to a two-year contract with free agent center Festus Ezeli (eh-ZEE'-lee) worth $15 million.
— Chicago has announced the addition of point guard Rajon Rondo (RAH'-zhahn RAHN'-doh). The team did not disclose terms of the contract, but a person with knowledge of the negotiations previously told The Associated Press that the four-time All-Star agreed to a $30 million, two-year deal.
— Detroit has signed San Antonio big man Boban Marjanovic to a three-year, $21 million offer sheet. The Spurs can match the offer within three days, but their salary cap situation makes that seem unlikely. The 7-foot-3 Marjanovic averaged 5.5 points per game last season, his first in the NBA.
— The Charlotte Hornets have announced they've re-signed Nicolas Batum (bah-TOOM'), acquired Marco Belinelli in a trade with the Sacramento Kings and signed free agents Roy Hibbert and Ramon Sessions. Batum agreed last week to a five-year, $120 million contract, the largest ever given to a Hornets player.
— The Milwaukee Bucks have acquired guard Matthew Dellavedova in a sign-and-trade with Cleveland. Dellavedova is coming off a season with career-bests of 7.5 points, 4.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds while helping the Cavaliers win the NBA championship.
— Orlando newcomers Bismack Biyombo, Jeff Green and D.J. Augustin have been introduced by the Magic after signing free-agent deals. The Magic also announced the re-signing of their own restricted free agent Evan Fournier.
— The Wizards have acquired guard Trey Burke from the Utah Jazz for a 2021 second-round pick. Burke has averaged 12.1 points and 4.2 assists in three seasons with Utah
— Manu Ginobili confirms he's returning to the Spurs on a one-year deal. He has spent the first 14 years of his career in San Antonio.
Indoor Football:
Vermont will be getting a professional indoor football team. The Burlington Free Press has confirmed that the Vermont Bucks are expected to join the American Indoor Football league as an expansion franchise next year.
UFC:
Jon Jones has denied using any performance-enhancing substances after a positive drug test knocked him out of the main event at Saturday's UFC 200. The UFC interim light heavyweight champion broke into tears at a hastily arranged news conference Thursday, a day after his rematch with Daniel Cormier was canceled.
Jones' manager, Malki Kawa, says the fighter was informed of a possible performance-enhancing drug violation by USADA, which administers the UFC's anti-drug policy. They've asked USADA to test Jones' backup sample. Jones says he's been taking the same supplements for years. He claims to be baffled by the result of his June 16 test after passing seven other drug tests this year. Jones is considered the world's top pound-for-pound mixed martial artist, but he has endured numerous troubles in recent years.
Meanwhile Eddie Alvarez won the UFC lightweight title on Thursday night, stopping Rafael Dos Anjos in the first round with a blistering series of strikes.
Alvarez (28-4) needed just 3:49 to finish an impressive upset of Dos Anjos (24-8), the Brazilian champion with a five-fight winning streak. Alvarez initially caught Dos Anjos with a damaging right hand, but had to unload dozens of strikes on the still-standing Dos Anjos until finally getting a stoppage.
Alvarez won the belt in just his fourth fight with the UFC, which signed him in 2014 after his protracted departure from the Bellator promotion. Alvarez was trounced by Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone in his first bout, but the Philadelphia-based fighter recovered with split-decision wins over Gilbert Melendez and Pettis to get a title shot.
WNBA:
In the WNBA, Connecticut beat Minnesota 93-89.
Tennis:
Today's Wimbledon slate is highlighted by the men's semifinals following yesterday's straight-sets victories by Serena Williams and Angelique Kerber in the women's semis. They will meet in the finals. Third seed Roger Federer and No. 6 Milos Raonic get things started on Centre Court today before second seed Andy Murray faces No. 10 Tomas Berdych. Williams needed just 48 minutes to complete a 6-2, 6-0 win over Elena Vesnina yesterday before Kerber took a 6-4, 6-4 decision against Venus Williams.
LPGA:
Mirim Lee owns a three-stroke lead at the U.S. Open following her record-tying performance in the first round. Lee became the fifth player to play an Open round at 8-under, carding a 64 that included 10 birdies. Amy Yang birdied 18 to move into a three-way tie for second at -5 with Cristie Kerr and Minjee Lee.
Boston Marathon:
The mad dash to the starting line of the 2017 Boston Marathon is just around the corner. The Boston Athletic Association says registration for prequalified runners will open at 10 a.m. on September 12th and continue on a rolling basis until the field limit is reached.
IndyCar:
IndyCar announced Thursday it has agreed to refund $925,000 to fans who bought advance tickets to the Boston Grand Prix before it was canceled. The motorsports series and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said the money represents less than half the nearly $2.1 million spent by about 4,000 fans. Healey said she has filed a lawsuit against Boston Grand Prix and chief executive officer John Casey, seeking full refunds for all ticket buyers.
Tour de France:
British sprinter Mark Cavendish captured of the sixth stage of the Tour de France, giving him three stage wins this year. It is Cavendish's 29th overall stage win, putting him in second place, five back of all-time leader Eddy Merckx. Greg van Avermaet kept the yellow jersey of the overall leader.
Soccer:
Antoine Griezmann scored both goals as France beat world champion Germany 2-0 to reach the final of the European Championship. Griezmann put France in front from the penalty spot in first half stoppage time and took full advantage of a German defensive blunder to score his second with a calm finish in the 72nd minute. France will play Portugal in Sunday's final at Saint-Denis.
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