MLB:
Giancarlo Stanton has won the Home Run Derby last night. Stanton beat defending champion Todd Frazier of the White Sox 20-13 in the final. The Marlins outfielder slammed 61 home runs during his three rounds, beating Robinson Cano 24-7 in the first round and current home run leader Mark Trumbo 17-14 in the semifinals. Frazier advanced to the final by beating both Carlos Gonzalez and Adam Duvall by one round-tripper in each round.
Meanwhile, the actual midsummer classic is slated for Tuesday at Petco Park. The White Sox' Chris Sale has been named the starting pitcher for the American League, while San Francisco's Johnny Cueto gets the ball for the National League.
Sale leads the majors with 14 victories and has compiled a .225 batting average against. Cueto is the NL's wins leader at 13-1 with a 2.47 ERA at the break.
David Ortiz and a bunch of Red Sox teammates will be taking on Anthony Rizzo and a lot of Chicago Cubs in tonight's All-Star Game in San Diego. The American League has won three in a row and the league that wins tonight will have home-field advantage for ths World Series. The Red Sox put six players on the AL team, with four of them starters.
Major League Baseball has scrubbed plans to play regular-season games in London next year. Players association president Tony Clark said a number of factors have made it impossible to finalize plans for big league games there in time for the 2017 season. Clark also was non-committal about having players on 25-man active rosters made available for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, to be held during the major league season.
NFL:
The New York Giants have signed punter Brad Wing to a contract extension, locking him up through the 2019 season. Wing last season put 33 punts inside the 20 yard line, which tied a Giants record in his second season in the NFL.
NBA:
San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan has retired following a 19-year NBA career that included five championships. The first overall pick in the 1997 draft is a three-time NBA most valuable player who was selected to 15 All-Star games. Duncan is one of three players to win at least 1,000 games during his career, and he ranks 14th on the NBA's all-time scoring list.
Golden State star Draymond Green has been arrested on a charge of misdemeanor assault and battery over the weekend near the Michigan State campus. The alleged incident occurred early Sunday morning in the city where Green played for the Spartans from 2008 to 2012. East Lansing Police Lt. Scott Wrigglesworth says the male victim was not injured. If convicted of assault or assault and battery, Green could face 93 days in jail, a $500 fine, or both.
Technology industry leaders have pressed NBA commissioner Adam Silver to move next February's NBA All-Star Game out of Charlotte unless North Carolina officials repeal a law limiting anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people in the state. The executives told Silver in a letter that putting fans at risk of discrimination would send a "terrible message."
After Brooklyn waived Jarrett Jack last month, the point guard has agreed on a one-year contract to play next season for the Atlanta Hawks. Jack will back up starter Dennis Schroder at point guard. He spent two seasons with Brooklyn, missing much of last season to a knee injury.
Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell has apologized for temporarily posting a drawing on Instagram last week showing a police officer getting his throat slashed. Crowell posted the drawing after men in Louisiana and Minnesota were shot and killed by police. He subsequently deleted the post, but a screenshot continued to be circulated on social media, prompting his apology Monday.
Tennis:
Defending champ Rajeev Ram beat fellow American Mackenzie McDonald 6-2, 6-3 in opening round play yesterday at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, Rhode Island. Ram is a two-time winner of the tournament. Top seed Steve Johsnon, who is ranked 25th among men's players, received a bye and plays his first match on Wednesday.
A ruling on Maria Sharapova's appeal of her two-year doping ban has been postponed until September, taking her out of the Rio Olympics next month. The Court of Arbitration for Sport says that Sharapova and the International Tennis Federation have agreed to defer the decision, which had been due to be issued by next Monday. Sharapova tested positive for meldonium at the Australian Open in January and received a two-year ban from the ITF. The five-time Grand Slam champion and former No. 1-ranked player filed an appeal last month, seeking to overturn or reduce the sanction.
Wimbledon champion Andy Murray says it's unlikely he'll play for Britain in its Davis Cup quarterfinal against Serbia this week. Murray adds that even if he doesn't play in the matches, scheduled for Friday through Sunday, he probably still will travel to Belgrade to support the team.
Olympics:
The American women's basketball team for the Rio Olympics will play a select team later this month in Los Angeles and then play a three-city tournament against France, Canada and Australia. The three games will be in Connecticut, Delaware and New York. The U.S. squad opens Olympics play on Sunday, August 7 against Senegal.
Jordan Spieth is taking a pass on golf's return to the Olympics for the first time in 112 years. Spieth joins a growing list of big name players who are skipping the Summer Games in Rio next month due to health concerns. Spieth joins top-ranked Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy as those who have opted out of the Olympics because of the Zika virus. They are the top four ranked players in the world.
PGA:
Zach Johnson has surrendered the hardware. The defending British Open champ has returned the claret jug that has accompanied him since he won a three-way playoff at St. Andrew's last year. The trophy is being stored until a new champ is crowned Sunday at Royal Troon. Colin Montgomerie gets the honor of hitting the opening tee shot when the third major tournament of the year starts on Thursday. The 53-year old Scot will be playing what's likely his final British Open at the club where his father was the longtime secretary. Top-ranked Jason Day will play in a group with Rickie Fowler and Masters champion Danny Willett. U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson plays with Martin Kaymer and Russell Knox.
Tour de France:
Defending champ Chris Froome holds a 16-second lead over countryman Adam Yates heading into Tuesday's tenth stage of the Tour de France, a 122-mile trek through the Pyrenees. There was no racing on Monday.
Horse Racing:
Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist will make his next start July 31 at the $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park. The horse's trainer says the 3-year-old colt had an impressive workout yesterday at California's Santa Anita. It hasn't yet been decided when the horse will travel to New Jersey.
NHL:
The agent for Ryan O'Reilly confirmed that charges against the Buffalo Sabres forward have been dropped stemming from an impaired driving incident last year. Pat Morris tells The Associated Press in an email that Canadian prosecutors found there was not enough evidence to proceed and dropped the charges against O'Reilly of impaired driving and failing to remain at the scene. The case has been dismissed.
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