MLB-NL WILD-CARD GAME
The Arizona Diamondbacks have moved into the NL Division Series for the first time in six years by putting the "wild" in the wild-card game.
Paul Goldschmidt belted a three-run homer and Jake Lamb was 4-for-4 with three runs scored as the DBacks outscored the Rockies, 11-8 at Phoenix. Goldschmidt opened the scoring with a first-inning blast, but the Diamondbacks squandered most of a 6-0 lead before getting two-run triples from pitcher Archie Bradley in the seventh inning and A.J. Pollock in the eighth.
Bradley's triple came after the Rockies got within 6-5. Colorado later pulled within 8-7 before Pollock tripled and scored on a single by Jeff Mathis.
Ketel Marte drove in a run with one of his two triples and Daniel Descalso added a two-run homer for the Diamondbacks, who earned a series matchup against the Dodgers.
Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story launched back-to-back homers in the eighth for the Rockies.
Neither starting pitcher lasted very long. Losing pitcher Jon Gray was lifted with one out in the second, yielding four runs and seven hits. Zack Greinke came out of the game during Colorado's four-run fourth, charged with the four runs and six hits.
Andrew Chafin got the final out in the fourth to pick up the win.
The Boston Red Sox will take on the Houston Astros tonight in the first game of the AL division series this afternoon at 4:08 PM.
And the New York Yankees will take on the Cleveland Indians tonight at 7:30 from Cleveland.
MLB NEWS
The Chicago Cubs have set their rotation for their NL Division Series against Washington, but the Nationals have a major question mark among their starters.
Kyle Hendricks is expected to pitch the opener on Friday, followed by Jon Lester, Jose Quintana and Jake Arrieta. Hendricks missed part of June and July with pain in the middle finger of his right hand, but he had a 2.19 ERA in his final 13 starts after the All-Star break. Hendricks is 2-2 with a 2.67 ERA in five career starts against Washington.
Lester started the opener in each of Chicago's three playoff series last year and is 9-7 with a 2.63 ERA in 22 career postseason games.
Stephen Strasburg is likely to start Game 1 for the Nats, but manager Dusty Baker hasn't set his rotation as he awaits a medical update on Max Scherzer. The two-time Cy Young Award winner tweaked his right hamstring in his last start on Sept. 30 and had to leave after 3 1/3 innings. He was expected to throw a bullpen session on Wednesday, but he instead worked off flat ground before a lengthy chat with the team trainer.
General manager Mike Rizzo said the team hasn't determined when Scherzer will start against the Cubs.
Checking out other major league news:
— Sonny Gray will start for the Yankees in Game 1 of the AL Division Series Thursday against the Indians in Cleveland. New York manager Joe Girardi will start CC Sabathia in the second game. Trevor Bauer will open for the Indians, followed by Corey Kluber in Game 2.
— The Rangers have released first baseman Prince Fielder, more than 15 months after his last game. The Rangers reached a settlement with the company that insured the contract, which had three years and about $72 million remaining. Fielder had to quit playing in July 2016 after his second cervical fusion in his neck in just over two years. He didn't formally retire, and the Rangers had kept him on the roster to receive disability insurance payments that covered part of his salary.
NHL-SCHEDULE
The NHL's 100th season has begun with a loss by the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, an easy victory by one of the league's original teams and a hat trick for the reigning scoring champ.
The Pittsburgh Penguins raised their fifth championship banner before absorbing a 5-4 overtime loss to St. Louis. The Blues blew a 4-2 lead in the third period before Alex Pietrangelo beat Matt Murray 75 seconds into overtime.
Sidney Crosby and Conor Sheary scored 54 seconds apart to tie it for the Pens, who also got goals from Justin Schultz and Olli Maata.
Paul Stastny had a goal and an assist for the Blues.
Patrick Marleau scored twice and Frederik Andersen turned back 35 shots as the Maple Leafs whipped the Jets, 7-2 at Winnipeg. Nazem Kadri, James van Riemsdyk and William Nylander scored in a three-minute span to put Toronto ahead 3-0 late in the first period.
Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner also tallied for the Leafs, who chased Winnipeg netminder Steve Mason by scoring five times on 20 shots.
In Edmonton, Connor McDavid scored three times and Leon Draisaitl had two assists as the Oilers blanked the Flames, 3-0. McDavid tallied midway through the first period and added a pair in the third.
Cam Talbot stopped 26 shots in his 19th career shutout.
Wayne Simmonds also registered a hat trick by scoring the last two goals in the Flyers' 5-3 win at San Jose. Jakub Voracek and Shayne Gostisbehere each had three assists to help Philadelphia overcome a pair of first-period goals by Kevin Labanc. Brian Elliott made 32 saves in his first game with the Flyers after signing a $5.5 million, two-year contract this summer.
NHL-NEWS
Jaromir Jagr is about to become the sixth player to span 24 NHL seasons.
The Calgary Flames have officially signed the 45-year-old right wing to a one-year contract, making him property of a Canadian team for the first time.
The five-time NHL scoring champion is second behind Wayne Gretzky in NHL history with 1,914 points on 765 goals and 1,149 assists. He didn't miss a game while playing for Florida last season, providing 16 goals and 46 points.
Jagr insists this will be his last season. Only Gordie Howe, Chris Chelios and Mark Messier will have played more seasons than the Czech native.
In other NHL news:
— The Jets have agreed to terms on a seven-year, $42 million contract extension with forward Nikolaj Ehlers. The 21-year-old Ehlers had 25 goals and 64 points in 82 games for the Jets last season.
— The Sabres have acquired defenseman Zach Redmond from the Canadiens for forward Nicolas Deslauriers. Redmond has nine goals and 29 assists in 130 NHL games split between Montreal, Colorado and Winnipeg.
— The Capitals have signed winger Alex Chiasson to a one-year, $660,000 package. The 27-year-old Chiasson is expected to start the season on the third line with Brett Connolly and Lars Eller.
— Bryan Bickell has signed a one-day contract so he can retire with the Blackhawks. Bickell was selected by Chicago in the second round of the 2004 draft and spent his first nine seasons with the Blackhawks, winning three Stanley Cup championships. The 31-year-old Bickell was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis last November and played in just 11 games with the Hurricanes.
NFL-NEWS
Tonight in a Thursday night football matchup, the N.E. Patriots will take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 8:25 PM.
Quarterback Andrew Luck finally appeared on the Indianapolis Colts' practice field Wednesday after missing every offseason workout, all of training camp and the team's first four regular-season games.
Luck was cleared to stretch with teammates, participate in some quarterback drills and throw a few passes at less than full velocity as he tries to return from surgery on his throwing shoulder.
Coach Chuck Pagano has already said Luck won't play Sunday against winless San Francisco.
In other NFL quarterback news, Titans coach Mike Mularkey remains hopeful that Marcus Mariota (mar-ee-OH'-tah) will play Sunday against Miami despite a strained hamstring.
Mariota was hurt in last weekend's loss to Houston and has been limited in practice, stretching and throwing passes during the open portion of today's workouts.
The Titans signed Brandon Weeden to a one-year deal Tuesday as a third quarterback, giving the team another option that is familiar with the team's offense.
A Panthers spokesman says quarterback Cam Newton has "expressed regret" for his response to a female reporter's question at a news conference.
When Charlotte Observer reporter Jourdan Rodrigue asked Newton Wednesday about wide receiver Devin Funchess' route running, the former league MVP smiled and said, "it's funny to hear a female talk about routes. It's funny."
Carolina spokesman Steven Drummond said in a statement to The Associated Press that Newton had a conversation with Rodrigue after the news conference ended and expressed regret for his remarks.
Drummond said the Panthers "strive as a department to make the environment for media comfortable for everyone covering the team."
After Newton's comments, he proceeded to answer Rodrigue's question.
Mike Persinger, the executive sports editor of the Charlotte Observer, said Newton's comments were "unfortunate and out of line."
Also in the NFL:
— Seahawks left tackle Rees Odhiambo is back on the practice field after a scary incident that landed him in the hospital. Odhiambo suffered a bruised sternum in Sunday's 46-18 win over the Colts and had breathing problems after the game.
— The Packers' Davante Adams has returned to practice after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit from Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan that led to the receiver being carted off the field on a stretcher. Trevathan initially received a two-game suspension for the hit, but it was reduced to one game by the league on Tuesday.
— Chiefs coach Andy Reid denounced cornerback Marcus Peters' direction of profanities at fans during Monday night's game against Washington, saying "we can't go in that direction." Reid says the situation has "been addressed."
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-MIAMI/FSU
Saturday's makeup game between 13th-ranked Miami and Florida State could again be impacted by poor weather.
Officials from both schools and the ACC are monitoring Tropical Depression 16, which is expected to turn into Tropical Storm or Hurricane Nate by the weekend.
The game was originally scheduled for Sept. 16 but was postponed due to Hurricane Irma.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL-GEORGIA TECH-PASTNER EXTENSION
Georgia Tech men's basketball coach Josh Pastner has signed a one-year contract extension through the 2022-23 season after exceeding expectations in his debut season.
Pastner was named Atlantic Coast Conference coach of the year after leading Georgia Tech to a 21-16 record and a spot in the NIT final.
The 40-year-old Pastner will earn over $1.7 million this season under terms of his original deal.
WNBA
Sylvia Fowles had 17 points and broke her own WNBA Finals record by grabbing 20 rebounds to lead the Minnesota Lynx to their fourth championship in seven years with an 85-76 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks in Game 5 on Wednesday night.
Maya Moore had 18 points and 10 rebounds and hit a huge runner with 26 seconds to play, Lindsay Whalen had 17 points and eight assists and Seimone Augustus added 14 points, six assists and six boards to help the Lynx move into a tie with the Houston Comets for most titles in league history.
Candace Parker had 19 points, 15 rebounds and five assists for the Sparks, who were looking to become the first repeat champions in 15 years. Chelsea Gray had 15 points and eight assists, but Nneka Ogwumike fouled out with 5:29 to play and finished with 11 points. Los Angeles turned it over 17 times.
INDYCAR-CASTRONEVES
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will move to Team Penske's sports car program next season, ending his 20-year full-time IndyCar career.
Castroneves will compete for Acura Team Penske in the IMSA SportsCar Championship beginning next season and will still drive for Penske at the Indianapolis 500.
Castroneves will race this weekend with Juan Pablo Montoya and Simon Pagenaud at the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta.
TOUR AWARDS
Justin Thomas has been voted PGA Tour player of the year for his remarkable season of five victories, his first major championship and the $10 million FedEx Cup title.
Thomas all but locked up the award when he closed with a 66 at East Lake and was runner-up at the Tour Championship to capture the FedEx Cup. His five victories included the PGA Championship and a FedEx Cup playoff event, and he set the tour's 72-hole scoring record at the Sony Open.
Two-time PGA winner Xander Schauffele was voted tour rookie of the year.
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