A few accidents and some bad luck since his last win had Jimmie Johnson worried he might not get a chance to defending his NASCAR Nextel Cup championship.
Hitting a go-ahead grand slam in his first game since May 16 wasn’t quite on a par with his homer that won the All-Star game in 2003. But Hank Blalock’s teammates celebrated in the dugout as though it were Game 7 of the World Series. Blalock stunned reliever Scot Shields with a drive into the in the right field seats with one out in the eighth inning, leading the Texas Rangers to an 8-7 victory…
Before Derrek Lee even had a chance to look at the big, old-fashioned scoreboard at Wrigley Field, a helpful Cubs fan let him know what he needed to do. Lee drove in three runs, including a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning, and the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs rallied to beat the Houston Astros 6-5 on Sunday.
After driving 500 miles in a cramped cockpit in stifling heat and wearing a heavy suit, Carl Edwards looked remarkably fresh.
Manager John McLaren is amazed that a nine-game losing streak hasn’t killed Seattle’s playoff hopes. Matt Stairs and Gregg Zaun each hit two-run homers, A.J. Burnett pitched seven sharp innings and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Mariners 6-4 on Sunday, the nine-game losing streak Seattle’s longest since an 11-game skid in August 2006.
Tom Glavine allowed himself just a “fleeting 15 seconds” Sunday to consider his past in Atlanta and his future in baseball. “During the course of the game I thought this could be the last time I pitch here,” said Glavine, who has said he hasn’t decided if he will retire after the season. A long-awaited win over longtime teammate and friend John Smoltz, in the midst of a playoff run, could be a…
Bills linebacker Keith Ellison is out indefinitely with a sprained ankle, and Coy Wire will replace him when Buffalo opens the season against Denver next Sunday. “It’s not good. It’s going to be a while,” coach Dick Jauron said Sunday. Ellison was hurt in the second quarter of Buffalo’s preseason finale, a 16-13 win at Detroit Thursday.
Jeff Burton turned a late pit stop and fresh tires into a NASCAR Busch Series win Saturday night at California Speedway.
