Fernando Tatis Jr. put on another show at Dodger Stadium, but it was the World Series champions who won out via small ball, defeating the San Diego Padres 5-4. 

After slamming a pair of home runs in Los Angeles on Friday, Tatis repeated that feat Saturday -- and had some fun with Dodgers starter Trevor Bauer along the way. 

In early March, Trevor Bauer spent most of the first inning of a spring training game against the Padres pitching with his right eye closed, calling it a training method he uses occasionally to challenge himself.

The Padres didn't forget about it. After Tatis homered off Bauer in the first inning Saturday, the San Diego star covered up his right eye with his hand as he rounded the bases. 

Tatis also went deep off Bauer in the sixth to give San Diego a 3-2 lead, but the Padres' relievers would give the game away in the bottom of the inning.

With San Diego starter Blake Snell out of the game, Los Angeles strung together three singles and a bases-loaded walk to Mookie Betts to tie the game, then took the lead on a two-run single by Corey Seager. 

Tatis had one last chance to be the hero in the ninth, coming up with the tying run on and one out, but Kenley Jansen got him to ground out, then struck out Trent Grisham to end it. 

 

Yankees' Cole almost untouchable

Gerrit Cole was spectacular for the Yankees in New York's 2-1 win over the Cleveland Indians. The right-hander allowed just three hits and a run and did not walk a batter while striking out 11 to outpitch Shane Bieber (seven innings, four hits, two runs, nine strikeouts).

The Oakland Athletics won their 13th consecutive game after a 1-7 start, defeating the Baltimore Orioles 7-2. A three-run home run by Jed Lowrie in the fourth inning put the game out of reach for Oakland. 

The Houston Astros lost starter Jake Odorizzi after five pitches and one out due to an arm injury, but Kent Emanuel pitched the rest of the game in his MLB debut, allowing a pair of solo home runs in a 16-2 Astros win over the Los Angeles Angels. 

 

Reds hit bottom in NL Central

After spending more than two weeks with at least a share of first place in the National League Central, the Cincinnati Reds dropped to last in the division Saturday after their sixth consecutive lost, this one 2-0 to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Reds managed only three hits, all singles, off John Gant and two St. Louis relievers in their latest setback. 

 

White Sox walk it off

Up until the final inning of the Rangers-White Sox game Saturday, the only run had come on a bases-loaded wild pitch in the sixth that gave Chicago a 1-0 lead, but things got interesting in the ninth. Willie Calhoun tied the game with a home run for Texas in the top of the inning, but the White Sox put together a rally in the bottom half and won 2-1 on Nick Madrigal's walk-off double. 

 

Saturday's results

Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 Chicago Cubs
Oakland Athletics 7-2 Baltimore Orioles
Kansas City Royals 2-1 Detroit Tigers
New York Yankees 2-1 Cleveland Indians
Seattle Mariners 8-2 Boston Red Sox
Tampa Bay Rays 5-3 Toronto Blue Jays
Washington Nationals 7-1 New York Mets
Houston Astros 16-2 Los Angeles Angels
Pittsburgh Pirates 6-2 Minnesota Twins
Chicago White Sox 2-1 Texas Rangers
St Louis Cardinals 2-0 Cincinnati Reds
Philadelphia Phillies 7-5 Colorado Rockies
Miami Marlins 5-2 San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers 5-4 San Diego Padres
Atlanta Braves-Arizona Diamondbacks (postponed)
 

Padres at Dodgers

San Diego (12-11) send Joe Musgrove to the mound for the final game of their series against the Dodgers (15-6) on Sunday. Dustin May will get the ball for Los Angeles. 

Kamaru Usman knocked out Jorge Masvidal before a packed arena Saturday, retaining his welterweight title at UFC 261. 

Usman (19-1-0) dropped Masvidal (35-15-0) with a right hand to the jaw one minute, two seconds into the second round.

The devastating blow landed seconds after the American had faced Usman with his hands lowered, smiling at the Nigerian. 

Usman has won 14 consecutive fights, trailing only Anderson Silva's 16-fight run from 2006 to 2012 in UFC history. 

"I know with my fundamentals I am the pound-for-pound best fighter on the planet right now," Usman said. 

 

Usman's strike prompted an eruption from the crowd of 15,269 in Jacksonville, Florida, capping an evening billed as the first full-capacity indoor event since the coronavirus pandemic took off in March 2020. 

The marquee fight was a rematch from UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi last July, which Usman won by unanimous decision. 

Saturday marked only the second time in his long career that Masvidal has been knocked out, with the previous one occuring in 2008. 

In the co-main event, Rose Namajunas (11-4-0) knocked out Zhang Weili (21-2-0) with a kick to the head at 1:18 in the first round to reclaim the strawweight title -- the first woman to do so in any weight class in UFC history. 

The American originally won the belt in November 2017 but lost it to Jessica Andrade in May 2019. She defeated Andrade in the rematch at UFC 251. 

Andrade (21-9-0) also was on Saturday's card, falling via TKO to Valentina Shevchenko (21-3-0) in the second round. 

Earlier, veteran fighter Chris Weidman's lower right leg appeared to snap on a kick 17 seconds into his bout with Uriah Hall (17-9), ending the match in a TKO. Weidman, 36, was carried out on a stretcher. 

DeMar DeRozan out-dueled Zion Williamson down the stretch to give the San Antonio Spurs a 110-108 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. 

DeRozan scored nine of his 32 points in the final three minutes, bringing the visitors back from a late five-point deficit on Saturday. 

The Spurs star made all 12 of his free-throw attempts as San Antonio collectively went 27 of 32 (84.4 per cent) from the line. New Orleans, meanwhile, made only 17 of 32 (53.1 per cent). 

Williamson's ninth point of the 33 he would score gave him 2,000 for his career in just 79 games, which is 10th-fastest in NBA history. That marks the fewest games a player has needed to reach 2,000 points since Michael Jordan did it in his 73rd NBA game in 1985.

Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram added 24 points each for the Pelicans, but they could not overcome all of the missed free throws. 

  

Randle, Knicks win ninth in a row

Julius Randle had 31 points as the New York Knicks rolled past the Toronto Raptors 120-103 for their ninth consecutive win -- the longest streak for New York since they won 13 in a row in 2013. 

Bam Adebayo scored 20 points and added 10 assists as the Miami Heat defeated the Chicago Bulls to move within a half game of the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference. 

Rookie Anthony Edwards' 23 points and nine rebounds helped the Minnesota Timberwolves hand the Utah Jazz a rare loss in Salt Lake City, 101-96. Utah are now 26-4 at home this season. 

 

Sixers struggle to score

Playing without Joel Embiid, who missed the game with right shoulder soreness, the Philadelphia 76ers had only one starter score in double figures in a 132-94 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Philadelphia made just 31 of 82 from the field (37.8 per cent) as Shake Milton and Tyrese Maxey led the scoring off the bench with 15 points each. Seth Curry paced the starters with 13 points. 

 

Luka gets the roll

The Dallas Mavericks trailed the Los Angeles Lakers by as many as 17 points on Saturday but stormed back in the fourth quarter thanks in part to Luka Doncic doing what Luka Doncic does.

 

Saturday's results

Milwaukee Bucks 132-94 Philadelphia 76ers
New York Knicks 120-103 Toronto Raptors
Indiana Pacers 115-109 Detroit Pistons
Miami Heat 106-101 Chicago Bulls
San Antonio Spurs 110-108 New Orleans Pelicans
Dallas Mavericks 108-93 Los Angeles Lakers
Minnesota Timberwolves 101-96 Utah Jazz
Denver Nuggets 129-116 Houston Rockets

 

Suns at Nets

An appealing match-up of guards is on tap Sunday as Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns (42-17) visit Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets (40-20). 

World number one Novak Djokovic was full of praise for his Serbia Open semi-final conqueror Aslan Karatsev but bemoaned his own "low level" performance.

Karatsev got past Djokovic in the longest match of the 2021 ATP Tour in Belgrade, triumphing 7-5 4-6 6-4 on Saturday.

The match went for three hours and 25 minutes, with the Russian securing a spot in Sunday's final against 10th ranked Matteo Berrettini.

The Serbian had beaten Karatsev in the Australian Open semi-finals two months ago, with the 27-year-old Russian, who is now ranked 28th, returning the favour.

"From my side, I played on quite a low level, in my opinion," Djokovic said.

“[I had] some flashes of good quality tennis. I was fighting. That is a positive.

"I was really trying all the way [and] the crowd was great. They carried me and tried to lift me up, all the way to the end.

"Because of them, I think I won the second set. Unfortunately in the third, he was just the better player in the decisive moments. I had my chances, but that is sport."

Djokovic was gracious in defeat, offering a thumbs up immediately after Karatsev secured victory along with complimentary words to his opponent who saved 23 of 28 break points.

"Karatsev showed a lot of courage and that is why I gave him the thumbs up," Djokovic said.

"I felt like he deserved to win… Once the final point is done, there is never bad blood. We are rivals on the court, but I don’t hate anybody. I can’t be upset with him if he beat me.

"I have to be upset with myself and question why I lost the match. Whoever beats me deserves the credit and I gave him that.

"I lost to a better player who was just more courageous. He went for his shots at the right time and it worked for him."

Football clubs and players across England will go silent on social media next weekend in response to "ongoing and sustained abuse" players and others connected with the game are subjected to online. 

Teams from the top men's and women's leagues in England will not post to their social media accounts from the afternoon of April 30 through the end of May 3, London time, and players are expected to follow suit. 

An announcement of the boycott came jointly on Saturday from numerous organisations involved in the game, including the Professional Footballers' Association, the Premier League, the Football League, The FA, the Women’s Super League and the Women’s Championship. 

The move follows a February letter to social media companies urging them to take numerous steps to take down online abuse, including quick removal of offensive posts and an improved verification process. 

"While some progress has been made, we reiterate those requests today in an effort to stem the relentless flow of discriminatory messages and ensure that there are real-life consequences for purveyors of online abuse across all platforms," the groups said in a release.

"Boycott action from football in isolation will, of course, not eradicate the scourge of online discriminatory abuse, but it will demonstrate that the game is willing to take voluntary and proactive steps in this continued fight."

The boycott comes on the heels of the popular uprising that led to the collapse of the European Super League earlier this week, and players speaking after Saturday's Premier League games said a move to curb online harassment is overdue.

"The players, we get a lot of abuses online, and it is not normal, we need to fight it, and I think that is a good way to do it," Brighton's Neal Maupay told Sky Sports. 

"It's definitely getting worse. People are crossing the line too many times now, too often, so we need to carry on fighting it and at one point we will get rid of it."

 

Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola voiced his concerns about the European Super League internally but says there is no problem with his relationship with the club's hierarchy.

City were the first club to withdraw from the European Super League which received widespread condemnation about its announcement last week.

Guardiola mentioned earlier this week that he opposed a league without relegation and had voiced similar concerns at the concept within the four walls of the club.

"It was not difficult because before I make a statement we spoke about that, and they completely agree, and that’s why I tell you," Guardiola said.

"I love this club – I love Ferran [Soriano, chief executive], Txiki [Begiristain, sporting director], Khaldoon [Al Mubarak, chairman] and the people who work in the club – we work together.

"Since I arrived here we were all together in all the decisions.

"I make mistakes, everyone makes mistakes – the guys who take decisions make mistakes, the guys who are sitting and judging what the others do make mistakes.

"Sometimes you are wrong. What’s the problem? We react and we apologise and move forward."

Soriano put out a message to the club's fans earlier in the week, saying that the board deeply regretted its actions.

Pep Guardiola insists Raheem Sterling is an "extraordinary player" and will get more opportunities despite falling out of favour.

Sterling has only started three of Manchester City's past 10 matches in all competitions, with Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez usurping him.

"Raheem is an extraordinary player – he was, is and will be," the City head coach said.

"The reason why he has not played as regularly as in previous seasons is because Phil and Riyad are in top, top form. That is the only reason.

"But opportunities are going to come and he has to be ready to show his quality, freshness in his mind and to play with the incredible strength he has."

The 26-year-old England winger had been a key figure for City earlier in the campaign but his recent run has led to some concerns about his international readiness ahead of the European Championships.

Guardiola insisted that Sterling will get more opportunities as City compete for three different trophies, having lost their quadruple dream after last week's FA Cup semi-final loss to Chelsea.

"For national managers, I’m not involved, but I would love it for him," Guardiola said. "I would love the players here to go with their national teams at the Euros.

"Him, Nathan [Ake], Eric [Garcia], John [Stones] – all the players who are here. It is a fantastic event to play in, the Euros.

"The only way is to let him play. After, it depends on them. It is not about confidence. They have our confidence – if not, they would not be here.

"The quality is there. It’s not a case of: he doesn't have confidence and then by talking to me, he is confident.

"They are top-class players and they have to get the confidence from inside themselves: ‘I am going to show how good I am.'

"It’s the only secret. They have to show every time they have the quality."

Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel turned in a nine-under 63 in four-ball play to take the lead after the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. 

The South African duo are 19-under for the tournament and were one of six teams to record a 63, vaulting them past second-round leaders Tony Finau and Cameron Champ by a stroke. 

Australians Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith also shot nine-under and are tied for second with the American pair. 

The top of the leaderboard at TPC Louisiana is crowded, with Bubba Watson and Scottie Scheffler sitting two shots back along with first-round leaders Viktor Hovland and Kris Ventura. 

The tournament, which switched to a team event in 2017, features four-ball in the first and third rounds and foursomes in the second and fourth. 

Three teams are at 16 under and nine more at 15 under, with the latter group including defending champions Jon Rahm and Ryan Palmer. 

The shot of the day belonged to Sam Ryder, who holed a five iron from 206 yards at No. 2 for a double eagle -- the first at the tournament since Rob Oppenheim did it in 2018.

 

 

 

 West Indies Indies T20 star, Chris Gayle, insists he is feeling fit and at the top of his game after a decisive performance for Punjab Kings XI, in a win against defending champions Mumbai Indians, in the Indian Premier Leauge (IPL) on Friday.

Gayle made a steady 43 from 35 deliveries, and along with KL Rahul, who added 60 from 52, anchored Kings XI to an 8-wicket win. 

The batsman’s innings was, however, uncharacteristically devoid of massive slogs over the boundary as he hit only two sixes.  The 41-year-old did gather quite a few runs darting for quick singles, which has not been a part of his game in recent years.

The veteran batsman had come under criticism in recent days following a string of low scores and a 1-3 start for Punjab.  Gayle, however, insists he is feeling in excellent shape and was happy for the result.

"I am feeling very good, a bit relieved. We wanted this win badly, playing against the defending champions was always going to be tough. They played four games, to actually get this win is fantastic for the team and the Universe Boss as well.

“I was looking pretty good, running between the wickets, I am feeling fit and good about myself. I am enjoying it, I am looking after my body, getting a lot of massages so I can move freely, humidity here in Chennai also kind of lets the blood flow so I am on top of my game," Gayle told the official IPL website.

Zinedine Zidane portrayed a relaxed figure despite Real Madrid suffering something of a setback in their title challenge as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Real Betis.

Madrid were looking to go top of the table – at least until Sunday – with a victory at Valdebebas, but in the end they were arguably fortunate to leave with a point.

Betis had the best chances of the match, with Guido Rodriguez and Borja Iglesias spurning glorious opportunities in the second half.

While Madrid managed five shots on target, their cumulative expected goals value of 1.02 was only marginally more than Betis' 0.92.

It was an underwhelming showing ahead of their Champions League semi-final first leg against Chelsea on Tuesday, while they will finish the weekend five points off the top of LaLiga if Atletico beat Athletic Bilbao.

But Zidane stressed there was no need to panic, even if he was irritated by Madrid's issues in attack during Saturday's stalemate.

"We lose two points and we don't like it but there is still a lot of LaLiga to go, it doesn't end today," he said.

"The rest of the teams have to play and we'll see what happens. We now focus on Tuesday's game.

"Defensively we were very good, but offensively we lacked many things. We lacked something, we were not fine at the top end of the pitch.

"We are prepared for the next game, which is going to be the most difficult of the whole season."

One positive for Madrid was the return of Eden Hazard, who made only his second LaLiga appearance since the end of January.

The Belgium winger had been blighted by calf and thigh issues but looked lively in his cameo, suggesting he could play a role against his former club over the next couple of weeks.

"I was very happy to see Eden Hazard because it was important to have him with us again," Zidane said.

"We know the quality he has and I hope to be able to count on him until the end of the season."

Aslan Karatsev secured a stunning career-best victory over home favourite Novak Djokovic to set up a Serbia Open final against Matteo Berrettini.

Karatsev showed astonishing defiance to beat the world number one 7-5 4-6 6-4 in the longest ATP Tour match of the year on Saturday.

The third seed from Russia saved 23 of the 28 break points he faced as his aggressive approach paid off, toppling the 18-time grand slam champion in a contest that lasted three hours and 25 minutes.

It was sweet revenge for Karatsev, who was beaten by the legendary Serbian at the semi-final stage of the Australian Open two months ago.

Djokovic had won 11 matches in a row in his homeland, but bowed out despite being 2-0 up in the first two sets as a solitary break in the decider ended his run.

Karatsev, the world number 28, said: "It was a long, tough match [against a] tough opponent.

"You have to put [in] like 200 per cent to beat this guy, it's like playing against a wall. And he also made some good shots.

"He doesn't give you any free points. He always makes you play and you have to be always there because once you miss a couple of shots, he just takes it very quickly. That’s how I lost the second set."

Berrettini secured his place in the final with a 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-0 victory over lucky loser Taro Daniel.

Second seed Berrettini only lost six points in the last set after Daniel came from a break down in the second before winning a tie-break to take the second semi-final the distance.

Heading into Sunday's final, Karatsev and Berrettini have never previously faced each other on the ATP Tour.

 

Ash Barty will meet Aryna Sabalenka in the Stuttgart Open final after Simona Halep's quest to win the tournament for the first time fell short.

World number three Halep had claimed straight-set wins over Ekaterina Alexandrova and Marketa Vondrousova en route to the semi-finals, but met her match in the form of Belarusian Sabalenka, who triumphed 6-3 6-2.

A nine-time singles champion, Sabalenka made it into a 14th career final without conceding a single break, as she managed to keep Romanian Halep at arm's length.

Standing between Sabalenka and a 10th singles title is world number one Barty who, on her 25th birthday, came from behind to defeat Elina Svitolina 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-2.

Making her tournament debut in Stuttgart, Barty had overcome Laura Siegemund and Karolina Pliskova, but found herself at 5-4 down in the second set, with Svitolina serving for the match.

The fourth seed failed to take her chance, with Barty breaking and subsequently biting back in the tie-break, before carrying the momentum into the decider to claim a third straight win over Svitolina.

Top seed Elise Mertens made it to her second Istanbul Open as she saw off her doubles partner and birthday girl Veronika Kudermetova 6-1 6-4.

It means Mertens will be playing in two finals on Sunday, as she pairs up with Kudermetova again in the doubles showdown against Nao Hibino and Makoto Ninomiya.

Mertens' win ended Charleston champion Kudermetova's nine-match winning streak, and set up a final against the unseeded Sorana Cirstea, who defeated Marta Kostyuk 6-4 6-4.

Real Madrid suffered another setback in the title race as they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Real Betis in LaLiga on Saturday.

Zinedine Zidane's men would have gone top – ahead of Atletico Madrid due to a better head-to-head record – at least until Sunday had they beaten Betis, but their inability to find a way past Claudio Bravo means they could end the weekend five points behind the leaders.

The contest did not truly come to life until the second half and Madrid could easily have found themselves trailing, with Guido Rodriguez and Borja Iglesias guilty of wasting great chances.

Opportunities of a similar quality were by no means a regular occurrence for Madrid, who will hoping Athletic Bilbao can do them a favour against Atletico on Sunday, with the four-way Spanish title race looking set for a thrilling conclusion.

Madrid got very little out of Betis in what was a largely cagey first half that saw only one shot on target.

That chance fell to Karim Benzema in the 25th minute, as the Frenchman had his effort turned around the post by Bravo.

Former Madrid youngster Sergio Canales went close at the other end soon after, narrowly missing the left-hand post with a 20-yard effort.

The hosts almost got lucky nine minutes into the second half as Rodrygo's cross hit the crossbar with Bravo seemingly beaten.

Though they should have found themselves trailing a few moments later.

Rodriguez did the hard part as he raced past Eder Militao and Raphael Varane, but upon penetrating the penalty area he hit a scuffed left-footed shot straight at the relieved Thibaut Courtois.

Iglesias then spurned an even better opportunity on the break, Courtois blocking the ball as the striker attempted to prod it past him after Canales' pinpoint cross.

Much like Rodriguez, Vinicius Junior failed to apply the decisive finish after a brilliant run of his own, following it up with a feeble effort that caused Bravo no worries.

West Ham manager David Moyes did not hold back in his criticism of referee Chris Kavanagh after the Hammers' 1-0 defeat to Chelsea.

Thomas Tuchel's team clinched a potentially vital win in the race for a top-four finish against surprise Champions League hopefuls West Ham, with Timo Werner's first top-flight goal since February enough to seal all three points at London Stadium.

It was a game not without controversy, however, as West Ham's hopes of pushing for a late equaliser were dashed when Balbuena saw red in the 81st minute.

While clearing the ball down the line on West Ham's right flank, Balbuena – seemingly inadvertently – caught Ben Chilwell on his follow-through.

Referee Kavanagh initially booked Balbuena but, after consultation with the VAR, went over to assess the incident on the pitchside monitor and subsequently changed his decision to a straight red card – a call which infuriated Moyes.

"I think it's a decision made by somebody who's never played the game," he told Sky Sports. 

"I don't know where Balbuena is meant to plant his foot. If they do make that decision then you look at the one a few minutes later which was the same – this time it was Vladimir Coufal and [Antonio] Rudiger – and it was a very similar challenge but they've never done anything about it.

"I don't know how it's a red card, I don't know where he's supposed to plant his foot, and you would only have to be someone who doesn't know the game, hasn't played it, to not know that he's kicked through the ball.

"I don't think for one minute there's a bit of malice in that, or he's tried to catch him. I thought it was a rubbish decision."

It was the second VAR controversy of the day in the Premier League, after Newcastle United's Callum Wilson had a goal disallowed for handball against Liverpool, albeit Joe Willock then struck minutes later to snatch a last-gasp point at Anfield.

Liverpool's draw means that fourth-placed Chelsea are four points clear of the Reds, who sit sixth, with West Ham in fifth.

Thomas Tuchel is unbeaten in all 10 away matches with Chelsea (W8 D2) and is only the second manager in Premier League history to remain unbeaten in his first 10 away games in all competitions with a club, after Claudio Ranieri with Leicester City in 2015, in the year the Foxes won the title.

The former Paris Saint-Germain boss was delighted with Chelsea's overall display, and that of goalscorer Werner, who squandered a great chance to make sure of the win in the second half, and Tuchel told his compatriot to keep up his form heading into the run-in.

"He needs to keep scoring and catch the moment. He is quite often involved in our goals, even in the last weeks, by winning fouls in the penalty area or with assists like against Man City. But nothing helps more than a decisive goal," Tuchel told reporters.

Tuchel is not wrong, with Werner having been directly involved in 20 goals for Chelsea this season (11 goals, nine assists) – the most of any player for the club in all competitions.

"I am very happy because I felt he was strong from the start," Tuchel continued.

"He was very good with distributing the ball, dropping from the number nine position and keeping the ball, he had good timing with his deep runs behind the line, and was involved in many chances and half-chances."

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