The Houston Astros enacted a measure of revenge against the Kansas City Royals.

Yordan Alvarez hit a pair of home runs and the Astros beat the Royals 7-2 on Sunday to cap a four-game sweep.

Houston's first-ever four-game sweep of Kansas City came after the Royals swept a three-game series from the Astros back in April.

Jon Singleton hit a two-run homer and Jeremy Peña added a two-run single for the AL West-leading Astros (75-62), who have won five in a row to move six games ahead of the second-place Seattle Mariners.

The Royals (75-63), meanwhile, have lost a season-high five straight games to drop 3 1/2 games behind the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians.

Bobby Witt Jr. reached the 30-homer mark for the second straight season by homering in the second straight game. He now has five home runs in his last nine games.

Alvarez also hit his 30th homer with his second multi-homer game of the week. The Astros have won the last six games Alvarez has homered and are 19-4 this season in games when he hits at least one home run.

Ronel Blanco won for the first time since July 9, allowing three hits and four walks over five innings.

Cubs pound Nationals to extend win streak to six games

The Chicago Cubs scored seven runs in the ninth inning to finish off a 14-1 rout of the Washington Nationals and push their winning streak to a season-high six games.

The Cubs have remained in the NL wild-card race, thanks to a 9-1 stretch that has been fueled by an offence that is suddenly surging.

Chicago has plated 99 runs with 14 homers and 33 doubles in its last 10 games.

In the series finale at Washington, Seiya Suzuki hit a pair of doubles and Dansby Swanson had one double among his four hits. Isaac Paredes drove in three runs, while Cody Bellinger, Nico Hoerner and Miguel Amaya each had two RBIs for a Cubs team that pounded out 18 hits.

Jordan Wicks earned the win, yielding one run and four hits in his return from the 60-day injured list after being side-lined since June 14 with a right oblique strain.

Despite Chicago's recent tear, the Cubs (71-66) are still three games back of the Atlanta Braves for the NL's last wild-card spot.

The Nationals (61-76) finished with five hits as they were swept for the eighth time this season and dropped a season-worst 15 games under .500.

White Sox suffer franchise-worst 107th loss

Garrett Crochet was brilliant early for the Chicago White Sox but their series finale with the New York Mets ended like so many other of their games this season - with a loss.

Crochet tied an American League record by striking out the first seven batters but the White Sox ended up getting swept in the three-game series with a 2-0 loss to the Mets.

The loss was the 107th of the season for Chicago, as it broke the franchise record for losses set by the 1970 team.

With just 31 wins, the White Sox need to go 12-12 the rest of the season to avoid matching the 1962 expansion Mets for the most losses by a team since 1900.

The White Sox managed just two hits in finishing off the first 0-10 home-stand in club history. This marks the third losing streak of the season of at least 10 games for Chicago, which also has a 14-game skid and a franchise-worst 21-game slide.

Francisco Lindor hit his 29th home run and Sean Manaea permitted two hits over seven innings to help New York (73-64) win its fourth straight game. The Mets have moved within one game of the Braves for the last play-off spot.

Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese set a WNBA record for the most rebounds in a single season on Sunday when she pulled down 19 boards in a 79-74 loss to the Minnesota Lynx.

Reese pushed her season total to 418 rebounds, surpassing Sylvia Fowles' record of 404 established in 2018 with the Lynx.

The 6-foot-3 Reese set another record Sunday by reaching 165 offensive rebounds this season to move past Yolanda Griffith, who had 162 for the Sacramento Monarchs in 2001.

Reese, the seventh overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, added 17 points against Minnesota to post her 24th double-double and extend her league rookie record.

Haas driver Kevin Magnussen will miss the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after being hit with a one-race ban due to exceeding the permitted number of penalty points in a year. 

Magnussen, who finished 10th to secure the American-based team's first points since Silverstone, was involved in an incident with Alpine's Pierre Gasly. 

The Dane attempted to overtake Gasly down the inside of Turn 4, but locked up and subsequently made contact with the Frenchman, who ended up finishing in 15th. 

In their verdict, the stewards felt that Magnussen was “wholly to blame for” this, having deemed that he did not drive in a “safe and controlled manner through the manoeuvre”.

Stating a breach of Article 4.2 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations, the note reads: “The Super Licence of the driver of Car 20 is suspended for the next Competition of the 2024 FIA Formula One World Championship. Following this suspension, 12 penalty points will be removed.”

Haas team-mate Nico Hulkenberg was handed a 10-second time penalty for a coming together with the RB of Yuki Tsunoda. 

The last driver to receive a race ban was Romain Grosjean back in 2012, when he was racing for Lotus, after he caused a multi-car crash at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix that season.

Lando Norris was left disappointed by Oscar Piastri's driving after the McLaren duo almost collided at the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday.

Norris claimed pole position once more in Monza but was overtaken on the first lap by Piastri, snatching the inside line at Turn 4.

The McLaren pair subsequently finished behind Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, though Piastri's racing tactics were questioned by Norris after the conclusion on Sky Sports.

"I feel he got way too close for comfort," Norris said. "We could both have easily been out in that first corner if I broke one metre later.

"If I could rewind, I would do stuff slightly differently. But it is what it is. Charles won by two seconds in the end and the fact he got ahead probably gained him two seconds over the course of the race.

"We couldn't achieve a one-stop as our degradation was too high on the front tyres. That is a weakness for us at the minute."

Having failed to close the gap on Leclerc, Piastri finished second and a place ahead of Norris, with the trio sitting together at the post-race drivers' press conference.

When pressed on his earlier criticism of Piastri, Norris attempted to explain his warning, though conceded the difficulties in making split-second decisions.

"Just brake a bit later, simple as that. But sometimes it's easier said than done," Norris said.

"Oscar obviously braked on the limit and gave me space, there was just about enough. I did my best to avoid anything else happening at the time.

"At the same time, If I brake two metres later, you don't know and you can't predict, but it could easily have been a crash. It's a tough one. The easiest thing is just to brake way later and force him off, and kind of treat it like no one else.

"I obviously took it easy. I saw we had a massive gap behind, so maybe I was just a bit too much on the cautious side and paid the price."

Australia's Piastri, however, saw the incident somewhat differently.

"I broke later and got around the outside," Piastri said. "There wasn't really much more to it than that.

"We both got through it unscathed. I knew once I hit the brakes I kind of got ahead a bit and knew I was entitled to stay on the outside.

"For 38 laps, it put me in a race-winning position. So it was just a good first lap."

Charles Leclerc was able to savour a "special" double on Sunday, triumphing at the Italian Grand Prix to ensure he won both of his favourite races in the same season.  

Leclerc edged out McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris for a spectacular win at Monza, racing from fourth on the grid to repeat his 2019 triumph at the venue.

Only Michael Schumacher (five) has won the Italian Grand Prix while driving for Ferrari on more occasions, with Leclerc's second victory drawing him level with Rubens Barrichello, Phil Hill, Alberto Ascari and Clay Regazzoni.

Sunday's win came after Leclerc claimed a home victory at the Monaco Grand Prix in May, ensuring 2024 will be a season that lives long in the memory for the Scuderia driver.

"It is an incredible feeling," he said after the podium celebrations.

"I thought the second time, if there was a second time, would not feel as special as the first, but the emotions over the last few laps were the same as in 2019.

"I want to win Monza and Monaco every year and I have managed to do so. It is so, so special."

Sitting third in the drivers' championship standings, Leclerc now has a 20-point lead over fourth-placed Piastri and is just 23 points adrift of Norris, who has been tipped to push Max Verstappen for the title.

Asked if Ferrari can continue to battle for victories in the closing stages of the season, he said: "I don't know.

"Our package was working well on a track like Monza but whether it will be the same for the rest of the season, I doubt it.

"I still think McLaren are favourites but we have done a step forwards, that's for sure. Baku is a pretty nice track for me, so maybe we can achieve something special there."

Lewis Hamilton acknowledged he felt "emotional" and "surreal" after Kimi Antonelli was announced as his Mercedes replacement for the 2025 Formula 1 season.

The 18-year-old will join George Russell on the grid next year after a signing a one-year contract to fill the void left by Hamilton, who agreed a move to Ferrari at the start of the year.

Antonelli will become the third youngest F1 driver of all-time when he makes his competitive debut at the season-opener in Australia next March at 18 years and 203 days old, with only Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll younger in their first starts.

Hamilton had long been aware of the impending announcement, but admitted the reality of the situation still feels strange.

"I've known for ages, but I knew it would be announced [on Saturday]," he said. "I definitely woke up, and it was very surreal, just to have it officially confirmed my seat is going and that I've held onto it for so long," Hamilton said.

"I was quite emotional [on Saturday morning], but really happy for Kimi and for this team. I know Kimi is going to do a great job."

Hamilton will start this weekend's Italian Grand Prix sixth on the grid, while he also occupies sixth place in the Drivers' Championship having won the British Grand Prix and finished second at the Belgian Grand Prix this term.

And the seven-time world champion says he has felt a great deal of emotion heading into every race during the campaign.

"It's been there all year. Every single race, we have turned up," he added. "I love my team so much, and we have been through a hell of a lot together.

"So, it will be emotional every single race, because every race we do is the last time at that particular race and, every race, we get closer and closer to the last time I'll be in a Mercedes, and that is tough, it's definitely going to be tough.

"My focus now is to try and do the best job I can for the team and finish on a high."

Scottie Scheffler is in the driving seat as he targets a first FedEx Cup title, taking a five-shot lead into the final day at the Tour Championship.

The world number one made a slow start on Saturday but recovered to finish strongly with four birdies on the final five holes to maintain his lead, as he carded 66, moving his total to 26-under.

Scheffler is aiming to win his seventh PGA Tour event of the season at East Lake, with Collin Morikawa closest to him in second having carded a 67 in the third round.

"I've had my chances here to win some tournaments, and I'll have no better opportunity than Sunday," said Scheffler.

"I've been mentally at my best this year, and I'm looking forward to doing more of that in the last round."

Morikawa played himself into contention on Friday and was able to keep the pace with birdies on three of the last four holes on Saturday, while Xander Schaffuele slipped down to fourth, 10 shots off the top, with Sahith Theegala above him on 17-under.

After Morikawa's strong finish on Saturday, he remains hopeful that he will get a stroke of luck on Sunday to pip his compatriot to the title.

"It's going to be very hard, but I believe in myself that I can do it," Morikawa said.

"Five shots is a lot, but two-shot swings happen. I think I've seen a couple over the past few days.

"I've just got to play my game. I've got to go low. I've got 18 holes left in the season - I'm going to put everything I have into these next 24 hours."

Joe Schmidt admitted he was on edge before Australia ended their eight-match Rugby Championship losing streak with a last-gasp 20-19 win over Argentina.

Ben Donaldson slotted over from close range with the last play of the game, much to the Pumas' frustration when the referee blew the full whistle.

Argentina held healthy leads twice, going 10-0 and 16-7 up. Jake Gordon and Rob Valetini crossed for Australia before Noah Lolesio's three kicks left the game on a knife edge before Donaldson sealed the win.

It is the first time the Wallabies have won in the competition since beating South Africa in 2022, and Schmidt was overjoyed that they were able to get the result over the line.

"It was heart in mouth," said Schmidt. "I'm really delighted for the boys, they found a way to win. I'm just really proud.

"We made a few things hard for ourselves, giving them a big start at home, a big crowd and difficult conditions.

"We put ourselves straight back under pressure by dropping restarts, but we fought, scored tries and created some other chances that would have been great.

"It'll be back to the drawing board a little bit, but I think we might even enjoy this one, just because we really had to fight to get it."

Argentina host Australia again in Sante Fe next week, while South Africa and New Zealand will meet in Cape Town in round four. 

Daniil Medvedev restored order by beating Flavio Cobolli in the US Open evening session, avoiding the same fates as former champions Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.

The Russian, who is now the only former champion remaining in the men's field at Flushing Meadows, won 6-3 6-4 6-3 in two hours and 18 minutes.

Though Cobolli fought well, getting the first break in the match early on and valiantly defending set point six times in the first two sets, he could not stage another upset.

Medvedev struck 33 winners as he asserted his dominance and will meet Nuno Borges in the fourth round in New York.

"I said it before the match that for me the upsets don't really matter," Medvedev said.

"The only thing [is when] the conditions are a bit tricky, the favourites maybe have less margin than the other guys. Just have to be more cautious.

"It was a tough match. It was just a little bit up and down, and at one moment I started playing much better on my serve than on his.

"If I play good tennis I can win the whole thing. If I don't play good, I can lose against anyone."

Data Debrief: No upsets here

With two of the favourites for the title already out of the race, Medvedev will feel good about his chances of winning a second US Open title.

This victory was his 138th combined match win on hard court (grand slams and ATP Masters 1000 events), equalling Roger Federer for the second-most of any player on the surface in the past decade, trailing only Novak Djokovic (227). 

Medvedev is into the fourth round for the 11th time in the men's singles event at grand slams on hard court - he is the only Russian in the Open era to reach this stage 10+ times. 

Iga Swiatek cruised into the fourth round of the US Open, crediting a chat with Serena Williams for her straight-sets win over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

The world number one prevailed 6-4 6-2, without facing a break point in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday.

Swiatek needed just 95 minutes to get into the next round, setting up a meeting with Liudmila Samsonova.

A four-game winning streak in the second set put the game beyond doubt, earning her a third straight-sets victory of the tournament so far.

"It was nice that Serena [Williams] approached me [in the players' gym], because I wouldn't, for sure, find courage to do that," Swiatek said.

"Even though we met before and for a couple of years we have been on the same sides and on tour together, she's still star-striking for me.

"It inspired me, and it gave me a positive kick.

"It's not like my tennis is perfect, but it is weird because I have been number one and winning tournaments, I feel I need to work on some stuff."

Data Debrief: Total dominance

Swiatek, who won at Flushing Meadows in 2022, is into the fourth round at a grand slam for just the second time this year, having failed to reach it at the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

It is the 16th time she has reached that stage in her 23rd main draw appearance - only Coco Gauff has also reached the fourth round in over half of her main draws at grand slams among active players.

The Pole looks to be in fine form though, with this victory lifting her winning percentage to 82.8% (82-17) in women's singles matches at grand slam events - she is now up to 11th on the all-time list in the Open Era, surpassing Martina Hingis.

Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman began the game with consecutive home runs, an unprecedented feat in Los Angeles Dodgers' history, and the National League leaders scored twice in the ninth inning to come through with an 8-6 victory over the rival Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday.

Tommy Edman's two-run single in the top of the ninth snapped a 6-6 tie and helped Los Angeles expand its lead over Arizona and the San Diego Padres to six games in the division standings.

Ohtani added a sacrifice fly in addition to his NL-leading 44th homer of the season, which came on Arizona starter Merrill Kelly's eighth pitch of the night. Freeman finished 3 for 5 and also knocked in two runs to lead a 16-hit attack which propelled the Dodgers to a fourth straight victory and 10th in 12 games.

Betts followed Ohtani's game-opening blast with a shot over the left field wall, and Freeman connected on Kelly's very next pitch to give Los Angeles a quick 3-0 lead and mark the first time in the franchise's 141-year history it has started a game with three consecutive home runs.

The Diamondbacks answered with four runs in the bottom of the first, however, with Corbin Carroll beginning the rally with a lead-off inside-the-park homer off Gavin Stone.

Jake McCarthy and Joc Pederson then singled before Lourdes Gurriel drove in both with a double to tie the contest. Gurriel later scored on Eugenio Suarez's sac fly for a 4–3 Diamondbacks' advantage.

The Dodgers went back ahead in the second, though. After loading the bases on singles by Max Muncy and Miguel Rojas and a fielding error by Kelly, Ohtani plated Muncy with a sac fly and Freeman got Rojas home with a single for a 5-4 edge.

Gurriel's solo homer in the third knotted the score again, but the Dodgers retook the lead when Gavin Lux doubled in the fifth and crossed the plate on Muncy's single.

Arizona pulled back even by manufacturing a run in the seventh. Luis Guillorme drew a walk before advancing to third on a sacrifice and a wild pitch by reliever Brent Honeywell, then came home on Carroll's sacrifice fly.

It remained a 6-6 game into the ninth, which Will Smith and Lux opened with singles off Ryan Thompson (7-4) before both Dodger runners were moved up a base on a bunt. Two batters later, Edman delivered a two-out single off Justin Martinez to bring home each.

Evan Phillips then retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth to give Ben Casparius a win in his MLB debut after the rookie threw a scoreless eighth inning.

Phillies' Wheeler dominates Braves for 100th win

Zack Wheeler earned his 100th career win with seven superb innings as the Philadelphia Phillies extended their lead atop the NL East with a 3-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves.

Wheeler (13-6) yielded just four singles and struck out seven to put the Phillies in position for a sixth win in eight games. Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez finished off the shutout with an inning each as Philadelphia increased its margin over the second-place Braves to six games in the division standings.

Edmundo Sosa knocked in two runs for the Phillies on a double and a homer, a solo shot off Max Fried in the third inning that broke a scoreless tie.

Trea Turner made it 2-0 with a solo homer off Fried in the sixth. One inning later, Weston Wilson drew a walk in front of Sosa's RBI double that gave Wheeler more breathing room.

The Phillies nearly had another home run after Austin Hays drove a pitch deep to center field to start the bottom of the seventh, but Atlanta's Michael Harris climbed the wall to make a leaping catch and prevent the ball from landing in the Philadelphia bullpen.

Fried (8-8) allowed all three Philadelphia runs while permitting five hits and four walks in seven innings.

Atlanta has now lost two of the first three matchups of this key four-game set after entering the series having won nine of its previous 11 games.

Kukuchi fans 12 as Astros continue Royals' struggles

Yusei Kikuchi racked up 12 strikeouts over seven outstanding innings to lead the Houston Astros to a 5-2 win over the suddenly slumping Kansas City Royals in a matchup of American League playoff contenders.

Kikuchi (7-9) allowed just one run on five hits to improve to 3-0 with a 2.57 ERA in six starts since being acquired by the Astros from the Toronto Blue Jays in late July.

The left-hander duelled with Kansas City starter Cole Ragans through 5 1/2 scoreless innings before the Astros broke out with five runs in the bottom of the sixth.

Ragans was cruising along before giving up a single to Ben Gamel to begin the big inning. He then hit Jose Altuve with a pitch and walked Yordan Alvarez as Houston loaded the bases with none out.

Yainer Diaz then delivered a two-run single to break the scoreless tie, and Jeremy Pena followed with a triple to knock in two more runs for a 4-0 lead. Pena scored the Astros' final run on a wild pitch thrown by reliever Steven Cruz.

Pena finished 2 for 4 in Houston's fourth consecutive victory, which moved the Astros five games clear of second-place Seattle in the AL West after the Mariners lost to the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday.

The Royals finally got on the board when Freddy Fermin singled in the seventh, advanced to third on MJ Melendez's base hit and scored on Nick Loftin's fielder's choice groundout.

Bobby Witt's 29th homer of the season got Kansas City within 5-2 in the eighth, but Ryan Pressly kept the Royals scoreless in the ninth to record his third save of the season.

Kansas City has now dropped four straight following a stretch of 10 wins in 13 games.

Ragans (10-9) struck out 10 in five-plus innings but was charged with five runs despite permitting just four hits.

South Africa captain Siya Kolisi warned his team the job is far from done despite them rallying for a thrilling victory over New Zealand in the Rugby Championship on Saturday.

The Springboks secured a 31-27 win over the All Blacks at Ellis Park, coming from behind with two late tries from Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Grant Williams.

The victory hauled South Africa onto 14 points in the Championship standings as they bid to end New Zealand's four-year stranglehold on the title, but Kolisi says there is still work to be done.

Addressing the capacity crowd in his post-match interview, Kolisi said: "We play for a lot but you people are our number one motivation. 

"We appreciate you every single day. Please don't stop. When times are tough, please keep supporting us. We cannot do it without you.

"We respect the All Blacks. No matter what people say about them, when they need to turn up, they turn up. We believed in ourselves, we didn't panic, and we did what we wanted.

"They were catching us on the exit. After the first try in the second half, we picked it up. I'm really proud of the boys but the job is not done."

All Blacks captain Scott Barrett, meanwhile, was proud of his team-mates' efforts but admitted they had just fallen short of putting together a complete performance.

"Well done to the Springboks, it showed the class team they are," he said. "We weren't quite good enough. We were good for 62 minutes and it's an 80-minute game.

"There were two key moments after kick-offs where we couldn't quite get out of our half and they punished us. It was a huge effort, we're certainly proud, but it was just not quite to be.

"We'll regroup pretty quickly. Some guys have played here for the first time. It's intense and we'll have to be better next week."

South Africa host New Zealand again in Cape Town next week, while Australia go to Argentina for their round-three matchup.