Arizona
Austin Riley hits 3-run homer as Atlanta Braves beat Arizona Diamondbacks 7-5
ATLANTA (AP) — Austin Riley hit a three-run homer off Miguel Castro in the eighth inning, and the major league-leading Atlanta Braves stopped a four-game skid with a 7-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday.
Matt Olson hit two more homers for Atlanta, raising his NL-best total to 32. Orlando Arcia also connected.
Riley followed Michael Harris II’s double and Ozzie Albies’ walk with his fourth homer of the three-game series and 20th of the season, putting Atlanta (62-33) ahead 6-5. Riley has homered in three straight games four times in his big league career.
Austin Riley hit a go-ahead, three-run homer off Miguel Castro in the eighth inning, Matt Olson homered twice to raise his NL-best total to 32 and the major league-leading Atlanta Braves stopped a four-game skid with a 7-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Ryne Nelson allowed only three hits in seven innings, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. had a two-run double and the Arizona Diamondbacks beat Atlanta 5-3, handing the Braves their fourth consecutive loss.
Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Zach Davies has been placed on the 15-day injured list with lower back inflammation.
The Atlanta Braves have placed outfielder Sam Hilliard on the 10-day injured list with a bruised right heel.
Dominic Canzone and Emmanuel Rivera hit back-to-back homers for Arizona in the seventh against Spencer Strider. Corbin Carroll added his 19th homer in the eighth.
Kirby Yates (4-0) got the win, and Raisel Iglesias earned his 17th save in 19 chances. Castro (5-4) was charged with the loss.
BREWERS 4, PHILLIES 0
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Corbin Burnes struck out 10 in eight innings, leading Milwaukee to the victory.
Christian Yelich hit a three-run homer as Milwaukee closed out a 5-1 trip through Cincinnati and Philadelphia. Andruw Monasterio had two hits and scored two runs for the NL Central leaders.
Burnes (9-5) allowed two hits and walked one. The 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner improved to 4-0 with a 1.33 ERA in four July starts.
Philadelphia starter Taijuan Walker (11-4) permitted four runs and six hits in six innings in his first loss since June 1.
The Phillies finished with two hits.
REDS 5, GIANTS 1
CINCINNATI (AP) — Andrew Abbott pitched a career-high eight innings and Luke Maile homered, sending Cincinnati to its second straight win.
Abbott (5-2) allowed one hit, struck out six and walked two in his ninth big league start. Derek Law finished the two-hitter, surrendering Wilmer Flores’ 12th homer in the ninth.
The Reds salvaged a split of the four-game set. They posted consecutive victories for the first time since a five-game winning streak from July 2-6.
San Francisco right-hander Alex Cobb (6-3) gave up five runs, a season-high nine hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings.
The Giants (54-43) remain tied with Arizona for second in the NL West, two games behind the Dodgers.
BLUE JAYS 4, PADRES 0
TORONTO (AP) — Chris Bassitt combined with three relievers on a six-hitter, and the Blue Jays avoided a three-game sweep.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Alejandro Kirk homered for Toronto, which managed just one run in the first two games of the series. Kirk went 3 for 3, and Whit Merrifield and Jordan Luplow each had two hits.
Bassitt (10-5) allowed four hits — all singles — in six innings. He has won his last three decisions.
It was Toronto’s 11th shutout of the season.
Padres left-hander Blake Snell (6-8), a possible trade target ahead of the Aug. 1 deadline, allowed one run in five innings. He struck out four and walked seven, matching his career worst.
WHITE SOX 6, METS 2
NEW YORK (AP) — Yasmani Grandal started a four-run sixth inning with a two-run double that followed Pete Alonso’s error, and the White Sox spoiled José Quintana’s Mets debut.
Grandal doubled to the warning track in right after the White Sox loaded the bases against Drew Smith.
The inning started when Alonso backed up on a grounder by Luis Robert Jr. that bounced off his glove. The first baseman expressed his frustration by putting his head in his hands.
Quintana (0-1), a 34-year-old left-hander who pitched for the White Sox from 2012-17, signed a $26 million, two-year contract with the Mets as a free agent, then fractured a rib during spring training. He allowed two runs and six hits in five innings.
Michael Kopech (4-8) allowed two hits in 5 2/3 innings, both to Omar Narváez, and got his first win since May 24.
TIGERS 3, ROYALS 0
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Michael Lorenzen tossed seven innings of three-hit ball, and Detroit wrapped up another series win against its AL Central rival.
Lorenzen (5-6) increased his scoreless streak to 23 2/3 innings dating to June 30 at Colorado. The All-Star right-hander struck out three and walked one.
Tyler Holton worked a perfect eighth before Jason Foley handled the ninth for his fourth save.
Spencer Torkelson, Andy Ibañez and Eric Haase drove in runs for Detroit, which took three of four from the Royals for its fifth straight series win against them.
The Tigers scored twice off Zack Greinke (1-10) in the second before adding another run in the fifth, after the veteran right-hander had been removed from the game. Greinke allowed four hits in four innings in his first start since July 4.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Arizona
How air pollution plays a role during Arizona’s deadliest months of the year
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Maricopa County has declared Monday through Wednesday as ‘no burn days.’ County leaders say there are elevated levels of smoke in the air.
The poor air quality was visible in the Valley Monday as the Arizona’s Family news drone captured video of the layers of pollution. It could be seen from Camelback Mountain through downtown Phoenix.
It’s common to see the dirty air this time of year. There are more people visiting Arizona through the holidays, which means more cars and more air pollution.
There are also more people burning inside to heat their homes, which sends smoke into the air. People will also light off fireworks around the holidays, which can add to the already poor air quality.
While the weather is beautiful around the Valley this time of year, it can be the deadliest time in Arizona. According to numbers from the Arizona Department of Health Services, January is the deadliest month of the year.
In 2022, more than 8,300 people died in Arizona, nearly 2,000 more than any other month. December was second-highest, with more than 6,700 people who died.
Air pollution could be a contributing factor to the increased deaths in our state.
Dr. Ashley Lowe with the College of Nursing at the University of Arizona works with many Arizona schools. She says these months are when more kids are going to the nurse with breathing problems and says air pollution is a big reason why.
“We do tend to have an uptick in the number of visits to the health office because kids are having breathing problems,” Lowe said. “All of these things come together to create a perfect storm.”
Dr. Lowe says kids with asthma can especially be impacted from the dirty air. She says she doesn’t want kids to stay away from their practices and other events, but it’s best to limit exposure outdoors on some of the worst air quality days.
If you are struggling to breathe, shutting the windows and doors around your home can help by keeping the polluted air outside of your home.
An indoor air filter can also clean out the bad particles from the air inside your home.
The weather also plays a role in why the bad air can stick around for days or even weeks this time of year. While it’s beautiful outside, the weather is normally calm which means there is no wind or rain to push the dirty air away.
“We live already in a valley kind of in a bowl and everything kind of settles. You get warm afternoons and cold mornings so that inversion sets in and it kind of traps everything,” Arizona’s Family First Alert Meteorologist April Warnecke said. “It would help to get wind or rain but those are the two things we don’t have in the forecast.”
Air quality trackers can show where the worst of the polluted air is.
According to AirNow, Christmas and New Year’s can have the worst air quality of the year. There were readings of “very unhealthy” air quality during the holidays in 2023.
The CDC says chronic respiratory disease is the fifth leading cause of death in Arizona each year.
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Arizona
College Football Playoff odds: Penn State, Texas, Ohio State, Georgia favored in 2nd round
Texas sends Clemson home, will face Arizona State in CFP quarterfinal
Texas will face Arizona State in the Peach Bowl after beating Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
Sports Pulse
Who is favored in College Football Playoff quarterfinal odds?
Check out the point spread, moneyline and over/under (point total) for all four quarterfinal games on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook.
No. 3 Boise State faces No. 6 Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday, Dec. 31.
On Wednesday, Jan. 1, No. 4 Arizona State takes on No. 5 Texas in the Peach Bowl, No. 1 Oregon plays No. 8 Ohio State in the Rose Bowl and No. 2 Georgia opposes No. 7 Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.
The lower seed is interestingly currently favored in betting odds for three of the four CFP quarterfinal matchups, with Arizona State the biggest underdog as almost a 2-touchdown underdog against Texas.
College Football Playoff quarterfinal odds: Point spreads
- Penn State (-10.5) vs Boise State (+10.5)
- Texas (-13.5) vs Arizona State (+13.5)
- Ohio State (-2.5) vs Oregon (+2.5)
- Notre Dame (+1.5) vs Georgia (-1.5)
College Football Playoff quarterfinal odds: Moneylines
- Penn State (-450) vs Boise State (+340)
- Texas (-550) vs Arizona State (+400)
- Ohio State (-130) vs Oregon (+110)
- Notre Dame (+105) vs Georgia (-125)
College Football Playoff quarterfinal odds: Over/unders (point totals)
- Penn State vs Boise State: 52.5
- Texas vs Arizona State: 52.5
- Ohio State vs Oregon: 53.5
- Notre Dame vs Georgia: 44.5
Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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Arizona
Tommy Lloyd Giving Arizona Wildcats Mandatory Break During Holidays
This season has not gone as many expected for Arizona.
After coming into the year ranked No. 10 in preseason polls, the Wildcats quickly dropped out of the picture following losses to Wisconsin and Duke which were a precursor of what was to come.
Arizona went into the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament as one of the favorites, and after beating Davidson in their first-round matchup by over 30 points, it looked like they had gotten things back on track and were ready to play like the team many expected them to be.
But, alarm bells went off when they lost back-to-back games against Oklahoma and West Virginia that pushed them under .500 for the first time in the Tommy Lloyd era, and also the first time in 14 years.
Since then, Arizona has taken care of business against the lesser opponents on their schedule but failed to win against UCLA despite being in control for the majority of that contest.
The Wildcats closed out their non-conference schedule in style following that loss, bludgeoning Samford and Central Michigan to head into the holiday break feeling more positive about what they can accomplish going forward, while also having a lot to think about.
Lloyd and the players know this wasn’t the early-season stretch they wanted, but he gave his team a clear directive during this break; take time away from basketball.
“Rest, relax, love your family, hang out. That’s the homework,” the head coach said per Bruce Pascoe of The Arizona Daily Star.
That’s probably a good approach.
There’s nothing anyone can do about what has already taken place, but they can certainly get burned out if they’re not careful and lose confidence if they dwell on mistakes.
“I mean, this nonconference was rough. I think we all need a little break and a reset,” KJ Lewis said.
Lloyd is giving his players that time to reset, sending everyone home for the holidays or somewhere with either friends or family.
This time away should hopefully allow Arizona to put the non-conference schedule in the past and get ready for the daunting challenge that will come by playing Big 12 opponents until Selection Sunday.
Lloyd is also hoping this let’s his team get motivated for their return to the court.
“Get hungry. Get hungry because we know when we come back — we’re excited to be starting this Big 12 thing we’ve been talking about for about 20 months. We’re fired up,” he added.
Arizona welcomes TCU into the McKale Center on Dec. 30.
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