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MIAMI (AP) — Brandon Nimmo had three hits and walked once, Alejandro Osuna hit a go-ahead RBI double and the Texas Rangers beat the Miami Marlins 4-3 on Monday night.

Ezequiel Duran homered and Joc Pederson singled twice for the Rangers in the opener of a 10-game road trip.

The loss snapped the Marlins’ eight-game home win streak.

For the second time in two weeks, the Tartan Army made its presence felt at a major league game that featured the Rangers. Scotland fans are in Miami for the national team’s World Cup match against Brazil on Wednesday and many attended Monday’s series opener bumping the attendance to 20,008. The lively atmosphere in the stands, including the popular chant, “No Scotland, No Party,” resembled the Rangers-Red Sox game at Fenway Park on June 14.

Nimmo doubled against Marlins reliever Calvin Faucher (4-4) to lead off the eighth and Jake Burger followed with a walk. Osuna then hit a one-out line drive to right that scored Nimmo and snapped a 2-all tie. Burger advanced to third and raced home scored on Elias Diaz’s sacrifice fly.

Robby Ahlstrom (2-0) pitched a perfect seventh for the win.

The Marlins got to within 4-3 on Kyle Stowers’ run-scoring double against Jacob Latz in the eighth. Latz retired Jakob Marsee on a groundout with the bases loaded to end the eighth then pitched the ninth for his 14th save.

Duran put Texas on the board with a two-run blast against Miami starter Tyler Phillips in the fourth before Miami narrowed it to 2-1 on Javier Sanoja’s sacrifice fly in the fifth.

Xavier Edwards hit a tying RBI triple in the sixth. He tried to stretch the triple into an inside the park home run but was thrown out at the plate by shortstop Duran’s relay throw from short left field.

Phillips allowed two runs and five hits over six innings.

The series opener also featured the return of former Marlins manager Skip Schumaker. Now managing the Rangers, Schumaker guided the Marlins for two years before resigning following the 2024 season. In Schumaker’s first season, the Marlins clinched a post season berth and were eliminated by Philadelphia in the NL Wild Card round.
Up next

The Rangers have not announced a starter for Tuesday while RHP Sandy Alcantara (7-4, 4.18 ERA) will start for the Marlins.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

TORONTO (AP) — Pinch-hitter Myles Straw drove in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning with one of Toronto’s three sacrifice flies, and Kazuma Okamoto homered to help the Blue Jays beat the Houston Astros 4-2 on Monday night.

Louis Varland issued a leadoff walk to Yainer Diaz in the ninth, but Joey Loperfido grounded into a double play two pitches later. Varland then struck out pinch-hitter Taylor Trammell to secure his 16th save.

Toronto (39-39) got back to .500 for the first time since May 29 at the start of a 10-game homestand, the team’s longest this season.

Jeremy Peña singled on the first pitch from Blue Jays starter Dylan Cease and scored on a one-out single by Isaac Paredes to put the Astros up 1-0 in the first. Cease loaded the bases before getting a double-play grounder from Diaz to limit the damage in a 26-pitch inning.

Peña left in the sixth after aggravating a previous hamstring injury on a swing.

Cease allowed two runs and three hits with four walks in 5 2/3 innings. The right-hander struck out eight and retired 14 in a row before issuing one-out walks to Yordan Alvarez and Christian Walker in the sixth. Paredes lined out to left field, but Jose Altuve tied it at 2 with a two-strike single on Cease’s 110th and final pitch.

Braydon Fisher (3-2) entered and retired Diaz on a comebacker. Fisher got four outs on six pitches to earn the win.

Okamoto tied it 1-all when he led off the second against Hunter Brown with his 17th homer. Brown left after three innings and 85 pitches in his fourth start this season and second since coming off the injured list.

Enyel De Los Santos (0-2) gave up Daulton Varsho’s infield single and Okamoto’s double with one out in the seventh before Straw lofted his sacrifice fly against Bryan King.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. drove in Andrés Giménez with a sac fly in the fourth to give the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead. Alejandro Kirk’s sac fly in the eighth scored George Springer to make it 4-2.

Brice Matthews and Alvarez singled off Tyler Rogers in the eighth before Walker grounded into a double play. Rogers walked Paredes but retired Altuve to keep it 3-2.
Up next

Astros RHP Peter Lambert (6-4, 3.23 ERA) starts Tuesday opposite Blue Jays RHP Shane Bieber, making his first start this season.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship returned to having the largest purse in the history of women’s golf, announcing Monday an increase to $13 million along with adding artificial intelligence to elevate its analytics features.

This is the ninth consecutive year the purse has increased, the largest coming in 2022 when the prize money doubled to $9 million.

The U.S. Women’s Open earlier this month at Riviera raised its purse to $12.5 million.

The Women’s PGA, which starts Thursday at Hazeltine National, is attracting more attention this year as Nelly Korda, the No. 1 player in women’s golf, tries to become the first player since Inbee Park in 2013 — and only the second female in history — to win three straight majors to start the season.

The field is the strongest for the women’s majors, with all top 100 from the LPGA points list. NBC, Peacock and Golf Channel combine to provide 26 hours of television coverage, equal to the amount devoted to the Women’s Open.

“We’re proud to deliver the premier major on the LPGA Tour,” said Tim Walsh, the U.S. chair and CEO for KPMG. “Working with the PGA of America and the LPGA Tour, we’re combining a record purse with technology that gives players better, real-time insight into their performance, along with broader, more dynamic coverage for fans.

“It’s all about continuing to build momentum for women’s golf.”

The major dates to 1955. The PGA of America began jointly running it with the LPGA, with KPMG providing major corporate support and behind big upgrades in prize money and data enhancements to help players and the broadcast.

The Women’s PGA has been going to some of the most established courses in history. Hazeltine has hosted the U.S. Open and PGA Championship, along with the Ryder Cup in 2016, with another Ryder Cup set for 2029. Next year it goes back to Congressional.

Beyond the boost in prize money, AI-enhanced features are being added to the “KPMG Performance Insights,” launched five years ago to give players access to detailed statistics and to provide an extra layer of storytelling on the broadcast.

That includes reels available to each player that provide a breakdown of their rounds, and shot-level data for the media. There also is an AI-powered live outcome prediction engine. Also, several caddies will wear microphones to allow viewers to hear live interactions on course strategy.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Here’s something that very few could have reasonably expected coming into this World Cup: Cape Verde controls its own destiny with one match left in group play.

That’s right. With a win on Friday against Saudi Arabia, the tiny nation of about 500,000 people and about 15 million new Instagram followers will be headed to the round of 32. Even a draw might be — should be — enough to earn a spot in the knockout round.

The Blue Sharks were long shots entering the World Cup; some books had them at no better than 12% to advance from the group stage. They’re currently favored to move on.

“It’s in our hands,” defender Roberto Lopes said. “We have to go and take it.”

A pair of draws — first against Spain to begin group play, then rallying for a 2-2 result against Uruguay on Sunday — has Cape Verde still searching for its first win in its initial World Cup appearance. Still, the team is in an ideal position.

Spain leads Group H with four points. Uruguay and Cape Verde are next with two points each, while Saudi Arabia is last with one point. The top two teams from each group advance to the round of 32 along with the top eight third-place teams in the 12 groups.

A win over Saudi Arabia by Cape Verde would give it five points; it would then be mathematically certain to be no worse than second in the group. A draw would give the team three points; that, combined with a Spain win over Uruguay, would also assure a second-place finish in group play.

“One game at a time,” Cape Verde backup goalkeeper CJ dos Santos said. “This is just another challenge for us.”

There is a real chance that if Cape Verde beats Saudi Arabia, its reward would be a round of 32 game against Lionel Messi and defending World Cup champion Argentina.

And the interest in that game would be overwhelming, if it happened. On one side, there would be Messi, the biggest draw in the sport and possibly the biggest draw right now in any sport. On the other, there would be a team that the world seems to have adopted — the improbable story, replete with a 40-year-old goalkeeper whose mother needed help just to obtain a visa and fly to the U.S. to watch her son play on soccer’s grandest stage.

More than half of the team was born somewhere other than Cape Verde; Kevin Pina, who scored against Uruguay, spent part of his youth living in Massachusetts, which has the largest concentration of the Cape Verdean diaspora in the U.S.

That stems from how in the 1800s, Cape Verdeans found work on American whaling vessels in the Atlantic and eventually settled in port cities in states like Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

“We come from a country of immigrants,” Cape Verde coach Bubista said. “We want every child and every young person to feel proud to represent their country. We want our success to make them want to represent Cape Verde.”

At Luanda Restaurant in Brockton, Massachusetts, Cape Verde’s first World Cup match became an afternoon of nervous cheering as customers gathered around televisions; some fans even brought laptops so they could work remotely from the restaurant without missing the game against Spain.

Every save by 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha — whose stardom has risen immeasurably during this tournament — drew louder reactions inside the restaurant. Owner Amélia Goncalves said she tried to work while screaming, laughing and nearly crying, noting that Vozinha’s story resonates with the Cape Verdean community.

“If you work hard, it’s possible,” Goncalves said.

The team has worked hard. The round of 32 is very possible now. A tiny country with big hopes is poised for its biggest sports moment.

“Now nobody can ask, ‘Where is Cape Verde?’” said 22-year-old Micaelle Nunes, one of the soccer revelers in Brockton. “The whole world will know.”

The players are aware of the celebrations. They know that, in some ways, they have become a sentimental favorite all over the globe. Their story is easy to appreciate and the way they play has drawn applause even from fans in opposing jerseys.

A 12% chance is on the brink of coming through.

“We had a big journey here,” Lopes said. “Now that we’re here, we can’t change.”

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Associated Press writer Leah Willingham in Brockton, Massachusetts, and Zach Pascuzzi in Miami Gardens, Florida, contributed to this story. Pascuzzi is a student at the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.

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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/FIFA-World-Cup

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The way its regular season unfolded, a national championship for Oklahoma would have seemed impossible.

The way the postseason unfolded, well, there was no stopping the Sooners.

OU completed the improbable run to its first national championship since 1994 with a 13-2 victory over North Carolina in the winner-take-all Game 3 of the College World Series finals Monday night, a performance that featured the prodigious offensive production and clutch pitching the Sooners rode through the NCAA Tournament.

“I think we knew the talent was always in the room,” said Jaxon Willits, named the CWS most outstanding player. “We got hot at the right time, and now we’re national champions.”

The Sooners (43-23) won the Southeastern Conference’s seventh straight title, quite an accomplishment for a team picked 14th in the 16-team conference in the preseason, finished 11th and entered the postseason off losses in seven of nine games.

To get to Omaha, they beat No. 2 national seed Georgia Tech twice on the road in regionals and swept upstart Kansas on the road in super regionals. To get to the finals, they beat No. 3 Georgia twice in bracket play.

“They got really confident the last month,” OU coach Skip Johnson said. “They care about each other. They didn’t want to give in. They were selfless.”

North Carolina (54-14-1) was runner-up for the third time since 2006 and now has 13 CWS appearances without a title. Only Florida State, with 24, has more without winning it all.

The Sooners were back in top form offensively after managing only four singles in a 6-2 loss in Game 2 and handed the Tar Heels their most lopsided loss of the season.

“We ran out of gas when all is said and done,” Carolina coach Scott Forbes said.

When Jackson Cleveland struck out Jake Schaffner to end the game, he and catcher Deiten Lachance embraced and then headed to the dogpile that formed near third base. Players waving national championship towels rushed back toward their dugout to salute the celebrating Sooner faithful on the first-base line, football greats Barry Switzer and Brian Bosworth among them.

Kyle Branch, the No. 9 batter who came into the game 1 of 16 (.063) in the CWS, drove in six runs with a pair of singles and home run. His homer came on his last at-bat, just as brother Kolby’s did for Georgia last Wednesday.

“Pure joy. Pure joy for our team,” Branch said. “I had a teammate tell me I was going to do something special, and for him to tell me that with the way things have been going, it has to be a God thing.”

He joined Dayton Tockey as the seventh and eighth OU players to homer in Omaha. Willits had three hits, reached base five times and finished the CWS 13 of 25 (.520).

The pitching matchup of Carolina’s Jackson Rose (5-1) and Oklahoma’s Nick Wesloski was the first between freshmen in a CWS winner-take-all game since 1993. Neither got out of the third inning.

LJ Mercurius (7-7) turned in another strong performance out of the bullpen, shutting down a threat when OU led 3-1 in the third and holding the Tar Heels to one run in 5 2/3 innings. He allowed just two runs in 12 1/3 over four CWS appearances.

The Tar Heels’ pitching staff, which had the best ERA in the Atlantic Coast Conference, had been good and occasionally great in the CWS. It was neither Monday, with eight pitchers combining to allow 14 hits, issue eight walks, throw three wild pitches and hit a batter.

ACC freshman of the year Caden Glauber, who had given up just one run in 10 1/3 innings in four CWS appearances, was called on for a fifth one day after he threw 65 pitches in five shutout innings. It was apparent coach Forbes went to the well one time too many.

Glauber was called for a clock violation before he even threw his first pitch. He issued a four-pitch bases-loaded walk and Willits followed with a two-run single to make it 6-1 in the fourth. That was all for Glauber, who threw seven pitches, five of them balls. The Tar Heels had won all 29 games in which Glauber had pitched before Monday.

“This group loved each other all season and took us on a ride and came up just short,” Forbes said. “I’d take that ride every day of the year. While we’re sad, the sadness will go away. We talk about joy. Joy doesn’t go away. These guys have given me, our coaching staff, our fans, administration, everybody, a ton of joy and a ton to be proud of.”

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Lionel Messi set a World Cup record with his 17th and 18th goals, and defending champion Argentina advanced to the knockout stage with a 2-0 victory over Austria on Monday.

Messi had a golden opportunity to break the record in the ninth minute, but went wide to the right on a penalty kick. Almost 30 minutes later, Messi caught Alexander Schlager leaning the wrong way after Thiago Almada let Facuno Medina’s pass go by him directly onto Messi’s left foot.

“There were moments when I was really angry about missing the penalty, but I was able to make up for it,” Messi said.

In the waning seconds of injury time, Messi extended his record by sending a shot through several defenders after Schlager turned away his first attempt. He entered the game even with Germany striker Miroslav Klose, who scored 16 goals over four World Cups from 2002-14.

“Beyond anything I’m so happy for the win,” Messi said. “It was huge, tough and difficult. It would allow us to be relaxed to what’s ahead. All matches in this World Cup are very even, very intense. I’m enjoying this moment and craving to enjoy with my teammates.”

Two days before his 39th birthday and with an ailing father back home, Messi celebrated twice with teammates to the delight of the decidedly pro-Argentine crowd at the sold-out home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.

Most of those fans were wearing Messi’s familiar No. 10 jersey with white and blue stripes, dwarfing the small pockets of red-clad Austrian supporters under the retractable roof that offered air-conditioned comfort on the second day of what is sure to be another hot Texas summer.

The scoring record came 40 years to the day since the late Diego Maradona’s “goal of the century” — another No. 10 who made a solo run from the other side of midfield to give Argentina a two-goal lead in a 2-1 victory over England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals in Mexico City. Argentina went on to win the title.

Messi joined Just Fontaine and Jairzinho as the only players to score in six straight World Cup games, and he’s second among men all-time with 122 international goals to Cristiano Ronaldo’s 143.

Argentina extended its winning streak in the tournament to eight since a shocking loss to Saudi Arabia in its 2022 opener in Qatar.

La Albiceleste clinched the top spot in Group J with Jordan’s 2-1 loss to Algeria on Monday night. Messi’s playing status will be in question with nothing at stake when Argentina returns to AT&T Stadium to face Jordan in a group-stage finale Saturday night. Jordan has already been eliminated.

Messi has scored all five of Argentina goals in the tournament and has 12 World Cup goals since turning 35. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner as soccer’s best player in Europe had his first World Cup hat trick in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria in its Group J opener last week in Kansas City.

Trailing by a goal early in second-half injury time, Austria winger Patrick Wimmer went just wide on a header after Kevin Danso had sent a header his direction off a free kick.

“I think that we were in possession of the ball more than other people expected,” Austria coach Ralf Rangnick said through an interpreter. “Unfortunately, we weren’t able to nullify every counter attack.”

Austria, which opened with a 3-1 victory over Jordan, can advance with a win over Algeria on Saturday in Kansas City.

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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup

TYLER, Texas (KETK) – UT Tyler head baseball coach Brent Porche has resigned from his role after coaching the Patriots to back-to-back NCAA DII College World Series appearances in their last two seasons.

UT Tyler Director of Athletics Sam Ferguson announced on Monday that Porche is resigning from his role in order to become a financial advisor for New York Life Insurance.

“Coach Porche has done an incredible job with our baseball program,” Ferguson said. “He led us to a Division III NCAA Championship and most recently back-to-back NCAA II College World Series. It takes elite coaching to pull off that kind of success on the field. However, I’m more grateful for the ways he has poured into our guys and developed them as men. Our mission is to mold student-athletes into champions of character, champions of competition and champions in their careers – Coach Porche’s program accomplished that mission.”

Porche signed on with UT Tyler baseball in 2017 and earned a 345-151 win-loss record in his ten seasons at the helm. Porche’s record means he has the most wins of any head baseball coach in program history.

“Since I was 14 years old, it has been my dream to be a college baseball coach,” Porche said. “Through the sacrifices of so many, my grandparents, my parents Chris and Belinda, and most of all my wife Crystal and our boys Braiden and Owen, I was able to live that dream for the past 18 years. I’m so incredibly thankful to so many who have made this the most rewarding 18 years of my life.”

Under Porche, the Patriots won the DIII NCAA World Series title in 2018 before they moved up to the DII level. Since the move, the Patriots have been to the DII NCAA World Series twice, both births came in their past two seasons under Porche.

Last season, Porche led the Patriots to a 50-14 record, a Lone Star Conference regular season title and the Lone Star Conference tournament title.

“Tyler and this baseball program have become my home,” Porche said on Monday. “To my players, I can’t thank all of you enough for believing in me and giving me everything that you possibly could. It has been the honor and privilege of my life to have been your coach. I will miss the relationships, watching guys grow in the game and in their lives, but I won’t be far and I can promise you I will be the biggest Patriot baseball fan there is.”

Porche started his career as a head coach at LSU Alexandria, where he earned a 147-83 win-loss record in the Generals’ 2013-2016 seasons. In total, Porche ends his career as a coach with a 492-232 win-loss record and a .678 winning percentage.

“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built,” Porche said. “This program has always had an incredibly high standard of excellence, and I believe we did our part to carry that forward and elevate it. I look forward to watching the Patriots win many more LSC Championships, future trips to Cary, and bringing home a National Championship! Go Pats!”

The Patriots will announce their new head coach at a press conference in their Alumni House on Tuesday.