KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs were desperate for help at cornerback this offseason when general manager Brett Veach made the curious decision to spend what remained of his salary cap on Sammy Watkins. Well, that questionable move paid off last Sunday, when the full depth of the Chiefs’ offensive arsenal was on display in Pittsburgh. Now, the pressure is on opposing defense to figure out a way to stop it.
ATLANTA (AP) — The NL East-leading Atlanta Braves snapped a four-game skid with a 7-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals as Freddie Freeman hit a two-run homer and Touki Toussaint pitched into the sixth inning. The Cardinals, leading for the second wild-card spot, ended a three-game winning streak.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chris Archer pitched seven strong innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 2-1 win. In his most impressive start since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays on July 31, Archer allowed one run on six hits with eight strikeouts and one walk. The right-hander made it out of the sixth inning for the first time in nine starts for the Pirates, who traded for him in hopes of making a playoff run.
UNDATED (AP) — No. 17 TCU will be trying to win its fifth consecutive game against Texas for the first time in a series that dates back to 1897. TCU has won those last four games by an average margin of 38-8. Texas is coming off big win at home over then-No. 22 Southern Cal. TCU lost 40-28 loss to fourth-ranked Ohio State last week.
National Headlines
ATLANTA (AP) — Alabama and Georgia are looking strong as the nation’s top-ranked college football teams. Even so, it’s far too early to assume the SEC rivals that met in last year’s national championship game will play again for this year’s conference title. The SEC has shown impressive depth in the first three weeks while staking early claim to bragging rights as the nation’s best conference.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland Indians All-Star Trevor Bauer is scheduled to pitch Friday against Boston, his first appearance since breaking his right leg last month. Indians manager Terry Francona said Bauer will pitch a “couple of innings” versus the Red Sox and hopes he’ll make two additional starts before the postseason. Bauer is 12-6 with a 2.22 ERA in 25 starts this year.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Chicago White Sox slugger Jose Abreu has been released from a Cleveland hospital after undergoing treatment for an infection in his right thigh. White Sox manager Rick Renteria says Abreu is resting at the team’s hotel. He won’t play in the series against the Indians.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The New York Mets have shut down Zack Wheeler for the rest of the season after the right-hander logged nearly 100 more innings than in 2017. Wheeler went 12-7 with a 3.31 ERA in 29 starts this season, but he was 9-1 with a 1.68 ERA over his final 11 starts. Wheeler missed two full seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2015 and was 3-7 with a 5.21 last year.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Denver Broncos quarterback Case Keenum says he plans to practice with the first team tomorrow after sitting out today’s workout with a sore knee. Keenum was hit five times in the pocket, sacked once, and ran three times for 16 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s 20-19 win over Oakland, but he doesn’t remember tweaking the knee in that game. He’s led the Broncos to their sixth straight 2-0 start with a pair of fourth-quarter comebacks.
Wednesday Scores
INTERLEAGUE
Final Pittsburgh 2 Kansas City 1
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Minnesota 8 Detroit 2
Final Tampa Bay 9 Texas 3
Final N-Y Yankees 10 Boston 1
Final Baltimore 2 Toronto 1
Final Cleveland 4 Chi White Sox 1
Final Seattle 9 Houston 0
Final Oakland 10 L-A Angels 0
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final Atlanta 7 St. Louis 3
Final Philadelphia 4 N-Y Mets 0
Final Milwaukee 7 Cincinnati 0
Final San Diego 8 San Francisco 4
Final Arizona 9 Chi Cubs 0
Final L-A Dodgers 5 Colorado 2
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
N-Y Jets at Cleveland 8:20 p.m. Thursday