AP-NW–Sports Right Now/710
MARINERS-YANKEES
A-Rod, Yanks stop skids; Tanaka tops Iwakuma and M’s, 4-3
NEW YORK (AP) —Alex Rodriguez, dropped three spots to sixth in the batting order, hit a two-run homer that snapped his hitless skid and sent the New York Yankees past the Seattle Mariners 4-3 on Sunday, ending their four-game losing streak.
Masahiro Tanaka topped old pal Hisashi Iwakuma in the first major league pitching matchup of former Japanese teammates, a game that was broadcast live on television back home — at 2 a.m. in Tokyo.
Brett Gardner had three hits, including an RBI double, and scored the tiebreaking run on a wild pitch by Iwakuma (0-2) in the fifth inning. Still, the Yankees continued to struggle at the plate in clutch situations, finishing the three-game series 1 for 35 with runners in scoring position.
They managed to avoid a sweep in the Bronx thanks in large part to Tanaka (1-0), who yielded three runs — two earned — and six hits in seven efficient innings. He struck out six and walked none, improving to 4-0 in four career starts against Seattle.
TRAIL BLAZERS-CLIPPERS
Clippers down Blazers 115-95 with 3 double-doubles in Game 1
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Paul had 28 points and 11 assists as one of three Clippers with a double-double, leading Los Angeles to a 115-95 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in the opener of their first-round playoff series Sunday night.
Blake Griffin had 19 points and 12 rebounds, DeAndre Jordan added 18 points and 12 rebounds and J.J. Redick had 17 points. The Clippers are 6-0 with Griffin in the lineup since he returned from a 45-game absence two weeks ago.
Damian Lillard led the Blazers with 21 points, while backcourt mate CJ McCollum was held to nine points. They combined to average 45.9 points this season, third-highest by any duo in the NBA. Against the Clippers, they shot a combined 10 of 28.
Game 2 is Wednesday night at Staples Center.
NWSL-PRIDE-THORNS
Horan scores in Thorns’ 2-1 victory over Pride
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Lindsey Horan scored in the 82nd minute and the Portland Thorns handed the expansion Orlando Pride a 2-1 loss Sunday night in the season opener for both teams.
Steph Cately scored the first-ever goal for the Pride in the 12th minute, but Portland equalized with Dagny Brynjarsdottir’s goal in the 25th.
Horan is in her first season with the Thorns after playing with Paris Saint-Germain. The 21-year-old Colorado native made the unusual decision to skip college soccer and play professionally overseas for several years.
The match capped the opening weekend of the NWSL’s fourth season. No other women’s pro soccer league in the United States has survived longer than three seasons.
Orlando is among several NWSL teams, including the Portland, who are affiliated with Major League Soccer clubs; The Pride with Orlando City, and the Thorns with the Timbers.
Earlier in the day, Sky Blue FC defeated the Reign 2-1 in Seattle. The Reign had not lost a regular season game at Memorial Stadium, going 16-0-6 until Sunday’s season-opener.
NASCAR-BRISTOL
Carl Edwards wins Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Speedway
BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) — Carl Edwards avoided tire issues that hampered his teammates and took off on the final restart to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Starting on the pole for the second straight week, Edwards led 276 of 500 laps in Joe Gibbs Racing’s Number 19 Toyota en route to his first victory of the season and fourth on the half-mile oval. Dale Earnhardt Junior was second, followed by Kurt Busch, Chase Elliott and Trevor Bayne.
Edwards’ flawless day contrasted the right-front tire problems endured by teammates Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin after all of them started in the top five.
Busch, the defending series champion and points leader, had trouble throughout the race. He exited after his car smacked the wall on Lap 259 and sustained heavy damage, failing to finish a race for the first time since June at Michigan.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
