Cardinals looking for two in a row
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals will be trying to take command of the National League Championship Series tonight in San Francisco.
The Redbirds jumped out to a 6-0 lead in last night’s opener and held off the Giants 6-4. David Freese and Carlos Beltran hit two-run homers for the winners. Beltran’s 14th career postseason home run was his third this month.
The Giants made a game of it with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. Gregor Blanco had a two-run triple, while Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford also knocked in runs. The rally sent St. Louis starter Lance Lynn to the showers after just 3 2-3 innings.
But San Francisco only managed two hits in 5 1-3 innings against the St. Louis bullpen.
The Giants have lost all three home games so far in the post-season. They’ll send Ryan Vogelsong to the mound tonight against Chris Carpenter.
Tigers take control of ALCS
NEW YORK (AP) — Anibal Sanchez shut down a Yankees lineup minus injured Derek Jeter, and Detroit capitalized on a missed call by an umpire to beat New York 3-0 for a 2-0 lead in the AL championship series.
Yankees starter Hiroki Kuroda pitched perfect ball into the sixth inning. But the slumping New York hitters looked lost a day after Jeter broke his ankle in the 12th inning of a 6-4 loss.
Sanchez pitched three-hit ball deep into the game.
The Tigers scored twice in the eighth after second base umpire Jeff Nelson missed a call at second base. Avisail Garcia and Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera took advantage of the gift to come with insurance rbi hits.
Game 3 in the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night in Detroit, with reigning AL MVP Justin Verlander starting for the Tigers.
The Yankees offensive woes are illustrated by All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano, who has set a record by going hitless in 26 post-season at-bats. The Yankees managed just four hits.
And then there was one
UNDATED (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons are the NFL’s only undefeated team following the Texans’ 42-24 loss to Green Bay last night in Houston.
Aaron Rodgers threw for 338 yards and a franchise record-tying six touchdown passes to hand the Texans their first loss in six games this season.
Jordy Nelson had 9 receptions for 121 yards and three scores for the 3-3 Packers.
Earlier Sunday:
— Matt Bryant booted a 55-yard field goal with a second left to lift Atlanta to a 23-20 win over upset-minded Oakland. The Falcons overcame three interceptions by Matt Ryan while improving to 6-0.
— Quarterback Russell Wilson connected with Sidney Ride on a 46-yard touchdown pass with 1:18 to go to rally Seattle over Tom Brady and New England 24-23. Wilson hooked up with Braylon Edwards on a fourth down, 10-yard touchdown pass to set the stage for the game winner. The Seattle defense did its part by stopping the Patriots on fourth down to seal the win. Seattle is now 4-2 tied with the 49ers and Arizona for first in the NFC West.
— The Giants defense intercepted Alex Smith three times in a 26-3 win over San Francisco. Eli Manning threw for 193 yards and a score, while Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown. Lawrence Tynes booted four field goals for the 4-2 Giants.
— Robert Griffin III rushed for 138 yards and two touchdowns to pace Washington to a 38-26 win over Minnesota. That snapped a Redskins eight-game home losing streak. Griffin sealed the deal with a 76-yard TD scamper with 2:43 to go.
— Jason Hanson’s 45-yard field goal in overtime capped a Detroit comeback and gave the Lions a 26-23 win over Philadelphia. Matthew Stafford recovered from an ineffective start to rally the Lions from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit. He scored a touchdown and threw for one to help get into the overtime. Hanson’s 19-yard field goal at the end of the regulation deadlocked it.
— Jacoby Jones tied the NFL record with a 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to help 5-1 Baltimore hold off the Cowboys 31-29. Dallas dominated the game with 481 yards including 227 on the ground. They held the ball for more than 40 minutes. Tony Romo hit Dez Bryant on a 4-yard touchdown pass with 32 seconds left, but the two-point conversion failed.
— Shonn Greene rushed for a career-high 161 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Jets to a 35-9 rout of Indianapolis. Colts rookie quarterback Andrew Luck finished 22 of 44 for 280 yards, two interceptions and a lost fumble on a day he misfired a handful of times.
— Josh Freeman threw for a season-high 328 yards and three TDs to lead Tampa Bay to a 38-10 win over Kansas City. Ronde Barber returned an interception 78 yard for a score for the Buccaneers.
— Rookie Brandon Weeden threw two touchdown passes on his 29th birthday to help Cleveland top Cincinnati 34-24 and snap an 11-game losing streak.
— Ryan Tannehill tossed two touchdown passes to lead Miami to a 17-14 win over St. Louis. Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein was wide left on what would have been an NFL record 66-yard field goal as time expired.
— Rian Lindell’s 25-yard field goal with under four minutes to go in overtime, gave Buffalo a 19-16 win over Arizona. Jarius Byrd set up the game winner with an interception of Cardinals quarterback John Skelton that he returned to the Arizona 6.
Tide, Gators top first BCS standings
UNDATED (AP) — Alabama and Florida are at the top of the season’s first BCS standings, making it yet another all-SEC top two, with Oregon and Kansas State close behind the Gators.
The Crimson Tide in first was no surprise. Alabama is an overwhelming No. 1 in both polls used in the BCS formula. Florida in second was less anticipated. The Gators are No. 3 in the polls, but rated best by the computer rankings that gave them a slight edge over Oregon and Kansas State when the numbers were crunched. Florida’s BCS average is .9092. Oregon’s is .8993 and Kansas State’s is .8963.
Notre Dame is fifth and not too far back at .8774.
Despite the strong showing by the Southeastern Conference, another all-SEC national championship game is still a long shot. Oregon’s schedule is back loaded with strong opponents and the Ducks will likely be able to close the gap in the computers if they keep winning.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYOFFS CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Detroit 3 N-Y Yankees 0
St. Louis 6 San Francisco 4
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Cleveland 34 Cincinnati 24
Baltimore 31 Dallas 29
Detroit 26 Philadelphia 23, OT
N-Y Jets 35 Indianapolis 9
Tampa Bay 38 Kansas City 10
Atlanta 23 Oakland 20
Miami 17 St. Louis 14
Buffalo 19 Arizona 16, OT
Seattle 24 New England 23
Washington 38 Minnesota 26
N-Y Giants 26 San Francisco 3
Green Bay 42 Houston 24
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PRESEASON
L-A Clippers 99 Miami 89
San Antonio 116 Houston 107
Memphis 110 Atlanta 102