TWO SCRAPPERS DRAFTED

NILES – Two Mahoning Valley Scrappers players were selected in the 10th round of the MLB Draft on Sunday afternoon.

Nick Williams, an outfielder, was taken by the Washington Nationals with the 286th pick in the 10th round. He is batting .293 with 13 RBIs in 23 games for the Scrappers.

Carlos Sanchez, a catcher and utility player, was taken by the Baltimore Orioles with the 290th pick. He has a .308 batting average with 23 RBIs in 24 games with the Scrappers. has 28 hits, 23 RBI’s, 4 home runs, and a .308 batting average in 24 games.

MORE YANKEES LORE

WASHINGTON (AP) — Not since 1910 — before Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Reggie Jackson and so on — had the New York Yankees swept a series quite like this.

Ben Rice’s two-run triple in the eighth inning Sunday helped the Yankees to a 5-3 victory over the Washington Nationals. New York trailed in the ninth Friday and in the eighth Saturday and Sunday but still won all three games.

It’s the first time the Yankees swept a series of at least three games while trailing in the eighth inning or later in each of them since May 19-21, 1910, according to Sportradar. Back then it was the New York Highlanders taking three straight from the Cleveland Naps.

The previous time any team accomplished the feat was June 13-15, 2014, when Colorado won three in a row at San Francisco.

“Winning at-bats in different ways in all three games,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “A good job by the pitching staff of holding a really good offense enough in check, and giving us a chance to win each game, and the guys just did some really good things late in games.”

SINNER A WINNER

LONDON (AP) — A year ago, it was a matter of bouncing back after wasting three match points in a devastating loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the French Open final and showing that he could still win a Grand Slam after a three-month doping ban.

This year it was about demonstrating that he still has the physical toughness to win a major after a debilitating second-round meltdown at Roland Garros in a Paris heat wave

Whatever gets thrown Jannik Sinner’s way in the French capital — it seems lately — only makes him stronger across the Channel in London.

For the second straight year, Sinner responded to adversity in Paris with a title at Wimbledon.

The top-ranked Sinner beat Alexander Zverev 6-7 (7), 7-6 (2), 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday for his second consecutive title at the All England Club after his German opponent appeared bothered by a knee issue following a slip to the grass on a key point in the third set.

When Sinner ripped a forehand winner up the line on his first match point, the Italian dropped to the grass on his back in an unusually dramatic celebration for the normally low-key Italian.

“This one means a lot because (it) was a tough one after Paris again,” Sinner said. “I’m proud of myself and my team, which continues to push me in the right direction.”

IN McGREGOR’S DEFENSE

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Conor McGregor’s manager said in a social media post Sunday that fighter did not have a previous knee injury prior to his shortened UFC 329 fight with Max Holloway.

McGregor’s first fight in five years lasted just 1:09 due to a knee injury sustained while attempting an opening roundhouse kick.

“That opening jump switch kick was drilled daily for months, multiple times in warmup. Never an issue,” John Kavanagh wrote on Facebook. “Knee went when he (threw) the very first kick. Doesn’t get any worse than this.”

McGregor’s highly-anticipated return to the octagon ended in disappointment when he awkwardly landed on his right knee in the opening seconds of Saturday’s fight. McGregor tried to continue, but went to the mat twice more before the scheduled five-round match was halted by the referee.

McGregor and UFC President Dana White both said after the fight there was no pre-existing injury to the knee.

RACE DELAYED

HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Pole winner Ryan Blaney held the lead when severe weather caused a delay in the NASCAR Cup Series race at EchoPark Speedway on Sunday night.

There had been concern about approaching rain before lighting within eight miles of the 1.54-mile oval track near Atlanta led NASCAR officials to order cars off the track at 8:25 p.m.

The race was halted at lap 108 in Stage 2. The race is scheduled for 260 laps and 130 laps must be completed for the race to be official.

WINNING FAMILY

USSEL, France (AP) — Mathieu van der Poel timed his attack perfectly to win the hilly ninth stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish, while defending champion Tadej Pogacar kept the race leader’s yellow jersey on Sunday.

Van der Poel was in a group of four contesting the victory. He accelerated with about 200 meters to go, then held off Norwegian rider Tobias Johannessen and Britain’s Tom Pidcock before spreading his arms as he crossed the line. All three were timed at 3 hours, 27 minutes, 51 seconds.

“It was a really hard stage after a hard week for the team,” said Van der Poel, who rides for Alpecin-Premier Tech.

It was a third career Tour stage win for the 31-year-old Dutchman, whose vast pedigree includes multiple victories in one day classics and Cyclo-cross world championship titles. He is also a former world road race champion, and cycling runs through his veins.

His maternal grandfather was French cyclist Raymond Poulidor, who raced in the 1960s and ’70s, finishing second on the Tour three times and third five times. Nicknamed “Poupou” and “The Eternal Runner-up” he was adored by French fans.

Van der Poel was asked if he had thought about Poulidor, who died in 2019, during the stage.

“Always,” he said, “every day on the Tour is special.”