Padres' Jackson Merrill placed on 7-day injured list
PHOENIX (AP) — The San Diego Padres have placed All-Star outfielder Jackson Merrill on the seven-day injured list on Sunday, a day after he suffered a concussion during Saturday night's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Merrill was injured in the seventh inning when he attempted a stolen base, but was tagged out by Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte. The tag came on Merrill's helmet as he slid head first and he was down for several minutes before walking off the field. He was replaced in the field by Brandon Lockridge.
Merrill, 22, is batting .304 with five homers. He finished second in voting for the National League Rookie of the Year and ninth for NL MVP last year after hitting 24 homers, driving in 90 runs and posting a .292 batting average.
Trenton Brooks was called up from Triple-A El Paso to replace Merrill on the Padres' roster. Brooks, 29, was batting .311 with 14 homers and 54 RBIs at El Paso. The first baseman hit .120 in 25 at-bats for the San Francisco Giants last year.
Winnipeg Jets Game Days
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Scottie Scheffler hovered at the US Open. Jon Rahm surged. It just wasn't enough for either
OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm fought to find their form at the U.S. Open. Neither managed to do so long enough to surge into contention on the weekend. Neither, however, is complaining after taking different paths to a tie for seventh behind winner J.J. Spaun. The top-ranked Scheffler made 'silly mistakes' over the first two rounds but posted even-par 70s on both Saturday and Sunday. If not for another roll or two on a couple of putts or a poor tee shot on 18 Sunday that led to a closing bogey, Scheffler believes he might have inched a bit higher up the leaderboard. 'If I had four days like I did today, I think it would have been a different story,' Scheffler said. 'I was playing kind of behind the 8-ball most of the week (by) hitting the ball in the rough. Overall, proud of how I battled, gave myself a chance, but ultimately didn't have enough.' There is little Scheffler hasn't accomplished during his three-year run atop the sport. Figuring the U.S. Open out is one of them. He hasn't broken par in each of his last nine rounds at the national championship, dating back to the final round at Los Angeles Country Club in 2023. Rahm, who was near the top of the leaderboard on Thursday after opening with a 1-under 69 before following it up by going a combined 8-over on Friday and Saturday, closed with three straight birdies to close the final round. His 3-under 67 tied with Rory McIlroy for the best round of the day. The 2021 U.S. Open champion also had the luxury of finishing before rain stopped play for more than 90 minutes. Rahm's 4-over total held up for quite a while. How long? He was still hanging around outside the locker room with his golf bag when Spaun finally seized the tournament some five-plus hours after Rahm had walked off 18. 'It's crazy because it doesn't feel like I played that different (than) every other round,' Rahm said. Y es, a 301-yard par 3 Rahm had a great strategy for playing the longest par 3 in major championship history. 'You most likely take a head cover off one of your clubs and hope it goes straight,' he said. Indeed, there was nothing to be ashamed of using a wood to conquer the 301-yard eighth hole at Oakmont — a monster of a hole on a monster of a course. The USGA set the distance at exactly 301 yards for Sunday's final round; that was one yard longer than the previous record of 300, also set by No. 8 at the 2007 Open won by Angel Cabrera. It has been hard to find many fans of the uber-long par 3s. Even Jack Nicklaus, who won at Oakmont in 1962, before No. 8 turned into quite the monster it is today, said tongue-in-cheek, 'I haven't played it since they lengthened it to be a short par 5.' Whatever Rahm did was working. He played No. 8 at even par over the four days; that included a birdie Saturday. With about half the field through No. 8 on Sunday, the hole was the third hardest of the tournament, playing nearly a half stroke above par. Punching their tickets Cameron Young had to birdie his last two holes and win a playoff in qualifying just to reach this U.S. Open. That won't be necessary next year after Young finished tied for fourth at 3 over, assuring him of a spot in the field next June at Shinnecock. Everyone inside the top 10 automatically earned a return trip next year, a group that included Carlos Ortiz. Ortiz also tied for fourth, earning him a Masters spot next April. As a member of LIV Golf, Ortiz would be unlikely to make it to Augusta any other way. 'A really great week,' Ortiz said. 'Obviously, when you have a chance, you really want to take advantage of it. I feel like I played good enough. I just made a few mistakes that cost me. Overall pretty proud.' Hasting's game Justin Hastings made a bit of history by capturing low amateur honors. The 21-year-old became the first player from the Cayman Islands — a self-governing British Overseas Territory located in the Caribbean about 275 miles south of Havana, Cuba — to take home one of the biggest prizes in amateur golf. Hastings, who earned his way into the tournament by winning the Latin American Amateur Championship in Argentina in January, was the only amateur to reach the weekend and finished his four days at Oakmont with a total of 15-over 295. Heady territory for a player whose home country has all of 27 holes of golf. It also served as another confidence boost two months after he fired a respectable even-par 72 during the second round at the Masters, where he missed the cut by just two shots. 'I think (it) just reaffirmed that, when I have my golf game, I can kind of compete out here,' he said. Hastings had planned to turn pro after finishing up his senior year at San Diego State this spring. His Latin Am victory changed those plans. Next up, is a trip to Royal Portrush next month to play in the British Open, he's also locked into a spot in the U.S. Amateur if he wants. 'Obviously, the easy answer is we want to get on the PGA Tour as soon as possible,' he said. 'My coaches like to say that good golf takes care of all that, so we're going to focus on playing as well as we can, and when we get opportunities the next few months, hopefully we can take advantage of it.' Schauffele ties Snead Xander Schauffele tied for 12th at 6 over, giving him a ninth straight U.S. Open finish inside the top 15, matching Sam Snead's run from 1947-55. The only players with longer streaks of coming in 15th or higher since 1920 are Jack Nicklaus (12 straight), Ben Hogan (12) and Bobby Jones (11). Schauffele needed a final-round 69 to pull into a tie with Brooks Koepka and Chris Kirk. Playing to the crowd Philp Barbaree finished his second U.S. Open start with a fashionable flourish. The 26-year-old, the 2015 U.S. Junior Amateur champion whose wife Chloe doubles as his caddie, made the cut on the number early Saturday morning. While Oakmont pushed him around over the weekend, it hardly seemed to get to him. Barbaree traded the pink pullover he wore for most of his final round for a Pittsburgh Pirates jersey with the No. 25 and his last name on it on the 18th green, and the gallery roared when he tapped in for par to finish up a 12-over 82. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. While Barbaree doesn't have any ties to Pittsburgh, another LSU alum does: Pirates ace and LSU graduate Paul Skenes. ___ AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson, AP National Writer Eddie Pells and AP Sports Writer Noah Trister contributed to this report. ___ AP golf:
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Dodgers beat Giants 5-4: Pages' three-run homer, Ohtani's three hits lead the way
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Andy Pages hit a game-turning three-run home run in the fifth inning, Shohei Ohtani had three hits and scored two runs, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 5-4 on Sunday night. The Dodgers trailed 3-2 when Ohtani and Mookie Betts singled to open the fifth. Freddie Freeman grounded out and Teoscar Hernández struck out, before Pages drove a slider from Giants reliever Ryan Walker into the left-center field pavilion for his 13th homer and a 5-3 lead. Pages also had a sacrifice fly in the first, and Tommy Edman hit a solo homer in the second to help the Dodgers push their National League West lead to two games over San Francisco. Dodgers right-hander Dustin May (4-4) overcame control problems to complete six innings in which he gave up three runs and six hits, walked four, hit two batters and struck out three. Tanner Scott struck out the side in the ninth for his 13th save. Giants right-hander Sean Hjelle replaced scheduled starter Kyle Harrison, who was traded to Boston in the blockbuster deal for Rafael Devers about 20 minutes before first pitch, and allowed two runs and three hits in 3 2/3 innings. Reliever Joey Lucchesi (0-1), who replaced Harrison on the roster, took the loss. Jung Hoo Lee capped a three-run fourth inning for the Giants with a two-run triple. Daniel Johnson pinch-hit a solo homer off Dodgers reliever Kirby Yates in the eighth. PHILLIES 11, BLUE JAYS 4 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Nick Castellanos hit a grand slam, Zack Wheeler pitched six strong innings and Philadelphia completed a three-game sweep of Toronto with a victory. Alec Bohm also went deep and Otto Kemp had four hits and two RBIs for Philadelphia, which has won five of six. Ernie Clement had three hits and Will Robertson, making his major league debut, had one of three RBIs for Toronto. Wheeler (7-2) allowed one earned run on four hits while striking out nine and walking none. Philadelphia's ace right-hander fanned the side in both the second and third innings. The Phillies gave Wheeler early support, with Trea Turner leading off with a double on the game's first pitch and scoring on the game's second pitch when Kyle Schwarber singled off José Berríos (2-3). Philadelphia tagged Toronto's right-hander for six runs on nine hits in 4 2/3 innings. Berríos had surrendered just one earned run over 18 2/3 innings in his last three starts. Castellanos broke the game open in the sixth by belting an 85-mph slider over the wall in left, giving the Phillies a 10-2 cushion with his seventh homer of the season. REDS 8, TIGERS 4 DETROIT (AP) — Elly De La Cruz homered, scored three times and drove in three runs as Cincinnati rallied to beat Detroit. De La Cruz singled and scored in the fourth, had an RBI single before scoring in a four-run eighth and hit a two-run homer in the ninth. He has homered in a career-best four straight games. Three Tigers' errors led to five unearned runs. With the Tigers leading 4-2, TJ Friedl led off the eighth with a grounder to the mound, but Brant Hurter misplayed it into a two-base error. Tigers closer Will Vest (5-1) came in, but Matt McLain singled, putting runners on the corners, and De La Cruz followed with an RBI single. A failed double-play attempt left the bases loaded, and Will Benson tied the game with a sacrifice fly. Gavin Lux followed with an RBI single and the fourth run scored on a wild pitch. Vest left the game after the play with a possible injury. The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the third on Jahmai Jones' home run, but the Reds scored twice in the fourth. De La Cruz led off with a single and took second on a throwing error by Sawyer Gipson-Long. He scored on a single by Tyler Stephenson, and an error by Javier Báez led to a sacrifice fly by Connor Joe. ORIOLES 11, ANGELS 2 BALTIMORE (AP) — Gary Sánchez hit a seventh-inning grand slam, Ramón Urías and Jordan Westburg also homered, and Baltimore completed a three-game sweep with a victory over Los Angeles. Cade Povich earned his first victory since April 24 as Baltimore secured its third sweep of the season, all in its last five series. The Orioles (30-40) are within 10 games of .500 for the first time since they were 15-25. Nolan Schanuel homered for Los Angeles. Baltimore took a 3-2 lead against left-hander Yusei Kikuchi (2-6) on Ramón Laureano's RBI single in the fourth, and then chased Kikuchi in the sixth. Sánchez hit a two-out single and then came around when Kikuchi flung Cedric Mullins' bunt single down the right-field line. Coby Mayo followed with an RBI double. Sánchez broke the game open with his sixth career grand slam and first since Aug. 15, 2023. The catcher ripped Connor Brogdon's two-out fastball to left-center for Baltimore's third grand slam of the season and first since May 14. Povich (2-5) came out of the bullpen for the first time in 29 career outings. He threw 3 2/3 shutout innings after replacing opener Scott Blewett. Schanuel hit a solo homer in the first for Los Angeles, and Urías responded with a two-run shot later in the inning. Westburg hit a two-run homer in the eighth. Kikuchi allowed a season-high five runs — three earned — and struck out 10 in 5 2/3 innings. RED SOX 2, YANKEES 0 BOSTON (AP) — Brayan Bello struck out eight over seven innings, Rafael Devers homered and Boston beat New York for a three-game sweep that extended their winning streak to five. Trevor Story added an RBI single for the Red Sox, who have won five straight over the Yankees since losing their first meeting this year. Boston's winning streak matched its season high. AL East-leading New York went 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position and was swept in a series for the first time this year, getting shut out for the third time. The Yankees' four runs matched their fewest in a three-game series at Fenway Park, from June 20-22, 1916, and from Sept. 28-30, 1922. Yankees slugger Aaron Judge went 1 for 12 in the series with a solo homer and nine strikeouts, dropping his major league-leading average to .378. He has struck out three or more times in three straight games for the third time in his big league career. Bello (3-1) gave up three hits, walked three and tossed a career-high 114 pitches. Garrett Whitlock escaped an eighth-inning jam and got the five outs for his first save. Devers homered just over the top edge of the Green Monster, making it 2-0 in the fifth against Max Fried (9-2). Devers has 31 homers against the Yankees since 2017, the most of any batter in that span. Story's single came after Romy Gonzalez tripled and did a face-plant on his head-first slide into third. Fried, who entered 7-0 with an 0.83 ERA in eight starts after a Yankees' loss, struck out nine over seven innings, allowing two runs and six hits. ROCKIES 10, BRAVES 1 ATLANTA (AP) — Ryan McMahon hit a go-ahead home run in the seventh and Colorado overcame Grant Holmes' 15-strikeout performance to beat Atlanta and avoid a series sweep. The Rockies have lost 22 of 23 series this season. They swept Miami on the road from June 2-4 for their only series win so far this season. Colorado right-hander Austin Gomber allowed two hits and no runs in five innings in his season debut. The Braves trailed 1-0 despite Holmes not allowing a hit or a walk through five innings. Holmes mishandled a grounder by Ryan Ritter in the third and made an wild throw to first base for another error, allowing Ritter to advance to third base. Braxton Fulford's sacrifice fly to left field drove in Ritter. Fulford's single up the middle with one out in the sixth was Colorado's first hit. Fulford added a three-run triple off Aaron Bummer in the eighth. Gomber came off the injured list. He had been out since March 27 with a sore left shoulder. Jake Bird (2-1) allowed one run in the sixth. MARLINS 3, NATIONALS 1 WASHINGTON (AP) — Eric Wagaman had two RBIs, Dane Meyers hit a solo home run and Miami beat Washington to sweep a three-game series. Nick Fortes had three hits, including a double, and scored a run for the Marlins. Myers led off the second with a home run off starter MacKenzie Gore (3-6) that gave the Marlins a 2-1 lead and Wagaman added a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the seventh to make it 3-1. Wagaman's sacrifice fly in the first inning drove in Agustín Ramírez. Alex Call scored on a groundout by Luis García Jr. to make it 1-1 going into the second. Freddy Tarnok got Keibert Ruiz to ground out in the bottom of the ninth. José Tena was then hit by a pitch before Call — the potential tying run — grounded into a double play to end the game. Tarnok earned his first save of the season. BREWERS 3, CARDINALS 2 MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich homered and Trevor Megill escaped a jam in the ninth inning, sending Milwaukee to a victory over St. Louis Cardinals in the finale of a four-game series. Drew Avans and Sal Frelick each drove in a run for Milwaukee, which won for the fourth time in six games. Yelich had three hits, and Caleb Durbin went 2 for 3. Iván Herrera hit his eighth homer for St. Louis with two out in the eighth inning. Willson Contreras also drove in a run. The Cardinals wasted a prime scoring opportunity against Megill in the ninth. Nolan Arenado hit a leadoff single on the 12th pitch of his at-bat, and Nolan Gorman followed with a bunt single. The runners advanced on a one-out wild pitch, but Megill fanned Victor Scott II and Masyn Winn for his 15th save in 17 opportunities. RAYS 9, METS 0 NEW YORK (AP) — Shane Baz combined with three relievers on a five-hitter, and Tampa Bay beat New York to complete the first three-game series sweep of the Mets this season. Baz (6-3) allowed three hits and four walks in 6 2/3 innings while striking out six and throwing a career-high 106 pitches. He held the Mets hitless in 12 plate appearances with runners on base. Jonathan Aranda's two-run double in the fifth off Max Kranick blew open the game for the Rays, who outscored the Mets 24-9 in the series. New York pitchers walked a season-high nine as the Mets were dealt their most lopsided loss this season and were swept in a series for the first time since last Aug. 9-11 at Seattle. The Rays had 28 hits and 15 walks in the series, and they were retired in order just four times. Kameron Misner, Danny Jansen and Jake Mangum had an RBI apiece before Junior Caminero hit a three-run homer in the ninth against Ryne Stanek. Griffin Canning (6-3) allowed six runs, four hits and a season-high five walks over 4 1/3 innings. Canning has a 6.75 ERA in his last five starts after posting a 2.47 ERA in his first nine starts. CUBS 3, PIRATES 2, 10 INNINGS CHICAGO (AP) — Ian Happ hit a game-ending single in the 10th inning, and the Chicago Cubs edged Pittsburgh. The Cubs used a double steal to put runners on second and third in the 10th against David Bednar (1-5). Jon Berti struck out swinging for the first out, but Happ followed with a liner to right, delighting the crowd of 40,162 at Wrigley Field. The NL Central leaders won three of four against the last-place Pirates. Every game was a one-run contest. Dansby Swanson and Michael Busch each had two hits for Chicago. Swanson and Seiya Suzuki each drove in a run. Chris Flexen (4-0) pitched a 1-2-3 10th for the win, completing a four-hitter. Spencer Horwitz had two hits and drove in a run for the Pirates. Alexander Canario had a run-scoring groundout. ATHLETICS 3, ROYALS 2 KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Nick Kurtz hit a solo ninth-inning homer to rally the Athletics to a win and three-game sweep of Kansas City. Kurtz hit Carlos Estévez's (2-2) fastball 411 feet to right-center for his sixth home run. It gave the Athletics their first sweep at Kauffman Stadium since September 2016. T.J. Ferguson (2-2) retired all four batters he faced, striking out two to earn the win and Mason Miller struck out two for his 14th save. The Royals matched their longest losing streak of the season while dropping all six games of their homestand. Kansas City has lost six straight home series. Austin Wynns hit a two-run homer to left-center off reliever John Schreiber, tying the game 2-2 in the sixth. It was Wynns' fifth home run and second in five games since his acquisition from the Cincinnati Reds. Royals starter Noah Cameron struck out seven in five scoreless innings. After Kyle Isbel doubled off first baseman Kurtz's glove to open the third, Bobby Witt Jr. snapped an 0-for-16 slump with an RBI double and moved to third on Jeffrey Springs' balk before scoring on Vinnie Pasquantino's single for a 2-0 lead. ASTROS 2, TWINS 1 HOUSTON (AP) — Victor Caratini tied it with a sacrifice fly in the ninth and Mauricio Dubón hit a walk-off single in the 10th on Sunday to help Houston beat Minnesota Twins to sweep the three-game series. Jake Meyers started at second base in the 10th and scored on Dubón's two-out single to left field. Astros starter Brandon Walter gave up a run on six hits with nine strikeouts across 6 2/3 innings. Shawn Dubin, Bennett Sousa and Josh Hader (4-0) combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. Walter has allowed three earned runs across 17 2/3 innings in three starts this season. Minnesota's Brooks Lee led off the third inning with a home run. Jose Altuve was hit by a pitch to lead off the seventh but Caratini grounded into a 4-6-3 double play before Meyers grounded out. Cole Sands (3-3) took the loss. RANGERS 2, WHITE SOX 1 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rookie right-hander Kumar Rocker pitched five scoreless innings with help from some pickle juice, Ezequiel Duran put Texas in front for good with an RBI double and the Rangers finished a sweep of the Chicago White Sox. Rocker (2-4) twice got visits from the trainer with apparent cramping in his legs in the fifth, and quickly chugged three bottles of pickle juice along the way, while getting through the inning. The 25-year-old allowed four hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Aaron Civale (1-3) allowed two runs after walking four of the first seven hitters he faced in his debut for the White Sox, two days after getting traded by Milwaukee. The right-hander said he wanted to remain a starter, with the Brewers or another team, after getting sent to the bullpen. Marcus Semien's sacrifice fly put Texas ahead 2-0 in the fifth after Duran's run-scoring hit in the second. Miguel Vargas hit his team-leading 10th homer for the White Sox, who have lost 10 in a row at Texas. Luke Jackson pitched a perfect ninth for his ninth save — and first since April 25 — in 11 chances. MARINERS 6, GUARDIANS 0 SEATTLE (AP) — J.P. Crawford hit a grand slam, Emerson Hancock tossed seven scoreless innings and Seattle beat Cleveland to complete a sweep. After an RBI single by Miles Mastrobuoni with one out in the second inning gave the Mariners an early advantage, Crawford opened up the floodgates while the bases were still loaded. He turned on a hanging slider from Luis Ortiz (3-8) and cranked a home run to right field for the fourth grand slam of his major league career. Mastrobuoni's RBI single alone would have been sufficient, though, for Hancock (3-2). The young right-hander turned in easily the best start of his major league career, yielding only two hits — both of them singles — while walking one batter and striking out four. Hancock was extremely efficient, needing only 85 pitches to make it through seven innings. Relievers Casey Legumina and Eduard Bazardo then followed Hancock to complete the combined shutout, which was just the Mariners' second of the season. They also blanked the Miami Marlins on April 26. PADRES 8, DIAMONDBACKS 2 PHOENIX (AP) — Nick Pivetta held Arizona to two hits over seven innings and Jake Cronenworth homered as San Diego won to snap a three-game losing streak. Fernando Tatis Jr. had four hits, scored three runs and stole a base for San Diego, which bounced back from Saturday's 8-7 loss in which Arizona scored five runs in the ninth. Pivetta (7-2) retired the first 12 Arizona batters before walking Josh Naylor on a full count to open the fifth. Eugenio Suárez followed with a 437-foot homer, his team-leading 21st, for the Diamondbacks' first hit. Pivetta struck out nine. After Xander Bogaerts' RBI double gave the Padres a 1-0 lead against Merrill Kelly, Cronenworth homered to right on the 10th pitch of the at-bat. Kelly (6-3) gave up seven hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out seven. The Diamondbacks saw their five-game winning streak end and they finished their homestand 5-1 ahead of a nine-game road trip. Anthony DeSclafani, signed by the Diamondbacks before the game, pitched in the majors for the first time since July 23, 2023, when he was with the Giants. He finished the game, giving up two runs in 2 1/3 innings including Elias Díaz's fourth homer leading off the ninth.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Hatton, Ortiz and Hovland had a shot at the US Open. Then Oakmont happened
OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — Tyrrell Hatton, in the mix in the final round of a major for the first time in the late Sunday gloom at the U.S. Open, watched his tee shot on the 17th hole drift to the right and exhaled. If there was a place to 'miss,' Hatton knew it was to the right of the green on the uphill, 314-yard par 4. And he was right. At just about every place but Oakmont. When Hatton reached the top of the hill, the fiery Englishman whose emotions are never too far from his sleeve discovered his ball had settled into the course's signature knotty rough on a downslope above a greenside bunker. Just about anywhere else, the shot rolls into the sand below, and he splashes out with a chance to maybe even take the lead. Only there isn't anywhere else like the iconic links-style course carved out of the Western Pennsylvania hills. Hatton's pitch from an impossible downhill lie didn't reach the green, and he slammed his club into the ground in protest. A chip and two putts later, he was two back. When his tee shot on the par-4 18th sailed into the rough again, it was over. 'What happened on 17 is going to hurt a lot for a long time,' Hatton said after tying for fourth at 3-over 283, four back of winner J.J. Spaun. 'It was the first time I've been in contention in a major, and that was exciting, and unfortunately, I feel like through a bit of bad luck I had momentum taken away from me and ultimately ended up not being my day.' Asked about what exactly constituted the 'bad luck,' Hatton bristled but only briefly. He'd made his frustration about a course design that includes having most of its 160-plus bunkers well-guarded by an already penal rough well known on Saturday, when he was forced to take an awkward stance to hack out of a sand trap alongside the 15th green on Saturday, leading to a bogey. What happened in the waning minutes of a rain-delayed and chaos-filled final 18 holes of the championship was just more of the same. 'I've missed it in the right spot and got punished, which ultimately I don't think ends up being fair,' Hatton said. That's Oakmont. Besides, Hatton was hardly the only one who found himself creeping up the leaderboard as the frontrunners faltered, only to ultimately succumb themselves. Carlos Ortiz, a member of LIV Golf like Hatton, was part of a five-way tie for the lead on the back nine. Ortiz's tee shot on the 503-yard par-4 15th sailed left, forcing him to punch out to the fairway. A wedge from 134 yards landed 40 feet short of the cup. Three putts later, he was on his way to a 3-over 73 finish and a tie for fourth. 'It was a great week, but obviously I'm disappointed right now the way it happened,' said Ortiz, who became the first Mexican player since 1972 to place inside the top 10. 'I did everything I can.' Viktor Hovland, who was out on the practice range nearly until dusk on Saturday night trying to find something — anything really — to build on, began the day two shots off the lead but never managed to get to pull even with the scrum in front of him. The Norwegian, who was grouped with Spaun, 'saw a lot of stuff' as the leaderboard continued to shuffle and re-shuffle over the final 90 minutes. Keeping track was difficult, particularly with the electronic boards having 'dangerous weather' alerts splashed across them. Ultimately, Hovland couldn't find the rhythm necessary. Instead, it was Spaun who delivered with a pair of birdies, including a 64-footer on the 18th that immediately etched itself into U.S. Open lore. In a way, the ending helped. Spaun went out and took a tournament up for grabs and grabbed it. Hovland, who called the last of Spaun's 279 strokes 'absolutely filthy,' had to settle for third, his fourth finish inside the top three at a major. All without being the one standing on the green afterward with the trophy in hand. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Yet he tried to remain upbeat. He believes he's trending back to where he was in 2023, when he finished tied for seventh at the Masters and then tied for second at the PGA a month later. He's already won this year, though he complained about his form afterward. There was none of that on Sunday. Oakmont is hard enough as it is. No need to pile on. 'I've been tearing myself down a little too much,' Hovland said. 'Even though I do know I need to work on some stuff and get back to where I used to be in a way mechanically, but in the interim, I can still perform at a really high level, and there's a lot of good stuff.' ___ AP golf:
