Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Yadier Molina hit a grand slam, Marcell Ozuna homered twice and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 11-8. Molina provided a cushion for St. Louis via his sixth career slam, which made it 11-5 with two outs in the ninth. The Cardinals, who occupy the second NL wild card spot, hit five homers overall as they stopped a three-game skid.

CLEVELAND (AP) — Mike Clevinger struck out 10, Francisco Lindor homered leading off the first and the Cleveland Indians rolled over the Kansas City Royals 9-3 to snap a three-game losing streak. Yandy Diaz hit his first major league homer and Jason Kipnis drove in two runs as the Indians moved closer to their third straight AL Central title. Royals starter Danny Duffy left in the first inning with a sore left shoulder and afterward said his season is over.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs have signed backup offensive lineman Cam Erving to a two-year contract extension, one year after acquiring the former first-round draft pick in a trade with Cleveland.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa is answering some questions in the early going this season. The Hawkeyes linebackers looked at times like seasoned veterans in a 33-7 win over Northern Illinois to open the season. The new cornerbacks and three inexperienced running backs also showed promise. Iowa hosts in-state rival Iowa State on Saturday.

UNDATED (AP) — Iowa State is excited about junior receiver Deshaunte Jones. He a short pass and wove through South Dakota State’s defense for a 55-yard touchdown over the weekend. The play was wiped out when the game was canceled because of bad weather. But the play was a reminder of how explosive the Jones can be. Iowa State visits in-state rival Iowa on Saturday.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs have signed backup offensive lineman Cam Erving to a two-year contract extension, one year after acquiring the former first-round draft pick in a trade with Cleveland.

The financial terms of the deal Tuesday were not disclosed. The Chiefs had declined the fifth-year option on Erving’s rookie contract earlier this year.

Erving was the 19th overall pick of the Browns out of Florida State in 2015, but he struggled to solidify a starting spot on the offensive line. He bounced around to multiple positions, starting 17 of the 30 games he appeared in, before getting dealt to Kansas City for a fifth-round draft pick.

He wound up starting four games and appearing in 13 for the Chiefs last season, and was listed as the backup at right tackle and left tackle on this season’s initial depth chart.

AVCA TOP 25 POLL

1. Minnesota (35)
2. Wisconsin (6)
3. BYU (7)
4. Stanford (8)
5. Penn State (4)
6. Texas
7. Nebrsaka (3)
8. Florida
9. UCLA
10. USC (1)
11. Illinois
12. Washington
13. Pittsburgh
14. Creighton
15. Baylor
16. Kentucky
16. San Diego
18. Oregon
19. Purdue
20. Michigan
21. Utah
22. Cal Poly
23. Washington State
24. Colorado
25. Marquette

Others RV: Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Wichita State, Michigan State

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Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bryce Harper hit a tying, two-run homer in the ninth inning, then delivered a sacrifice fly in the 10th that sent the Washington Nationals over St. Louis Cardinals 4-3. The Cardinals led 3-1 with one out in the ninth when Harper hit his 31st home run. Mark Reynolds led off the Washington 10th against Chasen Shreve with a double. Pinch-runner Michael Taylor moved to third on Adam Eaton’s bunt single and an out later, Harper flied to deep left.

WASHINGTON (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright will make his first major league appearance in nearly four months when he starts Sept. 10 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Wainwright has not pitched since May 13 because of right elbow inflammation. Manager Mike Shildt says Wainwight feels “really comfortable.” Wainwright is 1-3 with a 4.00 ERA but has made only four starts in 2018 and just one since April 17.

CLEVELAND (AP) — Francisco Lindor believes the Cleveland Indians need a spark. Lindor homered in the ninth inning of Cleveland’s 5-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals, then said the Indians’ “energy is down” and that “guys are dragging their feet a little.” Cleveland has lost three straight but still leads the AL Central by 14 games. Lindor added he thinks “we’ll be fine.”

UNDATED (AP) — Iowa State’s canceled opener on Saturday was its first in 55 years. For coach Matt Campbell, it was the second time in four seasons that his first game was called off. Campbell’s opener was wiped out at halftime against Stony Brook in 2015, his last season at Toledo. It didn’t hurt the Rockets, who upset a ranked Arkansas on the road the following week, and Campbell is hoping it won’t hurt Iowa State for Saturday’s game at Iowa.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska coach Scott Frost says the game against Colorado has become more challenging team because of the weather-related cancellation of the opener against Akron. The Buffaloes beat Colorado State handily in their first game. Frost says teams typically make their biggest improvement between the first and second games. He said the Huskers will need to turn in excellent practices to be ready for the game against their former conference rival.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs kept 10 offensive linemen on their 53-man roster, and just two quarterbacks and two tight ends. It’s an odd roster construction for an Andy Reid-coached team, but one that was necessary for Kansas City to keep a bunch of promising prospects. Now, the big question is whether all that youth will pay off when the season begins on Sunday.

Bryce Harper hit a tying, two-run homer in the ninth inning, then delivered a sacrifice fly in the 10th that sent the Washington Nationals over St. Louis Cardinals 4-3. The Cardinals led 3-1 with one out in the ninth when Harper hit his 31st home run.