Midwest Sports Headlines: 9/19/19
September 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson
Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Mark Canha hit an RBI double with two outs in the 11th inning and the Oakland Athletics edged the Kansas City Royals 1-0 to hold their lead atop the AL wild-card race. The Athletics, who have won seven of eight, began the day two games ahead of Tampa Bay for the top wild-card spot. Cleveland was a half-game behind the Rays. Starters Homer Bailey of the A’s and Danny Duffy of the Royals each pitched seven sharp innings.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Pro Bowl left tackle Eric Fisher is headed to Philadelphia to have surgery on his injured groin, leaving the Kansas City Chiefs without their blindside protector for Patrick Mahomes for the foreseeable future. Fisher hurt his groin in practice Friday but tried to play Sunday in Oakland. He only lasted a few plays before Cam Erving replaced him, and Fisher underwent additional testing when he returned to Kansas City.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright put on another sharp performance while outpitching Max Scherzer, right fielder Dexter Fowler made a sensational catch and the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 5-1. Wainwright has won all four of his starts this month, allowing just one earned run in 27 innings. Trailing by four, the Nationals put two on in the eighth. Asdrúbal Cabrera hit a drive that had the distance to leave the park, but Fowler reached far over the wall to make the grab.
UNDATED (AP) — St. Louis had better dig in for its repeat bid. The defending Stanley Cup champion Blues will have their hands full in the Western Conference, which seems to have a slew of contenders. Dallas, Vegas, Calgary, Colorado, San Jose and Winnipeg all go into the season with a shot to knock off St. Louis. It’s not wise to count Nashville out in the race, especially with the addition of center Matt Duchene.
UNDATED (AP) — No. 11 Michigan at No. 13 Wisconsin are coming off open dates heading into a matchup that should provide some clarity about how good they really are. Michigan’s new spread offense has been unable to gain traction because of turnovers and penalties. The Badgers have outscored two overmatched opponents 111-0. Nebraska’s defense will be tested by Illinois running back Reggie Corbin. Northwestern is an underdog at home against a Michigan State still smarting from its quirky loss to Arizona State.