DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The finale of last year’s IndyCar race in Iowa showed what Ryan Hunter-Reay can do when he’s in peak form. A similar showing this weekend would help erase some of the sting of a rough season.

In 2014, Hunter-Reay blew past half the field in just 10 laps to become the only active driver with multiple wins on Iowa’s short oval. This year, the 2012 series winner heads back to Newton mired in 14th place. Hunter-Reay and the rest of the IndyCar series will run for the ninth straight year at Iowa Speedway on Saturday night.

ST. LOUIS (AP) – The St. Louis Cardinals enter the second half of the season with the best record in baseball. But their once-imposing lead in the National League Central Division has dwindled to 2 1/2 games. The Cardinals hope to have slugger Matt Holliday back from the 15-day disabled list in time for their series against the New York Mets at home beginning Friday.

The Cardinals are 56-33 despite injuries to ace Adam Wainwright, Matt Adams, Jon Jay, Jordan Walden, Marco Gonzales and Holliday, out since early June with a quadriceps injury. St. Louis still has a 2.71 ERA, best at the break in the majors since the 1981 Astros posted a 2.81 ERA, according to STATS. They landed three pitchers on the National League All-Star team.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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Sioux City, East 12, Lewis Central 1
Winterset 8, Perry 2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A person familiar with the situation tells The Associated Press that the Chiefs and All-Pro linebacker Justin Houston have agreed to a six-year, $101 million contract that includes $52.5 million in guarantees. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the deal has not been announced. The sides had until late afternoon to work out a deal, otherwise Houston would have played the upcoming season under the franchise tag.

The deal is not only the richest in franchise history but also the richest for a linebacker in NFL history. The only defensive player to sign for more is Ndamukong Suh, who reached a six-year, $114 million deal with Miami.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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Class 1-A
District 13 Quarterfinals
Guthrie Center 6, CAM 1
Van Meter 3, Adair-Casey 1
Nodaway Valley 3, Orient-Macksburg 2
Earlham 3, Iowa Christian Academy 2

District 14 Quarterfinals
Bedford 11, Stanton 1 (5 inn)
Lenox 10, East Union 0 (5 inn)
Murray 8, Lamoni 7 (8 inn)
Martensdale-St. Mary’s 5, Mount Ayr 4 (8 inn)

District 15 Quarterfinals
Nishnabotna 7, Riverside 4
Sidney 4, Fremont-Mills 2
Tri-Center 4, East Mills 2
St. Albert 13, Griswold 3 (5 inn)

District 16 Quarterfinals
West Harrison 4, Logan-Magnolia 3
Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton 15, Boyer Valley 0 (4 inn)
Glidden-Ralston 7, Ar-We-Va 6
Coon Rapids-Bayard 3, Audubon 2

Class 2A
District 15 Semifinals
Treynor 8, Clarinda 6
A-H-S-T-W 7, IKM-Manning 4

District 16 Semifinals
East Sac County 4, Underwood 0
Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto 7, Kuemper Catholic 2

Regular Season Baseball Results
Glenwood 10-17, Denison-Schleswig 6-2
Lewis Central 7, Sioux City Heelan 1
Chariton 7, Creston 4
LeMars 7, Denison-Schleswig 1

Glenwood 10, Denison-Schleswig 6
Glenwood 17, Denison-Schleswig 2

Class 4-A Regional Finals
Creston 4, A-D-M 3
Winterset 5, Norwalk 0
Fort Dodge 8, Bishop Heelan Catholic 0
Dallas Center-Grimes 1, Boone 0
Waverly-Shell Rock 1, West Delaware 0
Mount Pleasant 3, Davenport Assumption 1
Fairfield 1, North Scott 0
Pella 11, Marion 1

Class 5-A Regional Finals
Waukee 6, CB Abraham Lincoln 1
WDM Valley 10, Sioux City North 0
Johnston 5, Ankeny Centennial 1
Cedar Rapids Jefferson 3, Cedar Rapids Prairie 2
Linn-Mar 12, Davenport West 2
Bettendorf 5, Muscatine 1
Ankeny 3, Iowa City West 1
Urbandale 7, Dowling Catholic 1

State Tournament Pairings
Class 4-A (Monday, July 20)
Winterset vs. Mount Pleasant @ 11:00 am
Waverly-Shell Rock vs. Creston @ 1:00 pm
Dallas Center-Grimes vs. Fairfield @ 3:00 pm
Fort Dodge vs. Pella @ 5:00 pm

Class 5-A (Monday, July 20)
WDM Valley vs. Ankeny @ 11:30 am
Waukee vs. Urbandale @ 1:30 pm
Cedar Rapids Jefferson vs. Linn-Mar @ 3:30 pm
Johnston vs. Bettendorf @ 5:30 pm

CINCINNATI (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal sat out the All-Star Game with a sore arm. Rosenthal was among six Cardinals on the National League roster at Tuesday night’s game. The right-hander appeared in four of the Cardinals’ last five games, throwing 1 1-3 innings on Saturday. Rosenthal gave up four runs and seven hits combined in two outings at Pittsburgh going into the break.

A first-time All-Star, Rosenthal has 26 saves with a 1.49 ERA for the NL Central leaders. “I really wanted to be able to pitch in the game, but I knew going into Sunday’s game that if I pitched on Sunday, it would probably be harder to justify pitching today,” he told MLB.com Tuesday.