Keuchel on DL again
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Astros ace Dallas Keuchel went back on the disabled list, retroactive to Monday, with neck discomfort and returned to Houston to be examined Thursday. Keuchel was scratched from Wednesday’s start against the Kansas City Royals with what the Astros initially said was an illness. He is 9-0 with a 1.67 ERA in 11 starts for the Astros, who have the best record in the major leagues. The 2015 NL Cy Young Award winner is holding batters to a .183 average. “He’s going on the DL for a minimum of 10 days,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “That brings concern in its own right. Being symptomatic with the same injury from earlier in the year is concerning, but until we see him and talk with him, and get another report from the doctor, we just won’t know.” Keuchel was on the DL from May 15 to May 26 with a pinched nerve in his neck.
FOOTBALL
› METAIRIE, La. — New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Nick Fairley is seeing multiple heart specialists after one physician advised him to stop playing, coach Sean Payton
said Thursday. “Obviously, there’s concern,” Payton said. “But there isn’t a final answer.” Payton said he hopes Fairley, who has been absent during recent voluntary offseason practices, can return. But the coach said the 29-yearold lineman also should be certain that continuing to play won’t worsen a heart condition he has played with throughout his six-year NFL career. The former Auburn star, a 2011 first-round draft choice by Detroit, was credited with 6 1/2 sacks, nine tackles for losses and 22 quarterback hits for the Saints in 2016. He signed a four-year extension worth up to $28 million this offseason.
› FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Authorities said the body of former NFL wide receiver James Hardy
was found in the Maumee River on Wednesday. Hardy was 31. The Allen County Coroner’s Office said his body was identified Thursday but that the cause and manner of death are still being investigated; he was reported missing a few weeks ago by relatives. The former Indiana University star was drafted in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft by Buffalo. A series of injuries limited him to 16 games over two seasons with the Bills, but he also played for Baltimore before being released in 2011.
BASKETBALL
› CLEVELAND — Game 3 of the NBA Finals drew 20.5 million viewers on ABC, an increase of 22 percent from last season. Golden State’s 118-113 victory over Cleveland was the closest game of the series and the mostwatched Game 3 ever on ABC, according to Nielsen numbers announced Thursday. The overall ratings for the championship series — the first one with the same two teams meeting three straight years — are the highest since 1998, when Michael Jordan won his last championship. The average number of viewers per game has been 20 million, up 11 percent from 2016.