SPORTS DIGEST
BASEBALL
The Los Angeles Dodgers extended their lead at the top the National League West with another win. The Dodgers racked up their 89th victory of the season as they beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-5 to move a mammoth 21 games clear, with the Arizona Diamondbacks now their nearest pursuers after beating the New York Mets 7-4 while the Colorado Rockies were beaten 3-2 by the Kansas City Royals. Chris Taylor did the damage for the Dodgers, driving in three runs, with Yasmani Grandal scoring a two-run homer. Gary Sanchez clubbed a massive homer measuring almost 500 feet as the New York Yankees tamed the Detroit Tigers 13-4. Sanchez cleared the fence with his huge hit in the first inning and then repeated the trick in the ninth. The Chicago Cubs left it late to beat the Cincinnati Reds 13-9 as they scored 10 of their runs in the last four innings while Eduardo Nunez’s five RBIS helped the Boston Red Sox to a 9-1 thumping of the Cleveland Indians. The San Diego Padres beat the St Louis Cardinals 12-4, and the Washington Nationals edged out the Houston Astros 4-3, while the Miami Marlins’ six-run seventh inning in the opener helped them win their double-header against the Philadelphia Phillies 12-8 and 7-4. MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL: Atlanta Braves 5 Seattle Mariners 6, Baltimore Orioles 7 Oakland Athletics 3, Chicago White Sox 2 Minnesota Twins 10, Cincinnati Reds 9 Chicago Cubs 13, Cleveland Indians 5 Boston Red Sox 4, Detroit Tigers 4 NY Yankees 13, Houston Astros 3 Washington Nationals 4, Kansas City Royals 3 Colorado Rockies 2, LA Angels 3 Texas Rangers 5, NY Mets 2 Arizona Diamondbacks 3, Philadelphia Phillies 8 Miami Marlins 12, Pittsburgh Pirates 5 LA Dodgers 6, San Francisco Giants 2 Milwaukee Brewers 0, St Louis Cardinals 4 San Diego Padres 12, Tampa Bay Rays 6 Toronto Blue Jays 5.
CYCLING
Ian Stannard, who is currently competing in the Vuelta a Espana, has committed his future to Team Sky by signing a new three-year contract. The 30-year-old former British road race champion joined Team Sky when it was formed in 2010. Stannard said: “We get the best support in this team and we get looked after really well. The team listen to the riders and involve us in the decisions, and that’s really important in races like the Classics, which is where my goals lie.” Team Sky Performance Manager Rod Ellingworth added: “I’m delighted that Ian is staying because I’ve been working with him for a long time. He’s been with us since day one and he is part of the family. He’s got some good friends in this team and I think he knows he’s supported really well.”
SPEEDWAY
FIXTURES (7:30pm unless stated) Tonight SGB Premiership: Swindon v Somerset. SGB Championship: Ipswich v Peterborough, Redcar v Edinburgh, Sheffield v Scunthorpe. Tomorrow SGB Premiership: Belle Vue v Leicester, Somerset v Rye House Travel Plus National League: Lakeside v Mildenhall (8pm) Caledonian Riders’ Championship: Edinburgh.