AP Wednesday Sports Roundup

OBIT-YOGI BERRA

Yankees Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra dies at 90

NEW YORK (AP) — Yogi Berra, the Hall of Fame catcher renowned as much for his dizzying malapropisms as his record 10 World Series championships with the New York Yankees, has died. He was 90.

Berra died of natural causes Tuesday at his home in New Jersey, according to Dave Kaplan, the director of the Yogi Berra Museum.

Short, squat and with a homely mug, Berra was a legendary Yankee who helped the team reach 14 World Series during his 18 seasons in the Bronx.

Berra played in more World Series games than any other major leaguer, and was a three-time American League Most Valuable Player.

But his name appears almost as often in Bartlett's Famous Quotations as it does in baseball's record book.

MLB-SCHEDULE

Yankees beat Jays...Arrieta gets 20th as Cubs creep closer to playoff berth

UNDATED (AP) — The New York Yankees coughed up a lead in the bottom of the ninth before climbing within 2 ½ games of the AL East-leading Blue Jays.

Rookie Greg Bird launched a tiebreaking, three-run homer in the 10th inning to lead the Yanks to a 6-4 triumph at Toronto. Carlos Beltran's solo blast in the eighth put the Bombers ahead 3-2, but closer Andrew Miller served up a solo blast by Dioner  Navarro before striking out Josh Donaldson with the bases loaded to end the ninth.

Beltran had two hits and two RBIs as the Yankees won for the third time in four games.

Elsewhere in the majors:

— The Texas Rangers rallied to beat Oakland 8-6 and open a two-game lead over Houston in the AL West with 10 games to play. Mitch Moreland tied it with a two-run homer in the sixth before Delino DeShields lifted a sacrifice fly later in the inning. Adrian Beltre had two RBIs and DeShields hit two of the Rangers' four sac-flies.

— The Astros were 4-3 losers to the Angels as Mike Trout banged out his 40th home run and Albert Pujols added his 36th during a three-run first. Winning pitcher Hector Santiago worked five innings and gave up four hits, including back-to-back solo homers by Marwin Gonzalez and Chris Carter in the second. Huston Street retired four batters for his 39th save as the Angels pulled within 2 ½ games of Houston for the final AL wild-card berth.

— Kansas City's magic number to capture the AL Central remains three following Seattle's 11-2 pounding of the Royals. Robinson Cano drove in four runs with a pair of homers to back Hisashi Iwakuma, who fanned 10 while yielding just three hits in seven scoreless innings. Kyle Seager, Jesus Montero and Brad Miller also went deep for the Mariners.

— Minnesota was a 3-1 winner against Cleveland, leaving the Twins just two games behind Houston for the second AL wild-card berth. The Twins got their runs in the third inning as Aaron Hicks lined an RBI triple before Brian Dozier and Joe Mauer delivered run-scoring doubles. Winning pitcher Ervin Santana was reached for just one run and five hits in seven innings.

— The Cardinals' magic number for winning the NL Central now stands at eight after Tommy Pham supplied go-ahead double and two RBIs in a 3-1 triumph against Cincinnati. Pham snapped a 1-1 tie with a sacrifice fly in the eighth to send the Cards to their third consecutive win. John Lackey picked up his 13th win by limiting the Reds to one run despite ninth hits in seven innings.

— Pittsburgh doubled up the Rockies 6-3 in Colorado to stay four games behind St. Louis. Starling Marte provided an RBI double and a run-scoring single to support J.A. Happ, who gave up three runs over 5 1/3 innings en route to his 10th win. Gregory Polanco scored twice and drove in a run for the Pirates. The Bucs can clinch a wild card berth by today if they beat the Rockies or the Giants lose to San Diego.

— Arizona ripped the Dodgers 8-0 as Robbie Ray held Los Angeles to three hits in six innings. A.J. Pollock and Paul Goldschmidt hit seventh-inning homers before Brandon Drury belted his first big league homer, a three-run blast in the ninth. The Dodgers still own a magic number of seven for clinching the NL West.

— Angel Pagan ripped a two-run homer and the Giants' bullpen worked 4 2/3s solid innings to complete a 4-2 triumph at San Diego. Brandon Crawford and Trevor Brown each had two hits and an RBI for San Francisco.

— Jake Arrieta became the majors' first 20-game winner of the season and the Cubs reduced the wild card magic number to three with a 4-0 shutout of Milwaukee. Arrieta struck out 11 and went the distance on a three-hitter, leaving him 9-0 with one no-decision and a 0.48 ERA in his last 10 starts. Kris Bryant hit a two-run homer and an RBI double, while fellow rookie Kyle Schwarber doubled home a run and scored twice in the Cubs' seventh victory in eight games.

— Atlanta slowed the Mets' playoff push as Hector Olivera hit a three-run homer and Jace Peterson smacked a solo shot while the Braves scored four times in the fifth inning to beat New York 6-2. Rookie Matt Wisler surrendered David Wright's first-inning homer but just four other hits while striking out eight in seven innings. Adonis Garcia added a two-run double in the ninth for the Braves, who dealt the Mets their fifth loss in seven games since an eight-game winning streak.

— The Mets' magic number to clinch the NL East dropped to six with Washington's 4-1 loss to Baltimore. Ubaldo Jimenez held the Nationals to three singles and an unearned run over six innings before the Orioles' bullpen followed with three hitless frames. Nats starter Gio Gonzalez was chased in the fifth, charged with four runs and six hits.

— Detroit's pitching staff flirted with a no-hitter before the Tigers finally pulled out a 2-1 win over the White Sox on an RBI triple by Rajai Davis in the bottom of the 10th. Four Tigers hurlers combined to no-hit the White Sox until Tyler Saladino hit a one-out triple in the ninth and scored on Adam Eaton's single.

— Matt Moore looked good in Tampa Bay's 5-2 win at Boston, allowing two runs over 6 2/3 innings to help the Rays escape the AL East cellar. Mikie Mahtook socked a two-run homer in the eighth to cap the scoring.

— Cody Asche homered twice and Aaron Harang picked up his first victory since July 30 as Philadelphia dumped Miami, 6-2. Darin Ruf also homered and Freddy Galvis delivered three hits and two RBIs for the Phillies.

MLB-MANAGERS

Mackanin staying...Jennings could be going

UNDATED (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies' current manager will be back next year, but the future of the Miami Marlins' current skipper could be in doubt.

The Phils have named Pete Mackanin as their manager in 2016. The 64-year old has been serving on an interim basis since Ryne Sandberg's sudden resignation on June 26.

The Phillies are 30-46 under Mackanin, and 27-32 since the All-Star break. His career record is 83-99, including stops as the interim skipper of the 2005 Pirates and 2007 Reds.

A person familiar with the situation tells The Associated Press that former major league bench boss Manny Acta has interviewed for the Marlins' managerial job. Acta managed the Nationals and Indians from 2007-2012, compiling a 372-518 record and never posting a winning season.

The interview is the strongest indication yet that current manager Dan Jennings won't be in the dugout next year, and it's uncertain whether he'll return to his former position of general manager.

In other major league news:

— Royals manager Ned Yost says Wade Davis will be the team's closer through the end of the season and playoffs. He replaces Greg Holland, who's nursing a sore elbow. Davis has 13 saves in 14 opportunities and a 7-1 record with a 0.88 ERA.

— Cardinals All-Star catcher Yadier Molina said he plans to return before the end of the regular season. Molina sustained a slight tear of his left thumb ligament Sunday while tagging out Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo.

— Blue Jays shortstop Troy Tulowitzki played catch on Tuesday for the first time since suffering a broken left shoulder blade 10 days ago. Although the five-time All-Star said the pain has died down, there's still no timetable for his return to the lineup.

— It will be Tim Hudson versus Barry Zito on Saturday in what could be the last hurrah for the two former Athletics pitchers. A's manager Bob Melvin has told Zito that he would start against his ex-teammate and the San Francisco Giants Saturday at the Coliseum. Oakland plans to honor its former "Big Three" trio of Hudson, Zito and Mark Mulder in a pregame ceremony Sunday, when they will throw out the ceremonial first pitches as a group.

NFL-INJURIES

Cowboys put Romo on injured list

UNDATED (AP) — The Dallas Cowboys have officially put quarterback Tony Romo on the shelf.

Romo will miss at least the team's next seven games after being placed on the injured list with a designation to return. Romo broke his left collarbone in Sunday's win at Philadelphia.

Filling in will be Brandon Weeden, who will start in his place Sunday at home against Atlanta.

The Cowboys have picked up veteran quarterback Matt Cassel in a trade with Buffalo to give them experienced depth behind Weeden. The Bills get a fifth-round pick in 2017 in return.

In other NFL news:

— Jets receiver Eric Decker has a sprained knee and has not been ruled out for the team's next game against Philadelphia Sunday. Decker was injured in Monday night's win over the Colts and was at first feared to have structural or ligament damage. He had eight catches for 97 yards and a touchdown against Indianapolis.

— The 0-2 New York Giants have released wide receiver Preston Parker and signed defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis. Parker had five catches for 43 yards in the first two games, but he also had a couple of key drops. Ellis was signed as a free agent by the Giants in the offseason and was among the team's final cuts in training camp.

— The Jacksonville Jaguars have placed rookie receiver Rashad Greene on short-term injured reserve after he had surgery to repair a ligament in his right thumb. Greene is eligible to return to practice Nov. 3 and could play Nov. 19 against Tennessee. He has nine receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown in two games.

— Eagles defensive coordinator Billy Davis says linebacker Kiko Alonso and defensive tackle Cedric Thornton won't play Sunday against the Jets because of injuries. Alonso hurt his surgically-repaired left knee and Thornton broke a bone in his right hand in a 20-10 loss to Dallas.

— Redskins rookie linebacker Martrell Spaight is heading to the season-ending injured reserve list. The move allows the Redskins to reinstate cornerback Chris Culliver to the active roster ahead of Thursday's game against the Giants. Spaight sustained a concussion in Washington's season-opening loss against the Miami Dolphins.

NBA-BUCKS

Big day in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Common Council has approved funding for a new arena for the NBA Bucks, putting in place the final $47 million of public funding needed to replace 27-year-old BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Previously, the state and Milwaukee County had approved its share of the $250 million in public financing. The overall cost of the facility will be $500 million.

Without a new arena by 2017, the NBA has said it would buy the team and move it.

The Bucks have called Milwaukee home for nearly 50 years.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Stanford QB questionable

UNDATED (AP) — No. 21 Stanford may be without starting quarterback Kevin Hogan for Friday night's game at Oregon State. He suffered a left ankle injury in last week's upset win over Southern Cal and will sit out most of this week's practices.

Cardinals coach David Shaw says Hogan will test the ankle on Thursday. Backups Ryan Burns and Keller Chryst have minimal game experience.

In other football news:

— Auburn is switching to redshirt freshman Sean White as the starting quarterback for Saturday night's game against Mississippi. Coach Gus Malzahn made the move after Jeremy Johnson struggled in the first two games of the season. Auburn was touting Johnson as a potential Heisman Trophy candidate.

— Ninth-ranked UCLA has reinstated cornerback Ishmael Adams, ending his suspension at three games following his arrest last month. Adams learned Monday that he won't face felony charges after allegedly taking a phone during a fight with an Uber driver Aug. 30. The junior was arrested on suspicion of robbery and spent two days in custody.

— Big Ten schools can petition the conference to waive a requirement in the new football scheduling policy that teams must play one nonconference game against an opponent from one of the other five most powerful leagues. Commissioner Jim Delany in July unveiled the new scheduling model that has each school playing one game against a team from the Atlantic Coast, Southeastern, Big 12 or Pacific-12 conferences or independents Notre Dame and BYU.

NHL-AVALANCHE-JOHNSON

Avs sign Johnson to extension

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Avalanche have locked up Erik Johnson through the 2022-23 season, signing the defenseman to a seven-year contract extension.

Johnson scored a career-high 12 goals last season before missing the final 34 games with a knee injury. He also made his first NHL All-Star team but couldn't play due to the injury.

General manager Joe Sakic says the 27-year-old is a big part of the core of the team.

GOLF-TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

Furyk out with wrist injury

ATLANTA (AP) — Jim Furyk has withdrawn from the Tour Championship because of a bruised bone in his left wrist that forced him to withdraw from last week's BMW Championship.

Furyk says he doesn't know if he can play the Presidents Cup on Oct. 8-11 in South Korea. He says he is keeping U.S. captain Jay Haas apprised of how the wrist responds to treatment.