BASEBALL
Minor leaguer injured
Milwaukee Brewers minor leaguer Julio Mendez was hospitalized in critical but stable condition after suffering a “cardiac event” following a hit by pitch in a Rookie League game. The Brewers said Mendez received treatment on the field after getting hit in the ninth inning Saturday in Tempe, Ariz., before being taken to a hospital. The game between the rookie level teams of the Brewers and Angels was called after the third baseman got hurt. “We’re thinking about him and our thoughts are with him and his family. It’s obviously a very scary situation and we’re thinking about him and trying to get updates,” Brewers Manager Craig Counsell said Sunday in Los Angeles, where the big league team was playing the Dodgers. Counsell said it appeared as if Mendez’s injury was similar to those that occur once in a while to young kids in hockey or baseball. Mendez, 20, has been with the Brewers’ organization since 2014.
Martinez to DL
The Detroit Tigers have placed designated hitter Victor Martinez on the 10-day disabled list because of an irregular heartbeat, the second time he has landed on the DL this season for the condition. Manager Brad Ausmus said Martinez experienced a racing heartbeat after his last at-bat during Saturday’s 6-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox. Ausmus said Martinez spent the night in a hospital and his heartbeat was regulated. Martinez was expected to be released and travel by car to Detroit, where doctors will try to determine the cause. Martinez, 38, was on the DL from June 16-28 for an irregular heartbeat. The five-time All-Star has batted .255 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI in 107 games in his 15th season in the majors. In a corresponding move, the Tigers called up outfielder JaCoby Jones from Class AAA Toledo. Detroit will rotate players at designated hitter while Martinez is out, Ausmus said.
MOTOR SPORTS
Clements takes victory
Jeremy Clements finally captured a checkered flag for the first time in 256 Xfinity Series races, winning at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Clements battled Matt Tifft down the stretch at Road America before pulling away to the finish line after the two leaders spun out near the end of the second-to-last lap. “I drive for a small family team. Just to get a win in any of these starts is amazing,” Clements said. Father and team owner Tony Clements sat next to him, slightly embarrassed after having to turn the ringer off on his phone. They might be fielding a few more calls this week. Not only was Clements’ No. 51 Chevy built in 2008, but the front end had to be pieced back together following a wreck two weeks ago at Mid-Ohio. But Tony Clements figured that a road course like Road America might provide a more level playing field against more well-funded teams, especially on a weekend when the top-level Monster Cup series wasn’t racing on the same track. Pit strategy paid off on an overcast afternoon on the 4-plus mile, 14-turn road course. All the twists and turns can take a toll on tires, and second-place finisher Michael Annett said drivers also had to deal with some wet track around turn 12. Qualifying for the 45-lap race was cancelled because of weather, with rain having fallen earlier in the morning.
FOOTBALL
Alabama DL shot
Alabama defensive lineman Raekwon Davis shot at a Tuscaloosa, Ala., bar, according to a person with knowledge of the incident. Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s spokesman Jason Powell said a 20-year-old was shot in the right leg while standing outside of Bar 17, early Sunday. Powell said in a statement the injury was minor, but he did not identify the victim. The person who confirmed it was Davis was not authorized to release that information and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The Tuscaloosa News first reported that Davis was shot. The sheriff’s statement said the victim wasn’t cooperative with investigators who spoke to him at a Tuscaloosa hospital. Alabama Coach Nick Saban said in a statement that Davis’s injury does not appear to be serious, but didn’t elaborate on what happened. The top-ranked Crimson Tide opens Saturday against No. 3 Florida State, and the 6-foot-7, 306-pound Davis is a potential starter.
LSU-BYU could be relocated
Officials from Brigham Young and LSU were reportedly in contact with ESPN on whether or not to move their neutral-site game — the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff — from NRG Stadium in Houston. The game is scheduled to kick off Saturday at 8:30 p.m. Central. Two potential sites for the game to be relocated to are LSU’s Tiger Stadium or New Orleans’ Mercedes-Benz Superdome according to SB Nation. The report also cites a source who says both schools are interested in moving the game to another city. BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe tweeted out Sunday afternoon: “Cougar Nation, All parties involved are working on a solution to our scheduled game with LSU this weekend. We will announce plans when final.” LSU has a recent history of having games impacted by weather. In 2016, the Tigers were preparing to travel to Gainesville to take on the Florida Gators on Oct. 8 but Hurricane Matthew forced the game to be moved to Tiger Stadium on Nov. 19. In 2015, LSU’s game against South Carolina was moved from Columbia to Baton Rouge after the state went through severe flooding. The Houston Cougars moved their football practices two and a half hours away to Austin. Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall Friday as a Category 4 hurricane, dumped 24 inches of rain in the first 24-hours leaving thousands without power and forcing many people from their homes. Two people have died so far from the storm, which is expected to remain in the Houston area over the next four days.
LITTLE LEAGUE WORLD SERIES
Japan beats Lufkin, Texas for title
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — The crack of the bat, the gasp from the crowd, a fist pump on the trip around the bases and then a happy hop to waiting teammates at home plate.
Japan went through the routine three times in the fourth inning of the Little League World Series championship Sunday as Daisuke Hashimoto, Keitaro Miyahara and Natsuki Yajima homered, turning a tight game with Lufkin, Texas, into a 12-2 rout.
Tsubasa Tomii buckled down after allowing two first-inning home runs, finishing with nine strikeouts in a game that was stopped in the bottom of the fifth inning after Japan went ahead by 10 runs on Yajima’s single to right field to score Seiya Arai.
“We were thrilled after we won the Japanese region before we came here,” Miyahara said through an interpreter. “But now getting to this level and becoming the Little League World Series champions this year, it can’t get any better than this.”
The title marks the 11th time a team from Japan has won the Little League World Series, five of which have come in the last eight years. Tokyo Kitasuna, the club representing Japan this season, has won three of the last six.
Lufkin had a six-run comeback victory over Greenville, N.C., in the U.S. championship game Saturday to reach the final. And early on, it looked as though the team’s momentum would carry through the championship.
Japan had allowed only one run in the tournament heading into Sunday’s game, but that changed when Chandler Spencer crushed the first pitch over the left-center field fence.
Hunter Ditsworth cracked an opposite-field home run down the right-field line to put Lufkin up 2-0 with one out in the first. But Miyahara laced a two-run triple with two outs in the second to tie it at 2, and Ryusei Fujiwara fisted a single to right to bring Miyahara home.
Lufkin Manager Bud Maddux, who has coached youth baseball for 41 years and won 10 total championships, came just short of the most coveted title, in Little League. He blamed himself for the loss.
“Just like I told them, I’ll take full credit for that,” Maddux said. “We didn’t make some adjustments that we should have. You can’t hang your head because [Japan] beat you. They’re a great baseball team, but we are, too.”