Christian Walker hits 16th and 17th career homers at Dodger Stadium, Diamondbacks rout Dodgers 12-4 (2024)

Thursday

Jasmine Paolini has reached her second consecutive Grand Slam final with a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10-8) victory over Donna Vekic at Wimbledon. Paolini is the No. 7 seed at the All England Club and her win on Thursday at Centre Court follows her runner-up showing at the French Open last month. The 28-year-old Italian is the first woman to get to the title matches at the French Open and Wimbledon since Serena Williams did it in 2015 and 2016. Paolini will face Elena Rybakina or Barbora Krejcikova for the championship on Saturday.

Thursday

Colorado coach Deion Sanders took some time at the start of his first Big 12 media days appearance to give props to some of the other coaches in the league. Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders, the coach’s son, was recruited by Gus Malzahn when the current UCF coach was still at Auburn. The younger Sanders played in high school for current Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire. Deion Sanders said Wednesday that he was highlighting some coaches that have been so kind and considerate to him. Colorado is returning to the Big 12 after the past 13 seasons in the Pac-12.

Thursday

This Date in Baseball, July 12 - Cy Young of the Boston Red Sox wins his 300th game

This Date in Baseball-Week Ahead for July 12 - July 18. 2 Takes

Today in Sports - Week Ahead, July 12 - July 18. Take 2

They compete under the same flag but speak different languages and come from different parts of the world. After fleeing war and persecution, 36 athletes from 11 countries will compete in the Paris Games as part of the Refugee Olympic Team. They take the stage at a time of record global migration, with hundreds of millions working to reinvent themselves as these athletes have. They’ll compete in a host country where the anti-immigration far-right party saw a surge of voter support in parliamentary elections, but was beaten back by a coalition of the French left and failed to win a majority. The refugee athletes will compete in 12 sports. For many, the journey to Paris is already a victory in itself.

This collection of photos features fans attending Copa America soccer matches.

BERLIN (AP) — The quarterfinals and semifinals at the European Championship saw Spain and England prevail to set up a final in Berlin on Sunday.

Miami and Austin, Texas, will keep their Formula 1 sprint races next year as Belgium gets a sprint instead of Austria. The Circuit of the Americas at Austin and the Miami street circuit are joined by Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps, which is the only 2025 sprint venue not hosting a sprint this year. It will be the third year of a sprint race at Austin and the second at Miami. The other three sprints for 2025 will be in Brazil for the fifth year running, as well as China and Qatar.

The Paris Olympics are turning many eyes to France this summer. AP writer Steve Wartenberg found his own special spot on an 11-day cycling trip in the wine-making region of Burgundy. The region's capital is about a 90-minute train ride from Paris. Wartenberg followed a popular path called the Voie des Vignes, or Route of Vines. It wound through famous wine villages, along rivers and canals, past chateaux, cathedrals and abbeys. Then he decided to strike out and climb some of the area's ridges and cliffs on his bike. He was rewarded with spectacular and panoramic views.

Carlos Alcaraz will play Daniil Medvedev, and Novak Djokovic will face Lorenzo Musetti in the men's semifinals at Wimbledon on Friday. Alcaraz is the defending champion and seeded No. 3 as he pursues his fourth Grand Slam title at age 21. He beat No. 5 seed Medvedev in straight sets in last year's semifinals at the All England Club. Medvedev is coming off a quarterfinal win over No. 1 Jannik Sinner. Djokovic is appearing in his 49th major semifinal and 13th at Wimbledon. He already owns 24 major trophies. Musetti will be appearing in the final four at a Slam tournament for the first time.

The Astana team says veteran rider Michael Morkov has withdrawn from the Tour de France ahead of the 12th stage because of a COVID-19 infection. The 39-year-old Dane tested positive on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning. Morkov is retiring at the end of the year. He won a stage on the 2013 Spanish Vuelta and the gold medal in the Madison track race at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. He is set to compete at the Paris Games.

French referee François Letexier has been picked by UEFA to handle the European Championship final between England and Spain. The 35-year-old Letexier becomes one of the youngest referees to take charge of a major tournament final. Letexier has already refereed three games at Euro 2024 including Spain’s 4-1 win over Georgia in the round of 16. The final is on Sunday at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.

The NBA might not be happy with the NFL making Christmas Day a regular part of its schedule. However, its new set of media rights deals nearly puts them in same economic arena. The NBA’s 11-year, $76 billion contracts will begin with the 2025-26 season. It is the same number of years as the NFL’s most recent deal, which began with the 2023 season. The deals with ESPN/ABC, NBC and Amazon Prime Video will average $6.9 billion per season. The NFL averages $10 billion per year, but that is with five networks. Depending on how things fare with TNT Sports, the NBA could cross the $7 billion threshold.

PHILADELPHIA — The first rule of summer league is to pay no attention to summer league.

With time winding down and about 10 seconds left Wednesday afternoon in the championship game of the 4-on-4 tournament that closed Pittsburgh Penguins prospect camp, top-billed forward Brayden Yager of Team 3 skated in from the left side and fired a wrister toward the net.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Just as Caitlin Clark should play for Team USA in the 2024 Summer Olympics so should Arike Ogunbowale.

The day after hearing their names called as members of the 2024 U.S. gymnastics team in front of a sold-out crowd in Minneapolis' Target Center, Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera assembled on an NBC stage in front of an exclusive audience. Each gymnast receiv…

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As the Carolina Panthers approach their 30th season, I decided to look back before we start looking forward — to training camp in late July and preseason games in August and the 2024 season opener in September.

LAS VEGAS — The Raiders have a quarterback battle on their hands. Will it be Aidan O’Connell or Gardner Minshew lining up behind center in the season opener against the Chargers?

LOS ANGELES — There was a time when the U.S. dominated Olympic boxing. In the three Summer Games the Americans took part in between 1976 and 1988, U.S. fighters made the podium in 26 of 35 divisions, winning 17 gold medals.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Pac-12 may be down to the Pac-2, but that doesn’t mean the league or its remaining members — Oregon State and Washington State — aren’t gearing up for football. Drawing reporters who were in town for the Big 12 and Mountain West Conference media days, the abandoned Pac-1…

A year after a high-profile failure to sign Portugal midfielder João Palhinha, Bayern Munich finally has made the deal happen. Palhinha joins Bayern from English Premier League club Fulham for a reported fee of nearly 50 million euros ($54.2 million) on Thursday. He's contracted through June 2028. Palhinha helped Portugal to the quarterfinals at Euro 2024. He's the latest signing in a Bayern rebuild after the club’s first season without a trophy since 2012.

The Los Angeles Dodgers will try to break their three-game road slide in a matchup with the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Houston Astros host the Miami Marlins trying to continue an eight-game home winning streak.

The Los Angeles Angels open a four-game series at home against the Seattle Mariners on Thursday.

The Washington Nationals enter the matchup against the New York Mets as losers of four in a row.

The Detroit Tigers lead 2-1 in a four-game series against the Cleveland Guardians.

The Chicago Cubs seek to extend a three-game win streak with a victory against the Baltimore Orioles.

The Cincinnati Reds face the Colorado Rockies, leading the series 2-1.

The San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays meet on Thursday with the winner claiming the three-game series.

Both the Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates are looking for a series win with a victory on Thursday.

The Atlanta Braves lead 2-1 in a four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees meet on Thursday with the winner claiming the three-game series.

The Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics meet on Thursday with the winner claiming the three-game series.

UNDATED (AP) — Texas backup quarterback Arch Manning has announced his likeness will be used in EA Sports College Football 25 following reports he had declined the game developer’s offer to be featured in it. Manning is the grandson of former Saints QB Archie Manning and nephew of Super Bowl…

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (AP) — Police say Vikings rookie cornerback Khyree Jackson has been killed in a car crash in Maryland. The 24-year-old Jackson was one of three people who died Saturday in an overnight three-car crash in Prince George’s County. State police say 23-year-old Isaiah Hazel an…