JONATHAN VILLAR SLIDES HOME WITH THE WINNING RUN AS THE ATHLETICS FALL COUGH ONE UP TO ASTROS
(AP) — Rookie Jonathan Villar scored the winning run from second base in the ninth inning when catcher Derek Norris had a passed ball and then made a bad throw on the same play to give the Houston Astros a 5-4 win over the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday night.
Houston ended a 10-game losing streak against the A's this season and a six-game skid overall.
The Astros trailed 4-2 entering the ninth before Matt Dominguez hit a two-run homer off closer Grant Balfour (0-2) to tie it.
Justin Maxwell hit an infield single to start the inning and advanced to second when Balfour attempted to make a throw to first from his knees and bounced it in the dirt for an error.
The homer by Dominguez bounced off the wall in left-center as Coco Crisp desperately tried to climb to grab it.
GIANTS SPLIT DOUBLE-HEADER WITH CINCINNATI
BUSTER POSEY SLIDES IN SAFELY ON PABLO SANDOVAL'S RBI DOUBLE IN GIANTS 5-3 WIN
(AP) — Pablo Sandoval hit a two-run double to help Bruce Bochy (BOH'-chee) earn his 1,500th win as a manager, and the San Francisco Giants split a straight doubleheader with the Cincinnati Reds with a 5-3 victory in the nightcap Tuesday.
Hunter Pence hit an RBI single, Gregor Blanco had a sacrifice fly, and Brandon Belt added an RBI groundout in San Francisco's first win in six tries against the Reds this season after being outscored 34-6 in the first five meetings — including 11-0 on Monday night and 9-3 in the opener Tuesday. The Reds had 10 hits after combining for 32 in the first two games.
The teams were forced to make up a July 4 rainout at Great American Ball Park.
Cincinnati batted last and wore home uniforms as the visiting team.
WORLD SERIES CHAMPS SET TO VISIT COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF
(AP) — The White House says President Barack Obama will honor the San Francisco Giants at a ceremony saluting their victory in the 2012 World Series.
The team will visit the White House on Monday. The president will also honor the team for its community service work.
The Giants swept the World Series in October, defeating the Detroit Tigers 4-3 in the final game after being nearly knocked out in the playoffs. It was their second title in three seasons.
But Obama didn't predict that finish.
On the campaign trail last year, the longtime Chicago White Sox fan predicted a World Series between the White Sox and the Washington Nationals.
AROD BACK IN FOLD AS BIOGENESIS CONTROVERSY SURROUNDS HIM
(AP) — Alex Rodriguez has reported back to the New York Yankees' minor league complex, three days after he was diagnosed with a strained left quadriceps on the final day of his injury rehabilitation assignment.
Rodriguez, under investigation by Major League Baseball for his reported ties to a clinic accused of distributing banned performance-enhancing drugs, did not speak with reporters when he arrived in a SUV shortly after 11 a.m. Wednesday.
The third baseman, who turns 38 on Saturday, had been recovering from hip surgery in January. He hit .250 (8 for 40) with two homers and eight RBIs in 13 minor league games before the leg injury.
New York said A-Rod was being sent to Tampa for "for rest and treatment." The Yankees have not said whether they intend to send him on another rehab assignment.
WRIGLEY RENOVATIONS SET FOR COUNCIL VOTE
(AP) — Chicago's City Council is set to consider a proposed $500 million renovation of historic Wrigley Field that includes a massive Jumbotron in left field.
Aldermen are scheduled to give the final vote on the project Wednesday.
The vote comes one day after it got crucial approval from a City Council committee and the alderman whose ward includes the ballpark.
Under the deal, the Chicago Cubs agreed not to erect outfield signs in addition to a Jumbotron in left field and another sign in right field. The plan also includes improved facilities for the players in the bowels of the 99-year-old ballpark and a hotel across the street.
The Cubs say they need advertising revenue from the signs to pay for the renovation.
HGH TESTING BEFORE NFL OWNERS AND PLAYERS
The NFL and players union are meeting Wednesday in Washington in an attempt to reach agreement on testing procedures for human growth hormone as early as the upcoming season.
Both sides already have closed in on conducting a population study that has been a key demand by the players before HGH testing is implemented.
The labor agreement that ended the NFL lockout in 2011 requires the league gain union approval before testing players for HGH. The union says it favors testing, but has reservations about the appeals process. The union also has concerns about the way discipline will be handed out, and wants to collectively bargain that issue.
An email obtained by The Associated Press from the NFL Players Association on Monday indicated that the league and the NFLPA have jointly hired a doctor to conduct a study on NFL players to determine an accurate threshold for a positive HGH test. The email was sent by the union to players, in part to explain that the study requires them to have blood drawn during their physical when training camp begins. The email said the blood samples will only be used for the study, which would mean further blood tests for players once an overall agreement is reached.
Supplemental HGH is a banned substance that is hard to detect and used by athletes for what are believed to be a variety of benefits, whether real or only perceived — such as increasing speed and improving vision.
Among the health problems connected to HGH are diabetes, cardiac dysfunction and arthritis.
