KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - MAY 23: Starting pitcher Stephen Kolek #32 of the Kansas City Royals pitches during the 1st inning of the game against the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium on May 23, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) | Getty ImagesIn todays game thread, I wrote that Koleks second-best career start probably came against the Mariners last September and we might need him to do even better if they were going to win today. As it turned out, they probably didnt need him to be quite that good, but he absolutely was anyway.Things got started fast for the Royals today. Stephen Kolek retired the Mariners in order on 10 pitches to start the game. Then, on the second pitch he saw, Maikel Garcia tattooed a line drive into the left-center gap for a leadoff double. Bobby Witt Jr. got an infield single that sent Maikel to third, and then Maikel scored on a groundball from Vinnie Pasquantino that was only ever likely to be worth one out, but became none when J.P. Crawford couldnt hang on to Cole Youngs glove flip at second.Salvador Perez came to the plate, and Bobby and Vinnie each took off on the first pitch, successfully swiping their bags and giving the Royals second and third with no one out. This is where youd expect the Royals to completely choke, and it looked like thats exactly what was going to happen. Salvy grounded to the pitcher, though George Kirby could only deflect it to Crawford. Crawford still managed to throw Sal out because hes so dang slow. Then Carter Jensen hit a soft roller to first, and when Josh Naylor realized he was going to have to run to the bag for the out, Bobby took off and scored.Sure, that gave the Royals two runs, but getting two straight weak outs after putting runners at second and third didnt feel good. Fortunately, Jac Caglianone came through with a single to right that scored Vinnie from second and the Royals had a three-run lead.Bobby scored again in the third when Carter hit a shallow fly to left-center, and Randy Arozerena couldnt get the throw home quite quickly enough. They scored their final run in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a single from Carter, a groundout by Jac that advanced Jensen to second, and a solid single to center from Isaac Collins.But Kolek will be the talk of todays game as he pitched the first complete game shutout by a Royals pitcher since Brad Keller in 2020. Despite the fact that he got only two strikeouts in the day, and none until the eighth inning, Kolek made it look easy.As you can see, this was far from what weve come to expect from dominant pitching performances in 2022. He wasnt necessarily in the strike zone very often, he didnt get an excessive amount of chase, and the whiff% is frankly abysmal. But the Mariners couldnt square him up at all; they had four hits all day, and three of those were from Luke Raley. Even one of Raleys hits was an infield single. Thanks to his pitch efficiency, the inability of the Mariners to do anything with his pitches, and some slick infield defense that turned a pair of double plays on the day, Kolek faced only two batters over the minimum in this one. That is just absolutely wild.This game was the first in a while for a lot of different things:As noted earlier, the first CGSO for a Royals pitcher since Brad Keller on September 13, 2020.It was the Royals first complete game with any number of runs scored since Seth Lugo got the White Sox on July 21, 2024.It was Koleks second career CGSO; he also got one against the Rockies in Coors Field while pitching for the Padres on May 10, 2025. He allowed 5 hits and 2 walks in that one, but did get 7 strikeouts so its up to you which one was more impressive.It was the first time the Royals had scored more than three runs in a game since last Friday, May 15.It was the first time the Royals had a three-run inning since May 13.It was the first time the Royals won a game by more than 2 runs since May 9.It was the first time the Royals had a three-run first inning since May 1 against Bryan Woo and the Mariners.It was the best the Royals have looked on the field since at least May 13 and probably more like May 9Todays win gives the Royals a victory in the season series regardless of tomorrows outcome, giving them a tiebreaker should it somehow matter by the time the season comes to an end. It would be really cool if this win was something of a turning point for the Royals. If so, hopefully well see more evidence of it in a victory tomorrow to win their first series since the Detroit series two weeks ago.Tomorrows game will air on Royals.TV at 1:10 p.m. Central time. Seth Lugo (3.68 ERA) will face Bryan Woo (3.51 ERA) in the rubber match. Woo has been one of the better pitchers in the AL this year, but the Royals got to him in Seattle to start the month. It would be fun to do it again.

Four years after considering retirement, Bryan Torres made it to the major leagues at age 28 and homered for the St. Louis Cardinals in his debut.

The Grand Slam circus convenes in Paris from tonight, almost four months on from Carlos Alcarazs stunning success at Melbourne Park, where he became the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam by winning the Australian Open.

He had wobbled and struggled throughout the qualifying session but at the death he roared through and supplanted his teammate Kimi Antonelli, pushing him to second on the grid.

Si Woo Kim lost all of the five-shot lead he built a day earlier while flirting with sub-60 history at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.The 30-year-old South Korean still managed to maintain an edge over a couple of major champions, including hometown favorite and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, heading into the final round.Kim shot 3-under 68 on Saturday for a two-shot lead over top-ranked Scheffler and 2023 U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, who had matching 65s.Its fun being in contention, said Clark, a three-time tour winner seeking his first victory since Pebble Beach in 2024. Whether you have to shoot 8 under to win or 1 under to win, its fun because you still feel the same heat. Tomorrow its probably going to be exactly that way where you have to make a ton of birdies.Sungjae Im, Kim's countryman, followed a second-round 61 with a 67 and was another two shots back with Stephan Jaeger and Tom Hoge. Jaeger's 64 was the low round of the day at the TPC Craig Ranch, and Hoge shot 66.Zach Bauchou (66) was 16 under, one shot ahead of Brooks Koepka (66) and three others. Koepka, who opened with a 63, is looking for his first win since returning to the PGA Tour from LIV Golf.Kim, the field's second highest-ranked player behind Scheffler at No. 24, was in position for a 59 in the second round but had a bogey at 18 that forced him to settle for 60.His five-shot lead was tied for the second-biggest on tour through 36 holes this season behind Rory McIlroys six-shot edge when he defended his Masters championship in April.It was gone by the 11th hole.Three bogeys in a span of four holes all on putts inside 10 feet dropped the four-time tour winner into a tie with Clark at 18 under. Clark had earlier pulled within a stroke with a short eagle putt on the par-5 ninth.Kim, a Dallas resident, answered with three birdies over the next four holes a day after he had 12.I was thinking about too much scoring like first 10, 11 holes, Kim said. So Im just trying to be back to kind of like yesterday. Yeah, just trying to hit the good shots and trying to like, all the mojos back.Clark took the lead a scrambling birdie at the par-5 12th, making a 15-foot putt after a bunker shot with his right foot in the grass, his flexed right knee almost touching the ground.Kim, Scheffler and Clark were tied at 19 under when Kim went in front with a birdie on the short par-4 14th after Scheffler and Clark settled for pars after trying to drive the green.Clark got even again, but Kim went in front for good with a birdie at the par-3 15th.Scheffler, a four-time major winner who ran away to an eight-shot victory at last year's Nelson, answered his first bogey of the tournament on the par-3 fourth with three birdies over the final five holes on the front nine.Two shots back going into tomorrow, so Im looking forward to the challenge, said Scheffler, who is looking for his 21st tour win. Its always fun when I get to play with Si Woo. I think its good for the community to have two guys that are local up there on the leaderboard. Should be a fun day tomorrow.Clark, seeking his first win since 2024 at Pebble Beach, was standing over the putt before what ended up being one of his early birdies when he stepped away and dabbed at his nose. He made the putt, but was still dabbing at his nose a few holes later.I dont really know, the 32-year-old said when asked if he had a bloody nose. I had like a cut on my nose, and I went like this. Next thing you know, I was bleeding. It wasnt quite a bloody nose, but it lasted a couple holes.Jordan Spieth, a hometown favorite alongside Scheffler, faded with four bogeys on his first five holes on the back nine a day after six consecutive birdies to start his second nine spurred a 62. He shot 73.First-round leader Taylor Moore was back in contention after four consecutive birdies, but went in the water at 15 and ended up with a triple-bogey 6. He shot 69 and was 13 under.Japan's Kensei Hirata, playing in the final group with Kim and Im, shot 70 and trails by seven.___AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Si Woo Kim lost all of the five-shot lead he built a day earlier while flirting with sub-60 history at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.The 30-year-old South Korean still managed to maintain an edge over a couple of major champions, including hometown favorite and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, heading into the final round.Kim shot 3-under 68 on Saturday for a two-shot lead over top-ranked Scheffler and 2023 U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, who had matching 65s.Its fun being in contention, said Clark, a three-time tour winner seeking his first victory since Pebble Beach in 2024. Whether you have to shoot 8 under to win or 1 under to win, its fun because you still feel the same heat. Tomorrow its probably going to be exactly that way where you have to make a ton of birdies.Sungjae Im, Kim's countryman, followed a second-round 61 with a 67 and was another two shots back with Stephan Jaeger and Tom Hoge. Jaeger's 64 was the low round of the day at the TPC Craig Ranch, and Hoge shot 66.Zach Bauchou (66) was 16 under, one shot ahead of Brooks Koepka (66) and three others. Koepka, who opened with a 63, is looking for his first win since returning to the PGA Tour from LIV Golf.Kim, the field's second highest-ranked player behind Scheffler at No. 24, was in position for a 59 in the second round but had a bogey at 18 that forced him to settle for 60.His five-shot lead was tied for the second-biggest on tour through 36 holes this season behind Rory McIlroys six-shot edge when he defended his Masters championship in April.It was gone by the 11th hole.Three bogeys in a span of four holes all on putts inside 10 feet dropped the four-time tour winner into a tie with Clark at 18 under. Clark had earlier pulled within a stroke with a short eagle putt on the par-5 ninth.Kim, a Dallas resident, answered with three birdies over the next four holes a day after he had 12.I was thinking about too much scoring like first 10, 11 holes, Kim said. So Im just trying to be back to kind of like yesterday. Yeah, just trying to hit the good shots and trying to like, all the mojos back.Clark took the lead a scrambling birdie at the par-5 12th, making a 15-foot putt after a bunker shot with his right foot in the grass, his flexed right knee almost touching the ground.Kim, Scheffler and Clark were tied at 19 under when Kim went in front with a birdie on the short par-4 14th after Scheffler and Clark settled for pars after trying to drive the green.Clark got even again, but Kim went in front for good with a birdie at the par-3 15th.Scheffler, a four-time major winner who ran away to an eight-shot victory at last year's Nelson, answered his first bogey of the tournament on the par-3 fourth with three birdies over the final five holes on the front nine.Two shots back going into tomorrow, so Im looking forward to the challenge, said Scheffler, who is looking for his 21st tour win. Its always fun when I get to play with Si Woo. I think its good for the community to have two guys that are local up there on the leaderboard. Should be a fun day tomorrow.Clark, seeking his first win since 2024 at Pebble Beach, was standing over the putt before what ended up being one of his early birdies when he stepped away and dabbed at his nose. He made the putt, but was still dabbing at his nose a few holes later.I dont really know, the 32-year-old said when asked if he had a bloody nose. I had like a cut on my nose, and I went like this. Next thing you know, I was bleeding. It wasnt quite a bloody nose, but it lasted a couple holes.Jordan Spieth, a hometown favorite alongside Scheffler, faded with four bogeys on his first five holes on the back nine a day after six consecutive birdies to start his second nine spurred a 62. He shot 73.First-round leader Taylor Moore was back in contention after four consecutive birdies, but went in the water at 15 and ended up with a triple-bogey 6. He shot 69 and was 13 under.Japan's Kensei Hirata, playing in the final group with Kim and Im, shot 70 and trails by seven.___AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

The Swedish pop star treated the crowds to back-to-back, high-energy pop bangers on day two of the festival.

EXCLUSIVE: The skies over South Florida roared with American military might on Memorial Day weekend as the Air Force Global Strike Command executed a historic flyover Saturday at the Hyundai Air & Sea Show in Miami Beach.Dubbed the "Arsenal of Freedom," the unprecedented spectacle featured an eight-ship formation of dissimilar bombers and fighters soaring over a civilian air show.The display showcased a united front, bringing together aircraft from the Air Force active duty, reserve and the Air National Guard to fly as one.FREEDOM ISN'T FREE: HONOR THOSE WHO NEVER CAME HOME ON THIS MEMORIAL DAYLed by a massive B-52H Stratofortress, part of the B-52 Stratofortress series, which has been used in the war with Iran, the awe-inspiring formation included some of the military's most advanced and iconic aircraft: a B-1B Lancer, A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, F/A-18 Hornet and two F-16 Fighting Falcons.However, the flyover was more than just a stunning visual for the thousands of patriotic Americans gathered to honor the nation's fallen.It carried strategic weight, putting America's unique long-range strike capabilities on full public display.EXCLUSIVE: TRUMP-BACKED MILITARY VET MOCKED FOR DISABILITY AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY: MOST SHAMEFUL THINGThe Air Force Global Strike Command is the only long-range strike force of its kind available to the U.S. and its partners, as no other allied nation fields bombers capable of executing the mission.Organized by the National Salute to America's Heroes, the annual Memorial Day tribute also featured thrilling parachute demonstrations and a military static display village.Highlighting the ongoing commitment of the next generation of American patriots, the event culminated in an enlistment ceremony swearing in more than 150 new members of the U.S. armed forces, marking one of the most significant military events of the Memorial Day season.

Zweite Top-Leistung in Folge - aber reicht das noch? Nach Ungarn hat die deutsche Eishockey-Nationalmannschaft dank Lukas Reichel auch sterreich bezwungen, der Weg ins Viertelfinale bleibt aber weit.[mehr]

IOWA CUBS (19-29) vs. MEMPHIS REDBIRDS (30-19)May 23 - 6:08 PM CT - Principal Park - Des Moines, IARHP Paul Campbell (0-4, 8.58) vs. LHP Bruce... - IL Iowa Cubs