Jake Arrieta's streak of winning starts ended Wednesday night in Pittsburgh. No matter, the Chicago Cubs did what they've done every time Arrieta has pitched over the past six weeks: they won. Pinch-runner Quintin Berry raced home on Anthony Rizzo's sacrifice fly in the top of the 12th inning, and the Cubs slipped by the Pirates 3-2.

Prince Fielder, Mike Napoli and the Texas Rangers are powering up now that they have the lead in the AL West. Fielder hit two of the Rangers' season-high five homers and drove in five runs, Napoli went deep along with his first career outfield assist and the Rangers extended their division lead over the Houston Astros with a 14-3 victory Wednesday...

Brett Favre is back in the news - no, he's not attempting another comeback. Favre was among the 108 modern-day nominees for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2016 announced Wednesday night. The NFL's career leader in nearly every passing category when he retired after the 2010 season and winner of the 1997 Super Bowl with Green Bay, Favre...

Oregon quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. confirmed that he has a broken finger and says it's a game-time decision whether he'll start Saturday against Georgia State. Vernon told reporters Wednesday that he broke his right index finger in the season opener. It was bothering him in the Ducks' 31-28 loss at now-No. 4 Michigan State last weekend.

Ryan Mallett will start at quarterback for the Houston Texans on Sunday at Carolina, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Wednesday. Brian Hoyer started the season-opener, but had two turnovers early and was benched in the fourth quarter. Mallett took over and led the Texans on two scoring drives in the last...

Rutgers has suspended football coach Kyle Flood for three games and fined him $50,000 for contacting a faculty member over a player's grade - an issue separate from a string of recent player arrests. Rutgers President Robert Barchi announced the punishment Wednesday, a day after he said he received an internal investigative report that found a...

The NFL said the New England Patriots can reinstate the two employees at the center of what a league investigation found was a scheme to use improperly inflated footballs in the AFC championship game. Equipment assistant John Jastremski and officials locker room attendant Jim McNally were reinstated Wednesday after the team requested they be...

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -- Notre Dame starting tight end Durham Smythe will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -- Oregon coach Mark Helfrich wouldn't comment Tuesday on a report that quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. has a broken index finger on his right hand.

Auburn defensive back Joshua Holsey tore his left ACL for the second time and is out for the season. Tigers coach Gus Malzahn announced the extent of Holsey's injury Tuesday. The senior started at nickel back for the 18th-ranked Tigers against Jacksonville State but was injured early in the game.

Clint Hurdle insists the Pittsburgh Pirates don't hype up for big games. Pedro Florimon scored on Starling Marte's sacrifice fly in the eighth inning, and the Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 5-4 in the first game of a day-night doubleheader Tuesday to inch closer to first-place St. Louis in the NL Central. Tied 4-4, Florimon entered as a pinch...

The awkward dismissal of Texas football coach Mack Brown came first. Now athletic director Steve Patterson is gone, too, after less than two years - an abrupt end to his rocky tenure atop the nation's wealthiest athletic program that remains in turmoil. Patterson, whose aggressive approach to raising money rankled fans and some major donors,...

The San Francisco 49ers have a new featured running back with Frank Gore long gone. Carlos Hyde wanted to outplay the better-known No. 28 on the field, Adrian Peterson. Hyde carried the offense with 168 yards on the ground and touchdown runs of 17 and 10 yards in his first career start, spinning away from a defender and diving into the end zone...

In his first game with that big contract, Julio Jones was worth every penny. Jones hauled in nine passes for 141 yards, including a pair of touchdowns, and the Atlanta Falcons came back after squandering a 17-point halftime lead to beat the Philadelphia Eagles 26-24 Monday night in the coaching debut of Dan Quinn. ''Julio is an awesome player,''...

Out with a serious back injury for much of the season, David Wright is enjoying every minute of the New York Mets' dominating stretch run. Wright had a go-ahead double in the seventh inning, Yoenis Cespedes homered again and the Mets won their eighth straight, 4-3 over the Miami Marlins on Monday night. The Mets lead in the NL East remained at 9...

The Texas Rangers' biggest players came up big in the first game of a big four-game series on Monday night, allowing the Rangers to move within a half-game of first place in the AL West. Prince Fielder followed Adrian Beltre's one-out single in the eighth inning with a tiebreaking, two-run home run to straight-away center field into a stuff wind...

Washington Redskins wide receiver DeSean Jackson could miss three to four weeks after straining his left hamstring early in the team's season-opening loss. ''Possibly, it could be shorter, but you just never know with hamstrings,'' coach Jay Gruden said Monday. Jackson is not the only unwanted change to the starting lineup for Washington (0-1)...

The NFL says it will take no action against Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh after he dislodged an opponent's helmet at Washington. The contact by Suh following a play was determined not to be a kick, the league said Monday following a review. Suh tackled Redskins running back Alfred Morris, and when Suh rose, his right leg made...