Rick Ankiel slapped a two-run single to right field with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lead the host St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-4 win over the Chicago Cubs.

The Mets are practically guaranteed of not having a player voted into the starting lineup for the first time since 2003.

Mike Mussina stifled the Boston Red Sox for six shutout innings Saturday, giving the Yankees their first win in three games this series.

On a wild day for everyone around him, Tom Pernice Jr. kept it steady and simple Saturday and shot a one-under-par 69 at the AT&T National in Bethesda, Md.

Lara Jackson was timed in 24.50 seconds, breaking Dara Torres’s 11-month-old American record by three-hundredths of a second.

Heikki Kovalainen captured his first Formula One pole Saturday and will now try for his first victory in the series in British Grand Prix.

The United States Olympic track and field trials turned disastrous for Tyson Gay as an awkward step sent him tumbling to the track. He sustained a severe cramp in his left hamstring.

It seems likely that Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon will go on the 15-day disabled list, especially with the four-day All-Star break covering part of that stretch.

Ralph Branca’s son-in-law is the former Mets manager Bobby Valentine. And the Mets might be looking for a manager if they do not rehire Jerry Manuel after the season.

The Sharpie Brigade is set to storm the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on Friday for the All-Star FanFest, an event that features former baseball stars who sign autographs.

Alejandro Valverde won the 121-mile stage across Brittany, accelerating past a fading Kim Kirchen in the final 100 yards to take the first yellow jersey of the 95th Tour de France.

Most of the anglers on the Rio Niño try to catch machaca with spinning gear. But during the short flower season, they are frustrated to see the fish eating flowers instead of taking their lures.

Gardner’s victory over the Russian Aleksandr Karelin to win the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Sydney Olympics in Australia in 2000 became known as the Miracle on the Mat.

If I had to pick the true highlight of my autograph-hunting days, it had to be the brief encounter with Honus Wagner, probably the greatest shortstop in baseball history.

Fernando Torres said that Liverpool Coach Rafael Benítez was the inspiration behind his goal-scoring splurge, which helped Spain win Euro 2008.

In American swimming, there is no more wrenching finish than third in the Olympic trials, where only the top two make the team.

At age 46, Roald Bradstock did not qualify for Sunday’s final in the javelin at the United States Olympic track and field trials. His aim now is to combine art and sport for fun.

Kara Goucher won the first major race of her career Friday night in the 5,000 meters, but she watched her husband, Adam Goucher, fail to make the Olympic team in the 10,000.

In José Reyes, Jimmy Rollins sees a younger, faster version of himself — a switch-hitting dynamo, right down to their shared initials, spot in the lineup and division.

It probably was not a pure coincidence when Maj. Gen. Ronald L. Johnson, a career military man, was hired last week as the league’s senior vice president for referee operations.