FRIDAY SPORTS, JULY 31, 2026
DISTRICT 3B AMATEUR BASEBALL TOURNAMENT – CHAMBERLAIN
Wessington Springs vs. Winner – 7:30 pm on Friday.
DISTRICT 4B AMATEUR BASEBALL TOURNAMENT – HUMBOLDT
Madison vs. Salem – 6 pm on Friday
Flandreau Cardinals vs. Canova – 8:30 pm on Friday
Dell Rapids PBR vs. Dell Rapids Mudcats – Championship Game on Saturday
DISTRICT 5B AMATEUR BASEBALL TOURNAMENT – PLATTE
Winner/Colome vs. Platte – 6 pm on Friday.
Alexandria vs. Parkston Rays – Championship Game on Friday
DISTRICT 6B AMATEUR BASEBALL TOURNAMENT – MENNO
Freeman vs. Lesterville – Saturday
Tabor vs. Wynot (Neb.) – Championship Game on Saturday
MINNESOTA TWINS
— Kody Clemens hit a game-ending grand slam with two outs in the ninth inning as the Minnesota Twins beat the Kansas City Royals 4-3 after being no-hit by Noah Cameron until the seventh. After Cameron threw eight shutout innings on 97 pitches, Royals closer Lucas Erceg retired the first two batters, then hit Ryan Jeffers. Royce Lewis singled, Josh Bell walked to load the bases and Matt Strahm relieved Erceg before Clemens hit an 0-2 slider into right-center field for his second career slam and the sixth walk-off grand slam in Twins history. Minnesota starts a nine-game road trip at Seattle on Friday at 9:10 pm.
— The Minnesota Twins have added bullpen help ahead of Monday’s MLB trade deadline, acquiring veteran left-handed reliever A.J. Minter from the New York Mets in exchange for infield prospects Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick. Minter, 32, has a 2.35 ERA in 23 appearances this season after returning from a lat injury that sidelined him for most of 2025. The move addresses one of Minnesota’s biggest needs as the Twins sit one game out of the final American League Wild Card spot and three games behind the White Sox in the AL Central. Minter is eligible for free agency after the season.
CLASS A LEGION BASEBALL STATE TOURNAMENT – THURSDAY IN RAPID CITY
No. 10 Watertown 7, No. 6 Rapid City Post 320 0 – Jackson McClemans threw seven shutout innings, allowing six hits with four strikeouts for the complete game victory. Marcus Pitkin had a triple, double and four RBI’s for Watertown.
No. 3 Yankton 10, No. 5 Brookings 1 – Yankton scores seven runs in the seventh inning. Samuel Gokie threw all seven innings for Yankton, allowing one run on four hits.
No. 1 Rapid City Post 22 12, No. 2 Sioux Falls West 2 – Wyatt Reeder with three hits, a double and two RBI’s for Post 22. Rapid City advances to Saturday’s championship having gone 3-0 in the state tournament.
No. 2 Sioux Falls West vs. No. 10 Watertown – Friday at 5 pm CST
No. 3 Yankton vs. No. 6 Rapid City Post 320 – Friday at 8 pm CST
CLASS B LEGION BASEBALL STATE TOURNAMENT – FRIDAY IN MADISON
Volga vs. Dell Rapids, 10 a.m. – Dell Rapids is the defending state champion.
Parkston vs. Belle Fourche, 12:30 p.m. – Parkston finished runner-up last season.
Groton vs. Garretson, 5 p.m.
Madison vs. Dakota Valley, 7:30 p.m.
NFL
— Baker Mayfield feels “disrespected” by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is focused on playing his best football. The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback didn’t get the contract extension he sought and plans to play out the final season of his three-year, $100 million deal. Mayfield, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft by Cleveland, revived his career in Tampa Bay after replacing Tom Brady in 2023. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons while leading the Bucs to consecutive NFC South titles.
— The New Orleans Saints and WR Chris Olave have agreed on a four-year contract extension worth up to $132 million. Olave was entering his final season under his rookie contract. He is coming off his best season in the NFL, having been selected second-team AP All-Pro after posting career highs of 100 receptions, 1,163 yards receiving and nine touchdowns in 2025.
— Ahman Green, a four-time Pro Bowl running back and the Green Bay Packers’ career rushing leader, said he learned last year that he has early onset Parkinson’s disease. The 49-year-old Green discussed his diagnosis this week. Green said his symptoms began when his feet started twitching in his sleep. He expressed optimism about his long-term outlook while pointing out he exercises regularly and has a “super clean” diet.
SOCCER
— European nations agreed Thursday to boycott the World Cup and all other FIFA competitions to protest Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell stakes in soccer’s biggest tournament to private equity investors. The North American soccer body rejected his plan later the same day. “UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions,” the European soccer body said after an urgent online meeting of its 55 member nations. The next scheduled FIFA tournament is within weeks in Europe, the Women’s Under-20 World Cup hosted by Poland from Sept. 5, and the four British federations comprise FIFA’s only bidder to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup. That decision is due Nov. 23. The strategy meeting was called to counter FIFA President Infantino’s offer of $20 million to each of FIFA’s 211 global members that has to be accepted by mid-September.
COLLEGE
— A proposed federal law aimed at regulating college sports and name, image and likeness payments remains stalled as Senate negotiators and major conferences disagree over salary cap rules. The bill would create a true hard cap of nearly $49 million per school, including a $21.3 million salary cap and a new retention pool of up to $27.5 million to help teams keep players. However, the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference have not agreed to the proposal, saying they want stronger protections against outside NIL payments that could bypass the cap. The Senate has not scheduled a vote, and lawmakers are running out of time before their upcoming recess. NCAA President Charlie Baker is urging leaders to approve the legislation, calling it the best chance to create rules for college athletes while protecting the future of college athletics.
NBA
— Representatives from the Trail Blazers met with Portland city councilors on Thursday to discuss a new lease and the commitment of public funds to renovate the aging Moda Center. The public work session comes amid the contentious negotiations over the $600 million renovation project, part of a long-term lease agreement with the Blazers. A current lease expires in 2030. The state has already pledged $365 million toward the deal, provided Portland contributes $120 million. New Blazers owner Tom Dundon has previously said in interviews that he would commit to a 20-year lease that would keep the team in Portland if the state, city and county agree to fund the renovation of the Moda Center, the oldest arena in the NBA that hasn’t been upgraded.
MLB
— Tristan Peters drew a bases-loaded walk in the 11th inning to force in Chase Meidroth as the Chicago White Sox defeated the Yankees 2-1, beating New York in extra innings for a second straight game. First-place Chicago moved two games ahead of Cleveland in the AL Central. The Yankees fell 3 ½ games behind Tampa Bay in the AL East.
— Alex Bregman drove in the go-ahead run with a 10th-inning double as the Chicago Cubs went on to a 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Bregman went 9 for 18 as the Cubs took three games in the four-game series, with six doubles, a home run and three RBIs.
— Dalton Rushing hit a three-run homer, while Teoscar Hernández added a solo shot as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Seattle Mariners 6-2.
— Wilyer Abreu and Wilson Contreras homered on back-to-back pitches in the eighth inning, while Sonny Gray went seven innings for his 13th win of the season as the Boston Red Sox beat the Athletics 5-4.
— Cedric Mullins hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning as seven Tampa Bay pitchers combined on a two-hitter in Rays 3-2 victory over the Texas Rangers.
— Ronald Acuña Jr. and Mike Yastrzemski homered as the Atlanta Braves overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Washington Nationals 5-4.
— Giants rookie Daniel Susac hit a two-run home run and had three RBIs, while Robbie Ray allowed one run over six innings to win his seventh straight decision to lead the San Francisco Giants to a 4-1 victory over the San Diego Padres. The Padres saw their five-game winning streak snapped and dropped two games behind the final NL wild-card spot.
— Elly De La Cruz scored on fielder’s choice in the ninth inning to give the Cincinnati Reds to a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
— Luis Robert Jr. had a two-run single to cap an eighth-inning rally in the New York Mets’ 4-2 victory over the Miami Marlins.
Seattle Mariners vs. Minnesota Twins – Saturday at 3:10 pm on FS1
Chicago Cubs vs. New York Yankees – Saturday at 6:15 pm on FOX
Seattle Mariners vs. Minnesota Twins – Sunday at 3:10 pm
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Boston Red Sox – Sunday at 6:20 pm on NBC