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Cardinals rookie Brendan Donovan apologized Saturday night for tweets he sent with homophobic language as a teenager that surfaced during St. Louis’ game against the Chicago Cubs.Twitter users directed Donovan’s tweets to the attention of reporters during a doubleheader in Chicago, including at least one that used an anti-gay slur. Donovan’s Twitter account was deleted shortly after the second game, in which Donovan hit a two-run double in the 10th inning to spur a 7-4 Cardinals victory.AdvertisementThe flagged tweets were sent in 2011 and 2013, and the 25-year-old Donovan said Saturday they were part of “playful banter” with a friend.“I take full responsibility,” Donovan said. “It was something I sent out a long time ago. I’m truly sorry to anyone I may have offended. Anyone that knows me as a person knows I see everyone the same, and I do not condone that type of behavior or anything.Advertisement“If I’ve offended you, I truly apologize. Hopefully, I can do my part to show you that’s not who I am.”

You always remember your first time at Wrigley Field.Walking through the gates and through the darkened concourse. Seeing the green grass and ivy-covered bleacher walls as you enter the playing field. Glancing up at the old school scoreboard and watching the seats fill in during the hours before game time, anticipation growing until the first pitch.AdvertisementCaleb Kilian experienced all of that Saturday afternoon — and then he got to make his major-league debut against the St. Louis Cardinals before 31,673 fans.[ [Don’t miss] Chicago Cubs enter June with a feeling of optimism. Here are 5 reasons why. ]It was, he said afterward, “the greatest day of my life.”AdvertisementSurely there will be many more great days for the 25-year-old rookie. The Chicago Cubs top pitching prospect has experienced success at every level of his career, from high school to Texas Tech to the minor leagues.But this day was one that would linger, because you only get one shot at your first game.Pitching at Triple-A Iowa, Kilian got the call from the Cubs on Thursday, which he called the ”best birthday present ever.” If it already sounds like he talks in superlatives, put yourself in his shoes.Caleb’s first glimpse of Wrigley was everything he envisioned. “Best day of my life… What a place to make your debut.” pic.twitter.com/4E4tRLpedW— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) June 5, 2022

The Cubs, being the Cubs, wouldn’t let on that Kilian would be making his debut, pretending it was a state secret that could be ruined by the media. But everyone knew, and by the time manager David Ross confirmed the obvious after Friday’s game, the news had already leaked on Twitter.Kilian had a hard time sleeping Friday in his Chicago hotel room, thinking about what was in store.“When I was trying to sleep, I could hear my heartbeat,” he said with a laugh. “I’m glad I was able to fall asleep and get some rest. Most of the nerves were (Friday).”Kilian got to Wrigley early Saturday to get comfortable with his new surroundings and meet his teammates —some of whom he already knew — and the coaches and clubhouse staff.[ [Don’t miss] How Matt Swarmer’s unique slider is bringing the 28-year-old Chicago Cubs rookie big-league success ]“Coolest ballpark ever,” he said. “What a place to debut.”AdvertisementKilian’s parents, aunt and friends got enough notice to make it to Chicago. After getting his first round of applause from bleacher fans while stretching in the outfield, he came to the mound to Eric Church’s song ”The Outsiders:”“Back to the wall/A band of brothers/Together, alone, the outsiders.”Kilian started off by striking out Tommy Edman on three pitches, ending the at-bat with a 96 mph fastball. He fanned Nolan Gorman on a 1-2 curve, then broke Paul Goldschmidt’s bat while inducing the Cardinals star into a groundout at short.Cubs pitcher Caleb Kilian throws a pitch during the first inning at Wrigley Field on June 4, 2022. (Nuccio DiNuzzo / Getty Images)“It helped build some confidence,” Kilian said, adding he was trying not to “let the moment get to me.”He needed only 20 pitches in two innings to retire the first six hitters. And then he bookended a perfect third with strikeouts of Yadier Molina and Edmundo Sosa.But then came the fourth. The first at-bat of the inning was briefly delayed by a ball that came onto the field in the right field bleachers, forcing Rafael Ortega to throw it back and resume play.AdvertisementKilian proceeded to walk Edman on four pitches, After a fly to left by Gorman, Goldschmidt sharply singled up the middle, making Kilian do a dance to avoid getting smoked. A walk to Nolan Arenado loaded the bases, and a breaking ball that bounced in the dirt got past catcher P.J. Higgins brought in the first run. Brendan Donovan’s double to left center brought in the other runners, and suddenly the Cardinals had a 3-1 lead.“Two strikes, it hurts,” Kilian said. “I should be better than that, but it happens. Can’t take it back.”[ [Don’t miss] Brennen Davis — the top prospect in the Chicago Cubs organization — has back surgery ]When the inning ended after Harrison Bader was caught stealing second, Kilian had thrown 30 pitches in the frame. The Cubs have kept him under 80 pitches in all but one of his nine minor-league starts, but Ross sent Kilian back out for the fifth. Pitching coach Tommy Hottovy told him to relax and use his legs to get downhill on his delivery — and Kilian reverted to his early form. He gave up a two-out, infield hit to Sosa before striking out Edman to end his night.“Just giving him a reset, right?” Ross said of sending Kilian out for the fifth. “The wheels didn’t fall off. He’s been a starter for a long time and they’re going to have an inning or two like that from time to time. Just get him back on that horse. He handled that really well, went out and threw a lot of strikes.”It wasn’t a Rembrandt. No five-inning start can be considered a masterpiece. But it was a start, and Ross was pleased Kilian showed what he was all about in his dominant early innings and his ability to move on from the rocky fourth when he lost command.Cubs starting pitcher Caleb Kilian sits in the dugout before his major-league debut against the Cardinals at Wrigley Field on June 4, 2022. (Mark Black / AP)“Mixed his pitches well, had that one rough inning obviously,” Ross said. “But pretty clean. It’s nice to get a look at somebody for the first time. I think he handled the moment really well. Came out firing bee-bees. His fastball seems real, his cutter, mixed and matched his pitches. He did a nice job.”AdvertisementRoss had tried to downplay the significance of Kilian’s debut, perhaps to avoid the kind of media and fan scrutiny Kris Bryant, Javier Báez, Kyle Schwarber and the rest of the Cubs prospects from 2015-16 endured early in their careers. He didn’t want Kilian to be considered a “savior” of this rebuild or to put pressure on the kid to perform at a high level every time out.Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.But make no mistake. This is a big deal for the Cubs, and especially for president Jed Hoyer, who acquired Kilian last July from the San Francisco Giants in a deal that sent one of the team’s most popular players of the last three decades packing. Just as Bryant’s arrival in 2015 signaled the unofficial start of the new Cubs era under Theo Epstein, Kilian’s call-up means the Hoyer regime is now in full throttle.It will be a while before the rest of the top prospects acquired from the summer sell-off of 2021 are in the majors since most were in the lower levels at the time of the trades. Fair or not, Kilian will be the player the Cubs showcase to convince fans they made the right call in dealing the stars of their championship team instead of signing them to extensions.ExpandAutoplayImage 1 of 165Fergie Jenkins’ statue now stands outside Wrigley Field on May 20, 2022. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)“I just think people come out here to watch the Cubs,” Kilian said, shrugging off the pressure of being looked at as a centerpiece of the rebuild.The Cubs went on to lose in 10 innings in a game with a few twists and turns, including the Cardinals missing a chance to score the go-ahead run when Sosa missed third while rounding the base, forcing him to retreat. That will be a footnote to the story Kilian tells years from now about his first day in the majors, pitching in an iconic ballpark on a cool night in June.“Best day ever,” he said. “It was the best day of my life. To be able to debut at Wrigley, Saturday night, it starts raining, tie game in the ninth … I don’t think I could ask for anything better.”AdvertisementIt was the first day of what the Cubs hope will be a long and successful run for Kilian and his new teammates.Together, alone, the outsiders.

Chicago Cubs rookie Matt Swarmer knows his high extended leg kick is reminiscent of another big-league pitcher.“People always ask me, ‘Do you get it from Bronson Arroyo?’” Swarmer told the Tribune. “I just developed it on my own.Advertisement“But I like to tell people it’s from Arroyo,” he added, laughing, “because I don’t know how to explain it sometimes.”The 28-year-old right-hander is making the most of his unexpected call-up this week. Days after Swarmer’s big-league debut Monday, he was still in shock as the magnitude of reaching the majors continued to sink in for the former 19th-round pick.AdvertisementAnd after Saturday’s 6-1 victory in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals — his first win in his second career start — Swarmer again searched for words.“Oh, man, it’s incredible,” Swarmer said Saturday. “I’ve always thought about just being here, and now I’m competing with the best guys. Oh, it’s so cool. I’m just living in the moment right now.“I always watched those guys on TV, and now to have a chance to face them, it’s really special in that moment. I have to soak it all in.”Cubs starter Matt Swarmer pitches against the Cardinals during the first inning of the first game of a doubleheader Saturday, June 4, 2022, at Wrigley Field. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AP)In both starts Swarmer held the opposition to one earned run in six innings while combining for 11 strikeouts and three walks. At the root of his success is a nasty slider. He generated 13 whiffs with his slider Saturday after producing 10 on Monday. Another 12 sliders over the two starts resulted in called strikes.“When he’s at his best, he has a unique slider — just the way it looks when it comes out of his hand, the way it moves,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy told the Tribune. “A lot of times you’ll see guys have two pitches that are power pitches, but he also has the ability to move that slider around and locate it where he needs to. As long as he can command those two pitches and move them around, you can do a lot of really good things.“Sometimes guys get here and they try to do too much. He’s not a guy that is going to try to do more than what he knows he can do.”[ [Don’t miss] How Keegan Thompson’s warmup routine has set up the Cubs pitcher’s successful transition to the rotation ]Swarmer relies on two pitches — a four-seam fastball and slider — at a frequency that’s uncommon for major-league starters. Through two starts with the Cubs, they accounted for 97.2% of his pitches.But it’s his ability to manipulate his slider, essentially creating two pitch shapes, that makes the pitch so effective. When Swarmer is looking to put a hitter away down in the zone or even just trying to get the pitch over the plate, he will take something off his slider and sometimes get more around the baseball. If he stays on top of the ball with his slider grip, it creates sharper vertical break.AdvertisementA key to his success is keeping the same arm angle when utilizing each slider type while also tunneling it off his fastball. Swarmer initially used his slider grip in 2018 but lost it during the 2019 season. It took until last July to finally get it back to where he wanted it.“For hitters like this, you have to be very selective where you’re going to throw because they’ll hit it if it’s around the plate,” Swarmer said.The success of his two-pitch mix two games into his big-league career doesn’t mean he is abandoning the development of a third pitch, a changeup. Swarmer knows he will need to incorporate the pitch more as teams build a scouting report against him. Of the 178 pitches he threw in his first two starts, only five were changeups.Swarmer believes he might have found a changeup grip that works for him, but he continues to tinker.Chicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.“The only way I’ll know if it’s good is if I throw it to hitters,” Swarmer said. “And if I don’t, you basically won’t know until you face hitters like these.”It comes down to finding a low-leverage situation or identifying the right hitter to deploy the changeup against, Hottovy said. Before the National League adopted the designated hitter, the pitcher spot used to be a good opportunity to work in a developing pitch.Advertisement“On the flip side of that, we want guys who attack with their strengths,” Hottovy said, “and the one thing that pitchers do have an advantage with is the hitter doesn’t know when we’re going to break out a new pitch.” [ [Don’t miss] Brennen Davis — the top prospect in the Cubs organization — has back surgery ]Swarmer’s stellar first two starts — against division rivals no less — serve as a great jumping-off point for taking the next steps as a big-league pitcher. For Swarmer, that entails locking in on all facets: honing his changeup, controlling the running game and in-game situations and harnessing the strategy side.In the minor leagues, a lot of success can come from just executing pitches and getting outs. With the Cubs, Swarmer will need to prove he can work through a lineup and mix his pitches well enough to keep hitters guessing.But perhaps most importantly, Hottovy wants Swarmer to keep having fun and being himself because that’s a big part of what has made him so good.“I worked so hard for this,” Swarmer said. “In the minor leagues, you have to just be true to yourself and say, hey, if you just keep putting in the work, you’ll have a chance to be successful one day. I just kept competing and I thank God I’m here.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Jake Burger told himself to be smooth and calm when he hit for Reese McGuire in the eighth inning Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays.The Chicago White Sox trailed by a run but had a runner on first with one out.Advertisement“Don’t try to do too much,” Burger said. “And fortunately I got a pitch up in the zone that I could do something with.”Burger delivered the clutch hit the Sox have been desperately looking for, driving Jalen Beeks’ changeup over the center-field wall for a go-ahead two-run homer.AdvertisementBurger’s home run was the difference as the Sox snapped a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory in front of 19,452 at Tropicana Field.“That felt good,” Burger said. “It was a special one, for sure. I’ll always remember that one.”It was the team’s first go-ahead pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning or later since Adam Eaton hit one April 11, 2021, against the Kansas City Royals.“I told him he’s not starting the rest of the year — he’s going to be a pinch hitter,” Sox manager Tony La Russa joked. “Until tomorrow.“He has a flair, doesn’t he? When he hits them, they’re important ones.”The Sox entered the eighth trailing 2-0. Pinch hitter Adam Engel reached on a double to shallow left on a ball that was just out of the reach of Rays shortstop Vidal Bruján. Engel scored on a one-out single by Danny Mendick.The Sox called on the right-handed-hitting Burger to hit for the left-handed-hitting McGuire. The Rays replaced lefty reliever Brooks Raley with another lefty in Beeks. Right-handed batters were hitting just .190 against Beeks.Burger connected on Beeks’ second pitch to put the Sox ahead.Advertisement“I was sprinting out of the box,” Burger said. “Everybody was like, ‘Dude, you didn’t know you got that?’ Maybe, but I want to make sure if it’s a double in the gap, I’ve got to get going.“Kind of floating around the bases a little bit and it felt really good. Smiling the entire time and Mendick looking back at me rounding second base, getting me all fired up. It was fun.”White Sox pinch hitter Jake Burger hits a two-run home run in the eighth inning against the Rays on Saturday, June 4, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Julio Aguilar/Getty Images North America/TNS)Jake Burger watches his two-run home run off Rays reliever Jalen Beeks. (Chris O’Meara/AP) Jake Burger (30) celebrates with third base coach Joe McEwing (99) after Burger hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning. (Chris O’Meara/AP)The way things have gone recently for the Sox, closing out the game wouldn’t be easy.The Rays loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth. Reliever Kendall Graveman got Isaac Paredes to hit a slow grounder to short. Mendick’s throw to first made it just in time to end the inning.“I knew he was going to throw a slider, so I kind of had a feeling he was going to be a little bit out in front,” Mendick said. “And as soon as I saw the swing, I started going in. It was a close play — he was getting down the line — but (we) practice those, right? Got to get it done.”A video review confirmed the call.Advertisement“To be honest I thought I had him,” Mendick said. “I was pretty confident when they were doing the review. They showed on the big screen he was out, and that was definitely a sigh of relief.”Liam Hendriks retired the side in order in the ninth for his 15th save.Despite issuing seven walks, starter Dylan Cease kept the Sox in the game. He allowed two unearned runs on one hit with five strikeouts in 4⅔ innings.“It was pretty ugly but it was good enough,” Cease said. “Every once in a while something like that will happen. It’s just about not giving in.”Both Rays runs came in the fifth.Cease nearly escaped a jam in the inning when Yandy Díaz grounded to first with two outs. The ball appeared to have some spin on it and kicked away from José Abreu.AdvertisementParedes, who reached on a walk, raced home on the error for the game’s first run. Cease exited, and the Rays tacked on the second unearned run when Ji-Man Choi beat the shift and singled against reliever Aaron Bummer.“You’re thinking it’s not possible, ball off the end of (Díaz’s) bat, spins off (Abreu’s) glove and that’s a run,” La Russa said. “And then he did a good job putting the ball in play for that second run and you say, ‘Man, come on.’ But we found a way to overcome it.”Kyle Crick (2-0) pitched 1⅓ scoreless innings and got the win when the Sox broke through in the eighth.“We needed a win, but a 10-run win would be nice,” La Russa joked. “It’s how we played the first four games of the road trip, came up short. This time we didn’t. A testament to never give in, never give up.”

CARDIFF, Wales — Ukraine plans to resume competitive soccer in the country in August despite being under attack by Russia after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave approval.Andriy Pavelko, the president of Ukraine’s soccer federation, revealed details to The Associated Press about his talks with Zelenskyy and the heads of FIFA and UEFA about finding a safe way of playing men’s and women’s matches on home soil.AdvertisementUkraine was forced to abandon its leagues in February when Russia began an invasion that, according to Zelenskyy, has led to “at least tens of thousands” of Ukrainian civilians dying and large swaths of many cities and towns being bombed into rubble.But as Russian forces have been redeployed to the east and south, fighting has subsided in the area near the capital Kyiv and elsewhere. There is optimism sport can resume to lift the spirits of the nation, which is trying to qualify for the World Cup on Sunday by winning at Wales.Advertisement“I spoke with our president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, about how important football is to distract,” Pavelko said in an interview with the AP, surrounded by Ukraine jerseys and a tactics board in the team meeting room in Cardiff. “From the children to the old people, everyone is focused on the war. Every day they receive information about deaths, about the impact of the war.“We spoke about how football has a very big power to help people think about the future because now people, of course, are not in a good mindset. They’re in the worst mood. We spoke about how it would be possible that football could help us to think about the future.”That is a future with players being able to take the field again in Ukraine to provide uplifting sports moments of joy.Andriy Pavelko, the president of Ukraine’s soccer federation, poses after an interview with The Associated Press in Cardiff, Wales, on Saturday, June 4, 2022. (Rob Harris/AP)“So we took the decision with the president that we would resume the Ukrainian championship in August,” Pavelko said through a translator. “In Ukraine we will play on every level. So the Premier League and the first and second professional divisions and women’s championship.“At all levels we will start in August. The decision was taken with the president of Ukraine.”Pavelko met with Zelenskyy before leaving Ukraine for Glasgow to see the World Cup playoff semifinal win over Scotland on Wednesday. Pavelko then went on to see FIFA President Gianni Infantino in Paris and UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin in Ljubljana, Slovenia.“I informed them that we will resume the championships in the war time in Ukraine … under the bombs and we count on their support,” Pavelko said. “We are discussing the details.”The government prohibits men from 18 to 60 from leaving Ukraine to keep them available for war duties, although soccer players have been allowed abroad to play for teams and Pavelko has flown to key meetings. But he did broadcast live to the UEFA Congress in Vienna last month via his phone from a stadium in Chernihiv that had been attacked by Russia to show the damage inflicted.AdvertisementIt is not yet clear which parts of the country will be used for league matches.“We will speak with our military board and the government to discuss how to organize it safely,” Pavelko added.Shakhtar Donetsk was leading the standings when the season was suspended in February and then officially declared over in April, giving it a place in the lucrative group stage of the Champions League next season.Shakhtar has been living with uncertainty in exile for eight years. The team has not played in Donetsk since 2014 when forced out by a Russian-backed conflict in its home region of eastern Ukraine, which remains the scene of intense fighting.

LOS ANGELES — The Mets are Metsing again.Max Scherzer was recently bitten by his dog on his throwing hand, a person with knowledge of the incident confirmed to the Daily News. Scherzer will not require stitches, and the Mets do not appear concerned that the dog bite will set back his rehab from a left oblique strain.AdvertisementScherzer later revealed more details regarding the chomp, via a tweet. He added that he returned to throwing after one day off due to the incident.“My dog Rafi hurt her leg on a run,” he tweeted. “She was howling in pain and I went to calm her down by putting my hands on her. When I did that she bit my right hand. Fortunately it wasn’t a bad bite. I took one day off from throwing and was able to long toss the next day. This will have no effect on my rehab and this is literally a non story.”AdvertisementMax Scherzer is well-known for his intensity on the field. (Elsa/Getty Images)Scherzer is currently rehabbing at the Mets’ complex in Port St. Lucie, Fla. He lives in nearby West Palm Beach.The right-hander was placed on the injured list May 19 with what the team diagnosed as a moderate to high oblique strain on his left side. The timeline for that type of injury is 6-8 weeks, which would place Scherzer’s return sometime in July.Scherzer carried a 2.54 ERA across eight outings and 49.2 innings for the Mets before he pulled himself out of his start against the Cardinals on May 18 at Citi Field. He then said he felt unusual pain in his left side, after which X-rays revealed the oblique injury that would cause him to miss several weeks on the IL.The dog bite is the second strange Mets injury of the week.Francisco Lindor also accidentally injured himself when he jammed his right middle finger in between the sliding double doors in his West Hollywood hotel suite late Wednesday night. The shortstop reported to work with a swollen and black-and-blue finger the following day. Lindor was out of the Mets lineup on Thursday, and returned to game action on Friday, going 0-for-4 in the club’s 6-1 loss to the Dodgers.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Chicago White Sox were in a big hole May 21 in New York, trailing the Yankees by five runs in the third inning.José Abreu got his team back in the game with one swing, launching a three-run home run.AdvertisementWhile the Sox didn’t complete the comeback, the blast began a hot stretch for the first baseman. He has a hit in 12 straight games entering Saturday.“It seems like the other team has less people on the field now; before it seemed like they were playing with way too many people,” Abreu said through an interpreter before Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays.AdvertisementAbreu laughed while offering the explanation in the visitor’s dugout at Tropicana Field.During the stretch, Abreu’s average went from .207 to .256. He has six multihit games and is slashing .400/.491/.756 (18-for-45) with four doubles, four home runs, nine RBIs and a 1.246 OPS during the streak.Chicago White Sox’s José Abreu (79) celebrates his solo home run against the Tampa Bay Rays with third base coach Joe McEwing (99) during the sixth inning, June 3, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Chris O’Meara/AP)“The guy has hit his whole career,” Sox manager Tony La Russa said. “He’s going to hit. There’s no question.“It’s important, the more the lineup hits, the deeper the lineup, the less pressure he puts on himself. That’s the kind of player he is. When we don’t score he’s going to want to do it all himself.”Abreu hit his team-leading seventh homer during Friday’s 6-3 loss to the Rays. He also leads the Sox with 23 RBIs.Abreu led the American League in RBIs in 2019 (123) and during his MVP year in 2020 (60 in the pandemic-shortened season). He was second in the AL last season (117).“I’ve just been doing the same routine I always do, trusting my routine, trusting the process and now the results are there,” Abreu said. “That’s the difference, honestly. The results are there instead of what was happening before.“But the rest is the same — the process has been the same, the workout routine. Everything has been the same.”AdvertisementAbreu has 15 hitting streaks of 10-plus games in his career.The numbers are impressive, but his focus is on helping the Sox out of their recent rut. “We’re not playing very good baseball right now, and I think that overshadows what you do as an individual,” he said. “But I’m proud of the effort we’re putting in the game. I think everybody is trying to do their best. We’re working to get out of this moment and I think we’re going to get out of this moment sooner rather than later.”The Sox entered Saturday with a four-game losing streak and are in third in the AL Central.Abreu’s message to the group is “just keep going, keep working hard and grinding.”“This is not the best moment for us,” he said, “but if you keep working hard and you keep doing your stuff, you’re going to get over this moment.”AdvertisementAbreu sees the talent up and down the Sox roster and is confident better times are ahead.“No doubt about it,” he said. “We’re not passing through a very good moment, but we know the talent that we have. The clubhouse is really united. And that’s important. This is a very long season and I think at the end we’re going to be where we’re supposed to be.”

Caleb Kilian’s much-anticipated start Saturday night at Wrigley Field rekindled memories of similar Chicago Cubs debuts, from Jeff Pico to Kyle Hendricks.You never know whether a Cubs pitcher’s first start is the harbinger of things to come or just a cameo appearance in a career soon to be forgotten.AdvertisementBefore a 6-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 1 of the split doubleheader, Cubs manager David Ross — who watched a parade of celebrated prospects make their debuts in 2015 and ‘16 — tempered expectations for Kilian.“From a player’s standpoint, and even as the manager now, sitting in this seat, it’s a lot of wait-and-see,” Ross said. “It’s exciting from his standpoint, (doing the) hard work and coming over. He’s been impressive in a lot of ways. Still, you have to make your major-league career.Advertisement“No one knows how it’s going to go. I’m happy for him. All the hard work has paid off. You don’t try to hype it up too much. I don’t think any one player is ever the savior. We put the label on some young men. We’ll see how it goes, and we’ll analyze it afterward.”[ [Don’t miss] Column: Caleb Kilian’s MLB debut Saturday should give Cubs fans a brief glimpse into the future ]Matt Swarmer, who made his debut Monday, earned his first victory in Saturday’s opener, allowing one run on two hits in six innings. Frank Schwindel homered and drove in a pair of runs, and Scott Effross escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh when plate umpire Bruce Dreckman called Tommy Edman out on strikes on a pitch several inches outside the zone.Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol was ejected by Dreckman for arguing the next inning, and the Cardinals never threatened again.Cubs pitcher Caleb Kilian warms up during minor-league spring training workouts March 1, 2022, in Mesa, Ariz. (Ross D. Franklin / AP)Kilian was attempting in Game 2 to become the first Cubs starter to win his big-league debut since Ryan O’Malley beat the Houston Astros 1-0 with eight scoreless innings on Aug. 16, 2006, at Minute Maid Park.O’Malley was a last-minute call-up from Triple-A Iowa only because it was his turn to start and the Cubs were all out of pitchers after an 18-inning game the previous night. He barely had time to pack but wasn’t worried when asked afterward if he had enough clothes for the flight to Chicago.“Oh, yes, definitely,” he replied. “I’m not going to let my clothes get in the way of this.”But the dream was short-lived and he didn’t need much of a wardrobe after all. O’Malley suffered a left elbow strain during the fifth inning of his Wrigley Field debut, a 6-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.[ [Don’t miss] How Keegan Thompson’s warmup routine has set up the Cubs pitcher’s successful transition to the rotation ]After the game, O’Malley stood despondent in front of the Waveland Avenue firehouse, where teammate Rich Hill tried to console him.AdvertisementChicago Tribune SportsWeekdaysA daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.“It was like I was on cloud nine and then I just fell off of it,” O’Malley said.Hill still is pitching for the Boston Red Sox at age 42, but that would be the end of O’Malley’s major-league career after only two outings. Pico, likewise, threw a four-hit shutout against the Cincinnati Reds in his debut on May 31, 1988, but won only 12 more games in a three-year career.You never know.Cubs starter Matt Swarmer pitches against the Cardinals during the first inning of the first game of a doubleheader Saturday, June 4, 2022, at Wrigley Field. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AP)Before Swarmer and Kilian started Saturday, the fewest combined major-league innings by a pair of Cubs starters in a doubleheader had come against the Cardinals on Oct. 6, 1909. Rudy Schwenck had two starts and nine innings under his belt, while King Cole was making his big-league debut — and tossed a complete-game shutout.It has been 46 years since the Cubs had two pitchers start a doubleheader with fewer than one combined start. Neither Oscar Zamora nor Paul Reuschel, both relievers at time, had a start when they faced the San Francisco Giants on May 2, 1976, at Candlestick Park.No one forgets their first start, no matter the outcome.AdvertisementBut some are more memorable than others.

PARIS — Iga Swiatek is unbeaten since February and sure looks unbeatable at the moment, now a two-time champion at the French Open.Coco Gauff, appearing in her first Grand Slam final at just 18, never stood much of a chance, like most opponents against Swiatek lately.AdvertisementThe top-ranked Swiatek beat Gauff 6-1, 6-3 in the final at Roland Garros on Saturday, adding to her 2020 trophy there and stretching her winning streak to 35 matches.Swiatek’s unbeaten run equals one by Venus Williams in 2000 as the longest this century.AdvertisementSwiatek has now won her past six tournaments and is 42-3 this season.She has emerged as a dominant figure in tennis, with 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams out of action for nearly a year and three-time major champ Ash Barty announcing in March she would retire at age 25 and relinquish the No. 1 ranking.That allowed Swiatek to move up to the top of the WTA and she’s shown she is a deserving resident there. Her last loss came in February to 2017 Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko.Swiatek has a game that works on all surfaces, but her greatest triumphs so far have come on red clay.On the warmest day of the tournament, the temperature was 82 degrees Fahrenheit (28 Celsius), and while the forecast predicted thunderstorms, there were just a few puffs of white in the blue sky above Court Philippe Chartrier at the outset.Gauff did not get off to the best of starts, a little bit of early jitters that would be understandable coming from any player in a debut on this stage.The player on the other side of the net certainly had a lot to do with the way things went.Swiatek broke serve right from the get-go, with plenty of help from Gauff, who put a forehand into the net, double-faulted — eliciting some sighs of “Awwwww” from a supportive crowd — dumped a forehand into the net, and pushed another forehand long.AdvertisementWhen Gauff’s work-in-progress forehand betrayed her again, she got broken again to trail 3-0 after just 15 minutes of action. Soon enough, the score was 4-0 in Swiatek’s favor.Not in all cases, of course, but often, the spectators at Roland Garros tend to offer their support to underdogs and to whichever player is trailing in a particular match. Both of which applied to Gauff. So there was a surfeit of shouts of “Allez, Coco!” There were repeated cries of her chant-ready, two-syllable first name. And one fan yelled out “Coco, you can do it!”When Gauff got on the board by holding to 4-1, the applause and roar were suitable for the capture of a set, not simply one game.As things appeared to be getting away from her, Gauff slapped her thigh or covered her eyes, shook her head or looked up toward her parents in the stands.What she never did was waver or concede anything.Gauff began the second set by breaking Swiatek for the only time, and then holding to go up 2-0. Might this now be a much closer contest? Might Gauff push Swiatek to a third set?AdvertisementNo. Swiatek quickly recalibrated and reasserted herself, breaking back for 2-all as Gauff’s propensity for miscues returned.Swiatek is not just winning, but winning easily, already amassing 16 sets taken by a 6-0 score in 2022 — and it’s only early June.The only Polish player to win a Grand Slam singles trophy, Swiatek does it with a mix of a topspin-laden heavy forehand — just like someone she admires greatly, 13-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal, who will face Casper Ruud in the men’s final Sunday — and an all-court game, filled with variety and an appreciation of setting up moves ahead of time during a point. Much like a chess player, which she is.Swiatek’s got other attributes, too, such as strong footwork that allows her to play defense when required.Also key to Swiatek’s presence, and swiftly burgeoning aura, is her calmness on court. She has traveled on tour with a sports psychologist, who was in Swiatek’s guest box on Saturday, and works on various elements of her professional and personal lives.That includes an emphasis on maintaining focus and setting priorities, such as the determination that she is still too new at this whole business of attempting to win Grand Slam titles that she decided it was best not to attend the Champions League soccer final in Paris last weekend, something Nadal did do.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Davis Martin got a call around 2 p.m. Thursday.He wouldn’t be starting that evening for the Charlotte Knights, the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. He would be rejoining the big-league club.AdvertisementMartin started Friday after the Sox placed Vince Velasquez on the injured list with a left groin strain.The right-hander recovered from a rocky first inning to keep the Sox close. But the team couldn’t come through in late opportunities, falling 6-3 in front of 8,930 at Tropicana Field.AdvertisementThe Sox loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth, but reliever Colin Poche struck out Luis Robert to end the game. The Sox lost their fourth straight and have dropped seven of their last nine.“No one is packing it in here but we’re in the results business,” Sox left fielder AJ Pollock said. “We know we have to scratch out some wins.”Chicago White Sox pitcher Davis Martin (65) waits for a new baseball as Tampa Bay Rays’ Randy Arozarena runs the bases after his two-run home run during the first inning, June 3, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Chris O’Meara/AP)Friday had the makings of a quick night for Martin, who surrendered four runs in the first.Ji-Man Choi had a sacrifice fly. Harold Ramirez drove in a run with a single and scored on Randy Arozarena’s two-run homer.Martin bounced back, at one point retiring eight straight, and didn’t allow a run the rest of his outing.He exited after 5⅓ innings, allowing the four runs on five hits with one strikeout and three walks.“(I) started mixing in some other pitches, kind of getting some quick outs,” Martin said.Martin’s changeup and curveball were particularly effective.Advertisement“Early I think we were fastball-slider heavy,” Martin said, “and then mixing in those two pitches both sides (of the plate) I think helped a lot.” Martin (0-2) allowed one run on five hits in five innings in his debut May 17 in the second game of a doubleheader at Kansas City. He said he took a lot away from his second big-league start.“Statistically, (Friday) wasn’t a great outing, but I think I learned a lot about how to pitch today,” Martin said. “I learned a lot of adjustments that are going to help me down the road with the help of (pitching coach Ethan) Katz and (catcher Yasmani) Grandal.”Sox manager Tony La Russa liked what he saw from Martin.“He made the adjustment,” La Russa said. “You get behind like that and a lot of bad things happen sometimes. You get distracted, you start doing less or more. And he just pitched. That’s impressive.”The Sox scored once in the third and got within 4-2 with a solo home run by José Abreu in the sixth. Abreu went 2-for-4, extending his hitting streak to 12 games.AdvertisementRays starter Shane McClanahan (6-2) exited after allowing the two runs on six hits with eight strikeouts and no walks in six innings. He turned it over to Rays bullpen, which worked out of several jams.The Sox had runners on first and second with one out in the seventh, but Matt Wisler got a grounder for a force out and struck out Andrew Vaughn in a nine-pitch at-bat.The Rays made the most of their chances in the bottom of the inning, scoring twice to push the lead to 6-2.Robert and Grandal had back-to-back singles for the Sox with two outs in the eighth. Jake Burger grounded to shortstop for the inning’s final out.The Sox got a run in the ninth and brought one of their more dangerous hitters to the plate in Robert. But Poche made the big pitches to continue the Sox slide.“What I look at is we got down by four and kept playing until the end,” La Russa said. “All that gets a lot of high points from me.”AdvertisementThe Sox had 11 hits, but left 11 on base.“You don’t know when it’s going to turn but if you do the right things, they’ll turn,” Pollock said. “We just need to play good baseball. String together some good at-bats. It would be nice to have a 10-run game and just blow somebody out. But that’s like saying I’m going to go 4-for-4. It’s tough.”