Dave Riggert – Page 477 – St. Joseph Post Archive

No. 1 Kansas defeats No. 9 West Virginia to win Big 12 Tournament title

Posted on March 13, 2016March 13, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bill Self still remembers the day Devonte Graham stepped foot on the Kansas campus, back when the point guard was trying to decide where he was going to play college basketball.

“I told him when he visited, `You’re going to own this place if you just come in and try hard,” Self recalled with a smile. “His attitude is just a 10 and I think it’s rubbed off on others.”

His game has turned into a 10, too.

Graham matched a career-high with 27 points Saturday night, Wayne Selden Jr. added 21, and the top-ranked Jayhawks overcame a remarkable performance by West Virginia’s Devin Williams for an 81-71 victory over the No. 9 Mountaineers in the Big 12 Tournament title game.

Perry Ellis added 17 points for the Jayhawks (30-4), who almost certainly locked up the No. 1 overall seed for the NCAA Tournament by winning their 10th Big 12 Tournament championship.

“I felt like we played well,” said Graham, the game net hanging around his neck. “We just have to keep playing the way we’ve been playing. Play better. Keep the confidence we have. Keep this momentum going.”

Kansas trailed the Mountaineers (26-8) at the break before seizing control, and it was Graham who made the difference. He hit five 3-pointers, was 10 of 10 from the foul line and had a four steals while helping his teammates through the Mountaineers’ trademark pressure.

“I can’t put it into words,” Graham said. “It’s a good feeling.”

Williams finished with a career-best 31 points and 10 rebounds, but the junior forward was forced to carry the load by himself. Jevon Carter was held to four points after scoring 26 in a semifinal win over No. 6 Oklahoma, and leading scorer Jaysean Paige managed just six points while committing four turnovers.

“We came here to win a championship and we fell short,” Paige still. “Time to go back to work.”

With supporters and protesters of Republican presidential contender Donald Trump trading barbs just down the street, two teams intimately familiar with each other spent the first 20 minutes trading baskets.

Trading turnovers, too. They combined for 24 of those in the first half.

Williams was the difference-maker, scoring 18 points on 7-for-7 shooting. That helped the Mountaineers cover a 0-for-7 performance from beyond the arc and forge a 33-32 halftime advantage.

It didn’t stay that way for long.

With his infectious aura and devil-may-care attitude, Graham began to take over for the Jayhawks in the second half. He knocked down a 3-pointer immediately out of the locker room, then curled in two more in quick succession to give Kansas a 51-39 lead with just under 15 minutes to go.

West Virginia’s vaunted press, so effective early in the game, had been reduced to shreds.

Attrition and foul trouble also began to play a role. Williams appeared gassed in the closing minutes, and Carter and Daxter Miles Jr. had to play with four fouls apiece down the stretch.

The remarkable depth of the Jayhawks became apparent as Self kept sending wave after wave of long, talented players onto the floor. And no matter what combination he used, Kansas never seemed to get too far out of rhythm, holding the Mountaineers at bay in the closing minutes.

When the final buzzer sounded, the Jayhawks celebrated in a businesslike manner — as if they had known all along the outcome was inevitable. They shook hands with West Virginia, gathered together in front of the bench and patiently awaited their coronation as the league’s best one more time.

“It probably was not the most artistic game, but both teams competed hard,” Self said. “They had a guy that played unreal and we had a couple of guys that did as well, but it was a good game, and a game that was tough, and I’m certainly very proud of our team.”

ALL-TOURNAMENT

Graham was joined on the all-tournament team by Ellis and Williams, while Iowa State forward Georges Niang and Oklahoma guard Buddy Hield rounded out the five-man squad.

TIP-INS

West Virginia: Williams was 9 of 12 from the field and 13 of 15 from the foul line. … The Mountaineers finished 2 of 15 from beyond the arc. … West Virginia did not block a shot in the game.

Kansas: Frank Mason III appeared to hurt his hip, though he never left the game. The starting guard had four points and seven assists. … Kansas has won 30 games in six of the past eight seasons.

UP NEXT

West Virginia heads home for Selection Sunday.

Kansas awaits a likely No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

— Associated Press —

Missouri Western baseball completes three-game sweep of Pitt State

Posted on March 12, 2016March 12, 2016

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Western baseball team completed a three-game sweep of Pittsburg State on Friday afternoon with wins of 17-10 in game one and 4-0 in game two. MWSU has now won six straight games as they improve to 12-6 this season and 6-3 in the MIAA.

Game 1

Missouri Western continued its hot streak with the bats as they plated 17 runs and tallied 18 hits in the game. The Griffons scored at least four runs in three innings which included four runs in the third inning, five runs in the fourth innings, and six runs in the sixth inning. Every batter for the Griffons recorded at least one hit.

The Griffons allowed the Gorillas to score one run in the top of the first inning and responded quickly getting a run in the bottom of the second inning when David Glaude tripled to open the inning and eventually scored.

Missouri Western added four runs in the bottom of the third inning. The inning was started by Landon Mason and Cosimo Cannella both reaching base. Glaude recorded his second triple of the game bringing home two runners. Brandon Downs also blasted a solo home run in the inning giving the Griffons a 5-2 lead.

The Griffons scored five more runs in the fourth inning which featured runs by Cannella, Landon Mason, Downs, and Glaude. The Griffons continued to add to their lead in the sixth inning with six more runs. Glaude added to his big day with a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth. Senior’s Orencio Fisher and Cannella each added two-run RBI’s to finish off the inning.

The Griffons used four pitchers in the game allowing the Gorillas 11 hits and 10 runs in the game.

Game 2

Missouri Western finished the series off with a 4-0 win against Pittsburg St. The Griffons managed to record eight hits and leave 14 runners on base. MWSU allowed the Gorillas to record just six hit in the game.

The Griffons logged their first runs of the game in the bottom of the second inning on an error by the pitcher, throwing to the first basemen. Alex Huering reached base and advanced to third, scoring Brandon Downs and Jeremy Alvarado on the play.

MWSU was able to score one run each in the fifth and sixth inning. Gawley was able to score on a wild pitch, giving the Griffons a 3-0 lead. The final run for the Griffons was recorded with a sac fly by Cannella, driving home Landon Mason.

Evan Jones and Jared Lloyd each pitched four innings and allowed just three hits each in their innings of work. Jones recorded two strikeouts and Lloyd picked up the win.

The Griffons will remain at home against Missouri Southern next weekend starting at 4 p.m. on Friday evening.

— MWSU Athletics —

Griffons lose heart breaker to Arkansas Tech 81-80 in first round of NCAA Tournament

Posted on March 12, 2016

PITTSBURG, Kan. – A season for the ages came to an end Friday night in the NCAA Central Regional for the Missouri Western Women’s basketball team. The Griffons were knocked off, 81-80, by Arkansas Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Pittsburg, KS.

Chelsea Dewey tied the game for the 10th time with 1:16 left on a layup and gave the Griffons a 78-77 lead on a free throw after she was fouled during the layup. Arkansas Tech led 80-77 with 13 seconds left and Sarafina Handy had a three-point attempt blocked with six seconds to go. Arkansas Tech made it a four-point game after a Missouri Western foul on the blocked three-point attempt. Sefulu Faavae made a three-point attempt at the buzzer to make the final score, 81-80.

The third seeded Griffons were hurt by 23 turnovers that resulted in 23 Arkansas Tech points. Missouri Western ended the game even with Arkansas Tech on the glass, but the Golden Suns pulled down 18 offensive rebounds that led to 18 second-chance points. Both teams ended the game with 30 made field goals. Missouri Western shot 55.6 from the field, 61.5 percent from three-point range and 80 percent at the free throw line.

Dwanisha Tate led Missouri Western with a career-high 22 points, surpassing her previous high of 14 points in the second quarter. Handy finished her last game as a Griffon shooting 5-7 from beyond the arc and turning in 17 points. Faavae ended with a career-high 14 points and a team-high five rebounds. Chelsea Dewey finished with 11 points.

The loss dropped Missouri Western to 27-4 in a season that will remain in the MWSU record books. The Griffons set a program record with 26 regular season wins, an MIAA record with 20 conference wins, won the program’s first MIAA regular season championship since 2002 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.

— MWSU Athletics —

Smith, Saladino shutout Central Missouri in MWSU softball sweep

Posted on March 12, 2016March 12, 2016

WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The Missouri Western softball team stretched its winning streak to seven games with its third straight doubleheader sweep to begin MIAA play on Friday at Central Missouri. The Griffons did not allow a run in two victories in Warrensburg to improve their record to 16-6 overall and 6-0 in MIAA play.

Game 1: MWSU 8, Central Missouri 0

Shelbie Atwell drove in seven runs, including her second grand slam of the year and Janie Smith picked up where she left off last week in an 8-0 Missouri Western win to open the doubleheader.

Atwell put Missouri Western up 2-0 in the fourth with a two-RBI single to the pitcher. She made it 3-0 in the sixth with an RBI-single to center. Katie Klosterman scored on a wild pitch in the seventh to put the Griffons up 3-0 then it was Atwell’s turn again. She cleared the bases with a grand slam to left in the seventh that put Missouri Western up 8-0.

Atwell finished 4-5 with seven RBIs and one run scored. Smith improved to 9-3 with her fourth shutout of the season. She went the distance, allowing five hits, striking out five and walking three.

Game 2: MWSU 2, Central Missouri 0

Paige Shifflett provided both Griffon runs, which were enough for Shyanne Saladino to pick up her fourth shutout of the season.

Shifflett picked up an RBI single to right in the fifth and a solo home run to center in the seventh, her second of the season. Shifflett finished 2-4 at the plate and Morgan Rathmann was also 2-4. Missouri Western had six total hits. Saladino limited Central Missouri to five hits while striking out six and walking three.

Missouri Western stays on the road this weekend with a doubleheader at Southwest Baptist on Saturday, beginning at 11 a.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

No. 1 KU hangs on to defeat 22nd-ranked Baylor in Big 12 semifinals

Posted on March 11, 2016March 12, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas coach Bill Self said the final couple minutes of Friday night’s Big 12 semifinal against Baylor didn’t take anything away from his team’s impressive second-half performance.

Even if it almost took away a win.

After overcoming a halftime deficit to build a comfortable lead, Self put in his backups to coax the game to its conclusion. But the No. 22 Bears rallied, forcing the Kansas starters back onto the floor, where they finally managed to finish off a 70-66 victory.

“I had one guy ask me yesterday, `Hey, when you get a lead in the last two minutes, why don’t you play your bench?” Self said. “And I did. And it didn’t work out so great.”

Al Freeman’s 3-pointer got Baylor within 68-64 with 20 seconds left, and that was when Self sent his top players back on the floor. Jonathan Motley’s putback then got the Bears within three with five seconds to go, but Devonte Graham calmly made the second of two free throws at the other end to put the game away.

Graham had 14 points and eight assists as the Jayhawks (29-4) beat the Bears (22-11) for the third time this season — and avenged their tournament loss from a year ago. Perry Ellis scored 20 points.

Kansas will play sixth-ranked Oklahoma or No. 9 West Virginia for the title Saturday night.

“Proud that our guys didn’t quit at the end,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “Kansas really executed well in the second half. I told coach Self, they guard so well.”

Freeman scored 14 points and Rico Gathers had 13 points and nine boards, but nobody in green got into much of a rhythm against the Jayhawks’ man-to-man defense. Taurean Prince was held to nine points, going 0 for 6 from beyond the arc, and Ish Wainwright managed four points on 2-for-9 shooting before fouling out.

The victory was the 13th straight for Kansas, which can match the number of tournament titles won by every other Big 12 school with its 10th. The Jayhawks also improved to 3-0 at the Sprint Center this season with their eighth consecutive win over the Bears.

Not that they didn’t have a chance: Baylor forged a 23-21 lead after a sloppy first half.

The teams combined for 17 turnovers, Kansas at one point throwing it away on four straight possessions. Baylor’s Lester Medford tossed a pass to nobody at one end of the floor, and then Ellis launched an air ball from beyond the arc as the teams went into a deep offensive funk.

For a while, it seemed as if nobody wanted to score.

There were only two real highlights: Graham had five assists for Kansas, including back-to-back alley-oop lobs to Ellis, and Jake Lindsey hit a buzzer-beating 3 to give the Bears the halftime edge.

Kansas began to take control as soon as it left the locker room.

Ellis went on a personal 8-0 run, and Wayne Selden Jr. woke up a sleepy crowd with a soaring dunk. A few minutes later, Graham tossed up a lob from just inside midcourt that Selden threw down for a 43-33 lead.

“We knew we were playing flat, kind of dead, not a lot of energy,” Graham said. “We knew we weren’t playing to our capability. … In the second half we tried to change it.”

Baylor began trying to get the ball to Gathers and Prince in the paint, but the Jayhawks did a good job of collapsing on defense. The Bears missed nine consecutive shots during a critical stretch midway through the second half, and that allowed the Jayhawks to establish a comfortable lead.

They wound up needing just about every point of it.

“We know the game is never over with us,” Freeman said. “We all have confidence in each other. Nobody has quit in them. We’re going to play every possession hard until it’s the last one in the game.”

QUOTABLE

Asked whether having to put the starters back in late in the game is a coach’s worst nightmare, Self replied: “No, the worst nightmare would be losing. This was just a bad dream.”

TIP-INS

Baylor: Motley finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. … The Bears were playing in their third straight semifinal. They still have never won the Big 12 Tournament.

Kansas: Carlton Bragg had 10 points and seven rebounds. He had a career-high 12 points in a quarterfinal win over Kansas State. … Frank Mason III had nine points and six rebounds.

UP NEXT

Baylor heads back to Waco, Texas.

Kansas plays for its first title since 2013.

— Associated Press —

Mound City girls, Stanberry boys advance to Class 1 state championship games

Posted on March 10, 2016

CLASS 1 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Stanberry 52
Glasgow 44

Walnut Grove 59 OT
Gideon 54

CLASS 1 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Mound City 57
Glasgow 52

Naylor 37
Walnut Grove 32

CLASS 2 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Iberia 65 OT
Bloomfield 58

Hartville 63
Wellington-Napoleon 33

CLASS 2 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Neelyville 63
New Franklin 45

Crane 56
Skyline 50

CLASS 3 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Barstow 63
Mountain Grove 49

Tolton Catholic 83
Whitfield 71

CLASS 3 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Saxony Lutheran 54
Southern Boone 40

Strafford 49
St. Piux X 38

Griffon baseball uses late rally to stun Pittsburg State

Posted on March 10, 2016

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Western baseball team beat Pittsburg State 7-6 on Thursday afternoon. The Griffons stunned Pitt State in the first game of the series with a seven-run inning in the bottom of the eighth to pull out the victory.

Missouri Western’s late rally came in the bottom of the eighth inning when Nick Gawley started the inning off with a single to third base. Jeremy Alvarado reached on a fielder’s choice and error by the first basemen. Brandon Downs continued the rally as he singled to center field, loading the bases for Alex Heuring. Heuring was able to reach on the second error of the inning to score Gawley from third.

The Griffons then drew consecutive walks to push the score to 6-3 in favor of the Gorillas. Senior David Glaude came to the plate with the bases loaded and delivered a double to left center to bring home three-runs and even the score at 6-6. Glaude was eventually moved to third and scored on a wild pitch, giving the Griffons a 7-6 lead.

Missouri Western allowed the Gorillas to gain an early lead giving up five runs in the first three innings. Weston Caindec was able to shut down the PSU offense. Caindec pitched 4.1 innings as he came in for relief in the third inning. He allowed just two hits and stuck out seven batters on the day. Preston Bailey came in to finish the game, picking up his second win of the year and striking out three batters.

The Griffons finished the day with seven different players scoring a run and seven different players getting a hit. Glaude, Gawley and Alvarado all contributed two-hits each in the game.

The Griffons and Gorillas will have a double-header on Friday afternoon starting at 2 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

Ellis leads No. 1 Kansas to 85-63 rout of K-State in Big 12 Quarterfinals

Posted on March 10, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Not long ago, Kansas coach Bill Self had an official who calls games all over the country pay his team the ultimate compliment while simultaneously offering a somber warning.

“He said, `When you’re on, you’re as good as anybody,” Self recalled after watching his team dismantle Kansas State in the Big 12 Tournament. “And when you’re off, you really fall off.”

The top-ranked Jayhawks were decidedly on in their 85-63 quarterfinal victory Thursday.

Perry Ellis scored 21 points and Frank Mason III added 16 as the regular-season champions built a 45-30 halftime lead, then quickly stretched the advantage past 20. Kansas coasted the rest of the way to a semifinal matchup Friday night with No. 22 Baylor, which handled No. 23 Texas earlier in the day.

“They played at a very, very high level,” Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said.

The eighth-seeded Wildcats (17-16) were led by Justin Edwards, who hit five 3s and had 23 points. But the senior guard didn’t get nearly as much help as he had in a first-round victory over Oklahoma State.

Wesley Iwundu and D.J. Johnson scored 10 apiece, but freshman forward Dean Wade — who had a career-high 20 against the Cowboys — was held to five points on 1-for-6 shooting. Fellow freshman Barry Brown was 1 of 8 from the field and managed only three points in 26 minutes.

“We came into the tournament and got a win right off the bat. Losing to the No. 1 team in the country, I don’t think that’s a bad loss in anyone’s book,” Edwards said.

Kansas State has never beaten Kansas in nine tries in the Big 12 Tournament.

The Jayhawks, potentially playing for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, certainly looked the part before a heavily pro-Kansas crowd. They shot 57 percent from the field, had the edge in rebounding, assists and steals, and protected the ball so well Kansas State never made much of a run.

The few times the Wildcats mounted a charge, Ellis or Mason was there to answer it.

The biggest highlight may have come when Ellis soared for an alley-oop pass and slammed it down midway through the second half, sending the crowd in Sprint Center buzzing and giving Kansas a 55-37 lead.

Edwards kept trying to shoot Kansas State back in the game, but the rest of the Wildcats looked spent from their game against the Cowboys down the stretch. Kansas merely had to protect the basketball in the final minutes to wrap up its 12th consecutive victory.

“There’s no doubt it’s a factor, we played a hard-fought game last night,” Weber said. “It just seemed like we were a step behind everything. They got into transition, got some layups, starting feeling good, and then started to make shots. It made it tough on us, no doubt.

NIT HOPES

The Wildcats were 11-2 outside the league, the lone losses to North Carolina and Texas A&M, and Weber hopes that’s enough to earn a spot in the NIT. “We had overtime losses, close losses — we just have to wait and see,” he said. “I hope for the senior’s sake, it would be a nice reward for them.”

CHEICK CHECK

Kansas forward Cheick Diallo did not play after needing five stitches in his mouth following an incident in practice Wednesday. Diallo, a five-star recruit, has struggled to earn minutes behind the Jayhawks’ bevy of veteran forwards. He hasn’t scored more than two points in a game since January.

TIP-INS

Kansas State: Edwards also had 10 rebounds. … The Wildcats shot 38 percent, including 6 of 18 from beyond the arc. … The last time the teams met in the Big 12 Tournament was the 2013 finals.

Kansas: Carlton Bragg had a career-high 12 points. Devonte Graham had 11. Wayne Selden Jr. was held to five points on 1-for-6 shooting. … The Jayhawks improved to 19-1 in their opening game of the conference tournament. … Kansas swept the season series from Kansas State.

UP NEXT

Kansas State waits to hear if it is playing in the NIT.

Kansas plays the No. 22 Bears in Friday night’s semifinals.

— Associated Press —

KC uses seven-run seventh inning to defeat White Sox Thursday

Posted on March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Even hitting into a triple play did not slow down the World Series champion Kansas City Royals.

The White Sox turned Tony Cruz’s fifth-inning liner into three outs, and Drew Butera hit an inside-the-park home run that capped the Royals’ seven-run seventh inning Thursday in a 9-2 win over a Chicago White Sox split squad.

With men on first and second against Scott Carroll in the fifth, the runners went on the pitch and Cruz lined out to Jason Coats. The non-roster left fielder threw to shortstop Jimmy Rollins to double up Reymond Fuentes at second, and Rollins threw to first baseman Mike Olt before Dusty Coleman could get back to the base.

Matt Davidson and Brett Lawrie homered for Chicago.

Ian Kennedy gave up two hits in three innings, including Davidson’s homer. White Sox starter Carson Fulmer allowed one run and two hits in 2 1/3 innings.

Danny Duffy, another Royals starter, pitched three innings in relief of Kennedy and picked up the victory. Butera, Jorge Bonifacio and Orlando Calixte drove in two runs each during the Royals’ seven-run seventh, in which Chicago made two errors.

STARTERS

Royals: Kennedy has made at least 30 starts in each of the last six seasons, a reason the 31-year-old right-hander was given a $70 million, five-year contract by Kansas City. Kennedy was 9-15 with a 4.28 for San Diego last season.

On Saturday, he gave up one run and four hits in two innings with three strikeouts.

“A little bit longer than last time, where you can make adjustments as you go,” Kennedy said. “There was one pitch, I think it was a curveball to Olt. Something clicked mechanically, and it felt a lot better.”

White Sox: Fulmer allowed three runs and five hits over two innings in his previous outing. He threw 52 pitches Thursday.

“Going into this game, I kept the same approach, same pitch sequences for the most part, and made better quality pitches this outing,” said Fulmer, a first-round pick in the amateur draft out of Vanderbilt. “Very happy with this outing, and hopefully I’ll get more starts.”

GRAY AREA

The Sox played Oakland on Wednesday and Fulmer sought out fellow Commodores pitcher Sonny Gray.

“He’s helped me so much. I worked with him a lot at Vandy,” Fulmer said of Gray, who will face the White Sox in the April 4 opener. “I kind of modeled my pitching after him a little bit, we kind of have the same mechanics and attributes when we pitch. But he’s helped me so much with my mentality, about being able to lock in. I’m really glad to be around him.”

Royals: Chris Young is to pitch against Arizona in Surprise.

White Sox: Carlos Rodon is slated to face San Diego in Peoria.

— Associated Press —

Cardinals drop spring training game to Mets

Posted on March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — Noah Syndergaard allowed one hit in three scoreless innings in his spring training debut, helping the New York Mets beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 Thursday.

Syndergaard, who finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting last year, retired his first eight batters. He struck out two and walked none.

“I felt great out there,” Syndergaard said. “It was nice getting out there, getting my feet wet. A little amped up. It’s been a long wait to get on the mound and be able to get out there and compete, but overall it was a pretty solid performance.”Ruben Tejada hit a two-run homer for the Mets after replacing Asdrubal Cabrera, who left in the first inning with a knee injury.

Matt Adams homered twice for the Cardinals, including a two-run drive. Stephen Piscotty had a hit, walked and stole a base.

Wilmer Flores added two hits for the Mets and Alejandro De Aza had two hits, including a double, and scored twice.

Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia allowed three hits in 3 2/3 shutout innings, struck out two and walked one.

STARTING TIME

Cardinals: Cardinals catcher Brayan Pena said Garcia’s pitches had a lot of movement Thursday.

“Using the sinker today, it was pretty good. Everybody knows that’s his bread and butter. It was fun to be behind home plate with him today. I think the changeup was our key factor today. It really gets the hitters off balance and then we went back there attacking with the two-seam and then finishing with a slider or a curveball.”

Mets: Sydergaard threw 29 of 38 pitches for strikes.

“The command — so many strikes,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “That was what I think was really most impressive. He’s a sensational strike thrower and he throws that hard. … It was a good outing for him.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mets: Cabrera was scheduled to have an MRI on his left knee Thursday night. He was injured when he tagged up from first base on a long fly ball by Yoenis Cespedes. The throw from Cardinals center fielder Tommy Pham was offline so Cabrera opted not to slide at the last second.

“I was thinking to slide, I saw the bad throw so I tried to stand up and I felt something in my knee,” Cabrera said. “It’s sore right now. I don’t think it’s serious.”

Cardinals: Catcher Yadier Molina (thumb) checked out fine a day after making his spring training debut with three innings and a nice sweeping tag, and could catch Carlos Martinez on Friday. Prospect Patrick Wisdom, who homered Wednesday, has a minor hamstring injury. GM John Mozeliak says Wisdom likely will be out a week.

STILL GOT IT

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, a former catcher, made a nice play on a foul ball by Pena. Standing on the top step of the Cardinals dugout, Matheny caught the hard chopper with his right hand, looked at the ball and then flipped it to some Cardinals fans in the first row behind the dugout.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: Martinez makes his first spring training start on Friday against the Braves. It’s his first outing since getting shut down late last season with shoulder tightness. Set-up men Seung Hwan Oh and Seth Maness are also scheduled to pitch.

Mets: Steven Matz, who made his spring training debut Monday, is scheduled to start against Washington. Collins was unsure how many innings Matz would throw on short rest.

— Associated Press —