ATLANTA (AP) — A matchup of teams with the National League's best records was also a comparison of depleted rotations. Thanks to Freddie Freeman and J.D. Martinez, the Dodgers had more offensive support for their shaky starting pitching. Freeman's three-run homer in the fifth inning gave Los Angeles the lead, Martinez had four hits, including two homers, and the NL West leaders rallied past the Atlanta Braves 8-6 on Monday night.

ATLANTA (AP) — Jared Shuster kept his emotions in check on the mound and during his postgame interviews following his first major league win. Then the rookie was presented with the lineup card at his locker as a souvenir. Finally, Shuster broke out a big grin as he admired the keepsake on his day to remember — and possibly an important day for Atlanta's rotation.

CLEVELAND (AP) — Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Brown, an unstoppable running back who retired at the peak of his brilliant career to become an actor as well as a prominent civil rights advocate during the 1960s, has died. He was 87. A spokeswoman for Brown’s family said he passed away peacefully in his Los Angeles home on Thursday night with his wife, Monique, by his side.

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Eddie Rosario hit an early home run for Atlanta that quickly put an end to the longest scoreless streak in the majors this season, and Ronald Acuña Jr. went deep in in his fourth consecutive game. That all helped set up Orlando Arcia for the deciding blow. Arcia hit a tiebreaking solo homer with two outs in the ninth inning and the NL East-leading Braves avoided consecutive series losses for the first time this season with a 6-5 win over the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night.

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Adolis García keeps driving in runs for the Texas Rangers, and the two guys filling in for the AL West leaders' injured stars keep contributing as well. Dane Dunning was solid again while pitching in the rotation spot of injured ace Jacob deGrom, and fill-in shortstop Ezequiel Duran homered — after García extended his MLB-best RBI total to 44 with a two-run shot — as the Rangers beat the Atlanta Braves 7-4 in a matchup of division leaders Tuesday night.

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Kevin Pillar and Ronald Acuña Jr. each hit a two-run homer in the second inning, spoiling Cody Bradford’s big league debut as the Atlanta Braves routed the Texas Rangers 12-0 on Monday night in an interleague matchup of division leaders.

ATLANTA (AP) — Matt Ryan has joined CBS as an analyst, though he's not giving up on landing with another team as a quarterback. CBS announced Monday that Ryan, a four-time Pro Bowler and the 2016 NFL MVP with the Atlanta Falcons, will serve as a studio and game analyst across multiple platforms for the upcoming season.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — In an empty gym on a small campus deserted for spring break, one of the NBA’s top future prospects receives shooting guidance from coaches on Stephen Curry’s training team. Scoot Henderson goes through some of the same drills as the Golden State superstar himself — one-footed free throws, catch-and-shoots from around the perimeter, two dribbles between the legs then let it fly from the top of the 3-point arc.

BOSTON (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 51 points – the most in a Game 7 in NBA history — and the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 112-88 on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight year. One game after missing 14 of his first 15 shots only to awaken in the fourth quarter in time to save their season, Tatum got off to the fast start the Celtics needed. He scored 25 in the back-and-forth first half and 17 more in Boston’s 33-10 third quarter that turned a three-point lead into a runaway.

MADRID (AP) — Barcelona won its first Spanish league title after the departure of Lionel Messi with a 4-2 victory against Espanyol on Sunday. Robert Lewandowski scored twice to lead the Catalan club to its first league title since 2019. The title was secured with four rounds remaining and two years after Messi left amid the club’s financial struggles.