Power outage affects sports world
NEW YORK, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- The blackout that hit huge seconds of the United States and Canada forced postponements in Major League Baseball and the WNBA.
Houston's scheduled WNBA contest at New York and Connecticut's contest at Cleveland were postponed. San Francisco's game against the New York Mets was also postponed.
Although Detroit, Toronto and Cleveland were all without electricity, their baseball teams either had the day off or were playing on the road.
Before the contest in Baltimore between the Orioles and Yankees, New York Manager Joe Torre indicated his seven-year-old daughter was affected.
She had to call off a schedule outing to an amusement park in New York City.
"I was happy that she was just leaving the house, because I'm afraid of her getting stuck on top of a ride, like the Ferris wheel or roller coaster," Torre said.
The opening round of the PGA Championship in Rochester, N.Y. went on as scheduled despite the fact the clubhouse and media center were without power.
Mickelson shares PGA lead
ROCHESTER, N.Y., Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Phil Mickelson and Rod Pampling shared the first-round lead at the PGA Championship Thursday while Tiger Woods got off to a disappointing start.
Mickelson, seeking his first major title, tied Pampling with a 4-under 66 at the Oak Hill Country Club course. Billy Andrade was alone in third at 67 while Masters champ Mike Weir and two-time U.S. Open winner Lee Janzen were at 68.
Among those at 69 were Vijay Singh and Fred Funk.
Some of the game's biggest stars struggled at the rough-infested course. Woods, who has yet to win a major this year, had to settle for a 74 while U.S. Open champion Jim Furyk had a 72.
Davis Love also shot 74, Retief Goosen had a 77 and defending champion Rich Beem staggered to an 82.
Only a dozen players broke par and 20 failed to break 80.
NL Central race tightens
CHICAGO, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Alex Gonzalez homered and drove in three runs Thursday as Chicago tightened the race in the National League Central with a 7-1 win over Houston.
The Astros lost the final three games of the four-game series and dropped into a first place tie with the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central, a half game ahead of the Cubs.
Gonzalez, who entered the game with just five hits in his last 64 at bats, delivered an RBI double in the fourth inning and added a two-run homer in the eighth off reliever Brad Lidge .
The Cubs defeated the Astros on Tuesday, 3-0, with the help of a two-run homer by Gonzalez. He has hit 16 homers, two short of his career high set last year.
Matt Clement (10-10) lasted 5 2/3 innings, allowing one unearned run and three hits.
Chang invited to U.S. Open
NEW YORK, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Michael Chang will play his final professional tournament at the U.S. Open, concluding a 16-year career in which he won 34 singles titles.
The United States Tennis Association on Thursday officially extended a wild card to Chang for the U.S. Open, which will be held Aug. 25-Sept. 7.
Chang, 31, became the youngest Grand Slam men's singles champion when he won the 1989 French Open title at the age of 17 years and three months. He ended a 44-year drought for American men at that tournament.
He reached three other Grand Slam singles finals and was runner-up at the 1995 ATP season-ending championships.
Chang earned a career-high ranking of No. 2 in September 1996.
The USTA also gave main draw wild card entries to Brian Baker, Alex Bogomolov, Amer Delic, Robert Kendrick, Alex Kim, Jeff Morrison and Robert Kim.
Power outage affects sports world ... Mickelson shares PGA lead ... NL Central race tightens ... Chang invited to play in U.S. Open.
