An Indiana state court has opened the door for Indiana Hoosiers defensive linemen Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt to return to the playing field for Friday night’s Big Ten Conference opener against the Northwestern Wildcats.

Monroe Circuit Court Judge Kara Krothe issued a preliminary injunction on Wednesday that grants Daley, Wyatt and more than 90 other athletes a fifth year of eligibility. The NCAA is expected to appeal.

For now, though, the ruling clears the way for Daley, Wyatt and dozens of others to return to action.

“The 2026-27 Division football, soccer, cross country, and field hockey seasons are underway,” Krothe wrote in a 37-page opinion. “Swimming and basketball seasons are fast approaching, with official practices for basketball beginning on September 21. 2026. Spring sports are around the comer.

She added: “Plaintiffs have secured roster spots, but will not receive scholarship aid or NIL payments until their eligibility is continued by court order. If relief is denied, they will lose their roster spots. College sports seasons are time-limited opportunities. Once lost, they cannot be restored, even if plaintiffs later prevail on the merits.”

Daley and Wyatt did not play in Indiana’s 38-0 victory over Western Kentucky last weekend because a temporary restraining order allowing them to compete had expired.

Both testified in court last week, but when the decision did not come down before the game, they were held out. Krothe’s ruling was expected this week.

Daley and Wyatt were starters on last season’s national championship team but suffered season-ending injuries before Indiana’s playoff run. Neither was selected in April’s NFL draft and neither signed an NFL contract to be part of either offseason workouts or training camp.

Kellan Wyatt had 2.5 sacks for Indiana in 2025. (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti has repeatedly said he supported the efforts of Daley and Wyatt to get an extra year of eligibility, and he alluded to it again after last weekend’s game.

“We’ve gotten better since the first game for sure,” Cignetti said. “You know, it sure will help if we have Wyatt and Daley. It’s hard to measure that. We’ll find out we think soon. But if not, we lost some key guys last year and other guys stepped up.”

Wednesday’s ruling is the latest twist in a chaotic start to the 2026 college football season, which has been mired in court fights across the country.

The NCAA announced in June it was going to adopt a new eligibility model allowing all athletes to compete for five college seasons over five years. The legal fights began when college sports’ largest governing body said the new model would not apply to the freshman class of 2022-23.

Stephen Daley led the Big Ten with 19.0 tackles for loss in 2025. (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Colorado District Judge Charlotte Sweeney then ruled some members from that freshman class could receive a fifth year of eligibility, a decision that led some players in NFL training camps to consider resuming their college careers. Eventually, Sweeney issued a clarification that pro athletes were not covered by her ruling.

That decision was stayed in August by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, but lower courts, such as the one in Bloomington, have since entered the fray.

“Under the plain terms of the 2026-27 NCAA Manual, they are eligible to compete, and the NCAA is breaching its contractual obligations by denying them that opportunity,” Krothe wrote. “Harm to the NCAA by virtue of this injunction is minimal or nonexistent. The NCAA regularly grants waivers allowing athletes five years to play, sometimes for hundreds or thousands of athletes at time. This injunction covers less than one hundred athletes across a multitude of sports.”

Reporting by The Associated Press

Marc-Andre ter Stegen has offered a strong endorsement of Hansi Flick’s work at Barcelona, describing the Blaugrana as “unstoppable” while continuing his own comeback with Ajax.

The German goalkeeper returned to international duty after several months away and started for Germany in their 1-1 draw against the Netherlands.

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It was a significant step for the Barcelona loanee after a difficult period, with the 33-year-old clearly pleased to be back representing his country.

His focus may now be on Ajax, but his connection with Barcelona remains strong.

Ter Stegen reflects on his return with Germany

Ter Stegen’s return to the Germany starting XI carried particular importance given everything he has experienced over recent years.

Ter Stegen returned to international duty with Germany. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

The goalkeeper admitted that just being back on the pitch for his country was something he valued greatly.

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“I felt good. I’m proud of the journey I’ve been on and everything I’ve given, given what I’ve been through in recent years, and now I’m just very happy to be back here,” he explained.

The former Barcelona captain also made clear that returning to the international setup has not changed his competitive ambitions.

Simply put, Ter Stegen still wants to establish himself as Germany’s first-choice goalkeeper and believes performances like the one against the Netherlands can help him achieve that.

“My aim is always to be number one. To be 100% fit and up to the task. And today was a good opportunity to prove that once again,” he said.

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Ter Stegen praises Flick and Barcelona

Ter Stegen has praised Hansi Flick’s Barcelona. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

Despite being away from Barcelona on loan, Ter Stegen continues to follow developments at his former club closely. Asked about Barça’s impressive start under Flick, the goalkeeper had an emphatic response.

“They’re unstoppable right now, and that’s what I wish for them because they’re working hard with Hansi as their manager, and I obviously wish them all the best from afar.

“But I’m at another club and focused on my own business.

“That said, I’m always keeping an eye on what they’re doing, and I’m really happy for them that things are going so well,” he concluded.

Source: SPORT

Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season didn’t feature as much scoring as Week 1, but there were still several quarterbacks who impressed, at least in Tom Brady’s eyes. 

In the most recent edition of Tom Brady’s power rankings, the GOAT pinpointed a handful of quarterbacks who have starred through the first two weeks. Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was among them, with Brady saying that he’s playing “very dangerous football” following his five-touchdown performance. 

But was Allen’s performance enough to help the Bills unseat the Seattle Seahawks at No. 1 in his power rankings? Here’s a closer look at Brady’s top 10. 

Record: 1-1

Previous ranking: 9 ↓

Brady’s thoughts: I know they sneak in at 1-1, but look, it was a short week in Buffalo. That’s pretty tough. Buffalo was opening up a new stadium. That’s as hard as it gets. Bills Mafia was out in full force.

Jared Goff, give him his love. He’s playing lights out. He’s got six touchdowns and no picks in his first two games. I kind of like their prospects here as the season goes on.

Record: 2-0

Previous ranking: Unranked

Brady’s thoughts: Listen, it’s not hometown bias by me. Their plus-26 point differential is third in the league. Kirk Cousins has six touchdowns in two games. C’mon, that’s pretty impressive. They go on the road and beat the Chargers. 

Look, undefeated is undefeated. What’s that saying? Just win, baby.

Kirk Cousins has thrown for six touchdowns this season, which is tied for the most in the league. (Photo by Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Record: 2-0

Previous ranking: Unranked

Brady’s thoughts: They’re 2-0 in the division with their backup quarterback. What? No Kyler Murray. No J.J. McCarthy. Give Kevin O’Connell and Brian Flores a lot of credit. It’s a great coaching job. They held Chicago to three points. Yeah, the weather was a little nasty. But three points for Chicago a week after the Bears put up 59? Interesting.

I think Kevin has amazing IQ, EQ and charisma. I think if you stack all three together, and he’s a great leader of men. So, he’s given his team a scheme advantage, getting them hyped up and ready to play every single game and he’s got an amazing intelligence about what he does. He knows how to read his guys and what they need to hear. He’s always going to put those guys in a position to win.

Record: 1-1

Previous ranking: Unranked

Brady’s thoughts: The Australia trip — that’s in the past. That’s way behind them. It’s been overtalked about, overplayed — all of it. They took care of business back at home. Look, they had no Myles Garret, no Puka Nacua and they limited Aaron Donald [against the New York Giants]. 

This team is more than big names. Davante Adams went off for 195 yards and two tuddies. That’s exactly what they needed to get back on track. 

Record: 2-0

Previous ranking: 10 ↑

Brady’s thoughts: I’m very impressed with this start as well from Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals. A lot of complementary football — that’s what I’m seeing from Cincy. How about that defense? That’s music to the Bengals fans’ ears. We haven’t talked about that in a few years. They have eight sacks and four takeaways just to start the season in these first two weeks. That’s winning football.

Two catches in Week 1 for Ja’Marr [Chase], but two touchdowns in Week 2 — possibly the catch of the year with that toe-tap on the sideline. 

Record: 2-0

Previous ranking: 6 ↑

Brady’s thoughts: Week 1 was kind of funny and some teams are winning big, but the Eagles are winning close ones. That’s nothing new to Eagles fans. It’s not a bad thing to have a close road test under your belt in September in very hot, humid conditions. They showed a lot of toughness, and that’s not easy to do for a team from the Northeast. 

Record: 2-0

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Previous ranking: 7 ↑

Brady’s thoughts: Through two games, these four teams have kind of set themselves apart. [Patrick] Mahomes’ rust is completely non-existent. He looked invincible the other night. A vintage overtime performance at Arrowhead with almost 400 yards passing and Travis Kelce going off. Kenneth Walker, he’s been an absolute menace for these defenses.

However, I will say their defense needs to find a way to pressure the QB. I’ve got an idea, though: Steve Spagnuolo, that guy calling the plays on defense, he’s the right guy to figure it out. 

Record: 2-0

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Previous ranking: 5 ↑

Brady’s thoughts: The Bills got out to a fast start in their new stadium, which I’m really looking forward to seeing. And Detroit, they were literally playing catch-up the entire night. Tough to go on the road against a team like that; that’s really hot. The Bills’ offense had 36 points against Houston and 41 against Dan Campbell and the Lions. 

No turnovers across the board from Josh Allen in two games. Very impressive. I’m very impressed with Josh’s ability to eliminate the negative plays. I think early in his career, he was always trying to make a big play. He was a little bit inaccurate in the passing game. He’s really settled down and become an accurate passer. He knows when to take his chances. He’s playing very dangerous football. That’s going to be a tough team to beat.

Record: 2-0

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Previous ranking: 3 ↑

Brady’s thoughts: They get home from Australia and that travel didn’t bother them. They dominated the Dolphins. They have a plus-42 point differential this year. That’s almost double the next best in the NFL. Their offense is averaging eight [yards] per play and had no turnovers on Sunday. 

Are you seeing a trend here? Brock Purdy, how about this guy? He’s just always making the right decisions with his pre-snap reads. I always feel like he’s in total control. He’s very poised. I like the way Purdy’s playing.

This Niners team — watch out. No one thought about them.

Record: 2-0

Previous ranking: 1

Brady’s thoughts: In order to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Seattle is 2-0, winning in all three phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams. Great complementary football. 

And who can forget about JSN (Jaxon Smith-Njigba)? He’s got four tuddies in two games. 

Sam Darnold goes out a few plays into the season and in comes Drew Lock, who is completing 73% of his passes. And even more impressive, I talk about negative plays a lot, he’s had zero interceptions. That’s hard to do. 

They had 162 yards last week — a true running back by committee. They might miss Kenneth Walker a little bit, but you can’t keep everybody. They seem to have picked the right guys so far.

Manchester City have yet to drop points in the Champions League and Premier League so far this season as we enter the first international break

Since the disappointing defeat to Arsenal in the Community Shield, Manchester City have been perfect. Enzo Maresca could not have wished for a much better start with seven wins on the bounce – including a gutsy ten-man victory over Manchester United, youngsters shining against Norwich and an eight-goal thriller at home to Sunderland, on Sunday.

There are many factors that have gone into Maresca’s brilliant start, but what has made it more impressive has been the fact that City oversaw a major squad overhaul in the summer. There was an exodus of stars post-Pep Guardiola, most of whom needed replacing.

As such, the transfer window went down to the final hours as City backed Maresca to rebuild the team. On the showing so far, the Italian head coach has done a brilliant job. With this in mind, MEN Sport has taken a look at the nine new signings this summer and given them a ranking from A to F. Spoiler alert, that F was not needed.

Geronimo Rulli – Marseille (£1.7m)

James Trafford’s exit to Leeds felt inevitable. City were frankly blessed with two No.1s last season and that was always going to change. This season, there is no doubting who the No.1 is and that’s probably preferable for all involved.

Rulli’s journey back to the Etihad Stadium is heartwarming, but his opportunities will likely be limited to the cups. As such, we have only seen him once so far, but he did nothing wrong in the 5-0 thrashing of Norwich.

Tougher tests await for him, including the next round of the Carabao Cup against Brighton. C

Pierce Charles – Sheffield Wednesday (£3m rising to potential £10m)

Another goalkeeper returning to City is Charles. The 21-year-old left the Blues for regular opportunities at Wednesday. But once they dropped into the third tier last season, it always seemed likely that he would leave Hillsborough.

Charles is a signing for the future and you could see a situation where he pushes Gianluigi Donnarumma, just like Trafford did. Upon signing for City, he was loaned to Championship side Queen’s Park Rangers where he is getting plenty of opportunities.

Rulli is contracted to City until 2028, so it may be a while before we see Charles playing at the Etihad. However, he is a promising addition. C

Jeremy Monga – Leicester City (£10m rising to potential £12.5m)

This signing feels a step up from Charles. At 17, Monga is a brilliant talent and signing him from under Arsenal’s noses made the deal even sweeter for Maresca.

We saw a glimpse of what he could do during pre-season and, for his age, he did well. Maresca made the right call to loan him to Swansea, particularly when you compare him to Ryan McAidoo.

Unfortunately, Monga has not played for the Swans yet, with their good start to the season forcing the teenager to wait for his chance. However, this feels like a good signing at what could be a bargain of a price, in the future. B

Mathys Detourbet – Troyes (£21.5m)

Like Charles, Detourbet was signed and then instantly sent on loan. The 19-year-old’s loan stint will be at AS Monaco and, unlike Monga, he has already gained some minutes off the bench for the principality club..

The teenager is clearly a player that City know a lot about and, truthfully, had Troyes not been an affiliate club, they would have likely spent more to sign him. By virtue of us not seeing any of him for City just yet, he gets the same ranks as Charles. C

Allan – Palmeiras (£32m rising to potential £34.2m)

Initially, I was going to give Allan a C. My first thought was about that first half against Norwich. It was a rude awakening to English football as Darlin Yongwa bullied him.

Full credit to Maresca though, he moved him to the left at half-time and, three minutes in, he scored a superb goal. It is too early to tell if he is an upgrade on Savinho and this season will be a case of adjusting him to the Premier League.

Considering Palmeiras wanted £85m and City got him for a fraction of that, this feels like good business. Let’s hope we see more good signs moving forward. B

Iliman Ndiaye – Everton (£60m rising to potential £65m)

The first of the big hitters is Ndiaye. We have all seen his quality for Everton and it was surprising the Toffees let him go so late in the window. But that says more about them, than the quality he possesses.

He hasn’t registered an assist for City yet, but should have, had it not been for Erling Haaland producing an uncharacteristic miss. Ndiaye deserves particular plaudits for his performance off the bench against United. The 26-year-old helped turn the game in City’s favour and he clearly has the presence to be a success.

We have no doubt the forward will produce plenty of goals and assists before the year is out. B+

Ayyoub Bouaddi – Lille (£85m)

It isn’t often you spend £85m and feel like you have snagged a bargain. But that’s exactly the case with Bouaddi. The fact he hasn’t started more games says a lot for the two remaining players on this list.

His display against Porto in the Champions League was very impressive. He dictated the match on his first start for the club and provides the luxury of a like-for-like replacement in midfield. City’s strength in depth is scary.

Plus, he’s only 18! It’s startling to think how good he could still become. A

Elliot Anderson – Nottingham Forest (£116m)

City knew they were getting a brilliant midfielder when they decided to splash the cash on Anderson. However, it feels like he has performed even better than many expected him to.

The World Cup experience has matured him and that’s just as well because, without Rodri, he needed to be the main guy. Nobody could replace Rodri, but Anderson has slotted in brilliantly and nobody has so far complained they are missing the Ballon d’Or winner.

That is a credit to Anderson and if he stays at City for as long as Rodri did, he will have been worth every penny. A

Enzo Fernandez – Chelsea (£125m)

This move split opinions on deadline day. There was no escaping his huge price tag and that came with its own pressure. Then there was the World Cup shenanigans that has seen boos follow him up and down the country.

However, he has channelled that energy to become the missing piece of Maresca’s puzzle. He can play across the central midfield roles with ease and he has added that bite to the team that all Premier League champions have, in some form or another.

‘He’s in your head’ is starting to drown out the boos and he could end up being the difference between City winning the Premier League and being runners up. A

“It’s crazy when you think about it,” says Ryan Cardwell, former youth scout at Liverpool and Southampton.

“In what other kind of world would 15 and 16-year-olds be spoken about in the media like this?”

This summer alone, all six of the Premier League’s wealthiest clubs either signed a highly-rated academy player from another, or lost a youngster to a direct rival.

“It is such a competitive market,” Cardwell explains. “There are now tens of transfers between the elite academies every summer, when it used to be the case that if you were already at one of those, you would likely stay the course.

“The race for talent is huge – you look at what teams are spending on transfers for senior players and it’s enormous, so if you can spot a player earlier and offset some of that financial risk, you’re going to do so.”

Some inside football claim that the transfer of Rio Ngumoha – the now 18-year-old winger who was called up to this month’s senior England squad – from Chelsea to Liverpool at the age of 15 in 2024 ushered in a new era of competition for academy players among the nation’s elite.

One of the major factors is Brexit. Before 2021 English clubs were allowed to sign academy players over the age of 16 who held European Union passports.

Since the UK left the EU, foreign players cannot join English clubs until they reach 18.

“Heathrow and Gatwick [airports] on a Friday night were inundated with scouts going to other countries to look for young players”, says Caldwell.

“Belgium and the Netherlands were full of scouts for Premier League clubs.

“Now it’s the competition between English clubs that has increased, looking at each other’s players, including the old-school ‘top six’ but also the likes of Southampton, Aston Villa, and Fulham.”

Young players have further added financial value – youth signings don’t count towards the Premier League’s squad cost ratio rules, and any future sale counts as ‘pure profit’ in club accounts.

Advances in video technology and data analysis mean more young players are being identified, tracked and approached by rival clubs than ever before.

2

Manchester United‘s Bruno Fernandes has had a positive start to the season in spite of his team’s poor showing.

Start to season

While United sit in 12th place in the league and have already been knocked out of the EFL Cup, Fernandes has scored four goals, including a hat-trick against Ipswich Town.

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The Portugal international also started for his nation in their 1-0 win over Wales in the Nations League last night.

Fernandes played in the unusual position on the left of midfield for new manager Jorge Jesus. The United captain was able to contribute five key passes in the match and boasted a passing percentage of 86%.

In the manager’s press conference after the match, Jesus claimed Fernandes “can do better” in the future in this position than he did against Wales.

Bruno response

Speaking after the match, to Sport TV in comments carried by Portuguese paper Record, Fernandes defended his coach’s selection.

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He claimed, “if you notice, I’ve rarely been out on the wing. I’ve been defending, yes—marking the fullback, pressing him in the higher areas of the field.”

He continued to elaborate by claiming, “otherwise, it’s very much about the coach’s vision: having a player in the middle who can link up play, drop back to build from the back, provide support to both the centre forward and the second striker, create a triangle through the middle and on the wings, and help on both sides of the field. That’s what I did.”

Fernandes also asserted that new manager Jesus expects him to play in a number of different positions and roles whilst he is coach of the national team.

The 32-year-old stated, “the coach asked me to play this role for this game. He’s already told me that I can play in different positions under him, so for me, the most important thing is that whatever I do helps the team, and I’ll always do my best in whatever position the coach puts me in.”

Fernandes will next be in action on Sunday against Norway.

He will finally come up against his teammate Patrick Dorgu when they face Denmark on Thursday night next week.

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Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii will start on the wing for the first time for Australia with Ben Donaldson backed at fly half for their meeting with South Africa in Perth.

Suaalii has played at outside centre and full-back since crossing codes from rugby league in 2024 but switches role as new Wallabies boss Les Kiss seeks to get the best out of the 23-year-old’s athletic talent.

His switch to the left wing sees Hunter Paisami and Len Ikitau paired in midfield, with Donaldson partnered by Ryan Lonergan in the halves.

Brandon Paenga-Amosa splits Angus Bell and Allan Alaalatoa in an experienced front row in the sole change to the starting pack that featured in the drawn Test against Argentina last month.

Kiss opts for six forwards on the bench as he prepares for the physical challenge that the Springboks will bring.

“We’ve had a solid preparation window here in Perth ahead of what’s going to be a massive Test against South Africa,” Kiss, as yet unbeaten in four matches as Australia head coach, said.

“Playing against the number one team in the world focuses the mind and we have worked hard on key areas to meet this challenge and continue to grow our game.”

Australia XV to face South Africa in Perth (Sunday 27 September, 10.45am BST): 1 Angus Bell, 2 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 3 Allan Alaalatoa; 4 Josh Canham, 5 Jeremy Williams; 6 Rob Valetini, 7 Fraser McReight, 8 Harry Wilson (capt.); 9 Ryan Lonergan, 10 Ben Donaldson; 11 Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, 12 Hunter Paisami, 13 Len Ikitau, 14 Max Jorgensen; 15 Tom Wright.

Replacements: 16 Billy Pollard, 17 Aidan Ross, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 20 Tom Hooper, 21 Carlo Tizzano; 22 Tate McDemott, 23 Harry Potter.

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A platitude often floated in the early days of spring training is everyone in a team’s camp might see a chance to contribute at some point during a long season. It is a calming notion when rosters are still forming and hopes are nascent and October feels far away.

Thursday night, with their season and playoff hopes perhaps on the line, the Houston Astros witnessed it manifest.

Two rookies who were not on their opening day roster, who did not debut until midseason, who were at Triple-A earlier this month, propelled the Astros to a 7-5 win over the A’s at Sutter Health Park that held their position in the American League West race with three days remaining.

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With the Rangers winning earlier in the day, the Astros needed to win to stay tied atop the division with Texas, against whom they own the tiebreaker. No two players proved more important to the effort than center fielder Lucas Spence and reliever Miguel Ullola.

Spence, recalled from Triple-A a day earlier amid Houston‘s center-field injuries, playing in his 16th major-league game, hit three home runs. They were his first in the majors. A three-run homer gave Houston an early lead. A solo shot wrested it back in the sixth after the A’s had erased it.

Another in the ninth padded a one-run lead. Spence became the 14th player in Astros history to record a three-homer game, per Baseball Reference. At 23 years and 240 days, he is the second-youngest. Yordan Alvarez, who had one at 22 years and 44 days old in 2019, was the youngest.

Ullola, making his 10th major-league outing, two days after he threw a career-high 33 pitches in Seattle, threw three scoreless relief innings on 35 pitches, creating stability in the middle of a pitching carousel.

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Starter Peter Lambert did not escape the third inning. The Astros trailed 4-3 when Ullola entered for the fifth. They led 5-4 when Ullola ended the seventh by inducing a fly out by Shea Langeliers, unleashing a burst of emotion on the mound. Ullola retired nine of 10 batters he faced.

While he worked, solo home runs by Isaac Paredes and Spence put the Astros back ahead, 5-4. Christian Walker made it 6-4 with a home run in the eighth. Zack Gelof pared the lead back to one with his second home run of the night in the bottom of the inning.

Bryan Abreu, called on for a four-out save after Josh Hader threw 44 pitches a night earlier, retired Jonah Heim to end the eighth with two runners on base. Spence provided an insurance run in the ninth. Abreu returned to the mound and finished a win that felt mandatory.

Mason Barnett goes six for A’s

Barnett, a 25-year-old right-hander, entered with a 7.16 ERA in 44 major-league innings this year. None of his previous 10 major-league starts had lasted six innings. This one did.

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The Astros mustered four hits against Barnett, who walked two batters and struck out six. Two of those hits cleared the fence: Spence’s three-run home run in the second inning and Paredes’ solo home run in the sixth. The latter tied the game after Barnett had retired 11 of his last 12 hitters.

Barnett led with a four-seam fastball that averaged 93.7 mph, throwing it 51% of the time. Astros hitters whiffed on six of 20 swings against it and averaged an 88.1 mph exit velocity on six put into play. Paredes did drive a 3-1 four-seamer onto the roof of the clubhouse beyond left field to forge a 4-4 tie.

After that swing, Barnett retired his next three batters to finish the sixth at 87 pitches. His six innings and eight strikeouts, against an Astros offense that entered with the majors’ second-fewest runs scored since the Aug. 3 trade deadline, were both career highs.

Quick hook for Peter Lambert

Lambert worked his first two innings scoreless. He struck out six of his first 11 batters faced. His outing derailed quickly in the third inning.

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After a leadoff walk turned the A’s lineup over, Lambert struck out his next two batters. Shea Langeliers singled after overturning a called third strike with an ABS challenge. Jeff McNeil then hit a 2-2 fastball into the visitors’ bullpen. Lambert spun around and put his hands on his head in apparent disbelief.

McNeil’s swing tied the game. Two pitches later, Gelof hit a changeup 413 feet to straightaway center field to put the A’s ahead. A single by Donovan Walton marked the fourth straight hit against Lambert and ended his night. He recorded eight outs on 62 pitches.

It marked the third straight game the Astros’ starter did not complete the third. Cristian Javier threw two innings Tuesday before exiting with a groin injury. Ethan Pecko was chased in the third inning Wednesday in Seattle.

The outing was Lambert’s shortest of the season. He had completed at least five innings in all but four of his previous 27 starts. The quick hook likely reflected the magnitude of this game, but it could potentially also keep Lambert in play for an appearance later in the series.

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Big swings from Lucas Spence

Houston’s embattled outfield is limping to the finish line. Astros outfielders entered Thursday with a .651 OPS this season, the majors’ lowest mark. Center fielder Daulton Varsho, the Astros’ lone trade deadline addition, landed on the injured list Thursday with a wrist ailment. Outfielder Brice Matthews returned to the IL on Wednesday after aggravating the left knee that sidelined him for two months.

Matthews’ IL placement ushered Spence back to the majors. Spence had played in 15 games for Houston prior to Thursday, going 6-for-40 with one extra-base hit.

After one-out singles by Walker and Cam Smith in the second, Spence drove a changeup from Barnett an estimated 429 feet to right field at 105.8 mph off the bat for his first major-league home run. Spence has 24 home runs in 859 career minor-league at-bats, so power is not his forte. His first with the Astros lent production from a depleted position group that has sorely lacked it.

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His next two created a historic night and kept the Astros on pace in a division race.

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This article originally published at Rookie Lucas Spence hits 3 home runs as Astros beat Athletics to stay tied for AL West lead.