WRFC-AM (Athens, GA)

NEW YORK — George Lombard Jr. made history this month when he became the first New York Yankees shortstop to homer in his major league debut. Three weeks into his career, however, the rookie set a dubious mark by committing an error for the sixth straight game in Thursday night's 5-1 loss to the Houston Astros. Lombard has seven errors in his first 20 games and, after his latest miscue, the 21-year-old said his defense was not acceptable. “It’s something we’re trying to figure out,” Lombard said.

ATLANTA — Chris Sale already had thrown 97 pitches through eight innings, a full game for most pitchers in most games. Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss had relievers ready in the bullpen for the ninth. Even so, both knew Sale was not coming out Thursday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers. After learning before the game about the death of a friend, Sale had extra motivation to finish the shutout in Atlanta's 1-0 win for a series sweep. “He was on a mission,” Weiss said. “You could see it.

CLEVELAND — Dillon Gabriel threw three touchdown passes — two to Luke Floriea — and Taylen Green directed a 98-yard touchdown drive to help the Cleveland Browns beat the New England Patriots 37-13 on Thursday night in the final preseason game for both teams. Gabriel and Green got extended looks as they vie for the Browns' third quarterback spot. Gabriel got the start and played the first half while Green saw the second-half snaps.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Ian Wheeler scored on a 2-yard run with 1:06 left, Steve Buechele completed an off-balance pass to Dante Pettis for a 2-point conversion and the Buffalo Bills beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-27 in the preseason finale for each team Thursday night. The Steelers' last chance to pull ahead ended with Drew Allar's pass sailing behind tight end Lake McRee on fourth-and-7 with 44 seconds remaining.

ATLANTA — Chris Sale struck out 11 in a five-hit shutout, Drake Baldwin launched a leadoff homer against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and the Atlanta Braves edged the Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0 on Thursday night to complete a three-game sweep. Sale (13-9) threw 80 of his 109 pitches for strikes and did not walk a batter, lowering his ERA to 2.06 with his first complete game in more than seven years.

TAMPA, Fla. — City officials on Thursday approved a $2.3 billion deal for a new Tampa Bay Rays ballpark funded by public and private money. The 4-3 vote by the Tampa City Council came three months after a tentative agreement was reached for a stadium, which would include $967 million in tax money. Rays Chief Executive Officer Ken Babby said in a statement that the stadium project will “deliver lasting benefits” for the region.

ATLANTA — Tarik Skubal knows he will feel emotions when he makes his return to Detroit on Friday night to pitch against the Tigers only four weeks after he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Skubal says he hopes to focus on representing the Dodgers instead of dwelling on his memories with the Tigers at Comerica Park. He acknowledged it may not be easy to keep his emotions in check. “We'll see, right?” Skubal told SI.com on Wednesday. “The whole process was emotional.

ATLANTA — Min Woo Lee made his first trip to the Tour Championship a memorable one, playing bogey-free on a rain-softened East Lake for an 8-under 62 that matched his career low on the PGA Tour and gave him a two-shot lead Thursday. A pair of runner-up finishes this year, at Pebble Beach and the Scottish Open, made Lee a lock to be among the top 30 players who get a shot at the FedEx Cup, the $10 million prize and a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour.

MADRID — Rodri made his Barcelona debut in the team’s 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish League on Thursday, while Chelsea and Fulham advanced to the third round of the English League Cup. Barcelona's match was supposed to feature a tribute to Spain's World Cup champions but instead it became an act of support for the "estelada" flag, Catalonia's pro-independence symbol.

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs is facing misdemeanor charges of battery and criminal damage to property stemming from what police described as a physical confrontation with his girlfriend. Jacobs was arrested May 26 after police were called to his home to investigate a disturbance and was released from jail the next day. The charges were announced Thursday by Brown County District Attorney David Lasee.