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KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Denny Hamlin had walked out of Victory Lane after winning a thrilling NASCAR Cup Series duel over Kyle Larson with a last-lap pass at Kansas Speedway on Sunday just in time to hear his crew chief, Chris Gabehart, make a bold proclamation.

“He’s the most talented race car driver in the world,” Gabehart was saying.

Awkward, because Gabehart wasn’t talking about his own driver.

“Tells you what he thinks about me,” Hamlin said with a wry grin.

Gabehart was talking about Larson, who was leading in the closing laps on a sizzling day in the heartland. But it was Hamlin who was better this time. He spent about 30 laps stalking Larson before making a couple of failed attempts at the lead in the closing laps. Finally, heading onto the backstretch on the final one, Hamlin pulled alongside Larson and made the slightest of contact, sending him bumping into the outside wall and giving Hamlin a clear path to the finish line.

The victory ended a 33-race winless drought for Hamlin dating to last year’s Coca-Cola 600. And along with giving Hamlin a record fourth win at Kansas, it gave Joe Gibbs Racing its 400th win overall in NASCAR’s top series.

“I was sideways. He was sideways. I knew it was going to be close whether he could clear me,” Hamlin said. “I was grinding his left side, trying to keep the side-draft as much as I could. It’s such a super-sensitive part and I hooked him at the end.”

Hamlin said he planned to speak with Larson about the finish at some point.

“I was really loose,” Larson said. “He was able to finally get my inside off two. It seemed he was side-drafting me aggressively. I don’t know if he finally got me turned sideways, but turned me into the outside wall and he got the win.”

So what does Gabehart think of his own driver?

“I’m so proud of Denny to work over — in my view — the most talented race car driver in the world,” he said.

Larson finished second and William Byron, who was two laps down for more than 50 laps during the middle portion of the race, rallied to join his Hendrick Motorsports teammate in the top three. Bubba Wallace, who won the fall race at Kansas, was fourth while Ross Chastain rounded out the top five before tempers flew on pit road.

Chastain, who has drawn the ire of many drivers this season with his aggressiveness on the track, found himself in another heated confrontation Sunday. He had gotten into Noah Gragson with about 60 laps to go and sent him for a spin, and Gragson walked up to the Trackhouse Racing driver afterward to make his displeasure known.

Gragson put his hands on Chastain, who responded with a sweeping right hook that appeared to connect. Gragson tried to return the punch, but he was pulled away by security and NASCAR officials.

“I’m sick and tired of it,” Gragson said of Chastain’s driving style. “The guy runs into everyone. When you have guys like Chase Elliott and other guys telling you to beat his ass, everyone is just sick of him.”

Chastain accepted some of the blame for the spin but didn’t have much to say about the punch.

“I got tight off four for sure,” Chastain said. “Noah and I have a very similar attitude on the race track. We train together, we prepare together, we know every little bit about each other. I definitely crowded him out of four.”

Kyle Busch had railed against Chastain over the radio before crashing out of the race on a restart. Afterward, Busch seemed to take aim at the performance of the Next Gen car, which he said made it too difficult to pass.

“Not racing like it once used to be,” he said after dropping an on-air expletive. “You’re faster than a guy, you run him down three-tenths a lap and you stall when you get there. Part of it’s the car. They can aero-block you, pinch you, burn up your tires and do everything else to hold their position and then you get passed from behind. Very frustrating.”

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Hard-throwing rookie Misiorowski going to ASG

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Hard-throwing rookie Misiorowski going to ASG

Hard-throwing rookie Jacob Misiorowski is a National League All-Star replacement, giving the Milwaukee Brewers right-hander a chance to break Paul Skenes‘ record for the fewest big league appearances before playing in the Midsummer Classic.

Misiorowski was named Friday night to replace Chicago Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd, who will be unavailable for the All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Atlanta because he is scheduled to start Saturday at the New York Yankees.

The 23-year-old Misiorowski has made just five starts for the Brewers, going 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA while averaging 99.3 mph on his fastball, with 89 pitches that have reached 100 mph.

If he pitches at Truist Park, Misiorowski will make it consecutive years for a player to set the mark for fewest big league games before an All-Star showing.

Skenes, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander getting ready for his second All-Star appearance, had made 11 starts in the majors when he was chosen as the NL starter for last year’s All-Star Game at Texas. He pitched a scoreless inning.

“I’m speechless,” said a teary-eyed Misiorowski, who said he was given the news a few minutes before the Brewers’ 8-3 victory over Washington. “It’s awesome. It’s very unexpected and it’s an honor.”

Misiorowski is the 30th first-time All-Star and 16th replacement this year. There are now 80 total All-Stars.

“He’s impressive. He’s got some of the best stuff in the game right now, even though he’s a young pitcher,” said Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is a starting AL outfielder for his seventh All-Star nod. “He’s going to be a special pitcher in this game for a long time so I think he deserved it and it’s going be pretty cool for him and his family.”

Carlos Rodón, Carlos Estévez and Casey Mize were named replacement pitchers on the AL roster.

The New York Yankees‘ Rodón, an All-Star for the third time in five seasons, will replace teammate Max Fried for Tuesday’s game in Atlanta. Fried will be unavailable because he is scheduled to start Saturday against the Chicago Cubs.

In his final start before the All-Star game, Rodón allowed four hits and struck out eight in eight innings in an 11-0 victory over the Cubs.

“This one’s a little special for me,” said Rodón, an All-Star in 2021 and ’22 who was 3-8 in his first season with the Yankees two years ago before rebounding. “I wasn’t good when I first got here, and I just wanted to prove that I wasn’t to going to give up and just put my best foot forward and try to win as many games as I can.”

The Kansas City Royals‘ Estévez replaces Texas’ Jacob deGrom, who is scheduled to start at Houston on Saturday night. Estévez was a 2023 All-Star when he was with the Los Angeles Angels.

Mize takes the spot held by Boston‘s Garrett Crochet, who is scheduled to start Saturday against Tampa Bay. Mize gives the Tigers six All-Stars, most of any team and tied for the franchise record.

Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will replace Tampa Bay‘s Brandon Lowe, who went on the injured list with left oblique tightness. The additions of Estévez and Garcia give the Royals four All-Stars, matching their 2024 total.

The Seattle Mariners announced center fielder Julio Rodríguez will not participate, and he was replaced by teammate Randy Arozarena. Rodríguez had been voted onto the AL roster via the players’ ballot. The Mariners, who have five All-Stars, said Rodríguez will use the break to “recuperate, rest and prepare for the second half.”

Arozarena is an All-Star for the second time. He started in left field for the AL two years ago, when he was with Tampa Bay. Arozarena was the runner-up to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the 2023 Home Run Derby.

Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen, a first-time All-Star, is replacing Angels left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who is scheduled to start Saturday night at Arizona. Rasmussen is 7-5 with a 2.82 ERA in 18 starts.

San Diego added a third NL All-Star reliever in lefty Adrián Morejón, who replaces Philadelphia starter Zack Wheeler. The Phillies’ right-hander is scheduled to start at San Diego on Saturday night. Morejón entered the weekend with a 1.71 ERA in 45 appearances.

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Cardinals’ Arenado (sprained finger) exits early

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Cardinals' Arenado (sprained finger) exits early

The St. Louis Cardinals removed star third baseman Nolan Arenado from their 6-5 loss to the visiting Atlanta Braves on Friday night because of a sprained right index finger.

Arenado, who was 1-for-3, was replaced in the seventh inning by Thomas Saggese. While it was unclear how Arenado hurt the finger, it is the same injury that kept him out of two games last week during a series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Arenado has 10 home runs and 42 RBIs in 84 games this season.

Field Level Media contributed to this report.

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Twins SS Correa helped off with sprained ankle

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Twins SS Correa helped off with sprained ankle

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa had to be helped off the field after injuring his right ankle when Pittsburgh‘s Tommy Pham slid into him at second base.

Pham was trying to get to second on his liner off the wall in right field in the seventh inning of the Twins’ 2-1 victory Friday night. Right fielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr.’s throw beat Pham, whose batting helmet made contact with Correa’s lower leg.

Correa rolled over and stayed on the ground before leaving the game. Brooks Lee moved from second base to shortstop to replace Correa. The team said Correa had a mild ankle sprain.

Correa said X-rays were negative and that he expects to sit out Saturday’s game, adding that he “hopefully” can play on Sunday, according to MLB.com.

The 30-year-old Correa is already in his 11th big league season and has been a mainstay at shortstop for the Twins since signing as a free agent in 2022. He missed about half of last season with a concussion and a plantar fascia injury, the latter of which kept him from playing in the All-Star Game after he was chosen for the third time.

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