ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles sounded off on the ineptness of his offensive line last season following Wednesday’s practice at Missouri Western State University.

Rarely one to speak out, the Pro Bowler acknowledged the hodge-podge of players the Chiefs had block for him was a big reason why he was less productive last season. It was also a big reason why he was banged up almost the entire way.

Kansas City lost starting guard Jeff Allen to a season-ending injury in Week 1, then had to make do with fill-ins Mike McGlynn and Jeff Linkenbach the rest of the way.

Not only is Allen back in the mix, but the Chiefs traded for Pro Bowl offensive guard Ben Grubbs in the offseason – much to the delight of Charles.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Lorenzo Cain went 4 for 4 with a home run and Yordano Ventura pitched six scoreless innings as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Detroit Tigers 6-1 Tuesday night.

Cain, who raised his average to .316, led off the sixth with his 12th homer, a mammoth shot to left field. Mike Moustakas snapped an 0-for-18 drought with a homer to right field with Kendrys Morales aboard in the same inning.

Ventura (7-7), who is 3-1 since the All-Star break, limited the Tigers to two hits but walked a career-high six. He struck out eight, tying his season high.

Eric Hosmer hit a two-run homer in the first, giving him 21 RBIs in the opening inning.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs have waived wide receiver Armon Binns and linebacker Sage Harold and signed offensive tackle Anthony Dima and wide receiver Adam Drake in a series of moves Saturday.

Binns had not been practicing after hurting his knee earlier in training camp. Harold was considered a longshot to make the roster at linebacker.

Dima signed with the Cleveland Browns after going undrafted last year, and also has spent time with the Houston Texans. Drake led the Football Championship Subdivision in yards receiving last season at Eastern Illinois with 93 catches for 1,321 yards and 12 touchdowns.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Alex Rios beat the tag at the plate on a grounder in the eighth inning and the Kansas City Royals edged the Chicago White Sox 5-4 Sunday for a three-game sweep.

The Royals have won three straight games by one run for the first time since August 2012.

Kendrys Morales hit a two-run homer that put Kansas City ahead 3-0 in the first.

It was 4-all in the eighth when Rios singled with one out off Jeff Petricka (3-3) and Paulo Orlando followed with a ground-rule double. Omar Infante hit a grounder to first baseman Jose Abreu, and Rios slid home ahead of the tag.

Kelvin Herrera (3-2) picked up the victory despite blowing a save and giving up the tying run in the eighth on Melky Cabrera’s RBI single with two outs. Ryan Madson pitched a spotless ninth to earn his second save in four chances.

The new Vanier Football Complex is open and operational at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Bill Snyder met with the media for the first time in the team theatre in the new facility during Media Day on Saturday.

“I know that our players truly enjoy it. They like the area that they’re in immensely. And they have a great appreciation as I do for the people that have made it all possible.”

Snyder referred to the donors that have invested millions of dollars to build the new facility. “So many of them greatly appreciate it. Obviously the Vanier family, the Ice family, with such substantial gifts. And our players are well aware of that and have an appreciation for all of those people.”

Snyder noted that the players and himself appreciate the people of the past at Kansas State. “Past players, past coaches and staff, past administration, just people that built the foundation for what this program is all about and really made this possible.”

Kaleb Prewett, defensive back noted, “We’ve got a lot of cool stuff in there. We’ve got an amazing locker room. ” Prewett added there’s even a barbership on the player’s lounge.

Dana Dimel, Co-offensive Coordinator, first arrived at K-State as a player in 1984, and has served many years on the Wildcat coaching staff. He remembers the old facilities in 1984. “The facilities were pretty dilapidated, to say the least. We had team meetings in fold-away chairs, and locker rooms where the shower rooms were small.” Dimel added there were a lot of money issues at that time.  “We weren’t drawing that well because we weren’t winning. When you don’t draw well you don’t have a lot of money in the program so the facilities were far far behind everybody else’s in the country. ” But this is a different time for Kansas State. “But now we’re holding pace with some of the top programs in the country, so it’s just been such a dramatic change.”

In addition to the new building,  new ADA seating with enhanced sightlines has built behind and above the north end zone.  The new Carl and Mary Ice Video Board is connected to the current west-side stadium concourse for access to entrance gates and stadium concessions and restrooms.

 

Kansas State football fans get their first look at the 2015 Wildcats on Saturday, Aug. 15, as K-State hosts the annual Academy Sports + Outdoors Fan Appreciation Day at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Fans are asked to park on the west side of Bill Snyder Family Stadium and enter through Gate B for the free event, which begins at 5 p.m.  Seating will be open on the west side in Sections 1 – 9 and fans can watch the final hour of practice.

Following the practice Bill Snyder and the 2015 team captains will address the crowd prior to a one-hour autograph session on the field with players and coaches. Those participating are asked to limit the number of autographed items to one person and are encouraged to provide their own item to be signed.

The West Stadium Center ticket office will be open during the event for fans wishing to purchase single game tickets.  Only scattered single seats remain for the Baylor game, general admission tickets are still available for the Iowa State game and a small amount of reserved seating groups are left for the regular season finale against West Virginia.

 

DETROIT (AP) – Ian Kinsler hit a two-run homer off Ryan Madson in the ninth inning to give the Detroit Tigers an 8-6 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

Jose Iglesias led off with a single against Madson (1-2) before Kinsler hit a 2-0 fastball into the bullpen in left field.

Alex Wilson (2-3) got the win after getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth.

Victor Martinez hit a three-run homer in the third and a two-run shot in the fifth to help the Tigers take a 6-3 lead. Martinez hadn’t homered since July 17 and hadn’t had a multi-homer game since hitting two for Boston against Toronto on Sept. 17, 2010.

The Royals tied it with a three-run seventh. Drew Butera led off with a homer, and Kendrys Morales had a two-run double.

The game was delayed for several minutes when a squirrel ran around on the field. It briefly ended up in the Tigers’ dugout, then raced into left field.

Kansas State will renew one of its oldest rivalries with a matchup against Missouri in the semifinals of the CBE Hall of Fame classic, as announced by the National Association of Basketball Coaches on Thursday.

The contest will be the first game of a semifinal doubleheader on Monday, Nov. 23 at the Spring Center in Kansas City.  K-State and Missouri will tip off at 6 p.m. followed by North Carolina and Northwestern at 8 p.m. The winners will meet in the championship game at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 24, with the consolation game tipping off at 6:30 p.m.

As part of its participation in the tournament, K-State will play two home games at Bramlage Coliseum beginning with Maryland – Eastern Shore on Friday, Nov. 13 and concluding with Columbia on Monday, Nov. 16.

K-State has an extensive history against Missouri, playing 235 times between 1907 and 2012, including on 23 occasions in Kansas City. The Wildcats hold a slight edge in the all-time series, 119-116.

The CBE Classic is named after the College Basketball Experience, the award-winning college basketball fan facility adjacent to the Sprint Center, which also houses the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

Tickets in the K-state section for the championship round games at the Sprint Center are currently on sale in the Athletics Ticket Office for $64 for lower level end zone and $134 for the lower level sidelines. Fans can purchase these tickets in a variety of ways, including online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets, by phone at ( 800 ) 221.CATS or in-person at Bramlage Coliseum.

The Kansas State University Athletic Department has issued a release that says in conjunction with the opening of the new Vanier Family Football Complex and the K-State Athletic Department’s goal of fiscal responsibility, K-State Athletics will hold a live public auction at 10 a.m. Saturday.  Fans wil lbe able to purchase various department equipment items, furniture and memorabilia.

The auction, which will be held inside the Brandeberry Indoor Complex, will be organized and operated by Jeff Ruckert Realty.  It will feature items such as furniture, office furniture, weight and exercise equipment, K-State Athletics memorabilia and collectables, and other merchandise.

A majority of the items being sold at auction are from the original Vanier Football Complex. Visit www.ruckertauctions.com

DETROIT (AP) – Matt Boyd pitched seven strong innings in his Tigers debut and Anthony Gose and Ian Kinsler hit key triples as the Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals 2-1 on Wednesday night.

Acquired last week from Toronto in the David Price trade, Boyd (1-2) only allowed one run on seven hits and didn’t walk a batter in a career-long seven innings. He received a standing ovation when he exited.

The Tigers broke a scoreless tie in the third when Gose’s two-out triple over the head of Lorenzo Cain brought home Tyler Collins.

Johnny Cueto (7-7) couldn’t pick up his first win for Kansas City despite only allowing two runs on five hits in seven innings. Cueto walked two and struck out two.