ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Rookie center fielder Denzel Clarke made yet another spectacular catch for the Athletics, this time reaching high above the wall to rob the Los Angeles Angels' Nolan Schanuel of a home run on Monday night.
The Angels had one out and no one on in the bottom of the first when Schanuel launched a 1-0 splitter from Grant Holman toward left-center. Clarke raced back and planted his right foot about halfway up the wall in a perfectly timed leap and grabbed the top for support. He extended the upper half of his body several feet beyond the wall and made a backhand grab with his left arm fully stretched out.
Clarke let out a roar after the catch. Schanuel gazed toward the outfield in disbelief, and Holman held his hands above his head.
Clarke has made several terrific catches since he debuted on May 23. He robbed the Blue Jays' Alejandro Kirk of a home run in his native Toronto a week and a half ago. And against Baltimore in Sacramento on Friday, he robbed Jorge Mateo of an extra-base hit with a backhand grab as he sprinted full speed into the wall in left-center.
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Athletics outfielder Denzel Clarke collides into the wall after making the catch during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles Friday, June 6, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)
Athletics outfielder Denzel Clarke holds the ball up after colliding into the wall during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles Friday, June 6, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Sara Nevis)
Athletics center fielder Denzel Clarke (1) tries to reach for Houston Astros' Jose Altuve's two-run home run during the fourth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)
ADELBODEN, Switzerland (AP) — The big surprise of the World Cup slalom season scored his second win Sunday adding to his fast-rising reputation before the Winter Olympics.
Paco Rassat raced to the fastest time in the second run to rise from fourth place, and push two Norwegians down the podium steps after they had been fastest in the morning run.
United States-born Atle Lie McGrath was edged out by 0.18 seconds and first-run leader Henrik Kristoffersen dropped to third, trailing 0.20 behind Rassat.
The 27-year-old Frenchman had a career-best result of ninth in World Cup races before this Olympic season started.
Rassat now has two wins, a third place and two sixth places this season and shapes as a medal contender for the Milano Cortina Olympics. The men’s slalom is on Feb. 16 at Bormio.
“To win on this crazy hill at Adelboden, It’s something really unbelievable," Rassat told Swiss broadcaster RTS, describing his season as “a magnificent surprise.”
Rassat also took the lead in the seasonlong World Cup slalom standings, ahead of his France teammate Clément Noël, the defending Olympic champion. Noël tied for eighth Sunday.
McGrath was runner-up in the Adelboden slalom for the third time in four years.
“It’s kind of crazy,” said McGrath, whose father Felix skied for the U.S. at the 1988 Calgary Olympics. “I’m of course super happy, it’s such a challenging slope and mentally it’s one of the toughest places to perform because of this amazing crowd.”
Another packed finish-area crowd at Adelboden observed a minute’s silence before racing for the victims of the fatal fire in a bar in nearby Crans-Montana on New Year’s Day. Crans-Montana hosts men’s and women’s World Cup races in three weeks’ time.
The World Cup overall standings leader, four-time title holder Marco Odermatt, does not ski slalom and his huge lead was cut a little by Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, who placed fourth. Pinheiro Braathen was second to Odermatt in the classic giant slalom Saturday.
The men’s World Cup circuit stays in central Switzerland for the storied Lauberhorn meeting at Wengen, for a super-G on Friday, the classic downhill Saturday and a slalom Sunday.
AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing
Norway's Atle Lie McGrath reacts at the finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen reacts at the finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
France's Paco Rassat speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)
France's Paco Rassat reacts at the finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Finland's Eduard Hallberg speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Norway's Atle Lie McGrath speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)
Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen ahead of an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup slalom, in Adelboden, Switzerland, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
