MIAMI (AP) — Sandy Alcantara pitched four-hit ball over seven sharp innings, Kyle Stowers homered and the Miami Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies 1-0 on Tuesday night.
Xavier Edwards singled and had two walks, and Liam Hicks had two hits for the Marlins, who won their second straight after ending a franchise-record 12-game losing streak Monday.
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Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins' Kyle Stowers runs the bases after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins' Otto Lopez runs to reach on a fielding error by Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Alec Bohm during the third inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber, who leads the National League with 33 homers, didn’t play because of a gastrointestinal illness.
Alcantara (11-6) struck out five and walked one. It was his major league-leading 16th quality start and the 111th of his career, surpassing Ricky Nolasco for the franchise record.
Calvin Faucher relieved Alcantara and thew a perfect eighth before Pete Fairbanks closed with another perfect inning for his 14th save.
The Marlins struck quickly on Stowers’ shot in the first. Stowers drove a knuckle curve from Phillies starter Aaron Nola (3-9) over the wall in right-center for his 14th homer.
Alcantara didn’t allow a hit until Bryan De La Cruz reached on an infield single with two outs in the fifth.
Alec Bohm walked leading off the second and Brandon Marsh reached on a fielder’s choice throwing error by first baseman Stowers before Alcantara struck out Edmundo Sosa, retired Justin Crawford on a groundout and De La Cruz on a pop fly.
In the sixth, Bryce Harper and Bohm hit consecutive two-out singles against Alcantara. But the 30-year-old right-hander struck out Marsh looking to end the threat.
Standout defensive plays also helped Alcantara. Center fielder Jakob Marsee tracked down a drive by Harper and made a leaping catch at the wall to start the fourth. Third baseman Graham Pauley dove and caught Sosa’s line drive for the first out in the seventh.
Nola allowed one run and five hits over 5 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out four as Philadelphia slipped to 3-8 since the All-Star break.
Phillies LHP Jesús Luzardo (9-5, 3.31 ERA) will start the series finale Wednesday against RHP Ryan Gusto (0-2, 4.50).
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins' Kyle Stowers runs the bases after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins' Otto Lopez runs to reach on a fielding error by Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Alec Bohm during the third inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — At 60, Too $hort is helping usher hip-hop into what he calls its senior citizen era. Just don’t expect him to rap like one.
The Oakland hip-hop pioneer is still recording, touring and talking slick more than four decades after he began selling homemade tapes on the streets of the Bay Area. While the genre has long treated aging like an unwritten career-ending offense, Too $hort is breaking the rule and challenging the culture’s elder statesmen to keep going with him.
His latest proof is “Sir Too $hort Vol. 2: Drink & Smoke,” his 23rd studio album, produced entirely by longtime collaborator Lil Jon. It arrives Friday, exactly 20 years after the release of his enduring hit “Blow the Whistle.”
Too $hort, whose catalog also includes classics like “The Ghetto” and “Shake That Monkey,” says he isn’t interested in slowing down anytime soon. That was certainly evident when he and E-40 performed at the NFL Honors in February.
In an interview with The Associated Press this week, Too $hort reflected on turning 60, challenging hip-hop’s age limits, preserving the legacy of Lil Jon’s late son, DJ Young Slade, the staying power of “Blow the Whistle” and why he has no plans to stop until “the wheels fall off.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
TOO $HORT: At the age of 14 or 15, my mentality was, “Let people hear this music. We’re going to rock some house parties and high school dances and sell some tapes to fans in the streets.” When I got my foot in the door, I knew this was going to be my job. It was always “till the wheels fall off.” It was never, “Let’s do this for 30 or 40 years.”
I’ve always said the day hip-hop is no longer my job is probably the day I’ll stop. But the love I have for hip-hop won’t allow me to stop recording. I’ve never taken a long break. I’ve continuously been in the studio, continuously doing shows. I just keep it going because it’s my job.
TOO $HORT: I truly love making music. It’s never felt like work. I could have stopped after “Blow the Whistle” and been like, “Story told.” But somebody’s got to go out into these uncharted waters and blaze the trail. Look at E-40,Snoop Dogg,Fat Joe and the other guys who kept going after the kids were grown and the grandkids were on the way.
Who laid the rule down that in hip-hop you gotta stop at 40? Every milestone they said was old. First it was 30, then it was 40, then it was 50. Now we got senior citizen rappers, and this ... is real. Hip-hop is entering the place where jazz, blues and R&B have older artists who are still performing and recording. We should too.
TOO $HORT: I don’t know if you could give me the ingredients and tell me how to do it again; I don’t think I could. It had to happen organically. I give Lil Jon a lot of credit because he’s made a lot of songs we’ve loved since the day they came out. We make good music together, and that’s why I’m excited for people to hear what we’re still doing 30 years after we first worked together.
TOO $HORT: His son passed away after we finished recording. We had actually done about twice as many songs as ended up on this project. I saw how it affected Jon, and I had recently lost my brother, so I knew that feeling of loss. The whole time, Slade was producing or co-producing a lot of the tracks I was working on. The first thing that came to me was that I’d be more than proud to be part of his son’s legacy and give something to the world that would help him live forever. Jon keeps saying, “Slade’s legacy,” and I’m just trying to be a part of that and show the world we lost another good, talented person.
TOO $HORT: We did one in 2020, but it wasn’t a battle. We had a good time. We did a lot of laughing, a lot of togetherness. I didn’t want to battle 40 then, and I don’t want to battle him now. That’s my best friend in hip-hop. I’d sign up for me and 40 against anybody. That’d be fun. They haven’t had two groups. … I put that out there: Who wants to battle Too $hort and E-40 in Verzuz?
Too $hort poses for a portrait on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Too $hort poses for a portrait on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Too $hort poses for a portrait on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Too $hort poses for a portrait on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Too $hort poses for a portrait on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
