NEW YORK -- Noah Syndergaard left his start for the New York Mets with a hamstring injury in the seventh inning of Saturday night's game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Syndergaard reached for his right hamstring after throwing a pitch. Mets manager Mickey Callaway and an athletic trainer went out to check on Syndergaard, who quickly walked off the field with a bit of a limp. He was later diagnosed with a strain and will be re-evaluated Sunday morning, Callaway said.

Robert Gsellman entered with New York leading 8-3. St. Louis scored three runs before the inning was over. The Mets held on to win 8-7.

"It was on that one pitch," Callaway said. "That deep in the game, if he feels anything, you get him out with a five-run lead."

Syndergaard threw 102 pitches. He was charged with five runs, four earned, and six hits in six-plus innings.

Syndergaard did not talk to reporters after the game.

"We really have no idea at this point," about the extent of the injury, Callaway said.

Earlier in the game, plate umpire Brian O'Nora left after getting hit in the groin by a foul ball. Matt Carpenter fouled off a pitch from Syndergaard in the third inning, and the ball bounced up and hit O'Nora. He staggered but stayed on his feet, and was checked by a Mets athletic trainer.

O'Nora, 56, initially remained in the game following a brief pause to gather himself. But a few pitches later, with Dexter Fowler at the plate, the veteran ump headed for the Mets' dugout in discomfort with his hand covering his mouth.

In April 2013, an intestinal tear forced O'Nora to make a sudden exit from a Phillies-Mets game at Citi Field.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

ATLANTA -- Atlanta Braves starter Sean Newcomb left Saturday's game after a scary scene in which he was hit in the back of the head by a line drive off the bat of Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto.

Newcomb was checked by a trainer and walked off the field under his own power in the third inning, escorted by two trainers. After the game, a 6-5 Phillies win, Braves manager Brian Snitker said Newcomb passed the concussion protocol and will be monitored overnight.

"Hopefully he gets through the night, sleeps and nothing happens, and he wakes up and he comes in here good," Snitker said. "He's got a mark on his head. But even when he's out on the field, he's like, 'I know what happened; I didn't [pass] out or anything.' So we might've ... hopefully we dodged a bullet."

Newcomb told reporters that he "remembered the whole play," and that his head is sore.

"Just going to keep rolling -- I think I'm feeling pretty good," Newcomb said.

The ball was clocked at 102 mph and caromed off Newcomb's head and sailed into the netting behind the Phillies' dugout on the third-base side. Realmuto covered his mouth with both hands as he ran to first base on what went as a ground-rule double.

The play occurred in the third inning at SunTrust Park. Newcomb turned his head as the ball approached and knelt on the mound immediately after getting hit. Catcher Tyler Flowers had him stay down while a trainer and Snitker came out to tend to the left-hander.

Touki Toussaint came on in relief of Newcomb.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

The Seattle Mariners traded American League home run leader Edwin Encarnacion to the New York Yankees for cash considerations and minor league pitcher Juan Then on Saturday night.

The Mariners are including significant money on Encarnacion's contract, which includes a $20 million club option with a $5 million buyout for the 2020 season, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Then, a 19-year-old right-hander from the Dominican Republic, returns to the Mariners organization, from which the Yankees acquired him in 2017.

Encarnacion, 36, has hit 21 home runs this season in 65 games. The Dominican slugger has 18 career home runs at Yankee Stadium, his second most at any stadium that he has not previously called home, trailing only Fenway Park.

How he will slot into the Yankees' lineup remains to be seen. For now, it would appear he will figure in the rotation at designated hitter. It's a group that, of late, has included regulars Luke Voit and Gary Sanchez as well as Clint Frazier -- and any other player in need of a partial day off.

"There's always room for good players," manager Aaron Boone said, laughing, before the trade was officially announced. Boone admitted to hearing some "rumors" of the trade during the Yankees' 8-4 win win over the Chicago White Sox.

In a matter of days, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge could join the list of Yankees DHs, as they are wrapping up rehab assignments with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Stanton already is expected back in pinstripes Tuesday, when the Yankees take on the Tampa Bay Rays in the second game of a three-game home series.

"I don't know what he felt about his situation [in Seattle], but I think anybody's excited to come to the Yankees with the potential that we feel like we have this year," said Yankees starter J.A. Happ, Encarnacion's former teammate in Toronto. "He's going to fit right in with our lineup. Taking a little pressure off other guys is a good thing."

Encarnacion, who has missed Seattle's past three games because of back soreness, also could provide added depth at the corner infield positions, where he has played before, and where the Yankees have need.

Gio Urshela has come along as New York's primary third baseman in the wake of Miguel Andujar's season-ending shoulder injury in April, and Voit emerged in spring training as the starter at first base. Although slick-fielding infielder DJ LeMahieu will play both positions virtually weekly as part of a rotation now that shortstop Didi Gregorius is back from the injured list, there's really no one else behind Urshela and Voit.

First baseman Kendrys Morales was traded to the Yankees from Oakland last month, but he has struggled in his time in the Bronx. Including a three-hit game last Tuesday against the Mets, Morales is hitting just .194 this season.

Following that strong afternoon in the Subway Series, Morales was put on the 10-day injured list with a left calf strain. Boone said earlier this weekend that the IL stint would be short.

But now with Morales out of the mix and his spot on the 40-man roster in apparent jeopardy, Encarnacion could be given his opportunities at first base. In Seattle this season, Encarnacion had split duties at first base and at DH, and he also played an inning at second base in a game in the Bronx last month. He hasn't played third since 2013.

However Encarnacion fits in the lineup, Happ believes he will be a perfect addition to the clubhouse.

"He doesn't say a lot, but he works hard and he's prepared," Happ said. "Those are some of the reasons I think he's going to really enjoy it here."

The trade largely was a surprise to Yankees fans, who have been vocal the past few weeks in asking for pitching help. With Yankees starters struggling with giving up the long ball in the first two games of this week's series in Chicago, that need has suddenly become more apparent.

Encarnacion has hit 284 of his 401 career home runs since the 2012 season, the most of any player in the league in that span, and is on his way to an eighth straight season of at least 30 homers. In the past seven, he's had at least 32 homers and 98 RBIs.

He was in his first season with Seattle after the Indians traded him for Carlos Santana and cash in December as part of a three-team trade that also saw Jake Bauers move from Tampa Bay to Cleveland.

Since November, the Mariners have offloaded a number of players in trades, including second baseman Robinson Cano, closer Edwin Diaz, shortstop Jean Segura, left-hander James Paxton, outfielder Jay Bruce, catcher Mike Zunino, outfielder Ben Gamel and relief pitcher Alex Colome.

Britain’s Steph Twell finishes fifth and says she will take some valuable lessons from the experience

Italy’s Yassine Rachik and Lilia Fisikovici of Moldova continued their winning ways in the RunCzech EuroHeroes Challenge series, taking the titles in Saturday evening’s Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon in the Czech Republic.

In hot conditions, with the temperature around 30°C at the start of the race at 7pm local time, Rachik clocked 64:26 and Fisikovici 73:32 for clear victories.

That makes it three wins from three races for the pair in the EuroHeroes series, following their success in Karlovy Vary in May and Ceské Budejovice at the beginning of this month.

The four-race series was launched in 2018 with the support of European Athletics and aims to highlight new sporting heroes from the continent, as athletes claim points for their performances and can compete for a separate EuroHeroes ranking and prize structure.

Britain’s Steph Twell had been looking to use the IAAF Gold Label race as an opportunity to test herself and also gain some points in the IAAF world rankings. She finished fifth in 75:57 and although later saying that her race didn’t go to plan due to a few factors, the UK 10km road champion added that she will be able to take some valuable lessons from it moving into her future training and racing block as she works towards an autumn marathon.

Steph Twell finished fifth in 75:57 at this evening’s Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon and says her race didn’t go to plan due to a few factors but adds that she will be able to take some valuable lessons from it moving into her future training and racing block. #OLhalf @RunCzech pic.twitter.com/wk6rauglAT

— Athletics Weekly (@AthleticsWeekly) June 15, 2019

Twell had led through 10km in 34:07, with Fisikovici 11 seconds behind. But the Moldovan half-marathon and marathon record-holder started to close the gap from around 12km before moving away for victory.

Ukraine’s Olha Kotovska was second in 74:35 and her compatriot Darya Mykhailova was third in 74:57. Matea Parlov finished fourth in 75:18.

“I tried to hold on to Stephanie, but I didn’t feel well at the eighth kilometre, so I was lagging behind,” said Fisikovici.

“From the twelfth kilometre I began to approach her again and at the end managed to speed up and win. I am so happy about my victory.”

Twell was returning to road race action after a stint of altitude training in St. Moritz and following recent PBs over both 10km (31:55) and the half-marathon (71:33).

“My race didn’t go to plan today for a few factors that were hard to ignore in my finals week’s taper,” she told AW.

“However, when I knew training had been going really well, I was too excited to turn the new EuroHeroes challenge down!

“I decided to run and in hindsight I shouldn’t have, but I’ll be able to look back on this race and take some valuable lessons from it moving into my future training and racing block. I hope to still use this race series again next year to support my goals.”

Read more: Steph Twell relishing Olomouc Half Marathon test

In the men’s race, London Marathon ninth-placer Rachik solo ran his way to success, with Ukraine’s Roman Romanenko securing second in 66:01 and Ireland’s Paul Pollock placing third in 66:12.

The top Czech runners were Vít Pavlišta in fifth with 68:09 and Marcela Joglová in ninth with 77:55.

“It was hard to run alone,” said Rachik, “and it wasn’t easy to fight with that heat, too.”

A total of 10,078 runners took part in the Mattoni Olomouc Half Marathon events, with 6481 in the main race and 3597 in the family run.

The fourth and final event in this year’s EuroHeroes Challenge will be the Mattoni Ústí nad Labem Half Marathon, held on September 21.

LE MANS, France – Toyota Gazoo Racing has maintained the one-two formation they started the 24 Hours of Le Mans in and leads the French endurance classic at quarter distance.

The pole-sitting No. 7 TS050 Hybrid stood 23 seconds clear of its sister No. 8 entry at the official six-hour benchmark, with Jose Maria Lopez out in front over Kazuki Nakajima.

With six of 24 hours in the books, both Toyota LMP1 entries had completed 98 laps around the 8.467-mile, 38-turn course.

“Everything went fine for me,” noted Kamui Kobayashi, who turned the No. 7 over to Lopez shortly before quarter distance. “Mike did a good job to build up an advantage in his stint, so I concentrated on maintaining a strong pace and keeping the car in one piece. It’s only a few hours into the race and the night is the challenging time at Le Mans.”

The No. 11 SMP Racing BR1 sits third with Mikhail Aleshin at the wheel, just ahead of fourth-place Thomas Laurent in the No. 3 Rebellion Racing entry.

In LMP2, the Signatech Alpine No. 36 heads the class order with Andre Negrao driving, while the G-Drive Racing No. 26 of Roman Rusinov in second and DragonSpeed completing the current top three with the No. 31 of Anthony Davidson.

AF Corse sits at the top of the GTE-Pro class through the first quarter, with Daniel Serra leading Laurens Vanthoor after a frantic restart following a safety car period for the RLR M Sport ORECA going off-track at Tetre Rouge.

And in GTE-Am, Keating Motorsports’ No. 85 Ford GT has dominated the opening act, being chased at quarter-distance by the No. 84 JMW Ferrari and the No. 90 TF Sport Aston Martin.

A heavy shunt at the Porsche Curves claimed the No. 64 Corvette Racing C7.R of Marcel Fassler during the sixth hour, when Fassler made contact with the No. 88 Dempsey Proton Porsche as he went to lap the Gulf Racing Porsche.

Fassler went straight into the barriers, but was quickly able to radio to his crew that he was OK and “there was nothing I could do.”

Of note, Mike Conway set a new race-lap record on the fourth lap, posting a time of 3:17.297 in the No. 7 Toyota as he began to build a gap over Sébastien Buemi in the No. 8.

ENSENADA, Mexico — Whenever the all-time greatest racers in the history of desert racing are discussed, near the top of the list is Rod Hall, who SCORE Int’l remembers as a ‘champion of champions’ in the history of the unique form of motorsports.

The SCORE family is filled with wonderful memories of Hall, a man who will be remembered as everyone’s best friend, a champion desert racer and an even greater ambassador for the sport for nearly six decades.

Hall passed away on June 14 after a long battle with PSP (Progressive Supranuclear Palsy — a rare brain disorder with similar symptoms as Parkinson’s disease).

Hall was at home with his wife Donna and their family in Reno, Nev., on June 14, when he died. He was 81 years old and his family reported that he passed peacefully in his sleep.

Originally from Hemet, Calif., Hall was a long-time resident of Reno, Nev. and as not only one of the original desert racers but one of the greatest champions the sport has ever seen.

Hall is the only person who raced in every one of the first 50 SCORE Baja 1000 races ending his career with an unmatchable and SCORE-record 25 class wins, earning his final one at the 50th anniversary of the world’s greatest desert race in 2017.

In his long and storied SCORE racing career, Hall won 14 SCORE season point championships, including the 1974 overall point championship as well.

Besides his 25 class wins in the SCORE Baja 1000 (including the overall victory in 1969 with Larry Minor), the venerable Hall also had 18 class wins in the SCORE Baja 500, four in the SCORE San Felipe 250, and two each in the SCORE Desert Challenge and in the SCORE Las Vegas Terrible’s Primm 300.

He also had 10 class wins in the Mint 400, 10 more in the old SCORE Parker 400 and 12 in the old SCORE Fireworks 250.

Hall was a 2005 inductee into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame. He also served in many capacities for ORMHOF to help keep the organization moving forward.

“As Rod’s teammate in 1999 and 2000, he was a good friend and his mentoring was the reason I became good enough to win races,” remembered long-time friend and SCORE Trophy Truck champion Roger Norman, who also has a home in Reno. “Rod was not only one of the first true desert racers, his longevity in the sport was unmatched and his life touched so many people.

“I feel very fortunate to have been one of those people to have been close to him and his wonderful family.”

Hall of Famer Sal Fish, who led SCORE from 1974 through 2012, remembers Hall fondly as well.

“Rod Hall was one of the founding fathers of desert racing and certainly a major pillar in the history of SCORE desert racing. Rod was one of the elite racers for over 40 years, but he always maintained his humble personality and was as approachable, as friendly and as open with a handshake and a friendly smile as the first time I met him when I did a little racing back in 1969,” noted Fish. “He was a tremendous spokesperson for our sport and truly the first factory-backed racer in SCORE history. His tenure as a factory driver lasted until his last win in 2017, the longest for anyone in our sport. He will be missed by all of us who have ever stepped foot in the desert.”

Hall will long be remembered for his many accomplishments as a racer. But to his family and his many, many friends, he will be cherished as a truly loving, kind and friendly person who always made time to say ‘howdy’ to everyone he met.

“Especially to his wife Donna, his sons Josh and Chad, and his granddaughter Shelby and the rest of the loving Hall family, please know how much we will miss ‘Papa’ and how humbled and honored we have been to share this stage called life with him,” said Jim Ryan, SCORE Sales and Marketing Director.

Added long-time SCORE media director Dominic Clark, “While we will miss his smile, his friendship and his ceaseless anecdotes, we have comfort in knowing that his time of pain and suffering has passed. Thanks for the everlasting memories Rod Hall, a true champion of champions.”