HOUSTON -- Houston Astros reliever Ryan Pressly left Game 6 of the American League Championship Series on Saturday night due to right knee discomfort.

In the top of the third inning, Pressly fielded a comebacker off the bat of the Yankees' Didi Gregorius and charged at him as Gregorius ran up the line. Pressly, who had arthroscopic surgery on the same knee in August, tried to halt his momentum as he got close enough to apply the tag but immediately pulled up and grimaced.

Television cameras captured Pressly heading through the dugout and back into the clubhouse along with a member of Houston's training staff. He is listed as day to day.

The pitch Pressly threw to Gregorius turned out to be his only one in the game, but it was big -- there were two outs and the bases were loaded in the third inning. The out he recorded nipped that Yankees' rally and preserved a two-run Houston lead.

Pressly was replaced by rookie Jose Urquidy to start the fourth inning. His departure could leave Houston manager AJ Hinch short of arms. The Astros used a bullpen day in lieu of a traditional starter in Game 6. Urquidy was the fourth pitcher Hinch used over the first four innings of the game.

Pressly, 30, was 2-3 with a 2.32 ERA and three saves during the regular season, which he resumed in late September after surgery. He struggled at the outset of the postseason and has a 13.50 playoff ERA after his outing on Saturday.

Houston was leading New York 3-2 in the fifth inning. The Astros lead the best-of-seven ALCS 3-2 and are bidding to close out the Yankees to win the AL pennant for the second time in the last three seasons.

INDIANAPOLIS – Rinus VeeKay, Braden Eves and Christian Rasmussen set the pace Saturday as the ninth annual Chris Griffis Memorial Road to Indy Test kicked off at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Grand Prix road course.

The trio were fastest in their respective series as all three levels of the highly acclaimed Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires open-wheel development ladder – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship – took advantage of ideal weather conditions on the 2.439-mile track situated just a few miles from downtown Indianapolis, Ind.

Each series was on deck for three 45-minute sessions, with the day beginning under a clear sky in cool temperatures before gradually warming up to a comfortable 70 degrees by mid-afternoon. The two-day test will conclude Sunday.

VeeKay came up just short of winning this year’s Indy Lights championship, losing out to Oliver Askew by a 21-point margin despite winning three of the final four races. But the 19-year-old Dutchman backed up an impressive midweek NTT IndyCar Series test with Ed Carpenter Racing by returning to his more familiar roots today and setting the fastest time in each of the three practice sessions for Belardi Auto Racing, with which VeeKay made his Indy Lights debut two years ago at the corresponding Chris Griffis Memorial Test.

VeeKay’s fastest time of the day, 1:15.4795, an average speed of 116.328 mph, was set on a fresh set of Cooper tires in cooler conditions at the end of the day.

“We found the setup in the last session and won the day, though that wasn’t the main goal,” said VeeKay. “I was here to help (the team) evaluate their setup so that was a bonus. I tested here with Belardi two years ago, so it was great to be back with them. I hope I am going to IndyCar next season but this is two days of driving, two days of getting better and trying to improve that much more.”

A quartet of Andretti Autosport drivers proved closely matched for most of the day with Robert Megennis usually at the head of the pack. Megennis, who qualified on pole position for one of the two IMS races in May, closed to within four tenths of VeeKay in the final, fastest session, followed by rookies Rasmus Lindh and Danial Frost, both of whom made the step up from Indy Pro 2000 for the first time, and Egor Orudzhev, who returned to open-wheel cars for the first time since 2016 after racing closed-cockpit cars in the FIA World Endurance Championship for the past three years.

“It was a solid day,” said Megennis. “It’s good just to get laps, especially around Indy. I try to improve every lap, every session that I do so we’ll keep going with that, try some different things on the car to see what’s fast and try to set ourselves up well for next year.”

“It’s always a good experience, to get in a new car,” added Lindh. “We found a good pace in the end and were just as quick as Megennis, who won a race this year. It was my first day in the car and the team was great. I want to just continue doing well. Now that we’ve learned the basics with the car, we can start work on smaller things. It’s a bigger car so you need to have more patience when it rotates, and it’s a lot more horsepower. It’s a big step, but it’s going well.”

Three different drivers topped the timing charts during the trio of sessions for Indy Pro 2000, which drew its largest field of the year as the category, revitalized with a new equipment package in 2018 and a name change prior to this season, looks toward continued growth in 2020.

Colin Kaminsky was quickest out of the box this morning, edging out fellow USF2000 graduate Hunter McElrea as Pabst Racing made an impression right away in the faster Tatuus PM-18 cars after winning back-to-back-to-back Team Championships in USF2000.

Series veteran Parker Thompson used his experience to excellent effect by topping the early afternoon session on his debut with DEForce Racing before sitting out the final period, during which recently crowned USF2000 champion Eves set the best time of the day for Exclusive Autosport.

Eves’ time of 1:19.6386 represented an average speed of 110.253 mph and was within three tenths of Askew’s qualifying track record set in 2018.

Thompson’s time of 1:19.8591 remained good enough for second fastest ahead of New Zealander McElrea, whose second-fastest time in the final session, 1:19.8632, was good enough for third on the day, fractionally faster than teammate Kaminsky.

British driver Raoul Hyman, a veteran of a variety of open-wheel series around the globe, impressed on his North American debut with the fifth fastest time of the day for Exclusive Autosport, with Phillippe Denes also circulating within a half-second of the benchmark time for reigning champion team Juncos Racing.

Rasmussen, 19, was quickest among a 17-car USF2000 contingent for Jay Howard Driver Development, continuing the form which saw him win three races during a strong rookie campaign in 2019.

In fact, Rasmussen scored more points than any other driver during the final half of the season. Quickest in all three sessions, Rasmussen set his fastest time of 1:25.1117, an average speed of 103.163 mph, in the early afternoon.

Eduardo Barrichello also continued his good work following a recent switch to DEForce Racing, which included a front row qualifying position for the final race of the season at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The 18-year-old son of former Ferrari F-1 race winner Rubens Barrichello ended the day second fastest with a time of 1:25.3159.

Also impressive was 15-year-old Dutch rookie Rick Bouthoorn, who posted the third fastest time for Pabst Racing, a tenth of a second adrift of Barrichello.

OXFORD, Maine – Jason Woodard put the capstone on a dream season by winning the inaugural American-Canadian Tour Flying Tiger Oxford Open at Maine’s Oxford Plains Speedway on Saturday.

Woodard held off charges by Cody LeBlanc and John Donahue to score his sixth Flying Tiger win of the season in the division’s first visit ever to the historic three-eighths-mile oval.

While Woodard started on the pole of the 75-lap event under ACT’s plus-minus qualifying system, his road to victory was anything but smooth. The veteran held a small gap over the field in the race’s early stages as Leblanc, Dave O’Blenis and Donahue duked it out for the second spot.

However, that lead evaporated once the leaders caught lapped traffic. As Woodard approached cars battling double-file for position in front of him, he attempted a three-wide move around the high side. LeBlanc saw an opportunity and went low, putting the nose of the Potter Racing machine out front on lap 34.

The two then went door-to-door in a thrilling battle over the next 10 circuits. Woodard was able to retake the lead on lap 37 before LeBlanc shot back out in front on lap 42. All the while, O’Blenis and Donahue were lurking just behind them. As the lead duo went into turn one on lap 45, Michael Potter got squirrely on the low side in front of them, and Woodard took advantage to shoot back in front.

Donahue and O’Blenis moved to second and third as LeBlanc was forced to lift to avoid an accident. Once Woodard got clear of the traffic, he pulled away from the field as Donahue did the same over second. With 19 laps to go, Colin Cornell spun on the backstretch to draw the race’s first caution, putting Donahue on Woodard’s outside for the restart.

Donahue would get that chance and three more over the next lap as a series of one- and two-car incidents slowed the pace, including one that took top-10 runner Sam Caron out of contention. Each time, Woodard held off Donahue. Once the field got settled down, the two gapped the field as Donahue looked time and again to the outside. However, he was unable to keep the momentum up long enough to draw alongside.

Donahue would get one more serious opportunity with four laps to go after his son Stephen came to a stop on the backstretch with a broken rear end. Once again, the inside lane was the place to be, as Woodard had enough to hold off Donahue and take the win. It capped a season for Woodard where he also won the Thunder Road Flying Tiger championship, Myers Container Service Triple Crown championship, White Mountain Motorsports Park Triple Crown title, and Flying Tiger Mini Milk Bowl.

LeBlanc was able to get back around O’Blenis and earn the final podium spot. O’Blenis finished fourth in his first time ever at the wheel of a Flying Tiger. Michael Martin made a late charge to take fifth.

ENNIS, Texas – Brittany and John Force both raced to the No. 1 spot in their respective classes Saturday at Texas Motorplex during the 34th annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals.

The pair are trying to become the first father-daughter combo in NHRA history to win at the same event.

Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also earned No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the fourth of six races during the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

B. Force’s track record run of 3.651 seconds at 331.28 mph from Friday in her Advance Auto Parts dragster held up to take the No. 1 spot for the eighth time this year and 18th time in her career. She finished qualifying with another impressive run in the 3.60s on Saturday and will meet Cameron Ferre to open eliminations. It marks the second time B. Force and her father qualified No. 1 at the same event, with the first also coming in Texas during the race in Houston last spring.

“It’s always really special to hold the No. 1 qualifier with my dad,” B. Force said. “He’s the one who taught me everything about this sport and he’s the reason I’m out here. We did it earlier in the season and to do it again, it’s special to me. It’s on my bucket list to double-up (with a win) with my dad. It would just be awesome to share that with him. Our team is in a very good place.”

Leah Pritchett qualified second and Mike Salinas is third. Points leader Steve Torrence qualified fourth.

J. Force earned his fifth No. 1 qualifier this season and a remarkable 160th in his career thanks to his 3.834-second run at a career-best 337.33 mph on Friday in his PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil/BlueDEF Chevrolet Camaro SS. A seven-time winner in Dallas, J. Force will try to win for the sixth time from the No. 1 spot at Texas Motorplex and join his daughter in the winner’s circle.

“That makes it really special anytime you can do something with your kids,” said J. Force, who will race Jeff Arend in the opening round on Sunday. “I’m looking forward to tomorrow. This is what we do and what we love. Those were prime conditions (last night), and we wanted to push it today. We’ve got a good car for raceday tomorrow.”

After qualifying second with a 3.851-second run at 335.07 mph from Friday, Robert Hight is racing for a third straight win in Dallas. Defending world champ J.R. Todd qualified third.

In Pro Stock, Coughlin earned his second No. 1 of the year and 31st in his career after his 6.509-second run at 210.41 mph in his JEGS.com Chevrolet Camaro from Friday held up. Coughlin, who now has back-to-back No. 1 in Dallas, made a pair of consistent runs on Saturday as well, including the quickest of the final qualifying session, adding to his momentum for Sunday. He will race Richie Stevens in the opening round of eliminations.

Coughlin’s Elite Motorsports teammate, points leader Erica Enders, will start raceday from the second position. Charlotte winner Deric Kramer qualified third.

“We’ve had some unique weather conditions here, so it feels great to be No. 1,” said Coughlin, who is after his second victory of 2019. “We’ve got three races left in the Countdown and we were No. 1 in three of the four sessions, so our team is looking really, really strong. I’m really looking forward to hitting the track tomorrow.”

Defending Pro Stock Motorcycle world champ Matt Smith stayed in the top spot after his impressive run of 6.776 seconds at 200.26 mph on his Denso Auto Parts/Stockseth/MSR EBR on Friday. Smith, who also set the track speed record, earned his fifth No. 1 qualifier of the year and 36th in his career.

Jerry Savoie will begin eliminations from the second position, while Steve Johnson moved into the third spot on Saturday.

“It’s just a lot of hard work after the struggles we had at Charlotte,” Smith said. “We had two tough days of non-stop work, and I can’t say enough about my crew guys and the people who help me. Not only are we No. 1 qualifier, we get some bonus points and we get a bye in the first round. All in all, we’ve got a good bike for tomorrow.”

Drew Skillman clinched the SAM Tech.edu Factory Stock Showdown championship on Saturday, locking up his first title at the conclusion of qualifying. Skillman had a banner  campaign, winning three races en route to the championship.

LEHIGHTON, Pa. – Mahoning Valley Speedway closed out the season on Saturday afternoon with the Small Car Nationals.

There was a Pro 4/Hobby Stock open comp, Small Car Enduro, East Coast TQ Midgets and, for the first time, Junk Cars.

While the latter classes where competitive, it was the Junk Car race that had those in attendance wide-eyed in a thrilling race that was conducted on a modified oval. Coming into the race no one knew just what to expect as it was the first time those type cars ran on asphalt or how would the course design work out.

The responses where quickly answered after the first heat lap as drivers began an intense slam bang affair and it would be Ricky Gardener claiming the initial Junk Car checker in the qualifier.

With a heads-up start for the 25-lap feature it was again a wild affair as cars swapped spots over the negotiation of the turns, narrow straights and even a chicane during their trip around the make-shift course.

Gardner and Mark Fister where the show stoppers as they traded the lead several times and the last lap proved to be the barnburner of all. Fister passed Gardner to start the final circuit. They then touched entering the chicane and Gardner edged ahead going into the slim back straight. Then in the final two corners Fester pulled slightly back ahead and with the checkers in reach it was now a drag race to the line. Both cars hit and banged with Gardner being turned sideways but was also pushed ahead of Fister to score the inaugural verdict going across the stipe in the opposite direction.

Dave Imler, although lapped, was third and played into the lead changes several times as the front pair had fits trying to crisscross around him.

In the Pro 4/Hobby Stock open comp Kadie Pursell began the day as a heat winner, taking her career first win with a stock car. She then led the early laps of the feature until Jake Kibler took control on lap seven and from there on he would be unopposed, cruising to a resounding win, his sixth of the season and extending his number one class wins ranking to 37.

Pursell, a rookie this season, had her best ever effort in garnering second just ahead of Tyler Stangle.

Harry O’Neill has been the man to beat when it comes to Small Car Enduro’s and such was the case yet again as he sailed to his third straight victory in four starts at Mahoning this season. This was race number 8 of the 2019 Mahoning Valley Speedway/Evergreen Raceway Small Car Enduro Series.

O’Neill didn’t need much time during the 30 minute race to hurry to the lead. Series title contender Don Rogers showed the way at first then came Devin Gibson but his time out front was short lived as O’Neill sped by both by lap 25.

The rest of the way it would be a battle for positions behind the leader as O’Neill was superior, covering the timed distance in 129 laps and nearly three seconds ahead of Gibson. Jake Oswald, Clem Underwood and Steven Brooks rounded out the top five.

The East Coast TQ Midgets ran the Doug Craig Memorial, honoring the 4-time ATQMRA champion.

Celebrating his 18th birthday, Tyler Wagner was victorious. Wagner snagged the lead from Jason Hentrich on lap five and then stayed strong and steady the rest of the way.

Tom Arntz collected the win in the 2-cycles and Bud Routzhan won in the 4-cycle class.

After Minnesota went up 27-0 against Rutgers in the fourth quarter, Casey O'Brien walked onto the field to hold the snap for the extra point. Typically a mundane event, but for O'Brien, a four-time cancer survivor, it was an emotional moment that he'll never forget.

O'Brien made his collegiate debut at that moment, held the snap on the made extra point, then made his way over to coach P.J. Fleck and embraced him in an emotional hug.

"It means the world to me," O'Brien said to the Big Ten Network after the game. "There's been so many ups and downs, nights in the hospitals and surgeries and everything like that, that's gone into this moment. This is what I dreamed about, and tonight it got to come through."

Originally diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, as a freshman in high school, O'Brien has gone through 14 surgeries and numerous rounds of chemotherapy. He had not played a down for Minnesota until Saturday's game against Rutgers.

He told the story of his journey at the Big Ten Football Kickoff Luncheon in July, and he was profiled in an ESPN feature last month.

He gave the crowd, and anyone fighting their own battle, some advice he received from former Minnesota player Eric Decker.

"Stay strong and never give up, you have the whole world behind you," O'Brien said.

He lived up to that advice and made his dream come true after getting a chance to join the Minnesota program as a walk-on.

He has fought and beat cancer to reach this moment, notching playing time in the Gophers' 42-7 win. It's the first time Minnesota has started the season 7-0 since 1960, but that record will pale in comparison to that moment Fleck and O'Brien shared in the fourth quarter when they embraced, that ended with Fleck wiping tears from his face.

"He's an unbelievable person. He's been through an awful lot," Fleck told Big Ten Network. "When you think courage, you think Casey O'Brien. When you think Row the Boat, you think our program.

"You think the University of Minnesota and our state of Minnesota, you think Casey O'Brien. No one can ever take away that he played college football in the Big Ten. No one can ever take that away from him."

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Wisconsin hadn't trailed all season. The Badgers hadn't allowed a first-half touchdown all season. Heisman Trophy contender Jonathan Taylor hadn't lost a fumble all season.

The sixth-ranked Badgers hadn't lost a game, either. They had five wins by 21 points or more and four shutouts. All that remained between them and a massive meeting with No. 4 Ohio State next week in Columbus was an Illinois team that had lost 26 of 30 Big Ten games under coach Lovie Smith, including the first two this year.

All of Wisconsin's positive trends ended Saturday. Illinois' James McCourt hit a 39-yard field goal as time expires for a 24-23 win -- the Badgers' first deficit of the season.

The Illini, who came in as 30.5-point underdogs, became the first team to win outright as a more-than-30-point underdog since Iowa State (plus-30.5) stunned Oklahoma in 2017. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Illinois' upset marks the largest in a Big Ten Conference game since Northwestern, a 32-point underdog, beat Minnesota in 1982.

"I don't think we played complementary football," Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said. "Your last two drives end in turnovers, and giving them a chance. It's always hard to win on the road, and you make it that much harder."

Illinois fans rushed the field afterward as House of Pain's "Jump Around" -- a tradition for Wisconsin's home games between the third and fourth quarters -- played in Memorial Stadium. The Illini beat an AP top-10 opponent for the first time since upsetting No. 1 Ohio State in 2007 en route to a Rose Bowl appearance.

"In my time at Illinois, this is our signature win," Smith said. "We saw so much fight, and we learned a lot about our guys. One of the best wins you could possibly have. ... There's nothing like seeing that locker room celebrate."

Illinois running back Reggie Corbin, who had 62 of his 83 rushing yards in the second half, said he didn't even look at the final kick.

"I rushed the field, man. Saw my dad, gave him a hug," Corbin said. "He was the first person I saw. It was perfect."

Playing on the road for the first time since Aug. 30 against South Florida, Wisconsin committed three turnovers, two fewer than it had in the first six games. After a fourth-down stop near midfield gave Wisconsin, leading 23-14, a chance to put away the game, Taylor raced inside the Illinois 20-yard line but fumbled.

Taylor, who had 10 lost fumbles in his first two seasons, had only one fumble (not lost) before Illinois linebacker Jake Hansen jarred the ball loose.

"I'm trying to make something happen," said Taylor, who eclipsed 5,000 career rushing yards on the first play from scrimmage and finished with 132 rush yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. "You're fighting for those yards, and you've got to make sure you have two hands on it. You don't know who is coming around you."

Illinois went 75 yards in just 1:19 and scored on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Peters to Josh Imatorbhebhe to cut Wisconsin's lead to 23-21. Badgers quarterback Jack Coan, who was 9-of-10 on third-down pass attempts -- mostly targeting tight end Jake Ferguson -- had his pass intercepted by Illinois' Tony Adams near midfield with 2:32 remaining.

Both Ferguson and Coan took blame for the interception.

"It's just a simple corner route. I put that one on myself," said Ferguson, who led Wisconsin with 77 receiving yards and a touchdown on five receptions. "I didn't get on my depth that I should have. It was there all game. I was getting my depth, and the one I don't, ends up being a pick."

Ferguson didn't think Wisconsin players were looking ahead to Ohio State, and Chryst didn't see any trouble signs during a good week of practice, but linebacker Zack Baun referred to Illinois as "kind of a trap game."

"We didn't have the fire we usually have," Baun said. "We need to do a better job of gradually increasing our energy level going into the game."

Wisconsin's defense came in having allowed as many touchdowns (4) as it had scored. The Badgers had allowed only one touchdown of 40 yards or longer, but Illinois scored on a 48-yard Donny Navarro reception and a 43-yard Reggie Corbin rush.

The Illini, who had lost their past four games to Wisconsin by an average of 24.8 points, averaged 7.1 yards per play in the fourth quarter. Wisconsin had allowed 29 points all season before surrendering 24 on Saturday.

"We've just got to finish better," said linebacker Chris Orr, who led Wisconsin with nine tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble. "We've got to finish drives better, finish plays better, finish tackles better, finish through the point of attack on a play.

"We got outplayed, to be honest. Out-executed."

Wisconsin's offense also struggled against an Illinois team that came in allowing 30.7 points per game and 201.8 rush yards per game. The Badgers reached the red zone five times but scored only two touchdowns. They also missed a 37-yard field goal.

"Those are times when you must get in the end zone," said Taylor, who was substituted out during a goal-line sequence early in the fourth quarter on which Illinois stopped Wisconsin. "We've got to make sure guys are in the right position, we've got to make sure guys are hitting the right holes. Those are the times where you have to get in, when you're that close.

"They did a good job making plays."

Wisconsin players didn't downplay the loss -- "It definitely sucks," Ferguson said -- but also expect to respond well at Ohio State. Orr, the Badgers' emotional leader, noted how teams can lose a second game "because their emotions are still out of whack from the week before."

"This didn't end our season," Taylor said. "We still have games left to play. We have to come back with a focus. If you thought that the season ended today, then I don't know what to tell you. You probably won't be playing, because we definitely have a lot more opportunity out there."

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you. It was less than 24 hours ago that Houston's Brad Peacock threw the eighth inning for the Astros at Yankee Stadium. Tonight, he thre the first inning against New York at Minute Maid Park. And Peacock dealt: three up, three down, seven pitches, all strikes.