PITTSBURGH -- Paul Skenes bounced back from the worst start of his career and teamed up with catcher Henry Davis to make a little history as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Washington Nationals 10-3 on Monday night.

Skenes and Davis became the first pitcher/catcher battery in major league history, comprising players selected No. 1 in the draft. Skenes (2-1), the top pick in 2023, gave up two runs, one earned, and struck out six in six innings as the Pirates ended a three-game losing streak.

Davis, selected No. 1 in 2021, singled after replacing injured starter Endy Rodriguez in the first inning. Rodriguez lacerated the index finger on his right hand after a Skenes pitch hit James Wood's foot and deflected toward Rodriguez.

It hasn't been as smooth of a ride to the majors for Davis that it was for Skenes, but perhaps this is the year the 25-year-old, who had a standout career at Louisville, sticks with the big club. Just when it seemed he might have the inside track on the starting catcher job last season, the Pirates landed Joey Bart, who took over the club's primary duties behind the plate.

But there might be a window now to gain additional starts at catcher. After the win, Pirates manager Derek Shelton told reporters that Rodriguez needed four stitches for a laceration on his right index finger, and that a trip to the injured list seemed likely.

The 22-year-old Skenes, who gave up a career-worst five runs in a loss to St. Louis last week, had little trouble with the Nationals. The reigning National League Rookie of the Year's only real issue was with Pittsburgh's defense, including his own. Skenes was tagged with a pair of errors for wayward pickoff attempts, the second of which led to an unearned run in the sixth.

By then, however, the Pirates were comfortably ahead, a rarity during an ugly opening two-plus weeks to the season filled with missteps.

Oneil Cruz had two hits and scored twice while batting leadoff. Enmanuel Valdez and Ke'Bryan Hayes both drove in three runs. Bryan Reynolds drove in a pair of runs. Andrew McCutchen added a hit and made a pretty sliding grab in right field, flinging his 38-year-old body to the PNC Park turf to rob Keibert Ruiz of a hit in the sixth.

Nasim Nunez had two of Washington's five hits. Brad Lord (0-1) slogged through 4 innings, giving up four runs, three earned, and six hits with three walks and a strikeout.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

British number two Jacob Fearnley claimed his first ATP Tour main draw win on clay with victory over Roberto Carballes Baena at the Barcelona Open.

The Scot, into the main draw as a lucky loser, beat the Spaniard 6-1 7-5 to reach the second round.

He will face either Australian fifth seed Alex de Minaur or Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry next.

Fearnley was ranked outside the top 600 a year ago, but won four ATP Challenger titles in 2024 to rise inside the top 100.

Currently ranked 74th, Fearnley will gain direct entry to the French Open, which takes place from 25 May-8 June.

Elsewhere, Britain's Billy Harris lost 6-2 6-7 (2-7) 6-4 to David Goffin at the Munich Open.

Englishman Harris also benefited from a lucky loser spot but was edged out by Belgium's Goffin in a tight match lasting two hours and 32 minutes.

NEW YORK -- New Jersey Devils forward Paul Cotter has been suspended for his team's final two games of the regular season for his illegal check to the head that injured New York Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech.

The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced the suspension Monday after a disciplinary hearing with him. Cotter, who had no prior history of supplemental discipline, will forfeit $8,073 in salary but not miss any of the first round of the playoffs.

After officials looked at the play on video review, they assessed a match penalty, ejecting Cotter and giving New York a five-minute power play.

Cotter, a third liner who is in his first season with the Devils, was the focus of the Islanders postgame media availabilities. Islanders coach Patrick Roy, who had no update on Pelech, told reporters "that's the kind of hit we don't like to see."

Cotter and the Devils are headed to the postseason and will take on the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 1. The 25-year-old center has 16 goals and 22 points this season.

Pelech, who was bloodied and angry after the left shoulder-to-head hit by Cotter six minutes into the second period of the teams' game Sunday, was quickly ruled out of the game, which his club won, 1-0. The Islanders will not be headed to the postseason, as they were eliminated from contention on Saturday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

EDMONTON, Alberta -- Mattias Ekholm will not be available for the Edmonton Oilers' first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Kings, coach Kris Knoblauch said Monday.

Ekholm's absence is a significant blow to the defending Western Conference champions' blue line in their attempt to make another long playoff run this spring.

The talented and rugged top-pairing defenseman returned to action Friday in Edmonton's 4-2 win over visiting San Jose after a seven-game absence because of an undisclosed injury. But he left the game when he aggravated the ailment after playing a couple of shifts.

Ekholm, a 34-year-old Swede, has nine goals and 24 assists in 65 games this season. He also played for Sweden in the Four Nations Face-Off this year.

The Oilers are facing the Kings in the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year. They expect to get MVP candidate Leon Draisaitl back for the series after he has been dealing with a nagging injury, while reigning playoff MVP Connor McDavid is resting late in the regular season after also missing time.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Zeev Buium was conducting his first media interview as a member of the Minnesota Wild on Monday, when a white practice jersey suddenly sailed over the circle of reporters and cameras and landed square in the rookie's face.

The rookie defenseman paused briefly to uncover his face, revealing a wide smile and an unfazed expression as he quickly resumed the conversation. While Buium's performance on the ice in the NHL has yet to unfold, the 2024 first-round draft pick with the unusual name and the unconventional pathway to the sport sure looks like he'll be able to more than hold his own.

After winning the NCAA championship as a freshman with Denver and returning to the Frozen Four last weekend, Buium decided to end his college career after two seasons and make the jump to Minnesota. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract on Sunday and joined the Wild at the rink for practice, meet-and-greets and more paperwork on Monday.

"Kind of like your first day school," coach John Hynes said. Buium, for the record, e-mailed his Denver professors to inform them he wouldn't be in class this week.

"I don't think there was much more, development-wise, for me in college hockey," said Buium, who was the country's highest-scoring defenseman and one of three finalists for the Hobey Baker player of the year award. "I can obviously get bigger, stronger and faster, but taking this next step and pushing myself even more, it's the right moment."

Wild defensemen Jake Middleton has missed the last four games with an injury, though he was on the ice on Monday. Another one of their top four defensemen, Jared Spurgeon, was recently banged up and didn't play in the last game. Even if they're both available for the critical final regular-season game on Tuesday against Anaheim, with a spot in the playoffs not yet secure, Buium could well find himself in the middle of the action.

"That's the dream, playing in the NHL and taking that rookie lap, so if I'm fortunate enough to do it, then I'm going to be super pumped and ready to go," Buium said. "But it's just still a dream right now. It's pretty awesome."

Buium, whose last name is pronounced BOO-yum, grew up in San Diego where his parents emigrated from Israel in their mid-20s to be near family and start a heating, venting and air conditioning business. Once Buium and his two brothers found a passion and skill for hockey, his mother drove them to daily practices in the Los Angeles area -- a 112-mile, one-way trip -- while their father worked.

Buium eventually attended the prestigious prep school Shattuck St. Mary's in Faribault, Minnesota, where numerous NHL players have come through. One of his brothers, Shai Buium, is currently a Detroit Red Wings prospect playing in the AHL.

If the Wild win on Tuesday, they're in the playoffs. Simply taking the Ducks to overtime would send them to the postseason as the first wild-card team, too, with one more point needed to ensure a finish ahead of St. Louis and Calgary. The Wild have the tiebreaker in hand with more regulation wins than both clubs.

But if the Wild were to lose in regulation, they'd be on thin ice. The Blues host Utah at the same time. The Flames host San Jose an hour later and also have an extra game remaining at Los Angeles on Thursday. If both St. Louis and Calgary win out, the Wild would be left out if they don't gain at least one point against Anaheim.

After playing in the world juniors and, most recently, helping Denver reach the national semifinals, Buium has been on plenty of big stages. That bodes well for the situation he's entering.

"He's a really well-spoken kid," Buium said. "He's been a captain at the levels he's been at, so when you have that type of a person and his personality and the experiences he's had, it certainly makes it a little bit easier."

ATLANTA -- FIFA President Gianni Infantino said he is not concerned about ticket sales for this summer's Club World Cup in the United States despite questions about how well the 32-team event is selling across the country.

Infantino, making an appearance at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Monday to promote the Club World Cup, said his reasoning for not being worried is because of how stadiums filled up for friendly matches between top-tier teams during preseason tours in the United States in years past.

"I'm not worried at all to fill a stadium when teams are coming to play a World Cup, to play for something real, not just an exhibition game where sometimes the second or third squads are fielded and so on," Infantino said. "This is a real game. This is a real competition.

"This is a real World Cup. It's the best players. It's the best teams coming."

He added that once people understand the competition, they'll buy in, but admitted FIFA has to explain the Club World Cup to fans.

The 32-team competition has never been this large before and has a new format after a 7-team version was held in 2021, 2022 and 2023. FIFA officials declined to release ticket sales numbers thus far when asked by ESPN on Monday.

The cheapest seat on Ticketmaster for the June 14 opening match in Miami Gardens, Florida, featuring Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF vs. Egyptian side Al Ahly, costs $356.80. Multiple sections in both the upper and lower decks of Hard Rock Stadium show over 100 tickets available on Ticketmaster.

The same goes for the second match of the tournament on June 15 in Cincinnati between Bayern Munich and Auckland City, with the cheapest seat going for a more reasonable $94.80 on Ticketmaster and multiple sections with over 100 tickets remaining.

For the first match at the Rose Bowl on June 15 between Paris Saint-Germain and Atlético Madrid, over half of the Rose Bowl's 26 sections have at least 100 tickets available on Ticketmaster, with the cheapest seat being $133.80.

FIFA also recently announced a package where fans can buy packages of tickets to this summer's Club World Cup with a "guaranteed option" to buy a ticket to one of next summer's World Cup games, not including the final.

"When people see what it is, then they realize that they have to come," Infantino said. "I was always told in the United States of America, you need to bring the best. Americans, they just want to see the best. They don't want to see average things.

"Well, the best are coming."

Infantino also addressed the possibility of Atlanta playing host to a Women's World Cup final. He joked the 71,000-seat venue would need another 20,000 seats, but also indicated the city, which has 14 games between the Club and regular World Cups, including a World Cup semifinal next year -- has a chance to make an impression.

While Infantino may say he's not worried about ticket sales for the Club World Cup, he did make one thing clear: Tickets are still available.

The FIFA president ended his introductory comments by saying he wanted to do some publicity after showing off the Club World Cup trophy and announcing a $1 million contribution "for social projects" for children in Atlanta.

"Let me do some publicity," Infantino said at the podium. "There are still some tickets available. FIFA.com/tickets, get them and enjoy the best of the best playing for this, which is something incredible."

Real Madrid legend Marcelo has said the club cannot be written off as they look to overturn a 3-0 deficit against Arsenal in their Champions League quarterfinal second leg on Wednesday.

A pair of stunning free kicks helped Arsenal stun Madrid at the Emirates last week, leaving Carlo Ancelotti's side with a mountain to climb. However, Marcelo, who won five Champions League titles with Madrid, said no task is too big for the club.

"You can never write off Real Madrid," Marcelo told ESPN in an interview in Mexico on Monday. "Although three goals is a lot of goals, but I am always thinking about Real Madrid and have a lot of faith that they'll come back. Real Madrid is Real Madrid and they always come back."

Marcelo is in Mexico this week playing in the Club Legends Clásico with other former Madrid and Barcelona players.

"The return leg is at the Bernabéu, the fans will push hard and the players are confident it can happen. Of course, we don't know what will happen, we have faith and Real Madrid will come back," Marcelo said.

Marcelo added that winning is in the DNA of Real Madrid players, as it is something taught to them from the moment they wear the shirt.

"I think that from the moment we joined Real Madrid, we're taught to never give up, and that's always been in our blood," he said. "It's been like this for many years, and apart from the DNA, it's hard work, humility, daily dedication, and the support of the fans as well. It's all part of making things work."

Madrid, who will welcome Arsenal to the Bernabéu, can boast a track record of recovering from the position they find themselves entering Wednesday, although the club has never come back from a 3-0 first-leg defeat.

Ancelotti's side delivered a series of logic-defying comebacks en route to the Champions League title in 2022, including two stoppage-time goals to deny Manchester City in the semifinals.