Maybe this might get Mike Trout back into the playoffs.Major League Baseball is tossing around plenty of ideas these days to start up a shortened season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic — a DH in the National League, neutral-site games, personal rosin bags for pitchers.Now comes a proposal that would truly upend the sport: up to 16 playoff teams.More than half the 30 clubs advance. No need to finish over .500, probably. In this skewed season, heck, perhaps 35 wins in 76 games or so could be enough to play into October.What’s next, the Winnipeg Jets in the World Series?OK, we’ve heard this before, that an extra wild-card team or two represents the NHL-ization of baseball. But to some, an expansion from 10 playoff clubs to 16 would mean the end of civilization as we know it.Longtime manager Jim Riggleman chuckled at that notion.“I think that whatever they come up with this year to play, anything goes. That’s fine,” he said. “But moving forward into next year, I wouldn’t be in favor of... [More]

Maybe this might get Mike Trout back into the playoffs.Major League Baseball is tossing around plenty of ideas these days to start up a shortened season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic — a DH in the National League, neutral-site games, personal rosin bags for pitchers.Now comes a proposal that would truly upend the sport: Up to 16 playoff teams.More than half the 30 clubs advance. No need to finish over .500, probably. This skewed season, heck, perhaps 35 wins in 76 games or so could be enough to play into October.What’s next, the Winnipeg Jets in the World Series?OK, we’ve heard this before, that an extra wild-card team or two represents the NHL-ization of baseball. But to some, an expansion from 10 playoff clubs to 16 would mean the end of civilization as we know it.Longtime manager Jim Riggleman chuckled at that notion.“I think that whatever they come up with this year to play, anything goes. That’s fine,” he said. “But moving forward into next year, I wouldn’t be in favor of that... [More]

Maybe this might get Mike Trout back into the playoffs.Major League Baseball is tossing around plenty of ideas these days to start up after the coronavirus pandemic -- DHs in the National League, neutral-site games, personal rosin bags for pitchers.Now comes a proposal certain to truly upend the sport: Up to 16 playoff teams.More than half of the 30 clubs advance. No need to finish over .500, probably. This skewed season, heck, 35 wins could be enough to play into October.What’s next, the Winnipeg Jets in the World Series?OK, we’ve heard this before, that an extra wild-card team or two represents the NHL-ization of baseball. But to some, an expansion from 10 playoff clubs to 16 would mean the end of civilization.Longtime manager Jim Riggleman chuckled at that notion.“I think that whatever they come up with this year to play, anything goes. That’s fine,” he said. “But moving forward into next year, I wouldn’t be in favor of that many teams making the playoffs. I don’t think many players... [More]

June 91901 — The New York Giants set a major league record with 31 hits in beating Cincinnati 25-13. Al Selbach of the Giants went 6-for-7 with two doubles and four singles and scored four runs.1906 — Boston snapped a 19-game losing streak by beating the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3.1914 — Honus Wagner became the first player in modern baseball to get 3,000 hits.1935 — The St. Louis Cardinals became the 10th team in major league history to score a run in every inning in a 13-2 win over the Chicago Cubs.1946 — Commissioner Happy Chandler imposed five-year suspensions on players who jumped to the Mexican League and three-year suspensions for those who broke the reserve clause.1946 — The New York Giants’ Mel Ott became the first manager to be ejected in both ends of a doubleheader. The Pittsburgh Pirates won both games, 2-1 and 5-1.1963 — Playing the first Sunday night game in major league history because of excessive heat during the day, the Houston Colt .45s handed the San Francisco Giants their... [More]

June 71885 — The American Association allowed pitchers to throw overhand.1906 — The Chicago Cubs scored 11 runs in the first inning off New York Giants aces Christy Mathewson and Joe McGinnity and went on to a 19-0 victory.1931 — The Philadelphia Athletics left 18 base runners on base and still beat the Detroit Tigers, 12-2.1936 — The New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians played 16 innings without recording a strikeout. The Yankees won 5-4.1938 — Cleveland pitcher Johnny Allen walked off the mound in the second inning and didn’t return after plate umpire Bill McGowan wanted Allen’s dangling sweatshirt sleeve to be cut off because it was distracting Boston Red Sox hitters. Allen was fined $250 by manager Ossie Vitt and the shirt ended up in the Hall of Fame.1946 — Chicago pitcher Claude Passeau won his own game with a two-run game-ending homer in the ninth inning against Brooklyn. The Cubs won 2-0.1950 — The Boston Red Sox collected 42 total bases, including six home runs and 23 hits... [More]

June 61918 — Casey Stengel, after being traded by Brooklyn in the offseason, made his return to Ebbets Field a memorable one. In his first at-bat, Stengel called time, stepped out of the batter’s box and doffed his cap. A bird flew out and the fans broke into laughter.1934 — Myril Hoag hit a major league record six singles in the New York Yankees’ 15-3 rout of the Boston Red Sox.1939 — The New York Giants hit five home runs in the fourth inning in a 17-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds at the Polo Grounds. With two out, Harry Danning, Al Demaree, Burgess Whitehead, Manny Salvo and Joe Moore connected as the Giants scored eight runs in the inning.1945 — In the first game of a doubleheader, Boston’s Boo Ferriss scattered 14 hits to beat Philadelphia 5-2. Ferris, 8-0 on the year, tied the AL mark held by Chicago’s John Whitehead for wins at the start of a career.1975 — Cleveland manager Frank Robinson hit two three-run homers in a 7-5 win over the Texas Rangers.1986 — San Diego Padres manager... [More]

June 51911 — Boston’s Smoky Joe Wood struck out three Chicago White Sox pinch hitters in the ninth to preserve a 5-4 win.1915 — Philadelphia’s Grover Cleveland Alexander lost his no-hitter when Artie Butler punched a single with two outs in the ninth. Alexander struck out Bob Bescher for the final out to beat St. Louis 3-0. Alexander went on to pitch three more one-hitters during the season.1929 — The Cincinnati Reds scored nine runs in the sixth inning, en route to a 21-4 win over the Chicago Cubs.1935 — Chicago White Sox rookie pitcher John Whitehead loses to St. Louis 2-0. It was his first loss after winning his first eight starts, an AL record for the start of a career.1943 — New York’s Carl Hubbell snaps the Giants losing streak of seven games by pitching a one-hitter against the Pittsburgh for a 5-1 win. The only hit for Pittsburgh was a solo homer by first baseman Elbie Fletcher.1949 — Commissioner Happy Chandler lifted the ban on all players who jumped to Mexico, starting in 1946.1955... [More]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chris Archer won't pitch for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020, and his time with the club may be over.The 31-year-old right-hander had surgery Tuesday in St. Louis with Dr. Robert Thompson to relieve symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome. Archer will not be available this season if Major League Baseball finds a way to put together a truncated schedule.Pirates director of Sports Medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Archer reported discomfort in the neck/shoulder area on his right side in March shortly before spring training was stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Archer remained on a throwing program when he went home but symptoms continued to linger. “What made it most challenging for Chris, he didn’t feel the symptoms immediately after throwing,” Tomczyk said. “It was hours afterward. It was the next day."Tomczyk estimated Archer will need six-to-eight months of rehabilitation. Archer's absence this season is another blow to a starting rotation already missing ace... [More]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chris Archer won't pitch for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020 and his time with the club may be over.Pittsburgh announced Wednesday that 31-year-old Archer underwent surgery to relieve symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome. The procedure was conducted on Tuesday in St. Louis, and the Pirates said Archer will not be available this season if Major League Baseball finds a way to put together a truncated schedule.The Pirates were banking on a bounce back year by Archer, who is 6-12 with a 4.92 ERA in 33 starts since he was acquired from Tampa Bay at the 2018 trade deadline for outfielder Austin Meadows and pitcher Tyler Glasnow. Archer has struggled to find any consistency with the Pirates, while Meadows became an All-Star last season and Glasnow also blossomed.Archer's contract includes a $9 million salary this year, but he will receive only a portion due to the coronavirus pandemic. Pittsburgh holds an $11 million club option for 2021, with a $250,000 buyout. ___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Nationals changed course and told their minor leaguers on Monday they will receive their full weekly stipends of $400 at least through June after Washington reliever Sean Doolittle tweeted that the team’s major league players would cover a planned cut in those payments.Doolittle wrote on Twitter that Nationals major leaguers held a video conference call after The Athletic reported Sunday the club would be releasing more than two dozen minor league players and reducing stipends for players in the minors from $400 to $300 per week.A text message sent by the Nationals to players in the minors and forwarded Monday to The Associated Press reads: “Upon further internal discussion, you will receive your full stipend of $400 per week through the month of June. We will consider future payments on a month to month basis. Thank you!” It’s not unusual for big league teams to release minor leaguers at this time of year, although not normally this many. More than 400 young players... [More]

June 21928 — Les Bell of the Boston Braves hit three home runs and a triple at Braves Field, but the Cincinnati Reds came away with a 20-12 triumph.1928 — The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1. All the runs came from three pinch-hit home runs.1941 — Lou Gehrig died in New York at age 37.1949 — The Philadelphia Phillies hit five homers in the eighth inning against the Cincinnati Reds. Andy Seminick hit two and Del Ennis, Willie Jones, and Schoolboy Rowe hit one apiece. Seminick had homered earlier in the game.1959 — The Baltimore Orioles-Chicago White Sox game at Comiskey Park was delayed for nearly half an hour as a swarm of gnats overcame the field. Groundskeepers tried using bug sprays and torches, but the gnats wouldn’t budge. A post-game fireworks display was brought in from center field and a smoke bomb was attached to the framework. The gnats left and the Orioles defeated the White Sox, 3-2.1990 — Randy Johnson pitched the first no-hitter in the Seattle Mariners’... [More]

June 11923 — The New York Giants scored in every inning to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 22-8 at the Baker Bowl.1925 — Lou Gehrig batted for Pee Wee Wanninger in the eighth and replaced Wally Pipp at first base to start his streak of 2,130 consecutive games. The Washington Senators beat the New York Yankees 5-3.1937 — Bill Dietrich of the Chicago White Sox pitched a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns in an 8-0 win.1975 — Nolan Ryan of the California Angels pitched his fourth no-hitter, striking out nine. Ryan tied Sandy Koufax’s record by beating the Baltimore Orioles 1-0. It was Ryan’s 100th major league victory.1977 — Seattle’s Ruppert Jones homered off Cleveland’s Dennis Eckersley in the fifth inning to end Eckersley’s no-hit string of 22 1-3 innings, just two outs short of Cy Young’s major league record. The Indians went on to win, 7-1.1987 — Cleveland’s Phil Niekro pitched the Indians to a 9-6 victory, his 314th, over the Detroit Tigers. The win gave himself and his brother, Joe,... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Minor league players in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization will be getting something extra in their paychecks courtesy of star pitcher David Price.He will give $1,000 each to 220 minor leaguers as a goodwill gesture, a team spokesman said Saturday.They will continue to receive $400 a week from the team at least through June. Price has yet to play a regular-season game for the Dodgers because the start of the season has been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. He was acquired in a February trade with the Boston Red Sox. The 34-year-old left-hander is on a $217 million, seven-year contract that runs through 2021. He was set to earn $32 million this season, with the Red Sox paying $16 millon of that. However, his pay will be determined by whether MLB and the players reach an agreement to play this season.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

May 301894 — Boston’s Robert Lowe became the first player in Major League history to hit four home runs in a game, leading the Beaneaters to a 20-11 win over Cincinnati. After hitting four straight homers, all line drives far over the fence, Lowe added a single to set a major league record with 17 total bases.1922 — Between the morning and afternoon games of a Memorial Day twin bill, Max Flack of the Chicago Cubs was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for Cliff Heathcote. They played one game for each team.1927 — In the fourth inning of a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, shortstop Jim Cooney of the Chicago Cubs caught Paul Waner’s liner, stepped on second to double Lloyd Waner and then tagged Clyde Barnhart coming from first for an unassisted triple play.1935 — Babe Ruth made his last major league appearance. He played one inning for the Boston Braves against the Philadelphia Phillies. Jim Bivin retired Babe Ruth on an infield grounder in the Babe’s final major league at-bat.1940 — Carl... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Agent Scott Boras recommends his clients refuse Major League Baseball’s attempt to cut salaries during negotiations with the players’ association, claiming team financial issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic have their origin in management debt financing.In an email obtained by The Associated Press, Boras wrote that players should not alter terms of the March 26 agreement between MLB and the union that called for players to reduce their salaries to a prorated rate based on a shortened season. MLB on Tuesday proposed a series of tiered reductions that would cause top stars to receive the biggest cuts.“Remember, games cannot be played without you,” Boras wrote. “Players should not agree to further pay cuts to bail out the owners. Let owners take some of their record revenues and profits from the past several years and pay you the prorated salaries you agreed to accept or let them borrow against the asset values they created from the use of those profits players generated.”Boras... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Agent Scott Boras recommends his clients refuse Major League Baseball’s attempt to cut salaries during negotiations with the players’ association, claiming team financial issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic have their origin in management debt financing.In an email obtained by The Associated Press, Boras wrote that players should not alter terms of the March 26 agreement between MLB and the union that called for players to reduce their salaries to a prorated rate based on a shortened season. MLB on Tuesday proposed a series of tiered reductions that would cause top stars to receive the biggest cuts.“Remember, games cannot be played without you,” Boras wrote. “Players should not agree to further pay cuts to bail out the owners. Let owners take some of their record revenues and profits from the past several years and pay you the prorated salaries you agreed to accept or let them borrow against the asset values they created from the use of those profits players generated.”Boras... [More]

June 31918 — Dutch Leonard of the Boston Red Sox pitched his second no-hitter, blanking the Detroit Tigers 5-0.1932 — Lou Gehrig became the first American League player to hit four home runs in a game, helping the New York Yankees beat the Philadelphia A’s 20-13. The event was overshadowed by the resignation of John McGraw as manager of the New York Giants.1954 — Henry Thompson of the New York Giants hit three home runs and drove in eight runs in a 13-8 win against the St. Louis Cardinals. Willie Mays drove in the other five runs with two homers.1971 — Ken Holtzman of the Chicago Cubs pitched his second no-hitter, beating the Cincinnati Reds 1-0.1978 — Dave Johnson became the first major leaguer to hit two pinch-hit grand slams in a season. His grand slam in the ninth inning gave the Philadelphia Phillies a 5-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.1989 — Los Angeles and Houston played 22 innings at the Astrodome in the longest night game in National League history — 7 hours, 14 minutes.... [More]

May 301894 — Boston’s Robert Lowe became the first player in Major League history to hit four home runs in a game, leading the Beaneaters to a 20-11 win over Cincinnati. After hitting four straight homers, all line drives far over the fence, Lowe added a single to set a major league record with 17 total bases.1922 — Between the morning and afternoon games of a Memorial Day twin bill, Max Flack of the Chicago Cubs was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for Cliff Heathcote. They played one game for each team.1927 — In the fourth inning of a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, shortstop Jim Cooney of the Chicago Cubs caught Paul Waner’s liner, stepped on second to double Lloyd Waner and then tagged Clyde Barnhart coming from first for an unassisted triple play.1935 — Babe Ruth made his last major league appearance. He played one inning for the Boston Braves against the Philadelphia Phillies. Jim Bivin retired Babe Ruth on an infield grounder in the Babe’s final major league at-bat.1940 — Carl... [More]

May 291916 — Christy Mathewson defeated the Boston Braves 3-0 for the New York Giants’ 17th consecutive road win.1922 — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled organized baseball was primarily a sport and not a business, and therefore not subject to antitrust laws and interstate commerce regulations. The suit had been brought by the Federal League’s Baltimore franchise.1928 — Bill Terry hit for the cycle to lead the New York Giants to a 12-5 win over Brooklyn at Ebbets Field. Terry became the first player in major league history to include a grand slam as part of the cycle.1942 — New York’s Lefty Gomez, who calls himself the worst-hitting pitcher in baseball, banged out four hits while pitching a 16-1 four-hitter against Washington.1946 — In a reverse integration role, Edward Klep became the first white to play in the Negro leagues in a game played in Grand Rapids. Klep pitched seven innings for the Cleveland Buckeyes against the American Giants in his debut with the Negro American League team.1956... [More]

Ross Stripling has spent much of the last two months working on an island —- the one in the kitchen of his Houston home.With baseball halted by the coronavirus pandemic, the Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander returned to his offseason job. When not throwing fastballs, he pitches clients as a financial adviser for B. Riley Wealth Management.The All-Star has retired George Springer in the World Series on a bases-loaded fly that Stripling was sure would be a grand slam. And he’s logged on in the morning, seen a stock drop 30% and felt his heart sink into the pit of his stomach.Stress compounded.“When I have someone else’s money in my hands and that’s their future, their nest egg, there’s a lot of pressure there,” Stripling said. “There’s a lot of anxiety to perform well for their sake.”Interest rates approaching 0 have been on his mind more these days than spin rates of 2,650. No need to look up ERA, but a daily dissection is essential of an elevated VIX, the “fear index” of market volatility.Analytic... [More]