ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell took a perfect game into the sixth inning and Tommy Pham hit his first career grand slam, leading the Tampa Bay Rays over the Arizona Diamondbacks 12-1 on Monday night.Snell (3-3) rebounded from allowing a career-high seven runs over three innings of an 8-2 loss at Kansas City last week to hold the Diamondbacks without a hit until Ildemaro Vargas singled with two outs in the sixth. Snell got out of the inning and finished with nine strikeouts in an 83-pitch outing.Chaz Roe relieved to start the seventh and Casey Sadler allowed an unearned run in the ninth to finish a two-hitter before 8,124, the lowest at Tropicana Field since September 2017.Pham's grand slam off Merrill Kelly (3-3) finished a five-run second inning that put the AL East leaders up 6-0.PADRES 4, METS 0SAN DIEGO (AP) — Pumped-up rookie Chris Paddack struck out a career-high 11 to outduel NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom, and Hunter Renfroe homered... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Robinson Chirinos hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in a four-run seventh inning to give the Houston Astros a 4-1 win over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday night.The Astros were unable to do much against Carlos Carrasco (2-3) before Yuli Gurriel's RBI double in the seventh. After an intentional walk, Chirinos sent the next pitch over the train tracks atop the wall in left field and out of the stadium on a night the retractable roof was open.The Astros won the final two games to earn a split of the four-game set with Cleveland, a rematch of last year's AL Division Series in which Houston earned a three-game sweep. Houston also moved into first place in the AL West.Wade Miley yielded six hits and one run in 5 2/3 innings to extend his streak of consecutive starts with three or fewer earned runs to 22. The left-hander struck out three and walked two.Framber Valdez (1-1) yielded one hit in two scoreless innings. Ryan Pressly allowed one hit and no runs in the ninth for his second... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Looking to end an early season funk, the Chicago Cubs shook up their struggling bullpen Saturday by demoting right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. to Triple-A and placing left-hander Mike Montgomery on the 10-day injured list.The Cubs called up relievers Allen Webster and Kyle Ryan from Triple-A Iowa. Chicago has dropped six straight since winning on opening day, and its bullpen entered Saturday with an 8.54 ERA.Edwards has a 32.40 ERA in four appearances this season. Eight of the 13 batters he's faced have reached safely, and three of them homered. That includes a two-run shot by Milwaukee's Orlando Arcia in the Brewers' 13-10 win Friday night.Manager Joe Maddon wants Edwards to clear his head in Iowa for a bit. The lanky righty had a 2.60 ERA in 58 appearances last season, and Maddon expects he'll be back at some point."We all know he wants to throw strikes," Maddon said. "It's more about developing his routine. ... What do you do when things go badly? That's what he needs."Montgomery... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Looking to end an early season funk, the Chicago Cubs have shaken up their struggling bullpen by demoting right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. to Triple-A and placing left-hander Mike Montgomery on the 10-day injured list.The Cubs called up relievers Allen Webster and Kyle Ryan from Triple-A Iowa in corresponding moves announced Saturday. Chicago has dropped six straight since winning on opening day, and its bullpen entered Saturday with an 8.54 ERA.Edwards has an ERA of 32.40 in four appearances this season. Eight of the 13 batters he's faced have reached safely, and three of them homered. That includes a two-run shot by Milwaukee's Orlando Arcia in the Brewers' 13-10 win Friday night.Montgomery hadn't fared much better, posting a 16.88 ERA in four appearances. He missed most of spring training because of shoulder soreness and was diagnosed with a strained left lat Saturday.Chicago also designated right-hander Jen-Ho Tseng for assignment to clear space for Webster on the 40-man roster.Webster, 29, had 1.50 ERA over 12 innings this spring. Ryan, 27, posted a 3.09 ERA in Cactus League play.Both were in Milwaukee on Saturday and available to pitch in Game 2 of the Cubs' series against the Brewers.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Kyle Hendricks' focus is on the season, among the reasons the Cubs didn't hesitate to give the right-handed pitcher a new deal.Hendricks and the Cubs agreed Tuesday to a contract that adds $55.5 million from 2020 to 2023, guaranteeing he will receive $62,905,000 over the next five seasons.He had agreed in January to a one-year deal for $7,405,000 and would have been eligible for arbitration next winter."I love everything about being a Chicago Cub," Hendricks said. "I love everything about the city, about the fans and especially about my teammates in the clubhouse. That's where my focus is at. As much as I'll revel and be excited about this, our focus 100 percent is on Thursday and the season. That's what I told the guys in there. I want to be with them as long as I can."His new deal adds salaries of $12 million for 2020 and $14 million annually from 2021-23. The agreement includes a $16 million team option for 2024 with a $1.5 million buyout, and the option would become... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs and left-hander Kyle Ryan have agreed to one-year contract.Under the terms of the deal announced Wednesday, he would earn $180,000 if he spends next season in the minors. His salary would increase to $555,000 if he's in the majors and go up to $700,000 if he spends one day on the active big league roster, not including the disabled list.The 27-year-old Ryan was 1-2 with a 2.86 ERA in eight starts and 14 relief appearances for Triple-A Iowa this year. He was 8-6 with a 3.87 ERA in 86 games for the Detroit Tigers from 2014-17.___More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs and left-hander Kyle Ryan have agreed to one-year contract.Under the terms of the deal announced Wednesday, he would earn $180,000 if he spends next season in the minors. His salary would increase to $555,000 if he's in the majors and go up to $700,000 if he spends one day on the active big league roster, not including the disabled list.The 27-year-old Ryan was 1-2 with a 2.86 ERA in eight starts and 14 relief appearances for Triple-A Iowa this year last year. He was 8-6 with a 3.87 ERA in 86 games for the Detroit Tigers from 2014-17.___More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LHP Kyle Ryan was optioned to Triple-A Toledo on Thursday. The Tigers had been playing with one less position player than usual until shortstop Jose Iglesias was activated from the DL on Thursday. Ryan has no decisions and a 7.94 ERA as a situational reliever in eight appearances. The move leaves Detroit with just two lefties -- Justin Wilson and Blaine Hardy -- in the bullpen.

LHP Kyle Ryan struggled in relief, giving up two runs and three hits with a walk while recording only one out to raise his season ERA to 8.31. Ausmus said Ryan simply couldn't throw strikes when he needed to in relief of starter Michael Fulmer.

LHP Kyle Ryan was reinstated from the paternity list on Saturday but had an adventurous return trip. Ryan's flight from Tampa to Detroit was cancelled and all other flights from Tampa and Orlando were booked through the weekend. "I told him, 'Box yourself up and come FedEx," manager Brad Ausmus said. Ryan wound up flying into Columbus, Ohio and driving to Detroit, arriving in time for the game. He pitched a scoreless eighth inning against Boston.

LHP Kyle Ryan was reinstated from the paternity list Saturday but had an adventurous return trip. Ryan's flight from Tampa to Detroit was cancelled and all other flights from Tampa and Orlando were booked through the weekend. "I told him, 'Box yourself up and come FedEx," manager Brad Ausmus said. Ryan wound up flying into Columbus, Ohio, and driving to Detroit, arriving in time for the game. He pitched a scoreless eighth inning against Boston.

LHP Kyle Ryan will return to Detroit's active roster Saturday after spending three days on paternity leave. Ryan will be welcomed because the Tigers had LHP Justin Wilson and RHP Francisco Rodriguez throw so many pitches in the eighth and ninth innings they will need at least one day off to recover. Manager Brad Ausmus said Ryan could pitch multiple innings if necessary.

LHP Kyle Ryan was placed paternity leave on Wednesday and the Tigers called up LHP Blaine Hardy. Ryan could be back as soon as Sunday.

LHP Kyle Ryan was due to head back to Lakeland, Fla., on Tuesday night to be with his wife, who was to undergo a caesarian section on Wednesday. Ryan is expected to rejoin the Tigers on Friday. Ryan's wife's original due date was March 24, which led to the couple to go the C-section route. "Courtney said the process will be about eight to 10 minutes, maybe a little more," Ryan said before Tuesday's game. "But they said that'll be the longest eight to 10 minutes of your life." Ryan was expected to fly back to Florida after Monday's season opener before the game was postponed due to rain. He pushed his flight back as not to miss the first game of the season. "Coming up here, I think, was the right choice," he said. LHP Blaine Hardy will fill the roster spot until Ryan returns.

LHP Kyle Ryan, out of action since Sept. 15 with a back/rib problem, was available to pitch Monday.

LHP Kyle Ryan hasn't slid down in the bullpen pecking order -- he has been battling a bad rib. So manager Brad Ausmus has kept him out of action. Ryan hasn't pitched since Sept. 15 against Minnesota. "I don't know when it happened," Ausmus said, "but I found out about it in Minnesota." Ryan was seen in the clubhouse Saturday with his ribcage wrapped in stretch bandage. "He said he was OK the other day," Ausmus said. "I don't want to throw him into a tight game and deal with that."