Marcus Stroman pitched one-hit ball for eight innings, Dominic Smith launched a grand slam and the New York Mets cruised to a 7-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. Stroman (7-8) gave up a leadoff single to Aristides Aquino in the third inning and little else. He struck out seven and walked one while giving New York’s beleaguered bullpen precious rest going into Thursday’s day off. Jeurys Familia struck out three in a hitless ninth. Luis Guillorme hit his first homer of the season and Jonathan Villar also connected for the NL East leaders. Mets manager Luis Rojas returned to the dugout after serving a two-game suspension for excessive arguing on Sunday. Jeff Hoffman (3-5) came off the 10-day injured list to make his first start since May 26 and lasted four innings, allowing seven hits — including Smith's slam — and five runs with three walks. RED SOX 7, BLUE JAYS 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — J.D. Martinez and Hunter Renfroe connected back-to-back as Boston won a home run derby in Toronto’s... [More]

Marcus Stroman pitched one-hit ball for eight innings, Dominic Smith launched a grand slam and the New York Mets cruised to a 7-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. Stroman (7-8) gave up a leadoff single to Aristides Aquino in the third inning and little else. He struck out seven and walked one while giving New York’s beleaguered bullpen precious rest going into Thursday’s day off. Jeurys Familia struck out three in a hitless ninth. Luis Guillorme hit his first homer of the season and Jonathan Villar also connected for the NL East leaders. Mets manager Luis Rojas returned to the dugout after serving a two-game suspension for excessive arguing on Sunday. Jeff Hoffman (3-5) came off the 10-day injured list to make his first start since May 26 and lasted four innings, allowing seven hits — including Smith's slam — and five runs with three walks. RED SOX 7, BLUE JAYS 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — J.D. Martinez and Hunter Renfroe connected back-to-back as Boston won a home run derby in Toronto’s... [More]

Marcus Stroman pitched one-hit ball for eight innings, Dominic Smith launched a grand slam and the New York Mets cruised to a 7-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. Stroman (7-8) gave up a leadoff single to Aristides Aquino in the third inning and little else. He struck out seven and walked one while giving New York’s beleaguered bullpen precious rest going into Thursday’s day off. Jeurys Familia struck out three in a hitless ninth. Luis Guillorme hit his first homer of the season and Jonathan Villar also connected for the NL East leaders. Mets manager Luis Rojas returned to the dugout after serving a two-game suspension for excessive arguing on Sunday. Jeff Hoffman (3-5) came off the 10-day injured list to make his first start since May 26 and lasted four innings, allowing seven hits — including Smith's slam — and five runs with three walks. RED SOX 7, BLUE JAYS 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — J.D. Martinez and Hunter Renfroe connected back-to-back as Boston won a home run derby in Toronto’s... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Nestor Cortes and three relievers combined for a three-hitter and Brett Gardner and DJ LeMahieu each drove in two runs to lead the New York Yankees over the Houston Astros 4-0 on Friday night. Making a spot start, Cortes permitted two hits in 4 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking two and lowering his ERA to 1.05. Lucas Luetge (3-1) pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings for the win. Chad Green gave up one hit in two innings and Jonathan Loaisiga threw a perfect ninth. It was New York’s first visit to Houston since Game 6 of the 2019 AL Championship Series. The Astros advanced to the World Series with a 6-4 win in that game on a two-run homer by Jose Altuve with two outs in the ninth. The Astros are commemorating the event by giving away replica 2019 AL champions trophies on Friday night, 2019 AL champions replica rings on Saturday and Altuve jerseys for the finale on Sunday. GIANTS 5, NATIONALS 3 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Curt Casali hit a two-run homer while filling in for injured... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Nestor Cortes and three relievers combined for a three-hitter and Brett Gardner and DJ LeMahieu each drove in two runs to lead the New York Yankees over the Houston Astros 4-0 on Friday night. Making a spot start, Cortes permitted two hits in 4 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking two and lowering his ERA to 1.05. Lucas Luetge (3-1) pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings for the win. Chad Green gave up one hit in two innings and Jonathan Loaisiga threw a perfect ninth. It was New York’s first visit to Houston since Game 6 of the 2019 AL Championship Series. The Astros advanced to the World Series with a 6-4 win in that game on a two-run homer by Jose Altuve with two outs in the ninth. The Astros are commemorating the event by giving away replica 2019 AL champions trophies on Friday night, 2019 AL champions replica rings on Saturday and Altuve jerseys for the finale on Sunday. GIANTS 5, NATIONALS 3 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Curt Casali hit a two-run homer while filling in for injured... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Nestor Cortes and three relievers combined for a three-hitter and Brett Gardner and DJ LeMahieu each drove in two runs to lead the New York Yankees over the Houston Astros 4-0 on Friday night. Making a spot start, Cortes permitted two hits in 4 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking two and lowering his ERA to 1.05. Lucas Luetge (3-1) pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings for the win. Chad Green gave up one hit in two innings and Jonathan Loaisiga threw a perfect ninth. It was New York’s first visit to Houston since Game 6 of the 2019 AL Championship Series. The Astros advanced to the World Series with a 6-4 win in that game on a two-run homer by Jose Altuve with two outs in the ninth. The Astros are commemorating the event by giving away replica 2019 AL champions trophies on Friday night, 2019 AL champions replica rings on Saturday and Altuve jerseys for the finale on Sunday. CUBS 10, CARDINALS 5 CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Hendricks won his ninth straight decision, Patrick Wisdom hit... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Hendricks won his ninth straight decision, Patrick Wisdom hit a two-run homer and Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 10-5 on Friday afternoon. Kris Bryant drove in three runs with a pinch-hit double to start Chicago’s five-run burst in the seventh inning before Wisdom went deep against his former team. Joc Pederson doubled twice, including a three-run hit in the first. Chicago won for the second time in three games following an 11-game losing streak. Bryant didn’t start for a second straight game because of a strained right hamstring, but hit the first pitch he saw from Junior Fernández to the wall in left filed with the bases loaded. The All-Star came home when Wisdom connected for his 12th homer to make it 9-2. Hendricks (11-4) allowed two runs on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings while walking one and hitting a batter. INDIANS 2, ROYALS 1 CLEVELAND (AP) — Bobby Bradley homered leading off the ninth inning as Cleveland overcame some brutal baserunning that led to... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered twice, becoming the first player in major league history to hit 15 home runs in a 17-day span, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-4 on Monday night. Schwarber socked a 1-0 fastball from Jared Eickhoff an estimated 439 feet into the upper deck in right field in the first inning. It was his sixth leadoff homer this season, and Trea Turner followed with a 435-foot bomb to left to make it 2-0. Schwarber took Eickhoff (0-1) deep again in the fifth inning, his 24th of the year. The Nationals have won 12 of 15 to return to .500 and move within three games of the first-place Mets in the NL East. Ryan Zimmerman had a pinch-hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning for the Nationals after New York had cut the lead to 5-4. Paolo Espino (2-2) threw five scoreless innings in a spot start. Brad Hand got five outs for his 17th save. DODGERS 3, GIANTS 2 LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mookie Betts and Max Muncy hit back-to-back home runs to begin the first... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered twice, becoming the first player in major league history to hit 15 home runs in a 17-day span, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-4 on Monday night. Schwarber socked a 1-0 fastball from Jared Eickhoff an estimated 439 feet into the upper deck in right field in the first inning. It was his sixth leadoff homer this season, and Trea Turner followed with a 435-foot bomb to left to make it 2-0. Schwarber took Eickhoff (0-1) deep again in the fifth inning, his 24th of the year. The Nationals have won 12 of 15 to return to .500 and move within three games of the first-place Mets in the NL East. Ryan Zimmerman had a pinch-hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning for the Nationals after New York had cut the lead to 5-4. Paolo Espino (2-2) threw five scoreless innings in a spot start. Brad Hand got five outs for his 17th save. ANGELS 5, YANKEES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani pounded his hardest-hit home run of the season, José Suarez... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered twice, becoming the first player in major league history to hit 15 home runs in a 17-day span, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-4 on Monday night. Schwarber socked a 1-0 fastball from Jared Eickhoff an estimated 439 feet into the upper deck in right field in the first inning. It was his sixth leadoff homer this season, and Trea Turner followed with a 435-foot bomb to left to make it 2-0. Schwarber took Eickhoff (0-1) deep again in the fifth inning, his 24th of the year. The Nationals have won 12 of 15 to return to .500 and move within three games of the first-place Mets in the NL East. Ryan Zimmerman had a pinch-hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning for the Nationals after New York had cut the lead to 5-4. Paolo Espino (2-2) threw five scoreless innings in a spot start. Brad Hand got five outs for his 17th save. ANGELS 5, YANKEES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani pounded his hardest-hit home run of the season, José Suarez... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kyle Schwarber homered twice, becoming the first player in major league history to hit 15 home runs in a 17-day span, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 8-4 on Monday night. Schwarber socked a 1-0 fastball from Jared Eickhoff an estimated 439 feet into the upper deck in right field in the first inning. It was his sixth leadoff homer this season, and Trea Turner followed with a 435-foot bomb to left to make it 2-0. Schwarber took Eickhoff (0-1) deep again in the fifth inning, his 24th of the year. The Nationals have won 12 of 15 to return to .500 and move within three games of the first-place Mets in the NL East. Ryan Zimmerman had a pinch-hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning for the Nationals after New York had cut the lead to 5-4. Paolo Espino (2-2) threw five scoreless innings in a spot start. Brad Hand got five outs for his 17th save. ANGELS 5, YANKEES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani pounded his hardest-hit home run of the season, José Suarez... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors on today: STICKING TO HIS STORY Major League Baseball will deal with Mariners pitcher Hector Santiago, the first player ejected under the new crackdown against grip-enhancing sticky stuff. He could draw a 10-game suspension. Santiago was tossed Sunday in a 3-2 win over the White Sox. The 33-year-old lefty was checked by the umpires as he exited in the fifth inning and his glove was confiscated. It was later announced that Santiago had been thrown out. “He was ejected for when his glove was inspected, for having a foreign substance that was sticky on the inside palm of his glove,” crew chief Tom Hallion said. Santiago, who began his career with the White Sox, said he did nothing wrong. He explained he had used rosin to stop the sweat from dripping on both his arms on a humid day in Chicago. That was Santiago’s story, and he was sticking to it. “They’re going to inspect it and all this science stuff and it’s going to be sweat and rosin,” he said,... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors on Monday: STICKING TO HIS STORY Major League Baseball will deal with Mariners pitcher Hector Santiago, the first player ejected under the new crackdown against grip-enhancing sticky stuff. He could draw a 10-game suspension. Santiago was tossed Sunday in a 3-2 win over the White Sox. The 33-year-old lefty was checked by the umpires as he exited in the fifth inning and his glove was confiscated. It was later announced that Santiago had been thrown out. “He was ejected for when his glove was inspected, for having a foreign substance that was sticky on the inside palm of his glove,” crew chief Tom Hallion said. Santiago, who began his career with the White Sox, said he did nothing wrong. He explained he had used rosin to stop the sweat from dripping on both his arms on a humid day in Chicago. That was Santiago’s story, and he was sticking to it. “They’re going to inspect it and all this science stuff and it’s going to be sweat and rosin,” he said,... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani struck out nine over six innings of one-run ball for the Angels, but the San Francisco Giants rallied for seven runs in the 13th inning of a 9-3 victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday. Steven Duggar had an RBI double in the 12th and a two-run single in the 13th for the Giants, who finally blew it open while the Angels had outfielder Taylor Ward playing catcher and starting pitcher Griffin Canning playing left field as the fallout from an untimely injury to Kurt Suzuki and a series of strategic decisions made to allow Ohtani to hit for himself. Mike Tauchman struck out five times before hitting a three-run homer to cap the Giants’ 13th-inning rally. Brandon Crawford put San Francisco ahead to stay with a bases-loaded walk from Alex Claudio (1-2), who walked three straight in the 13th. The 13-inning game matched the longest in the majors since the institution of the runner-on-second-base rule to open extra innings last season. Dominic Leone (1-0) won despite... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani struck out nine over six innings of one-run ball for the Angels, but the San Francisco Giants rallied for seven runs in the 13th inning of a 9-3 victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday. Steven Duggar had an RBI double in the 12th and a two-run single in the 13th for the Giants, who finally blew it open while the Angels had outfielder Taylor Ward playing catcher and starting pitcher Griffin Canning playing left field as the fallout from an untimely injury to Kurt Suzuki and a series of strategic decisions made to allow Ohtani to hit for himself. Mike Tauchman struck out five times before hitting a three-run homer to cap the Giants’ 13th-inning rally. Brandon Crawford put San Francisco ahead to stay with a bases-loaded walk from Alex Claudio (1-2), who walked three straight in the 13th. The 13-inning game matched the longest in the majors since the institution of the runner-on-second-base rule to open extra innings last season. Dominic Leone (1-0) won despite... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Chris Sale: Great pitcher, lousy patient. Moments after Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters “We've got to be disciplined,” his injured ace showed that might be the biggest challenge in his comeback from Tommy John surgery. “If it was up to me, I’d be starting tomorrow,” Sale said after throwing 25 pitches in a bullpen session at Fenway Park on Tuesday, joking: “I told AC I was ready for the second one in Atlanta (in eight days), because I want to hit. I left it up to him, though." A seven-time All-Star, Sale was 103-62 with 2.89 ERA in his first nine major league seasons, joining the Red Sox in 2017 and leading them to the World Series championship the next year. But he had the worst year of his career in 2019, posting a 6-11 record with a 4.40 ERA, and then he missed all of last season following March 2020 surgery to replace the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow. The operation usually requires a minimum of 12 months of rehab, but can take as much as two years.... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today: BOSTON BROOMS? Rafael Devers and the Red Sox go for a three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium in this week’s Sunday night matchup. Kiké Hernández snapped an 0-for-27 skid with a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning as Boston completed its major league-best 20th come-from-behind victory, beating New York 7-3 Saturday. The Yankees dropped behind Toronto into fourth place in the AL East. They are 3-9 in their past 12 games, averaging just 2.4 runs. After going 9-1 against Boston in 2020, the Yankees have dropped the first two of 19 against the second-place Red Sox this year. Red Sox righty Garrett Richards (4-4, 3.75 ERA) faces righty Domingo Germán (4-3, 3.27) in the finale. SEE WHAT IT MEANS Orioles lefty John Means is getting checked after leaving his latest start in the first inning because of shoulder fatigue. The Baltimore ace faced just five batters Saturday, giving up two home runs and a single in a 10-4 loss to Cleveland. Means pitched... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors on Sunday: BOSTON BROOMS? Rafael Devers and the Red Sox go for a three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium in this week’s Sunday night matchup. Kiké Hernández snapped an 0-for-27 skid with a tiebreaking double in the eighth inning as Boston completed its major league-best 20th come-from-behind victory, beating New York 7-3 Saturday. The Yankees dropped behind Toronto into fourth place in the AL East. They are 3-9 in their past 12 games, averaging just 2.4 runs. After going 9-1 against Boston in 2020, the Yankees have dropped the first two of 19 against the second-place Red Sox this year. Red Sox righty Garrett Richards (4-4, 3.75 ERA) faces righty Domingo Germán (4-3, 3.27) in the finale. SEE WHAT IT MEANS Orioles lefty John Means is getting checked after leaving his latest start in the first inning because of shoulder fatigue. The Baltimore ace faced just five batters Saturday, giving up two home runs and a single in a 10-4 loss to Cleveland. Means... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays’ 11-game winning streak came to an end Tuesday night when Brad Keller pitched seven strong innings and Salvador Perez hit a tiebreaking RBI single to give the Kansas City Royals a 2-1 victory. Rich Hill struck out a career-high 13 for the Rays. Tampa Bay’s winning string was the second-longest in club history, one shy of the record set in 2004 by the then-Devil Rays managed by Lou Piniella. Keller (4-4) allowed one run, four hits, four walks and struck out seven. Jake Brentz went 1 1/3 innings before Kyle Zimmer got two outs to get his second save. Perez put the Royals up 2-1 on a sixth-inning single off Hill (3-2). Hill became the oldest player to appear in a game with the Rays at 41 years, 75 days. Hall of Famer Wade Boggs was 41 years, 73 days old when he played his final game on Aug. 27, 1999. WHITE SOX 8, CARDINALS 3 CHICAGO (AP) — Lucas Giolito beat Jack Flaherty in a major league matchup of former high school teammates, leading Chicago... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays’ 11-game winning streak came to an end Tuesday night when Brad Keller pitched seven strong innings and Salvador Perez hit a tiebreaking RBI single to give the Kansas City Royals a 2-1 victory. Rich Hill struck out a career-high 13 for the Rays. Tampa Bay’s winning string was the second-longest in club history, one shy of the record set in 2004 by the then-Devil Rays managed by Lou Piniella. Keller (4-4) allowed one run, four hits, four walks and struck out seven. Jake Brentz went 1 1/3 innings before Kyle Zimmer got two outs to get his second save. Perez put the Royals up 2-1 on a sixth-inning single off Hill (3-2). Hill became the oldest player to appear in a game with the Rays at 41 years, 75 days. Hall of Famer Wade Boggs was 41 years, 73 days old when he played his final game on Aug. 27, 1999. WHITE SOX 8, CARDINALS 3 CHICAGO (AP) — Lucas Giolito beat Jack Flaherty in a major league matchup of former high school teammates, leading Chicago... [More]