ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Luis Patiño outpitched Gerrit Cole, Brett Phillips hit a grand slam during a 10-run sixth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by routing the New York Yankees 14-0 on Thursday. Patiño (2-2) allowed three hits in six innings. The 21-year-old right-hander, acquired in the trade that sent Blake Snell to San Diego last December, struck out eight and walked two. Cole (10-6) gave up a season-high eight runs — seven earned — on six hits over 5 1/3 innings and saw his ERA jump from 2.74 to 3.11. He had 10 strikeouts and two walks. Austin Meadows homered twice and drove in five runs for the Rays. Louis Head and Ryan Sherriff completed a four-hitter. All nine batters in the Rays’ lineup reached base in the sixth. It was the biggest scoring inning by Tampa Bay since a 10-run fifth at Miami on June 5, 2008. NATIONALS 3, PHILLIES 1, GAME 1 PHILLIES 11, NATIONALS 8, 8 INNINGS, GAME 2 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Max Scherzer delivered a signature performance in... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Luis Patiño outpitched Gerrit Cole, Brett Phillips hit a grand slam during a 10-run sixth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by routing the New York Yankees 14-0 on Thursday. Patiño (2-2) allowed three hits in six innings. The 21-year-old right-hander, acquired in the trade that sent Blake Snell to San Diego last December, struck out eight and walked two. Cole (10-6) gave up a season-high eight runs — seven earned — on six hits over 5 1/3 innings and saw his ERA jump from 2.74 to 3.11. He had 10 strikeouts and two walks. Austin Meadows homered twice and drove in five runs for the Rays. Louis Head and Ryan Sherriff completed a four-hitter. All nine batters in the Rays’ lineup reached base in the sixth. It was the biggest scoring inning by Tampa Bay since a 10-run fifth at Miami on June 5, 2008. NATIONALS 3, PHILLIES 1, GAME 1 PHILLIES 11, NATIONALS 8, 8 INNINGS, GAME 2 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Max Scherzer delivered a signature performance in... [More]

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher David Price struggled in Thursday's start versus the San Francisco Giants. Price had control issues this afternoon and allowed four hits, four runs (three earned), three walks and struck out two. Price worked mostly out of the bullpen and as an opener, but he has now made three straight starts with Clayton Kershaw (forearm) and Trevor Bauer (administrative leave) both sidelined. Price looked good in his previous two starts and is now 4-1 with a 3.63 ERA. He has yet to reach six innings this season, but he's worth a look in mixed leagues. Price is scheduled to face a tough Houston Astros offense on Wednesday and should be avoided in that matchup.

A look at what’s happening around the majors today: ___ NEW HOME Nelson Cruz is headed to a contender in the biggest deal yet ahead of the July 30 trade deadline. The defending AL champion Rays acquired Cruz, one of baseball’s most proven sluggers, in a four-player trade with Minnesota on Thursday night. Tampa Bay, in a tight race with Boston atop the AL East, received Cruz and minor leaguer Calvin Faucher from the struggling Twins in exchange for minor league right-handers Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman. The 41-year-old Cruz has 436 career homers and 1,202 RBIs. He’ll bring some needed pop to Tampa Bay’s lineup and should help the Rays against left-handers. They’re hitting .226 versus lefties. The seven-time All-Star also has plenty of playoff experience with 17 homers and 37 RBIs in 46 postseason games. He’s batting .294 with 19 homers and 50 RBIs this season. “People joke about how he’s ageless, and it really does feel that way,” Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said.... [More]

A look at what’s happening around the majors Friday: ___ NEW HOME Nelson Cruz is headed to a contender in the biggest deal yet ahead of the July 30 trade deadline. The defending AL champion Rays acquired Cruz, one of baseball’s most proven sluggers, in a four-player trade with Minnesota on Thursday night. Tampa Bay, in a tight race with Boston atop the AL East, received Cruz and minor leaguer Calvin Faucher from the struggling Twins (41-55) in exchange for minor league right-handers Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman. The 41-year-old Cruz has 436 career homers and 1,202 RBIs. He’ll bring some needed pop to Tampa Bay’s lineup and should help the Rays against left-handers. They’re hitting .226 versus lefties. The seven-time All-Star also has plenty of playoff experience with 17 homers and 37 RBIs in 46 postseason games. He’s batting .294 with 19 homers and 50 RBIs this season. “People joke about how he’s ageless, and it really does feel that way,” Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers waited 32 years to win the World Series again. The road to a repeat championship is never easy, and they head into the second half of the season hoping the worst of the bumps along the way are behind them. A suspended starting pitcher, injuries and offensive struggles have conspired against them. It’s the first time since 2016 the Dodgers haven’t been in first place at the All-Star break. But they're close. At 56-35, they have the second-most wins in the majors behind the rival San Francisco Giants (57-32). LA trails the first-place Giants by two games in the NL West, a division the Dodgers have won eight consecutive years. “Considering what all we’ve been through, I’d say it’s pretty good,” All-Star first baseman Max Muncy said. “We haven’t played anywhere near the caliber that we are capable of playing.” During one stretch, the Dodgers went 5-15. Injuries have knocked out starters Clayton Kershaw and Dustin May and shortstop Corey Seager, among... [More]

July 9 1902 — Rube Waddell beat Bill Dinneen 4-2 in 17 innings when light-hitting Monte Cross hit a two-run homer for Philadelphia. 1932 — Ben Chapman of the Yankees hit three homers, including two inside-the-park, as New York beat the Detroit Tigers 14-9 at Yankee Stadium. 1940 — The NL recorded the first shutout in All-Star play, with a 4-0 win at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis. Five pitchers — Paul Derringer, Bucky Walters, Whit Wyatt, Larry French, and Carl Hubbell — held the AL to three hits. Max West hit a three-run homer. 1946 — After a one-year break due to war travel restrictions, the Americans trounced the Nationals 12-0 at Fenway Park, the most one-sided of the All-Star games. Ted Williams of the Red Sox didn’t disappoint the hometown fans. He hit two homers and two singles for five RBIs. 1968 — Willie McCovey hit into a double play, scoring Willie Mays with the only run of the 39th All-Star game, played at the Houston Astrodome. It was the first game of this series played indoors... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his major league-leading 31st homer in the third, and Juan Lagares ended it with a two-run double in the ninth inning of the Los Angeles Angels’ 6-5 comeback victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday. Cedric Mullins hit a tiebreaking homer for Baltimore in the ninth in his first game after making his first All-Star team, but the Angels jumped all over Cole Sulser (2-1) without making an out in the bottom half. After Los Angeles loaded the bases on a walk and two short singles, Lagares doubled to the gap in right-center, extending the Angels’ winning streak to five games. Raisel Iglesias (6-3) got the win. Ohtani tied the MLB record for the most homers in a season by a Japanese-born player when he blasted a 459-foot solo shot off Thomas Eshelman to straightaway center. It was his 14th homer in 17 games overall. Less than an hour later, Ohtani became the first player in major league history to be picked for an All-Star Game as both a hitter and... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his major league-leading 31st homer in the third, and Juan Lagares ended it with a two-run double in the ninth inning of the Los Angeles Angels’ 6-5 comeback victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday. Cedric Mullins hit a tiebreaking homer for Baltimore in the ninth in his first game after making his first All-Star team, but the Angels jumped all over Cole Sulser (2-1) without making an out in the bottom half. After Los Angeles loaded the bases on a walk and two short singles, Lagares doubled to the gap in right-center, extending the Angels’ winning streak to five games. Raisel Iglesias (6-3) got the win. Ohtani tied the MLB record for the most homers in a season by a Japanese-born player when he blasted a 459-foot solo shot off Thomas Eshelman to straightaway center. It was his 14th homer in 17 games overall. Less than an hour later, Ohtani became the first player in major league history to be picked for an All-Star Game as both a hitter and... [More]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Tyler Anderson pitched seven sparkling innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates snapped Milwaukee’s 11-game winning streak Sunday with a 2-0 victory over the Brewers. Kevin Newman homered and Wilmer Difo had an RBI double as the Pirates stopped a six-game slide. Milwaukee managed just three hits off Anderson (4-8), who broke a personal five-game skid. The left-hander struck out six and walked two while throwing 93 pitches. Milwaukee’s win streak was the second-longest in franchise history. The Brewers won their first 13 games in 1987. David Bednar and Richard Rodriguez finished the four-hitter with one inning apiece. Rodriguez earned his 11th save in 13 opportunities by completing the Pirates’ third shutout of the season. Milwaukee's Freddy Peralta (7-3) had control issues with five walks in six innings. But he allowed just two runs and three hits. METS 10, YANKEES 5, GAME 1 NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso hit a tying homer off Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, and José Peraza lined... [More]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Tyler Anderson pitched seven sparkling innings and the Pittsburgh Pirates snapped Milwaukee’s 11-game winning streak Sunday with a 2-0 victory over the Brewers. Kevin Newman homered and Wilmer Difo had an RBI double as the Pirates stopped a six-game slide. Milwaukee managed just three hits off Anderson (4-8), who broke a personal five-game skid. The left-hander struck out six and walked two while throwing 93 pitches. Milwaukee’s win streak was the second-longest in franchise history. The Brewers won their first 13 games in 1987. David Bednar and Richard Rodriguez finished the four-hitter with one inning apiece. Rodriguez earned his 11th save in 13 opportunities by completing the Pirates’ third shutout of the season. Milwaukee's Freddy Peralta (7-3) had control issues with five walks in six innings. But he allowed just two runs and three hits. RAYS 5, BLUE JAYS 1 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Austin Meadows had three hits, including two RBI doubles, and the Rays ended their 10-game... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks snapped their record 24-game road losing streak by routing the San Diego Padres 10-1 on Saturday night, getting six scoreless innings from Merrill Kelly and four hits and five RBIs from Eduardo Escobar. Escobar and Christian Walker homered for the Diamondbacks, who hadn’t won away from Chase Field since April 25, when Madison Bumgarner pitched seven no-hit innings at Atlanta. The Diamondbacks had dropped 20 of 21 games and 34 of 37 overall. Escobar connected for a two-run homer, and drove in runs with a double, a single and a groundout. He finished a triple shy of the cycle. Kelly (4-7) allowed five hits, struck out five and walked none. Dinelson Lamet (2-3) took the loss, allowing four runs and six hits in 2 1/3 innings. METS 4, PHILLIES 3 NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom gave up two runs for the first time this season and New York rallied after he exited, beating Philadelphia on Michael Conforto’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning. DeGrom’s bid to... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Mets ace Jacob deGrom gave up two runs for the first time this season and New York rallied after he exited, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 Saturday on Michael Conforto’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning. DeGrom’s bid to set the Mets record for the longest scoreless-inning streak fell just short. His run ended at 31 innings on rookie Nick Maton’s RBI single in the second — R.A. Dickey set the team shutout mark of 32 2/3 innings in 2012. DeGrom allowed three hits in six innings, striking out five and walking one while throwing 88 pitches, his most since tossing 93 against Boston on April 28 in a 1-0 loss. Edwin Diaz (2-1) earned the victory. Héctor Neris (1-5) took the loss. BLUE JAYS 12, ORIOLES 4 BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his major league-leading 26th home run, Teoscar Hernández and Randal Grichuk also connected and Toronto rolled past Baltimore. Guerrero homered during a four-run burst in the third inning that also included Bo Bichette’s RBI... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Chicago Cubs are working on a combined no-hitter through eight innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night. The Cubs led 4-0 in their quest for the majors’ seventh no-hitter of the year — which would match four other seasons for the most in the majors since 1900. The Dodgers drew seven walks, but had no other baserunners heading to the ninth. Right-hander Zach Davies started with six resilient innings, and reliever Ryan Tepera issued one walk in the seventh. Andrew Chafin yielded another walk in the eighth. Davies issued five walks and used 94 pitches to get through the first six innings, but still managed to keep the defending World Series champions without a hit in the 16th start of his first season with the Cubs. Tepera, the busiest reliever in Chicago's solid bullpen, walked Gavin Lux with two outs in the seventh. Austin Barnes lined out to second to end another hitless inning. Chafin walked Mookie Betts with one out, but Max Muncy hit a grounder... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Chicago Cubs are working on a combined no-hitter through seven innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night. Right-hander Zach Davies started with six resilient innings, and reliever Ryan Tepera kept it up in the seventh. The Dodgers drew six walks, but had no other baserunners. Davies issued five walks and used 94 pitches to get through the first six innings, but still managed to keep the defending World Series champions without a hit in the 16th start of his first season with the Cubs. Tepera, the busiest reliever in Chicago's solid bullpen, walked Gavin Lux with two outs in the seventh. Austin Barnes lined out to second to end another hitless inning. The Cubs led 4-0 in their quest for the majors' seventh no-hitter of the season. Davies bounced back sharply after yielding a career-high eight runs in his last start against Miami. Those eight runs matched the number he had allowed in his previous six starts combined, and he regained his excellent form... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — José Ramírez picked up a pair of RBIs — made possible by Baltimore blunders in the field — and the Cleveland Indians extended the Orioles’ road losing streak to 16 games with a 4-3 victory on Monday night. Ramírez drove in a run off Dean Kremer (0-6) in the first inning when Baltimore left fielder DJ Stewart slipped in the wet grass going after a routine fly. Ramirez added an RBI double in the sixth after Orioles second baseman Stevie Wilkerson dropped his foul pop, giving him another try. Indians rookie reliever Nick Sandlin (1-0) picked up his first career win by striking out three of the five batters he faced. Emmanuel Clase worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 10th save. RAYS 5, WHITE SOX 2 CHICAGO (AP) — Austin Meadows, Brandon Lowe and Randy Arozarena homered and Tampa Bay beat Chicago for its fourth straight win. Tampa Bay improved to 43-24, 1 1/2 games ahead of the White Sox for the best record in the majors. The Rays have won seven of eight. Tampa Bay starter Tyler Glasnow... [More]

It should be obvious by now: You doubt the Tampa Bay Rays at your own risk. Tampa Bay has won 15 of its last 16 games and leads the AL East heading into Monday's game against the New York Yankees. The Rays are second in the American League in runs and third in ERA. They're 19-7 on the road. Tampa Bay is doing all of this after trading former Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell to San Diego in the offseason. Snell is struggling out west — he's 1-2 with a 5.55 ERA — and a couple of the players the Rays received in return have contributed for them. Luis Patiño is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA in five appearances, and catcher Francisco Mejía has started 21 games behind the plate. Of course, it's another Tampa Bay catcher who has really turned heads. Mike Zunino already has a dozen homers. The Rays also have the game's top prospect, per MLB Pipeline: Shortstop Wander Franco seems to have adjusted fine to Triple-A this year. Tampa Bay traded shortstop Willy Adames to Milwaukee on May 21, and J.P. Feyereisen... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Domingo Germán pitched seven scoreless innings, Gio Urshela and Aaron Judge delivered RBI singles as pinch-hitters in the seventh inning and the New York Yankees followed Corey KJuber’s no-hitter by beating the Texas Rangers 2-0 on Thursday. New York won its sixth straight series and at 25-19 moved a season-high six games over .500. Yankees pitchers have thrown seven shutouts in the team’s first 44 games for the first time since 1967. Germán (4-2), who allowed six hits with five strikeouts as New York finished the four-game series with 22 consecutive scoreless innings. Chad Green pitched a perfect eighth, and Aroldis Chapman struck out two in the ninth for his 11th save. John King (4-3) was the loser. RED SOX 8, BLUE JAYS 7 DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) — J.D. Martinez hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in a three-run ninth inning, and the Red Sox rallied to beat the Blue Jays. Alex Verdugo had an RBI grounder before Martinez connected on his 250th homer. The two-out drive came... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Albert Pujols is grateful to be chasing another World Series ring now with the Los Angeles Dodgers, yet he's also disputing the Los Angeles Angels' version of the circumstances that led to his big move up the freeway. The 41-year-old slugger formally joined the Dodgers on a one-year deal Monday, vowing to contribute to the defending World Series champions as a first baseman, a pinch-hitter and a veteran mentor. He'll wear a No. 55 jersey in Dodger Blue after sporting a red No. 5 with the Cardinals and the Angels throughout his first two major league decades. “I feel like I've still got some gasoline left in my tank,” Pujols said. “I'm really excited for this opportunity.” Pujols was in the Dodgers' lineup Monday night as their cleanup hitter and first baseman when they faced left-hander Madison Bumgarner in the opener of a four-game series with Arizona at Chavez Ravine. The fifth-leading home run hitter in major league history said his role with the Dodgers will be “really... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — World Series MVP Corey Seager will miss at least a few weeks for the Los Angeles Dodgers after breaking a bone in his right hand. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the star shortstop does not need surgery on his broken fifth metacarpal — the bone closest to the palm in his pinky finger. Seager's hand was in a splint and a wrap Sunday morning while he chatted with his agent, Scott Boras, in the Dodger Stadium stands before the defending champions' series finale against Miami. “I think we dodged a bullet,” Roberts said. “No surgery required. He’s in a splint, and we’re just going to let it heal. With a broken hand, the timeline is pretty vague, so that’s where it’s at.” Roberts said the “floor” for Seager's return likely was four weeks, but it was impossible to assign a definite timetable. “I don’t know,” Roberts said. “You’ve just got to let it happen.” Seager was hit by a pitch from Miami's Ross Detwiler in the fifth inning of Los Angeles' 7-0 victory Saturday night.... [More]