NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Mets are transferring longtime media relations boss Jay Horwitz to a new role as vice president of alumni public relations and team historian.Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon announced Horwitz's job change Wednesday at a press conference that was more of a roast by former players, coaches and executives. Horwitz has been with the team for nearly 40 years, and figures from throughout his tenure attended.Among them: Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Mookie Wilson, Keith Hernandez, John Franco, Joe Torre, Terry Collins, Steve Phillips and Omar Minaya. A number of current Mets also attended, including captain David Wright.Horwitz will work in his new role to aid next season's 50-year anniversary of the Mets 1969 World Series championship, and also on further connecting the club's alumni.The 73-year-old Horwitz has been beloved by players for his bumbling but loyal personality. %href_on(file:

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Tampa Bay Rays ace Blake Snell has a no-hitter through six innings in Wednesday's game against the AL Central-leading Cleveland Indians.Snell, who is seeking a major league-leading 19th win, has struck out eight batters and walked two. He has thrown 82 pitches.The lefty retired his first seven batters before walking Roberto Perez on a 3-2 pitch with one out in the third. Snell also issued a fourth-inning walk to Edwin Encarnacion, who stared and shook his head toward the mound earlier in the plate appearance after a high-and-inside pitch.Snell made a nice defensive play in the fifth, fielding Melky Cabrera's comebacker and throwing out the Cleveland right fielder at first base.The Rays lead 2-0 on Ji-Man Choi's two-run homer in the first.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox became the first team in the majors to clinch a playoff spot this season, rallying on pinch-hitter Brock Holt's go-ahead home run in the seventh inning to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-2 Tuesday night.The Red Sox assured themselves at least a spot in the AL wild-card game while reaching the postseason for the third straight year. The AL East leaders began the night with an eight-game lead over the New York Yankees.Boston starter Chris Sale came off the disabled list and pitched one scoreless inning, striking out two and throwing 26 pitches. Sale has been slowed by inflammation in his left shoulder, and the Red Sox had said they would ease their ace back into action.Ryan Brasier (2-0) got the win with 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief as Boston used seven relievers after limiting Sale in his return.Ryan Tepera (5-5) took the loss.ASTROS 5, TIGERS 4DETROIT (AP) — Jose Altuve homered on the game's first pitch, and Houston powered past Detroit.The Astros maintained... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle Mariners right-handed pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma intends to try and continue his professional career next year pitching in Japan.The 37-year-old Iwakuma has missed the entire 2018 season as he's tried to recover from major shoulder surgery in September 2017. Iwakuma was hoping to contribute to the Mariners rotation later in the season, but had several setbacks along the way and only pitched in rehab outings in the minors.Seattle manager Scott Servais said Iwakuma would not pitch for the Mariners in the final few weeks of the regular season."Looking at the big picture, it's been long process of rehab, and finally in this long tunnel, I'm starting to see light," Iwakuma said through a translator on Tuesday. "And at this point, it's unfortunate that I cannot come back as a Mariner. But Japan is my origin. It's where I started my career and by saying that, I think it's a good place to end my career too. With that said, I wanted to explore how much more I could do back in... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle Mariners right-handed pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma intends to try and continue his professional career next year pitching in Japan.The 37-year-old Iwakuma has missed the entire 2018 season as he's tried to recover from major shoulder surgery in September 2017. Iwakuma was hoping to contribute to the Mariners rotation later in the season, but had several setbacks along the way and only pitched in rehab outings in the minors.Seattle manager Scott Servais said Iwakuma would not pitch for the Mariners in the final few weeks of the regular season."I think he saw enough out of his last outing or two that he wants to continue to play, which is a good thing," Servais said.Iwakuma pitched six seasons with the Mariners and had a career mark of 63-39 with a 3.42 ERA in 150 career games. He threw a no-hitter during the 2015 season.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

BOSTON (AP) — Chris Sale pitched a scoreless inning for the Boston Red Sox in his first start since going on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation.Sale allowed a hit, struck out two and hit a batter before getting Toronto's Randal Grichuk to pop out to second and end the inning Tuesday night.Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Sale, who hadn't pitched since Aug. 12, would only throw an inning or two with a maximum pitch count of 40. He threw 26 pitches before Brandon Workman took over for the second inning. Sale threw a few more pitches in the bullpen after.Nathan Eovaldi replaced Workman to begin the third inning.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — David Wright took live batting practice Tuesday at Citi Field as the New York Mets captain tries to complete his comeback from a string of debilitating injuries.The third baseman originally was scheduled to play defense in a simulated game as well, but those plans were scrapped on a drizzly afternoon because the infield was wet and muddy.Wright faced Mets minor league pitching prospects Justin Dunn and David Peterson, simulating game at-bats for the second time in four days. The seven-time All-Star did similar work Saturday, also taking grounders on the field."I'm really excited and I'm really satisfied with how these two simulated games went," Wright said. "Took some good swings, took some bad swings."The 35-year-old Wright said he's still trying to regain his timing, and he'll need to see how he feels Wednesday before looking ahead to the next step."It's getting a little better," Wright said. "I'm still fouling a lot of pitches off, which for me at least in my mind tells... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — David Wright took live batting practice Tuesday at Citi Field as the New York Mets captain tries to complete his comeback from a string of debilitating injuries.The third baseman originally was scheduled to play defense in a simulated game as well, but those plans were scrapped on a drizzly afternoon because the infield was muddy.Wright faced Mets minor league pitching prospects Justin Dunn and David Peterson, simulating game at-bats for the second time in four days. The seven-time All-Star did similar work Saturday, also taking grounders on the field.The 35-year-old Wright says he's still trying to regain his timing, and he'll need to see how he feels Wednesday before looking ahead to the next step.Wright hasn't played in the major leagues since May 2016 due to neck, back and shoulder injuries that required surgery.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Josh Donaldson was activated from the disabled by AL Central-leading Cleveland and set to make his Indians debut Tuesday night at Tampa Bay.Cleveland also said 18-game winner Corey Kluber will not start this weekend, allowing him to get extra days off and to line him up for the postseason.Donaldson was acquired from Toronto on Aug. 31. The 2015 AL MVP had not played in the major leagues since May 28 because of a left calf strain.Jose Ramirez moved from third to second to make room in the field for Donaldson. Jason Kipnis was moved from second to center field.For the first time, probably, all year we're getting close to where we have our team and hopefully nothing else happens and we can work towards becoming a team that can be a factor," Indians manager Terry Francona said.Donaldson was sidelined from April 11-May 2 with a shoulder problem.Francona is leaning toward using a four-man playoff rotation.Kluber allowed four runs in 1 2/3 innings in Monday."Barring anything crazy, he can go into a playoff game with one extra days rest, which is what he wants," Francona said.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

A look at what's happening around the majors today:REMEMBERINGMajor League Baseball will hold a moment of silence before all games to honor the victims and first responders of 9/11. Players, coaches and umpires will wear caps with a "We Shall Not Forget" ribbon patch.During batting practice before the Miami-Mets game at Citi Field, New York players will wear caps of the five agencies that took part in the rescue and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site: New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York, Port Authority Police Department, New York City Office of Emergency Management and the City of New York Department of Sanitation.WELCOME BACKFormer AL MVP Josh Donaldson is set to debut with Cleveland in his first big league game since May 28. The third baseman, who was traded from Toronto to the AL Central-leading Indians on Aug. 31, has been out most of the season because of a strained left calf. He recently played in four Triple-A rehab games, and is lined up to start... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Tuesday:REMEMBERINGMajor League Baseball will hold a moment of silence before all games to honor the victims and first responders of 9/11. Players, coaches and umpires will wear caps with a "We Shall Not Forget" ribbon patch.During batting practice before the Miami-Mets game at Citi Field, New York players will wear caps of the five agencies that took part in the rescue and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site: New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York, Port Authority Police Department, New York City Office of Emergency Management and the City of New York Department of Sanitation.WELCOME BACKFormer AL MVP Josh Donaldson is set to debut with Cleveland in his first big league game since May 28. The third baseman, who was traded from Toronto to the AL Central-leading Indians on Aug. 31, has been out most of the season because of a strained left calf. He recently played in four Triple-A rehab games, and is lined up to start... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The AL Central-leading Cleveland Indians got star reliever Andrew Miller back Monday and plan to put former AL MVP third baseman Josh Donaldson in the starting lineup Tuesday.Miller has been out since late August with a left shoulder injury, the latest setback in a rough season for the two-time All-Star. Miller has a 3.38 ERA in 24 innings, though he pitched better in August before his shoulder flared up.The Indians made the move before playing at Tampa Bay."He's raring to go, so that's exciting," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "He doesn't have a minor league game under his belt, so he might not command (at first). He might, but if he doesn't, we have 19 games (left in the regular season)."Donaldson, acquired from Toronto on Aug. 31, batted .234 with five home runs and 16 RBIs this season for the Blue Jays. He hasn't played in the majors since May 28 because of a left calf strain. He also was out from April 11-May 2 with a shoulder problem.Donaldson went... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sunday's game between the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals was postponed because of rain and rescheduled for Thursday at 4:05 p.m.The decision was announced three hours after the scheduled 1:35 p.m. start time. Thursday is the teams' only remaining mutual day off.Rain fell at Nationals Park throughout the weekend.The start of Friday's game was delayed 1 hour, 21 minutes. The rain returned with two outs in the top of the second inning and play was stopped. The game was postponed after a wait of 2 hours, 55 minutes when the rain had stopped.Saturday became a doubleheader that was supposed to start at 3:05 p.m. but didn't get underway until 5 p.m. A between-games ceremony honoring former National Jason Werth and another rain delay in the nightcap led to 1:44 a.m. conclusion as Washington swept the Cubs.Chicago began Sunday with a 2½-game lead in the NL Central while Washington was 7½ games behind Atlanta in the NL East.The Cubs, in the midst of 23 games in 23 days,... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sunday's game between the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals was postponed because of rain and rescheduled for Thursday at 4:05 p.m.The decision was announced three hours after the scheduled 1:35 p.m. start time. Thursday is the teams' only remaining mutual day off.Rain fell at Nationals Park throughout the weekend.The start of Friday's game was delayed 1 hour, 21 minutes. The rain returned with two outs in the top of the second inning and play was stopped. The game was postponed after a wait of 2 hours, 55 minutes when the rain had stopped.Saturday became a doubleheader that was supposed to start at 3:05 p.m. but didn't get underway until 5 p.m. A between-games ceremony honoring former National Jason Werth and another rain delay in the nightcap led to 1:44 a.m. conclusion as Washington swept the Cubs.Chicago began Sunday with a 2½-game lead the NL Central while Washington was 7½ games behind Atlanta in the NL East.The Cubs, in the midst of 23 games in 23 days,... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Twins right-hander Ervin Santana may miss the rest of the season while receiving a series of platelet rich plasma injections in the middle finger of his pitching hand.Santana is 0-1 with a 8.03 ERA in five major league starts this season."He had one done," Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said Saturday. "I think over a three-week period he'll have that done three times."Santana had surgery Feb. 6 to remove a calcium deposit on the finger. He made his first minor league injury rehabilitation appearance May 23 and didn't make his season debut for the Twins until July 25.The two-time All-Star was still bothered by the finger and after five starts returned to the disabled list on Aug. 19.Santana, 35, is in the final guaranteed season of a $55 million, four-year contract. The Twins have a $14 million option for next year with a $1 million buyout."I'm not really sure if the timing of when he picks up a ball will matter nearly as much as his ability to try to get through the winter and put himself in position to pitch again next spring," Molitor said.Santana is 149-125 with a 4.06 ERA in 14 major league seasons.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

A look at what's happening around the majors today:THE SHO GOES ONShohei Ohtani doesn't need two good elbows to help the Angels. Doctors this week recommended the two-way rookie sensation have Tommy John surgery on his right pitching elbow, but Ohtani has been crushing it at the plate, hitting four homers in his past three games. Ohtani has 19 home runs and leads all rookies with a .579 slugging percentage, and he says he'll keep hitting through the end of the season before deciding whether to have surgery that would keep him off the mound until 2020. The Angels will face White Sox veteran James Shields.NEW BREWGio Gonzalez is set to make his first start with the Brewers against the Giants. The left-hander was acquired from the Nationals a week ago. He had lost three of his final four starts with Washington while posting an 8.71 ERA, but Milwaukee is hoping he can help the team's postseason push.BUCK UPClay Buchholz's resurgent season keeps getting better, a trend Arizona hopes he extends... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Orioles pitcher David Hess might want to stick to baseball.The rookie right-hander was hit in the left eye while playing catch with a football Friday night before Baltimore's game against Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. He was taken to a specialist for an examination of his left eye."For me immediately I was just trying to make sure I could see and once I could see I knew I was OK," Hess said after the Orioles were beat 14-2 by the Rays. "That was good but definitely something I've got to be careful with going forward"By the early innings, Hess was back in the Baltimore dugout — wearing an LSU football helmet."I could not entirely tell you where the LSU helmet came from," Hess said. "It appeared in the second inning and I was told to wear it so I wore it."It's a normal sight almost across the majors to see pitchers doing running work involving football passes before batting practice."I think going out there and playing around ... that's just kind of part of being... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Saturday:THE SHO GOES ONShohei Ohtani doesn't need two good elbows to help the Angels. Doctors this week recommended the two-way rookie sensation have Tommy John surgery on his right pitching elbow, but Ohtani has been crushing it at the plate, hitting four homers in his past three games. Ohtani has 19 home runs and leads all rookies with a .579 slugging percentage, and he says he'll keep hitting through the end of the season before deciding whether to have surgery that would keep him off the mound until 2020. The Angels will face White Sox veteran James Shields.NEW BREWGio Gonzalez is set to make his first start with the Brewers against the Giants. The left-hander was acquired from the Nationals a week ago. He had lost three of his final four starts with Washington while posting an 8.71 ERA, but Milwaukee is hoping he can help the team's postseason push.BUCK UPClay Buchholz's resurgent season keeps getting better, a trend Arizona hopes he extends... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Orioles pitcher David Hess might want to stick to baseball.The rookie right-hander was hit in the left eye while playing catch with a football Friday night before Baltimore's game against Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. He was taken to a specialist for an examination of his left eye."For me immediately I was just trying to make sure I could see and once I could see I knew I was OK," Hess said after the Orioles were beat 14-2 by the Rays. "That was good but definitely something I've got to be careful with going forward"By the early innings, Hess was back in the Baltimore dugout — wearing an LSU football helmet."I could not entirely tell you where the LSU helmet came from," Hess said. "It appeared in the second inning and I was told to wear it so I wore it."It's a normal sight almost across the majors to see pitchers doing running work involving football passes before batting practice."I think going out there and playing around ... that's just kind of part of being... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — David Wright is scheduled to participate in a simulated game Saturday at Citi Field, the next step for the New York Mets' captain as he tries to make a major league comeback from neck, back and shoulder injuries.The third baseman hasn't played in the big leagues since May 2016. He batted a combined .171 (7 for 41) with one double in 10 games for Class A St. Lucie and two with Triple-A Las Vegas last month before his rehab assignment expired on the final day of August."Where he got to at the end of the 20 days was not where we thought he needed to be," Mets assistant general manager John Ricco said Friday. "Honestly, it does get more difficult to foresee a situation where he could come back to that level."Right-handed reliever Anthony Swarzak, on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation, will be among the pitchers to face Wright in the simulated game."We're going to put him through the grinder a little bit and we're going to get to see exactly where he's at. And more... [More]