BALTIMORE (AP) — The Oakland Athletics won their 12th consecutive game — their longest winning streak in almost two decades — with a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night. Oakland’s string is its longest since it won a franchise-record 20 in a row in 2002. It is the Athletics’ third-longest winning streak since moving to Oakland in 1968, and is the longest in the majors since Houston’s 12-game run from June 6-18, 2018. Ramón Laureano homered and Cole Irvin won consecutive starts for the first time in nearly two years as the A’s improved to 13-1 since dropping their first six games. Baltimore has lost seven of its eight home games. Irvin (2-2) had won back-to-back starts just once before, his first two career starts for Philadelphia in May 2019. Coming off six shutout innings against Detroit on Saturday, he stymied the Orioles for five innings. But Baltimore stitched together four singles in the sixth, capped by Pedro Severino’s RBI single, to end Irvin’s night. Jake Diekman... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The Oakland Athletics won their 12th consecutive game — their longest winning streak in almost two decades — with a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night. Oakland’s string is its longest since it won a franchise-record 20 in a row in 2002. It is the Athletics’ third-longest winning streak since moving to Oakland in 1968, and is the longest in the majors since Houston’s 12-game run from June 6-18, 2018. Ramón Laureano homered and Cole Irvin won consecutive starts for the first time in nearly two years as the A’s improved to 13-1 since dropping their first six games. Baltimore has lost seven of its eight home games. Irvin (2-2) had won back-to-back starts just once before, his first two career starts for Philadelphia in May 2019. Coming off six shutout innings against Detroit on Saturday, he stymied the Orioles for five innings. But Baltimore stitched together four singles in the sixth, capped by Pedro Severino’s RBI single, to end Irvin’s night. Jake Diekman... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The Oakland Athletics won their 12th consecutive game — their longest winning streak in almost two decades — with a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night. Oakland’s string is its longest since it won a franchise-record 20 in a row in 2002. It is the Athletics’ third-longest winning streak since moving to Oakland in 1968, and is the longest in the majors since Houston’s 12-game run from June 6-18, 2018. Ramón Laureano homered and Cole Irvin won consecutive starts for the first time in nearly two years as the A’s improved to 13-1 since dropping their first six games. Baltimore has lost seven of its eight home games. Irvin (2-2) had won back-to-back starts just once before, his first two career starts for Philadelphia in May 2019. Coming off six shutout innings against Detroit on Saturday, he stymied the Orioles for five innings. But Baltimore stitched together four singles in the sixth, capped by Pedro Severino’s RBI single, to end Irvin’s night. Jake Diekman... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The Oakland Athletics won their 12th consecutive game — their longest winning streak in almost two decades — with a 3-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night. Oakland’s string is its longest since it won a franchise-record 20 in a row in 2002. It is the Athletics’ third-longest winning streak since moving to Oakland in 1968, and is the longest in the majors since Houston’s 12-game run from June 6-18, 2018. Ramón Laureano homered and Cole Irvin won consecutive starts for the first time in nearly two years as the A’s improved to 13-1 since dropping their first six games. Baltimore has lost seven of its eight home games. Irvin (2-2) had won back-to-back starts just once before, his first two career starts for Philadelphia in May 2019. Coming off six shutout innings against Detroit on Saturday, he stymied the Orioles for five innings. But Baltimore stitched together four singles in the sixth, capped by Pedro Severino’s RBI single, to end Irvin’s night. Jake Diekman... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers left-hander Brett Anderson left Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs because of right knee discomfort. Anderson threw just 11 pitches. After Willson Contreras grounded out, Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo doubled and Javier Báez singled before Anderson was replaced by Josh Lindblom. Anderson was charged with three runs and three hits. He was 2-0 with a sparkling 0.75 ERA in his previous two starts. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Manuel Margot hit a tiebreaking two-run homer, Tyler Glasnow overcame cramps and poor control to pitch five innings of one-run ball and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Yankees 6-3 Saturday and dropped New York to an AL-worst 5-9. New York lost its seventh straight series to the Rays is last this late in the season for the first time since 1991, per Elias Sports. Fans in the Bronx again booed the Bombers, but they were more restrained a day after some hurled baseballs and other items on the field late in an 8-2 loss to the Rays. Francisco Mejía hit a solo shot in the second off Jordan Montgomery (1-1), and Margot made it 3-1 with his homer off the left-hander in the fourth. Joey Wendle added a two-run shot against Jonathan Loaisiga in the seventh, and Mejía had an RBI double in the ninth. Glasnow (2-0) walked four but also struck out seven and limited New York to two hits as the Rays (7-8) won their second straight in the series. DODGERS 2, PADRES 0 SAN DIEGO (AP) — Mookie Betts... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Manuel Margot hit a tiebreaking two-run homer, Tyler Glasnow overcame cramps and poor control to pitch five innings of one-run ball and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Yankees 6-3 Saturday and dropped New York to an AL-worst 5-9. New York lost its seventh straight series to the Rays is last this late in the season for the first time since 1991, per Elias Sports. Fans in the Bronx again booed the Bombers, but they were more restrained a day after some hurled baseballs and other items on the field late in an 8-2 loss to the Rays. Francisco Mejía hit a solo shot in the second off Jordan Montgomery (1-1), and Margot made it 3-1 with his homer off the left-hander in the fourth. Joey Wendle added a two-run shot against Jonathan Loaisiga in the seventh, and Mejía had an RBI double in the ninth. Glasnow (2-0) walked four but also struck out seven and limited New York to two hits as the Rays (7-8) won their second straight in the series. METS 4, ROCKIES 3, 1ST GAME ROCKIES 7, METS 2,... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Manuel Margot hit a tiebreaking two-run homer, Tyler Glasnow overcame cramps and poor control to pitch five innings of one-run ball and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Yankees 6-3 Saturday and dropped New York to an AL-worst 5-9. New York lost its seventh straight series to the Rays is last this late in the season for the first time since 1991, per Elias Sports. Fans in the Bronx again booed the Bombers, but they were more restrained a day after some hurled baseballs and other items on the field late in an 8-2 loss to the Rays. Francisco Mejía hit a solo shot in the second off Jordan Montgomery (1-1), and Margot made it 3-1 with his homer off the left-hander in the fourth. Joey Wendle added a two-run shot against Jonathan Loaisiga in the seventh, and Mejía had an RBI double in the ninth. Glasnow (2-0) walked four but also struck out seven and limited New York to two hits as the Rays (7-8) won their second straight in the series. METS 4, ROCKIES 3, 1ST GAME ROCKIES 7, METS 2,... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Corbin Burnes always sensed the Milwaukee Brewers were on the verge of producing an exceptional starting rotation. It just took some time to put it all together. Burnes now is the hottest pitcher in a rotation that has produced a remarkable run of consistency in the first two weeks of the season. Brewers starters have worked at least five innings while allowing no more than one run in eight consecutive games, the longest such streak in franchise history. During that stretch, Brewers starters have allowed a total of three earned runs over 46 innings, and opposing batters have hit just .136 against them. “It’s just knowing what we’ve got,” Burnes said Tuesday. “It’s taken some of us a little bit longer than others to bring everything to the top, but we’ve seen it for a long time, having come up together and playing in the minor leagues. The first couple of years in the big leagues, you see glimpses of it and know it’s just a matter of time before we’d all put it all together.”... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — J.D. Martinez came off the COVID-19 list and hit three home runs, powering the Boston Red Sox past the Baltimore Orioles 14-9 Sunday for their sixth straight win. Martinez got a chance at a record-tying fourth homer in the ninth inning and struck out swinging. He is the last of 18 major leaguers to homer four times in a game, doing it in September 2017 for Arizona. The 33-year-old Martinez went 4 for 6 with four RBIs and four runs, one day after being placed on the COVID-19 injured list because of cold symptoms. Rafael Devers homered twice and Alex Verdugo added a three-run shot to finish the three-game sweep. Nick Pivetta (2-0) allowed four runs and seven hits in six innings. Jorge López (0-2) allowed eight runs and seven hits over four innings. DODGERS 3, NATIONALS 0 LOS ANGELES (AP) — Clayton Kershaw pitched six innings of five-hit ball to win an outstanding duel with Max Scherzer as the Dodgers finished a three-game sweep over Washington. Rookie Zach McKinstry homered... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — J.D. Martinez came off the COVID-19 list and hit three home runs, powering the Boston Red Sox past the Baltimore Orioles 14-9 Sunday for their sixth straight win. Martinez got a chance at a record-tying fourth homer in the ninth inning and struck out swinging. He is the last of 18 major leaguers to homer four times in a game, doing it in September 2017 for Arizona. The 33-year-old Martinez went 4 for 6 with four RBIs and four runs, one day after being placed on the COVID-19 injured list because of cold symptoms. Rafael Devers homered twice and Alex Verdugo added a three-run shot to finish the three-game sweep. Nick Pivetta (2-0) allowed four runs and seven hits in six innings. Jorge López (0-2) allowed eight runs and seven hits over four innings. DODGERS 3, NATIONALS 0 LOS ANGELES (AP) — Clayton Kershaw pitched six innings of five-hit ball to win an outstanding duel with Max Scherzer as the Dodgers finished a three-game sweep over Washington. Rookie Zach McKinstry homered... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton hit a grand slam over the visitors’ bullpen that landed in the left-bleachers 471 feet from home plate, helping New York hand Baltimore its first loss this season. New York was ahead 1-0 on Aaron Judge’s fourth-inning homer when starter Jorge López (0-1) walked the bases loaded in the fifth, and Shawn Armstrong forced in a run with a walk to slumping Aaron Hicks. Stanton sent a 92 mph fastball soaring for the longest home run of the young major league season and his eighth career slam. New York improved to 8-0 when Judge and Stanton homer in the same game, including three postseason wins. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery (1-0) allowed four hits in six innings with seven strikeouts and no walks. DODGERS 10, ATHLETICS 3 OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Will Smith homered off the left-field foul pole, Corey Seager and Zach McKinstry each drove in three runs, and Los Angeles pounded winless Oakland. Justin Turner also went deep as the defending World Series champions provided... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton hit a grand slam over the visitors’ bullpen that landed in the left-bleachers 471 feet from home plate, helping New York hand Baltimore its first loss this season. New York was ahead 1-0 on Aaron Judge’s fourth-inning homer when starter Jorge López (0-1) walked the bases loaded in the fifth, and Shawn Armstrong forced in a run with a walk to slumping Aaron Hicks. Stanton sent a 92 mph fastball soaring for the longest home run of the young major league season and his eighth career slam. New York improved to 8-0 when Judge and Stanton homer in the same game, including three postseason wins. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery (1-0) allowed four hits in six innings with seven strikeouts and no walks. BLUE JAYS 6, RANGERS 2 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Steven Matz struck out nine in his Toronto debut, Marcus Semien and Cavan Biggio hit back-to-back homers and the Blue Jays spoiled Texas’ home opener before the largest MLB crowd since the pandemic. Toronto, 3-1 for the... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton hit a grand slam over the visitors’ bullpen that landed in the left-bleachers 471 feet from home plate, helping New York hand Baltimore its first loss this season. New York was ahead 1-0 on Aaron Judge’s fourth-inning homer when starter Jorge López (0-1) walked the bases loaded in the fifth, and Shawn Armstrong forced in a run with a walk to slumping Aaron Hicks. Stanton sent a 92 mph fastball soaring for the longest home run of the young major league season and his eighth career slam. New York improved to 8-0 when Judge and Stanton homer in the same game, including three postseason wins. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery (1-0) allowed four hits in six innings with seven strikeouts and no walks. BLUE JAYS 6, RANGERS 2 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Steven Matz struck out nine in his Toronto debut, Marcus Semien and Cavan Biggio hit back-to-back homers and the Blue Jays spoiled Texas’ home opener before the largest MLB crowd since the pandemic. Toronto, 3-1 for the... [More]

Milwaukee Brewers catcher Omar Narváez refuses to blame his hitting struggles last year on the unusual circumstances of the pandemic-delayed 2020 season. “Everything got out of control,” Narváez said Sunday from the Brewers’ spring training complex in Phoenix. “To me, it feels like there’s no excuses. It was a short season. Everyone talks about that. I feel like as a professional, I cannot have excuses. It didn’t go well.” Narváez, 29, arrived in Milwaukee with a reputation as a quality hitter and not so skilled defensively. He was just the opposite in his first season in the National League after the Brewers acquired him from the Seattle Mariners in December 2019. His batting average plunged from .278 in 2019 to .176 last year. His on-base percentage sank from .353 to .294. His OPS fell from .813 to .562. After homering 22 times in 132 games in 2019, he had two homers in 40 games last year. Hitting coach Andy Haines says Narváez was one of many batters putting too much pressure on themselves... [More]

Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell has a pretty simple formula for boosting a lineup that struggled throughout the abbreviated 2020 season. His hitters just need to produce the way they typically have throughout their careers. “We had guys that just didn’t perform last year offensively,” Counsell said Thursday in his first media session since Brewers pitchers and catchers reported to spring training in Phoenix. “It was puzzling. It was out of the norm.” The most notable case involved 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich, who hit just .205 last year after winning batting titles in 2018 and 2019. But he wasn’t the only Brewers hitter who failed to perform up to expectations. The Brewers scored 4.1 runs per game to rank 27th out of 30 MLB teams last year as they slipped into the playoffs with a 29-31 record. Their .223 team batting average placed them 26th. Their 582 strikeouts were the second-highest total of any MLB team, behind only the Tampa Bay Rays. Keston Hiura batted .212 and had an... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The hitting struggles that hampered the Milwaukee Brewers throughout the pandemic-shortened regular season proved fatal in the playoffs. With a roster decimated by injuries, the Brewers totaled two runs while getting swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in a best-of-3 NL wild card series. They got eliminated while striking out 13 times and mustering just four hits in a 3-0 loss on Thursday night. The Brewers ranked 26th among the 30 teams in batting average (.223) and 27th in runs per game (4.1). Milwaukee batters struck out 582 times for MLB’s second-highest total. “It didn’t go the way most of us wanted offensively,” outfielder Christian Yelich said. “But we never quit. We kept battling to the end. It definitely wasn’t pretty and it didn’t go to plan. Obviously, we need to improve in that department next year. I think we will.” Milwaukee (29-31) never was above .500 but capitalized on the expanded 16-team playoff format to land a third straight postseason berth, the first... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Terrance Gore is on the Los Angeles Dodgers’ roster for the NL wild-card series against the Milwaukee Brewers. The speedy outfielder played in two of the Dodgers’ first six games this season and was designated for assignment on July 30. He was assigned outright to the team’s alternate training site after clearing waivers. This will be Gore's fourth postseason appearance following time with the Kansas City Royals in the 2014 and 2015 World Series and with the Chicago Cubs in the 2018 NL wild card game. The majority of his games have been as a pinch runner. The will carry 13 pitchers and 15 position players. Left off the Los Angeles roster were relievers Dylan Floro and Alex Wood, and second baseman Gavin Lux. Milwaukee left pitchers Brett Anderson and Devin Williams off its roster. Anderson left his last start early with a blister on his left index finger. His absence makes Milwaukee's starter in a potential Game 3 uncertain. Williams emerged as one of baseball's top relievers... [More]

A capsule look at the best-of-three playoff series between the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers beginning Wednesday. All games in Los Angeles: ___ MILWAUKEE BREWERS Record: 29-31. Playoff Entry: NL wild card. Playoff Seed: No. 8. Manager: Craig Counsell (sixth season). Projected Rotation: LHP Brent Suter (2-0, 3.13 ERA), RHP Brandon Woodruff (3-5, 3.05), LHP Brett Anderson (4-4, 4.21) Top Hitters: LF Christian Yelich (.205, 12 HRs, 22 RBIs, .356 OBP), 2B Keston Hiura (.212, 13, 32), OF/DH Ryan Braun (.233, 8, 26), 1B Jedd Gyorko (.248, 9, 17, .838 OPS). Top Relievers: RHP Devin Williams (4-1, 0.33 ERA, 53 Ks in 27 IP), LHP Josh Hader (1-2, 3.79, 13 saves, 31 Ks in 19 IP), RHP Eric Yardley (2-0, 1.54). Series Summary: The Brewers are making their third straight playoff appearance, something they’d never accomplished before since the franchise launched as the Seattle Pilots in 1969. … This series is a rematch of the 2018 NLCS won by the Dodgers in seven games, the only other time... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Harrison Bader tripled and homered to help the St. Louis Cardinals clinch a postseason berth on the final day of the regular season with a 5-2 win over Milwaukee, and the Brewers also earned a playoff spot Sunday via help on the West Coast moments later. St. Louis (30-28) will be the fifth seed in the NL and open a three-game wild-card series at San Diego on Wednesday. By winning, the Cardinals avoided having to travel to Detroit for two makeup games Monday. The Brewers (29-31) locked up the eighth seed and a third consecutive postseason berth after the Padres beat San Francisco 5-4 in a game that ended about 15 minutes later. The Giants finished with an identical record as the Brewers but lost out on a tiebreaker due to an inferior intradivision record. Milwaukee will face the top-seeded Dodgers in Los Angeles in a three-game series that also starts Wednesday. The Brewers haven’t had a winning record at any point this season. Milwaukee and Houston will be the first teams... [More]