It's been three years since Andrew Miller led the Cleveland Indians to the brink of a World Series championship by coming out of the bullpen early and often, and bulk work from relievers has been an October staple since. Whether it's Brewers All-Star Josh Hader stretching out for three innings or Astros ace Justin Verlander moonlighting in middle relief, aggressive bullpen management has become standard postseason practice.As the calendar flips, a look at the best relief options — for the biggest outs, and for a bunch of them — for each of the 10 playoff clubs.NEW YORK YANKEESFor The Big Out: In baseball's deepest bullpen, the difference maker is Aroldis Chapman. The 31-year-old left-hander has lost some steam — he averaged about 98 mph on his fastball this year, down from 101 at his peak in 2016 — but he's made up for it with an improved slider that he's throwing more than ever. Although he famously blew a lead for the Cubs in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series, Chapman has been fantastic... [More]

Sept. 61905 — Frank Smith of the Chicago White Sox pitched a no-hitter against the Detroit Tigers in a 15-0 victory in the second game of a doubleheader. The score is the most lopsided margin of victory for a no-hitter in AL history.1912 — Smokey Joe Wood of the Red Sox, on his way to a 34-win season, beat Washington's Walter Johnson 1-0 at Boston. The victory was Wood's 14th consecutive, two shy of Johnson's AL record of 16 straight.1924 — Urban Shocker of the St. Louis Browns pitched two complete games against the Chicago White Sox and won both, 6-2.1943 — At 16 years, eight months and five days, Philadelphia A's pitcher Carl Scheib became the youngest player to appear in an American League game.1976 — Los Angeles catcher Steve Yeager was seriously injured when the jagged end of a broken bat struck him in the throat while he was waiting in the on-deck circle.1981 — Fernando Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0 to tie a National League record of seven... [More]

Sept. 11906 — The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox 4-1 in 24 innings. Jack Coombs of the Athletics and Joe Harris of the Red Sox pitched all 24 innings. Coombs fanned 18.1930 — Wes Ferrell of Cleveland beat the St. Louis Browns 9-5 for his 13th straight victory.1931 — Lou Gehrig hit his third grand slam in four days as the Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 5-1.1945 — The Philadelphia Phillies, behind Vince DiMaggio's grand slam, beat the Braves 8-3 in Boston. It was the fourth grand slam of the year for DiMaggio to tie a major league mark.1958 — Vinegar Bend Mizell of the St. Louis Cardinals set a National League record by walking nine batters and tossing a shutout. Mizell beat Cincinnati 1-0 in the first game of a doubleheader.1963 — Curt Simmons of the St. Louis Cardinals allowed six hits, drove in two runs with a triple and stole home plate in a 7-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. Simmons' steal of home is the last by a pitcher.1967 — Cincinnati's Bob Lee walked Dick... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Friday:SONNY GRAY VS JON GRAYNo Gray area in this pitching matchup Friday — only shades of Gray.Sonny will take the mound for the Cincinnati Reds in his first visit to Coors Field and first time facing Colorado. Jon will go for the Rockies as both teams return from the All-Star break.Selected as an NL All-Star, Sonny didn't get into the game Tuesday as the AL beat the NL 4-3. The right-hander is 5-5 with a 3.59 ERA in 17 starts this season. Jon is 9-6 with a 3.92 ERA spanning 19 appearances, including 18 starts.BANGED UP CATCHERThe Cardinals placed catcher Yadier Molina on the injured list with a strained right thumb and activated infielder Matt Carpenter as part of a series of roster moves Thursday. St. Louis also brought up left-hander Chasen Shreve from Triple-A Memphis, optioned left-hander Tyler Webb and outfielder Rangel Ravelo to Memphis, and transferred pitcher Jordan Hicks to the 60-day IL update ahead of their series against Arizona... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The Cardinals placed catcher Yadier Molina on the injured list with a strained right thumb and activated infielder Matt Carpenter as part of a series of roster moves Thursday.St. Louis also brought up left-hander Chasen Shreve from Triple-A Memphis, optioned left-hander Tyler Webb and outfielder Rangel Ravelo to Memphis, and transferred pitcher Jordan Hicks to the 60-day IL update ahead of their series against Arizona beginning Friday night.Molina's move to the IL was retroactive to Monday. The nine-time All-Star, who missed 12 games in May and June with a similar injury, pinch hit on Saturday but hasn't started a game since June 3.Carpenter has been sidelined since June 29 with a lower back strain.Shreve appeared in 20 games for the Cardinals last season, and is 2-1 with a 3.80 ERA in 37 games for Memphis this season. Kinzer made his big league debut June 2, going 0 for 7 for St. Louis.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The Cardinals placed catcher Yadier Molina on the injured list with a strained right thumb and activated infielder Matt Carpenter as part of a series of roster moves Thursday.St. Louis also brought up left-hander Chasen Shreve from Triple-A Memphis, optioned left-hander Tyler Webb and outfielder Rangel Ravelo to Memphis, and transferred pitcher Jordan Hicks from the 60-day IL update ahead of their series against Arizona beginning Friday night.Molina's move to the IL was retroactive to Monday. The nine-time All-Star, who missed 12 games in May and June with a similar injury, pinch hit on Saturday but hasn't started a game since June 3.Carpenter has been sidelined since June 29 with a lower back strain.Shreve appeared in 20 games for the Cardinals last season, and is 2-1 with a 3.80 ERA in 37 games for Memphis this season. Kinzer made his big league debut June 2, going 0 for 7 for St. Louis.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Hard-throwing closer Jordan Hicks is set to undergo Tommy John surgery on Wednesday.The 22-year-old Hicks was diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament on Monday following a MRI. Hicks was previously diagnosed with tendinitis in his right triceps.Hicks was 2-2 with a 3.14 ERA in 29 games this season for the Cardinals. He had 14 saves in 15 opportunities.John Mozeliak, the president of baseball operations for the Cardinals, said Dr. George Paletta will perform the surgery Wednesday morning in St. Louis."Needless to stay, it's very disappointing," Mozeliak said. "Certainly, he'll be missed. We were overly optimistic on this. Then the dark clouds moved in."Hicks will miss the rest of this season and likely part of the 2020 season. The club will get a more definite timeline once Hicks is done with surgery and moves on to rehab, Mozeliak said."I want to come back strong. I want to play a long time," Hicks said. "My mentality is to stay strong in my head, work hard and... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Hard-throwing closer Jordan Hicks is set to undergo Tommy John surgery on Wednesday.The 22-year-old Hicks was diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral on Monday following a MRI. Hicks was previously diagnosed with tendinitis in his right triceps.Hicks was 2-2 with a 3.14 ERA in 29 games this season for the Cardinals. He had 14 saves in 15 opportunities.John Mozeliak, the president of baseball operations for the Cardinals, said Dr. George Paletta will perform the surgery Wednesday morning in St. Louis.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

A look at what's happening around the majors today:HOMER HAPPYAaron Judge, Gary Sánchez, Edwin Encarnación and the New York Yankees try to set the major league record for most consecutive games with a home run.The Yankees homered in their 27th straight game Monday night, matching the mark set by Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro and the 2002 Texas Rangers.Next up, Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres and their New York teammates take on Toronto lefty Clayton Richard (0-3, 7.46 ERA) at Yankee Stadium. Richard has allowed five homers in 25 1/3 innings this season.SAY WHAT?Catchers Willson Contreras and Tyler Flowers aim to keep cool, a day after things got testy between them at Wrigley Field, prompting the Cubs and Braves to clear the benches.Contreras homered for Chicago in the second inning Monday night, turned around to look at Flowers and then thumped his chest rounding first. Contreras shouted at Flowers after crossing the plate, and the dugouts emptied. Cubs manager Joe Maddon and Flowers... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Tuesday:HOMER HAPPYAaron Judge, Gary Sánchez, Edwin Encarnación and the New York Yankees try to set the major league record for most consecutive games with a home run.The Yankees homered in their 27th straight game Monday night, matching the mark set by Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro and the 2002 Texas Rangers.Next up, Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres and their New York teammates take on Toronto lefty Clayton Richard (0-3, 7.46 ERA) at Yankee Stadium. Richard has allowed five homers in 25 1/3 innings this season.SAY WHAT?Catchers Willson Contreras and Tyler Flowers aim to keep cool, a day after things got testy between them at Wrigley Field, prompting the Cubs and Braves to clear the benches.Contreras homered for Chicago in the second inning Monday night, turned around to look at Flowers and then thumped his chest rounding first. Contreras shouted at Flowers after crossing the plate, and the dugouts emptied. Cubs manager Joe Maddon and Flowers... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals closer Jordan Hicks has a torn elbow ligament and the team says it's determining what to do with the hardest-throwing pitcher in the majors.The Cardinals said Monday the right-hander has a torn ulnar collateral ligament, an injury that usually leads to Tommy John surgery.The rocket-armed Hicks has hit 105 mph with fastballs this season and routinely reaches triple digits with his heater.Hicks left Saturday's game against the Angels in the ninth inning after he had pitched 1 1/3 innings.The 22-year-old Hicks is 2-2 with 14 saves and a 3.14 ERA in 29 games. He has struck out 31 in 28 2/3 innings.Hicks made his big league debut last year, pitching in 73 games.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports