CHICAGO (AP) — Star first baseman Anthony Rizzo was pulled from a game Sunday with a sprained right ankle, putting a damper on the Chicago Cubs' 16-6 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates that completed a three-game sweep.Rizzo was injured fielding a bunt at first base, had to be helped off the field and could not put pressure on the leg. X-rays taken at Wrigley Field showed no fractures. He'll get an MRI on Monday.Chicago's postseason pursuit has already been hindered by an injury to shortstop Javier Báez, who is out for the rest of the regular season with a hairline fracture of his left thumb.The Cubs maintained their one-game lead over Milwaukee for the second NL wild card.Kris Bryant homered twice, and Ian Happ, Kyle Schwarber and Jonathan Lucroy also connected for the Cubs, who outscored the Pirates 47-15 in the series.Brad Wieck (1-1) struck out both batters he faced. Trevor Williams (7-7) allowed seven runs in 2 1/3 innings.BREWERS 7, CARDINALS 6ST. LOUIS (AP) — Ryan Braun overcame... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Morton struck out 11 over seven innings and the Tampa Bay Rays avoided a three-game sweep by beating David Price and Boston 3-2 in a game that the Red Sox protested on Wednesday.Confusion reigned in the top of the eighth when a series of defensive changes involving reliever Adam Kolarek prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to protest the game due to the placement of subs into the Rays lineup after the designated hitter was removed.Kolarek replaced Morton and retired pinch-hitter Sam Travis on a pop fly. The left-hander then shifted to first base when Rays manager Kevin Cash brought in reliever Chaz Roe, who got a fly ball from Mookie Betts.After Kolarek then returned to the mound and Nate Lowe entered to play first base, Cora met with the umpires, which prompted around a 15-minute stoppage as the umpires discussed the matter.After the protest was made and the game resumed, Kolarek got a first-pitch grounder from Rafael Devers.An unhappy Cora again talked... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — New York Yankees All-Star catcher Gary Sánchez has gone on the injured list for the second time this season, a day after straining his left groin.Sánchez was hurt when he stepped on first base while grounding out in the eighth inning of a 14-12, 10-inning win by the Yankees over Minnesota on Tuesday night. He was replaced by Austin Romine.Sánchez also was sidelined between April 10 and 24 because of a strained left calf. He had a strained right groin last season that shelved him from June 25 to July 19 and from July 24 to Sept. 1."I felt it after I stepped on the base," Sánchez said through an interpreter. "It felt kind of like a cramp. It's nothing like what I had last year. The pain is completely different."The MRI test on Wednesday revealed a Grade 1 strain, according to manager Aaron Boone, the mildest form of the injury."Which is somewhat of good news, but still it's going to be some time," said Boone, who declined to speculate on a timetable for Sánchez's return.The... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — New York Yankees All-Star catcher Gary Sánchez has gone on the injured list for the second time this season, a day after straining his left groin.Sánchez was hurt when he stepped on first base while grounding out in the eighth inning of the Yankees' 14-12, 10-inning win over Minnesota on Tuesday night. He was replaced by Austin Romine.Sánchez also was sidelined between April 10 and 24 because of a strained left calf. He had a strained right groin last season that caused him to go on the disabled list from June 25 to July 19 and from July 24 to Sept. 1."I felt it after I stepped on the base," Sánchez said through a translator. "It felt kind of like a cramp. It's nothing like what I had last year. The pain is completely different."He said he planned to have an MRI on Wednesday.The 26-year-old, an All-Star for the second time, is batting .229 with 24 homers and 58 RBIs. He was hitting .274 through June 21 but is 10 for 85 (.118) since with one homer and six RBIs, though he did hit the ball hard in his last two at-bats Tuesday, only to be robbed twice when shortstop Jorge Polanco made fine defensive plays.New York also optioned right-hander Jonathan Holder to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and recalled catcher Kyle Higashioka and left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. from the RailRiders.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees first baseman Luke Voit was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday after straining his abdomen against the Boston Red Sox in London last weekend.The move leaves the AL East leaders without one of their steadiest sluggers this season. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Voit is hitting .280 with 17 homers, 50 RBIs and a .901 OPS."Since we've gotten him in the trade last year he's been a great player for us — period," New York manager Aaron Boone said.The move is retroactive to Sunday, a day after Voit got hurt. Edwin Encarnación started at first base Tuesday night in the Subway Series opener against the Mets at Citi Field.Encarnación has primarily been used at designated hitter since he was acquired from Seattle. He began the night leading the AL with 24 home runs.The team thinks Voit can return against Toronto during the weekend right after the All-Star break."Even the Sunday game in London, he was out doing his ground balls — it felt pretty good," Boone said. "But when we... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees first baseman Luke Voit has been put on the injured list after straining his abdomen against Boston in London last weekend.He is New York's 21st player to go on the injured list this season, one more than last year. He is the Yankees' 14th player currently on the list, which includes outfielder Giancarlo Stanton and pitchers Luis Severino and Dellin Betances.The move was announced before Tuesday night's Subway Series opener at the Mets and is retroactive to Sunday, a day after Voit was hurt. He is batting .280 with 17 homers and 50 RBIs.Infielder Mike Ford and left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. were recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Judge hit back-to-back homers to begin the bottom of the first inning, giving the Yankees a major league-record 28 straight games with a long ball, and New York held off the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 Tuesday night.Gleyber Torres and Edwin Encarnación each poked a solo shot over the short right field porch for the Yankees, who shook off another injury to Giancarlo Stanton and won for the 10th time in 11 games. The AL East leaders are 8-1 on a 10-game homestand that wraps up Wednesday.Aroldis Chapman allowed a run in the ninth before retiring Freddy Galvis on an easy grounder with two aboard for his 23rd save in 25 tries.Stanton exited in the fourth with a bruised right knee and was scheduled for an MRI. He got tangled up with Toronto pitcher Clayton Richard (0-4) in the first while getting thrown out on a headfirst slide into third base.Yankees rookie Nestor Cortes Jr. (3-0) pitched 4 1/3 solid innings in relief of opener Chad Green.RED SOX 6, WHITE SOX... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Judge hit back-to-back homers to begin the bottom of the first inning, giving the Yankees a major league-record 28 straight games with a long ball, and New York held off the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 Tuesday night.Gleyber Torres and Edwin Encarnación each poked a solo shot over the short right field porch for the Yankees, who shook off another injury to Giancarlo Stanton and won for the 10th time in 11 games. The AL East leaders are 8-1 on a 10-game homestand that wraps up Wednesday.Aroldis Chapman allowed a run in the ninth before retiring Freddy Galvis on an easy grounder with two aboard for his 23rd save in 25 tries.Stanton exited in the fourth with a bruised right knee and was scheduled for an MRI. He got tangled up with Toronto pitcher Clayton Richard (0-4) in the first while getting thrown out on a headfirst slide into third base.Yankees rookie Nestor Cortes Jr. (3-0) pitched 4 1/3 solid innings in relief of opener Chad Green.RED SOX 6, WHITE SOX... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Cameron Maybin is the 21st player to go on the injured list this year for the New York Yankees, exceeding their total for the entire 2018 season.The 32-year-old Maybin has a strained left calf. To replace the veteran outfielder on the roster, the AL East leaders recalled left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre before Sunday's game against Houston.The Yankees acquired Maybin in a trade with Cleveland on April 25. He is batting .314 with five homers and 14 RBIs in 42 games.Maybin got hurt in the third inning of Friday's 4-1 win over the Astros. Manager Aaron Boone said he has a Grade 2 strain and will be out for a while.Cortes is 2-0 with a 4.09 ERA in seven appearances for New York this year.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu homered in a hurry, connecting in a six-run fourth inning that powered the New York Yankees past the Houston Astros 10-6 on Thursday night for their sixth straight win.Edwin Encarnación hit his AL-leading 23rd home run, and second since being acquired by New York from Seattle, as the Yankees handed Houston its season-worst fifth loss in a row.The Astros dropped a matchup of division leaders despite Jake Marisnick's two home runs and solo drives by Alex Bregman and rookie Yordan Álvarez.Sánchez opened the fourth with his 22nd homer. With rain falling, Torres connected for a three-run jolt off rookie Framber Valdéz (3-3). LeMahieu tagged reliever Chris Devenski for a two-run homer and a 6-0 lead. The inning included two delays — a short break to fix the mound and a 37-minute stoppage when the showers fell too hard.Nestor Cortes Jr. (2-0) pitched three innings after another fine start by opener Chad Green. The veteran reliever struck... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu homered in a hurry, connecting in a six-run fourth inning that powered the New York Yankees past the Houston Astros 10-6 on Thursday night for their sixth straight win.Edwin Encarnación hit his AL-leading 23rd home run, and second since being acquired by New York from Seattle, as the Yankees handed Houston its season-worst fifth loss in a row.The Astros dropped a matchup of division leaders despite Jake Marisnick's two home runs and solo drives by Alex Bregman and rookie Yordan Álvarez.Sánchez opened the fourth with his 22nd homer. With rain falling, Torres connected for a three-run jolt off rookie Framber Valdéz (3-3). LeMahieu tagged reliever Chris Devenski for a two-run homer and a 6-0 lead. The inning included two delays — a short break to fix the mound and a 37-minute stoppage when the showers fell too hard.Nestor Cortes Jr. (2-0) pitched three innings after another fine start by opener Chad Green. The veteran reliever struck... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez, Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu homered in a hurry, connecting in a six-run fourth inning that powered the New York Yankees past the Houston Astros 10-6 on Thursday night for their sixth straight win.Edwin Encarnación hit his AL-leading 23rd home run, and second since being acquired by New York from Seattle, as the Yankees handed Houston its season-worst fifth loss in a row.The Astros dropped a matchup of division leaders despite Jake Marisnick's two home runs and solo drives by Alex Bregman and rookie Yordan Álvarez.Sánchez opened the fourth with his 22nd homer. With rain falling, Torres connected for a three-run jolt off rookie Framber Valdéz (3-3). LeMahieu tagged reliever Chris Devenski for a two-run homer and a 6-0 lead. The inning included two delays — a short break to fix the mound and a 37-minute stoppage when the showers fell too hard.Nestor Cortes Jr. (2-0) pitched three innings after another fine start by opener Chad Green. The veteran reliever struck... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The New York Yankees could get Giancarlo Stanton back next week after the slugger was shelved by a series of injuries, and Aaron Judge also is getting closer after being sidelined by a strained left oblique.Stanton is taking his minor league rehab assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for its weekend series at Durham. He homered twice for Class A Tampa on Wednesday night.If Stanton gets through this weekend with no problems, New York manager Aaron Boone said he could be activated before Tuesday's game at home against Tampa Bay. The 29-year-old Stanton hasn't played for the Yankees since March 31 because of biceps, shoulder and calf injuries."He's feeling really well," Boone said before Thursday night's 5-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox. "I spoke to him about an hour ago, but even the conversations I've had with him in the last few days leading up this where I can tell he's just physically in a really good place."Judge hasn't played for New York since April 20. But... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The New York Yankees could get Giancarlo Stanton back next week after the slugger was shelved by a series of injuries, and Aaron Judge also is getting closer after being sidelined by a strained left oblique.Stanton is taking his minor league rehab assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for its weekend series at Durham. He homered twice for Class A Tampa on Wednesday night.If Stanton gets through this weekend with no problems, New York manager Aaron Boone said he could be activated before Tuesday's game at home against Tampa Bay. The 29-year-old Stanton hasn't played for the Yankees since March 31 because of biceps, shoulder and calf injuries."He's feeling really well," Boone said before Thursday night's game against the Chicago White Sox. "I spoke to him about an hour ago, but even the conversations I've had with him in the last few days leading up this where I can tell he's just physically in a really good place."Judge hasn't played for New York since April 20. But... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The New York Yankees could get Giancarlo Stanton back next week after the slugger was shelved by a series of injuries, and Aaron Judge also is getting closer after being sidelined by a strained left oblique.Stanton is taking his minor league rehab assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for its weekend series at Durham. He homered twice for Class A Tampa on Wednesday night.If Stanton gets through this weekend with no problems, New York manager Aaron Boone said he could be activated before Tuesday's game at home against Tampa Bay. The 29-year-old Stanton hasn't played for the Yankees since March 31 because of biceps, shoulder and calf injuries."He's feeling really well," Boone said before Thursday night's game against the Chicago White Sox. "I spoke to him about an hour ago, but even the conversations I've had with him in the last few days leading up this where I can tell he's just physically in a really good place."Judge hasn't played for New York since April 20. But... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The New York Yankees have placed Kendrys Morales on the 10-day injured list with a left calf strain.Morales is the 20th player to go on the IL this year for New York, matching its total for the entire 2018 season. The first baseman/designated hitter had three hits in the Yankees' 12-5 victory over the Mets on Tuesday but did not play in the second half of the doubleheader.The Yankees also recalled outfielder Mike Tauchman and left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. before Thursday night's game against the Chicago White Sox. They had an open roster spot after lefty Stephen Tarpley was sent down Wednesday.Morales, who turns 36 next Thursday, was acquired in a May 15 trade with Oakland. He is batting .177 with a homer and five RBIs in 19 games with New York.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CLEVELAND (AP) — The New York Yankees placed right-hander Masahiro Tanaka on the paternity leave list. But it will be a short stay, with his next start on Monday against the Mets.Tanaka was scheduled to start against the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, but returned to New York for the birth of his baby girl on Friday.Manager Aaron Boone said Tanaka threw a bullpen session at Yankee Stadium on Saturday and will start Monday. He's 3-5 with a 3.42 ERA in 13 starts.Boone said no decision has been made on the Yankees' pitching plan for Sunday, the finale of a three-game series.James Paxton will start Tuesday against the Mets.The Yankees recalled left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He made four relief appearances with the Yankees this season, with no record and a 4.91 ERA.

CLEVELAND (AP) — The New York Yankees placed right-hander Masahiro Tanaka on the paternity leave list.Tanaka, who was scheduled to start against the Cleveland Indians on Sunday, returned to New York for the birth of his baby girl on Friday. He's 3-5 with a 3.42 ERA in 13 starts.The Yankees recalled left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.The moves were announced before Saturday's game. The team didn't immediately announce their pitching plans for Sunday, the finale of a three-game series.Cortes has made four relief appearances with the Yankees this season, with no record and a 4.91 ERA.

NEW YORK (AP) — No sooner do the injury-ravaged Yankees finally get a player back than two more go down.On the same day New York activated center fielder Aaron Hicks for the first time this season, third baseman Miguel Andújar and right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga were placed on the 10-day injured list.The moves Monday left the Yankees with 13 players on the IL. They've put 17 on the list for 18 total stints this year — Andújar now twice because of a small labrum tear in his right shoulder. Loaisiga, the rotation replacement for injured James Paxton, has a strained rotator cuff and will be shut down for four weeks.Despite all the missing firepower, New York (24-16) has received outstanding contributions from several unheralded fill-ins and sits just a half-game behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.Runner-up for 2018 AL Rookie of the Year, Andújar initially was sidelined from April 1 to May 3. He is 3 for 34 since returning and is batting .128 overall (6 for 47) without an extra-base... [More]