NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez delivered the first pinch-hit, extra-innings grand slam in Yankees history, Deivi García made a strong impression in his big league debut and New York beat the crosstown Mets 5-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep Sunday night.The Yankees stormed back in the opener, erasing a five-run lead with two outs in the seventh to win 8-7 in eight innings. Aaron Hicks lined a tying, two-run homer in the seventh, and Gio Urshela hit a game-ending single off Edwin Diaz an inning later.The Yankees won the final three games of this five-game Subway Series, snapping a seven-game skid that was their longest since 2017. Sánchez blasted a 2-2 fastball from Drew Smith (0-1) into the left field bleachers for a 5-1 lead. It was the slumping catcher’s first career pinch-hit homer and second career grand slam.García took a shutout into the sixth until allowing Dominic Smith’s tying single. Smith’s hit came after Jeff McNeill reached on an error by first baseman Luke Voit, who had the... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez delivered the first pinch-hit, extra-innings grand slam in Yankees history, Deivi García made a strong impression in his big league debut and New York beat the crosstown Mets 5-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep Sunday night.The Yankees stormed back in the opener, erasing a five-run lead with two outs in the seventh to win 8-7 in eight innings. Aaron Hicks lined a tying, two-run homer in the seventh, and Gio Urshela hit a game-ending single off Edwin Diaz an inning later.The Yankees won the final three games of this five-game Subway Series, snapping a seven-game skid that was their longest since 2017. Sánchez blasted a 2-2 fastball from Drew Smith (0-1) into the left field bleachers for a 5-1 lead. It was the slumping catcher’s first career pinch-hit homer and second career grand slam.García took a shutout into the sixth until allowing Dominic Smith’s tying single. Smith’s hit came after Jeff McNeill reached on an error by first baseman Luke Voit, who had the... [More]

Dodgers first. Mookie Betts called out on strikes. Corey Seager singles to right field. Justin Turner doubles to deep right field. Corey Seager to third. Cody Bellinger flies out to right center field to Mike Yastrzemski. Max Muncy homers to right field. Justin Turner scores. Corey Seager scores. AJ Pollock grounds out to shallow infield, Johnny Cueto to Brandon Belt.3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Dodgers 3, Giants 0.Giants first. Mike Yastrzemski strikes out swinging. Wilmer Flores walks. Evan Longoria singles to center field. Wilmer Flores to second. Brandon Belt homers to center field. Evan Longoria scores. Wilmer Flores scores. Donovan Solano strikes out swinging. Joey Bart strikes out swinging.3 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Dodgers 3, Giants 3.Dodgers third. Mookie Betts lines out to second base to Donovan Solano. Corey Seager homers to center field. Justin Turner singles to left center field. Cody Bellinger doubles. Justin Turner to third. Max Muncy walks. Cody Bellinger... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Manny Machado hit a grand slam with one out in the 10th inning and the San Diego Padres beat the Texas Rangers for the third straight game, 6-3 Wednesday night.Machado’s 11th career grand slam and sixth walkoff homer came off Rafael Montero (0-1), whose only out in the 10th came on pinch-hitter Greg Garcia’s sacrifice.Fernando Tatis Jr., who hit his MLB-leading 12th homer earlier, drew a walk off Montero to load the bases ahead of Machado, who hit his sixth homer of the season.The Padres have hit grand slams in three straight games for the first time in club history.Texas had gone ahead 3-2 in the top of the inning when Willie Calhoun’s dribbler in front of the plate off Tim Hill (1-0) scored Nick Solak with two outs.Joey Gallo had tied the game at 2 with a homer off Matt Strahm leading off the ninth, his seventh. The Padres beat the Rangers in Arlington on Monday and Tuesday.Roughned Odor homered off Chris Paddack with one out in the second, his third.INDIANS 6, PIRATES... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole posted his 20th straight regular-season win, becoming the sixth pitcher to reach the mark by throwing seven sharp innings to lead the New York Yankees over the Boston Red Sox 10-3 Friday night.Cole (4-0) allowed one run and four hits. He struck out eight, walked none and threw 95 pitches.Cole’s only defeat since May 2019 was in the World Series opener last year, when he pitched for Houston and lost to Washington. The Yankees improved to 7-0 at home for the fourth time since 1959 (also 2017, 1998 and 1987). New York also beat Boston for the seventh straight time.Gary Sánchez homered for the second straight game and Gleyber Torres had four hits, including a two-run double in the third. Mike Tauchman drove in four runs and started in right field for Aaron Judge, who landed on the injured list with a mild right calf strain. Clint Frazier also hit a two-run double in the eighth.DJ LeMahieu had two more hits and ended the night with a .429 average. It was his 69th... [More]

A look at what’s happening around the majors today:HOME AT LASTMiami finally gets to play its pandemic-delayed opener at Marlins Park, which has a new look for 2020 thanks to cozier dimensions and a switch to artificial turf. Also, there will be a first-place team in the home dugout when the Marlins (8-4) host Atlanta. The Marlins departed for a season-opening three-game trip more than three weeks ago. Their 23-day road odyssey was necessitated by a coronavirus outbreak that infected at least 18 players during the opening weekend in Philadelphia. Miami’s season was suspended for a week and the schedule scrambled, including the postponement of eight games at Marlins Park.“You feel like you’ve got a quick trip,” manager Don Mattingly said. “You pack hardly nothing, and the next thing you know, a month later, you’ve got to pay rent again.”STRASBURG’S STATUSWorld Series MVP Stephen Strasburg is scheduled to make his second start of the season for the Washington Nationals at Baltimore, still... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Marcus Semien homered in the first after hitting a walkoff single to end a 13-inning win a night earlier and the Oakland Athletics beat the Houston Astros 3-1 on Saturday for their eighth straight victory.Frankie Montas (2-1) pitched seven shutout innings, allowing two hits without walking a batter and striking out five for the AL West-leading A’s.The three-time reigning division champion Astros lost their fourth in a row. The last three defeats had been by a total of four runs.Semien became the first player in A’s franchise history with a game-ending hit and a leadoff homer on back-to-back days. Matt Chapman homered in the eighth and added an RBI groundout in the sixth as Oakland (11-4) matched the 2014 club for the best record through 15 games over the last 30 years. Houston starter Framber Valdéz (0-2) gave up two runs and seven hits, striking out nine with one walk over seven innings.GIANTS 5, DODGERS 4LOS ANGELES (AP) — Austin Slater had his first multi-homer... [More]

A look at what's happening in the majors today:RED-HOT COLEGerrit Cole tries for his 20th straight regular-season win when he pitches for the Yankees at Tampa Bay. Cole is 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA in three starts since signing a $324 million, nine-year contract with New York.Cole’s streak dates to May 2019 with Houston and is the sixth-longest in big league history. Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell leads the list with 24 in a row, followed by Roy Face (22) and Roger Clemens, Jake Arrieta and Rube Marquard tied at 20. Cole lost the World Series opener last year when Washington beat the Astros.Tyler Glasnow pitches for the Rays at Tropicana Field. He’s 0-0 with a 3.12 ERA in two starts.FLYING FISHThe Marlins have rapidly become the most surprising team in the majors and now try for their seventh win in a row when they take on the Mets at Citi Field.Miami is 5-0 since missing more than a week because of the team’s coronavirus outbreak, and is 7-1 overall.The Marlins keep winning despite already using... [More]

A look at what's happening in the majors on Saturday:RED-HOT COLEGerrit Cole tries for his 20th straight regular-season win when he pitches for the Yankees at Tampa Bay. Cole is 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA in three starts since signing a $324 million, nine-year contract with New York.Cole’s streak dates to May 2019 with Houston and is the sixth-longest in big league history. Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell leads the list with 24 in a row, followed by Roy Face (22) and Roger Clemens, Jake Arrieta and Rube Marquard tied at 20. Cole lost the World Series opener last year when Washington beat the Astros.Tyler Glasnow pitches for the Rays at Tropicana Field. He’s 0-0 with a 3.12 ERA in two starts.SOUNDS FAMILIARClayton Kershaw was supposed to start on opening day at Dodger Stadium against Giants right-hander Johnny Cueto, but got scratched shortly before opening day because of back trouble. Kershaw and Cueto now are set to match up again in Los Angeles.Kershaw looked every bit a three-time NL Cy Young Award... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out a season-high 10 in six innings and the New York Mets snapped a five-game skid Monday night with a 7-2 victory over the Braves that was overshadowed by a season-ending injury to Atlanta ace Mike Soroka. Soroka tore his Achilles tendon in the third inning as he took a step toward first to cover the bag — a huge blow to the two-time defending NL East champions. Robinson Canó had three RBIs before leaving the game himself — one of three New York infielders who went down with injuries. Wilson Ramos added a two-run homer for the Mets, who avoided a four-game sweep and ended Atlanta’s five-game winning streak. Travis d’Arnaud homered off deGrom (1-0) in the fifth.Soroka (0-1) allowed three hits, walked four and wound up being charged with four earned runs in 2 1/3 innings, the second-shortest outing of his career.The Mets had injury concerns, too. Jeff McNeil was scratched just before the first pitch with back tightness, and Canó exited with left groin tightness... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out a season-high 10 in six innings and the New York Mets snapped a five-game skid Monday night with a 7-2 victory over the Braves that was overshadowed by a season-ending injury to Atlanta ace Mike Soroka. Soroka tore his Achilles tendon in the third inning as he took a step toward first to cover the bag — a huge blow to the two-time defending NL East champions. Robinson Canó had three RBIs before leaving the game himself — one of three New York infielders who went down with injuries. Wilson Ramos added a two-run homer for the Mets, who avoided a four-game sweep and ended Atlanta’s five-game winning streak. Travis d’Arnaud homered off deGrom in the fifth.DeGrom (1-0) turned in another sterling effort. He threw 104 pitches.When Davis grounded the ball toward first baseman Freddie Freeman, Soroka broke in that direction to cover the bag if necessary — only to go down on his first step off the mound. Soroka (0-1) allowed three hits, walked four and wound... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out a season-high 10 in six innings and the New York Mets snapped a five-game skid Monday night with a 7-2 victory over the Braves that was overshadowed by a season-ending injury to Atlanta ace Mike Soroka. Soroka tore his Achilles tendon in the third inning as he took a step toward first to cover the bag — a huge blow to the two-time defending NL East champions. Robinson Canó had three RBIs before leaving the game himself — one of three New York infielders who went down with injuries. Wilson Ramos added a two-run homer for the Mets, who avoided a four-game sweep and ended Atlanta’s five-game winning streak. Travis d’Arnaud homered off deGrom in the fifth.DeGrom (1-0) turned in another sterling effort. He threw 104 pitches.When Davis grounded the ball toward first baseman Freddie Freeman, Soroka broke in that direction to cover the bag if necessary — only to go down on his first step off the mound. Soroka (0-1) allowed three hits, walked four and wound... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mookie Betts singled in the seventh inning for his first hit as a Los Angeles Dodger, then signaled for the ball. That, along with the lineup card, is headed for a display in his house. “This is something I’ll always remember,” he said Thursday night after scoring the go-ahead run in an 8-1 opening victory over the San Francisco Giants in a fan-less stadium. “It's just a new chapter in life.”Betts went 1 for 5 with two strikeouts, a day after signing a $365 million contract covering 2021-32.Betts spoke without his bat when he kneeled during the national anthem. Teammates Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy stood resting a hand on each of his shoulders. Giants manager Gabe Kapler, in his first game as Bruce Bochy's successor, kneeled, too.“It was just unity,” Betts said. “We’re all on the same team, we’re all here for change, even the Giants.”Betts' perspective on kneeling has changed since 2016, when he said he wouldn't take such action. His father, Willie, served in Vietnam... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiké Hernández homered and drove in five runs as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the rival San Francisco Giants 8-1 in a fan-less ballpark as baseball’s shortened season opened on Thursday night.Mookie Betts, who took a knee during the national anthem, went 1 for 5 in his Dodgers debut. Betts struck out swinging in his first at-bat a day after signing a $365 million deal over 12 years. Justin Turner grounded into a fielder's choice and Betts beat a throw to the plate to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead in the seventh. The Giants lost their appeal of the call after Betts slid head-first.Betts struck out with the bases loaded to end a five-run inning that made it 6-1.Adam Kolarek (1-0) got the victory with 1 2/3 innings of relief.Dustin May became the first Dodgers rookie to start on opening day since Fernando Valenzuela in 1981 when Clayton Kershaw couldn’t go because of a back issue. It was similar to when Valenzuela was a late replacement for the injured Jerry Reuss back then.May... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Months ago, before going into quarantine back home in the Dominican Republic, Johnny Cueto took pride in being picked to start for the San Francisco Giants on opening day.Cueto is still lined up for the first game, on Thursday night at Dodger Stadium, when the coronavirus-delayed season begins.After that, no telling when he'll get the ball next. The animated right-hander knows that in an atypical year almost anything could happen — shortened rotations, openers, a creative mix.“Of course I’m open to it,” Cueto said. “This season’s going to be short, and we’re getting ready for that.”Even if managers and pitchers think they have a pretty good idea how ready they are, it probably won't be clear until pitches get thrown considering the pandemic interrupted spring training in March, right when arms were getting built up for the long haul.“The pitching at the start of this is going to be a puzzle that none of us have ever faced,” Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell said.... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Robbie Ray already knew 2020 would be a big season for his financial future because it's his last one before becoming a free agent.Now the Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander has less time to make a strong impression.Major League Baseball's coronavirus-delayed 60-game season is much shorter than the usual 162-game grind. That means pitchers like Ray will probably make about 11 or 12 starts instead of the typical 30-plus.Because of the compressed calendar, the 28-year-old Ray made sure he kept in shape during the spring hiatus from baseball. In his first live work off the mound Sunday, he threw nearly 80 pitches and said he's very close to being ready for the regular season, which begins July 24 against the Padres.The motivation is obvious: A bad start to the season could cost him millions of dollars in what's expected to be a tight free-agent market during the offseason. Conversely, two good months might lead to a big payoff this winter.“I had the assumption that once everything... [More]

May 111904 - Cy Young’s 23-inning no-hit string ended. The streak included two innings on April 25, six on April 30, a perfect game against the Philadelphia A’s on May 5, and six innings today.1919 - Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators pitched 12 scoreless innings in a duel with Jack Quinn of the New York Yankees at the Polo Grounds. The Big Train allowed only two hits and retired 28 batters in a row. Future football star George Halas, batting leadoff for the Yankees, went 0-for-5, striking out twice.1919 - Hod Eller of the Cincinnati Reds pitched a no-hitter to beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-0. Eller struck out eight and walked three.1923 - Setting several Pacific Coast League records, Pete Schneider of Vernon hit five homers and a double to knock in 14 runs in a 35-11 romp over Salt Lake City.1955 - Ernie Banks’ grand slam - the first of five on the year - led the Chicago Cubs to a 10-8 victory that snapped the Brooklyn Dodgers’ 11-game winning streak.1963 - Sandy Koufax pitched... [More]

May 91901 — Earl Moore of the Cleveland Indians pitched nine hitless innings against the Chicago White Sox before giving up two hits in the 10th to lose 4-2.1937 — Ernie Lombardi of the Cincinnati Reds went 6-for-6 in a 21-10 rout of the Phillies in Philadelphia.1961 — Jim Gentile of the Baltimore Orioles hit consecutive grand slams in the first and second innings of a 13-5 rout of Minnesota.1973 — Johnny Bench of the Cincinnati Reds hit three home runs off Philadelphia’s Steve Carlton for the second time in his career, in a 9-7 victory. Bench drove in seven runs.1984 — The Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers battled for eight hours and six minutes in the longest game ever. After playing 17 innings the previous day, the teams met again before a regularly scheduled game, making the total 34 innings for two days. Harold Baines homered off Chuck Porter with one out in the bottom of the 25th for a 7-6 victory. Tom Seaver won both games for the White Sox.1987 — Baltimore’s Eddie Murray became... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Jeff Samardzija calls himself old school, and that seems fairly fitting given the San Francisco Giants’ veteran right-hander is now 35 and entering his 13th major league season.But he sounds willing to embrace the style of his new manager, Gabe Kapler. In fact, the two spent some time together during the offseason in the Bay Area after Kapler was hired in November.“He’s good, man. I’m excited for the young guys to get to be around him and he’s going to be a great liaison for those guys to figure out what it’s going to take to be successful here,” Samardzija said.After four seasons with Bruce Bochy, whose managerial style was in line with Samardzija’s approach to the game, the pitcher realizes a new regime isn’t necessarily a bad thing.“I’m excited to see his way,"' he said.Samardzija didn’t need much time to process the change in managers. He has been around the game long enough to know nothing stays the same forever.“This is what we do,” he said. “There’s turnover... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Buster Posey caught a pair of bullpens on Day 1 and his body recovered beautifully. Sure, that's hardly his full workload or even close to comparable to a long regular season of travel and quick turnarounds. But Posey can certainly relish how reassuring it is to finally feel like himself again following a winter without rehabbing. A year ago when spring training began, San Francisco's veteran catcher was still recovering from right hip surgery.He can already sense a significant difference in his swing both in the cage and during on-field batting practice, and he clobbered several balls Thursday under the desert sun at Scottsdale Stadium that left spectators marveling. “I can say it's night and day right now, from this time last year,” Posey said. “Just able to do everything normal for me at this point. Running was an issue last year. If I were to take a pitch, that quick stop that I would have to make was an issue. So, none of that. I think it's just time, having... [More]