LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joe Kelly helped the Boston Red Sox win a World Series title. His next goal is to try to win one for the team he grew up rooting for and defeated this October.The Dodgers on Friday officially announced signing Kelly to a three-year deal worth $25 million that brings the 30-year old right-hander back to Southern California. Kelly was born in Anaheim and grew up in Corona, where most of his family still resides."It is one of those things where I am at a point in my career where I have tons of family that is local. I also wanted to be on a team that wins year in and year out," Kelly said during a conference call.Kelly leaves Boston, who acquired him from St. Louis in July 2014. He is expected to be a setup man for closer Kenley Jansen, who is still recovering from an offseason heart procedure.Kelly gets a $1 million signing bonus and salaries of $3 million next year and $8.5 million in each of the following two seasons. The Dodgers have a $12 million team option for 2022... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joe Kelly helped the Boston Red Sox win a World Series title. His next goal is to try to win one for the team he grew up rooting for and defeated this October.The Dodgers on Friday officially announced signing Kelly to a three-year deal worth $25 million that brings the 30-year old right-hander back to Southern California. Kelly was born in Anaheim and grew up in Corona, where most of his family still resides."It is one of those things where I am at a point in my career where I have tons of family that is local. I also wanted to be on a team that wins year in and year out," Kelly said during a conference call.Kelly leaves Boston, who acquired him from St. Louis in July 2014. He is expected to be a setup man for closer Kenley Jansen, who is still recovering from an offseason heart procedure.Upgrading setup and middle relief was one of the Dodgers' priorities during the offseason."The reliever market has been interesting to see. For teams that are championship-caliber,... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joe Kelly helped the Boston Red Sox win a World Series title. His next goal is to try to win one for the team he grew up rooting for and defeated this October.The Dodgers on Friday officially announced signing Kelly to a three-year deal worth $25 million that brings the 30-year old right-hander back to Southern California. Kelly was born in Anaheim and grew up in Corona, where most of his family still resides."It is one of those things where I am at a point in my career where I have tons of family that is local. I also wanted to be on a team that wins year in and year out," Kelly said during a conference call.Kelly leaves Boston, who acquired him from St. Louis in July 2014. He is expected to be a setup man for closer Kenley Jansen, who is still recovering from an offseason heart procedure.Upgrading setup and middle relief was one of the Dodgers' priorities during the offseason."The reliever market has been interesting to see. For teams that are championship-caliber,... [More]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Reliever Joe Kelly agreed Thursday to a $25 million, three-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal had not yet been announced.A 30-year-old right-hander who was born in Anaheim, California, Kelly was 4-2 with a 4.39 ERA and two saves in 73 games this year for the World Series champion Boston Red Sox. Kelly pitched in all five World Series games against the Dodgers this year and did not allow a run, striking out 10 in six innings. He gave up one earned run in nine postseason appearances with 13 strikeouts and no walks.According to Brooks Baseball, his fastball averaged 98.7 mph this year. The Red Sox acquired him from St. Louis in July 2014.Kelly broke a rib of the Dodgers' Hanley Ramirez when he hit him with a pitch in the 2013 NL Championship Series opener. Kelly hit the New York Yankees' Tyler Austin on the back with a pitch last April 11, four innings after Austin spiked Red Sox shortstop Brock Holt when he slid into second base with a high right foot. That set off a brawl and Kelly was suspended for six games.Kelley's departure leaves a gap in a Boston bullpen expected to lose closer Craig Kimbrel, who became a free agent. He will be a setup man in Los Angeles for closer Kenley Jansen.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen has undergone surgery to address an irregular heartbeat.The team announced that Dr. Koonlawee Nademanee performed the surgery on Jansen on Monday in Los Angeles.The procedure is known as an ablation, and it involves scarring or destroying tissue that sends incorrect electrical signals to cause an abnormal heart rhythm. In a video posted on Twitter, Jansen said he'd be "stronger than ever" in 2019.Jansen has twice experienced an atrial fibrillation episode, otherwise known as an irregular heartbeat, while the Dodgers were in the high altitude of Colorado. It most recently occurred in August, when his heart had to be shocked back into a regular rhythm. He didn't travel with the team back to Colorado in September as a precaution.The Dodgers say they expect the three-time All-Star to be ready for spring training and opening day.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen will undergo heart surgery Nov. 26 and expects to be fully recovered by spring training.The All-Star has twice experienced an atrial fibrillation episode, otherwise known as an irregular heartbeat, while the Dodgers were in the high altitude of Colorado. It most recently occurred in August, when his heart had to be shocked back into a regular rhythm. He didn't travel with the team back to Colorado in September as a precaution.Jansen underwent a heart procedure in 2012 to help the issue.He said Friday while distributing holiday turkeys that if all goes well, he would be cleared in two weeks. But if doctors find anything abnormal, Jansen said he would be down for eight weeks although he could still do his offseason work to be ready for opening day.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Having lost in the World Series for the second straight year, the Dodgers enter an offseason filled with decisions about some of the franchise's biggest names, including Clayton Kershaw, Manny Machado and manager Dave Roberts.First up is Kershaw, who has until Wednesday to decide whether to opt out of the last two years and $65 million of his contract.If he does, the 30-year-old pitcher who has spent his entire 11-season career in Los Angeles can become a free agent. The front office has made it clear it wants Kershaw to remain the face of the franchise."I just hope they do the right thing," pitcher Rich Hill said about management retaining his fellow left-hander.Kershaw wasn't able to rewrite his postseason legacy of struggles, giving up three home runs Sunday in the Dodgers' loss to the Red Sox in the deciding Game 5 .The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner is 9-10 with a 4.32 ERA in the postseason. In two straight World Series, he's 1-2 with an ERA of 5.40. Four of... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Way up in the reserve seating level at Dodger Stadium, thousands of Boston Red Sox fans screamed, hugged and danced with just as much fervor as the World Series-winning players on the field below.Amid the gleeful chaos, a father in a Red Sox T-shirt and a Bruins cap held aloft his screaming 5-week-old daughter in the chilly Sunday night air, baptizing her in the sights and sounds of another Boston sports championship.The Red Sox had just capped one of the greatest seasons in baseball history with a 5-1 win and a five-game Series victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. While a hometown celebration will happen on the other coast in a few days, the fans who made it to Chavez Ravine seized every chance to celebrate the final step in their club's fourth World Series title in 15 seasons.Boston players heard them from the opening pitch."You look around and I'm like, I never knew there were so many Red Sox fans here," slugger J.D. Martinez said. "But Boston runs deep. Red Sox blood... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Sale stood in the back of the dugout as the World Series was slipping away and started screaming."He's got two pitches!" the Boston Red Sox ace hollered to his left among a stream of profanities, referring to Los Angeles Dodgers starter Rich Hill.Then he shouted to his right.And then straight ahead, pointing with his pitching hand and extending his ring and middle fingers for emphasis.Sale stepped down, kept on shrieking and raised his right hand, his head bobbing up and down and a fire in his eyes like a Shakespearean king exhorting troops into battle."It scared me a little bit," Rafael Devers said through a translator, "because I had never seen him yell like that, and the words that he was saying, I had never heard that come from him before. But, you know, we came out sluggish and that moment helped us get motivated for the rest of the game."Boston had just fallen behind by four runs in the sixth inning Saturday night, nine outs from finding itself tied 2-2 in... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Working on a one-hitter with a 4-0 lead, Rich Hill had just set down Eduardo Nunez swinging for the first out of the seventh inning.Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had seen enough. Walking to the mound, he signaled to the bullpen and Hill was gone."Big mistake!" President Donald Trump tweeted.It was the beginning of another troubled outing for Los Angeles' bullpen in the World Series.Six relievers combined to give up eight of Boston's nine runs over the final three innings in a 9-6 loss Saturday night that sent the Dodgers to the brink of elimination for the second straight year."Watching the Dodgers/Red Sox final innings," Trump tweeted. "It is amazing how a manager takes out a pitcher who is loose & dominating through almost 7 innings, Rich Hill of Dodgers, and brings in nervous reliever(s) who get shellacked. 4 run lead gone. Managers do it all the time, big mistake!"Roberts responded, saying, "I don't know how many Dodger games he's watched. I don't think he's privy... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Sale stood in the back of the dugout as the World Series was slipping away and started screaming."He's got two pitches!" the Boston Red Sox ace hollered to his left among a stream of profanities, referring to Los Angeles Dodgers starter Rich Hill.Then he shouted to his right.And then straight ahead, pointing with his pitching hand and extending his ring and middle fingers for emphasis.Sale stepped down, kept on shrieking and raised his right hand, his head bobbing up and down and a fire in his eyes like a Shakespearean king exhorting troops into battle."It scared me a little bit," Rafael Devers said, "because I had never seen him yell like that, and the words that he was saying, I had never heard that come from him before. But, you know, we came out sluggish and that moment helped us get motivated for the rest of the game."Boston had just fallen behind by four runs in the sixth inning Saturday night, nine outs from finding itself tied 2-2 in a World Series that... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Working on a one-hitter with a 4-0 lead, Rich Hill had just set down Eduardo Nunez swinging for the first out of the seventh inning.Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had seen enough. Walking to the mound, he signaled to the bullpen and Hill was gone."Big mistake!" President Donald Trump tweeted.It was the beginning of another troubled outing for Los Angeles' bullpen in the World Series.Six relievers combined to give up eight of Boston's nine runs over the final three innings in a 9-6 loss Saturday night that sent the Dodgers to the brink of elimination for the second straight year."Watching the Dodgers/Red Sox final innings," Trump tweeted. "It is amazing how a manager takes out a pitcher who is loose & dominating through almost 7 innings, Rich Hill of Dodgers, and brings in nervous reliever(s) who get shellacked. 4 run lead gone. Managers do it all the time, big mistake!"Roberts responded, saying, "I don't know how many Dodger games he's watched. I don't think he's privy... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Latest on Game 4 of the World Series (all times local):10:20 p.m.Steve Pearce hit a tying homer in the eighth and a three-run double in the ninth, and the Boston Red Sox rallied from a four-run deficit in the seventh inning for a 9-6 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night and a 3-1 World Series lead.The improbable surge all started with pinch-hitter Mitch Moreland's three-run homer in the seventh, shortly after Yasiel Puig's three-run homer in the sixth had put the Dodgers up 4-0.Pinch-hitter Rafael Devers singled in Brock Holt with the tiebreaking run in the ninth, with also included Xander Bogaert's RBI single.Craig Kimbrel gave up Enrique Hernandez's two-run homer in the bottom half before getting the final three outs.David Price starts for the Red Sox on Sunday against Clayton Kershaw, tying to close out Boston's fourth title in 15 seasons.___8:19 p.m.Thanks to Steve Pearce, we're tied again in the late innings at Dodger Stadium. Anyone up to play... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Working on a one-hitter with a 4-0 lead, Rich Hill had just sent Eduardo Nunez down swinging for the first out of the seventh inning.Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had seen enough. Walking to the mound, he signaled to the bullpen and Hill was gone.On came Scott Alexander and the beginning of another troubled outing for Los Angeles' bullpen in the World Series.The relievers combined to give up eight of Boston's nine runs over the final three innings in a 9-6 loss Saturday that sent the Dodgers to the brink of elimination for the second straight year.Even President Donald Trump questioned Roberts' moves ."Watching the Dodgers/Red Sox final innings," he tweeted. "It is amazing how a manager takes out a pitcher who is loose & dominating through almost 7 innings, Rich Hill of Dodgers, and brings in nervous reliever(s) who get shellacked. 4 run lead gone. Managers do it all the time, big mistake!"Los Angeles trails 3-1 in the best-of-seven Series. Game 5 is Sunday at Dodger... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The World Series was slipping away when Chris Sale stood in the back of the dugout and started screaming at his teammates.The Boston Red Sox had just fallen behind the Los Angeles Dodgers by four runs in the sixth inning Saturday night, nine outs from finding themselves tied 2-2 in a World Series that seemed to be a runaway just 28 hours earlier.His words were loud, not polite.These were not the reassuring words delivered by David Ortiz in his dugout huddle in St. Louis after the fifth inning of Game 4 five years ago.This was more like Justin Verlander's motivational message to the Houston Astros when he popped up the stairs in the very same dugout during Game 2 last October.Boston rallied on Mitch Moreland's three-run homer off Ryan Madson in the seventh and Steve Pearce's solo shot against Kenley Jansen in the eighth. Rafael Dever's go-ahead single in the ninth was followed by Pearce's three-run double and Xander Bogaert's RBI single built a five-run lead. With a 9-6... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Latest on Game 4 of the World Series (all times local):9:08 p.m.Steve Pearce hit a tying homer in the eighth and a three-run double in the ninth, and the Boston Red Sox rallied from a four-run deficit in the seventh inning for a 9-6 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night and a 3-1 World Series lead.The improbable surge all started with pinch-hitter Mitch Moreland's three-run homer in the seventh, shortly after Yasiel Puig's three-run homer in the sixth had put the Dodgers up 4-0.Pinch-hitter Rafael Devers singled in Brock Holt with the tiebreaking run in the ninth, with also included Xander Bogaert's RBI single.Craig Kimbrel gave up Enrique Hernandez's two-run homer in the bottom half before getting the final three outs.Chris Sale starts for the Red Sox on Sunday against Clayton Kershaw, tying to close out Boston's fourth title in 15 seasons.___8:19 p.m.Thanks to Steve Pearce, we're tied again in the late innings at Dodger Stadium. Anyone up to play 18?Pearce... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Latest on Game 4 of the World Series (all times local):8:19 p.m.Thanks to Steve Pearce, we're tied again in the late innings at Dodger Stadium. Anyone up to play 18?Pearce launched a solo home run off closer Kenley Jansen with one out in the Red Sox eighth, making it 4-all.The top of the Boston lineup had done nothing for two days until Pearce, batting third, homered over the wall in left-center field to compete a comeback from a 4-0 deficit.Los Angeles threatened in the bottom half, but pinch-hitter Yasmani Grandal struck out against Joe Kelly with runners at the corners.Game 3 was the longest in World Series, going 18 innings and more than seven hours. With both bullpens tired, we'll see how long Game 4 goes.___7:57 p.m.Pinch-hitter Mitch Moreland hit a long three-run homer off Ryan Madson, cutting the Los Angeles Dodgers' lead to 4-3 in the seventh inning of World Series Game 4.Given a four-run lead in the sixth on a run-scoring error and Yasiel Puig's three-run... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Latest on Game 4 of the World Series (all times local):7:57 p.m.Pinch-hitter Mitch Moreland hit a long three-run homer off Ryan Madson, cutting the Los Angeles Dodgers' lead to 4-3 in the seventh inning of World Series Game 4.Given a four-run lead in the sixth on a run-scoring error and Yasiel Puig's three-run homer, Rich Hill walked Xander Bogaerts leading off the seventh and struck out Eduardo Nunez.Scott Alexander relieved and walked Brock Holt, and Madson relieved and retired pinch-hitter Jackie Bradley Jr. on a popup. Moreland crushed a changeup, driving it 437 feet deep into the right-field pavilion.Hill allowed one run and one hit in 6 1/3 innings with seven strikeouts and three walks.Kenley Jansen relieved to start the eighth for the Dodgers, a night after allowing Bradley's tying home run in the eighth inning of a game the Dodgers won 3-2 in a Series-record 18 innings.___7:24 p.m.The Dodgers have taken a 4-0 lead in Game 4 of the World Series with a big sixth-inning... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Brian Dozier swung bananas from a rope over the dugout railing.How appropriate. The longest game in World Series history was bananas.Twenty-three players on each team, including nine pitchers.Eighteen innings — four more than any of the previous 662 World Series games.Seven hours, 20 minutes — 1:39 longer than any Series game played before and 15 minutes more than all four games of the 1939 World Series combined.Walker Buehler threw the first pitch in autumn twilight at 5:10 p.m.Max Muncy homered on the 561st and last at 12:30 a.m., when most of America was asleep and even fans in Alaska and in Hawaii were struggling to stay up.Ernie Banks would have been happy — the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox filled his oft-said desire: Let's play two! "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" was played twice, during the seventh-inning stretch and the 14th inning elongation."It was an amazing game," Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig said. "I'm a little tired. But we're ready to come back... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Brian Dozier swung bananas from a rope over the dugout railing.How appropriate. The longest game in World Series history was bananas.Twenty-three players on each team, including nine pitchers.Eighteen innings — four more than any of the previous 662 World Series games.Seven hours, 20 minutes — 1:39 longer than any Series game played before and 15 minutes more than all four games of the 1939 World Series combined.Walker Buehler threw the first pitch in autumn twilight at 5:10 p.m.Max Muncy homered on the 561st and last at 12:30 a.m., when most of America was asleep and even fans in Alaska and in Hawaii were struggling to stay up.Ernie Banks would have been happy — the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox filled his oft-said desire: Let's play two! "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" was played twice, during the seventh-inning stretch and the 14th inning elongation."It was an amazing game," Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig said. "I'm a little tired. But we're ready to come back... [More]