KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Royals spent the 60-game season in 2020 saying farewell to longtime outfielder Alex Gordon, one of the linchpins of their back-to-back World Series runs, and welcome to the young core they hope will take them back there. Brady Singer nearly threw a no-hitter in his abbreviated rookie year. Fellow right-hander Kris Bubic made 10 starts and began to figure things out by the end of September. And their young bullpen, which was an abject failure last season, took massive strides from summer camp to the final out of the season Sunday with an eye toward the future. The Royals may have finished 26-34 and fourth in the AL Central. But simply playing was huge for their rebuilding effort. “I wish we would have had more wins,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said. “The COVID thing got us early. We started off 3-10 and we weren't completely healthy. But every team deals with health issues, as we know. You can't make excuses. But I do believe if we had another... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Randy Arozarena homered twice and the Tampa Bay Rays clinched their first AL East title in 10 years Wednesday night with an 8-5 victory over the New York Mets. Joey Wendle and Brandon Lowe also went deep to help Tyler Glasnow (5-1) win his fifth straight decision. Tampa Bay will be home at quirky Tropicana Field for a best-of-three first-round playoff series beginning next Tuesday. It is the third division crown for the thrifty Rays, who also won the AL East in 2008 and 2010. Their inaugural season was 1998. After missing a chance to clinch Tuesday, the Rays went into Wednesday again needing just a win or a New York Yankees loss against Toronto to lock up the division championship. The Rays (37-20) broke a 2-all tie in the sixth on Arozarena’s two-run homer off Michael Wacha (1-4) and pulled away. As has become customary during this pandemic-shortened season, the celebration was muted. After Nick Anderson fanned Andres Gimenez for the final out, the closer exchanged a hug... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jake Arrieta pitched effectively into the sixth inning before leaving with an injury, Didi Gregorius hit a two-run homer and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Mets 4-1 Tuesday night.The scuffling Mets played their first game since billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen agreed to buy the team from the Wilpon and Katz families. The agreement was announced Monday and the deal is subject to the approval of Major League Baseball owners. Arrieta (4-4) allowed one run on Brandon Nimmo’s homer and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he walked off the mound, grabbing the back of his right leg, after hitting Andres Gimenez with a pitch to load the bases. JoJo Romero entered and retired Wilson Ramos on a double-play grounder.Romero tossed two innings, Tommy Hunter got two outs and Hector Neris finished for his fourth save in seven chances.Mets starter Rick Porcello (1-5) yielded four runs and six hits in six innings as New York (21-27) lost its third straight and fell... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jake Arrieta pitched effectively into the sixth inning before leaving with an injury, Didi Gregorius hit a two-run homer and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Mets 4-1 Tuesday night.The scuffling Mets played their first game since billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen agreed to buy the team from the Wilpon and Katz families. The agreement was announced Monday and the deal is subject to the approval of Major League Baseball owners. Arrieta (4-4) allowed one run on Brandon Nimmo’s homer and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he walked off the mound, grabbing the back of his right leg, after hitting Andres Gimenez with a pitch to load the bases. JoJo Romero entered and retired Wilson Ramos on a double-play grounder.Romero tossed two innings, Tommy Hunter got two outs and Hector Neris finished for his fourth save in seven chances.Mets starter Rick Porcello (1-5) yielded four runs and six hits in six innings as New York (21-27) lost its third straight and fell... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jake Arrieta pitched effectively into the sixth inning before leaving with an injury, Didi Gregorius hit a two-run homer and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Mets 4-1 Tuesday night.The scuffling Mets played their first game since billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen agreed to buy the team from the Wilpon and Katz families. The agreement was announced Monday and the deal is subject to the approval of Major League Baseball owners. Arrieta (4-4) allowed one run on Brandon Nimmo’s homer and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he walked off the mound, grabbing the back of his right leg, after hitting Andres Gimenez with a pitch to load the bases. JoJo Romero entered and retired Wilson Ramos on a double-play grounder.Romero tossed two innings, Tommy Hunter got two outs and Hector Neris finished for his fourth save in seven chances.Mets starter Rick Porcello (1-5) yielded four runs and six hits in six innings as New York (21-27) lost its third straight and fell... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jake Arrieta pitched effectively into the sixth inning before leaving with an injury, Didi Gregorius hit a two-run homer and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the New York Mets 4-1 Tuesday night.The scuffling Mets played their first game since billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen agreed to buy the team from the Wilpon and Katz families. The agreement was announced Monday and the deal is subject to the approval of Major League Baseball owners. Arrieta (4-4) allowed one run on Brandon Nimmo’s homer and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he walked off the mound, grabbing the back of his right leg, after hitting Andres Gimenez with a pitch to load the bases. JoJo Romero entered and retired Wilson Ramos on a double-play grounder.Romero tossed two innings, Tommy Hunter got two outs and Hector Neris finished for his fourth save in seven chances.Mets starter Rick Porcello (1-5) yielded four runs and six hits in six innings as New York (21-27) lost its third straight and fell... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Adam Duvall drove in nine runs with three homers, including a grand slam, and the Atlanta Braves set a National League scoring record while obliterating their franchise mark in a 29-9 romp over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.Atlanta broke loose for 11 runs in the second inning and nearly matched the modern scoring mark since 1900, set by the Texas Rangers in a 30-3 rout of Baltimore in 2007.The Braves had 23 hits, including seven homers, to score the most runs in their history in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. They topped their old record by six runs.The outburst came a day after the Braves were shut out by the Marlins on four hits. Freddie Freeman drove in six runs with three hits, including a two-run homer.Duvall hit one of the team’s three homers during an 11-run second inning, knocking Pablo López (3-4) out of the game. Duvall hit another homer, his 12th, in a six-run fifth and added the slam in the seventh off Josh Smith.Grant Dayton (2-0) won in relief.YANKEES... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Adam Duvall drove in nine runs with three homers, including a grand slam, and the Atlanta Braves obliterated their franchise scoring record in a 29-9 romp over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.The Braves had 23 hits, including seven homers, to score the most runs in their history in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. They topped the old record by six runs.A day after being shut out by the Marlins on four hits, the Braves broke loose. Freddie Freeman drove in six runs with three hits, including a two-run homer.Duvall hit one of the team’s three homers an 11-run second inning, knocking Pablo López out of the game. Duvall hit another homer, his 12th, in a six-run fifth and added the slam in the seventh off Josh Smith.YANKEES 7, BLUE JAYS 2BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Deivi García earned his first major league win, Gleyber Torres drove in four runs and the New York Yankees snapped a five-game losing streak, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 7-2 on Wednesday night.The Yankees had lost 15... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso hit a two-run homer leading off the 10th inning Thursday night, lifting the New York Mets to a come-from-behind, 9-7 win over the Yankees in the final Subway Series game of the season between the teams.The Mets came back from deficits of 4-0 and 7-4 at Citi Field to earn a split of the six-game season series, all of which was played over the last six days. J.D. Davis forced extra innings by homering off Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman one pitch after pinch-runner Billy Hamilton was thrown out trying to steal third base. Alonso then hit the second pitch he saw from Albert Abreu (0-1) well into the left-field seats for his first walk-off homer.Alonso raised his arms and looked towards the dugout as the Mets spilled out to celebrate a win on the afternoon they honored franchise icon Tom Seaver, whose death was announced Wednesday.Edwin Diaz (2-1) tossed two innings and faced only two batters in the 10th. Tyler Wade, who started the inning on second base as the automatic... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Alonso hit a two-run homer leading off the 10th inning Thursday night, lifting the New York Mets to a come-from-behind, 9-7 win over the Yankees in the final Subway Series game of the season between the teams.The Mets came back from deficits of 4-0 and 7-4 at Citi Field to earn a split of the six-game season series, all of which was played over the last six days. J.D. Davis forced extra innings by homering off Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman one pitch after pinch-runner Billy Hamilton was thrown out trying to steal third base. Alonso then hit the second pitch he saw from Albert Abreu (0-1) well into the left-field seats for his first walk-off homer.Alonso raised his arms and looked towards the dugout as the Mets spilled out to celebrate a win on the afternoon they honored franchise icon Tom Seaver, whose death was announced Wednesday.Edwin Diaz (2-1) tossed two innings and faced only two batters in the 10th. Tyler Wade, who started the inning on second base as the automatic... [More]

Royals first. Whit Merrifield lines out to center field to Luis Robert. Hunter Dozier homers to center field. Ryan O'Hearn lines out to deep right center field to Luis Robert. Maikel Franco grounds out to third base, Yoan Moncada to Jose Abreu.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Royals 1, White sox 0.White sox second. Edwin Encarnacion homers to left field. Yoan Moncada lines out to first base to Hunter Dozier. Luis Robert walks. Danny Mendick singles to right field. Luis Robert to second. Adam Engel singles to right field. Danny Mendick to second. Luis Robert to third. Tim Anderson walks. Adam Engel to second. Danny Mendick to third. Luis Robert scores. Eloy Jimenez strikes out swinging. Yasmani Grandal walks. Jose Abreu doubles to deep left center field. Yasmani Grandal out at home. Tim Anderson scores. Adam Engel scores.5 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 1 left on. White sox 5, Royals 1.White sox fourth. Adam Engel pops out to Hunter Dozier. Tim Anderson homers to center field. Eloy Jimenez grounds... [More]

White sox second. Edwin Encarnacion called out on strikes. Yoan Moncada flies out to right field to Hunter Dozier. Luis Robert homers to right field. Danny Mendick doubles. Adam Engel pops out to first base to Ryan O'Hearn.1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 left on. White sox 1, Royals 0.Royals third. Whit Merrifield homers to left field. Hunter Dozier singles to right center field. Jorge Soler singles to left field. Hunter Dozier to second. Ryan O'Hearn singles to center field. Jorge Soler to third. Hunter Dozier scores. Maikel Franco called out on strikes. Alex Gordon strikes out swinging. Adalberto Mondesi grounds out to shallow infield, Reynaldo Lopez to Jose Abreu.2 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Royals 2, White sox 1.White sox fifth. Danny Mendick strikes out swinging. Adam Engel pops out to shallow right field to Nicky Lopez. Tim Anderson singles to shallow infield. Eloy Jimenez homers to center field. Tim Anderson scores. Yasmani Grandal strikes out swinging.2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors,... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rookie Isaac Paredes hit a grand slam for his first major league homer and the Detroit Tigers snapped a 20-game losing streak against Cleveland by beating the Indians 10-5 on Friday night.The Tigers also ended a nine-game slide that included being swept at home last weekend by the Indians.The 21-year-old Paredes connected in the fourth inning when the Tigers scored seven times off Adam Plutko (1-2). Jonathan Schoop hit a two-run homer as the Tigers topped the Indians for the first time since April 10, 2019.Cleveland’s 20-game dominance of Detroit was the second-longest streak against one opponent since division play began in 1969. Baltimore holds the record with 23 consecutive wins over Kansas City in 1969-70.Rony Garcia (1-0) picked up the win for the Tigers, who got off to a surprising 9-4 start before staggering.Franmil Reyes hit a two-run homer as the Indians had their winning streak stopped at six. They were again without manager Terry Francona. He underwent a medical... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rookie Isaac Paredes hit a grand slam for his first major league homer and the Detroit Tigers snapped a 20-game losing streak against Cleveland by beating the Indians 10-5 on Friday night.The Tigers also ended a nine-game slide that included being swept at home last weekend by the Indians.The 21-year-old Paredes connected in the fourth inning when the Tigers scored seven times off Adam Plutko (1-2). Jonathan Schoop hit a two-run homer as the Tigers topped the Indians for the first time since April 10, 2019.Cleveland’s 20-game dominance of Detroit was the second-longest streak against one opponent since division play began in 1969. Baltimore holds the record with 23 consecutive wins over Kansas City in 1969-70.Rony Garcia (1-0) picked up the win for the Tigers, who got off to a surprising 9-4 start before staggering.Franmil Reyes hit a two-run homer as the Indians had their winning streak stopped at six. They were again without manager Terry Francona. He underwent a medical... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Rookie Isaac Paredes hit a grand slam for his first major league homer and the Detroit Tigers snapped a 20-game losing streak against Cleveland by beating the Indians 10-5 on Friday night.The Tigers also ended a nine-game slide that included being swept at home last weekend by the Indians.The 21-year-old Paredes connected in the fourth inning when the Tigers scored seven times off Adam Plutko (1-2). Jonathan Schoop hit a two-run homer as the Tigers topped the Indians for the first time since April 10, 2019.Cleveland’s 20-game dominance of Detroit was the second-longest streak against one opponent since division play began in 1969. Baltimore holds the record with 23 consecutive wins over Kansas City in 1969-70.Rony Garcia (1-0) picked up the win for the Tigers, who got off to a surprising 9-4 start before staggering.Franmil Reyes hit a two-run homer as the Indians had their winning streak stopped at six. They were again without manager Terry Francona. He underwent a medical... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Adam Duvall hit a tiebreaking home run off the foul pole with one out in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves broke a four-game losing streak by beating the first-place Miami Marlins 2-1 Saturday.Atlanta’s Max Fried pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings and was in line for his fourth victory until Monte Harrison hit his first major league homer leading off the eighth against Will Smith for a 1-all tie.The Braves regained the lead when Duvall lunged at an outside pitch from Brandon Kintzler (1-1) and pulled it down the left field line.Marcell Ozuna produced the game’s first run when he led off the seventh with his fifth homer off Daniel Castano, making only his second major league start.Fried allowed four hits, struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 1.24, but he remained winless in five career starts against Miami.Smith (1-0) worked the eighth. Mark Melancon pitched around a two-out single in the ninth for his fourth save to complete a six-hitter.INDIANS 3, TIGERS 1DETROIT (AP)... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Adam Duvall hit a tiebreaking home run off the foul pole with one out in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves broke a four-game losing streak by beating the first-place Miami Marlins 2-1 Saturday.Atlanta’s Max Fried pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings and was in line for his fourth victory until Monte Harrison hit his first major league homer leading off the eighth against Will Smith for a 1-all tie.The Braves regained the lead when Duvall lunged at an outside pitch from Brandon Kintzler (1-1) and pulled it down the left field line.Marcell Ozuna produced the game’s first run when he led off the seventh with his fifth homer off Daniel Castano, making only his second major league start.Fried allowed four hits, struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 1.24, but he remained winless in five career starts against Miami.Smith (1-0) worked the eighth. Mark Melancon pitched around a two-out single in the ninth for his fourth save to complete a six-hitter.INDIANS 3, TIGERS 1DETROIT (AP)... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Adam Duvall hit a tiebreaking home run off the foul pole with one out in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves broke a four-game losing streak by beating the first-place Miami Marlins 2-1 Saturday.Atlanta’s Max Fried pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings and was in line for his fourth victory until Monte Harrison hit his first major league homer leading off the eighth against Will Smith for a 1-all tie.The Braves regained the lead when Duvall lunged at an outside pitch from Brandon Kintzler (1-1) and pulled it down the left field line.Marcell Ozuna produced the game’s first run when he led off the seventh with his fifth homer off Daniel Castano, making only his second major league start.Fried allowed four hits, struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 1.24, but he remained winless in five career starts against Miami.Smith (1-0) worked the eighth. Mark Melancon pitched around a two-out single in the ninth for his fourth save to complete a six-hitter.INDIANS 3, TIGERS 1DETROIT (AP)... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Adam Duvall hit a tiebreaking home run off the foul pole with one out in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves broke a four-game losing streak by beating the first-place Miami Marlins 2-1 Saturday.Atlanta’s Max Fried pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings and was in line for his fourth victory until Monte Harrison hit his first major league homer leading off the eighth against Will Smith for a 1-all tie.The Braves regained the lead when Duvall lunged at an outside pitch from Brandon Kintzler (1-1) and pulled it down the left field line.Marcell Ozuna produced the game’s first run when he led off the seventh with his fifth homer off Daniel Castano, making only his second major league start.Fried allowed four hits, struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 1.24, but he remained winless in five career starts against Miami.Smith (1-0) worked the eighth. Mark Melancon pitched around a two-out single in the ninth for his fourth save to complete a six-hitter.INDIANS 3, TIGERS 1DETROIT (AP)... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Adam Duvall hit a tiebreaking home run off the foul pole with one out in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves broke a four-game losing streak by beating the first-place Miami Marlins 2-1 Saturday.Atlanta’s Max Fried pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings and was in line for his fourth victory until Monte Harrison hit his first major league homer leading off the eighth against Will Smith for a 1-all tie.The Braves regained the lead when Duvall lunged at an outside pitch from Brandon Kintzler (1-1) and pulled it down the left field line.Marcell Ozuna produced the game’s first run when he led off the seventh with his fifth homer off Daniel Castano, making only his second major league start.Fried allowed four hits, struck out seven and lowered his ERA to 1.24, but he remained winless in five career starts against Miami.Smith (1-0) worked the eighth. Mark Melancon pitched around a two-out single in the ninth for his fourth save to complete a six-hitter.TWINS 4, ROYALS 1, Game 1ROYALS... [More]