CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs exercised their 2019 option on left-handed pitcher Cole Hamels on Friday, solidifying their rotation for next year, and traded left-handed pitcher Drew Smyly and a player to be named later to the Texas Rangers.The $19 million option makes Hamels' contract worth $157 million for seven years. Hamels, who turns 35 in December, went 4-3 with a 2.36 ERA in 12 starts after he was acquired in a July 27 trade with Texas. Had the Cubs declined the option and paid a $6 million buyout, the Rangers would have paid the Cubs an additional $6 million.Hamels gives manager Joe Maddon a deep group of starting pitchers as the Cubs try for their fifth consecutive playoff appearance. Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jose Quintana and Yu Darvish also are expected to return, with Mike Montgomery and Tyler Chatwood waiting in the wings.Hamels, a former first-round pick, made his major league debut with Philadelphia in 2006. The left-hander is 156-114 with a 3.40 ERA in 13 big league... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Cubs have exercised their $10.5 million option on pitcher Jose Quintana.The 29-year-old left-hander was 13-11 with a 4.03 ERA in 32 starts in his first full season with the Cubs. He was acquired from the White Sox in July 2017 as part of a deal in which they sent two top prospects to their crosstown rivals: pitcher Dylan Cease and outfielder Eloy Jimenez.Quintana's deal had a $1 million buyout. It also includes an $11.5 million option for 2020 with a $1 million buyout.The Cubs also claimed left-handed pitcher Jerry Vasto off waivers from the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday. He debuted last season with Colorado and had an 8.31 ERA over six appearances with the Rockies and Royals.___More AP baseball coverage: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

The Latest on the Major League Baseball's final day heading into the postseason (all times Eastern):7:30 p.m.Rookie Walker Buehler tossed one-hit ball into the seventh inning, Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy slugged two-run homers, and the Los Angeles Dodgers routed the Colorado Rockies 5-2 to earn a record sixth consecutive NL West title in a tiebreaker game.That sets up a wild-card showdown Tuesday night between the Rockies and Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Jon Lester will start for Chicago. Colorado has not yet named a starter, but Antonio Senzatela may get the call.The Dodgers are the first major league team to win six straight division titles since the Yankees captured nine AL East titles in a row from 1998-2006.Los Angeles hosts Atlanta in the NL Division Series beginning Thursday.___7:15 p.m.Ichiro Suzuki will go to spring training next season with the Seattle Mariners as a player.Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto says Suzuki will be in spring training with the Mariners in 2019... [More]

The Latest on the Major League Baseball's final day heading into the postseason (all times Eastern):5:10 p.m.The Dodgers led the majors in attendance this season, topping the 3 million mark.Even accounting for the usual late-arriving fans in Los Angeles, there are plenty of empty seats for the Dodgers' tiebreaker game against Colorado.Each end of the upper deck has three nearly empty sections, there's ample room in the outfield, and rows of empty seats elsewhere.A Monday day game with people at work and kids back in school surely doesn't help.The crowd that is on hand is being loud in support of Dodgers rookie starter Walker Buehler. With two outs, they've been standing up and cheering for him.The Dodgers drew 3,809,684 through 81 home dates, averaging 47,033 per game.That's well ahead of the second-place Yankees, who totaled 3,482,855.___4:55 p.m.Shohei Ohtani has undergone Tommy John surgery.Angels general manager Billy Eppler announced Monday that the surgery went well. Dr. Neal ElAttrache... [More]

The Latest on the Major League Baseball's final day heading into the postseason (all times Eastern):4:55 p.m.Shohei Ohtani has undergone Tommy John surgery.Angels general manager Billy Eppler announced Monday that the surgery went well. Dr. Neal ElAttrache performed the procedure in Los Angeles.Ohtani was named the AL Rookie of the Month for September, which began with an abbreviated pitching performance and the subsequent realization he needed surgery. Ohtani went on to bat .310 with seven homers and 18 RBIs, making him a top contender for the AL Rookie of the Year award.Ohtani will spend much of the offseason in Southern California for rehabilitation, Eppler said.The GM also confirmed that the Angels plan to use Ohtani as a hitter throughout 2019. He will return to the mound in 2020.___4:30 p.m.Colorado right fielder Carlos Gonzalez was booed when he came to the plate for the first time against the Dodgers in the NL West tiebreaker.The crowd was reacting to Gonzalez's comments in a column... [More]

The Latest on the Major League Baseball's final day heading into the postseason (all times Eastern):4:30 p.m.Colorado right fielder Carlos Gonzalez was booed when he came to the plate for the first time against the Dodgers in the NL West tiebreaker.The crowd was reacting to Gonzalez's comments in a column in the Denver Post on Monday in which he said he detests hearing "I Love L.A.," a song that blares after every Dodgers home victory.Gonzalez called it "that stupid song" and says he tries to run into the visiting clubhouse as fast as he can to avoid hearing it.After Gonzalez struck out to end the second, the stadium organist played a snippet of Randy Newman's ode to the city.___4:25 p.m.Lorenzo Cain hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the eighth inning, Christian Yelich collected three more hits and the Milwaukee Brewers won the NL Central title by downing the Chicago Cubs 3-1 on Monday in a high-stakes tiebreaker game.Milwaukee trailed Chicago by as many as five games in September, but it... [More]

The Latest on the Major League Baseball's final day heading into the postseason (all times Eastern):1:52 p.m.Christian Yelich strengthened his case for NL MVP when he slapped an RBI single back up the middle in the NL Central tiebreaker game, giving the Milwaukee Brewers a 1-0 lead over the Chicago Cubs in the third inning.Yelich also reached on an infield single in the first. Bidding for the Triple Crown, he now has 110 RBIs, just one behind Cubs star Javier Baez for the league lead.The winner at Wrigley Field gets the division title and home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. The loser plays again Tuesday night, hosting the runner-up in the NL West in the wild-card game.___10:34 a.m.Jhoulys Chacin will start the NL Central tiebreaker for the Milwaukee Brewers.The 30-year-old Chacin is 15-8 with a 3.56 ERA in 34 starts. The right-hander pitched five innings of one-hit ball in a 2-1 victory at St. Louis on Wednesday night.Milwaukee plays the Chicago Cubs on Monday for the NL Central title. The winner at Wrigley Field gets a spot in the division series and home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. The loser plays again Tuesday night, hosting the runner-up in the NL West in the wild-card game.The Brewers did not announce their starter until Monday morning.Jose Quintana pitches for the Cubs. The left-hander is 6-2 with a 1.60 ERA in 10 starts against Milwaukee.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox lost 100 games, struck out more times than any other team in major league history and had several key prospects suffer serious injuries.They missed the playoffs for the 10th straight year, too.Still, the White Sox hope the worst of the rebuild is behind them and general manager Rick Hahn expects to see more signs of a turnaround next season with the young players on the roster continuing to mature and promising prospects in the pipeline."I don't think it's too early to say we expect to be certainly more competitive," Hahn said.After dropping 95 games last year, the White Sox came within six losses of the franchise record at 62-100. Only the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals had worse marks. They also set the major league record by striking out 1,594 times."A lot of ups and a lot of downs," manager Rick Renteria said. "Probably more downs than ups but some moments of clarity that we see for some of the guys that we have that we believe will be... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Jhoulys Chacin will start the NL Central tiebreaker for the Milwaukee Brewers.The 30-year-old Chacin is 15-8 with a 3.56 ERA in 34 starts. The right-hander pitched five innings of one-hit ball in a 2-1 victory at St. Louis on Wednesday night.Milwaukee plays the Chicago Cubs on Monday for the NL Central title. The winner at Wrigley Field gets a spot in the division series and home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs. The loser plays again Tuesday night, hosting the runner-up in the NL West in the wild-card game.The Brewers did not announce their starter until Monday morning.Jose Quintana pitches for the Cubs. The left-hander is 6-2 with a 1.60 ERA in 10 starts against Milwaukee.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

A look at what's happening around the majors today:WIN OR GO WILDIn a big league first, a pair of tiebreaking Game 163s will be played on the same day to sort out the NL playoff picture. First, the Cubs host the Brewers to settle the NL Central at Wrigley Field. Then the Dodgers host the Rockies to determine an NL West champ. The losers of those games will play Tuesday in the NL wild-card game.Chicago will call on left-hander Jose Quintana (13-11, 4.09), who is 6-2 with a 1.60 ERA in 10 starts against Milwaukee. The Brewers are countering with Jhoulys Chacin (15-8, 3.56). The Midwest rivals might not be done with each other after Monday, either — the winner of the wild-card game will face the NL Central champ in the NL Division Series. How about a rematch?Colorado is attempting to end Los Angeles' five-year reign atop the division and win its first NL West crown. Walker Buehler (7-5, 2.76 ERA) gets the start for the Dodgers, and the Rockies will counter with German Marquez (14-10, 3.76... [More]

Triple Crown contender Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field. Nolan Arenado and the big-hitting Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.October baseball is about to begin with Game No. 163 on Monday.Two tiebreakers on the same day for the first time in major league history. Both to divvy up divisions, too."It's interesting that baseball is such a perfect game in some ways that it takes 162 to not decide anything," Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and the Cubs begin the doubleheader drama when they host Milwaukee for the NL Central crown. Later in the afternoon, Dodgers rookie Walker Buehler is set to start when Los Angeles faces Colorado for the NL West title.There's a catch, though.All four teams are already assured playoff spots, either as a division champ or wild card. The Dodgers, Rockies, Brewers and Cubs knew that going into Sunday, the final scheduled day of the regular season, and then romped by a combined score of 48-5.So, it means... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers were on top of the NL Central for much of the season's first half. Then Anthony Rizzo and the Chicago Cubs moved into the lead of what just might be baseball's best division.Then Yelich powered the Brewers to one more charge.So of course, it's going to extra innings.Milwaukee visits Chicago on Monday for the first tiebreaker in major league history in which the loser doesn't go home. The winner advances to the Division Series, the loser to Tuesday's wild-card game against the loser of the NL West tiebreaker later Monday between Colorado and the Los Angeles Dodgers."Just like the last couple weeks, we've approached almost every one of these games like a do-or-die game," Brewers slugger Ryan Braun said. "Tomorrow won't be any different. Obviously, it will be a challenging place for us to go and win but we're playing good baseball and if we go in there and do the things we've done over the last couple of weeks we'll forget about where... [More]

Triple Crown contender Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field. Nolan Arenado and the big-hitting Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.October baseball is about to begin with Game No. 163 on Monday.Two tiebreakers on the same day for the first time in major league history. Both to divvy up divisions, too."It's interesting that baseball is such a perfect game in some ways that it takes 162 to not decide anything," Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and the Cubs begin the doubleheader drama when they host Milwaukee for the NL Central crown. Later in the afternoon, Dodgers rookie Walker Buehler is set to start when Los Angeles faces Colorado for the NL West title.There's a catch, though.All four teams are already assured playoff spots, either as a division champ or wild card. The Dodgers, Rockies, Brewers and Cubs knew that going into Sunday, the final scheduled day of the regular season, and then romped by a combined score of 48-5.So, it means... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers were on top of the NL Central for much of the season's first half. Then Anthony Rizzo and the Chicago Cubs moved into the lead of what just might be baseball's best division.Then Yelich powered the Brewers to one more charge.So of course, it's going to extra innings.Milwaukee visits Chicago on Monday for the first tiebreaker in major league history in which the loser doesn't go home. The winner advances to the Division Series, the loser to Tuesday's wild-card game against the loser of the NL West tiebreaker later Monday between Colorado and the Los Angeles Dodgers."Just like the last couple weeks, we've approached almost every one of these games like a do-or-die game," Brewers slugger Ryan Braun said. "Tomorrow won't be any different. Obviously, it will be a challenging place for us to go and win but we're playing good baseball and if we go in there and do the things we've done over the last couple of weeks we'll forget about where... [More]

Triple Crown contender Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field. Nolan Arenado and the big-hitting Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.October baseball is about to begin with Game No. 163 on Monday.Two tiebreakers on the same day for the first time in major league history. Both to divvy up divisions, too."It's interesting that baseball is such a perfect game in some ways that it takes 162 to not decide anything," Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and the Cubs begin the doubleheader drama when they host Milwaukee for the NL Central crown. Later in the afternoon, Dodgers rookie Walker Buehler is set to start when Los Angeles faces Colorado for the NL West title.There's a catch, though.All four teams are already assured playoff spots, either as a division champ or wild card. The Dodgers, Rockies, Brewers and Cubs knew that going into Sunday, the final scheduled day of the regular season, and then romped by a combined score of 48-5.So, it means... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Monday:WIN OR GO WILDIn a big league first, a pair of tiebreaking Game 163s will be played on the same day to sort out the NL playoff picture. First, the Cubs host the Brewers to settle the NL Central at Wrigley Field. Then the Dodgers host the Rockies to determine an NL West champ. The losers of those games will play Tuesday in the NL wild-card game.Chicago will call on left-hander Jose Quintana (13-11, 4.09), who is 6-2 with a 1.60 ERA in 10 starts against Milwaukee. The Brewers are countering with Jhoulys Chacin (15-8, 3.56). The Midwest rivals might not be done with each other after Monday, either — the winner of the wild-card game will face the NL Central champ in the NL Division Series. How about a rematch?Colorado is attempting to end Los Angeles' five-year reign atop the division and win its first NL West crown. Walker Buehler (7-5, 2.76 ERA) gets the start for the Dodgers, and the Rockies will counter with German Marquez (14-10, 3.76... [More]

Triple Crown contender Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field. Nolan Arenado and the big-hitting Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.October baseball is about to begin with Game No. 163 on Monday.Two tiebreakers on the same day for the first time in major league history. Both to divvy up divisions, too."It's interesting that baseball is such a perfect game in some ways that it takes 162 to not decide anything," Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and the Cubs begin the doubleheader drama when they host Milwaukee for the NL Central crown. Later in the afternoon, Dodgers rookie Walker Buehler is set to start when Los Angeles faces Colorado for the NL West title.There's a catch, though.All four teams are already assured playoff spots, either as a division champ or wild card. The Dodgers, Rockies, Brewers and Cubs knew that going into Sunday, the final scheduled day of the regular season, and then romped by a combined score of 48-5.So, it means... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Monday:WIN OR GO WILDIn a big league first, a pair of tiebreaking Game 163s will be played on the same day to sort out the NL playoff picture. First, the Cubs host the Brewers to settle the NL Central at Wrigley Field. Then the Dodgers host the Rockies to determine an NL West champ. The losers of those games will play Tuesday in the NL wild-card game.Chicago will call on left-hander Jose Quintana (13-11, 4.09), who is 6-2 with a 1.60 ERA in 10 starts against Milwaukee. The Brewers are countering with Jhoulys Chacin (15-8, 3.56). The Midwest rivals might not be done with each other after Monday, either — the winner of the wild-card game will face the NL Central champ in the NL Division Series. How about a rematch?Colorado is attempting to end Los Angeles' five-year reign atop the division and win its first NL West crown. Walker Buehler (7-5, 2.76 ERA) gets the start for the Dodgers, and the Rockies will counter with German Marquez (14-10, 3.76... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers were on top of the NL Central for much of the season's first half. Then Anthony Rizzo and the Chicago Cubs moved into the lead of what just might be baseball's best division.Then Yelich powered the Brewers to one more charge.So of course, it's going to extra innings.Milwaukee visits Chicago on Monday for the first tiebreaker in major league history in which the loser doesn't go home. The winner advances to the Division Series, the loser to Tuesday's wild-card game against the loser of the NL West tiebreaker later Monday between Colorado and the Los Angeles Dodgers.Just like the last couple weeks, we've approached almost every one of these games like a do-or-die game," Brewers slugger Ryan Braun said. "Tomorrow won't be any different. Obviously, it will be a challenging place for us to go and win but we're playing good baseball and if we go in there and do the things we've done over the last couple of weeks we'll forget about where... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox became the first team in the majors to clinch a playoff spot this season, rallying on pinch-hitter Brock Holt's go-ahead home run in the seventh inning to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-2 Tuesday night.The Red Sox assured themselves at least a spot in the AL wild-card game while reaching the postseason for the third straight year. The AL East leaders began the night with an eight-game lead over the New York Yankees.Boston starter Chris Sale came off the disabled list and pitched one scoreless inning, striking out two and throwing 26 pitches. Sale has been slowed by inflammation in his left shoulder, and the Red Sox had said they would ease their ace back into action.Ryan Brasier (2-0) got the win with 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief as Boston used seven relievers after limiting Sale in his return.Ryan Tepera (5-5) took the loss.ANGELS 1, RANGERS 0ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Blake Parker gave up Isiah Kiner-Falefa's single to right with one out in the eighth inning... [More]