LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jorge Alfaro drove in two runs, Aaron Nola pitched seven innings of two-hit ball and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 Thursday, spoiling Clayton Kershaw's first start in almost a month.Hitting out of the No. 8 spot in the Phillies' lineup, Alfaro delivered an RBI single in the second inning against Kershaw and had an RBI double off reliever Josh Fields in the seventh.Nola (7-2) struck out seven, including five of the last seven batters he faced. He walked one and allowed just two runners to reach as far as second base. Seranthony Dominguez held the Dodgers scoreless over the final two innings for his second save.Kershaw pitched in his first game since May 1, spending time on the disabled list with left biceps tendinitis. He gave up one run and four hits over five innings, throwing 62 pitches. He had five strikeouts and a walk.Alfaro, who had an RBI single in the second, broke a 1-1 tie in the seventh inning when he doubled to the wall in right-center... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Trout homered and doubled three times during his first five-hit game in the majors, and the Los Angeles Angels quickly erased an early deficit in beating the New York Yankees 11-4 on Saturday night.Playing not far from his southern New Jersey hometown, Trout went deep for the third straight game to tie Boston's Mookie Betts for the big league lead with 17 home runs. The two-time MVP drove in four runs and set career bests with four extra-base hits and 11 total bases.Jose Briceno homered in his major league debut for Los Angeles, and rookie Jaime Barria (4-1) returned from the minors to win his third consecutive major league decision.Brett Gardner, Aaron Judge and Austin Romine homered for the Yankees. Sonny Gray (3-4) was tagged for five runs in 3 2/3 innings.RED SOX 8, BRAVES 6BOSTON (AP) — Andrew Benintendi homered and drove in three runs, helping Boston top Atlanta.The AL East-leading Red Sox celebrated the return of Dustin Pedroia with their sixth win in seven games.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Trout homered and doubled three times during his first five-hit game in the majors, and the Los Angeles Angels quickly erased an early deficit in beating the New York Yankees 11-4 on Saturday night.Playing not far from his southern New Jersey hometown, Trout went deep for the third straight game to tie Boston's Mookie Betts for the big league lead with 17 home runs. The two-time MVP drove in four runs and set career bests with four extra-base hits and 11 total bases.Jose Briceno homered in his major league debut for Los Angeles, and rookie Jaime Barria (4-1) returned from the minors to win his third consecutive major league decision.Brett Gardner, Aaron Judge and Austin Romine homered for the Yankees. Sonny Gray (3-4) was tagged for five runs in 3 2/3 innings.RED SOX 8, BRAVES 6BOSTON (AP) — Andrew Benintendi homered and drove in three runs, helping Boston top Atlanta.The AL East-leading Red Sox celebrated the return of Dustin Pedroia with their sixth win in seven games.... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Andrew Benintendi homered and drove in three runs, helping the Boston Red Sox beat the Atlanta Braves 8-6 on Saturday.The AL East-leading Red Sox celebrated the return of Dustin Pedroia with their sixth win in seven games. Mitch Moreland had a key two-run double, Steven Wright (1-0) pitched three scoreless innings, and Craig Kimbrel got three outs for his 16th save.The 34-year-old Pedroia went 0 for 4 with a walk and scored in his first game after offseason knee surgery.Dansby Swanson hit a two-run homer for Atlanta, and Ronald Acuna Jr. connected for a solo shot. Sean Newcomb, a Massachusetts native, struggled with his control in his first career game at Fenway Park, giving up three runs and walking four in three innings. Sam Freeman (1-2) got the loss.PHILLIES 2, BLUE JAYS 1PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Aaron Nola took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, Nick Williams hit his third pinch-hit homer in the eighth and the Phillies moved into first in the NL East.Nola did not allow a... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Bartolo Colon laughed off having Jean Segura's line drive hit him in the stomach, allowing four hits in 7 2/3 shutout innings and giving the Texas Rangers a 5-1 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday.Colon (2-1), who turns 45 on May 24, struck out two, walked none and threw 71 of 96 pitches for strikes.Delino DeShields gave Texas the lead with a two-out RBI double in the eighth inning that scored Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who had singled off James Pazos (1-1). The Rangers added four more in the ninth, all after Ryon Healy's two-out error.ASTROS 2, ANGELS 0ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Justin Verlander pitched a five-hitter for his first shutout in three years and Evan Gattis hit a two-run homer as Houston beat Los Angeles.Verlander (5-2) was superb in ending his two-game skid, finishing with seven strikeouts to reach 2,500 for his career. He walked one and lowered his ERA from 1.21 to 1.05.The right-hander threw 118 pitches in his 24th career complete game and first since 2016 with... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Sean Manaea beat the Boston Red Sox again in his first outing against them since pitching a no-hitter, and Khris Davis hit one of three solo homers by the Oakland Athletics in a 6-5 victory Monday night.Matt Joyce and Matt Olson also went deep for the A's, who had lost five of six to the Astros and Yankees. Davis connected for his team-leading 12th home run as Oakland handed Rick Porcello his first loss of the season.J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers each hit a solo shot for the Red Sox.Manaea (5-4) allowed four runs — three earned — and eight hits in six-plus innings, snapping his two-game skid. He threw the seventh no-hitter in Oakland history at home against the Red Sox on April 21.Blake Treinen got three outs for his seventh save.Porcello (5-1) gave up five runs and nine hits over six innings.BRAVES 6, CUBS 5CHICAGO (AP) — Ozzie Albies hit a leadoff drive for his 13th homer, Jose Bautista belted a three-run shot and Atlanta held off Chicago.Julio Teheran (4-1) pitched six... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Luke Maile hit two home runs, including a two-run shot in the 12th inning that gave the Toronto Blue Jays a 5-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.Maile's drive off Boston's Brian Johnson (1-2) improved the Blue Jays to 5-0 in extra innings after they overcame an impressive outing by Red Sox starter Chris Sale.Curtis Granderson walked to begin the 12th before Maile went deep to right. Maile also hit a game-tying homer off Sale in the seventh. It was the first multihomer game of his career.Sale matched his career high by striking out 15 over a season-high nine innings.Sam Gaviglio (1-0), recalled from Triple-A Buffalo earlier Friday, pitched three innings for the win in his Blue Jays debut.METS 3, PHILLIES 1PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Michael Conforto hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning off Philadelphia closer Hector Neris for New York's second win in 10 games.Phillies starter Jake Arrieta allowed five hits over 7 1/3 scoreless innings, and they led 1-0 until Neris... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Luke Maile hit two home runs, including a two-run shot in the 12th inning that gave the Toronto Blue Jays a 5-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.Maile's drive off Boston's Brian Johnson (1-2) improved the Blue Jays to 5-0 in extra innings after they overcame an impressive outing by Red Sox starter Chris Sale.Curtis Granderson walked to begin the 12th before Maile went deep to right. Maile also hit a game-tying homer off Sale in the seventh. It was the first multihomer game of his career.Sale matched his career high by striking out 15 over a season-high nine innings.Sam Gaviglio (1-0), recalled from Triple-A Buffalo earlier Friday, pitched three innings for the win in his Blue Jays debut.METS 3, PHILLIES 1PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Michael Conforto hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning off Philadelphia closer Hector Neris for New York's second win in 10 games.Phillies starter Jake Arrieta allowed five hits over 7 1/3 scoreless innings, and they led 1-0 until Neris... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Michael Conforto hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning off Phillies closer Hector Neris and the New York Mets rallied to beat Philadelphia 3-1 on Friday night.Phillies starter Jake Arrieta allowed five hits over 7 1/3 scoreless innings, and they led 1-0 until Neris allowed a one-out single, Conforto's third homer and a homer to Devin Mesoraco on the next pitch. It was the second blown save in six days for Neris (1-3), both costing Arrieta a victory.Odubel Herrera extended his on-base streak to 40 games with a first-inning home run for the Phillies, who had won four straight.It was only the Mets' second win in 10 games and came in improbable fashion in their first game since an embarrassing gaffe in Wednesday's loss to Cincinnati in which they batted out of order, squashing a first-inning rally.Jeurys Familia (2-1) worked a perfect ninth for the Mets, who had scored two or fewer runs in seven of their previous nine games.CUBS 11, WHITE SOX 2CHICAGO (AP) — Willson Contreras... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani retired the Oakland Athletics' first 19 batters Sunday before Marcus Semien's seventh-inning single broke up the two-way Japanese sensation's bid for a perfect game in his first home pitching start for the Los Angeles Angels.Ohtani had 11 strikeouts during the first six innings, striking out the side twice in an overwhelming performance. But after retiring Matt Joyce to open the seventh, Ohtani yielded a clean one-out single to left by Semien.Jed Lowrie then drew a four-pitch walk, but Ohtani ended the threat by inducing Khris Davis' weak groundout before getting Matt Olson for his 12th strikeout of the day. Ohtani received multiple standing ovations from the Angel Stadium crowd.Los Angeles led 6-0.The performance was the latest in a series of early superlatives by Ohtani, who has taken the majors by storm in his attempt to become the first regular two-way player in decades.Ohtani won his big league pitching debut with six strong innings at Oakland one... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Gregory Polanco hit a three-run homer in the 13th inning to lift the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 13-10 victory over Detroit on Friday — about an hour after the Tigers spilled onto the field to celebrate what they thought was a game-winning hit of their own.Nicholas Castellanos was initially called safe at home in the bottom of the 10th for the Tigers, but a replay review took the run away and the teams played on. Polanco's drive to right-center on a 3-0 pitch from Alex Wilson (0-1) finally gave the Pirates a comfortable lead — or as comfortable as could be on a wacky day in which both teams scored four runs in the ninth.Detroit put two men on base in the 13th, but Steven Brault (1-0) was able to hold on and finish his third scoreless inning of relief.By the time the 5-hour, 27-minute game was over, there were only three umpires and one manager left. Plate umpire Mike Everitt exited in the eighth with a concussion after being hit in the mask by a pitch. And Ron Gardenhire — in... [More]

Capsules of American League West teams, listed in order of finish last year:___Houston Astros2017: 101-61, first place, won World Series.Manager: A.J. Hinch (fourth season).He's Here: RHP Gerrit Cole, RHP Joe Smith, RHP Hector Rondon.He's Outta Here: DH Carlos Beltran, RHP Luke Gregerson, RHP Joe Musgrove, RHP Mike Fiers, RHP Michael Feliz, INF Colin Moran.Projected Lineup: CF George Springer (.283, 34 HRs, 85 RBIs), 3B Alex Bregman (.284, 19, 71, 39 2Bs), 2B Jose Altuve (MLB-best .346, 24, 81, 39 2Bs, 32 SBs, AL MVP), SS Carlos Correa (.315, 24, 84), 1B Yuli Gurriel (.299, 18, 75, 43 2Bs), LF Marwin Gonzalez (.303, 23, 90, 34 2Bs), DH Evan Gattis (.263, 12, 55), RF Josh Reddick (.314, 13, 82, 34 2Bs), C Brian McCann (.241, 18, 62).Rotation: LH Dallas Keuchel (14-5, 2.90 ERA, 251 Ks), RH Justin Verlander (15-8, 3.36, 219 Ks with Tigers and Astros), RH Gerrit Cole (12-12, 4.26, 196 Ks with Pirates), RH Lance McCullers Jr. (7-4, 4.25), RH Charlie Morton (14-7, 3.62).Key Relievers: RH Ken... [More]

OF Matt Joyce was 2-for-4 with a solo home run, his career-high 25th, in Oakland's 8-4 loss to Texas on Saturday. The long ball snapped a 13-game homerless streak. He will finish the season on Sunday with career bests in runs, walks, doubles, extra-base hits, strikeouts, and at-bats. If he plays on Sunday, he would establish a career high for games in a season at 142. He might not get there. Manager Bob Melvin said Joyce won't start after straining a hamstring chasing a ball in right field on Saturday. "For a guy that got off to a slow start, for him to finish the way he did ... after the first month or month and a half of the season, he's been a real consistent performer," manager Bob Melvin said. "Power-wise, probably as good as any year that's he's had."

OF Matt Joyce went 3-for-4 with a career-high three doubles in a 6-5 victory against Seattle on Wednesday. Joyce equaled the Oakland single-game record for doubles. Joyce drove in a run and scored once.

LF Matt Joyce hit his 24th home run of the season Friday as the A's beat the Phillies 4-0. That continues to extend the career-best season in terms of homers for Joyce, whose previous best was in 2011, when he hit 19 home runs as a member of the Rays. In 10 September games, Joyce is hitting .344 (11-for-32) with four homers, eight RBI and a 1.1217 OPS.

OF Matt Joyce went 2-for-4 with a double and his 23rd home run of the season Friday night, a solo shot in a 9-8 victory over Houston at the Oakland Coliseum. Joyce has three home runs in his past five games. Before this year, his season high for home runs was 19 in 2011 with Tampa Bay.

OF Matt Joyce hit his 22nd home run of the season, a solo shot in the fourth inning Tuesday night in an 8-7, 10-inning loss to the Angels at the Oakland Coliseum. He drove in two runs and walked. Joyce had never hit more than 19 home runs in a season before this year. He hit 19 in 2011 for Tampa Bay.

OF Matt Joyce made his first start Saturday in center field since 2009 when he played for the Tampa Bay Rays. "I feel very comfortable out there," Joyce told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I feel it's an easier position to play. Typically, you have guys who have burners there -- guys who faster -- but Jim Edmonds was one of the best and I wouldn't consider him a burner." Joyce made two putouts in center field before moving to left for Boog Powell in the ninth.

LF Matt Joyce clubbed his 18th home run in the eighth inning off Astros RHP Chris Devenski, his most since 2013 when he smacked 18 with the Rays. Joyce has five homers and 12 RBIs over his last 12 games since Aug. 1 and is batting .317 (13-for-41) with 1 1.174 OPS this month.

LOS ANGELES -- Joc Pederson was hit in the leg by a pitch with the bases loaded in the eighth inning to force in the go-ahead run as the Los Angeles Dodgers continued their winning ways with a 6-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday.Pinch hitter Austin Barnes and Corey Seager added two-run singles as Los Angeles (84-34), which owns the best record in baseball, moved 50 games above .500 for the first time since 1953. Dodgers starter Alex Wood yielded six hits and one run while striking out six in seven innings.Chicago's Tim Anderson homered on the first pitch, giving him four home runs and eight RBIs in his past seven games. White Sox starter Miguel Gonzalez allowed one run on five hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked three.Red Sox 10, Cardinals 4BOSTON -- Hanley Ramirez and Sandy Leon drove in two runs apiece in an eight-run fifth inning that carried Boston past St. Louis.Ten consecutive Red Sox batters reached base, and 13 came to the plate while chasing Mike Leake... [More]