NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman threw a 101 mph fastball near the head of pinch-hitter Michael Brosseau while closing out his first save of the season, prompting the benches to empty after New York ended a six-game losing streak against the Tampa Bay Rays with a 5-3 victory Tuesday night.Chapman's first pitch to Brosseau with two outs in the ninth inning whizzed past Brosseau's head, and umpires met before issuing warnings to both benches amid a budding rivalry that's been dominated this season by Tampa Bay. The Rays are 7-2 against the Yankees and lead second-place New York by 3 1/2 games.Chapman struck out Brosseau to end it, and Brosseau began walking toward the visiting dugout before turning back to exchange words with someone on the Yankees. The dugouts and benches emptied and players gathered near home plate, but they mostly kept their distance before dispersing to their respective clubhouses.Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka hit Joey Wendle with a pitch in the first... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman threw a 101 mph fastball near the head of pinch-hitter Michael Brosseau while closing out his first save of the season, prompting the benches to empty after New York ended a six-game losing streak against the Tampa Bay Rays with a 5-3 victory Tuesday night.Chapman's first pitch to Brosseau with two outs in the ninth inning whizzed past Brosseau's head, and umpires met before issuing warnings to both benches amid a budding rivalry that's been dominated this season by Tampa Bay. The Rays are 7-2 against the Yankees and lead second-place New York by 3 1/2 games.Chapman struck out Brosseau to end it, and Brosseau began walking toward the visiting dugout before turning back to exchange words with someone on the Yankees. The dugouts and benches emptied and players gathered near home plate, but they mostly kept their distance before dispersing to their respective clubhouses.“Just some back and forth with obviously the ball coming close to Brosseau... [More]

Mets first. Brandon Nimmo grounds out to shallow infield, Jonathan Loaisiga to Luke Voit. Michael Conforto doubles to left field. J.D. Davis grounds out to shortstop, Jordy Mercer to Luke Voit. Dominic Smith singles to deep left field, tagged out at second, Mike Tauchman to Thairo Estrada to Luke Voit to Jordy Mercer. Michael Conforto scores.1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 left on. Mets 1, Yankees 0.Yankees third. Jordy Mercer walks. Thairo Estrada singles to deep right field. Jordy Mercer to third. Erik Kratz singles to left field. Thairo Estrada to second. Jordy Mercer scores. Luke Voit pops out to shallow left field to Luis Guillorme. Clint Frazier walks. Erik Kratz to second. Thairo Estrada to third. Aaron Hicks singles to right center field. Clint Frazier to second. Erik Kratz to third. Thairo Estrada scores. Gary Sanchez walks. Aaron Hicks to second. Clint Frazier to third. Erik Kratz scores. Mike Tauchman grounds out to shallow infield. Gary Sanchez out at second.3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors,... [More]

Rays second. Jose Martinez grounds out to shallow infield, Gleyber Torres to Luke Voit. Ji-Man Choi homers to right field. Willy Adames called out on strikes. Kevin Kiermaier strikes out swinging.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Rays 1, Yankees 0.Rays third. Manuel Margot pops out to Gio Urshela. Mike Zunino homers to center field. Austin Meadows strikes out swinging. Yandy Diaz grounds out to shallow infield, Luke Voit to Gerrit Cole.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Rays 2, Yankees 0.Yankees third. Thairo Estrada flies out to right center field to Kevin Kiermaier. Aaron Hicks strikes out on a foul tip. Luke Voit homers to right field. Gio Urshela flies out to deep right center field to Kevin Kiermaier.1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on. Rays 2, Yankees 1.Yankees sixth. Aaron Hicks triples. Luke Voit walks. Gio Urshela out on a sacrifice fly to right field to Manuel Margot. Aaron Hicks scores. Mike Ford called out on strikes. Gleyber Torres singles to center field. Luke Voit to second.... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Kyle Hendricks pitched six strong innings in his first appearance against Cleveland since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series and Anthony Rizzo homered, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 7-2 win over the Indians on Wednesday night to match their best start in 50 years.Hendricks (3-1) didn’t have much trouble with the slumping Indians. He allowed one run and seven hits and handled everyone in Cleveland’s lineup but Franmil Reyes, who got three hits.The Cubs are 12-3 in their first season under manager David Ross, matching the club’s start after 15 games in 1970. Rizzo homered in the third off Carlos Carrasco (2-2), David Bote drove in two runs and Kris Bryant connected for a 430-foot shot as the Cubs swept the two-game interleague set.Hendricks hadn’t faced the Indians since Nov. 2, 2016, when he started the dramatic finale as the Cubs beat the Indians in extra innings to clinch their first Series title since 1908. ATHLETICS 8, ANGELS 4ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Piscotty, Matt... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Kyle Hendricks pitched six strong innings in his first appearance against Cleveland since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series and Anthony Rizzo homered, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 7-2 win over the Indians on Wednesday night to match their best start in 50 years.Hendricks (3-1) didn’t have much trouble with the slumping Indians. He allowed one run and seven hits and handled everyone in Cleveland’s lineup but Franmil Reyes, who got three hits.The Cubs are 12-3 in their first season under manager David Ross, matching the club’s start after 15 games in 1970. Rizzo homered in the third off Carlos Carrasco (2-2), David Bote drove in two runs and Kris Bryant connected for a 430-foot shot as the Cubs swept the two-game interleague set.Hendricks hadn’t faced the Indians since Nov. 2, 2016, when he started the dramatic finale as the Cubs beat the Indians in extra innings to clinch their first Series title since 1908. ATHLETICS 8, ANGELS 4ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Piscotty, Matt... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Kyle Hendricks pitched six strong innings in his first appearance against Cleveland since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series and Anthony Rizzo homered, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 7-2 win over the Indians on Wednesday night to match their best start in 50 years.Hendricks (3-1) didn’t have much trouble with the slumping Indians. He allowed one run and seven hits and handled everyone in Cleveland’s lineup but Franmil Reyes, who got three hits.The Cubs are 12-3 in their first season under manager David Ross, matching the club’s start after 15 games in 1970. Rizzo homered in the third off Carlos Carrasco (2-2), David Bote drove in two runs and Kris Bryant connected for a 430-foot shot as the Cubs swept the two-game interleague set.Hendricks hadn’t faced the Indians since Nov. 2, 2016, when he started the dramatic finale as the Cubs beat the Indians in extra innings to clinch their first Series title since 1908. ATHLETICS 8, ANGELS 4ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Stephen Piscotty, Matt... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland’s Shane Bieber tied the major league record for strikeouts in a pitcher’s first two starts of the season, punching out 13 Minnesota Twins over eight innings in the Indians’ 2-0 victory on Thursday night.Bieber (2-0) fanned 14 over six scoreless innings on Friday against Kansas City. His 27 strikeouts in the two games matched the record set by Karl Spooner of the Brooklyn Dodgers in September 1954 during the first two starts of his short career.Facing a Twins team that came in with the second-best run differential in baseball, Bieber allowed three singles in his eight innings.Francisco Lindor supplied all the offense Cleveland needed with a two-run homer in the third inning off Jose Berríos (0-1). After Jose Ramirez singled with two outs, Berrios left an 0-2 pitch up over the plate, and Lindor drove it over the fence in right for his second homer of the season.YANKEES 8, ORIOLES 6BALTIMORE (AP) — Aaron Judge hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning after New York... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland’s Shane Bieber tied the major league record for strikeouts in a pitcher’s first two starts of the season, punching out 13 Minnesota Twins over eight innings in the Indians’ 2-0 victory on Thursday night.Bieber (2-0) fanned 14 over six scoreless innings on Friday against Kansas City. His 27 strikeouts in the two games matched the record set by Karl Spooner of the Brooklyn Dodgers in September 1954 during the first two starts of his short career.Facing a Twins team that came in with the second-best run differential in baseball, Bieber allowed three singles in his eight innings.Francisco Lindor supplied all the offense Cleveland needed with a two-run homer in the third inning off Jose Berríos (0-1). After Jose Ramirez singled with two outs, Berrios left an 0-2 pitch up over the plate, and Lindor drove it over the fence in right for his second homer of the season.YANKEES 8, ORIOLES 6BALTIMORE (AP) — Aaron Judge hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning after New York... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland’s Shane Bieber tied the major league record for strikeouts in a pitcher’s first two starts of the season, punching out 13 Minnesota Twins over eight innings in the Indians’ 2-0 victory on Thursday night.Bieber (2-0) fanned 14 over six scoreless innings on Friday against Kansas City. His 27 strikeouts in the two games matched the record set by Karl Spooner of the Brooklyn Dodgers in September 1954 during the first two starts of his short career.Facing a Twins team that came in with the second-best run differential in baseball, Bieber allowed three singles in his eight innings.Francisco Lindor supplied all the offense Cleveland needed with a two-run homer in the third inning off Jose Berríos (0-1). After Jose Ramirez singled with two outs, Berrios left an 0-2 pitch up over the plate, and Lindor drove it over the fence in right for his second homer of the season.YANKEES 8, ORIOLES 6BALTIMORE (AP) — Aaron Judge hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning after New York... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Highlighting the pitfalls of beginning the baseball season amid a pandemic, Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on the injured list Thursday, hours before the 2019 World Series champions were scheduled to face the New York Yankees on opening day.Major League Baseball is the first of the four major North American team sports playing regular-season games amid the coronavirus outbreak, which is getting worse in some parts of the U.S.“You feel bad for him. He's a great player. The fans want to see him. And it affects our lineup,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said.“But what can you do about it?” Rizzo added. “You've got to play ball. ... We’re going to have to win without our best guy. It’s a challenge.”Soto, a 21-year-old left fielder who was a breakout star of last October after producing 34 homers and 110 RBIs during the regular season, will be sidelined until he can come up negative on two consecutive coronavirus tests.“Unfortunately... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Highlighting the pitfalls of beginning the baseball season amid a pandemic, Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on the injured list Thursday, hours before the 2019 World Series champions were scheduled to face the New York Yankees on opening day.Major League Baseball is the first of the four major North American team sports playing regular-season games amid the coronavirus outbreak, which is getting worse in some parts of the U.S.“You feel bad for him. He's a great player. The fans want to see him. And it affects our lineup,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said.“But what can you do about it?” Rizzo added. “You've got to play ball. ... We’re going to have to win without our best guy. It’s a challenge.”Soto, a 21-year-old left fielder who was a breakout star of last October after producing 34 homers and 110 RBIs during the regular season, will be sidelined until he can come up negative on two consecutive coronavirus tests.“Unfortunately... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on the injured list Thursday, forcing him to miss the start of the pandemic-delayed season.“You feel bad for him. He's a great player. The fans want to see him. And it affects our lineup,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said as he announced Soto's test less than five hours before the 2019 World Series champions were scheduled to host the New York Yankees on opening day.“But what can you do about it?” Rizzo said. “You've got to play ball. ... We’re going to have to win without our best guy. It’s a challenge.”Soto, a 21-year-old left fielder who was a breakout star of last postseason, will be sidelined until he can come up negative on two consecutive coronavirus tests.“He's asymptomatic,” Rizzo said. “He's following all major league protocols.”Rizzo said the Nationals had done contact tracing to check whether other members of the organization had been exposed.“At this time, there's nobody... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Nationals slugger Juan Soto tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on the injured list Thursday, forcing him to miss the start of the pandemic-delayed season.“You feel bad for him. He's a great player. The fans want to see him. And it affects our lineup,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said as he announced Soto's test less than five hours before the 2019 World Series champions were scheduled to host the New York Yankees on opening day.“But what can you do about it?” Rizzo said. “You've got to play ball. ... We’re going to have to win without our best guy. It’s a challenge.”Soto, a 21-year-old left fielder who was a breakout star of last postseason, will be sidelined until he can come up negative on two consecutive coronavirus tests.“He's asymptomatic,” Rizzo said. “He's following all major league protocols.”Rizzo said the Nationals had done contact tracing to check whether other members of the organization had been exposed.“At this time, there's nobody... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Second baseman DJ LeMahieu was reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list by the New York Yankees on Thursday as they set their opening day 30-man roster before playing Game 1 against the Washington Nationals.Closer Aroldis Chapman and starter Masahiro Tanaka begin the season on injured lists — Chapman on the COVID IL, and Tanaka on the 7-day IL after getting hit in the head by a batted ball.Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced on July 4 that LeMahieu and right-hander Luis Cessa tested positive for the coronavirus before traveling to New York for the team's summer camp and said they were self-isolating at home.LeMahieu signed with the Yankees before last season and hit .327, setting career highs with 26 homers and 102 RBIs.The Yankees also recalled infielder Thairo Estrada and righty pitchers Ben Heller and Michael King from the alternate site Thursday. That trio is part of a group of eight Yankees making their first career opening day active roster, along with outfielder... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — James Paxton and Aaron Judge were back on the field for an instrasquad game Wednesday, making the New York Yankees look more like themselves eight days before the latest opening day in team history.Pitching under game conditions for the first time since back surgery five months ago, Paxton gave up a home run on his second pitch to Judge. Two batters later, Paxton allowed a long ball to Giancarlo Stanton.“It’s a great lineup. I’m glad that it's ours,” the 31-year-old left-hander said. “I'm glad that I'm not facing those guys all the time.”Judge had not played in an intrasquad game since Thursday because of a stiff neck, another in a series of health concerns for the 2017 AL Rookie of the Year.Judge estimated his neck motion had improved from 35% to 90%. He homered into the net above Monument Park.“Good enough to play,” Judge said. “Sometimes you just wake up on the wrong side of bed.”Judge was limited to 214 games during the past two regular seasons. He had a broken right... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — James Paxton and Aaron Judge were back on the field for an instrasquad game, making the New York Yankees look more like themselves eight days before the latest opening day in team history.Pitching under game conditions for the first time since back surgery five months ago, Paxton gave up a home run on his second pitch to Judge. Two batters later, Paxton allowed a long ball to Giancarlo Stanton.“It’s a great lineup. I’m glad that it's ours,” the 31-year-old left-hander said. “I'm glad that I'm not facing those guys all the time.”Judge had not played in an intrasquad game since Thursday because of a stiff neck, another in a series of health concerns for the 2017 AL Rookie of the Year.Judge estimated his neck motion had improved from 35% to 90%. He homered into the net above Monument Park.“Good enough to play,” Judge said. “Sometimes you just wake up on the wrong side of bed.”Judge was limited to 214 games during the past two regular seasons. He had a broken right wrist when... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole couldn't have expected the New York Yankees to take the ball away from him just one batter into his first home start in the Bronx.But the team's new $324 million ace learned the hard way about one of baseball’s new coronavirus safety protocols Tuesday night during an intrasquad game at Yankee Stadium. Cole allowed a home run to the second hitter he faced, Miguel Andújar, one pitch after being forced to give up the ball he used to strike out leadoff man Mike Tauchman.“I liked that ball,” Cole grumbled on the mound.Among the safety steps instituted by Major League Baseball for this virus-shortened season is that pitchers can’t reuse a baseball once it has been touched by other players. After Cole struck out Tauchman swinging, catcher Gary Sánchez whipped the ball around the infield — a customary ritual that’s frowned upon in MLB’s 2020 operations manual. Cole shot the dugout a confused look when coaches called for the ball. Andújar crushed the next pitch into the... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — When and if opening day comes around this year, New York Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake anticipates a brimming bullpen.Major League Baseball and the players' association have talked about a compressed schedule to get in as many games as possible. That will set off a call to arms."I think if you have 15 guys it gives you some depth," Blake said Wednesday.Active rosters were to expand from 25 to 26 from opening day through Aug. 31 in exchange for the limit dropping from 40 to 28 from Sept. 1 on. When a strike delayed the start of the 1995 season until April 25, teams were allowed 28 players through May 15.There is talk of 28- to 30-man rosters following the shutdown caused by the new coronavirus. Teams are preparing for a season that could extend into late November or even December, if domes and ballparks in warm-weather cities are used."Both the PA and the MLB are very, very adamant about playing as many games as we can this year," Seattle pitcher Marco Gonzales said.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — When and if opening day comes around this year, New York Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake anticipates a brimming bullpen.Major League Baseball and the players' association have talked about a compressed schedule to get in as many games as possible. That will set off a call to arms."I think if you have 15 guys it gives you some depth," Blake said Wednesday.Active rosters were to expand from 25 to 26 from opening day through Aug. 31 in exchange for the limit dropping from 40 to 28 from Sept. 1 on. When a strike delayed the start of the 1995 season until April 25, teams were allowed 28 players through May 15.There is talk of 28- to 30-man rosters following the shutdown caused by the new coronavirus. Teams are preparing for a season that could extend into late November or even December, if domes and ballparks in warm-weather cities are used."Both the PA and the MLB are very, very adamant about playing as many games as we can this year," Seattle pitcher Marco Gonzales said.... [More]