LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Latest on Major League Baseball's winter meetings (all times local):3:26 p.m.The St. Louis Cardinals have traded third baseman Patrick Wisdom to the Texas Rangers for infielder/outfielder Drew Robinson.The 27-year-old Wisdom made his major league debut last season, hitting .260 with four home runs and 10 RBIs in 32 games. He spent most of the season at Triple-A Memphis, hitting .288 with 15 homers and 61 RBIs.The 26-year-old Robinson batted .183 with three homers and nine RBIs in 47 games for Texas. He is from Las Vegas, where this trade was announced during the winter meetings.___3:19 p.m.Former Texas pitcher Brandon McCarthy has been hired by the Rangers as special assistant to the general manager.McCarthy ended his 14-year career by going 6-3 in 15 starts for the Braves last season. He pitched three years for Texas early in his career.The Rangers say the 35-year-old McCarthy will be involved in all aspects of pitching development at the major and minor league level.___2:02... [More]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Seattle manager Scott Servais hopes his team can find success rebuilding with youth much the way the AL West rival Oakland Athletics have done.A flurry of offseason trades by general manager Jerry Dipoto sent lots of stars out of the Pacific Northwest in the past month."We've made a few changes, but we had to make a decision organizationally where we were at," Servais said Tuesday at the winter meetings. "We weren't quite good enough to get into the playoffs the last three years even though we won a lot of ballgames. So maybe taking a step back, a little bit younger, readjust the core and see where that takes us."Gone is the core of Seattle's roster: ace James Paxton, All-Star closer Edwin Diaz, along with infielders Robinson Cano and Jean Segura. Catcher Mike Zunino, right-handers Juan Nicasio, outfielder Guillermo Heredia and lefty setup man James Pazos, too."The James Paxtons and the Mike Zuninos. Then certainly Robbie and Jean, what can you say about Eddie Diaz?" Servais... [More]

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Latest on Major League Baseball's winter meetings (all times local):2:02 p.m.Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais hopes his team can find success rebuilding with youth much the way the AL West rival Oakland Athletics have done.A flurry of offseason trades by general manager Jerry Dipoto sent so many stars out of the Pacific Northwest in the past month.Gone is the core of Seattle's old lineup: ace James Paxton, infielder Robinson Cano, catcher Mike Zunino. Infielder Jean Segura and right-handers Juan Nicasio and Edwin Diaz. Outfielder Guillermo Heredia and lefty setup man James Pazos, too.Whew! See why Mariners fans might understandably be a little apprehensive about the transformation, even after an 89-73 season that failed to end a nearly two-decade playoff drought — they were third in the AL West and missed the playoffs for a 17th straight season."We've made a few changes, but we had to make a decision organizationally where we were at," Servais said at the winter... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Mariners fans have waited longer than any supporters in North America for a return to the postseason.General manager Jerry Dipoto is asking Seattle to wait a little bit more.Dipoto continued a whirlwind reshaping of the Mariners' roster Monday by sending Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz to the Mets and Jean Segura, James Pazos and Juan Nicasio to Philadelphia. In exchange, Seattle received a bundle of prospects and freed up significant salary space for after the 2020 season."This is what a reset looks like," Dipoto said.Dipoto believes the flurry of moves he's made in the past few weeks can get the Mariners into contention by 2021, calling the strategy a "step back" rather than a rebuild, even though it could take longer than a couple of seasons for Seattle to return to relevancy.The Mariners have been the busiest team in baseball, making wholesale changes to begin the offseason. Salary and experience are being swapped for youth and hope, with an eye on opening a competitive... [More]

CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP) — Major League Baseball and its players' union likely will not decide until the eve of spring training whether to change rules in an effort to increase action on the field next year.Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem said Thursday as the annual general managers' meetings ended that there was no consensus for change yet. More discussions will take place when owners gather next week in Atlanta, the union's executive board convenes in late November and major league executives go to Las Vegas for the winter meetings in mid-December.Topics being discussed include the increased use of defensive shifts, the decrease in innings thrown by starting pitchers and technology that aids sign stealing. A possible 20-second pitch clock and alterations to rules for waivers, trade deadlines and disabled lists also are being talked about by a tradition-bound sport resistant to change."We're an entertainment product. Certainly, we want to play the game in a way that's compelling for our audience,... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Mallex Smith was made a promise by Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto when he was acquired for a second time by the Mariners after an initial tenure that lasted less than two hours."Dipoto didn't guarantee anything, but he said I at least have 78 minutes," Smith joked. "We'll see."Smith is back with the Mariners as part of a five-player deal between Seattle and Tampa Bay on Thursday that landed the Rays catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Guillermo Heredia.The swap continued a lengthy trade history between the teams and came as a surprise to Zunino, who said he had recent conversations with Seattle manager Scott Servais looking ahead to 2019."I was shocked. To see your name in trade talks, let alone this early in the offseason, was beyond my expectations," Zunino said.Smith, 25, stole a career-best 40 bases this year and was caught 12 times. He hit .296, tied for the major league lead with 10 triples and had 40 RBIs. He is not eligible for free agency until after the 2022... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Mallex Smith was made a promise by Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto when he was acquired for a second time by the Mariners after an initial tenure that lasted less than two hours."Dipoto didn't guarantee anything, but he said I at least have 78 minutes," Smith joked. "We'll see."Smith is back with the Mariners as part of a five-player deal between Seattle and Tampa Bay on Thursday that landed the Rays catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Guillermo Heredia.The swap continued a lengthy trade history between the teams and came as a surprise to Zunino, who said he had recent conversations with Seattle manager Scott Servais looking ahead to 2019."I was shocked. To see your name in trade talks, let alone this early in the offseason, was beyond my expectations," Zunino said.Smith, 25, stole a career-best 40 bases this year and was caught 12 times. He hit .296, tied for the major league lead with 10 triples and had 40 RBIs. He is not eligible for free agency until after the 2022... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Mallex Smith was made a promise by Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto when he was acquired for a second time by the Mariners after an initial tenure that lasted less than two hours."Dipoto didn't guarantee anything, but he said I at least have 78 minutes," Smith joked. "We'll see."Smith is back with the Mariners as part of a five-player deal between Seattle and Tampa Bay on Thursday that landed the Rays catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Guillermo Heredia.The swap continued a lengthy trade history between the teams and came as a surprise to Zunino, who said he had recent conversations with Seattle manager Scott Servais looking ahead to 2019."I was shocked. To see your name in trade talks, let alone this early in the offseason, was beyond my expectations," Zunino said.Smith, 25, stole a career-best 40 bases this year and was caught 12 times. He hit .296, tied for the major league lead with 10 triples and had 40 RBIs. He is not eligible for free agency until after the 2022... [More]

CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP) — Speedy outfielder and leadoff hitter Mallex Smith has been acquired by the Seattle Mariners from the Tampa Bay Rays for catcher Mike Zunino and outfielder Guillermo Heredia as part of a five-player deal.The deal was announced Thursday at the baseball general managers' meetings."Bringing Mallex back home to Seattle is exciting for us all," Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto said in a statement. "His combination of speed, base running impact, defense and on-base abilities are unique in today's game. We believe his breakout 2018 performance reflects the many ways his skills will positively impact the Mariners for years to come."Smith, 25, stole a career-best 40 bases this year and was caught 12 times. He hit .296, tied for the major league lead with 10 triples and had 40 RBIs. He is not eligible for free agency until after the 2022 season. He signed with San Diego in 2012, was traded to Atlanta in December 2014 and was dealt to the Mariners in January 2017 and sent... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Luke Voit hit two homers off David Price, Miguel Andujar popped another one barely into the right-field seats and the New York Yankees stalled Boston's division-clinching celebration by beating the Red Sox 10-1 on Wednesday night.Luis Severino (18-8) pitched seven innings of one-run ball, and the Yankees had no need for All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman on the day they activated him from the disabled list. Chapman had been out since Aug. 21 with left knee tendinitis.Mookie Betts had two strikeouts and no hits in his return to Boston's lineup. He pulled a possible grand slam just foul in the ninth before grounding into a game-ending double play. The AL MVP contender sat out Tuesday after injuring his left side two days earlier, but came back to bat leadoff as the designated hitter.The Yankees will try to send Boston packing Thursday with the AL East still undecided. The Red Sox lead the division by 9 1/2 games and entered this three-game series needing one victory to lock up... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Luke Voit hit two homers off David Price, Miguel Andujar popped another one barely into the right-field seats and the New York Yankees stalled Boston's division-clinching celebration by beating the Red Sox 10-1 on Wednesday night.Luis Severino (18-8) pitched seven innings of one-run ball, and the Yankees had no need for All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman on the day they activated him from the disabled list. Chapman had been out since Aug. 21 with left knee tendinitis.Mookie Betts had two strikeouts and no hits in his return to Boston's lineup. He pulled a possible grand slam just foul in the ninth before grounding into a game-ending double play. The AL MVP contender sat out Tuesday after injuring his left side two days earlier, but came back to bat leadoff as the designated hitter.The Yankees will try to send Boston packing Thursday with the AL East still undecided. The Red Sox lead the division by 9 1/2 games and entered this three-game series needing one victory to lock up... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Luke Voit hit two homers off David Price, Miguel Andujar popped another one barely into the right-field seats and the New York Yankees stalled Boston's division-clinching celebration by beating the Red Sox 10-1 on Wednesday night.Luis Severino (18-8) pitched seven innings of one-run ball, and the Yankees had no need for All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman on the day they activated him from the disabled list. Chapman had been out since Aug. 21 with left knee tendinitis.Mookie Betts had two strikeouts and no hits in his return to Boston's lineup. He pulled a possible grand slam just foul in the ninth before grounding into a game-ending double play. The AL MVP contender sat out Tuesday after injuring his left side two days earlier, but came back to bat leadoff as the designated hitter.The Yankees will try to send Boston packing Thursday with the AL East still undecided. The Red Sox lead the division by 9 1/2 games and entered this three-game series needing one victory to lock up... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Luke Voit hit two homers off David Price, Miguel Andujar popped another one barely into the right-field seats and the New York Yankees stalled Boston's division-clinching celebration by beating the Red Sox 10-1 on Wednesday night.Luis Severino (18-8) pitched seven innings of one-run ball, and the Yankees had no need for All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman on the day they activated him from the disabled list. Chapman had been out since Aug. 21 with left knee tendinitis.Mookie Betts had two strikeouts and no hits in his return to Boston's lineup. He pulled a possible grand slam just foul in the ninth before grounding into a game-ending double play. The AL MVP contender sat out Tuesday after injuring his left side two days earlier, but came back to bat leadoff as the designated hitter.The Yankees will try to send Boston packing Thursday with the AL East still undecided. The Red Sox lead the division by 9 1/2 games and entered this three-game series needing one victory to lock up... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Seattle Mariners have placed left-handed starter Marco Gonzales on the 10-day disabled list with a strained neck muscle.Seattle announced the move during its off-day Monday before starting a two-game series with San Diego. Gonzales was scheduled to start the second game of the series with the Padres on Wednesday. He's the second starter in Seattle's rotation currently on the disabled list, although lefty James Paxton is expected to return sometime during a four-game series with Oakland this weekend.Outfielder Guillermo Heredia was recalled from Triple-A to take Gonzales' spot. The DL stint is retroactive to Aug. 24.Gonzales was one of Seattle's top starters for the first four months of the season, but has been awful in August. Gonzales is 0-4 with a 10.35 ERA in his last four starts.Gonzales is 12-9 with a 4.32 ERA in 25 starts this season.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Trevor Williams and two relievers combined on a six-hitter, and the Pittsburgh Pirates blanked the San Francisco Giants 4-0 on Saturday night.Josh Bell homered for the second time in three days. Elias Diaz added two hits for the Pirates after coming in as an injury replacement for Francisco Cervelli.The start of the game was delayed for a ceremony honoring home run king Barry Bonds, who became the 10th player in Giants history to have his jersey retired. Several of his former teammates and managers, including Dusty Baker and Jim Leyland, were on hand.Buster Posey and Evan Longoria had two hits apiece for San Francisco. Ty Blach (6-7) allowed four runs over four innings.Williams (10-8) allowed five hits and walked one in seven innings.ROCKIES 3, DODGERS 2DENVER (AP) — Ryan McMahon hit a three-run homer with two out in the ninth inning, lifting Colorado to the win.McMahon's drive off J.T. Chargois (2-4) cleared the right-field wall just above the out-of-town scoreboard.... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Ryan Zimmerman hit two home runs off a shaky Jon Lester and tied a career high with six RBIs, sending the Washington Nationals over the Chicago Cubs 9-4 on Saturday.Zimmerman hit a two-run homer in the first inning and a sacrifice fly to the warning track in the third. He chased Lester with a three-run drive in the fourth that made it 9-1. He is batting .355 (16 for 45) with four homers and 16 RBIs in 14 games since returning from the disabled list last month.Daniel Murphy also homered and had three hits, helping Tanner Roark (7-12) win his fourth straight start.Lester (12-5) was tagged for eight earned runs and 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings. The left-hander is winless in his last five starts for the NL Central leaders, going 0-3 with a 10.32 ERA during that span.Anthony Rizzo got his 1,000th career hit for the Cubs.MARINERS 3, ASTROS 2HOUSTON (AP) — Ryon Healy had three hits and drove in the go-ahead run for Seattle, and Guillermo Heredia made a spectacular catch to preserve... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Jerry Dipoto thought he was done making deals a day before the non-waiver trade deadline after remodeling the Seattle Mariners bullpen.The Mariners' ever-active baseball boss just couldn't help himself when an outfield upgrade became available.Seattle acquired outfielder Cameron Maybin from the Miami Marlins on Tuesday, giving the Mariners a boost going into the final two months of the regular season. Seattle landed Maybin in exchange for minor league infielder Bryson Brigman and international bonus pool allotment.Dipoto said he first had discussions with the Marlins about Maybin about two weeks ago, but it took the non-waiver trade deadline to get a deal finalized."He fits into the theme of what we're doing and adds better balance to our club. And the experience of a guy who has been through it as long as Cam has doesn't hurt," Dipoto said.Center field was the one obvious position where Seattle could use an upgrade. Since moving Dee Gordon to second base, Guillermo Heredia... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Jerry Dipoto thought he was done making deals a day before the non-waiver trade deadline after remodeling the Seattle Mariners bullpen.That was before he was able to upgrade the one obvious position where Seattle could use help.Seattle acquired outfielder Cameron Maybin from the Miami Marlins on Tuesday, giving the Mariners a boost in the outfield going into the final two months of the regular season. Seattle landed Maybin in exchange for minor league infielder Bryson Brigman and international slot money.Center field was the one obvious position where Seattle could use an upgrade. Since moving Dee Gordon to second base, Guillermo Heredia has seen the majority of the time in center field. And while Heredia is outstanding defensively, his bat hasn't provided much to Seattle's lineup. Heredia is hitting .229 with a .314 on-base percentage and 22 runs scored. Heredia was batting .302 on May 29, but his average has taken a nose dive. In the past 51 games played, Heredia is hitting... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Sergio Romo relieved in the eighth inning, shifted to third base when Jonny Venters replaced him in the ninth, then struck out Brett Gardner to end the game with two on and give the Tampa Bay Rays a 3-2 win over the New York Yankees on Wednesday.Scheduled Rays starter Nathan Eovaldi was traded to AL East-leading Boston about two hours before game time, and six pitchers combined on a seven-hitter.New York has lost just two series since May, and both are against the Rays. Tampa Bay swept three games in late June, took two of three this week and has won six of its past seven against the Yankees. New York, 14-14 over its past 28 games, acquired reliever Zach Britton from Baltimore late Tuesday but said he will not report until Thursday's homestand opener against Kansas City.Neil Walker hit a sacrifice fly in the second inning, but the Rays took a 3-1 lead in the sixth when Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-run homer off Luis Cessa (1-2) and C.J. Cron added a solo drive against... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Sergio Romo relieved in the eighth inning, shifted to third base when Jonny Venters replaced him in the ninth, then struck out Brett Gardner to end the game with two on and give the Tampa Bay Rays a 3-2 win over the New York Yankees on Wednesday.Scheduled Rays starter Nathan Eovaldi was traded to AL East-leading Boston about two hours before game time, and six pitchers combined on a seven-hitter.New York has lost just two series since May, and both are against the Rays. Tampa Bay swept three games in late June, took two of three this week and has won six of its past seven against the Yankees. New York, 14-14 over its past 28 games, acquired reliever Zach Britton from Baltimore late Tuesday but said he will not report until Thursday's homestand opener against Kansas City.Neil Walker hit a sacrifice fly in the second inning, but the Rays took a 3-1 lead in the sixth when Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-run homer off Luis Cessa (1-2) and C.J. Cron added a solo drive against... [More]