ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Latest on Game 5 of the World Series (all times local): 9:50 p.m. Dustin May is keeping the Rays’ bats quiet with an impressive relief outing -- and making Dodgers manager Dave Roberts look smart for summoning him to replace an effective Clayton Kershaw. The rookie right-hander with the wild shock of bright red hair has retired all four batters he’s faced (two on strikeouts) to protect a 4-2 lead for Los Angeles through seven innings. May, who had been struggling in the postseason, is consistently throwing 99-101 mph with major movement. A fired-up May struck out pinch-hitter Austin Meadows to begin a 1-2-3 seventh that was aided by Joc Pederson’s nice running catch in deep left-center field. May entered with a 5.00 ERA in six previous appearances covering nine innings this postseason. He had allowed nine hits and walked six. Tampa Bay reliever Diego Castillo made quick work of the first three hitters in the Dodgers’ lineup in the top of the seventh. The best-of-seven... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Latest on Game 5 of the World Series (all times local): 9:31 p.m. Two pitches, two outs for Clayton Kershaw in the sixth. And then, just like that, he got pulled by manager Dave Roberts. Perhaps that was the plan Sunday night, maybe that’s what the book said, yank him after 21 batters, no matter what. But the Dodgers lefty was done after 85 pitches. Not that the LA fans at Globe Life Field liked the decision -- a few thousand of them booed, before cheering for Kershaw as he walked off. Struggling reliever Dustin May entered and struck out Manuel Margot with a 101 mph fastball to end the inning with the Dodgers ahead 4-2. Rays manager Kevin Cash went to his bullpen to begin the sixth, taking out starter Tyler Glasnow. Relievers Aaron Loup and Diego Castillo combined for a hitless inning. ___ 9:15 p.m. Max Muncy launched a no-doubt homer into the right-field seats, and the Los Angeles Dodgers lead the Tampa Bay Rays 4-2 through five innings. Muncy turned on a 99... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Latest on Game 2 of the World Series (all times local): 10:50 p.m. Brandon Lowe hit two home runs to break out of an extended postseason slump and the Tampa Bay Rays held off the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-4, tying the World Series at one game apiece. Down 5-0, the Dodgers closed within 6-4 on Corey Seager’s solo homer in the eighth. Aaron Loup relieved and struck out Cody Bellinger with a runner on base to prevent further damage. Joey Wendle also drove in three runs for Tampa Bay. Will Smith and Chris Taylor homered to help the Dodgers rally. After a day off, Game 3 will be Friday night at neutral site Globe Life Field, home of the Texas Rangers. Charlie Morton starts for the Rays against Walker Buehler in a matchup of pitchers who have both excelled in October outings. ___ 10:33 p.m. Corey Seager hit a leadoff drive in the eighth inning for his seventh homer this postseason, and the Los Angeles Dodgers trimmed Tampa Bay’s lead to 6-4 heading to the ninth in Game... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Nick Anderson, Pete Fairbanks, Aaron Loup and Diego Castillo. The stable wobbled before standing tall at the very end. Tampa Bay's vaunted bullpen took over after ace Blake Snell faded, and the Rays beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-4 in Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday night. Anderson and Fairbanks each allowed a solo homer while also getting some big outs. Loup and Castillo retired the final four Los Angeles hitters, with Castillo getting his third postseason save. “It's fairly consistent to how we've gone about it in the postseason,” manager Kevin Cash said. “I really like when we have the opportunity to get Nick in the game and calm the situation down. He's pretty good at doing that.” The group Cash described as "a whole damn stable of guys who throw 98 miles per hour” helped carry the Rays to their first World Series win since 2008. But the relief corps haven't been quite so dominant in this Fall Classic. The uneven performance in Game 2 came a night after... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Tampa Bay's stable was a little shaky — and still managed to close out Game 2 of the World Series. The Rays had to lean on their bullpen after ace Blake Snell faded, with Diego Castillo getting the save after Aaron Loup retired each of his three batters in Tampa Bay's 6-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night. The group manager Kevin Cash described as a "a whole damn stable of guys who throw 98 miles per hour” helped carry the Rays to their first World Series win since 2008. But the relief corps haven't been quite so dominant in this Fall Classic. Nick Anderson and Pete Fairbanks each surrendered a solo homer as the Dodgers closed to 6-4 heading to the ninth. And that's after two inherited runners scored to help Los Angeles take a comfortable lead in Game 1 when starter Tyler Glasnow left in the fifth inning of Tampa Bay's 8-3 loss. But it was enough, with Castillo getting his third save this postseason on a strikeout of Chris Taylor, who checked... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Outfielder Brett Phillips and left-hander Ryan Sherriff have been added to the Tampa Bay Rays' roster for the World Series. Right-hander Aaron Slegers and left-hander José Alvarado were dropped Tuesday before the opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tampa Bay goes with 13 pitchers, one fewer than during the AL Championship Series against Houston, which was played on seven consecutive days. The World Series has off days after Games 2 and 5. The Dodgers did not make any changes from their NL Championship Series roster against Atlanta and will carry 15 pitchers and 13 position players. Phillips was 0 for 2 in the Division Series against the New York Yankees, appearing in three games, and he played once without an at-bat in the first round against Toronto. Sherriff has not pitched since the final day of the regular season on Sept. 27. He figures to be used at high-leverage times against Dodgers left-handed batters, a group that includes Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager, Joc Pederson and Max Muncy. Sherriff joins Aaron Loup, Josh Fleming, Shane McClanahan and Ryan Yarbrough as lefties in the bullpen. Slegers pitched 3 2/3 innings over two appearances against the Astros and had one appearance against the Yankees. Alvarado pitched 1 2/3 innings over two games against Houston. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

The Tampa Bay Rays have crossed the desert on some no-name horses. Advancing from the AL playoffs in San Diego to the World Series in Arlington, Texas, manager Kevin Cash leaned hard on his bullpen — a group he described as “a whole damn stable of guys who throw 98 miles per hour” during a memorable spat with the Yankees in September. The tagline has come to define the small-market Rays. The relief corps has no thoroughbreds, no All-Stars, no big-money headliners — Aaron Loup is the highest-paid reliever on the roster after signing a $1.65 million, one-year deal. Yet the bullpen has dominated all year. Twelve different pitchers converted at least one save during the regular season, matching the major league record despite the compressed schedule, and the group had a 3.37 ERA, third in the majors. They've been just as overpowering in October. Cash has the utmost confidence in the crew, a fact that showed when he gave notably early hooks to starters Blake Snell and Charlie Morton in Games... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Saturday: ___ UNEXPECTED SEVEN The Astros are channeling the 2004 Red Sox, hoping to “cowboy up” for a stunning comeback that could send them to the World Series in Arlington, Texas. The only task left — winning Game 7 of their AL Championship Series against the Rays. Trailing 3-0 in the series earlier this week, Houston players watched a documentary about Boston’s rally from a similar deficit in the ALCS against the Yankees — the only time in baseball’s 116-year postseason history a club trailed 3-0 and advanced. Carlos Correa, George Springer and the Astros' other players are using that unforgettable comeback as inspiration. That Red Sox team went on to win the World Series and end the Curse of the Bambino. Houston is merely trying to prove it can win without stealing signs after their 2017 title was tainted by scandal. “We’re not through writing history,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “We’re hoping we can have a happy ending to this historic... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — After the Houston Astros bashed the ball all over Dodger Stadium for the past week, they found it a whole lot harder to slug when they moved a couple of hours down the coast for the AL Championship Series. Tampa Bay limited the Astros' star-studded lineup to nine hits — but just one for extra bases — in the Rays' 2-1 victory to open the ALCS at Petco Park on Sunday night. The Houston offense that set off postseason fireworks against Minnesota and Oakland was a dull squib in San Diego — at least after José Altuve's first-inning homer, the Astros' 14th long ball of these playoffs and their 13th in the last five games. The Astros got no more big hits against Blake Snell and the Rays' justifiably vaunted bullpen. They mounted significant rallies in five different innings, but repeatedly failed to get the key knock that would have turned a tight game into something more comfortable for the defending AL champions. Alex Bregman, Carlos Correa and the Astros left 10 men on base... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Rookie left-hander Shane McClanahan was a surprise addition to the 28-man roster the Tampa Bay Rays announced for the AL first-round series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday. McClanahan was a first-round pick in the amateur draft two years ago who pitched at Class A and Double-A in 2019. He joined first baseman Ji-Man Choi and infielder Yandy Diaz, who have been on the injured list, in being added to the active roster before Game 1 of the best-of-three series. To make room on the 40-man roster for McClanahan, lefty reliever Sean Gilmartin was designated for assignment. Gilmartin is the husband of White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. Three players who were on the regular season-ending roster — catcher Kevan Smith, left-handed starter Josh Fleming and lefty reliever Ryan Sherriff — were not included on the roster against Toronto. They remain in the 60-man postseason eligible player pool and can be added in future rounds. Tampa Bay’s 28-man roster... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Harrison Bader tripled and homered to help the St. Louis Cardinals clinch a postseason berth on the final day of the regular season with a 5-2 win over Milwaukee, and the Brewers also earned a playoff spot Sunday via help on the West Coast moments later. St. Louis (30-28) will be the fifth seed in the NL and open a three-game wild-card series at San Diego on Wednesday. By winning, the Cardinals avoided having to travel to Detroit for two makeup games Monday. The Brewers (29-31) locked up the eighth seed and a third consecutive postseason berth after the Padres beat San Francisco 5-4 in a game that ended about 15 minutes later. The Giants finished with an identical record as the Brewers but lost out on a tiebreaker due to an inferior intradivision record. Milwaukee will face the top-seeded Dodgers in Los Angeles in a three-game series that also starts Wednesday. The Brewers haven’t had a winning record at any point this season. Milwaukee and Houston will be the first teams... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Javier Báez hit two home runs and the Chicago Cubs became the second franchise in major league history to post 11,000 wins, beating the Detroit Tigers 9-3 on Monday night.Only the Giants have won more, with 11,179 victories after starting in New York in 1883 and later moving to San Francisco.The Cubs, who earned their first victory in 1876, improved to 11,000-10,414. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers are close behind with 10,996 wins.David Bote homered and drove in four runs for the NL Central-leading Cubs. Báez had three RBIs.Cubs starter Alec Mills (3-2) got the win, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out seven. Tigers top prospect Casey Mize (0-1) made his first home start, allowing four runs — three earned — on five hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out two.BLUE JAYS 6, RAYS 4ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Randal Grichuk hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.Reliever Aaron Loup (3-2) replaced Edgar García... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Javier Báez hit two home runs and the Chicago Cubs became the second franchise in major league history to post 11,000 wins, beating the Detroit Tigers 9-3 on Monday night.Only the Giants have won more, with 11,179 victories after starting in New York in 1883 and later moving to San Francisco.The Cubs, who earned their first victory in 1876, improved to 11,000-10,414. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers are close behind with 10,996 wins.David Bote homered and drove in four runs for the NL Central-leading Cubs. Báez had three RBIs.Cubs starter Alec Mills (3-2) got the win, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out seven. Tigers top prospect Casey Mize (0-1) made his first home start, allowing four runs — three earned — on five hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out two.BLUE JAYS 6, RAYS 4ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Randal Grichuk hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.Reliever Aaron Loup (3-2) replaced Edgar García... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Javier Báez hit two home runs and the Chicago Cubs became the second franchise in major league history to post 11,000 wins, beating the Detroit Tigers 9-3 on Monday night.Only the Giants have won more, with 11,179 victories after starting in New York in 1883 and later moving to San Francisco.The Cubs, who earned their first victory in 1876, improved to 11,000-10,414. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers are close behind with 10,996 wins.David Bote homered and drove in four runs for the NL Central-leading Cubs. Báez had three RBIs.Cubs starter Alec Mills (3-2) got the win, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out seven. Tigers top prospect Casey Mize (0-1) made his first home start, allowing four runs — three earned — on five hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out two.BLUE JAYS 6, RAYS 4ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Randal Grichuk hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.Reliever Aaron Loup (3-2) replaced Edgar García... [More]

Javier Báez hit two home runs and the Chicago Cubs became the second franchise in major league history to post 11,000 wins, beating the Detroit Tigers 9-3 on Monday night.Only the Giants have won more, with 11,179 victories after starting in New York in 1883 and later moving to San Francisco.The Cubs, who earned their first victory in 1876, improved to 11,000-10,414. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers are close behind with 10,996 wins.David Bote homered and drove in four runs for the NL Central-leading Cubs. Báez had three RBIs.Cubs starter Alec Mills (3-2) got the win, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out seven. Tigers top prospect Casey Mize (0-1) made his first home start, allowing four runs — three earned — on five hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out two.BLUE JAYS 6, RAYS 4ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Randal Grichuk hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.Reliever Aaron Loup (3-2) replaced Edgar García with one on... [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]

Rays first. Austin Meadows strikes out swinging. Brandon Lowe homers to center field. Yandy Diaz singles to shallow infield. Ji-Man Choi doubles to left field. Yandy Diaz out at home. Joey Wendle walks. Yoshi Tsutsugo strikes out swinging.1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Rays 1, Blue jays 0.Blue jays second. Teoscar Hernandez homers to center field. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homers to left field. Travis Shaw grounds out to shortstop, Joey Wendle to Ji-Man Choi. Brandon Drury singles to deep right field. Cavan Biggio walks. Santiago Espinal pops out to Ji-Man Choi. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. doubles to deep left field. Cavan Biggio to third. Brandon Drury scores. Randal Grichuk singles to second base. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. out at home. Cavan Biggio scores.4 runs, 5 hits, 0 errors, 1 left on. Blue jays 4, Rays 1.Rays third. Austin Meadows grounds out to first base to Vladimir Guerrero Jr.. Brandon Lowe strikes out swinging. Yandy Diaz homers to center field. Ji-Man Choi grounds out to first base to... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox tied a major league record with four consecutive home runs, all against Roel Ramirez in his major league debut, and went on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Sunday. Ramirez is the first pitcher to allow four straight homers in his debut. Yoán Moncada, Yasmani Grandal, José Abreu and Eloy Jiménez connected during a six-run fifth inning.It was the 10th time in major league history a team hit four straight homers. The only other time the White Sox did it was on Aug. 14, 2008, against Kansas City, when Jim Thome, Paul Konerko, Alexei Ramirez and Juan Uribe connected.The White Sox got another solid start from Dallas Keuchel (3-2) and won for just the third time in 11 home games.St. Louis right-hander Dakota Hudson (0-2) allowed one run in four innings in his first start since July 26.INDIANS 8, TIGERS 5DETROIT (AP) — Franmil Reyes homered twice, and the Indians beat the Tigers for the 20th straight time, nearing the major league record for most consecutive... [More]