MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich became the first major leaguer to hit for the cycle twice in one season against the same team, driving in four runs to lead the Milwaukee Brewers over the Cincinnati Reds 8-0 on Monday night.Less than three weeks after his cycle in Cincinnati, the streaking slugger accomplished the feat against the last-place Reds once again to help the Brewers in their playoff pursuit. Milwaukee began the night 2½ games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central but with a three-game lead in the wild-card race.Yelich singled in the first inning, doubled in the second, launched a two-run homer in the fifth and completed the cycle with a two-run triple in the sixth. With the Brewers nursing a large lead, he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the eighth.Yelich's huge second half has turned him into a top contender for the NL MVP award. He also hit for the cycle when he went 6 for 6 in a 13-12 comeback victory on Aug. 29 at Cincinnati, making him the fifth player... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich became the first major leaguer to hit for the cycle twice in one season against the same team, driving in four runs to lead the Milwaukee Brewers over the Cincinnati Reds 8-0 on Monday night.Less than three weeks after his cycle in Cincinnati, the streaking slugger accomplished the feat against the last-place Reds once again to help the Brewers in their playoff pursuit. Milwaukee began the night 2½ games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central but with a three-game lead in the wild-card race.Yelich singled in the first inning, doubled in the second, launched a two-run homer in the fifth and completed the cycle with a two-run triple in the sixth. With the Brewers nursing a large lead, he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the eighth.Yelich's huge second half has turned him into a top contender for the NL MVP award. He also hit for the cycle when he went 6 for 6 in a 13-12 comeback victory on Aug. 29 at Cincinnati, making him the fifth player... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich became the first major leaguer to hit for the cycle twice in one season against the same team, driving in four runs to lead the Milwaukee Brewers over the Cincinnati Reds 8-0 on Monday night.Less than three weeks after his cycle in Cincinnati, the streaking slugger accomplished the feat against the last-place Reds once again to help the Brewers in their playoff pursuit. Milwaukee began the night 2½ games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central but with a three-game lead in the wild-card race.Yelich singled in the first inning, doubled in the second, launched a two-run homer in the fifth and completed the cycle with a two-run triple in the sixth. With the Brewers nursing a large lead, he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the eighth.Yelich's huge second half has turned him into a top contender for the NL MVP award. He also hit for the cycle when he went 6 for 6 in a 13-12 comeback victory on Aug. 29 at Cincinnati, making him the fifth player... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Kansas City rookie Jorge Lopez came within three outs of a perfect game before Max Kepler walked leading off the ninth inning and Robbie Grossman followed with a single in the Royals' 4-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Saturday night.The 25-year-old right-hander made just his seventh big league start, his fifth for Kansas City since he was acquired from Milwaukee in the late-July trade that sent Mike Moustakas to the Brewers.Lopez (2-4) retired his first 24 batters before walking Kepler on a 3-1 fastball. Grossman followed with a clean single to center field on a changeup with a 1-2 count.Lopez was removed from the game after 110 pitches, 11 more than his previous high.Ehire Adrianza hit a sacrifice fly off Wily Peralta, who retired Joe Mauer and Jorge Polanco on flyouts for his ninth save, completing the one-hitter.Jose Berrios (11-11) gave up one run and three hits in six innings.ASTROS 5, RED SOX 3BOSTON (AP) — Alex Bregman hit his 30th home run, Charlie Morton returned... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gleyber Torres drove in the go-ahead run one batter after a contested check swing loaded the bases for New York in the eighth inning, and the Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 7-5 on Friday night as they await the arrival of 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen.Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks and Miguel Andujar homered in the sixth to end Jordan Zimmermann's bid for a second career no-hitter. Zimmermann carried a 3-0 lead and a no-hitter into the inning behind a solo homer from Niko Goodrum and a two-run triple by Jim Adduci.New York trailed 5-4 when it loaded the bases against Joe Jimenez (4-4) on a double by Gardner and walks by Hicks and Luke Voit. Voit was ruled to have checked his swing on a 3-2, two-out pitch. Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire was ejected for arguing that Voit went around.Torres then lined an 0-1 pitch from Alex Wilson to left field for a single, and the ball ricocheted off the head of diving left fielder Mikie Mahtook, allowing two runs to score for a 6-5 Yankees lead.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gleyber Torres drove in the go-ahead run one batter after a contested check swing loaded the bases for New York in the eighth inning, and the Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers 7-5 on Friday night as they await the arrival of 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen.Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks and Miguel Andujar homered in the sixth to end Jordan Zimmermann's bid for a second career no-hitter. Zimmermann carried a 3-0 lead and a no-hitter into the inning behind a solo homer from Niko Goodrum and a two-run triple by Jim Adduci.New York trailed 5-4 when it loaded the bases against Joe Jimenez (4-4) on a double by Gardner and walks by Hicks and Luke Voit. Voit was ruled to have checked his swing on a 3-2, two-out pitch. Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire was ejected for arguing that Voit went around.Torres then lined an 0-1 pitch from Alex Wilson to left field for a single, and the ball ricocheted off the head of diving left fielder Mikie Mahtook, allowing two runs to score for a 6-5 Yankees lead.... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — Christian Yelich led Milwaukee's big comeback by hitting for the cycle, and Jesus Aguilar homered in the 10th inning, powering the Brewers to a 13-12 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday nightAguilar connected off Raisel Iglesias (2-3) for Milwaukee's fourth homer of the game, halting the Brewers' month-long slide. Milwaukee has dropped 11 of 20 and slipped into third place in the NL Central, five games behind the Cubs.Yelich became the eighth Brewers player to hit for the cycle and the first since George Kottaras on Sept. 3, 2011, at Houston. Yelich also matched the club record with six hits of the Brewers' 22 hits, including a two-run homer.Mike Moustakas' solo shot put Milwaukee ahead 11-10 in the eighth, but Joakim Soria's wild pitch allowed Billy Hamilton to score the tying run in the bottom of the inning. Jeremy Jeffress (7-1) gave up Brandon Dixon's homer in the 10th.The Brewers extended their Great American Ball Park record to 21 straight games with at... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — Christian Yelich led Milwaukee's big comeback by hitting for the cycle, and Jesus Aguilar homered in the 10th inning, powering the Brewers to a 13-12 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday nightAguilar connected off Raisel Iglesias (2-3) for Milwaukee's fourth homer of the game, halting the Brewers' month-long slide. Milwaukee has dropped 11 of 20 and slipped into third place in the NL Central, five games behind the Cubs.Yelich became the eighth Brewers player to hit for the cycle and the first since George Kottaras on Sept. 3, 2011, at Houston. Yelich also matched the club record with six hits of the Brewers' 22 hits, including a two-run homer.Mike Moustakas' solo shot put Milwaukee ahead 11-10 in the eighth, but Joakim Soria's wild pitch allowed Billy Hamilton to score the tying run in the bottom of the inning. Jeremy Jeffress (7-1) gave up Brandon Dixon's homer in the 10th.The Brewers extended their Great American Ball Park record to 21 straight games with at... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Mookie Betts homered early and had a two-run double in Boston's 11-run seventh inning as the Red Sox rallied for a 14-6 victory over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night after pitcher David Price was knocked out with a bruised left wrist.The 33-year-old lefty exited in the fourth after being struck by a line drive off the bat of Austin Dean on the final play of the previous inning.With the Red Sox trailing 5-3, Blake Swihart had a pinch-hit RBI single and Jackie Bradley Jr. tied it with a double before Betts hit his go-ahead shot into the right-center gap off Adam Conley (3-4). Brock Holt followed with a pinch-hit triple and scored on Xander Bogaerts' single.Eduardo Nunez and Ian Kinsler had RBI singles before Swihart doubled home his second run of the inning and scored on Bradley's single. By the time it was over, Boston had its biggest inning of the season.Betts and Eduardo Nunez each hit a solo homer for the Red Sox, who won for the 22nd time in their last 26 interleague... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Mookie Betts homered early and had a two-run double in Boston's 11-run seventh inning as the Red Sox rallied for a 14-6 victory over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night after pitcher David Price was knocked out with a bruised left wrist.The 33-year-old lefty exited in the fourth after being struck by a line drive off the bat of Austin Dean on the final play of the previous inning.With the Red Sox trailing 5-3, Blake Swihart had a pinch-hit RBI single and Jackie Bradley Jr. tied it with a double before Betts hit his go-ahead shot into the right-center gap off Adam Conley (3-4). Brock Holt followed with a pinch-hit triple and scored on Xander Bogaerts' single.Eduardo Nunez and Ian Kinsler had RBI singles before Swihart doubled home his second run of the inning and scored on Bradley's single. By the time it was over, Boston had its biggest inning of the season.Betts and Eduardo Nunez each hit a solo homer for the Red Sox, who won for the 22nd time in their last 26 interleague... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Kendrys Morales became the seventh player in major league history to homer in at least seven consecutive games, going deep in the third inning of the Toronto Blue Jays' 8-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.Morales hit a two-run shot off Vince Velasquez, his 21st homer of the season. He has a chance to equal the major league record of homers in eight consecutive games, shared by Ken Griffey Jr., Dale Long and Don Mattingly.Rhys Hoskins and Carlos Santana hit back-to-back home runs for Philadelphia. Maikel Franco and Wilson Ramos each had two-run shots as the Phillies avoided a three-game sweep.Ramos had four hits. He singled in the first, doubled home a run in the second, singled in the sixth and homered off Tyler Clippard in the eighth, his 15th.Velasquez (9-9) allowed two runs and three hits in five innings for the victory as Philadelphia won for the second time in eight games.Marco Estrada (7-10) allowed five runs and seven hits in two-plus innings as Toronto's... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Kendrys Morales became the seventh player in major league history to homer in at least seven consecutive games, going deep in the third inning of the Toronto Blue Jays' 8-3 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.Morales hit a two-run shot off Vince Velasquez, his 21st homer of the season. He has a chance to equal the major league record of homers in eight consecutive games, shared by Ken Griffey Jr., Dale Long and Don Mattingly.Rhys Hoskins and Carlos Santana hit back-to-back home runs for Philadelphia. Maikel Franco and Wilson Ramos each had two-run shots as the Phillies avoided a three-game sweep.Ramos had four hits. He singled in the first, doubled home a run in the second, singled in the sixth and homered off Tyler Clippard in the eighth, his 15th.Velasquez (9-9) allowed two runs and three hits in five innings for the victory as Philadelphia won for the second time in eight games.Marco Estrada (7-10) allowed five runs and seven hits in two-plus innings as Toronto's... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Trevor Cahill pitched one-hit ball for seven shutout innings and the Oakland Athletics, far behind in the AL West standings earlier this summer, tied Houston for the division lead by beating the Astros 7-1 Saturday.Khris Davis, Matt Olson, Josh Phegley and Stephen Piscotty each hit two of Oakland's team record-tying eight doubles as the A's won for the sixth time in seven games. The Athletics trailed the defending World Series champion Astros by 11 1/2 games on June 24 and were still 10 out on July 10.Houston has lost seven of eight and dropped 12 of 19 since owning a six-game lead on July 24. The next day, reigning AL MVP Jose Altuve went on the disabled list, and the star second baseman is still out.Cahill (5-2) struck out seven, walked one and retired 14 straight batters during one stretch.Tony Kemp homered in the ninth for Houston's only other hit. Dallas Keuchel (9-10) gave up five runs in 5 2/3 innings.ROCKIES 5, BRAVES 3, 10 INNINGSATLANTA (AP) — Colorado struck... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Trevor Cahill pitched one-hit ball for seven shutout innings and the Oakland Athletics, far behind in the AL West standings earlier this summer, tied Houston for the division lead by beating the Astros 7-1 Saturday.Khris Davis, Matt Olson, Josh Phegley and Stephen Piscotty each hit two of Oakland's team record-tying eight doubles as the A's won for the sixth time in seven games. The Athletics trailed the defending World Series champion Astros by 11 1/2 games on June 24 and were still 10 out on July 10.Houston has lost seven of eight and dropped 12 of 19 since owning a six-game lead on July 24. The next day, reigning AL MVP Jose Altuve went on the disabled list, and the star second baseman is still out.Cahill (5-2) struck out seven, walked one and retired 14 straight batters during one stretch.Tony Kemp homered in the ninth for Houston's only other hit. Dallas Keuchel (9-10) gave up five runs in 5 2/3 innings.ROCKIES 5, BRAVES 3, 10 INNINGSATLANTA (AP) — Colorado struck... [More]

Major League Baseball has made an effort to grow the sport among African-Americans, and there are finally some small signs of progress. Meanwhile, ballparks from coast to coast host nights celebrating the LGBT community, another example of baseball's attempts to promote diversity.Right now, all of that is being overshadowed after the discovery of some inflammatory old tweets from current players, social media posts that threaten to undermine some of the work MLB has invested in."I think the main challenge is that a lot of times good deeds are not as interesting as misdeeds," said Billy Bean, MLB's vice president for social responsibility and inclusion. "We've worked so hard to not only introduce the sport in underserved areas and grow our Play Ball initiative, our Breakthrough Series — our RBI program is in its third decade. The number of kids that we're putting uniforms on and introducing to the sport at a younger age — that definitely gets pushed to the wayside when (there is) something... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Bartolo Colon became the top-winning pitcher born in Latin America, punctuating his 246th career victory with a nifty snag as the Texas Rangers roughed up Felix Hernandez and the Seattle Mariners 11-4 on Tuesday night.The 45-year-old Colon, from the Dominican Republic, made his sixth start since earning his 245th win on June 30 that matched the mark held by Dennis Martinez from Nicaragua.Colon (6-10) gave up four runs in seven innings. The portly and popular right-hander struck out one and walked none.Adrian Beltre, Jurickson Profar and Rougned Odor homered off Hernandez (8-10), who allowed a career-high 11 runs — seven earned — in six innings.ANGELS 11, TIGERS 5ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit a three-run homer during a seven-run first inning, and the Angels celebrated Mike Trout's 27th birthday with a victory over the Tigers.Trout missed his sixth consecutive game with a sore right wrist, but his teammates maintained a celebratory mood at the Big A with... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Bartolo Colon became the top-winning pitcher born in Latin America, punctuating his 246th career victory with a nifty snag as the Texas Rangers roughed up Felix Hernandez and the Seattle Mariners 11-4 on Tuesday night.The 45-year-old Colon, from the Dominican Republic, made his sixth start since earning his 245th win on June 30 that matched the mark held by Dennis Martinez from Nicaragua.Colon (6-10) gave up four runs in seven innings. The portly and popular right-hander struck out one and walked none.Adrian Beltre, Jurickson Profar and Rougned Odor homered off Hernandez (8-10), who allowed a career-high 11 runs — seven earned — in six innings.PIRATES 10, ROCKIES 2DENVER (AP) — Jameson Taillon beat Chad Bettis in a matchup of pitchers who battled testicular cancer last year, and the Pirates hit three homers.Taillon (9-8) allowed 10 hits in his second complete game of the season. The 26-year-old right-hander struck out three and walked one, helping Pittsburgh stop... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ender Inciarte snapped a ninth-inning tie with a two-run triple, and the Atlanta Braves beat the Washington Nationals 3-1 Tuesday night to earn a doubleheader split.In the opener, Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman hit consecutive homers to spark a four-run fourth inning that carried Washington to an 8-3 victory.Seeking to blunt the momentum of the surging Nationals, Atlanta shook off a strong pitching performance by Max Scherzer before striking against the Washington bullpen in the second game.Freddie Freeman and Nick Markakis singled off Kelvin Herrera (1-2) before Inciarte hit a liner down the first-base line. That was the final pitch thrown by Herrera, who left after a visit from Washington's trainer.Jesse Biddle (3-0) pitched 1 2/3 innings and A.J. Minter got three outs for his ninth save.In the first game, Zimmerman and Trea Turner had three hits apiece and Harper added two hits and two RBIs. Jefry Rodriguez (1-1) allowed one run in five innings in his first major victory.Kolby... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman hit consecutive homers to spark a four-run fourth inning, and the surging Washington Nationals beat the Atlanta Braves 8-3 Tuesday in the opener of a split doubleheader.Rookie right-hander Jefry Rodriguez (1-1) allowed one run and three hits in five innings to earn his first major victory. He also got his first big league hit and scored a run.Washington has won nine of 12 to move four games over .500 (58-54) for the first time since June 29. The Nationals are chasing first-place Philadelphia and Atlanta in the NL East.Charlie Culberson homered for the Braves, and Nick Markakis contributed two hits and an RBI.Harper led off the fourth with his 27th home run, and Zimmerman followed a drive far over the center-field wall for a 2-1 lead. After Rodriguez doubled with two outs, Trea Turner and Juan Soto hit RBI singles.All the damage came against 20-year-old Kolby Allard (1-1), recalled from the minors to be the 26th man in the doubleheader. Starter... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Steve Pearce homered three times, the second a three-run drive in an eight-run fourth inning as the Boston Red Sox rallied from an early deficit to beat the New York Yankees 15-7 on Thursday night and take a season-high 6½-game lead in the AL East.In the opener of a four-game series that gave New York the potential to erase most of its division deficit, the Red Sox instead opened a bigger gap, taking advantage of manager Aaron Boone's decision to pull starter CC Sabathia after three innings with a 4-2 lead. Jonathan Holder (1-2) faced seven batters and did not record an out.Mookie Betts had four hits and two walks, reaching safely all six times he came to the plate. Pearce, J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler and Andrew Benintendi had three hits apiece for Boston.Didi Grigorius homered twice, Aaron Hicks hit one and Giancarlo Stanton got his 25th of the season for the Yankees, who have lost just twice in the past week but dropped two games in the division.Brian Johnson (2-3), making... [More]