A look at what's happening around the majors Sunday:SCIOSCIA'S FUTURELos Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia might address a report that he plans to step down at the end of the season. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the 59-year-old is expected to leave.The 59-year-old Scioscia has managed the Angels since 2000 and is the longest-tenured manager in the majors. The Angels are 55-57 as their series wraps up in Cleveland.GETTING HOT IN WASHINGTONNationals star Bryce Harper might be hobbled for a bit after getting hit by a curveball in the right knee Saturday night. Harper struggled initially to put weight on the leg, but eventually made his way to first base. A half-inning later, he was replaced in right field by Adam Eaton. Washington reliever Ryan Madson hit Reds star Joey Votto with a pitch later, and an infuriated Votto yelled at Madson throughout the rest of the inning. That tension might spill over when the teams conclude their four-game series.OSUNA RETURNSReliever Robert... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Sunday:GETTING HOT IN WASHINGTONNationals star Bryce Harper might be hobbled for a bit after getting hit by a curveball in the right knee Saturday night. Harper struggled initially to put weight on the leg, but eventually made his way to first base. A half-inning later, he was replaced in right field by Adam Eaton. Washington reliever Ryan Madson hit Reds star Joey Votto with a pitch later, and an infuriated Votto yelled at Madson throughout the rest of the inning. That tension might spill over when the teams conclude their four-game series.OSUNA RETURNSReliever Robert Osuna joins the Astros, ending his 75-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's domestic violence policy. The World Series champs acquired the 2017 All-Star from Toronto on July 31 for Ken Giles in a swap of closers. The 23-year-old Osuna had a 2.93 ERA in 15 games for the Blue Jays this season when he was penalized.Osuna is expected to talk to the team before the game... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:DEPLETED RIVALRYThe Yankees and Red Sox open a four-game series at Fenway Park with the two best records in the majors, but minus key players.Chris Sale, who tops the big leagues in strikeouts and leads the AL in ERA, had been scheduled to start for Boston. He went on the disabled list this week because of left shoulder inflammation, so Brian Johnson will pitch in his place. Johnson will face a lineup that's missing Aaron Judge — the New York slugger has a broken wrist after being hit by a pitch last week.The Red Sox lead the Yankees by 5 1/2 games in the AL East.HIS TURN-ERDodgers sparkplug Justin Turner could come off the disabled list for the series finale at home against Milwaukee. He's been out with a groin injury, and is batting .259 with five home runs and 20 RBIs in an injury-interrupted season.With Turner at third base, recently acquired Manny Machado would move over to shortstop and settle in with newcomer Brian Dozier at second... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Thursday:DEPLETED RIVALRYThe Yankees and Red Sox open a four-game series at Fenway Park with the two best records in the majors, but minus key players.Chris Sale, who tops the big leagues in strikeouts and leads the AL in ERA, had been scheduled to start for Boston. He went on the disabled list this week because of left shoulder inflammation, so Brian Johnson will pitch in his place. Johnson will face a lineup that's missing Aaron Judge — the New York slugger has a broken wrist after being hit by a pitch last week.The Red Sox lead the Yankees by 5 1/2 games in the AL East.HIS TURN-ERDodgers sparkplug Justin Turner could come off the disabled list for the series finale at home against Milwaukee. He's been out with a groin injury, and is batting .259 with five home runs and 20 RBIs in an injury-interrupted season.With Turner at third base, recently acquired Manny Machado would move over to shortstop and settle in with newcomer Brian Dozier at second... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:STARTING OUTBrian Dozier could make his first start for the Los Angeles Dodgers when they host Milwaukee. The power-hitting Minnesota second baseman was traded Tuesday, shortly before the deadline for making deals without waivers. The defending NL champion Dodgers have revamped their infield in the last two weeks, also getting star Manny Machado.MOVING DAYChris Archer, Jonathan Scoop and Wilson Ramos were part of the 15 trades made Tuesday as contenders prepped for the playoff race. Brandon Kintzler will celebrate his 34th birthday finishing the move from Washington to the Cubs — on his birthday last year, he was going from Minnesota to the Nationals.HURTINGAstros center fielder George Springer will see how his sore left shoulder is feeling. The World Series MVP jarred himself making a diving try, hoping to cut off a ball Tuesday night at Seattle. Houston already has star infielders Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa on the disabled list.WELCOMECole... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Newly acquired Yankees left-hander J.A. Happ was diagnosed Tuesday with hand, foot and mouth disease, the second pitcher on a New York team to be recently affected by the illness.Hand, foot and mouth disease is an infectious illness that often affects young children. Mets star Noah Syndergaard currently is on the disabled list with the disease.Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said before a 6-3 win over Baltimore that the team's doctors aren't certain how Happ caught it. The 35-year-old was traded from Toronto to the Yankees last week for infielder Brandon Drury and outfielder Billy McKinney. Happ won his New York debut on Sunday, allowing one run over six innings to beat Kansas City.Happ has had success in his career against Boston, and had been set to pitch Saturday against the AL East-leading Red Sox at Fenway Park. Cashman said Happ's case appears to be mild, and that he still might be able to make that start.Lance Lynn was acquired from Minnesota on Monday as a... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Wednesday:STARTING OUTBrian Dozier could make his first start for the Los Angeles Dodgers when they host Milwaukee. The power-hitting Minnesota second baseman was traded Tuesday, shortly before the deadline for making deals without waivers. The defending NL champion Dodgers have revamped their infield in the last two weeks, also getting star Manny Machado.MOVING DAYChris Archer, Jonathan Scoop and Wilson Ramos were part of the 15 trades made Tuesday as contenders prepped for the playoff race. Brandon Kintzler will celebrate his 34th birthday finishing the move from Washington to the Cubs — on his birthday last year, he was going from Minnesota to the Nationals.HURTINGAstros center fielder George Springer will see how his sore left shoulder is feeling. The World Series MVP jarred himself making a diving try, hoping to cut off a ball Tuesday night at Seattle. Houston already has star infielders Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa on the disabled list.WELCOMECole... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Newly acquired Yankees left-hander J.A. Happ was diagnosed Tuesday with hand, foot and mouth disease, the second pitcher on a New York team to be recently affected by the illness.Hand, foot and mouth disease is an infectious illness that often affects young children. Mets star Noah Syndergaard currently is on the disabled list with the disease.Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said the team's doctors aren't certain how Happ caught it. The 35-year-old was traded from Toronto to the Yankees last week for infielder Brandon Drury and outfielder Billy McKinney. Happ won his New York debut on Sunday, allowing one run over six innings to beat Kansas City.Happ has had success in his career against Boston, and had been set to pitch Saturday against the AL East-leading Red Sox at Fenway Park. Cashman said Happ's case appears to be mild, and that he still might be able to make that start.Lance Lynn was acquired from Minnesota on Monday as a long reliever and insurance for the rotation."That's... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on Major League Baseball trades (all times Eastern):12 a.m.The Boston Red Sox have acquired Ian Kinsler from the Los Angeles Angels to fill in for injured second baseman Dustin Pedroia.Boston is sending Triple-A pitchers Ty Buttrey and Williams Jerez to Los Angeles. The Angels are also sending cash.Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski announced the trade in the clubhouse after a 2-1, 13-inning win over Philadelphia that put Boston a season-best six games ahead of the New York Yankees in the AL East.Kinsler, 36, is batting .239 with 13 homers and 32 RBIs for the Angels this season. He is due to become a free agent at the end of the season.Pedroia and Kinsler have been connected since their college days, when Pedroia took Kinsler's starting job as shortstop at Arizona State in 2002. Kinsler transferred to Missouri the following year.Pedroia has played just three games this year after left knee surgery in the offseason. Dombrowski says it's likely... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on Major League Baseball trades (all times Eastern):11:10 p.m.The Atlanta Braves have acquired outfielder Adam Duvall from the Cincinnati Reds.The Braves sent right-handers Lucas Sims and Matt Wisler and outfielder Preston Tucker to Cincinnati. All three spent time in Atlanta this season but were with Triple-A Gwinnett at the time of the trade.The 29-year-old Duvall has hit 15 home runs with 61 RBIs but is hitting only .205 this season.Duvall hit 64 homers over the previous two seasons, including 31 in 2017. He was an NL All-Star in 2016.Duvall was also a finalist for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award in each of the last two seasons.___8 p.m.The Minnesota Twins have traded right-hander Lance Lynn to the New York Yankees for first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Rijo.Minnesota will send $2 million to the Yankees as part of Monday's deal to cover half of the $4 million remaining in Lynn's $12 million salary.The 31-year-old Lynn... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Twins have accelerated the dismantling of one of this season's most disappointing teams, entering the final hours before Major League Baseball's non-waiver trade deadline.The Twins traded relief pitcher Zach Duke to the Seattle Mariners and starting pitcher Lance Lynn to the New York Yankees on Monday before their game against Cleveland, three days after dealing popular infielder Eduardo Escobar to Arizona and relief pitcher Ryan Pressly to Houston.Though the Twins entered the night nine games behind the Indians in the AL Central, the players were dealt another discouraging hand by a front office that has shifted focus to 2019 and beyond. In the clubhouse, competitiveness and pride are often stronger than whatever the reality of the standings."You set out to accomplish something in spring training and you're not going to be able to do that with them, and I think that hurts the most," said second baseman Brian Dozier, whose own status remained tenuous with... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Reshaping their pitching staff for the stretch run, the Yankees acquired right-hander Lance Lynn from Minnesota on Monday while dealing Adam Warren to Seattle.Ahead of Tuesday's deadline for trades without waivers, the Yankees sent first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Rijo to the Twins for Lynn. Minnesota will give $2 million to the Yankees to cover half of the $4 million remaining in Lynn's $12 million salary.Already, Lynn was looking forward to returning to Fenway Park, where he got a no-decision Friday in his second career appearance at Boston."I've never been to Fenway as Yankee. I think they dislike you even more, so that should be exciting," he said. "I'm guessing they say a little bit nastier things to Yankees players than they do anybody else."Lynn becomes the long reliever in place of Warren, who was dealt to the Mariners for $1.25 million in international signing bonus pool allotment. He joins Luis Cessa as insurance for... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Reshaping their pitching staff for the stretch run, the Yankees acquired right-hander Lance Lynn from Minnesota on Monday while dealing Adam Warren to Seattle.Ahead of Tuesday's deadline for trades without waivers, the Yankees sent first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Rijo to the Twins for Lynn. Minnesota will give $2 million to the Yankees to cover half of the $4 million remaining in Lynn's $12 million salary.Already, Lynn was looking forward to returning to Fenway Park, where he got a no-decision Friday in his second career appearance at Boston."I've never been to Fenway as Yankee. I think they dislike you even more, so that should be exciting," he said. "I'm guessing they say a little bit nastier things to Yankees players than they do anybody else."Lynn becomes the long reliever in place of Warren, who was dealt to the Mariners for $1.25 million in international signing bonus pool allotment. He joins Luis Cessa as insurance for... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on Major League Baseball trades (all times Eastern):8 p.m.The Minnesota Twins have traded right-hander Lance Lynn to the New York Yankees for first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Rijo.Minnesota will send $2 million to the Yankees as part of Monday's deal to cover half of the $4 million remaining in Lynn's $12 million salary.The 31-year-old Lynn was 7-8 with a 5.10 ERA in 20 starts for the Twins, walking 62 and striking out 100 in 102 1/3 innings. He is likely to become a long reliever with the Yankees to replace Adam Warren, who was traded to Seattle on Monday.Austin, 26, made his major league debut against Tampa Bay in August 2016, combining with Aaron Judge to become the first teammates to homer in their first major league at-bats in the same game.But Austin never became a regular with the Yankees.___7:20 p.m.The Yankees have traded right-hander Adam Warren to the Seattle Mariners for $1.25 million in international signing... [More]

There are 11 teams within six games of a playoff spot in the National League, which could make for a thrilling last two months of the regular season.It also means some front offices are facing tough decisions as the non-waiver trade deadline looms.It's easy to deal away your top players when you're 20 games behind, but if the postseason is still a possibility, the decision to buy or sell becomes trickier. The Washington Nationals, for example, are six games back in their division and trail the second wild card by the same margin — but there are enough legitimate stars on that roster that a medium-sized deficit is certainly surmountable with this much time to go.Fangraphs.com gives the Nats a 42.5 percent chance to make the postseason, while fivethirtyeight.com (20 percent) and baseballprospectus.com (22 percent as of Sunday morning) are more pessimistic. Whichever website you believe, it would be unusual for a team in Washington's position to become a seller at the deadline. That tends... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — J.D. Martinez hit his major league-leading 32nd homer, Mookie Betts had two RBI doubles and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 10-4 on Saturday night for their 17th win in 21 games.Betts raised his MLB-leading average to .346 and Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a two-run triple for the Red Sox. They have a 5 1/2-game lead over the New York Yankees atop the AL East and own the majors' best record at 73-33.Logan Morrison hit a solo homer for the Twins, a night after they appeared to throw in the towel a bit in pursuit of a playoff spot following a pair of trades that sent away infielder Eduardo Escobar and reliever Ryan Pressly.Boston starter Rick Porcello (13-4) labored through 5 2/3 innings on a steamy night, giving up four runs on five hits, striking out five and walking one. Jake Odorizzi (4-7) gave up five runs on nine hits in five innings.Trailing 4-1, Boston scored three times in the fourth and moved ahead on Martinez's shot that left Fenway Park over the Green Monster... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — J.D. Martinez hit his major league-leading 32nd homer, Mookie Betts had two RBI doubles and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 10-4 on Saturday night for their 17th win in 21 games.Betts raised his MLB-leading average to .346 and Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a two-run triple for the Red Sox. They have a 5 1/2-game lead over the New York Yankees atop the AL East and own the majors' best record at 73-33.Logan Morrison hit a solo homer for the Twins, a night after they appeared to throw in the towel a bit in pursuit of a playoff spot following a pair of trades that sent away infielder Eduardo Escobar and reliever Ryan Pressly.Boston starter Rick Porcello (13-4) labored through 5 2/3 innings on a steamy night, giving up four runs on five hits, striking out five and walking one. Jake Odorizzi (4-7) gave up five runs on nine hits in five innings.Trailing 4-1, Boston scored three times in the fourth and moved ahead on Martinez's shot that left Fenway Park over the Green Monster... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — J.D. Martinez hit his major league-leading 32nd homer, Mookie Betts had two RBI doubles and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 10-4 on Saturday night for their 17th win in 21 games.Betts raised his MLB-leading average to .346 and Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a two-run triple for the Red Sox. They have a 5 1/2-game lead over the New York Yankees atop the AL East and own the majors' best record at 73-33.Logan Morrison hit a solo homer for the Twins, a night after they appeared to throw in the towel a bit in pursuit of a playoff spot following a pair of trades that sent away infielder Eduardo Escobar and reliever Ryan Pressly.Boston starter Rick Porcello (13-4) labored through 5 2/3 innings on a steamy night, giving up four runs on five hits, striking out five and walking one. Jake Odorizzi (4-7) gave up five runs on nine hits in five innings.Trailing 4-1, Boston scored three times in the fourth and moved ahead on Martinez's shot that left Fenway Park over the Green Monster... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — All-Star ace Luis Severino got hit hard in another shaky start and the Kansas City Royals, hours after trading cornerstone Mike Moustakas, beat the New York Yankees 10-5 on Saturday in the opener a day-night doubleheader.Trying for his major league-leading 15th win, Severino instead was pulled after Lucas Duda's two-run homer made it 6-0 in the fifth inning. Rosell Hererra hit an early two-run double, and Salvador Perez had a two-run single that set up Duda.Severino (14-4) allowed eight hits, walked one and struck out five in his shortest start of the year.The Royals extended a string of rough outings for the 24-year old anchor of the Yankees rotation. Severino has given up 19 earned runs in 19 1/3 innings over his last four starts.The Yankees lost in their first game since slugger Aaron Judge sustained a fractured right wrist when he was hit by a pitch from Kansas City's Jakob Junis on Thursday.Rookie Brad Keller (4-4) went 5 2/3 innings for the win one day after his 23rd... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — All-Star ace Luis Severino got hit hard in another shaky start and the Kansas City Royals, hours after trading cornerstone Mike Moustakas, beat the New York Yankees 10-5 on Saturday in the opener a day-night doubleheader.Trying for his major league-leading 15th win, Severino instead was pulled after Lucas Duda's two-run homer made it 6-0 in the fifth inning. Rosell Hererra hit an early two-run double, and Salvador Perez had a two-run single that set up Duda.Severino (14-4) allowed eight hits, walked one and struck out five in his shortest start of the year.The Royals extended a string of rough outings for the 24-year old anchor of the Yankees rotation. Severino has given up 19 earned runs in 19 1/3 innings over his last four starts.The Yankees lost in their first game since slugger Aaron Judge sustained a fractured right wrist when he was hit by a pitch from Kansas City's Jakob Junis on Thursday.Rookie Brad Keller (4-4) went 5 2/3 innings for the win one day after his 23rd... [More]