NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez delivered the first pinch-hit, extra-innings grand slam in Yankees history, Deivi García made a strong impression in his big league debut and New York beat the crosstown Mets 5-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep Sunday night.The Yankees stormed back in the opener, erasing a five-run lead with two outs in the seventh to win 8-7 in eight innings. Aaron Hicks lined a tying, two-run homer in the seventh, and Gio Urshela hit a game-ending single off Edwin Diaz an inning later.The Yankees won the final three games of this five-game Subway Series, snapping a seven-game skid that was their longest since 2017. Sánchez blasted a 2-2 fastball from Drew Smith (0-1) into the left field bleachers for a 5-1 lead. It was the slumping catcher’s first career pinch-hit homer and second career grand slam.García took a shutout into the sixth until allowing Dominic Smith’s tying single. Smith’s hit came after Jeff McNeill reached on an error by first baseman Luke Voit, who had the... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gary Sánchez delivered the first pinch-hit, extra-innings grand slam in Yankees history, Deivi García made a strong impression in his big league debut and New York beat the crosstown Mets 5-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep Sunday night.The Yankees stormed back in the opener, erasing a five-run lead with two outs in the seventh to win 8-7 in eight innings. Aaron Hicks lined a tying, two-run homer in the seventh, and Gio Urshela hit a game-ending single off Edwin Diaz an inning later.The Yankees won the final three games of this five-game Subway Series, snapping a seven-game skid that was their longest since 2017. Sánchez blasted a 2-2 fastball from Drew Smith (0-1) into the left field bleachers for a 5-1 lead. It was the slumping catcher’s first career pinch-hit homer and second career grand slam.García took a shutout into the sixth until allowing Dominic Smith’s tying single. Smith’s hit came after Jeff McNeill reached on an error by first baseman Luke Voit, who had the... [More]

Yankees first. DJ LeMahieu singles to shallow right field. Aaron Judge reaches on a fielder's choice to shortstop. DJ LeMahieu to second. Fielding error by Jean Segura. Aaron Hicks walks. Aaron Judge to second. DJ LeMahieu to third. Gleyber Torres grounds out to shortstop. Aaron Hicks out at second. Aaron Judge to third. DJ LeMahieu scores. Mike Ford pops out to shallow left field to Phil Gosselin.1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 left on. Yankees 1, Phillies 0.Yankees second. Miguel Andujar strikes out swinging. Mike Tauchman flies out to center field to Roman Quinn. Kyle Higashioka singles to center field. Brett Gardner homers to right field. Kyle Higashioka scores. DJ LeMahieu singles to shortstop. Aaron Judge reaches on a fielder's choice to shortstop. DJ LeMahieu out at second.2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Yankees 3, Phillies 0.Phillies third. Andrew McCutchen walks. Rhys Hoskins flies out to left field to Brett Gardner. Bryce Harper homers to center field. Andrew McCutchen scores. J.T.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — This was not what Gerrit Cole had in mind for his debut in pinstripes, and yet it was.Cole extended his regular-season streak of victories to 19, leading New York over the Philadelphia Phillies 6-3 on Monday night for the Yankees' seventh win in a row.With the Yankee Stadium seats empty due to the novel coronavirus, wife Amy watched from home as Cole pitched his home debut for New York.“Mom and dad had a few of neighbors over in California," Cole said. "They sent us some pictures as they were watching the game. My folks, they’re a little bummed that they couldn’t be here, to be honest.”New York improved to 8-1 for the third time after 1988 and 2003 — but it's the equivalent of 22-3 over a 162-game season. The streak of the major league-best Yankees is tantamount to a 19-game spurt.“Even though it is a shorter season, it’s a long ways to go, right” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "We need to keep grinding now."Cole (3-0) allowed one run and five hits in six innings, struck... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — This was not what Gerrit Cole had in mind for his debut in pinstripes, and yet it was.Cole extended his regular-season streak of victories to 19, leading New York over the Philadelphia Phillies 6-3 on Monday night for the Yankees' seventh win in a row.With the Yankee Stadium seats empty due to the novel coronavirus, wife Amy watched from home as Cole pitched his home debut for New York.“Mom and dad had a few of neighbors over in California," Cole said. "They sent us some pictures as they were watching the game. My folks, they’re a little bummed that they couldn’t be here, to be honest.”New York improved to 8-1 for the third time after 1988 and 2003 — but it's the equivalent of 22-3 over a 162-game season. The streak of the major league-best Yankees is tantamount to a 19-game spurt.“Even though it is a shorter season, it’s a long ways to go, right” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "We need to keep grinding now."Cole (3-0) allowed six hits, struck out four and walked one... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — This was not what Gerrit Cole had in mind for his debut in pinstripes, and yet it was.Cole won his home debut for the New York Yankees, extending his regular-season streak of victories to 19 with a 6-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night.New York improved to 8-1 for the third time after 1988 and 2003. The major league-best Yankees have won seven straight — the equivalent of a 19-game spurt over a 162-game season.Cole (3-0) allowed six hits, struck out four and walked one on 91 pitches, leaving after a 1-hour, 7-minute rain delay ahead of the seventh. His grunts could be heard in empty Yankee Stadium as easily as Rafael Nadal’s at a grand slam final.A month shy of his 30th birthday, the right-hander reached 99.3 mph, but he did not have his best arsenal. Cole threw 46 fastballs, 24 sliders, 18 knuckle-curves and three changeups.Signed to a $324 million, nine-year contract, Cole grew up a Yankees fan, and at his signing news conference in December brought... [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) — Yankees pitcher Luis Cessa threw a 31-pitch bullpen on Monday as he returned from a layoff caused by a positive test for the coronavirus.The 28-year-old right-hander is not sure how he became infected. He had been in Arizona, where he lives with his girlfriend, and they both tested positive before he was scheduled to travel to New York for the resumption of training.Cessa said he felt sinus problems but no fever during his bout with COVID-19.“I wouldn't say opening day is realistic,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.While waiting to recover, Cessa worked out with equipment in his garage and bought a net and took it to a park to throw.“I just tried to stay in shape,” he said.LEMAHIEU WATCHSecond baseman DJ LeMahieu, the other Yankees player sidelined by a positive test for the virus, played his second straight exhibition. He went 0 for 3 against Philadelphia with a warning-track flyout to right field and got grazed on the thigh by a pitch from Vince Velasquez. LeMahieu played... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees pitcher Luis Cessa threw a 31-pitch bullpen on Monday as he returned from a layoff caused by a positive test for the coronavirus.The 28-year-old right-hander is not sure how he became infected. He had been in Arizona, where he lives with his girlfriend, and he and his girlfriend both tested positive before he was scheduled to travel to New York for the resumption of training.Cessa said he felt sinus problems but no fever during his bout with COVID-19.While waiting to recover, he worked out with equipment in his garage and bought a net and took it to a park to play catch.“I just tried to stay in shape,” he said.Second baseman DJ LeMahieu, the other Yankees player sidelined by a positive test for the virus, rejoined the Yankees and made his exhibition return on Sunday. After going 0 for 2 and playing three innings in the field against the New York Mets, he was back at second base against Philadelphia on Monday and was grazed on the left thigh leading off the first... [More]

A seventh-inning stretch without fans at Yankee Stadium was far from the oddest happening on the second day of summer exhibitions in the majors.The first inning ended at Dodger Stadium without Los Angeles making a single out Sunday night, a game went to the 10th inning in Philadelphia even with the Orioles leading the Phillies 4-1, and the Yankees hit in the bottom of the ninth with a 6-0 lead over the Mets.It’s not quite baseball like you’re used to seeing. Then again, we'd never seen baseball amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The most peculiar situation occurred during the first exhibition between Arizona and the Dodgers, with the game having an intrasquad feel.Diamondbacks starter Taylor Widener got off to rough opening when he walked the first two batters and then gave up a single to Justin Turner that loaded the bases. Cody Bellinger followed with a grand slam to make it 4-0. Corey Seager then walked and was heading to first base when he learned the inning was over. Widener had thrown 25... [More]

A seventh-inning stretch without fans at Yankee Stadium was far from the oddest happening on the second day of summer exhibitions in the majors.The first inning ended at Dodger Stadium without Los Angeles making a single out Sunday night, a game went to the 10th inning in Philadelphia even with the Orioles leading the Phillies 4-1, and the Yankees hit in the bottom of the ninth with a 6-0 lead over the Mets.It’s not quite baseball like you’re used to seeing. Then again, we'd never seen baseball amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The most peculiar situation occurred during the first exhibition between Arizona and the Dodgers, with the game having an intrasquad feel.Diamondbacks starter Taylor Widener got off to rough opening when he walked the first two batters and then gave up a single to Justin Turner that loaded the bases. Cody Bellinger followed with a grand slam to make it 4-0. Corey Seager then walked and was heading to first base when he learned the inning was over. Widener had thrown 25... [More]

A seventh-inning stretch without fans at Yankee Stadium was far from the oddest happening on the second day of summer exhibitions in the majors.The first inning ended at Dodger Stadium without Los Angeles making a single out Sunday night, a game went to the 10th inning in Philadelphia even with the Orioles leading the Phillies 4-1, and the Yankees hit in the bottom of the ninth with a 6-0 lead over the Mets.It’s not quite baseball like you’re used to seeing. Then again, we'd never seen baseball amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The most peculiar situation occurred during the first exhibition between Arizona and the Dodgers, with the game having an intrasquad feel.Diamondbacks starter Taylor Widener got off to rough opening when he walked the first two batters and then gave up a single to Justin Turner that loaded the bases. Cody Bellinger followed with a grand slam to make it 4-0. Corey Seager then walked and was heading to first base when he learned the inning was over. Widener had thrown 25... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu isn't sure if he'll be ready for Thursday’s season opener after missing much of preseason camp because of a positive coronavirus test, while third baseman Gio Urshela appeared to be OK after he was hurt during warmups before an exhibition game Saturday.LeMahieu finally reported to camp this week after testing positive at his home in Michigan last month. The three-time All-Star said it was “shocking” to get the result because he had no symptoms. The 32-year-old took the test because he wanted to be sure he didn’t have COVID-19 before visiting his father. “It’s definitely a scary thing,” LeMahieu said in his first public remarks since reporting to New York this week.Urshela, a breakout performer last year, was attended to by trainer Steve Donahue after he appeared to get hurt fielding groundballs at Citi Field before an exhibition against the Mets. The 28-year-old laid on the ground for a few minutes, was helped to his feet and walked off... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu isn't sure if he'll be ready for Thursday’s season opener after missing much of preseason camp because of a positive coronavirus test, and third baseman Gio Urshela's status is unclear after he was hurt during warmups before an exhibition game Saturday.LeMahieu finally reported to camp this week after testing positive at his home in Michigan last month. The three-time All-Star said it was “shocking” to get the result because he had no symptoms. The 32-year-old took the test because he wanted to be sure he didn’t have COVID-19 before visiting his father. “It’s definitely a scary thing,” LeMahieu said in his first public remarks since reporting to New York this week.Urshela, a breakout performer last year, was attended to by trainer Steve Donahue after he appeared to get hurt fielding groundballs at Citi Field before an exhibition against the Mets. Urshela laid on the ground for a few minutes, was helped to his feet and walked off the field... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu isn't sure if he'll be ready for Thursday’s season opener after missing much of preseason camp because of a positive coronavirus test.LeMahieu finally reported to camp this week after testing positive at his home in Michigan last month. The three-time All-Star said it was “shocking” to get the result because he had no symptoms. The 32-year-old took the test because he wanted to be sure he didn’t have COVID-19 before visiting his father. “It’s definitely a scary thing,” LeMahieu said in his first public remarks since reporting to New York this week.LeMahieu, a three-time Gold Glove winner, participated in his first practice Friday and isn’t sure if he can get up to speed by Thursday, when New York plays in Washington against the World Series champion Nationals.“I don’t know if it’s realistic or not,” he said. “I think it’s going to be up to the trainer and (manager Aaron Boone). But I think it’ll be pretty close. If not opening day, it’ll... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Second baseman DJ LeMahieu returned to the field for the New York Yankees on Friday after missing nearly two weeks with COVID-19.LeMahieu took grounders at second base and was to hit indoors but was not scheduled for the Yankees' intrasquad game. Manager Aaron Boone announced on July 4 that LeMahieu and right-hander Luis Cessa tested positive for the coronavirus before traveling to New York and said they were self-isolating at home.Boone wasn't sure whether LeMahieu would be ready for Thursday night’s opener at Washington.“I don’t want to commit one way or the other,” Boone said. “That would be a pretty quick turnaround, obviously.”LeMahieu signed with the Yankees before the 2019 season and hit .327. He set career highs with 26 homers and 102 RBIs while splitting time among first, second and third. He turned 32 on Monday.“I don’t worry so much about DJ finding his timing,” Boone said. “I’m sure he’ll want to gather as many live at-bats as he can, obviously, but I’m pretty... [More]