BOSTON (AP) — Carlos Correa hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly in the eighth inning and the Houston Astros won their sixth straight game, beating the Boston Red Sox 6-3 on Friday night in a matchup of AL division leaders.The Red Sox, with the best record in the majors, had won three in row.Boston starter David Price had allowed just one hit and retired 14 in a row when he went into the seventh with a 2-0 lead. He left after Alex Bregman's double and a walk and, after Ryan Brasier took over, the Astros scored three times. J.D. Martinez tied it with a single for his second RBI of the game.Houston scored three times in the eighth. Correa put the AL Central leaders ahead, a wild pitch by Joe Kelly (4-2) scored another run and Tyler White added an RBI single.Ryan Pressly (2-1) got two outs and Roberto Osuna posted his 14th save.Xander Bogaerts hit his 20th home run for Boston.ANGELS 5, WHITE SOX 2CHICAGO (AP) — Two-way star Shohei Ohtani homered for the third straight game after learning he will... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Francisco Lindor had two solo homers and four RBIs, rookie Shane Bieber pitched into the seventh inning to remain unbeaten in nine road starts and the Cleveland Indians beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-4 on Thursday night for their third straight win.Cleveland trimmed its magic number to seven for clinching a third consecutive AL Central championship.Lindor connected on Sam Gaviglio's third pitch for his 10th career leadoff homer and seventh this season. He went deep to right off Gaviglio again in the third for his eighth career multihomer game. Lindor has 33 home runs, matching his total from last year. He added a two-run single in the fifth and singled again in the ninth.Toronto's Rowdy Tellez doubled in the second and fourth after getting a pinch-hit double in his debut Wednesday, making him the first player in major league history with extra-base hits in each of his first three plate appearances.Jason Kipnis hit a three-run homer off Blue Jays reliever Mark Leiter Jr. in... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Francisco Lindor had two solo homers and four RBIs, rookie Shane Bieber pitched into the seventh inning to remain unbeaten in nine road starts and the Cleveland Indians beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-4 on Thursday night for their third straight win.Cleveland trimmed its magic number to seven for clinching a third consecutive AL Central championship.Lindor connected on Sam Gaviglio's third pitch for his 10th career leadoff homer and seventh this season. He went deep to right off Gaviglio again in the third for his eighth career multihomer game. Lindor has 33 home runs, matching his total from last year. He added a two-run single in the fifth and singled again in the ninth.Toronto's Rowdy Tellez doubled in the second and fourth after getting a pinch-hit double in his debut Wednesday, making him the first player in major league history with extra-base hits in each of his first three plate appearances.Jason Kipnis hit a three-run homer off Blue Jays reliever Mark Leiter Jr. in... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Francisco Lindor had two solo homers and four RBIs, rookie Shane Bieber pitched into the seventh inning to remain unbeaten in nine road starts and the Cleveland Indians beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-4 on Thursday night for their third straight win.Cleveland trimmed its magic number to seven for clinching a third consecutive AL Central championship.Lindor connected on Sam Gaviglio's third pitch for his 10th career leadoff homer and seventh this season. He went deep to right off Gaviglio again in the third for his eighth career multihomer game. Lindor has 33 home runs, matching his total from last year. He added a two-run single in the fifth and singled again in the ninth.Toronto's Rowdy Tellez doubled in the second and fourth after getting a pinch-hit double in his debut Wednesday, making him the first player in major league history with extra-base hits in each of his first three plate appearances.Jason Kipnis hit a three-run homer off Blue Jays reliever Mark Leiter Jr. in... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Andrew Miller's start-and-stop season has been disrupted again.The Cleveland Indians placed the invaluable reliever on the 10-day disabled list with shoulder soreness, an injury the AL Central leaders hope gets better in time for the postseason.Manager Terry Francona said Miller complained about his shoulder Tuesday and, after consulting with the team's medical staff, received a cortisone injection."It was the right thing to do for him," Francona said. "We've talked about it before, even when it's maybe not convenient you need to do the right thing. Andrew is going to pitch for a long time and he's carried such a big load for us that we need to look out for him a little bit, too."Francona said Miller be completely shut down while the shot takes affect and there's no timetable on when the 32-year-old will pitch again."We're just going to go off of Andrew," Francona said Wednesday before the Indians hosted the Minnesota Twins. "We're going to do what's right by him. We'll... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Indians have placed valuable reliever Andrew Miller on the disabled list with a left shoulder impingement.This is the former All-Star's third trip to the DL this season. He was previously sidelined with a hamstring issue and inflammation in his right knee.The AL Central-leading Indians described Miller's issue as an "external impingement" in his shoulder. Miller is 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA in just 27 games this season.One of baseball's best relievers when healthy, Miller has made 10 appearances since coming off the disabled list on Aug. 3.The Indians are hoping they can count on using Miller in the postseason. They rode him hard in the 2016 playoffs when he helped get them to the World Series.In case Miller isn't available, the Indians acquired closer Brad Hand and right-hander Adam Cimber before the trade deadline.Tyler Olson was recalled from Triple-A Columbus.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — Lance Lynn pitched two-hit ball into the eighth inning in his first start with New York, and the Yankees rebounded from their tough weekend in Boston by beating the Chicago White Sox 7-0 on Monday night.Lynn provided a big boost for New York after it dropped a season-high five straight games, including a four-game sweep by the major league-leading Red Sox. The series concluded with Aroldis Chapman blowing a save opportunity in a 10-inning loss at Fenway Park late Sunday night.Enter Lynn (8-8), who was acquired in a trade with Minnesota on July 30 and tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief in his Yankees debut Wednesday. The veteran right-hander, who replaced Sonny Gray in New York's rotation, retired 19 in a row before Nicky Delmonico led off the eighth with a single to right.After Tim Anderson flied out, A.J. Cole finished the three-hitter for the AL wild-card leaders.Dylan Covey (4-8) was charged with four runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander dropped... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Lance Lynn pitched two-hit ball into the eighth inning in his first start with New York, and the Yankees rebounded from their tough weekend in Boston by beating the Chicago White Sox 7-0 on Monday night.Lynn provided a big boost for New York after it dropped a season-high five straight games, including a four-game sweep by the major league-leading Red Sox. The series concluded with Aroldis Chapman blowing a save opportunity in a 10-inning loss at Fenway Park late Sunday night.Enter Lynn (8-8), who was acquired in a trade with Minnesota on July 30 and tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief in his Yankees debut Wednesday. The veteran right-hander, who replaced Sonny Gray in New York's rotation, retired 19 in a row before Nicky Delmonico led off the eighth with a single to right.After Tim Anderson flied out, A.J. Cole finished the three-hitter for the AL wild-card leaders.Dylan Covey (4-8) was charged with four runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander dropped... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Lance Lynn pitched two-hit ball into the eighth inning in his first start with New York, and the Yankees rebounded from their tough weekend in Boston by beating the Chicago White Sox 7-0 on Monday night.Lynn provided a big boost for New York after it dropped a season-high five straight games, including a four-game sweep by the major league-leading Red Sox. The series concluded with Aroldis Chapman blowing a save opportunity in a 10-inning loss at Fenway Park late Sunday night.Enter Lynn (8-8), who was acquired in a trade with Minnesota on July 30 and tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief in his Yankees debut Wednesday. The veteran right-hander, who replaced Sonny Gray in New York's rotation, retired 19 in a row before Nicky Delmonico led off the eighth with a single to right.After Tim Anderson flied out, A.J. Cole finished the three-hitter for the AL wild-card leaders.Dylan Covey (4-8) was charged with four runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander dropped... [More]

Now that the dust has settled after the trade deadline, here's some quick trivia:Which team does Zach Duke pitch for?How about Darren O'Day? Or Seunghwan Oh?It seemed like every contender wanted to add another arm or two in the bullpen, making the hours and days leading up to last week's non-waiver trade deadline feel like a giant game of musical chairs for relievers. The importance of relief pitching in the postseason has been obvious for a while now. Last year, the Yankees got just one out from their starting pitcher in the American League wild-card game against Minnesota, but four relievers went the rest of the way, and New York was able to advance.With so many off days built into the schedule in the playoffs, teams can push their top relievers more. Here are a few bullpens to watch down the stretch.(But first, the trivia answers: Duke was traded to Seattle, O'Day was dealt to Atlanta, and Oh is with Colorado now.)Chicago Cubs: If you made a list of the absolute top relievers in baseball,... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Andrew Miller has watched every game for two months. He's now ready to help the Cleveland Indians accomplish something special.Miller was activated Friday after being out because of inflammation in his right knee. The left-hander, who was on the 60-day disabled list, has been sidelined since May 26. Miller also missed time earlier in the season with a strained left hamstring.The Indians hold a comfortable lead in the AL Central, but the team has much bigger plans than reaching the postseason and needs Miller to be a dominant force again to get there."Ideally, we have a lot more business to take care of," he said before Friday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. "You want to be sharp at the end of the year because this team has very high aspirations, and the goal is to win more than just the division in the regular season."Miller, a key part of Cleveland's bullpen since being acquired in 2016, is 1-3 with one save and a 4.40 ERA in 14 appearances. He pitched 10 scoreless... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Andrew Miller has watched every game for two months. He's now ready to help the Cleveland Indians accomplish something special.Miller was activated Friday after being out because of inflammation in his right knee. The left-hander, who was on the 60-day disabled list, has been sidelined since May 26. Miller also missed time earlier in the season with a strained left hamstring.The Indians hold a comfortable lead in the AL Central, but the team has much bigger plans than reaching the postseason and needs Miller to be a dominant force again to get there."Ideally, we have a lot more business to take care of," he said before Friday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. "You want to be sharp at the end of the year because this team has very high aspirations, and the goal is to win more than just the division in the regular season."Miller, a key part of Cleveland's bullpen since being acquired in 2016, is 1-3 with one save and a 4.40 ERA in 14 appearances. He pitched 10 scoreless... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Nothing splashy, just sensible.The Cleveland Indians stabilized their shaky outfield without making a blockbuster trade.Riddled by injuries to outfielders all season, Cleveland acquired center fielder Leonys Martin from the Detroit Tigers before Tuesday's deadline for 21-year-old infield prospect Willi Castro.The AL Central-leading Indians also received right-hander Kyle Dowdy.Although they had been linked to talks involving more high-profile outfielders like superstar Bryce Harper, Adam Jones and others, the Indians opted to make a deal that wouldn't be too damaging to their future. Manager Terry Francona had high praise for his front office."They did a really good job. It's not easy," Francona said. "We have some parameters which we know are in place. We're not going to be the Dodgers or the Red Sox. But we don't want that to get in the way of us winning, and I think they've done an unbelievable job of making us better."The 30-year-old Martin is a steady hitter and strong... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Nothing splashy, just sensible.The Cleveland Indians stabilized their shaky outfield without making a blockbuster trade.Riddled by injuries to outfielders all season, Cleveland acquired center fielder Leonys Martin from the Detroit Tigers before Tuesday's deadline for 21-year-old infield prospect Willi Castro.The AL Central-leading Indians also will receive right-hander Kyle Dowdy.Although they had been linked to talks involving more high-profile outfielders like superstar Bryce Harper, Adam Jones and others, the Indians opted to make a deal that wouldn't be too damaging to their future.The 30-year-old Martin is a steady hitter and strong fielder who will take away runs for Cleveland's pitching staff. He leads the league with nine assists.He also gives manager Terry Francona another option in center field with Bradley Zimmer done for the season following shoulder surgery and Tyler Naquin on the disabled list with a hip injury."It's been a position that's been a little bit... [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]

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]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — All-Star closer Brad Hand kept hearing his name in trade talk last year, when the lefty ended up staying with the San Diego Padres and got a new contract during the offseason.This time, Hand has switched teams and could have a bit of a different role than the one he had in the National League."Going into this year, I didn't really think it was going to happen after last year," Hand said Friday in the Cleveland Indians' clubhouse. "So I was obviously a little bit surprised. But my name was out there and talked about. ... (The Padres) got a deal worth taking."Hand and rookie right-handed sidearmer Adam Cimber joined the AL Central-leading Indians in time for the first game after the All-Star break, and both pitched Friday night against the Texas Rangers. Cleveland traded switch-hitting catching prospect Francisco Mejia to the Padres on Thursday to get the two relievers.Joey Gallo hit his 23rd homer, a towering, two-run drive to right-center in the seventh that got... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — All-Star closer Brad Hand kept hearing his name discussed among potential trades last year, when the lefty ended up staying with the San Diego Padres and got a new contract during the offseason.This time, Hand has switched teams and could have a bit of a different role than what he had in the National League."Going into this year, I didn't really think it was going to happen after last year," Hand said Friday in the Cleveland Indians' clubhouse. "So I was obviously a little bit surprised. But my name was out there and talked about. ... (The Padres) got a deal worth taking."Hand and rookie right-handed sidearmer Adam Cimber joined the AL Central-leading Indians in time for the first game after the All-Star break, Friday night against the Texas Rangers. Cleveland traded switch-hitting catching prospect Francisco Mejia to the Padres on Thursday to get the two relievers.Cleveland manager Terry Francona said he spoke to both pitchers, and told them: "They won't feel new... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:HADER RETURNSMilwaukee reliever Josh Hader rejoins the team, three days after years-old racist and homophobic tweets of his resurfaced during the All-Star Game. The Brewers open the second half at Miller Park against the Dodgers.The 24-year-old Hader has apologized for the tweets, saying they did not reflect his values or the person he is now. The commissioner's office will require Hader to participate in diversity and inclusion initiatives and sensitivity training.Hader spoke with Brewers teammate Lorenzo Cain after the All-Star Game in Washington. Cain, who is African-American, said he expects the club to accept Hader's present-day statements and move on.MACHADO DEBUTManny Machado plays his first game for the Dodgers, filling a big gap at shortstop when the NL West leaders visit Milwaukee. Los Angeles traded five minor leaguers to Baltimore during the break for the four-time All-Star. The 26-year-old Machado was hitting .315 with 24 homers... [More]