CHICAGO (AP) — Work crews have begun extending the protective netting to the foul poles at Guaranteed Rate Field, a step the Chicago White Sox are taking following a couple of high-profile injuries this season.The White Sox say the majority of the work should be completed Wednesday and the netting will be in place when the team returns home July 22 to host the Miami Marlins.The White Sox are the first major league team to take the step after a liner by Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. struck a 4-year-old girl in Houston in May. A woman was hit by a foul ball off the bat of White Sox slugger Eloy Jiménez in Chicago on June 10.Commissioner Rob Manfred has said extending protective netting down foul lines is a ballpark-to-ballpark decision because of differing configurations. Major League Baseball mandated ahead of the 2018 season that netting extend to the far end of each dugout.The Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals are among the other teams that have announced they'll extend netting.

CHICAGO (AP) — Work crews have begun extending the protective netting to the foul poles at Guaranteed Rate Field, a step the Chicago White Sox are taking following a couple of high-profile injuries this season.The White Sox say the majority of the work should be completed Wednesday and the netting will be in place when the team returns home July 22 to host the Miami Marlins.The White Sox became the first major league team to take the step after a liner by Cubs outfielder Albert Almora Jr. struck a 4-year-old girl in Houston in May. A woman was hit by a foul ball off the bat of White Sox slugger Eloy Jiménez in Chicago on June 10.Commissioner Rob Manfred has said extending protective netting down foul lines is a ballpark-to-ballpark decision because of differing configurations. Major League Baseball mandated ahead of the 2018 season that netting extend to the far end of each dugout.The Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals are among the other teams that have announced they'll extend netting.

CHICAGO (AP) — Francisco Lindor and the Cleveland Indians, looking up at Nelson Cruz and the surprising Minnesota Twins. Matt Chapman and the Oakland Athletics, trying to run down José Altuve and the Houston Astros. Max Scherzer and the Washington Nationals, chasing Ronald Acuña Jr. and the Atlanta Braves.Baseball ramps up again this weekend, and a handful of contenders have a lot of work to do.Five of the majors' six divisions feature deficits of at least 5½ games as play resumes after the All-Star Game, in which the American League beat the National League 4-3 Tuesday night. Life is pretty good for two iconic franchises, with Cody Bellinger and the Los Angeles Dodgers in control of the NL West again and Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees looking down on the rest of the AL East despite a rash of injuries."This team is capable of some great things," Yankees pitcher James Paxton said. "You've got some really talented players here, guys with a lot of drive, great leadership. We're set up... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Francisco Lindor and the Cleveland Indians, looking up at Nelson Cruz and the surprising Minnesota Twins. Matt Chapman and the Oakland Athletics, trying to run down José Altuve and the Houston Astros. Max Scherzer and the Washington Nationals, chasing Ronald Acuña Jr. and the Atlanta Braves.Baseball ramps up again this weekend, and a handful of contenders have a lot of work to do.Five of the majors' six divisions feature deficits of at least 5½ games as play resumes after the All-Star Game, in which the American League beat the National League 4-3 Tuesday night. Life is pretty good for two iconic franchises, with Cody Bellinger and the Los Angeles Dodgers in control of the NL West again and Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees looking down on the rest of the AL East despite a rash of injuries."This team is capable of some great things," Yankees pitcher James Paxton said. "You've got some really talented players here, guys with a lot of drive, great leadership. We're set up... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — The Phillies had just become the latest visiting team to win a game in Miami, and from the top of baseball's food chain, $330 million man Bryce Harper tried to be kind as he assessed the low-budget, low-expectation Marlins."They've got a good pitching staff," Harper said. "They're young. They're energetic. It's going to be a good club."But when?For the rebuilding Marlins, this season is about trying to get closer to competitive, and in the standings there's little sign of progress.Starting with a loss to Harper and the Phillies, the Marlins dropped six of their final seven games before the All-Star break, which left their record at 33-55, by far the worst in the National League. The Marlins are assured of their 10th consecutive losing season, and even by the franchise's low standards, this season's .375 winning percentage is bad.At the break a year ago, they were 41-57 (.418). Two years ago, shortly before CEO Derek Jeter's group bought the franchise and began to reboot, the... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — The Phillies had just become the latest visiting team to win a game in Miami, and from the top of baseball's food chain, $330 million man Bryce Harper tried to be kind as he assessed the low-budget, low-expectation Marlins."They've got a good pitching staff," Harper said. "They're young. They're energetic. It's going to be a good club."But when?For the rebuilding Marlins, this season is about trying to get closer to competitive, and in the standings there's little sign of progress.Starting with a loss to Harper and the Phillies, the Marlins dropped six of their final seven games before the All-Star break, which left their record at 33-55, by far the worst in the National League. The Marlins are assured of their 10th consecutive losing season, and even by the franchise's low standards, this season's .375 winning percentage is bad.At the break a year ago, they were 41-57 (.418). Two years ago, shortly before CEO Derek Jeter's group bought the franchise and began to reboot, the... [More]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Seven weeks ago, the Washington Nationals didn't have much to dance about.They were 12 games below .500 with the fourth-worst record in baseball. They weren't giving ace Max Scherzer and Co. enough run support, and the bullpen was a ticking time bomb to another deflating loss."Any way we could lose a game, we found a way to do it," first baseman Ryan Zimmerman said. "Then you go to New York and get swept, lose four games in a row, you feel like you're at rock bottom."Since waking up at rock bottom on May 24, the Nationals have gone a major league-best 28-11 to vault into playoff contention. With its combination of power hitting, stellar starting pitching and some dance parties in the dugout, Washington can legitimately think about playing into October and challenging the Atlanta Braves for NL East supremacy."We know the guys in this clubhouse are very talented," Scherzer said. "When we can go out there and play our best baseball and play mistake-free baseball, we're a... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The only errors on the scoreboard at the All-Star Game were by the scoreboard.At least one player noticed — and wasn't too pleased.The giant board at Progressive Field was filled with mistakes Tuesday night, including a couple of misspelled names, a wrong picture and a pair of incorrect team logos."They had what, two weeks to get ready for this? That can't happen," New York Mets sparkplug Jeff McNeil said.McNeil is leading the majors with a .349 batting average, an impressive feat seeing how he made his major league debut less than a year ago.A late sub, he came up for the National League in the eighth inning and noticed the headshot on the scoreboard wasn't of him. Instead, it was of Mets teammate Jacob deGrom."That was tough, to see deGrom's picture up there," McNeil said. "I didn't really like that.""I wanted to see my picture up there. I know my family did, too. What are you going to do, I guess, but I don't think that should happen," he said.David Dahl didn't fare... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The only errors on the scoreboard at the All-Star Game were by the scoreboard.At least one player noticed — and wasn't too pleased.The giant board at Progressive Field was filled with mistakes Tuesday night, including a couple of misspelled names, a wrong picture and a pair of incorrect team logos."They had what, two weeks to get ready for this? That can't happen," New York Mets sparkplug Jeff McNeil said.McNeil is leading the majors with a .349 batting average, an impressive feat seeing how he made his major league debut less than a year ago.A late sub, he came up for the National League in the eighth inning and noticed the headshot on the scoreboard wasn't him. Instead, it was Mets teammate Jacob deGrom."That was tough, to see deGrom's picture up there," McNeil said. "I didn't really like that.""I wanted to see my picture up there. I know my family did, too. What are you going to do, I guess, but I don't think that should happen," he said.David Dahl didn't fare any better.... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Baseball players' union head Tony Clark says a poor job has been done of marketing Boston Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts, the reigning AL MVP."Mookie should be a household name," Clark told the Baseball Writers' Association of America on Tuesday. "Mookie should be a one-name guy. You say Ronaldo. You say Messi. You say Mookie. You should know who Mookie is, and outside of the baseball world, I don't know how many do."Betts earned his fourth straight All-Star selection after helping Boston win the World Series last year."In the grand scheme of things with respect to players that should be at the forefront of every conversation and should be in conversations even with non-baseball fans, Mookie is one of them," Clark said. "No doubt about it. And unless or until we fix that, it's going to be difficult for others to be a part of that conversation, too."Clark said baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred probably would be in position to answer what is required to increase Betts' recognition."I... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Brantley came back, took a well-deserved bow and delivered like always. Shane Bieber pitched a perfect inning and took home an MVP trophy and a shiny new pickup truck.Carlos Carrasco stood up to cancer.On an idyllic night for baseball, Cleveland connections shined brightest at the All-Star Game.Even Sandy Alomar Jr., whose storybook home run the last time the game was played at Progressive Field in 1997 made him an MVP and local legend, enjoyed another moment on the star-studded stage.And then Bieber matched him, winning MVP honors after striking out the side in the fifth as the AL staff combined for 16 strikeouts in a 4-3 win over the NL and returned pitching to prominence a night after Vladimir Guerrereo Jr., Pete Alonso and Joc Pederson knocked balls over Progressive Field's walls with stunning ease."It's an incredible feeling now, now that it's kind of sinking in," Bieber said. "Just to be able to do it in front of the home crowd and my first All-Star Game is... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Brantley came back, took a well-deserved bow and delivered like always. Shane Bieber pitched a perfect inning and took home an MVP trophy and a shiny new pickup truck.Carlos Carrasco stood up to cancer.On an idyllic night for baseball, Cleveland connections shined brightest at the All-Star Game.Even Sandy Alomar Jr., whose storybook home run the last time the game was played at Progressive Field in 1997 made him an MVP and local legend, enjoyed another moment on the star-studded stage.And then Bieber matched him, winning MVP honors after striking out the side in the fifth as the AL staff combined for 16 strikeouts in a 4-3 win over the NL and returned pitching to prominence a night after Vladimir Guerrereo Jr., Pete Alonso and Joc Pederson knocked balls over Progressive Field's walls with stunning ease."It's an incredible feeling now, now that it's kind of sinking in," Bieber said. "Just to be able to do it in front of the home crowd and my first All-Star Game is... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Brantley came back, took a well-deserved bow and delivered like always. Shane Bieber pitched a perfect inning and took home an MVP trophy and a shiny new pickup truck.Carlos Carrasco stood up to cancer.On an idyllic night for baseball, Cleveland connections shined brightest at the All-Star Game.Even Sandy Alomar Jr., whose storybook home run the last time the game was played at Progressive Field in 1997 made him an MVP and local legend, enjoyed another moment on the star-studded stage.And then Bieber matched him, winning MVP honors after striking out the side in the ninth as the AL staff combined for 16 strikeouts in a 4-3 win over the NL and returned pitching to prominence a night after Vladimir Guerrereo Jr., Pete Alonso and Joc Pederson knocked balls over Progressive Field's walls with stunning ease."It's an incredible feeling now, now that it's kind of sinking in," Bieber said. "Just to be able to do it in front of the home crowd and my first All-Star Game is... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — When the national spotlight turns on, the Los Angeles Dodgers go dark.They're lucky this one doesn't count.Clayton Kershaw dropped to 0-2 in All-Star Games, and so did Dave Roberts."You always want to win every game you play, but the American League has had our number for quite some time, so hopefully we can get them next year," Roberts said after the National League's 4-3 loss in the All-Star Game on Tuesday night, making it sound more significant than most participants treat it. "They took one more one better swing than we did."Maybe someday Roberts will get to celebrate on the national stage as Dodgers manager in the same way he did as a Boston Red Sox player.Falling short has gotten familiar.Kershaw gave up Michael Brantley's go-ahead double in the second inning, following his 2015 defeat when he gave up a tiebreaking single to Prince Fielder at Cincinnati followed by Lorenzo Cain's RBI double.Walker Buehler allowed Jorge Polanco's run-scoring single that put the NL... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Brantley came back, took a well-deserved bow and delivered like always. Shane Bieber pitched a perfect inning and took home an MVP trophy and a shiny new pickup truck.Carlos Carrasco stood up to cancer.On an idyllic night for baseball, Cleveland connections shined brightest at the All-Star Game.Even Sandy Alomar Jr., whose storybook home run the last time the game was played at Progressive Field in 1997 made him an MVP and local legend, enjoyed another moment on the star-studded stage.And then Bieber matched him, winning MVP honors after striking out the side in the ninth as the AL staff combined for 16 strikeouts in a 4-3 win over the NL and returned pitching to prominence a night after Vladimir Guerrereo Jr., Pete Alonso and Joc Pederson knocked balls over Progressive Field's walls with stunning ease."I kind of lost all feeling in my body," Bieber said when asked for his reaction to winning.Bieber was a late All-Star injury replacement, only added Friday to give... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Latest on baseball's All-Star Game (all times local):11:04 p.m.Justin Verlander blazed 97 mph heat from the start, Cleveland's Shane Bieber struck out the side and the AL staff combined to fan 16, dominating a loaded NL lineup 4-3 in the All-Star Game on Tuesday night for its seventh straight win.With fans hoping to see a replay of Monday's jaw-dropping aerial show when 312 homers cleared the walls, the diamond became a pitchers' paradise — at least until the late innings.Derby champ Pete Alonso grounded a two-out, two-run single past Gleyber Torres in the eighth inning to pull the NL to 4-3, but Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in the ninth for the save on the same field he got the win three years ago in World Series Game 7 for the Chicago Cubs' first title since 1908 — and denying the Indians their first since 1948.___10 p.m.Carlos Carrasco hopes to strike out cancer.The Indians right-hander, who was recently diagnosed with a form of leukemia, was saluted in the... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — When the national spotlight turns on, the Los Angeles Dodgers go dark.They're lucky this one doesn't count.Clayton Kershaw gave up Michael Brantley's go-ahead double.Walker Buehler allowed Jorge Polanco's run-scoring single.Dave Roberts added a second All-Star loss to go along with World Series defeats to Houston and Boston.Even Cody Bellinger flailed during the National League's 4-3 defeat to the American League on Tuesday night, striking out against Masahiro Tanaka and Lucas Giolito.Sure, this was the All-Star Game, a night to strut and shine. But it followed flops in the Series for a franchise without a title since 1988.Running away from the rest of the NL West leaves the Dodgers with comparatively little pressure to prepare them for the crucible of October. Los Angeles is a major league-best 60-32 and leads second-place San Diego 13½ games, primed to have home-field advantage throughout the postseason. Might as well start printing the playoff tickets now.But that advantage didn't help in 2017. After winning a major league-high 104 games and breezing by Arizona and the Chicago Cubs in the playoffs, the Dodgers lost Game 7 to Houston when Yu Darvish gave up five runs in the first two innings.They won their sixth straight NL West title last year, by just one game over Colorado after winning 92 games, and lost the Series to the Red Sox in five games.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Latest on baseball's All-Star Game (all times local):10 p.m.Carlos Carrasco hopes to strike out cancer.The Indians right-hander, who was recently diagnosed with a form of leukemia, was saluted in the fifth inning of the All-Star Game during Major League Baseball's "Stand Up to Cancer" campaign.The 32-year-old stood in the third-base coach's box, flanked by four All-Star teammates and Indians manager Terry Francona. Carrasco held a sign that read "I Stand'" while Lindor's said: "Cookie," which is the pitcher's nickname.Carrasco had been feeling fatigued in May, and was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia following an exam at the Cleveland Clinic.He has been cleared to resume conditioning and throwing activities to the extent he can tolerate them. Carrasco could pitch a bullpen session later this week and believes he'll return to the team at some point this season.He had been scheduled to start against Minnesota on June 5, when the Indians issued a statement saying... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Faced with a record onslaught of home runs that has convinced many pitchers that baseballs are juiced, Commissioner Rob Manfred says the sport has been unable to find any changes in the manufacturing process.A May 2018 report to Major League Baseball by professors specializing in physics, mechanical engineering, statistics and mathematics concluded there was less drag on the ball, causing more home runs. MLB still has not figured out why, and Manfred denied accusations by AL All-Star starter Justin Verlander and other pitchers that baseballs deliberately had been altered."Baseball has done nothing, given no direction for an alteration in the baseball," Manfred told the Baseball Writers' Association of America on Tuesday. "The biggest flaw in that logic is that baseball somehow wants more home runs. If you sat in an owner's meeting and listened to people talk about the way our game is being played, that is not the sentiment among the owners for whom I work. There is no desire... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Latest on baseball's All-Star Game (all times local):8:55 p.m.Two Cleveland baseball mainstays, whose careers are forever linked, were saluted before the All-Star Game.For CC Sabathia, it was a final bow. For Michael Brantley, it was welcome back.Sabathia, who will retire at the end of this season, threw out the ceremonial first pitch, a fitting tribute for the 38-year-old Yankees left-hander who began his career with the Indians in 2001.One of just 14 pitchers to record 250 career wins and 3,000 strikeouts, Sabathia said he cried when he was traded by the Indians to Milwaukee in 2008 — for Brantley."I wanted to stay here," Sabathia said. "It's just one of those cities."Brantley received a loud ovation when the Houston outfielder was introduced with the other AL players. Brantley spent 10 seasons with the Indians, who elected not to re-sign him as a free agent last winter.He later gave the AL a 1-0 lead with an RBI double in the second."I know the relationships that... [More]