Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman threw a 101 mph fastball near the head of pinch-hitter Michael Brosseau while closing out his first save of the season, prompting the benches to empty after New York ended a six-game losing streak against the Tampa Bay Rays with a 5-3 victory Tuesday night.Chapman’s first pitch to Brosseau with two outs in the ninth inning whizzed past Brosseau’s head, and umpires met before issuing warnings to both benches amid a budding rivalry that’s been dominated this season by Tampa Bay. Chapman struck out Brosseau to end it, and Brosseau began walking toward the visiting dugout before turning back to exchange words with someone on the Yankees. The dugouts and benches emptied and players gathered near home plate, but they mostly kept their distance before dispersing to their respective clubhouses.DJ LeMahieu homered twice, and Gio Urshela hit a tiebreaking, three-run Little League homer in the sixth inning as New York beat the Rays at Yankee Stadium for the first time... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiké Hernández hit a three-run drive and Mookie Betts went deep twice in the Dodgers’ seven-homer attack, powering Los Angeles past the Colorado Rockies 11-3 on Sunday for a three-game sweep.The Dodgers are the only team in the majors yet to lose a series, unbeaten in 11. They have won 11 of 12 games overall and own the best record in baseball at 22-8 at the halfway point of this abbreviated season.Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager, Will Smith and Max Muncy also homered for Los Angeles. Victor Gonzalez (1-0) earned his first major league victory.Trevor Story, Ryan McMahon and Sam Hilliard went deep for Colorado in its season-high seventh consecutive loss. Antonio Senzatela (3-1) allowed six runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings.PADRES 5, ASTROS 3SAN DIEGO (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr. made two spectacular plays at shortstop, Manny Machado hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning, and San Diego completed a three-game series sweep. The Padres have won seven straight, all against... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiké Hernández hit a three-run drive and Mookie Betts went deep twice in the Dodgers’ seven-homer attack, powering Los Angeles past the Colorado Rockies 11-3 on Sunday for a three-game sweep.The Dodgers are the only team in the majors yet to lose a series, unbeaten in 11. They have won 11 of 12 games overall and own the best record in baseball at 22-8 at the halfway point of this abbreviated season.Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager, Will Smith and Max Muncy also homered for Los Angeles. Victor Gonzalez (1-0) earned his first major league victory.Trevor Story, Ryan McMahon and Sam Hilliard went deep for Colorado in its season-high seventh consecutive loss. Antonio Senzatela (3-1) allowed six runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings.PADRES 5, ASTROS 3SAN DIEGO (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr. made two spectacular plays at shortstop, Manny Machado hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning, and San Diego completed a three-game series sweep. The Padres have won seven straight, all against... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck out 10 in his career-high fifth consecutive victory, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Sunday to stop the South Siders’ seven-game win streak.Kyle Schwarber hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning as the Cubs won for just the fourth time in their last 11 games. The NL Central leaders were outscored 17-5 in the first two games of the series.José Abreu went deep for the White Sox in the second, matching a major league record with a home run in four consecutive at-bats. Abreu connected five times in the first two games against the Cubs, including three homers and four RBIs in Saturday night’s 7-4 win.Darvish (5-1) allowed one run and six hits in seven innings. Jeremy Jeffress got four outs for his third save.White Sox right-hander Dylan Cease (4-2) allowed two runs and four hits in six innings in his first game against his former team. He had won his last four starts.CARDINALS 6, REDS 2ST. LOUIS (AP) — Yadier Molina had four hits and top... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Tigers put first baseman C.J. Cron on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a left knee sprain.Cron exited Monday night's game against the Chicago White Sox in the fourth inning. He was hurt on a freak play in which a hard-hit ball by Danny Mendick bounced off him and was recovered by pitcher Daniel Norris, who retired Mendick with a diving tag.Cron stayed on the ground in apparent pain during the play and afterward.The Tigers added Cron this offseason to provide more power in what was an anemic lineup in 2019. He’s hitting .190 but has four home runs.Detroit recalled infielder Willi Castro.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Eric Hosmer singled in the go-ahead run with two outs in the sixth inning, and the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 in the series opener Monday night.Joc Pederson bobbled the ball on Hosmer’s hit to left and couldn’t attempt a throw as Trent Grisham scored from second after Dustin May (1-1) walked him, giving the Padres a 2-1 lead.Austin Hedges homered with two outs in the fifth to tie it at 1. It was Hedges’ third hit and first homer of the season and only the second home run given up by May.Emilio Pagán retired Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner in order in the eighth, and the Dodgers managed just four hits. Betts, Bellinger and Turner were 1 for 4 with a strikeout each. Los Angeles was 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position.Cal Quantrill (2-0) got the victory with three innings of relief. He allowed two hits and struck out three.Drew Pomeranz retired the side in the ninth for his third save.ANGELS 10, ATHLETICS 9ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) —... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Eric Hosmer singled in the go-ahead run with two outs in the sixth inning, and the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 in the series opener Monday night.Joc Pederson bobbled the ball on Hosmer’s hit to left and couldn’t attempt a throw as Trent Grisham scored from second after Dustin May (1-1) walked him, giving the Padres a 2-1 lead.Austin Hedges homered with two outs in the fifth to tie it at 1. It was Hedges’ third hit and first homer of the season and only the second home run given up by May.Emilio Pagán retired Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner in order in the eighth, and the Dodgers managed just four hits. Betts, Bellinger and Turner were 1 for 4 with a strikeout each. Los Angeles was 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position.Cal Quantrill (2-0) got the victory with three innings of relief. He allowed two hits and struck out three.Drew Pomeranz retired the side in the ninth for his third save.ASTROS 6, GIANTS 4HOUSTON (AP) — Lance McCullers... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Tigers first baseman C.J. Cron exited Monday night's game against the Chicago White Sox with a left knee injury.Cron was struck by Danny Mendick's hard-hit grounder in the fourth inning and stayed down for a while. He eventually walked off with some assistance.Detroit pitcher Daniel Norris made an acrobatic play, hustling over to retrieve the ball and retiring Mendick with a diving tag while Cron lay on the ground in pain.The Tigers added Cron this offseason to provide more power in what was an anemic lineup in 2019. He's hitting .190 but does have four home runs.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge homered twice and drove in five runs, connecting for the fifth straight game and breaking an eighth-inning tie with a tape-measure shot that powered the New York Yankees past the Boston Red Sox 9-7 on Sunday night for their sixth consecutive victory. Luke Voit also went deep in a back-and forth slugfest to help the Yankees (7-1) finish a three-game sweep in the first series this season between the longtime rivals. New York has won six in a row and 11 of 12 against Boston since last July.DJ LeMahieu tied it 7 in the eighth with a two-out RBI single off Matt Barnes (0-1) past diving second baseman José Peraza. The clutch hit came after Mike Tauchman, who entered on defense in the seventh, walked and stole second.Judge then launched a no-doubt drive that landed several rows up in the raised bleachers beyond the left-center bullpen for his sixth home run already this year. The big slugger socked a three-run shot in the second, making him the first Yankees player... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Kyle Wright and the Atlanta bullpen combined on a 10-hit shutout and the Braves won their fifth in a row, beating the Mets 4-0 Sunday and blanking a New York lineup that found out late that slugger Yoenis Céspedes had opted out of playing any more this season.The Mets released a statement from general manager Brodie Van Wagenen in the early innings that Céspedes wasn’t at the ballpark and the team hadn’t been able to contact him.After the game, Van Wagenen said: “He’s decided to opt out of the remainder of the season for COVID-related reasons.”A two-time All-Star, the 34-year-old Céspedes returned to the lineup this season for the first time since July 20, 2018, after a series of injuries.The Braves sent New York to its fifth straight loss.Wright worked around five hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings. Relievers Tyler Matzek (1-0), A.J. Minter, Shane Greene and Mark Melancon combined for 5 2/3 scoreless innings.New York's David Peterson (1-1) went six innings, striking out... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Kyle Wright and the Atlanta bullpen combined on a 10-hit shutout and the Braves won their fifth in a row, beating the Mets 4-0 Sunday and blanking a New York lineup that found out late that slugger Yoenis Céspedes had opted out of playing any more this season.The Mets released a statement from general manager Brodie Van Wagenen in the early innings that Céspedes wasn’t at the ballpark and the team hadn’t been able to contact him.After the game, Van Wagenen said: “He’s decided to opt out of the remainder of the season for COVID-related reasons.”A two-time All-Star, the 34-year-old Céspedes returned to the lineup this season for the first time since July 20, 2018, after a series of injuries.The Braves sent New York to its fifth straight loss.Wright worked around five hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings. Relievers Tyler Matzek (1-0), A.J. Minter, Shane Greene and Mark Melancon combined for 5 2/3 scoreless innings.New York's David Peterson (1-1) went six innings, striking out... [More]

Yoenis Céspedes expects to be the designated hitter for the New York Mets on Friday when they open the season against the Atlanta Braves.It will be his first major league game in more than two years. Injuries to his feet and legs have sidelined him since July 20, 2018.Céspedes said he’s feeling good and is confident that he’ll also play left field at some point this season. But he told reporters through a translator Tuesday that “at least for the first game, for opening day, I’ll be the DH.”The 34-year-old slugger, an All-Star in 2014 and 2016, had surgery on both heels and then broke his right ankle in a nasty fall at his Florida ranch. Now he's healthy and eager to help the Mets.“I think the strongest part of me is my mind, is my mentality,” Céspedes said. “I think whether it’s a good day or a bad day, my mentality has always been strong. I’ll be ready to play once the time comes.”BRUISEDAstros second baseman Jose Altuve bruised his left leg in Houston's exhibition win over Kansas City... [More]

Yoenis Céspedes expects to be the designated hitter for the New York Mets on Friday when they open the season against the Atlanta Braves.It will be his first major league game in more than two years. Injuries to his feet and legs have sidelined him since July 20, 2018.Céspedes said he’s feeling good and is confident that he’ll also play left field at some point this season. But he told reporters through a translator Tuesday that “at least for the first game, for opening day, I’ll be the DH.”The 34-year-old slugger, an All-Star in 2014 and 2016, had surgery on both heels and then broke his right ankle in a nasty fall at his Florida ranch. Now he's healthy and eager to help the Mets.“I think the strongest part of me is my mind, is my mentality,” Céspedes said. “I think whether it’s a good day or a bad day, my mentality has always been strong. I’ll be ready to play once the time comes.”BRUISEDAstros second baseman Jose Altuve bruised his left leg in Houston's exhibition win over Kansas City... [More]

Yoenis Céspedes expects to be the designated hitter for the New York Mets on Friday when they open the season against the Atlanta Braves.It will be his first major league game in more than two years. Injuries to his feet and legs have sidelined him since July 20, 2018.Céspedes said he’s feeling good and is confident that he’ll also play left field at some point this season. But he told reporters through a translator Tuesday that “at least for the first game, for opening day, I’ll be the DH.”The 34-year-old slugger, an All-Star in 2014 and 2016, had surgery on both heels and then broke his right ankle in a nasty fall at his Florida ranch. Now he's healthy and eager to help the Mets.“I think the strongest part of me is my mind, is my mentality,” Céspedes said. “I think whether it’s a good day or a bad day, my mentality has always been strong. I’ll be ready to play once the time comes.”BRUISEDAstros second baseman Jose Altuve suffered a bruise to his left leg in Houston's exhibition win over... [More]

Yoenis Céspedes expects to be the designated hitter for the New York Mets on Friday when they open the season against the Atlanta Braves.It will be his first major league game in more than two years. A string of injuries to his feet and legs have sidelined him since July 20, 2018.Céspedes said he’s feeling good and is confident that he’ll also play left field at some point this season. But he told reporters through a translator Tuesday that “at least for the first game, for opening day, I’ll be the DH.”The 34-year-old slugger, an All-Star in 2014 and 2016, had surgery on both heels and then broke his right ankle in a nasty fall at his Florida ranch. Now he's healthy and eager to help the Mets.“I think the strongest part of me is my mind, is my mentality,” Céspedes said. “I think whether it’s a good day or a bad day, my mentality has always been strong. I’ll be ready to play once the time comes.”TANAKA RETURNSMasahiro Tanaka threw 20 pitches during batting practice Tuesday and is on track... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Matthew Boyd's status as Detroit's opening night starter is now official.He'd known for a while.Manager Ron Gardenhire confirmed Sunday that Boyd would start the opener, then the 29-year-old left-hander admitted he'd been told about the assignment months ago — before the coronavirus shut down spring training. His family was making plans for the occasion, then had to reconsider.“They were all booking their flights to Cleveland," Boyd said. "Luckily, Delta was able to refund some of those.”Boyd said he was told again he would pitch the opener shortly after the Tigers reconvened for their second training camp. That game not in Cleveland anymore. Detroit is set to begin the abbreviated 2020 season Friday night at Cincinnati. Starting the opener is a big deal for Boyd, even though the usual crowd of fans won't be there.“I know it’s going to look different this year, without getting to share it with the fans in person, but I’m sure it’ll be pretty special on TV with everything... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Tigers pitcher Jordan Zimmermann is going on the 45-day injured list because of a strained right forearm, meaning he won’t be available for much of this year, if at all.Manager Ron Gardenhire said Saturday the right-hander doesn't need surgery and could return at the end of this abbreviated season. “He’s going to rehab,” Gardenhire said. “He played catch a couple of times. Feels fine, and then it starts getting a little sore, so now it’s just about doing the rehab and going from there.”This is the final year of Zimmermann’s contract with Detroit. He went 1-13 with a 6.91 ERA last year and has struggled to stay healthy while with the Tigers. He has a 5.61 ERA in four seasons with DetroitZimmermann's latest injury takes away one option for Gardenhire's starting rotation. Holdovers Matthew Boyd and Spencer Turnbull are back, along with Daniel Norris and Tyler Alexander. Michael Fulmer returns from Tommy John surgery, and Ivan Nova was acquired in the offseason.Detroit also has several intriguing pitching prospects — including Casey Mize, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft — who could contribute at some point.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DETROIT (AP) — Tigers pitcher Jordan Zimmermann is going on the 45-day injured list because of a strained right forearm.Manager Ron Gardenhire said Saturday that the right-hander doesn't need surgery and could return at the end of this abbreviated season. But this move obviously means he won't be pitching much this year, if at all.“He’s going to rehab,” Gardenhire said. “He played catch a couple of times. Feels fine, and then it starts getting a little sore, so now it’s just about doing the rehab and going from there.”This is the final year of Zimmermann’s contract with Detroit. He went 1-13 with a 6.91 ERA last year and has struggled to stay healthy while with the Tigers. He has a 5.61 ERA in four seasons with DetroitZimmermann's latest injury takes away one option for Gardenhire's starting rotation. Holdovers Matthew Boyd and Spencer Turnbull are back, along with Daniel Norris and Tyler Alexander. Michael Fulmer returns from Tommy John surgery, and Ivan Nova was acquired in the offseason.Detroit also has several intriguing pitching prospects — including Casey Mize, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft — who could contribute at some point.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — At this time last year, Michael Fulmer was hoping for a healthier 2019. Instead, his injury woes went from bad to worse.Fulmer needed Tommy John surgery and did not pitch at all last season, another setback for the right-hander who won AL Rookie of the Year honors for Detroit in 2016 but now faces an uncertain future for the Tigers. Still just 26 years old, Fulmer can give the team a lift if he comes back healthy, but that's still a work in progress.“I feel better than I thought I would at this point, playing catch out to 120 feet," Fulmer said this week. "Next progression is getting on the mound. Very anxious for that moment, but we've got to wait until it gets here.”Fulmer said he was hopeful he could throw on the mound around the end of March, perhaps before the team heads north.Fulmer went 11-7 with a 3.06 ERA in 2016, his debut season in the majors. He was fairly solid again the following year, but since then, he's had one problem after another. Oblique and knee... [More]

DETROIT (AP) — Matthew Boyd and the Detroit Tigers agreed to a $5.3 million, one-year deal on Friday.The Tigers avoided arbitration with Boyd and all their eligible players. Detroit agreed to contracts for 2020 with left-hander Daniel Norris ($2,962,500), right-hander Buck Farmer ($1.15 million) and outfielder JaCoby Jones ($1,575,000). Right-hander Michael Fulmer agreed to a $2.8 million deal earlier in the week.The 28-year-old Boyd went 9-12 with a 4.56 ERA last season. The left-hander was a bright spot for much of the year and finished sixth in the American League with 238 strikeouts. However, he also allowed an AL-high 39 home runs.Boyd's salary goes up from $2.6 million, but if he can keep his strikeout total high and get the home runs under control, he could become a prime trade candidate for the rebuilding Tigers, who lost 114 games last season but have some highly regarded pitching prospects in their system.Norris arrived with Boyd in the 2015 trade that sent David Price from Detroit to Toronto. Norris has battled injuries in recent years but was able to make 29 starts last season. He went 3-13 with a 4.49 ERA and earned $1.3 million.The 28-year-old Farmer pitched almost exclusively in relief last year, going 6-6 with a 3.72 ERA. He gets a raise from $570,800.Jones hit .235 with 11 homers and 26 RBIs in 2019. He's batted .211 in 286 major league games for Detroit. Jones made $567,100 last season.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.comMLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports