Chicago White Sox utility player Danny Mendick and relief pitcher Ryan Burr were optioned to Triple-A on Friday, the team announced on Twitter. The moves were made to open up space on the roster for newly acquired second baseman Cesar Hernandez and relief pitcher Ryan Tepera. Neither Mendick nor Burr had much in the way of fantasy value this year, as Mendick was slashing .195/.302/.266 over 58 games, while Burr was 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA, 1.078 WHIP and 20.2 percent strikeout rate over 21 1/3 innings of work. There's no reason either player should remain rostered in any format.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Rafael Devers hit two home runs, including a go-ahead blast in the fifth inning, to help the Boston Red Sox best New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole for the second straight time at Fenway Park in a 6-2 victory Friday night. Devers followed his two-run with a three-run homer in the seventh — the 100th of his career — to help Boston improve to 9-2 against New York this season. The Red Sox maintained their one-game AL East lead over Tampa Bay and increased their lead to nine games over the third-place Yankees. Yacksel Rios (3-0) got the victory, pitching two scoreless innings to cap a strong night from the bullpen after starter Eduardo Rodriguez left in the second inning after experiencing migraine symptoms. Cole (10-5) started strong for New York, but was pulled after fiving innings, giving up three runs off six hits, striking out eight and walking two. METS 3, BLUE JAYS 0 NEW YORK (AP) — Tylor Megill threw six scoreless innings for his first big league victory and got his first... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Rafael Devers hit two home runs, including a go-ahead blast in the fifth inning, to help the Boston Red Sox best New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole for the second straight time at Fenway Park in a 6-2 victory Friday night. Devers followed his two-run with a three-run homer in the seventh — the 100th of his career — to help Boston improve to 9-2 against New York this season. The Red Sox maintained their one-game AL East lead over Tampa Bay and increased their lead to nine games over the third-place Yankees. Yacksel Rios (3-0) got the victory, pitching two scoreless innings to cap a strong night from the bullpen after starter Eduardo Rodriguez left in the second inning after experiencing migraine symptoms. Cole (10-5) started strong for New York, but was pulled after fiving innings, giving up three runs off six hits, striking out eight and walking two. METS 3, BLUE JAYS 0 NEW YORK (AP) — Tylor Megill threw six scoreless innings for his first big league victory and got his first... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Freddie Freeman homered off Yu Darvish in the sixth inning, Touki Toussaint allowed one run and three hits in his season debut, and the Atlanta Braves beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 on Tuesday night. Toussaint, who missed the first 3½ months rehabbing a right shoulder strain, retired the first seven batters he faced before walking Victor Caratini in the third. He didn’t allow a hit until Manny Machado doubled with one out in the fourth. The Padres tied it 1-all in the fourth when Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch, advanced to third on Machado’s double and scored on Tommy Pham’s sacrifice fly. Freeman made it 2-1 by taking Darvish deep over the wall in left field with an opposite-field shot, his 22nd homer. Toussaint (1-0) walked two and struck out five in 6 2/3 innings. Darvish (7-4) was making his first start since July 8 after a stint on the injured list due to left hip inflammation. He allowed four hits and two runs with two walks and three strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Freddie Freeman homered off Yu Darvish in the sixth inning, Touki Toussaint allowed one run and three hits in his season debut, and the Atlanta Braves beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 on Tuesday night. Toussaint, who missed the first 3½ months rehabbing a right shoulder strain, retired the first seven batters he faced before walking Victor Caratini in the third. He didn’t allow a hit until Manny Machado doubled with one out in the fourth. The Padres tied it 1-all in the fourth when Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch, advanced to third on Machado’s double and scored on Tommy Pham’s sacrifice fly. Freeman made it 2-1 by taking Darvish deep over the wall in left field with an opposite-field shot, his 22nd homer. Toussaint (1-0) walked two and struck out five in 6 2/3 innings. Darvish (7-4) was making his first start since July 8 after a stint on the injured list due to left hip inflammation. He allowed four hits and two runs with two walks and three strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Freddie Freeman homered off Yu Darvish in the sixth inning, Touki Toussaint allowed one run and three hits in his season debut, and the Atlanta Braves beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 on Tuesday night. Toussaint, who missed the first 3½ months rehabbing a right shoulder strain, retired the first seven batters he faced before walking Victor Caratini in the third. He didn’t allow a hit until Manny Machado doubled with one out in the fourth. The Padres tied it 1-all in the fourth when Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch, advanced to third on Machado’s double and scored on Tommy Pham’s sacrifice fly. Freeman made it 2-1 by taking Darvish deep over the wall in left field with an opposite-field shot, his 22nd homer. Toussaint (1-0) walked two and struck out five in 6 2/3 innings. Darvish (7-4) was making his first start since July 8 after a stint on the injured list due to left hip inflammation. He allowed four hits and two runs with two walks and three strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.... [More]

ATLANTA (AP) — Freddie Freeman homered off Yu Darvish in the sixth inning, Touki Toussaint allowed one run and three hits in his season debut, and the Atlanta Braves beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 on Tuesday night. Toussaint, who missed the first 3½ months rehabbing a right shoulder strain, retired the first seven batters he faced before walking Victor Caratini in the third. He didn’t allow a hit until Manny Machado doubled with one out in the fourth. The Padres tied it 1-all in the fourth when Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch, advanced to third on Machado’s double and scored on Tommy Pham’s sacrifice fly. Freeman made it 2-1 by taking Darvish deep over the wall in left field with an opposite-field shot, his 22nd homer. Toussaint (1-0) walked two and struck out five in 6 2/3 innings. Darvish (7-4) was making his first start since July 8 after a stint on the injured list due to left hip inflammation. He allowed four hits and two runs with two walks and three strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom was pulled from a second straight start with an arm injury, this time leaving after three perfect innings with right shoulder soreness, but the New York Mets bullpen stepped up to finish a three-hitter in a 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. One start after being pulled from a gem against San Diego with flexor tendinitis in his right arm, deGrom went directly down the clubhouse tunnel after finishing the third against the Cubs. DeGrom said initial tests ruled out a serious issue, but he planned to get imaging and more observation Thursday. The right-hander struck out eight of the nine batters he faced and lowered his ERA to 0.54. Sean Reid-Foley (2-0) relieved deGrom and allowed one run over two innings. Anthony Rizzo ended the bid for a combined perfect game or no-hitter by homering with one out in the fourth. Kevin Pillar opened the scoring with an RBI double off Robert Stock (0-1) in the second and homered in the fifth. GIANTS 13, DIAMONDBACKS... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom was pulled from a second straight start with an arm injury, this time leaving after three perfect innings with right shoulder soreness, but the New York Mets bullpen stepped up to finish a three-hitter in a 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. One start after being pulled from a gem against San Diego with flexor tendinitis in his right arm, deGrom went directly down the clubhouse tunnel after finishing the third against the Cubs. DeGrom said initial tests ruled out a serious issue, but he planned to get imaging and more observation Thursday. The right-hander struck out eight of the nine batters he faced and lowered his ERA to 0.54. Sean Reid-Foley (2-0) relieved deGrom and allowed one run over two innings. Anthony Rizzo ended the bid for a combined perfect game or no-hitter by homering with one out in the fourth. Kevin Pillar opened the scoring with an RBI double off Robert Stock (0-1) in the second and homered in the fifth. ASTROS 8, RANGERS 4... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom was pulled from a second straight start with an arm injury, this time leaving after three perfect innings with right shoulder soreness, but the New York Mets bullpen stepped up to finish a three-hitter in a 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. One start after being pulled from a gem against San Diego with flexor tendinitis in his right arm, deGrom went directly down the clubhouse tunnel after finishing the third against the Cubs. DeGrom said initial tests ruled out a serious issue, but he planned to get imaging and more observation Thursday. The right-hander struck out eight of the nine batters he faced and lowered his ERA to 0.54. Sean Reid-Foley (2-0) relieved deGrom and allowed one run over two innings. Anthony Rizzo ended the bid for a combined perfect game or no-hitter by homering with one out in the fourth. Kevin Pillar opened the scoring with an RBI double off Robert Stock (0-1) in the second and homered in the fifth. ASTROS 8, RANGERS 4... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom was pulled from a second straight start with an arm injury, this time leaving after three perfect innings with right shoulder soreness, but the New York Mets bullpen stepped up to finish a three-hitter in a 6-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night. One start after being pulled from a gem against San Diego with flexor tendinitis in his right arm, deGrom went directly down the clubhouse tunnel after finishing the third against the Cubs. DeGrom said initial tests ruled out a serious issue, but he planned to get imaging and more observation Thursday. The right-hander struck out eight of the nine batters he faced and lowered his ERA to 0.54. Sean Reid-Foley (2-0) relieved deGrom and allowed one run over two innings. Anthony Rizzo ended the bid for a combined perfect game or no-hitter by homering with one out in the fourth. Kevin Pillar opened the scoring with an RBI double off Robert Stock (0-1) in the second and homered in the fifth. REDS 2, BREWERS 1 MILWAUKEE... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Tyler Mahle tied his career high with 12 strikeouts, Tucker Barnhart drove in the go-ahead run with a double in the seventh inning, and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Milwaukee Brewers 2-1 on Wednesday to finish a three-game sweep. Cincinnati has won six straight and 11 of 13. The Brewers dropped three straight for the first time in nearly a month and were swept for the third time this season. Milwaukee totaled nine hits and four runs in the series against the Reds. Mahle (7-2) allowed three hits and a pair of walks over six innings. Brad Brach, Sean Doolittle and Lucas Sims completed the five-hitter, with Sims getting the last four outs for his seventh save. Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta (6-2) struck out six over six innings without walking a batter. ROCKIES 8, PADRES 7 DENVER (AP) — Pinch-hitter Charlie Blackmon singled home the winning run in the ninth inning and Colorado shook off a monster homer by Fernando Tatis Jr. to beat stumbling San Diego. Tatis hit a 477-foot homer,... [More]

Chicago White Sox outfielder Eloy Jiménez was having surgery Tuesday to repair a ruptured left pectoral tendon, and general manager Rick Hahn said the slugger still is expected to miss five to six months. Hahn said the timeline hasn't changed, though he left the door open for Jiménez to return sooner. “There's a chance, certainly, that he beats that traditional timeframe for this type of injury of five to six months,” he said. “But quite candidly, no one's going to know that for at least 12 weeks until he's completed the healing process and the rehabilitation side of this injury.” Jiménez was hurt last week in a spring training game against Oakland when he tried to make a leaping grab at the wall on Sean Murphy’s home run. The injury led to more questions about whether he is better suited for designated hitter than left field, where he has gotten hurt a couple times since his big league debut in 2019. The 24-year-old Jiménez, who throws and bats right-handed, was acquired in a July 2017... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — All-Star catcher James McCann agreed to a $5.4 million, one-year contract with the Chicago White Sox on Monday, more than doubling his salary.The 29-year-old McCann was eligible for arbitration.Chicago declined to offer 2020 contracts to Gold Glove second baseman Yolmer Sánchez and relievers Ryan Burr and Caleb Frare, making the trio free agents. Right-hander Thyago Vieira was released to pursue an opportunity to play in Japan.Left-hander Carlos Rodon, closer Alex Colomé, reliever Evan Marshall and utlityman Leury García were tendered contracts, making them eligible for arbitration.McCann signed a $2.5 million, one-year deal with Chicago last December after Detroit didn't offer him a contract for the 2019 season.McCann set career highs with a .273 batting average, 18 homers and 60 RBIs in his first year with the White Sox. He also was an All-Star selection for the first time.The White Sox signed free-agent catcher Yasmani Grandal to a $73 million, four-year contract last... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox have traded catcher Welington Castillo to the Texas Rangers, who might not exercise an $8 million option for next season and allow him to become a free agent.Texas also got an international signing bonus pool slot worth $250,000 in the deal while sending minor league infielder and outfielder Jonah McReynolds to the White Sox.Castillo's deal includes a $500,000 buyout for 2020. The 32-year-old catcher hit .209 over 72 games last season — his second with the White Sox and 10th in the majors.The 23-year-old McReynolds hit .239 in 56 games with Advanced Rookie Spokane.Chicago reinstated pitchers Michael Kopech, Ryan Burr and Carlos Rodón and outfielder Jon Jay from the 60-day injured list on Thursday. Slugger José Abreu, Jay and pitchers Ross Detwiler, Iván Nova and Héctor Santiago declared for free agency. And lefty Josh Osich was claimed off waivers by Boston after being outrighted to Triple-A Charlotte.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox have traded catcher Welington Castillo and an international signing bonus pool slot to the Texas Rangers for minor league infielder and outfielder Jonah McReynolds.The 32-year-old Castillo batted .209 over 72 games last season — his second with the White Sox and 10th in the majors. The 23-year-old McReynolds hit .239 in 56 games with Advanced Rookie Spokane.The White Sox reinstated pitchers Michael Kopech, Ryan Burr and Carlos Rodón and outfielder Jon Jay from the 60-day injured list on Thursday. Slugger José Abreu, Jay and pitchers Ross Detwiler, Iván Nova and Héctor Santiago declared for free agency. And lefty Josh Osich was claimed off waivers by Boston after being outrighted to Triple-A Charlotte.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox have claimed first baseman A.J. Reed off waivers from the Houston Astros and have assigned him to Triple-A Charlotte.Reed has a .153 career average over 48 games for Houston from 2016-18. He had spent this season at Triple-A Round Rock and was designated for assignment by the Astros on July 2.The White Sox also transferred right-hander Ryan Burr to the 60-day injured list. He has been sidelined since late May and had Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow on June 25.Burr was 1-1 with a 4.58 ERA in 16 games — one start — this season.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports