The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed starting pitcher Dan Straily to a minor league free-agent contract with an invite to spring training, Straily last pitched for the Baltimore Orioles in 2019, where he posted a 9.82 ERA with 33 strikeouts across 47 2/3 innings pitched. While he does not possess any fantasy value at first glance, he may become a serviceable streamer in solid matchups if he is able to make the big league club.

We come not to praise the loogie, but to bury it.Already banned on sidewalks, outlawed indoors and pooh-poohed by polite society, that gob of saliva and Lord-knows-what-else is done mucking up sports. In the wake of the new coronavirus, teams are revoking the germ-landing privileges that turned dugouts, benches, boxing rings and even grass fields into potential biohazard sites.No sharing towels, hats, bats, gloves or water bottles. Which could mean the golden era of spitting, slobbering, gleaking, glanding, hawking, hocking, venoming and expectorating is about to dry up. Or not.“About time they did something,” said Bobby Valentine, who played and managed in the major leagues for more than 40 years, including two stints in the Japanese Pacific League.“I was over there for seven years and I could probably count on one hand how many times I saw a ballplayer spit. Heck,” he added, “they don’t even chew gum.”But a moment later, Valentine remembers a photo tucked in a drawer somewhere in his... [More]

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Veteran pitcher Dan Straily has signed a one-year contract worth $800,000 with the Lotte Giants, the Korea Baseball Organization club announced on Saturday.The 31 year-old right-hander became a free agent in October after spending last season with the Baltimore Orioles, his sixth major league team. Each KBO team is allowed two foreign pitchers with Straily joining Adrian Sampson, formerly of the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers, who signed with the Giants in November.

BALTIMORE (AP) — There might come a time when Brandon Hyde wakes up in the morning, grabs a newspaper and finds the Baltimore Orioles in the standings.For now, the rookie manager simply can't bear to look.The rebuilding Orioles limped into the All-Star break with a major league-worst 27-62 record. During a particular brutal stretch in late June, Baltimore showed its youth and inexperience while losing 13 of 14 games — including blowouts of 12-3, 13-2, 16-2 and 13-3.Asked at that point to present his goal for this season, Hyde replied, "I'll be honest with you — I have no idea what our record is. I don't even want to look at it. Right now, it's about developing these guys and how we play. Eventually, I'm going to be looking at the standings and it's going to be about wins and losses."Until then, Hyde will have to grit his teeth when his outfielders throw to the wrong base, players get picked off and his pitching staff gets rocked. Baltimore is allowing a major league-high 6.07 runs per game... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Sandy León hit a three-run homer off Oliver Pérez after the Indians reliever caused an odd stoppage asking for new footwear, J.D. Martinez homered twice and the Boston Red Sox beat Cleveland 12-5 Monday.Jackie Bradley Jr. added two RBI doubles, and Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts each had two hits and scored twice for the Red Sox, who have won 18 of 26.Boston held a moment of silence and showed highlights of former player Bill Buckner, who died Monday. He was 69.Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia revealed before the game that he will take an indefinite leave in his long struggle to recover from knee trouble, putting in doubt whether he'll play again in the majors.The Indians have lost seven of eight, and even the team's equipment is having a rough go of it.Pérez put Fenway Park into a strange delay when he relieved during Boston's six-run fifth inning. The 37-year-old left-hander noticed something amiss with his spikes while warming up and signaled for a replacement pair,... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Sandy León hit a three-run homer off Oliver Pérez after the Indians reliever caused an odd stoppage asking for new footwear, J.D. Martinez homered twice and the Boston Red Sox beat Cleveland 12-5 Monday.Jackie Bradley Jr. added two RBI doubles, and Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts each had two hits and scored twice for the Red Sox, who have won 18 of 26.Boston held a moment of silence and showed highlights of former player Bill Buckner, who died Monday. He was 69.Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia revealed before the game that he will take an indefinite leave in his long struggle to recover from knee trouble, putting in doubt whether he'll play again in the majors.The Indians have lost seven of eight, and even the team's equipment is having a rough go of it.Pérez put Fenway Park into a strange delay when he relieved during Boston's six-run fifth inning. The 37-year-old left-hander noticed something amiss with his spikes while warming up and signaled for a replacement pair,... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — The New York Yankees have climbed into first place in the AL East in spite of a myriad of injuries and partially because the front end of their schedule is loaded with games against the Baltimore Orioles.Clint Frazier homered twice and had a career-high five RBIs, Gary Sánchez contributed a three-run drive and the Yankees kept up their assault on Baltimore pitching in an 11-4 rout Tuesday night.Nearly a fifth of New York's 47 games thus far have been against the Orioles, who are 6-17 at home and 15-33 overall, the worst record in the AL. The Yankees are 8-2 against the Orioles, have outscored them 73-40 and hit at least one home run in every game.New York is 5-0 at Camden Yards this season and has won an unprecedented 10 straight in Baltimore, opening a two-game division lead despite 17 players going on the injured list."I personally like hitting in this ballpark and it's a fun atmosphere whenever we're here," Frazier said. "Our team is really good, so it's just a matter... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Clint Frazier homered twice and had a career-high five RBIs, Gary Sánchez contributed a three-run drive and the New York Yankees kept up their assault on Baltimore pitching in an 11-4 rout Tuesday night.New York made it easy for Domingo Germán (9-1) to win his sixth consecutive start and increase his major league-leading victory total. The right-hander pitched only five innings and left with a 9-3 lead.David Hale worked the four innings to earn his first save since 2010 at Class A.New York is 8-2 against the Orioles this season, outscoring them 73-40 and going 5-0 at Camden Yards. Five of Frazier's eight home runs this season have come against Baltimore, and Sánchez and Gleyber Torres each have homered eight times against Baltimore pitching.Of the major league-high 100 home runs the Orioles have allowed, 28 have been hit by the Yankees.DJ LeMahieu had three hits and Sánchez finished with four RBIs for the AL East leaders, who have won seven of eight.Sánchez got it started,... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Hendricks needed just 81 pitches for a four-hitter, Anthony Rizzo homered for his third straight game and the Chicago Cubs beat the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 on Friday.The second-place Cubs won their season-high fifth in a row while cutting St. Louis' lead to 1½ games. The Cardinals have back-to-back losses after five consecutive victories.Hendricks (2-4) pitched his third career shutout and fourth complete game, his first since he shut out Miami on Aug. 1, 2016. The right-hander struck out three and did not walk a batter, after getting pounded in a loss at Arizona last week. Hendricks improved to 6-2 in 15 starts against St. Louis.Rizzo made it 3-0 with a three-run drive against Jack Flaherty (3-2) in the third and finished with three hits. Javier Baez added an RBI single in the seventh, and the Cubs opened a 10-game homestand with a win.Flaherty allowed three runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings.BRAVES 7, MARLINS 2MIAMI (AP) — Freddie Freeman and Brian... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Hendricks needed just 81 pitches for a four-hitter, Anthony Rizzo homered for his third straight game and the Chicago Cubs beat the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 on Friday.The second-place Cubs won their season-high fifth in a row while cutting St. Louis' lead to 1½ games. The Cardinals have back-to-back losses after five consecutive victories.Hendricks (2-4) pitched his third career shutout and fourth complete game, his first since he shut out Miami on Aug. 1, 2016. The right-hander struck out three and did not walk a batter, after getting pounded in a loss at Arizona last week. Hendricks improved to 6-2 in 15 starts against St. Louis.Rizzo made it 3-0 with a three-run drive against Jack Flaherty (3-2) in the third and finished with three hits. Javier Baez added an RBI single in the seventh, and the Cubs opened a 10-game homestand with a win.Flaherty allowed three runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings.BRAVES 7, MARLINS 2MIAMI (AP) — Freddie Freeman and Brian... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Kyle Hendricks needed just 81 pitches for a four-hitter, Anthony Rizzo homered for his third straight game and the Chicago Cubs beat the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 on Friday.The second-place Cubs won their season-high fifth in a row while cutting St. Louis' lead to 1½ games. The Cardinals have back-to-back losses after five consecutive victories.Hendricks (2-4) pitched his third career shutout and fourth complete game, his first since he shut out Miami on Aug. 1, 2016. The right-hander struck out three and did not walk a batter, after getting pounded in a loss at Arizona last week. Hendricks improved to 6-2 in 15 starts against St. Louis.Rizzo made it 3-0 with a three-run drive against Jack Flaherty (3-2) in the third and finished with three hits. Javier Baez added an RBI single in the seventh, and the Cubs opened a 10-game homestand with a win.Flaherty allowed three runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings.BRAVES 7, MARLINS 2MIAMI (AP) — Freddie Freeman and Brian... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Gary Sánchez hit his first career grand slam in a five-run fifth inning for his first hit following nearly two weeks on the injured list, and the New York Yankees beat the San Francisco Giants 6-4 on Saturday for their 10th win in 12 games.Sánchez had been 0 for 9 with seven strikeouts since returning Wednesday from a strained left calf. His batting average down to .220, he crushed a high sinker from Derek Holland (1-4) that traveled 467 feet deep into the left-field seats for a 6-0 lead.J.A. Happ (1-2) allowed five hits in seven scoreless innings. Aroldis Chapman struck out Pablo Sandoval for his fifth save.RAYS 2, RED SOX 1BOSTON (AP) — Yandy Diaz hit the second pitch from David Price (1-2) over the Green Monster and Mike Zunino added a fourth-inning RBI single off the Monster for the AL East-leading Rays.Charlie Morton (3-0) gave up two hits in six shutout innings. Five relievers completed a five-hitter, with Emilio Pagán pitching the ninth for his third save.Mookie... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:RAIN, RAIN GO AWAYThe Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox try again after Friday's series opener at Fenway Park was postponed by rain. Tampa Bay is on top of the AL East with a 16-9 record, but it was swept by Boston last weekend. Right-hander Josh Smith was slated to make his Red Sox debut, but he is going to be skipped in favor of David Price. The veteran left-hander is 5-4 with a 3.28 ERA in 15 career appearances against his first major league team. Charlie Morton starts for Tampa Bay.THOR VS. YELINoah Syndergaard tries to get back on track when he pitches for the New York Mets against Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers. Syndergaard hit his first homer of the season Sunday at St. Louis, but he also allowed four earned runs in five innings in a 6-4 loss to the Cardinals. The 26-year-old right-hander is 1-1 with a 6.88 ERA in his last three starts. Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, is off to a terrific start. But he is 3 for 17 with no... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Saturday:RAIN, RAIN GO AWAYThe Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox try again after Friday's series opener at Fenway Park was postponed by rain. Tampa Bay is on top of the AL East with a 16-9 record, but it was swept by Boston last weekend. Right-hander Josh Smith was slated to make his Red Sox debut, but he is going to be skipped in favor of David Price. The veteran left-hander is 5-4 with a 3.28 ERA in 15 career appearances against his first major league team. Charlie Morton starts for Tampa Bay.THOR VS. YELINoah Syndergaard tries to get back on track when he pitches for the New York Mets against Christian Yelich and the Milwaukee Brewers. Syndergaard hit his first homer of the season Sunday at St. Louis, but he also allowed four earned runs in five innings in a 6-4 loss to the Cardinals. The 26-year-old right-hander is 1-1 with a 6.88 ERA in his last three starts. Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, is off to a terrific start. But he is 3 for 17 with... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich hit three homers, including a pair of three-run shots, and drove in a career-high seven runs to power the Milwaukee Brewers past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-7 on Monday night.Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, hit his first three-run homer to cap a six-run second inning. After St. Louis tied it with three runs in the sixth, Yelich answered in the bottom half with a towering three-run blast to right off Mike Mayers (0-1).Yelich capped his night with his eighth homer this season, going deep to lead off the eighth. He also lined out in the first and was walked intentionally in the fourth.Junior Guerra (1-0) worked 1 2/3 innings for the victory. Josh Hader struck out the side in the ninth after allowing Marcell Ozuna's sixth home run to open the inning.DODGERS 4, REDS 3LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joc Pederson hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Los Angeles a comeback victory over Cincinnati in Clayton Kershaw's season debut.Raisel Iglesias (0-3) walked... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich hit three homers, including a pair of three-run shots, and drove in a career-high seven runs to power the Milwaukee Brewers past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-7 on Monday night.Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, hit his first three-run homer to cap a six-run second inning. After St. Louis tied it with three runs in the sixth, Yelich answered in the bottom half with a towering three-run blast to right off Mike Mayers (0-1).Yelich capped his night with his eighth homer this season, going deep to lead off the eighth. He also lined out in the first and was walked intentionally in the fourth.Junior Guerra (1-0) worked 1 2/3 innings for the victory. Josh Hader struck out the side in the ninth after allowing Marcell Ozuna's sixth home run to open the inning.METS 7, PHILLIES 6, 11 INNINGSPHILADELPHIA (AP) — Juan Lagares scored from second base on Michael Conforto's hard grounder in the 11th inning and New York beat Philadelphia.Lagares led off with an infield single against... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve hit two homers, Carlos Correa homered with three RBIs and the Houston Astros completed their first sweep of the New York Yankees with an 8-6 win Wednesday night.The Astros needed late-game comebacks to win the first two games of the series but used a four-run fifth inning to break the finale open and held on for their sixth straight win despite a big eighth inning by the Yankees.It's the first time since 2004 the Astros have swept a homestand of at least two series. They beat the Athletics three times this weekend before the Yankees arrived.Altuve, who has homered in three straight games, hit his first one off James Paxton (1-2) to tie it at 1 in the first inning after Brett Gardner hit a leadoff homer for New York.The Astros were up by 1 with no outs in the fifth inning when Altuve connected off Paxton again. The towering shot clanged off the light pole atop the wall in left field to make it 4-2.A single by Michael Brantley chased Paxton, who was replaced by... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve hit two homers, Carlos Correa homered with three RBIs and the Houston Astros completed their first-ever sweep of the New York Yankees with an 8-6 win Wednesday night.The Astros needed late-game comebacks to win the first two games of the series but used a four-run fifth inning to break the finale open and held on for their sixth straight win despite a big eighth inning by the Yankees.It's the first time since 2004 the Astros have swept a homestand of at least two series. They beat the Athletics three times this weekend before the Yankees arrived.Altuve, who has homered in three straight games, hit his first one off James Paxton (1-2) to tie it at 1 in the first inning after Brett Gardner hit a leadoff homer for New York.The Astros were up by 1 with no outs in the fifth inning when Altuve connected off Paxton again. The towering shot clanged off the light pole atop the wall in left field to make it 4-2.A single by Michael Brantley chased Paxton, who was replaced... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Gary Sánchez and the New York Yankees spent much Sunday, the entire weekend really, admiring balls flying out of Camden Yards.Sánchez hit three of the Yankees' seven home runs, their most on the road in more than a half-century, and New York routed Baltimore 15-3 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep."Opportunity knocks for some guys," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "Other guys need to play well and step up their game. That's nice to see."Clint Frazier homered twice and had four hits, a day after hitting a go-ahead three-run drive for his first big league homer since July 2017. Austin Romine and Gleyber Torres also went deep for the Yankees, who got back above 500 at 5-4.New York's first 18 runs of the series scored on homers, and the Yankees hit 14 over the three games, a record in a three-game series at Baltimore. New York had not hit seven homers on the road since May 30, 1961, at Boston, when Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris and Moose Skowron hit two each, and Yogi Berra... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Gary Sánchez hit three of the Yankees' seven home runs, their most on the road in more than a half-century, and New York routed the Baltimore Orioles 15-3 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.Clint Frazier homered twice and had four hits, a day after hitting a go-ahead three-run drive for his first big league homer since July 28, 2017. Austin Romine and Gleyber Torres also went deep for the Yankees, who got back above .500 at 5-4.New York's first 18 runs of the series scored on homers, and the Yankees hit 14 over the three games, a record in a three-game series at Baltimore. New York had not hit seven homers on the road since May 30, 1961, at Boston, when Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris and Moose Skowron hit two each, and Yogi Berra had one.New York has won eight straight games at Camden Yards, its longest winning streak against the Orioles on the road.Sánchez had 33 homers and was an All-Star in 2017 but hit just 18 in an injury slowed 2018, when he was in a season-long slump.He... [More]