While Diamondbacks thriving in postseason atmosphere, another hostile one awaits for NLCS in PhillyVideo
PHOENIX — Merrill Kelly surfed the internet to find a few tickets, threw on a hoodie and hat so he wouldn’t be recognized and took his brother, Reid, to Game 3 of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park last year, where the two watched Philadelphia hit five homers in...
Bryce Harper shines as Phillies aim for 2nd straight World SeriesVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Bryce Harper has manhandled postseason pressure with the ease of one of his swings — bat tucked behind his helmet, short ground step, then, whack! — against a slider. He has crushed it. The drama lies in the postseason not so much in what Harper will do once...
2020s starting to feel like 1990s for Braves after another playoff flop
ATLANTA — The 2020s are starting to feel like the 1990s for the Atlanta Braves. Another dazzling regular season. Another flop in the postseason. After tying a major-league record with 307 homers, the slugging Braves went down meekly to the rival Philadelphia Phillies in the NL Division Series for the...
Big-dollar investment in Seager and Semien has boosted Rangers from 102 losses to the ALCSVideo
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers were coming off a 102-loss season when they invested a half-billion dollars in free agents Corey Seager and Marcus Semien. Now with their All-Star middle infielders at the top of the batting order for the second straight year, the Rangers are getting ready for...
Rangers’ Max Scherzer says he’s ready to go; ALCS roster status uncertain
ARLINGTON, Texas — Max Scherzer declared himself “ready to go” after throwing another bullpen session and doing fielding drills Friday, two days before the Texas Rangers open the AL Championship Series. The Rangers haven’t said if the three-time Cy Young Award winner will be on their ALCS roster, and that...
Brewers’ Brandon Woodruff has shoulder surgery, could miss 2024 season
MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff could miss the 2024 season after surgery Friday to repair the anterior capsule in his throwing shoulder. The Brewers said Woodruff is expected to sit out most, if not all, of next season. The injury caused the two-time All-Star to miss the Brewers’...
Castellanos hits 2 homers, powers Phillies past Braves 3-1 and into NLCS for 2nd straight seasonVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Nick Castellanos became the first player to hit multiple homers in consecutive postseason games, sending the Philadelphia Phillies to a 3-1 victory in Game 4 of their NL Division Series on Thursday night that knocked the 104-win Atlanta Braves out of the playoffs for the second straight year....
D-backs slug 4 homers in record-setting barrage, sweep Dodgers with win in Game 3 of NLDS
PHOENIX — The hard-hitting Arizona Diamondbacks rode a record-setting barrage of solo homers in the third inning to a 4-2 win in Game 3 of the NL Division Series on Wednesday night, sweeping the 100-win Los Angeles Dodgers out of the playoffs. The D-backs return to the NL Championship Series...
Jose Abreu homers again to power Astros past Twins, into 7th straight ALCSVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — José Abreu homered for the third time in two games, a two-run rocket in the fourth inning that launched the Houston Astros to their seventh straight AL Championship Series appearance with a 3-2 win that eliminated the Minnesota Twins in Game 4 of their AL Division Series on...
Bryce Harper slugs 2 more HRs as Phillies pound Braves in Game 3 of NLDSVideo
PHILADELPHIA — When gossip spread among the Phillies that Bryce Harper — of all the superstars to poke — had been laughed at inside the Braves clubhouse, his teammates dared the slugger to deliver. “They looked at me,” Harper said, “and they were like, ‘What are you going to do?’”...
Bryce Elder gets the nod for Braves in Game 3 of NLDS vs. Phillies
PHILADELPHIA — The Atlanta Braves picked right-hander Bryce Elder to start Game 3 of the NL Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday. Elder (12-4, 3.81) struggled down the stretch after pitching a career-high 174 2/3 innings in his first full season in the big leagues. But the Braves...
Corey Seager still going deep in Texas, helps send Rangers to ALCS with sweep of 101-win OriolesVideo
ARLINGTON, Texas — Corey Seager is still going deep in Texas during the postseason. This time he is doing it for the Rangers, who are streaking through October. Seager and Adolis García homered early, Nathan Eovaldi pitched seven smooth innings in another playoff clincher and Texas completed an AL Division...
Column: MLB’s playoff format penalizing top seeds with all that time offVideo
The Baltimore Orioles won an AL-leading 101 games during the regular season. The Los Angeles Dodgers also reached triple digits in victories. Those impressive accomplishments earned both teams a bye in the opening round of the playoffs. Clearly, the time off did them no good. Tossing in the 104-win Atlanta...
Astros hit 4 homers, with a pair by Abreu, to rout Twins and take 2-1 ALDS leadVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — José Abreu hit a three-run homer for Houston in a four-run first inning against Sonny Gray and piled on with a two-run shot in the ninth, powering the Astros past the Minnesota Twins, 9-1, on Tuesday for a 2-1 lead in their AL Division Series. Yordan Alvarez hit...
MLB playoffs back at the Globe with Texas Rangers part of them, and not neutral 3 years after covid
There was a World Series and other postseason games played at Globe Life Field even before Texas Rangers fans got to see their own team do anything in the stadium with a retractable roof. And who knew back in 2020 that World Series MVP Corey Seager had already picked out...
Former baseball MVP Steve Garvey joins California U.S. Senate race
LOS ANGELES — Former baseball MVP Steve Garvey joined the race Tuesday to succeed the late California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, giving Republicans a splash of star quality on the ballot in a heavily Democratic state where the GOP hasn’t won a Senate race in 35 years. Garvey, 74, launched his...
Diamondbacks jump all over another Dodgers starter and beat LA for 2-0 lead in NLDS
LOS ANGELES — Not many people picked the Arizona Diamondbacks to beat Milwaukee in the NL Wild Card Series. Even fewer pegged them to take down the 100-win Los Angeles Dodgers in the Division Series. Surprise! After a rough ending to the regular season, the upstart youngsters from the desert...
Braves rally for win over Phillies after game-ending double play
ATLANTA — After being held hitless into the sixth inning, the Atlanta Braves rallied for an improbable 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on two-run homers by Travis d’Arnaud and Austin Riley and a game-ending double play for the ages to even the NL Division Series at one win apiece...
Rangers only 1 victory away from another LCS appearance after beating Orioles to up 2-0 in ALDSVideo
BALTIMORE — Mitch Garver hit a third-inning grand slam and the Texas Rangers won their fourth consecutive game to start this postseason, pushing the Baltimore Orioles to the brink of elimination with an 11-8 victory in Game 2 of the AL Division Series on Sunday. The wild-card Rangers have outscored...
Braves’ Sean Murphy called for interference that brings in run
ATLANTA — Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy was called for interference in the eighth inning of their NL Division Series opener against Philadelphia on Saturday night, bringing home a run for the Phillies. The call was made by plate umpire Brian O’Nora with J.T. Realmuto batting, the bases loaded and...
Dodgers LHP Clayton Kershaw chased in 1st inning of NLDS
LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw crashed out of Game 1 of the NL Division Series, getting tagged for six runs and recording just one out against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday night. The three-time Cy Young Award winner never had made a start in which he...
Bryce Harper homers, Phillies shut down slugging Braves in Game 1 of NLDS
ATLANTA — Bryce Harper homered, Ranger Suarez and the Philadelphia bullpen stifled baseball’s most prolific offense and the Phillies blanked the 104-win Atlanta Braves, 3-0, in Game 1 of the NL Division Series on Saturday night. In a playoff rematch between division rivals, the East champion Braves find themselves in...
Justin Verlander holds Twins scoreless as Astros win ALDS opener
HOUSTON — Justin Verlander pitched six shutout innings, Yordan Alvarez homered twice and the Houston Astros held on for a 6-4 win over the Minnesota Twins in their AL Division Series opener Saturday. Jose Altuve hit a leadoff home run, and Alvarez had three RBIs as the defending World Series...
Rangers’ shaky bullpen escapes vs. Orioles to open ALDS
BALTIMORE — Andrew Heaney and Dane Dunning helped the Texas Rangers reach the sixth inning with a lead, and the ’ maligned bullpen held on through some anxious moments for a 3-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles in Game 1 of their AL Division Series on Saturday. Josh Jung homered...
Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara to miss 2024 after Tommy John surgery
MIAMI — Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara will miss the 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on Friday to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. “I give this game my all,” the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner said in a social media post. “I...