LANCE LYNN

Toronto left-hander Robbie Ray bounced back from a dismal season to win the AL Cy Young Award and Milwaukee righty Corbin Burnes returned from a bout of COVID-19 to win the NL’s top pitching prize.

Boosted by a sharp start from Ian Anderson, Braves pitchers have now thrown 19 straight scoreless innings against Milwaukee in the NL Division Series.

Lance McCullers Jr. pitched scoreless ball into the seventh inning and Yordan Alvarez homered to lead the Houston Astros to a 6-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox in Game 1 of their best-of-five AL Division Series.

The Houston Astros opened their 2021 postseason with a bang, dominating the Chicago White Sox in Game 1.

Two septuagenarians will be on the bench when 77-year-old Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa and the Chicago White Sox face the Houston Astros and 72-year-old skipper Dusty Baker in their playoff opener Thursday.

The 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers put their season on the line in the NL wild-card game against the red-hot St. Louis Cardinals.

The 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers put their season on the line in the NL wild-card game against the red-hot St. Louis Cardinals.

The Chicago White Sox think pitcher Carlos Rodón will be healthy enough to help them in the playoffs after the All-Star left-hander was limited down the regular-season stretch.

The Chicago White Sox clinched their first AL Central title since 2008 with a 7-2 win over the Cleveland Indians in a doubleheader opener behind two home runs by Tim Anderson.

Max Scherzer has dominated since being traded to the Dodgers, and tries to extend his success streak when he pitches at Cincinnati on Saturday in a matchup with playoff implications.

Dodgers lefty Julio Urías tries to add to his major league-leading win total when he pitches at St. Louis.

Yasmani Grandal homered twice and drove in eight runs in his return from the injured list, and the Chicago White Sox beat the sloppy Chicago Cubs 17-13.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated trends in how people are watching television differently.

Tim Anderson hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning into the cornfield to end the Field of Dreams game in cinematic fashion.

The New York Yankees, the Chicago White Sox and fans all over were in awe at the scene at the Field of Dreams game.

The diamond is built, and now they will come -- José Abreu, Aaron Judge and all, to Iowa.

Luke Voit had a two-run single in the first inning and the New York Yankees beat Kansas City 5-2 on Wednesday for their 12th straight series victory over the Royals.

Brian Goodwin led off the 10th inning with a two-run homer, and the Chicago White Sox regrouped after Craig Kimbrel blew a three-run lead against his former team to beat the rebuilding crosstown Cubs 8-6 at Wrigley Field.

In-state interleague matchups take center stage in several locales Friday as the Chicago White Sox play the Cubs in a Wrigley Field matinee, the Los Angeles Dodgers host the Angels, and the Kansas City Royals visit the St. Louis Cardinals.

Jeff McNeil laced his second go-ahead hit in two days Monday night, when his RBI double in the fifth inning sent the New York Mets to a 1-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves and a doubleheader split.

The Chicago White Sox and Brewers close a weekend full of impressive pitching matchups in Milwaukee with arguably the best of the bunch Sunday night.

Nelson Cruz is headed to a contender in the biggest deal yet ahead of the July 30 trade deadline.

Major league home run leader Shohei Ohtani is set to pitch for the Angels in his first outing since tossing a perfect first inning in the All-Star Game.

Lucas Giolito pitched a three-hitter, José Abreu launched a three-run homer and the Chicago White Sox beat the Houston Astros 10-1.

The Chicago White Sox and All-Star right-hander Lance Lynn have agreed to a $38 million, two-year contract extension.

The Shohei Ohtani Show at Coors Field starts with the All-Star Home Run Derby, with fans wondering how far the Angels’ two-way sensation and other sluggers can hit the ball in Denver’s thin air.

First-time All-Star Kyle Gibson takes an AL-best 1.98 ERA and a 6-0 record into the Texas Rangers' game against the Detroit Tigers.

Four Houston Astros were among those selected to Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game showcasing the season’s best in the sport.

Shohei Ohtani achieved a first in the near century history of baseball’s All-Star Game: selection as both a hitter and a pitcher.

Astros rookie Robel Garcia tied a career high with three RBIs, Carlos Correa homered and Houston beat Lance Lynn and the Chicago White Sox 7-3.

Yordan Álvarez had a game-ending double in the ninth inning for his third hit, lifting the Houston Astros to a 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the bashing Toronto Blue Jays try to keep up their power surge at Fenway Park.

New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole has found himself in a sticky situation.

Rookie Yermín Mercedes hit a game-ending single, Yasmani Grandal homered twice and the Chicago White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 9-8.

Billy Hamilton hit a solo home run, Jose Abreu hit a two-run homer, and Lance Lynn pitched five scoreless innings as the White Sox completed a sweep of their doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles with a 3-1 victory.

White Sox manager Tony La Russa wound up a winner in his first game against the team that ensured his Hall of Fame induction as Chicago beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 behind Lance Lynn’s arm and Andrew Vaughn’s bat.

The birds-on-the-bat uniforms, the players in the other dugout, the opposing manager, it all looked familiar to Tony La Russa.

Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa will see plenty of familiar faces when his AL Central leaders host his longtime team, the St. Louis Cardinals.

An update on Mike Trout is expected after the Los Angeles Angels star left Monday night’s win over Cleveland because of a strained right calf.

Both baseball teams from New York are away from home this week and each one is having a painful road trip.

Shane Bieber struck out 11, setting a major league record in the process and pitching the Cleveland Indians past the Chicago White Sox 5-3.

Yermín Mercedes got his first five major league hits and drove in four runs, and José Abreu hit a grand slam for the Chicago White Sox in their 12-8 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

A day after Tatis walked off the field during an exhibition game in a worrisome scene, the Padres said the discomfort in his left shoulder had improved. In fact he was lobbying to get in the lineup today, so I thought that was very encouraging,” Tingler said. I think everybody’s kind of expecting him to be back in the lineup in the next day or two. AdMichael Pineda was roughed up in his second start for Minnesota, surrendering five runs on nine hits in five innings. Ian Anderson went six innings in his fourth start, allowing four runs on eight hits and a walk.

“I don’t even think I’ve had a 13 pitch at-bat in my career.”Hicks was scheduled to pitch one inning. Carlos Martínez worked four innings in the start for St. Louis, allowing two runs and five hits. Pittsburgh starter Steven Brault allowed three runs on five hits and a walk in three innings. YANKEES 5, BLUE JAYS 1New York starter Deivi García gave up one hit and an unearned run in three innings. Dean Kremer allowed a run on three hits, walked two and struck out four in the start for Baltimore.

The 27-year-old says his power surge through the first two weeks of exhibition games is for real. He's had a good start with seven hits in his first 14 at-bats, including three homers and three doubles. He's shown dominant stuff at different points throughout his career and struck out a career-high 235 batters in 2019. The 24-year-old has been a top prospect for several years and hit .350 with nine homers in 2019 at Triple-A Albuquerque. The durable right-hander pitched an MLB-high 84 innings for the Rangers last season and had a 6-3 record with a 3.32 ERA.

TWINS 1, ORIOLES 0 (7 INNINGS)Minnesota ace Kenta Maeda allowed one hit in three innings, striking out four in his second start. Baltimore's Dean Kremer fared better in his second start, allowing a hit and a walk in three scoreless innings. Deivi García pitched three shutout innings in his second start for the Yankees. Nick Pivetta made his second start for Boston, allowing a run on three hits with three strikeouts in three innings. Alex Wood worked two innings in the start for San Francisco and gave up a home run to Omar Narvaez.

The Chicago White Sox have finalized a $54 million, three-year deal with Oakland Athletics closer Liam Hendriks, another big move as they set their sights on a championship run. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)CHICAGO – Liam Hendriks saw the talent the Chicago White Sox had and knew he wanted to join the team. Chicago finalized a $54 million, three-year deal with the former Oakland Athletics' closer, another big move as the White Sox set their sights on a championship run. I want to pitch everyday.”Hahn acknowledged the White Sox are taking a risk, given Hendriks' age. The White Sox made the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and ended a string of seven losing seasons.

The Chicago White Sox acquired a big workhorse for their starting rotation. Lance Lynn was traded from the Texas Rangers to the White Sox on Tuesday for right-hander Dane Dunning and lefty Avery Weems. The on-the-rise White Sox are coming off their first playoff appearance since 2008, going 35-25 and finishing tied for second in the AL Central before losing to Oakland in their wild-card series. While the Rangers didn't move Lynn at the Aug. 31 trade deadline, they did send All-Star lefty Mike Minor to Oakland. Weems, 23, was 5-4 with a 2.09 ERA over 14 starts in the White Sox minor league system in 2019 after he was selected on the sixth round of the amateur draft.

Atlanta Braves' Austin Riley celebrates a run home against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the ninth inning in Game 1 of a baseball National League Championship Series Monday, Oct. 12, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. Freddie Freeman went deep for Atlanta in the first and Kiké Hernández led off the Dodgers fifth with a homer. Game 2 is Tuesday night, with Braves rookie Ian Anderson set to face three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw. That was about 28% of the 40,518 capacity at the new Texas Rangers ballpark where the retractable roof was open for the first NLCS game played at a neutral site. SHORT HOPSIt was the fourth time overall that both teams entered Game 1 of the NLCS without a postseason loss.

(AP) – Alex Bregman’s three extra-base hits included one of Houston’s four home runs, and the Astros trimmed their magic number to one for clinching the American League’s last playoff spot with a 12-4 win over the Texas Rangers on Thursday night. Josh Reddick also had three hits, capped by a two-run homer in the ninth. The Astros (29-28) have to win only one of their three remaining games against Texas to secure second place in the AL West, and a spot in baseball’s expanded playoff during the pandemic-shortened season. He held the Rangers without a run until Willie Calhoun's two-run homer in the sixth. Bregman, Springer, Altuve and Reddick have been mainstays for the Astros in their recent playoff runs, including the 2017 World Series title and another AL pennant last year.

Alex Bregman hits a home run in the sixth inning against the Texas Rangers at Minute Maid Park on September 17, 2019 in Houston, Texas. HOUSTON - Justin Verlander picked up his major league-leading 19th win and Yuli Gurriel, Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez all homered to help the Houston Astros to a 4-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Tuesday night. Verlander (19-6) added to his case for the AL Cy Young Award by striking out eight and scattering four singles over six scoreless innings. The Rangers haven't scored more than three runs in one of his starts since his last win on Aug. 2. Astros: RHP Gerrit Cole (17-5, 2.62), who leads the majors with 292 strikeouts, is scheduled to start for Houston on Wednesday.

Michael Brantley #23 of the Houston Astros hits a two run home run in the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Minute Maid Park on July 21, 2019. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)HOUSTON - Michael Brantley homered twice, Jose Altuve also went deep and the Houston Astros beat the struggling Texas Rangers 5-3 on Sunday for their fifth straight victory. Nomar Mazara hit a solo homer in the sixth off Josh James, and Logan Forsythe had a solo homer in the ninth. Lance Lynn (12-6) matched a career high with 12 strikeouts in seven innings. Cole struck out 11 and allowed one run in seven innings last time out Wednesday against the Angels.