Cleveland’s baseball team changing name from Indians to Guardians
CLEVELAND — Known as the Indians since 1915, Cleveland’s Major League Baseball team will be called Guardians. The ballclub announced the name change Friday — effective at the end of the 2021 season — with a video on Twitter narrated by actor and team fan Tom Hanks. The decision ends...
Rays land slugger Nelson Cruz in trade with TwinsVideo
CLEVELAND — Nelson Cruz packed up his big bat and joined a contender. The Tampa Bay Rays acquired Cruz, one of baseball’s most proven sluggers, in a four-player trade with the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night. Moments before opening a four-game series at Cleveland, the Rays, who entered the night...
Nationals GM doesn’t plan to have Starlin Castro this season
WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo says he doesn’t plan on having infielder Starlin Castro back with the team this season. Castro was placed on administrative leave July 16 by MLB under its domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. Rizzo, speaking with a group of reporters...
Yankee Stadium fan banned from MLB parks for hitting Red Sox OF Alex VerdugoVideo
NEW YORK — The fan who hit Boston Red Sox left fielder Alex Verdugo with a baseball thrown from the Yankee Stadium stands has been banned for life from attending big league games. The decision was confirmed Sunday by spokesmen for both the New York Yankees and Major League Baseball....
Padres, Nationals recall harrowing scene after shots outside parkVideo
When the gunshots started to echo all around Nationals Park, San Diego Padres star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. quickly thought about the team’s family members and friends in the seats. Tatis bolted from the bench down the left-field line Saturday night, helped open a gate to the stands and began...
Padres-Nats game suspended after shooting outside DC stadium
WASHINGTON — The game between the San Diego Padres and Washington was suspended in the sixth inning Saturday night after police said there was a shooting outside Nationals Park. Two people were shot, said Dustin Sternbeck, a Metropolitan Police Department spokesman. Investigators believe, based on preliminary information, that one of...
Mets’ Francisco Lindor out indefinitely, Jacob deGrom has forearm tightnessVideo
New York Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor is out indefinitely with a strained oblique, and ace Jacob deGrom is sidelined with forearm tightness, the NL East leaders announced Saturday in their latest round of health setbacks. The Mets didn’t put a timetable on Lindor’s return, but such injuries often can...
Covid-19 surges hit Yankees, Rockies after All-Star breakVideo
NEW YORK — For the first time in months, covid-19 is creating chaos around Major League Baseball. The New York Yankees and Colorado Rockies are dealing with coronavirus outbreaks sidelining a total of 10 players and two coaches, including New York slugger Aaron Judge and Colorado manager Bud Black, as...
Blue Jays get OK on return to Canada starting July 30Video
TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays were given approval from the Canadian government Friday for an exemption on border restrictions that would allow them to play in Canada later this month. The Blue Jays had asked the federal government to allow them to play at Rogers Centre starting July 30...
Nationals’ Starlin Castro placed on administrative leave by MLBVideo
WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals infielder Starlin Castro was placed on administrative leave Friday as part of the joint Major League Baseball-MLB Players Association domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. Castro can be on administrative leave for up to seven days barring an extension. He is paid during that...
Braves look to bolster outfield, acquire Joc Pederson in trade with CubsVideo
CHICAGO — The Atlanta Braves acquired Joc Pederson in a trade with the Chicago Cubs on Thursday, bolstering their outfield after losing Ronald Acuna Jr. to a season-ending knee injury. Atlanta sent minor league first baseman Bryce Ball to Chicago for Pederson, who is batting .230 with 11 homers and...
Yankees-Red Sox postponed after New York positive covid tests
NEW YORK — The Yankees’ post-All-Star break opener against the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night was postponed because of positive covid-19 tests within New York’s organization. Major League Baseball said the postponement was to allow for more testing and contact tracing. New York was among the first major league...
AP source: Jays won’t learn if they’ll play at home soonVideo
TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays won’t find out by this weekend if they will get permission from the federal government to play in Canada soon, a government official familiar with the talks told the Associated Press on Wednesday. A team spokeswoman said the club continues to work with the...
On deck for MLB’s 2nd half: Trades, playoff races and prizesVideo
SAN FRANCISCO — Across the globe, everybody is watching Shohei Ohtani in awe and intrigue. MLBl likely loves the attention from around the world surrounding the Angels’ two-way star and the spotlight he’s brought to the sport. Can Ohtani stage an encore to a sensational first half? He leads the...
Like father, like son: Vlad Guerrero Jr. shines as All-Star
DENVER — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. admired his 468-foot screamer for a moment before bouncing into his triumphant home run trot. Quick out of the park, slow out of the box, Guerrero became the youngest All-Star Game MVP after driving in a pair of runs in the American League’s 5-2 win...
Sho-case: Shohei Ohtani gets All-Star win for AL, bats, too
DENVER — A Sho-case for Shohei Ohtani became a grand stage for Vladimir Guerrero Jr., too. Ohtani unleashed his 100 mph heat while pitching a perfect inning for the win in becoming baseball’s first two-way All-Star, Guerrero rocked Coors Field with a 468-foot home run and the American League breezed...
Gerrit Cole out of MLB All-Star Game; Andfrew Kittredge, Taylor Rogers in
DENVER — There were a pair of late additions to the American League All-Star team: Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Andrew Kittredge and Minnesota Twins left-hander Taylor Rogers. They replaced New York Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole and Seattle Mariners left-hander Yusei Kikuchi. Cole said the Yankees did not want him to...
Rob Manfred: Banning defensive shifts would be restoring MLB
DENVER — Banning or limiting defensive shifts would be an effort to restore MLB to how it was played before offense was suffocated by analytics, according to baseball commissioner Rob Manfred. Speaking to the Baseball Writers’ Association of America before Tuesday’s All-Star Game, Manfred said seven-inning doubleheaders and starting extra...
Vincentian, UConn standout Kyler Fedko drafted by Twins
Vincentian graduate Kyler Fedko, who found a power stroke this season at the University of Connecticut after hitting .412 in 13 games in 2020, was chosen by the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday in the 12th round of the MLB Draft. He was the 369th overall selection. Fedko, 21, was the...
7-inning twinbills, extra-inning runners likely gone in 2022
DENVER — Seven-inning doubleheaders and starting extra innings with runners on second are likely to be dropped by Major League Baseball after this season. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, speaking Tuesday to the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, said he views both innovations as specific to the coronavirus pandemic. They were...
Mets’ Pete Alonso repeats as Home Run Derby champion
DENVER — Pete Alonso of the New York Mets became the third back-to-back Home Run Derby champion, beating No. 6 seed Trey Mancini in the final. Alonso and his blue-and-orange bat went 6 for 6 in a 28-second stretch to give him 23 homers in the final round after Mancini...
Latrobe alumnus Zach Kokoska taken in 10th round of MLB draft by Rockies
Four years after leading Latrobe to its first WPIAL and PIAA baseball championships, Zach Kokoska took the first step toward a professional career Monday when he was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 10th round of the MLB draft. The 290th overall pick, Kokoska was second-team all-Big 12 and...
Marlins draft former Fox Chapel, Seton Hill left-hander Patrick Monteverde
Patrick Monteverde’s left arm has carried him to several far-flung places — from Fox Chapel to Virginia Beach, Va., to Greensburg and, eventually, to Lubbock, Texas. But he hopes to settle in Miami after the Marlins drafted him 239th overall Monday in the eighth round of the MLB Draft. Monteverde...
Angels’ Shohei Ohtani a 2-way starter in All-Star Game; Pirates’ Bryan Reynolds, Adam Frazier in NL lineupVideo
DENVER — Shohei Ohtani will be the American League’s starting pitcher in Tuesday’s night’s All-Star Game and will bat leadoff, too, as the designated hitter in another landmark for the two-way Japanese sensation. A 27-year-old in his fourth major league season with the Los Angeles Angels, Ohtani is the first...
Bethel Park’s Mason Miller taken in 3rd round of MLB draft by Athletics
It can seem like a long road from Bethel Park to the majors. For Mason Miller, the path there has taken a circuitous route. But a big step in that direction came Monday when he was drafted in the third round by the Oakland Athletics. A 6-foot-5 right-handed pitcher, Miller...
