review Page 710 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Padres suddenly shaky at closer ahead of encounter vs. White Sox
San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt has defended closer Robert Suarez lately but the question must be asked: Does a likely playoff-bound team with World Series dreams have a serious question to answer about Suarez?,The Padres' 3-2, 10-inning win over the Chicago White Sox on Friday went extra innin...

Dodgers' Walker Buehler gets postseason audition vs. Rockies
Devastated by injuries this season, particularly to their pitching staff, the Los Angeles Dodgers will use the final eight games of the regular season to line up a starting rotation for the postseason. ,Perhaps if they continue to get home runs from Shohei Ohtani, as they did again Friday for the MV...

Pitching duel in spotlight as Yankees, A's meet
A repeat of one of the season's strong pitchers' duels provides the marquee matchup Saturday night when Carlos Rodon and the New York Yankees continue their road series against JP Sears and the Oakland Athletics.,Needing a win to stay four games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles atop the American Leagu...

D-backs look to continue ascent in clash vs. Brewers
The visiting Arizona Diamondbacks will turn to Merrill Kelly on Saturday night as they look to clinch a four-game series against the playoff-bound Milwaukee Brewers. ,Kelly (4-0, 4.00 ERA) will oppose fellow right-hander Aaron Civale (7-8, 4.48). ,The Diamondbacks recorded a 7-4 victory Friday to no...

Guardians ready to celebrate in St. Louis
The Cleveland Guardians are on the brink of staging another celebration.,After clinching a playoff berth Thursday, the Guardians (90-65) reduced their magic number to one to clinch the American League Central title on Friday.,They can win the division crown Saturday with a Kansas City Royals loss or...

Kyle Tucker, Astros aim to take down Angels again
While one veteran continued to trend in the wrong direction relative to postseason roster construction, Astros right fielder Kyle Tucker took a crucial step toward showing he might be in prime condition should Houston qualify for the playoffs.,The Astros (84-70) reduced their magic number to claim t...

Mariners, still in playoff chase, visit Rangers again
The Seattle Mariners will try for the series win on Saturday night against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas, with a much bigger prize -- the final American League wild-card spot -- still in view. ,The Mariners improved to 9-2 against the Rangers this season with an 8-2 victory in Friday's serie...

Reeling Royals seek to halt slide in rematch vs. Giants
The Kansas City Royals have endured their two worst losing streaks of the season over the past three-plus weeks.,The dismal closing performance is hampering their bid to end a playoff drought that began after their 2015 World Series title. ,The Royals will try to at least temporarily halt their stru...

Facing Blue Jays, Rays' pitchers look to continue standout stretch
The Tampa Bay pitching staff will have another chance to show off Saturday afternoon when the Rays host the Toronto Blue Jays in St. Petersburg, Fla. ,In the past four games -- three against the Boston Red Sox and the series opener against Toronto -- Rays pitchers have allowed 15 hits and five r...

Braves turn to Max Fried in rematch vs. Marlins
Atlanta Braves left-hander Max Fried needs this game.,Heck, the Braves need the game, too.,Fried (9-10, 3.49 ERA) will start for Atlanta on Saturday afternoon against the host Miami Marlins.,The Marlins recorded a 4-3 victory on Friday night, damaging the Braves' playoff hopes.,Miami manager Skip Sc...

Phillies would clinch NL East with win over Mets
With a lopsided victory Friday night, the Philadelphia Phillies officially punched their ticket to the playoffs and inched closer to winning the National League East title.,The one-sided defeat finally slowed down the New York Mets and reminded them of their potentially precarious path to the postse...

Red Sox, likely minus Rafael Devers, hope to slow Twins
After gaining a cushion in the American League wild-card race with their series-opening win, the Minnesota Twins will look for another victory over the host Boston Red Sox on Saturday.,Minnesota (81-73), which broke through for a three-run 12th inning in its 4-2 triumph on Friday, will now turn to a...

After 5-homer barrage, Orioles seek encore vs. Tigers
When the Baltimore Orioles finally rediscovered their power stroke at the plate, the homers came in bunches.,The Orioles will be looking for the victories to multiply in a similar fashion.,Winners of two games in a row, the Orioles meet the visiting Detroit Tigers again Saturday in the middle contes...

Kyle Hendricks aims to extends Cubs' perfect mark vs. Nats
Kyle Hendricks is starting to feel like himself again.,The Cubs right-hander has put a rocky first half behind him to find his footing, and he will attempt to keep rolling on Saturday afternoon when Chicago continues a four-game series with the visiting Washington Nationals.,Since the start of Augus...

Elly De La Cruz, Reds look to steal another win from Pirates
At 22 years old and in only his second major league season, Elly De La Cruz is already in the history books.,With his big-league-leading 65th stolen base in an 8-3 win against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, the Cincinnati Reds shortstop became the third player in the modern era to record...

Premier League's best square off as Arsenal visits City
Arsenal will visit Manchester City on Sunday in a meeting of the Premier League's top two finishers in each of the past two seasons, but both clubs could be missing stars who have been central to their recent successes.,The sides are again first (City) and second (Arsenal) in the early-season table....

Still lacking a road win, St. Louis City pay visit to Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes have been eliminated from the MLS postseason picture, and St. Louis City is close to joining them as playoff outsiders.,The two worst teams in the Western Conference share the same field Saturday night when St. Louis City visits San Jose.,St. Louis City (5-11-13, 28 points) ...

Rapids, Toronto FC hunting bounce-back victory
The Colorado Rapids and Toronto FC will look to rebound from midweek losses when they meet in Commerce City, Colo., on Saturday.,Colorado (14-10-5, 47 points) is coming off a 4-1 defeat in Kansas City on Wednesday -- its first regular-season loss to Sporting in more than two years. It was also the R...

Galaxy can draw closer to clinching West's top seed vs. Whitecaps
The Los Angeles Galaxy will try to edge closer to securing the top spot in the Western Conference on Saturday night when they host the Vancouver Whitecaps in Carson, Calif.,The Galaxy (16-7-7, 55 points) took charge of their West fate by rallying from two goals down to a 4-2 victory over LAFC last S...

Evander-led Timbers aim for big win vs. Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake will face the Portland Timbers on Saturday night in Sandy, Utah, in a meeting of two credible dark horses to represent the Western Conference in this year's MLS Cup.,While Los Angeles FC and the Los Angeles Galaxy get most of the attention, Salt Lake (14-7-8, 50 points) continued its ...