SEATTLE — Mitch Haniger earned the fastball in the strike zone.

With the bases loaded and no outs in the sixth inning, right-hander Scott McGough was simply trying to survive a situation he didn’t expect to be in, having replaced injured Arizona Diamondbacks starter Zac Gallen two batters earlier.

Haniger knew McGough was searching for a ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — Calamity followed the San Diego Padres home.

A day after losing a five-run lead in the eighth inning in Colorado, the Padres went down big early and lost 9-3 to the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night at Petco Park.

The Phillies battered Joe Musgrove from the start, with Kyle Schwarber leading off the game with a high fly ball ...Read more

ANAHEIM, Calif. — It took the Los Angeles Angels 10 batters before one reached base against Bailey Ober on Friday and 17 batters before they produced their first hit.

Ober seemingly presented hitters with two options: Swing early in the count, when he often produced weak contact, or hitters could take their chances trying to hit his changeup,...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO – With one swing, Patrick Bailey belted the ball over the right field wall and should have erased any doubts that San Francisco made the right choice when deciding to roll with Bailey as the everyday catcher.

With one-time catcher of the future Joey Bart watching from the Pittsburgh Pirates dugout in his return to Oracle, it was...Read more

Nothing is imminent, but The Martian is getting closer to game action.

Aaron Boone said that Jasson Domínguez, recovering from UCL surgery, is now throwing from 135 feet, according to NJ.com’s Max Goodman. He’s also been taking batting practice.

Boone added that Domínguez is “a few weeks” away from getting in games, though the ...Read more

NEW YORK — A momentous Mets debut for J.D. Martinez wasn’t enough to lift an otherwise uneven performance from his new teammates.

Martinez recorded two hits and an RBI in Friday night’s 4-2 loss to the Cardinals at Citi Field, where the six-time All-Star finally suited up after signing with the Mets in late March.

Batting fifth as the ...Read more

BALTIMORE — The Orioles were three outs away Friday night from improving to 6-0 in games started by Corbin Burnes, but closer Craig Kimbrel had trouble recording them.

Kimbrel entered with a one-run lead in the ninth against the visiting Oakland Athletics, hoping to slam the door and continue the stellar start to his Orioles tenure. But he ...Read more

CHICAGO — Once the afternoon rain stopped, Friday’s game on the South Side of Chicago seemed like the fitting place for the Rays, who have sputtered through the first month of the season, to start getting right.

They came in with the momentum of Wednesday’s win over the Tigers, and the rest from Thursday’s day off.

They had their No. 1...Read more

BOSTON — Had things played out differently, Shota Imanaga could have been pitching Friday night in a Red Sox uniform.

After a successful eight-season run in Japan, the 30-year-old left-hander announced his intention to make the jump to MLB this past offseason. The Red Sox were among the teams that reached out, and club officials held a Zoom ...Read more

TORONTO — The boos rained down before Shohei Ohtani’s name was even announced.

They only got louder as he trotted around the bases.

In December, Toronto Blue Jays fans thought they were about to win Ohtani’s free-agent sweepstakes— teased by online reports that the two-way star was flying to Toronto, and likely to sign with the team.

...Read more

DETROIT — Adam Frazier raced to the warning track in the third inning. The Kansas City Royals outfielder was in pursuit of a runaway baseball off the bat of Detroit Tigers outfielder Parker Meadows.

Meadows crushed a 91.8-mph fastball towards the Modelo beer sign plastered on the right-field wall at Comerica Park. Frazier, who was making his ...Read more

BALTIMORE — The last time the Orioles played a Friday night game at Camden Yards, they handed out T-shirts with Jackson Holliday’s face on them. When they take the field Friday, Holliday won’t be there.

The Orioles on Friday optioned Holliday, baseball’s consensus No. 1 prospect, to Triple-A Norfolk amid the 20-year-old’s struggles to...Read more

NEW YORK — Nick Allen doesn’t share Aaron Boone’s last name, but the Athletics shortstop is part of the manager’s family.

Allen is married to Boone’s niece Savannah, the daughter of former All-Star Bret Boone. Allen doesn’t have the accolades of the Boone brothers, their father, Bob, or grandfather, Ray, but he’s been embraced by ...Read more

CHICAGO — “Where’s the phenom?” coach Willie Harris yelled outside the Chicago Cubs clubhouse Thursday morning.

Moments later, Pete Crow-Armstrong appeared from out of the blue and followed Harris down the tunnel toward the cages.

One of the most touted Cubs prospects in a room increasingly full of them, Crow-Armstrong went hitless in ...Read more

The Red Sox went 4-2 on their second road trip of the year, sweeping the Pirates in Pittsburgh and avoiding getting swept by the Guardians in Cleveland.

After their first homestand culminated in a blemished 3-7 mark to begin the Fenway season, it was a much-needed palate cleanser.

But the trip ended on a period rather than an exclamation point...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Royals grounds crew descended on the tarp ahead of the top of the sixth inning and began rolling it onto the field Thursday.

But Blue Jays manager John Schneider emerged from the dugout and asked the umpires to delay the rain delay at Kauffman Stadium. The grounds crew pushed the tarp back into its place down the right-...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — The uppercut fist pump from Luis Castillo has become a trademark celebration after striking a hitter out.

Given his propensity to punch out hitters, Castillo seems to have developed levels of fist pumps based on the intensity of the upper cut and length of the post-punch pose that can vary depending on the moment.

So with ...Read more

CINCINNATI — After a few days on the paternity list, Bryce Harper returned to the Phillies clubhouse on Wednesday night. He was active ahead of Thursday’s game against the Reds, and didn’t waste any at-bats. With two outs in the top of the third inning and a runner on second, Harper launched a two-run home run 384 feet to right-center ...Read more