KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The audacious Joyce Hall was all of 18 years old when he reckoned his Nebraska hometown wasn’t big enough to realize the potential of his family’s wholesaling Norfolk Post Card Co.

So on to Omaha it was going to be. But whether by happenstance or fate, a Kansas City cigar salesman warming himself in the store one day ...Read more

HARTFORD, Conn. — This dream, in its way, was born with Connor Harris.

“I came home from the hospital with a Yankee uniform on,” Harris says. “My Dad started calling me ‘Jeet’ when I was literally still in the hospital. So all my hometown friends in Avon, they still call me ‘Jeet,’ short for Derek Jeter.”

So as he played ...Read more

NEW YORK — Don’t look now, but the Mets have won two games in a row.

A 10-8 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday night at Citi Field gave the Mets their first series win in four tries. They won in a way that only the Mets could: They used two starting pitchers and one long reliever; they made mistakes on the basepaths, then made up for ...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — On the night the NFL draft began, the Texas Rangers picked on an almost-Clemson QB.

The Rangers jumped all over Bubba Chandler, the one-time college football recruit turned Pirates rookie, tagging the right-hander with six runs in four innings in a 6-1 Rangers win on Thursday night at Globe Life Field.

Chandler struggled ...Read more

PHOENIX — Andrew Benintendi hit a tie-breaking, three-run home run in the ninth inning Thursday, leading the Chicago White Sox to a 4-1 victory against the Arizona Diamondbacks in front of 20,405 at Chase Field.

The Sox went 4-2 on their six-game trip, taking two of three against the Athletics and Diamondbacks.

“Obviously going on a road ...Read more

BOSTON — The last time Cam Schlittler pitched at Fenway Park, he wore a Red Sox uniform.

With a crimson batting practice jersey, white pants and a stylized “B” on his cap, the childhood Red Sox fan took the same mound that some of his favorites, including Clay Buchholz and Chris Sale, once worked off of. This was back when Schlittler was ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The Dodgers tout Yoshinobu Yamamoto as a Cy Young award contender, and every one of his starts has been a quality start, including the one he made here Tuesday.

The Dodgers talk up Shohei Ohtani as a Cy Young award contender, and Ohtani has given up one run all season. He pitched six shutout innings here Wednesday.

But the ...Read more

CHICAGO — It doesn’t seem to matter what happens to the Chicago Cubs these days.

When you’re on a roll, everything seems to go your way.

Blown late lead? Another closer goes down? A rat in da kitchen? What are you gonna do?

The Cubs don’t sweat the small things, as evidenced by Thursday’s 8-7, 10-inning, walk-off win over the ...Read more

DENVER — Just when it seemed the Padres were not up to making Thursday afternoon a full-fledged Coors Field thrill ride, they put together a five-run ninth inning and beat the Rockies, 10-8.

All of their runs in the final inning came before they made an out — on a walk by Jackson Merrill, singles by Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts and Miguel...Read more

CHICAGO — The Phillies have released pitcher Taijuan Walker, the team announced Thursday.

Walker, in the final year of his four-year, $72 million deal, struggled to a 9.13 ERA this season. The Phillies tried several adjustments for the right-hander before reaching this decision, including tweaking his pregame routine and using an opener for ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Patrick Bailey delivered one of the most thrilling moments of last season just over seven months ago, hitting a walk-off grand slam off the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Tanner Scott as the Giants tried to keep their slim postseason hopes alive.

The stakes on Wednesday night at Oracle Park paled in comparison, but Bailey delivered ...Read more

CHICAGO — With Felix Reyes standing on second base, Edmundo Sosa ripped a double to left field.

Sosa’s hit in the second inning Wednesday, which scored Reyes easily, ended the Phillies’ slump of 0 for 26 over the last six games with runners in scoring position. It seemed like things were on the upswing.

But unfortunately for the Phillies...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — For the first time in his career as a starting pitcher, Braxton Ashcraft completed seven innings. And he picked one heck of a time to do it.

Ashcraft, pitching professionally in his home state of Texas for the first time, allowed two runs in seven innings to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 8-4 win against the Texas Rangers...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — At long last, the Kansas City Royals’ half-decade search for a new stadium location is nearing a conclusion.

The Royals, in a press release Wednesday morning, announced their intentions to move to Crown Center, a sprawling, 85-acre mixed-use shopping district near downtown Kansas City as part of a joint partnership with ...Read more

BOSTON — Fresh off a down year and looking for any edge he could find, Amed Rosario first sought the help of Driveline, the high-tech, data-driven player development organization, after the 2023 season.

He initially went to the company’s facility in Seattle before switching to Driveline’s Tampa, Fla., locale this past offseason. Aided by ...Read more

DETROIT — It was coming. He could feel it.

In his first at-bat, he hit a sizzler, 106.2 mph off his bat, right at the left fielder. Two innings later, with Riley Greene at second base following a double, Spencer Torkelson ignited a 2-1 sinker from right-hander Chad Patrick.

The ball left his bat on a line with an exit velocity of 106.4 and ...Read more

NEW YORK — Juan Soto did little to dispel the notion that the New York Mets are lacking clubhouse chemistry. The club activated the star slugger from the injured list on Wednesday, hoping he can provide the offensive spark the team desperately needs after 12 straight losses. But the Mets can’t look at Soto — or any one player, for that ...Read more

ANAHEIM, Calif. — José Soriano pitched five scoreless innings and it was his worst start of the season.

Even though Soriano looked somewhat mortal in what has been a sensational start to his season, and even though the bullpen cost him a victory, Nolan Schanuel helped make sure the Los Angeles Angels could still celebrate.

Schanuel drove in...Read more