Joe Musgrove’s playoff tuneup went about as well as the Padres could script.

The Padres’ postseason auditions looked better, too, by the end of Monday night.

Musgrove punched out seven over six scoreless innings and Trent Grisham and Brandon Dixon strung together back-to-back doubles in the eighth as the Padres batted around in their only ...Read more

HOUSTON — For much of Monday night, it appeared the Phillies’ ticket back to the postseason would be punched after the final outcome of a game that was played more than 1,100 miles away.

Sorry, but the occasion called for more drama than that.

It took the Phillies nearly 11 years — 4,010 days, to be precise, but hey, who was counting? �...Read more

Drew Waters’ third home run of the series for the Kansas City Royals lifted his team to an extra-inning victory, evened the series and put a positive end note on the final start of the season for veteran pitcher Zack Greinke on Monday night.

Waters blasted a three-run home run in the 10th inning, a towering 379-foot blast to left field, and ...Read more

BOSTON — It’s too bad the Red Sox aren’t going anywhere this year because 42-year-old Rich Hill is finally starting to feel it.

Hill worked around an error and two unearned runs to strike out six over six innings as he held the Rays down in a 4-3 win at Fenway Park.

It was the final start of the season for Hill, who has made public ...Read more

MIAMI — Jesús Luzardo’s start against the Atlanta Braves on Monday night was monumental in more ways than one.

The lefty tied his career-best strikeouts in a single game (12). He held one of the best teams in baseball scoreless through six innings.

Luzardo’s performance, in conjunction with Bryan De La Cruz’s hot bat, led the Miami ...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — Luis Severino was not happy and neither were most of the fans at Globe Life Field Monday night.

The home of the almost worst-in-baseball Rangers was packed with Yankees’ fans hoping to see history. Aaron Judge, however, did not hit a home run for the fourth straight game and remained tied with Roger Maris with 61, the ...Read more

BALTIMORE — With the way Dean Kremer evaluates his outings, the six innings he worked Monday in his final start of the season would be below his lofty standards. The Orioles right-hander aims for perfection — or as close to it as he can achieve — and he fell short of that.

But with three earned runs against him, Kremer recorded Baltimore�...Read more

NEW YORK — The Mets needed a miracle. Instead they got a rainout.

After getting swept by the Atlanta Braves over the weekend in a series that more than likely decided the NL East, the Mets were looking forward to turning the page and coming out strong against the Washington National in the final home series of the regular season. But they’...Read more

Jerry Reinsdorf sat in the back of the room Monday afternoon as Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa announced he won’t return in 2023 and general manager Rick Hahn gave an autopsy on the 2022 season.

The Sox chairman arrived later than the media and left before Hahn was finished speaking, sneaking away in an inconspicuous manner as though...Read more

The search is on for the next Chicago White Sox manager after Tony La Russa officially won’t return for the 2023 season.

“It has become obvious that the length of the treatment and recovery process for this second health issue makes it impossible for me to be the White Sox manager in 2023,” La Russa said in a statement Monday. “The ...Read more

We have heard enough about how Aaron Judge is the only rightful candidate for the American League most valuable player award. He's not.

We also have heard enough about how Sandy Alcantara is the only rightful candidate for National League Cy Young award.

He's not. What the Julio?

The Cy Young could be fairly won by Max Fried of the Atlanta ...Read more

The Tony La Russa 2.0 era is ending. So who will be the next Chicago White Sox manager?

It’s hard to speculate without knowing whether general manager Rick Hahn will return or if Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf once again will make the decision on his own, as he did in hiring La Russa after the 2020 season.

The Sox job no doubt will draw plenty of...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants closed September on a tear, winning 10 of their final 11 games of the month and providing a bit of positivity to cap a season that has seen far too little of it.

Ultimately, it was an up-and-down team that will miss the postseason and finish with roughly 25 fewer wins than last season.

But I fear that the Giants ...Read more

SAN DIEGO —At the end, it was easy.

The Padres didn't even need to win to get in.

As they came to bat in the seventh inning Sunday at Petco Park, in what ended up a 2-1 loss to the White Sox, the Padres were guaranteed a playoff berth by virtue of the Brewers losing in 12 innings to the Marlins in Milwaukee.

Josh Bell was batting at the ...Read more