ATLANTA — Those storm clouds that have hovered over the Dodgers’ pitching staff this season?

They returned with a downpour on Friday at Truist Park.

After injured ace Tyler Glasnow suffered a pregame setback in his recovery from elbow tendonitis, canceling a scheduled simulated game after feeling continued discomfort in his arm, the ...Read more

NEW YORK — With Aaron Judge stuck in a 16-game homerless streak, the longest of his career, Nestor Cortes was asked about his teammate’s power outage on Thursday.

The pitcher hardly sounded concerned.

“The homers haven’t been there, but I know they’ll come around,” Cortes said. “He’s a big boy.”

It didn’t take long for ...Read more

TORONTO — On Friday the 13th, Toronto Blue Jays star infielder Vladimir Guerrero Jr. clearly had the right combination of superstitions, rabbit’s feet and good vibes on his side as he delivered a trio of game-changing defensive plays, one at third base and one at first base, that robbed the Cardinals of runs and set the stage for a gut-...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Elly De La Cruz stood in the batter’s box and held the finish from his swing as Twins reliever Jorge Alcala watched his 89-mph slider sail into the right-field seats.

De La Cruz celebrated his first career grand slam. Alcala and the Twins saw the playoff race for the American League’s last wild-card spot tighten after an 8-4...Read more

DETROIT — There has never been a combined perfect game in major league history, but Beau Brieske and Brant Hurter had one going for seven innings Friday night.

A walk in the eighth spoiled that.

The Tigers haven't tossed a combined no-hitter since Matt Manning, Jason Foley and Alex Lange did it July 8, 2023.

But when lefty Tyler Holton took...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Luis Ortiz’s last two starts of August signaled he could be in for a strong finish to a breakout campaign.

His latest two appearances, though, would indicate otherwise. Ortiz was tagged for seven runs, four of them earned, in a 8-3 loss to the Royals on Friday night at PNC Park.

The right-hander, who entered the Pirates’ ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — For the first four innings, the Mets couldn’t crack Aaron Nola. In the fifth, they broke him.

Francisco Alvarez and Brandon Nimmo each hit three-run shots off the right-hander Friday night at Citizens Bank Park, with Harrison Bader hitting one off left-hander Tyler Gilbert in the eighth to pad the lead. Jose Quintana tossed ...Read more

ATLANTA — The stage was set Friday for the next major step in Tyler Glasnow's recovery from an elbow injury.

Several hours before the Dodgers opened a four-game series against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park, the team's injured right-handed ace took the field to begin warming up for a scheduled simulated game — one that would have marked ...Read more

NEW YORK — Aaron Judge’s homerless streak reached a career-high 16 games on Thursday night, as the Red Sox kept the slugger in the yard during the Yankees’ 2-1, 10-inning, walk-off win.

Judge, baseball’s home run leader, has been stuck on 51 long balls since mashing two bombs against the Rockies on Aug. 25. The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — When the Dodgers last won the World Series in 2020, the championship was saved with the most unusual of scenarios.

The final seven outs of the deciding Game 6 victory against the Tampa Bay Rays were perfectly navigated by a pitcher who had worked out of the bullpen just once that season.

Julio Urías was not a reliever, but the...Read more

SEATTLE — Even as other teams provide them hope for an impossible outcome and offer opportunity for a mildly miraculous path to the postseason, the Seattle Mariners as they’ve done since mid-June — under both managers — simply refuse to capitalize on what has been given.

Needing to win to keep pace with the Houston Astros in the ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Hayden Birdsong’s rapid rise hit a speed bump in recent weeks.

But with a couple days of extra rest, the rookie right-hander got over the hump Thursday, even if it wasn’t enough for the San Francisco Giants (72-75) to pull out a win in their rubber match against the Milwaukee Brewers (84-62).

Birdsong, 23, completed five ...Read more

NEW YORK — With a rotation crunch coming, Nestor Cortes made a strong argument to remain part of the group on Thursday night.

The lefty looked sharp in the Yankees’ 2-1, 10-inning, walk-off win over the Red Sox, permitting just one earned run and three hits over five innings. Cortes also tied his season high with nine strikeouts while ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — If Francisco Lindor didn’t have your attention before Wednesday afternoon, he probably does now.

How on-brand would it have been for the Mets to get no-hit in the midst of a playoff chase? How many jokes would the internet have cracked if Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis had finished the job Wednesday at Roger ...Read more

Bottle it. Study it. Repeat it.

That’s what the Rockies should do with their 4-2 road victory over the Tigers on Thursday afternoon at Comerica Park.

The Rockies got a terrific start from Ryan Feltner, who went toe-to-toe with Detroit ace Tarik Skubal. They also got key hits in the clutch and another lights-out performance from their bullpen...Read more

ST. LOUIS — In four encounters against the Cincinnati Reds, Cardinals starter Sonny Gray had not come away as the game’s winning pitcher.

On Thursday at Busch Stadium, Gray spun six innings and made a bid at perfection to finally earn a win against his former club and give the Cardinals a series win after they dropped Tuesday’s opener.

...Read more

The frustration from losing a bid at perfection and then not being able to finish the seventh inning was obvious from Bryan Woo as he handed the ball to manager Dan Wilson.

But as Woo started to stalk off the mound toward first base dugout, the boisterous crowd of 21,129 rose in appreciation of what they had just witnessed.

With each step from...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — On their way to a 13-2 romp Wednesday over the Milwaukee Brewers, the Giants ventured outside their comfort zone a couple times.

Not only did they jump out to an early lead against Brewers starter Colin Rea, they did so with the help of some aggressive base running.

The home runs that followed may get the headlines, but it ...Read more

Shohei Ohtani continued his march toward baseball’s first-ever 50-50 season, belting his career-best 47th home run, stealing his 48th base and driving in three runs, and Tommy Edman hit two homers for the second straight game to lead the Dodgers to a 10-8 victory over the Chicago Cubs in Chavez Ravine on Wednesday night.

The score was tied 7-...Read more