CHICAGO — Where were you in the summer of 2008?

If you’re old enough to remember, you probably were watching your favorite Chicago baseball team and dreaming of a crosstown World Series.

Until this year, 2008 was the last full season the Cubs and Sox played each other in the regular season with realistic dreams of a World Series rematch.

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SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Padres’ minor league catching coordinator, who is seeking asylum in the United States from Venezuela, was detained on Sunday at a Texas airport by U.S. Border Patrol agents, according to his family and federal officials.

Oswaldo Pirela, 34, was traveling back home to Arizona from El Paso after a work trip when he ...Read more

MIAMI — Thomas Edward John Jr. — forever Tommy John, “the Bionic Man” — died quietly Saturday night at 83, his career unrequited, his legend unfulfilled.

He deserved better. Always did. Still does, though now the honor due him if it ever comes at all would be posthumous, with all the bittersweet ache that forever surrounds the word.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A first-pitch home run could have doomed the Kansas City Royals. Instead, it ignited them.

The Royals (52-74) trounced the visiting Athletics (49-76) 9-5 in the series opener between two teams at the bottom of the AL standings.

It’s exactly what the Royals want to see when their young core of Bobby Witt Jr., Jac ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Manager Derek Shelton didn’t hide his frustration after the Minnesota Twins blew a five-run lead in their loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, conducting a terse postgame news conference.

When Shelton walked through the clubhouse, where players were sitting at their lockers, he thought it was as quiet as he heard it ...Read more

DENVER — Shohei Ohtani paused to admire the flight of his no-doubt home run as it sailed to right-center field.

Clearly on a home-run trajectory, it was headed toward the visitor’s bullpen. From among the trees, Dodgers reliever Kyle Hurt’s glove shot up and secured the home run ball.

As Ohtani circled the bases, the bullpen turned into...Read more

CINCINNATI — Unable to capitalize on a chance to bring home a run in the top of the 10th inning after their one-lead evaporate with two outs in the ninth, the Cardinals had their chances of completing a doubleheader sweep over the Reds dashed six pitches into the bottom of the 10th.

Called in to pitch with Tyler Stephenson as the automatic ...Read more

NEW YORK — Run on the Mets’ rookies at your own risk.

MLB teams keep learning that the hard way, with the San Diego Padres becoming the latest victims.

Carson Benge delivered two more outfield assists and A.J. Ewing added another — all at home plate — in the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Padres at Citi Field on Monday night.

It started ...Read more

BOSTON — Throughout the club’s hot streak it seemed like the Boston Red Sox always came up with the big hit in the big moments, but over the past week the offense often reverted back to its ugly, first-half habits.

But Monday night, the Red Sox found their mojo again.

The Red Sox clobbered the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-1 in Monday’s series...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The rain was so heavy during the sixth inning that Derek Hill had to wipe raindrops from the brim of his helmet. Marlins pitcher John King had already asked for a new rosin bag for his slick fingers.

But the elements didn’t seem to faze Hill much, as the Phillies outfielder punched a single up the middle for his seventh hit ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Maybe we need to look at this whole playoff chase differently.

Riding the standings rollercoaster right now doesn’t seem particularly useful. In one faltering weekend, the Detroit Tigers went from sniffing first place to 5.5 games back. Conversely, with one weekend sweep, the Baltimore Orioles went from being dead in the water ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays got Shane McClanahan back in their rotation and some power back in their bats on Monday. But most importantly, they got back on the winning side, halting a three-game losing streak to the Baltimore Orioles with a tense 7-6 win.

The game went back and forth until the Rays took the lead for good in the seventh ...Read more

CINCINNATI — The two runs the Cardinals received before their starter could take the mound Monday for Game 1 of a doubleheader vs. the Reds were enough to come away with a win.

The Cardinals were elevated to a 2-0 lead with Alec Burleson’s two-run double in the first inning against Reds starter Kant Emanuel. They received four innings and ...Read more

There are teams whose cruddiness creeps up on you. One day you check the standings and notice that they’re ten games out of the wild card race.

That was the Giants before the trade deadline.

We knew they weren’t good, but their bad was almost subversive — it was nearly creative. And they did just enough good things to keep casual fans ...Read more

CHICAGO — David Ross was back at Wrigley Field on Sunday in the ESPN broadcast booth, analyzing the Chicago Cubs team he once managed in their 11-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.

It’s not a big deal to Ross, who mentioned it’s not his first time back at Wrigley. He was sitting in the bleachers just last month when Anthony Rizzo grabbed ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — I promise you, Tarik, Los Angeles will show you so much support if you fight like you did Sunday.

Though you, of course, would also appreciate a little help from your new friends.

A little run support. A little urgency. For them to clean it up a little in the field behind you.

Everything that was missing — again — in the ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The radio broadcasters reminded listeners of the final score, invited them to tune in again the next day, and signed off. The Dodgers had lost Saturday, so the sounds of "California Stars" wafted through Dodger Stadium.

"Well," Charley Steiner said to his colleagues in the broadcast booth, "they're still playing this song."

The...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — It was 1981 and the New York Yankees, having ended spring training, were making a stop in Chapel Hill for an exhibition baseball game against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Yankees owner George Steinbrenner had a daughter who attended UNC and later would donate $1 million for lights at Boshamer Stadium. Steinbrenner already had...Read more

HOUSTON — With a mixture of elation and irritation, Bryan Woo let out a primal scream and smacked the side of his glove with his right hand as Cal Raleigh made a catch of a Jose Altuve pop-up in foul territory to close out a crucial sixth inning.

In the Seattle Mariners’ most important game of the season, Woo had done his part Sunday night,...Read more