ST. LOUIS — Tasked with needing to record seven outs to keep a one-run lead intact, the work from the final three Cardinals relievers to appear on Monday night vs. the Diamondbacks ensured the quality start from Andre Pallante and the run support he earned did not go to waste.

An effort that included scoreless outings from JoJo Romero (one ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — Just when you might have thought the Tampa Bay Rays had put their worst behind them and were ready to go on another hot streak, they showed otherwise.

Facing a Kansas City Royals team that has been one of the American League’s worst for much of the season, the Rays delivered an uninspiring performance Monday night in a 2-1 ...Read more

DETROIT — Going into the series against the East Division-leading New York Yankees Monday, the Detroit Tigers had the best record in the American League in June (11-6). They’d hit the second most homers (35) in the majors. Their team ERA was 3.12, second lowest in baseball and they had a 24-game run of their starting pitches holding teams to...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers won the World Series last year, and the year before that. Their lead is the largest in any division this year. That success, and the money that nourishes it, has battalions of fans beyond Los Angeles all but marching outside ballparks with picket signs reading “SALARY CAP NOW.”

It’s a reasonable thought: The ...Read more

NEW YORK — A gloomy and depressing season was given a rest by a similar day.

The New York Mets‘ matchup against the Chicago Cubs was postponed due to rain on Monday. The game will be made up on Wednesday as a split doubleheader starting at 1:10 p.m. and 7:10 p.m. ET.

Kodai Senga was set to make his second start since returning to the big ...Read more

Editor’s note: This article discusses suicide, self-harm and other topics related to psychiatric distress. If you or a loved one is in crisis, call 988.

SEATTLE — A baseball player walked onto the Golden Gate Bridge.

Adam Bernero believed that’s all he’d ever be. But as a boy, he hung maps of the world on his bedroom walls. “They ...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — The San Diego Padres have starting pitching problems.

They don’t hit very well against them. And their own are getting knocked around pretty good.

The Padres on Sunday lost 4-3 to the Texas Rangers in a game that was more emblematic of the latter but was also somewhat illustrative of the former.

While Nathan Eovaldi did...Read more

NEW YORK — Even on an afternoon in which they faced one of MLB’s filthiest flamethrowers, the New York Yankees had their chances.

They put eight runners on base against Cincinnati Reds ace Chase Burns, and five of them made it into scoring position.

They put plenty of pressure on the Reds’ bullpen, too.

But the clutch hit eluded the ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A day after a scoreless draw between Ecuador and Curacao riveted nearly 70,000 World Cup fans at the football stadium adjacent to the ballpark by Blue Ridge Cutoff, there would be no such zero-sum tension, no lack of scoring in Kansas City.

The stinginess on the pitch one day was not matched by the pitches the next.

...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — Outfielder Jonny DeLuca’s nearly month-long absence due to a right hamstring strain is certainly not the only reason the Tampa Bay Rays went from being the majors’ best team to the worst over that stretch, losing 15-of-22 games.

But his contributions in the two games he started since being reinstated from the injured list ...Read more

SEATTLE — Down in the dirt to start the seventh inning, Logan Gilbert had fans up on their feet a few minutes later.

In his first Father’s Day as a dad, Gilbert had one of his best starts of the season Sunday afternoon, allowing only one run over 6 1/3 innings to power the Seattle Mariners past the Boston Red Sox, 3-1, and salvage the ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The first two games of the series between the Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Dodgers featured fireworks in the ninth inning— and raised heart rates for fans back in Baltimore.

The Orioles lost the first in walk-off fashion after Ryan Helsley’s blown save but won the second after nearly squandering another lead because of...Read more

PHOENIX – The Minnesota Twins used a high-powered offense to carry them throughout their road trip, but Sunday’s 4-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks was defined by their defense, their pitching and some surprising baserunning.

Erasing a two-run deficit with a two-out rally in the seventh inning, the Twins pulled ahead when Alex Jackson ...Read more

DENVER — The Pittsburgh Pirates did well to avoid what would have been a gut punch of a sweep on Sunday. Now, they hope they’ve avoided a second.

Right-hander Jared Jones left Sunday’s 8-6 win against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field when he was hit by a line drive on his right elbow to end the third inning. Jones was clearly upset as ...Read more

Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Miami Marlins locked up the San Francisco Giants’ sixth sweep this season, already their most before an All-Star break since 2017.

They didn’t leave without first supplying ninth-inning drama at loanDepot Park.

Rafael Devers led off the ninth with a walk, then waved a finger toward the dugout in objection to ...Read more

PHOENIX – For all the talk about how hard it is to hit against modern major league pitching, the Minnesota Twins made it look easy during their largest offensive output in two years Saturday night.

The Twins reached season highs in runs (16) and hits (20) by the fifth inning. They batted around their lineup twice, sending 10 hitters to the ...Read more

SEATTLE — As Nick Davila struggled to record the first out of the seventh inning, the crowd of 45,663 — a second consecutive sellout — started “the wave” with the Seattle Mariners trailing by four runs.

The noise swirled around T-Mobile Park and many of the fans seemed genuinely happy to stand up and scream.

It circulated far longer ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — It was Andy Pages’ wife, Alondra, who told the Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder on June 3 that MLB All-Star voting had opened.

“I simply just told her, (the ballots) don’t really matter to me,” Pages said through team interpreter Juan Dorado, in a conversation with The Times earlier this month. “I’m just going to ...Read more