ATLANTA — Well, one way to look at it is that the Rays now have the opportunity to clinch a playoff berth at Tropicana Field and celebrate with their fans, potentially as soon as Friday night.

That’s the positive spin from a disappointing Thursday afternoon in which they wasted a dominant, though somewhat abbreviated, start from Nick ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Bring on the Braves?

Sure, why not? But before the Phillies hopped a flight Thursday for a weekend showdown with the division leaders, they squandered an opportunity to set up a true first-place showdown.

Jhoan Duran gave up a tiebreaking solo homer to Cam Smith in the ninth inning of a 2-1 loss to the Astros. And so, instead ...Read more

The Dodgers departed Wednesday for their final multi-city trip of the regular season with their magic number to clinch a fifth straight division title at six, meaning their first champagne shower of the year could come as early as Sunday in Miami.

But the team is limping toward that celebration, with Freddie Freeman, the team’s leading hitter...Read more

The Pirates are back at .500. They showed plenty of fight to get there.

The Pirates beat the Chicago White Sox, 4-2, on Wednesday night at Rate Field in Chicago, winning their fifth consecutive series. A three-run seventh inning proved key in overcoming a shaky bullpen late.

The Pirates are 10-4 since the three-game sweep against the Los ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. knows what to do with a mistake pitch. And on Wednesday, he made the Arizona Diamondbacks pay.

In the fifth inning, Diamondbacks reliever Michael Soroka left a 94.9 mph sinker over the heart of the plate in a tie game. It seemed like a customary get-me-over fastball after Soroka walked...Read more

NEW YORK — The Yankees finally hit their first grand slam of the season on Wednesday when George Lombard Jr. crushed the first one of his career.

The rookie shortstop’s bases-loaded long ball in the third inning paved the way for a 6-1, series-securing win over the Rockies. The opposite-field blast also ensured that, with just 17 more ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA— His bat was aloft, in his right hand, straight up in the air like an Olympic torch.

Kyle Schwarber’s swing on the 3-2 sweeper had been half with one hand. But there was no doubt, from the moment bat met ball, that he’d done it again. And as he took his first steps out of the batter’s box and chaos erupted in every corner ...Read more

ATLANTA — Much of the Rays’ success that has put them in position to clinch a playoff berth — with a little help — as soon as Thursday evening has, and will continue, to be tied to the hitters at the top of their order.

Yandy Diaz, Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero have the big numbers, the cool catchphrase bestowed by baseball ...Read more

So often, it’s been the Miami Marlins playing spoiler against the New York Mets.

It happened in 2007, 2008 and 2025, with the Mets losing to the Marlins on the final day of the regular season each time, completing collapses that ended their playoff dreams.

But this year, the roles are reversed.

The Mets completed a three-game sweep of the ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO – With a sparse crowd of 27,478 braving the blistering 89-degree temperatures and scorching sunbeams at Oracle Park on Wednesday afternoon, the Giants took to the searing surface with an opportunity to do something the team had failed to accomplish this season: sweep an opponent.

For much of the afternoon, the same old Giants ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — The Padres stayed hot.

On an oppressively muggy afternoon — the hottest game day ever at Petco Park — they beat the Nationals 9-2 on Wednesday to finish off a series that they needed to be every bit as sizzling as it was.

In taking 2 of 3 from the New York Yankees and sweeping the Nationals, the Padres followed a 1-5 road ...Read more

It appeared for a moment that Jake Bennett had strike three on Zach Neto. His 0-2 sweeper caught the outside edge of the zone, the umpire ruled, but the ABS challenge system determined otherwise and Neto’s at bat continued.

That successful challenge changed the course of the game.

Neto eventually worked the count full before taking Bennett ...Read more

NEW YORK — Minutes before Aaron Boone held his pregame press conference on Wednesday, the manager found out that he had lost his second baseman.

Imaging revealed that Jazz Chisholm Jr. suffered a sprained right thumb when he slid into second base during the eighth inning of Tuesday’s win over the Rockies. That will require an impending ...Read more

DETROIT – Every once in a while, a warm dose of humanity presents itself in the middle of a somewhat hum-drum September baseball game against two teams on the outside looking in at the playoffs.

Such a moment happened in the middle of the fourth inning of the Detroit Tigers' rain-delayed, walk-infested 7-2 series-clinching win over the ...Read more

The awe and excitement that filled T-Mobile Park was palpable.

The 35,476 fans, many of them wearing custom-made Hello Kitty Mariners’ starter jackets (don’t ask), had just witnessed the smiling face of the team’s future display power rarely seen in the two-plus decades of the stadium’s existence.

Lazaro Montes’ three-run homer in ...Read more

CHICAGO — Inserted the words “Chicago White Sox magic number” into Google on Tuesday and came up with a picture of Mike Vasil and his magic wand.

Oh well.

Suffice it to say, the White Sox are close to pulling off one of the most amazing sports stories in years — going to the postseason two years after setting a modern major league ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Royals starter Michael Wacha continues to set career milestones in his third season with the organization.

On Tuesday, Wacha reached a career-high in innings pitched in a season. He now sits at 182 2/3 innings after tossing six shutout frames against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Wacha eclipsed his previous high ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants have been out of the playoff picture for most of the summer, but it wasn’t until Monday that the gavel officially came down. Even in victory, San Francisco was officially eliminated from postseason contention. All that’s left to do is play out the string of a fifth straight non-winning season, a first in ...Read more