PHILADELPHIA — The mural covers the side of a restaurant on a city block in Fishtown. It’s impossible to miss. It also symbolizes promise in this half-decade of Phillies title contention.

And it came to life Sunday.

It wasn’t only that Brandon Marsh continued a yearlong ascendance into an All-Star before our very eyes by homering in his ...Read more

DETROIT — The Detroit Tigers have been very conscious this month of keeping their focus as far forward and away from the events of May as possible.

Still, as crazy as it is to say on June 7, Kevin McGonigle's line drive, walk-off single in the ninth inning Sunday was another potentially pivotal moment as the Tigers try to climb back into ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — On Sunday, the Minnesota Twins played a game for the 17th consecutive day. And they played most of the game like they were looking ahead to Monday’s day off.

The Kansas City Royals trailed early but turned the tables with four runs in the fifth inning and held off a late rally to down the Twins 6-5 at Target Field. The Twins ...Read more

DENVER — As a kid growing up in Denver, Kyle Freeland dreamed big. But not this big.

Sunday afternoon, the Colorado Rockies’ veteran left-hander stood on the mound at Coors Field and tipped his cap to the fans serenading him with cheers and applause. Freeland, 33, had just pitched 1,313 1/3 major league innings, all in a Rockies uniform, ...Read more

MIAMI — The struggling Tampa Bay Rays went down quietly again Sunday in a 4-1 defeat by the Miami Marlins.

This marked the 10th loss in 13 games for the once-surging Rays, the eighth time in that stretch they scored three of fewer runs and the fourth with one or none.

The Rays dropped to 37-25 and, coming off a three-game sweep at home by ...Read more

A pitcher’s duel unfolded in the Bronx early Sunday afternoon, and with it the latest reminder that arms aren’t the root cause of the 2026 Boston Red Sox’s problems.

After Sunday’s game was delayed 20 minutes from its 1:35 p.m. ET scheduled first pitch, Red Sox starter Ranger Suarez was perfect through the first three innings while New ...Read more

ATLANTA — Pitching only more than an hour from where he attended high school at North Oconee, Bubba Chandler was cruising.

He retired 13 batters in a row and struck out seven, including wiping out former National League MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. with a 100.5 mph fastball. But in the bottom of the seventh inning, as the Pittsburgh Pirates led 2-0...Read more

GREELEY, Colo. — The baby blue Porsche in the parking lot, a paint scheme that matches the sky above, is not his baby.

“You don’t make any money doing any of that stuff,” Peter Bayer said with a laugh.

His heart and hope lie inside a grey warehouse a few miles from Highway 34 in Weld County, his heaven a canvas of black netting and ...Read more

SEATTLE — Point. Owners.

Major League Baseball is thriving in a manner we haven't seen for decades. Last year's World Series annihilated the NBA Finals in terms of viewership. There is a two-way star from Japan mesmerizing fans seemingly every time he takes the field.

Locally, the Seattle Mariners fell just one game shy of reaching their ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — Griffin Canning wiped his brow as he walked back to the mound.

It was only the second inning. The seeing-eye single that slipped through the middle of the infield had allowed the New York Mets to strike first in a game just getting started, but early deficits feel deep gorges these days.

For a change, the San Diego Padres hoisted...Read more

DENVER — For seven innings, Jacob Misiorowski threw flames at the Colorado Rockies.

In the sixth, Colorado’s right fielder got burned by one.

Tyler Freeman left Saturday’s game after he was hit in the head by a pitch from the 24-year-old Brewers ace Misiorowski.

Freeman, 27, crumpled to the ground after the pitch plunked his helmet, ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The chasm between the Freeway Series rivals was on display in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 9-2 win against the Angels at Dodger Stadium on Saturday night.

The bottom of the first inning took so long that Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto resorted to throwing a ball against the back of the dugout to stay warm.

The one-run lead ...Read more

NEW YORK — The catching position has been full of surprises for the New York Yankees since late Friday night.

First, the Bombers optioned backup backstop J.C. Escarra to Triple-A after their series-opening loss to the Boston Red Sox. Then the team replaced Escarra by promoting journeyman Ali Sánchez early Saturday afternoon.

Just like that,...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The smell of hate is pervasive whenever you enter a sporting facility in Philadelphia.

It’s a tough town that’s proud of its reputation as booers, and even the Phillies, the hottest team in baseball, aren’t immune from verbal abuse these days.

No matter how many times the “Get Loud” graphic was displayed on the ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — After Royce Lewis played 13 games in the minor leagues, including two starts at first base and one at second base, the Minnesota Twins saw enough to bring him back to the major leagues.

Lewis was recalled from Class AAA St. Paul before Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals. Outfielder James Outman was designated for ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — The first pitch Andrew Painter threw on Saturday was a fastball that missed badly: high and inside to White Sox leadoff hitter Sam Antonacci.

It was a harbinger of things to come for Painter’s start, as he struggled significantly with his command in the Phillies’ 6-3 loss to Chicago. He ultimately hit Antonacci with another...Read more

ATLANTA — The Pittsburgh Pirates may have a little déjà vu.

On Friday night, the Atlanta Braves knocked Mitch Keller around to the tune of six runs in 4 2/3 innings, with three runs coming in the fifth. And on Saturday afternoon, Braxton Ashcraft was met with a similar fate.

Ashcraft (5-3, 3.28 ERA) gave up nine hits and six runs — ...Read more

MIAMI — The Tampa Bay Rays have been doing work and making moves, such as bumping Steven Matz to the bullpen, in an effort to get their pitching back on track.

But after Saturday’s 4-3 loss to the Miami Marlins, the Rays’ ninth in their last 12 games to drop their record to 37-24, there are also fair questions to ask about their lack of ...Read more

Saturday night’s game between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees was rained out due to what the home team described as a “forecast of sustained inclement weather” in the Yankee Stadium area.

The game has been rescheduled to a split-admission doubleheader Saturday, Aug. 29, when the Red Sox make their second and final trip to the ...Read more