KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals entered their final homestand of the regular season with a clear objective in mind.

Play spoiler.

The Royals welcomed the Chicago White Sox to Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday night with a lot at stake for their American Central rivals. The White Sox entered trailing the Cleveland Guardians by a game in ...Read more

BOSTON — For all intents and purposes, none of these last games down the stretch mean anything to the Red Sox. They have already punched their ticket to the playoffs and nothing that happens from here on out will change that.

But while readying themselves for the games that matter, the Red Sox would still prefer to go into the postseason with...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Down to the last week of the regular season, the Phillies haven’t clinched a wild card yet. Until they do, they will insist every game is akin to the postseason, in terms of both significance and urgency.

And Don Mattingly is managing accordingly.

In case you’re wondering, then, how Mattingly will run a game next week — ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Rays clinched their first American League East title in Detroit in 2008, coming back to the clubhouse hours after a loss to celebrate after the Yankees eliminated the Red Sox in a rain-delayed game that ended close to 1 a.m.

They clinched in Kansas City on the dramatic last day of the 2010 season. When they won at the Mets’ ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Dodgers rookie Josue De Paula sat down with third base and outfield coach Dino Ebel in the visiting coach's room at Great American Ball Park. Ebel pulled up defensive metrics on three different outfielders.

One was Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, the National League MVP favorite and MLB's defensive fWAR leader. Another ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — And then there was one.

Don Mattingly stands alone among baseball’s interim managers after the Mets and Red Sox announced Tuesday that they will retain Andy Green and Chad Tracy, respectively, with each receiving a three-year contract to stay at the wheel of those clubs.

The Phillies aren’t ready to make a similar ...Read more

DETROIT — The Tigers have a decision to make this offseason regarding right-hander Drew Anderson.

They hold a $10 million option to retain his services for 2027 and given the way he’s pitched since he was moved into the starting rotation full-time, that’s starting to look like a bargain.

Anderson, 32 and a veteran of three seasons in ...Read more

CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman sustained multiple facial fractures after getting hit on his left cheek by a foul ball during Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds. But the Cubs won’t be putting him on the injured list, manager Craig Counsell said Tuesday.

Bregman is not ruled out for the regular season. He still has...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Mets have taken the interim tag off Andy Green, naming him the 26th manager in franchise history. David Stearns, president of baseball operations, announced the move Tuesday ahead of the start of the season’s final road trip through Texas and Washington.

The parties agreed on a three-year contract.

“Over the course...Read more

NEW YORK — Given the depth of the Yankees’ rotation, there’s a strong possibility — perhaps even a likelihood — that Carlos Rodón won’t be asked to start a game in the best-of-three wild-card round of the playoffs.

But Rodón looked every bit of an ace in Tuesday afternoon’s 2-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays to kick off a ...Read more

BALTIMORE — The Orioles will play their final two home games of the season on the same day.

Baltimore’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday night was postponed because of heavy rain in the region, and the two teams will instead play a split doubleheader at Camden Yards on Wednesday.

The first game is scheduled to begin at 1:35 p....Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — All Bo Davidson needed was one inning to get the people on their feet.

Davidson quickly fell behind 0-2 to the Twins’ Zebby Matthews in his first career at-bat, but the rookie refused to go down without a scrap. He laid off a curveball and changeup out of the zone, fouled off a slider, then resisted an outside four-seamer to...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Like many in baseball, Paul Skenes has spent plenty of time lately trying to figure out why his fastball velocity has decreased and why he’s been less effective this season.

As he’s looked back, he’s keyed in on one thing — the World Baseball Classic.

“There are a lot of other factors, so I don’t want to put ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Where would the Baltimore Orioles be without Pete Alonso?

In a season short on bright spots, Alonso has been one of the few constants. Baltimore committed five years and $155 million to him last offseason, and Monday night he gave the club another reminder of why.

After the Orioles were shut out in their final two games against ...Read more

CHICAGO — The end game has arrived for the Chicago White Sox, with six games to make history or go home for a long offseason.

No team has made the postseason after losing 100 or more games the two previous seasons, and the Sox came into 2026 with three straight seasons of losing 100 or more.

The buzzword surrounding the Sox all season has ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Tens of thousands of people walk in and out of Dodger Stadium on any given night, paying scant attention to the trees, plants, and other foliage surrounding it on all sides. Chaz Perea made his peace with that a long time ago.

"Getting to Dodger Stadium is not a small thing," said Perea, 41, the stadium's landscape manager. "You...Read more

CHICAGO — The conditions were less than ideal.

But after a nearly four-hour delay, the result was just what the Chicago White Sox needed in their fight for a playoff spot.

The Sox scored three runs in the fourth inning to distance themselves from the Detroit Tigers in an 8-1 victory in front of 21,354 at Rate Field.

Chase Meidroth hit a two...Read more

BALTIMORE — When a season is over, every team ultimately is what its record says it is. There are injuries and batted-ball luck and a bounce here or a bounce there, all of which impact whether a bubble team makes the playoffs or not. But records are the barometers that determine which clubs play in October and which ones watch from home.

The ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — Walker Buehler, who has pitched in three World Series and has a pair of rings, signed with the San Diego Padres in February for this feeling.

“Being on a winning team that does it the way we have this year and is going to make the playoffs, it looks like, I think is a huge accomplishment,” he said Sunday.

That’s right — ...Read more