MLB

2:32 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Craig Kimbrel, an eight-time All-Star with 394 career saves, was left off the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ initial postseason roster on Tuesday, a somewhat expected outcome given his season-long struggles in the ninth inning. The Dodgers are expected to go with a closer-by-committee this month, beginning with a National League

4:09 PM ET Associated Press TORONTO — Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer is awaiting clearance to travel after he suffered a concussion in his collision with shortstop Bo Bichette in Game 2 of the AL wild-card series against the Seattle Mariners on Saturday, general manager Ross Atkins said Tuesday. Atkins also revealed that Springer,

Oct 9, 2022 After an action-packed Wild Card to get the 2022 MLB playoffs going, there are eight teams left battling for World Series glory entering the division series round. With an extra round to begin the postseason and the possibility that this year’s Fall Classic extends to a Game 7 on Nov. 5, it

Oct 10, 2022 Patrick Mahomes begins the week in new territory: a home underdog for the first time in his career. On Sunday afternoon, sportsbooks installed Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs as 2.5-point underdogs to the visiting Buffalo Bills in a Week 6 showdown that’s expected to attract massive betting interest. If the line

8:09 PM ET ST. LOUIS — Jean Segura‘s career spanned 11 seasons and 1,328 games before he finally reached the postseason, the longest active streak in the major leagues. On the morning of his first playoff game, the Philadelphia Phillies‘ second baseman barely slept. He awoke at 7 a.m. “with adrenaline in my body.” Friday

9:02 PM ET Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Minor league baseball teams combined to draw 30.9 million fans this year, down from 41.5 million in 2019, the last season before COVID-19 and before Major League Baseball cutting affiliates. Teams averaged 3,910 this season for 7,908 games, down from an average of 4,044 for 10,262

Oct 6, 2022 ESPN News Services Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani has already agreed to a $30 million contract for 2023, his final campaign before free agency, and the club believes it has a shot to keep the two-way talent long term. “I think it’s step one,” general manager Perry Minasian said of Ohtani’s

2:46 PM ET CLEVELAND — When the Cleveland Guardians needed a response, after Tampa Bay took a 1-0 lead in Game 1 of their AL Wild Card Series on Friday, it came as no surprise that All-Star third baseman Jose Ramirez would be the guy to come through. He’s done it all year. “He’s inevitable,”

12:32 PM ET NEW YORK — When the Mets kick off their playoff run against the San Diego Padres on Friday night, Starling Marte and Francisco Alvarez will be on the roster. Marte has not played for the past month and has been working his way back from a fractured middle finger. Mets manager Buck

7:01 PM ET Associated Press ARLINGTON, Texas — Interim manager Tony Beasley was the first candidate interviewed in the Texas Rangers‘ managerial search that general manager Chris Young hopes to wrap up in three to four weeks. Young said Friday that Beasley would be the only internal candidate for the job, but didn’t say who

11:05 PM ET Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Manager Mike Matheny and pitching coach Cal Eldred were fired by the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night, shortly after the struggling franchise finished the season 65-97 with a listless 9-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. The Royals had exercised their option on Matheny’s contract for

3:36 PM ET ESPN News Services The owner of a sports memorabilia auction house said he offered $2 million to the fan who caught New York Yankees star Aaron Judge‘s American League-record 62nd home run. JP Cohen, president of Memory Lane Inc. in Tustin, California, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he has texted

5:28 PM ET ESPN News Services NEW YORK — Jeff McNeil stayed on top without taking a swing. Nursing a four-point lead in the big league batting race, McNeil was not in the New York Mets‘ lineup Wednesday for their regular-season finale against Washington. He only played defense after entering late and finished with the

7:30 PM ET AP Photo/Hakim Wright The regular season is officially in the books (OK, maybe there is still a game or two trickling slowly to its finish as you read this) and the 2022 MLB playoffs are set to start Friday — and this year’s postseason could be epic. In addition to a new

7:00 PM ET The 2022 MLB playoffs are finally here with the debut of a new postseason format. Major League Baseball premiers its 12-team format which boasts an additional wild-card spot in both the American League and National League. The fun kicks off with a jam-packed Friday that features eight teams competing in four wild-card

Oct 4, 2022 Dan Hajducky Close ESPN Hajducky is a reporter/researcher for ESPN. He has an MFA in creative writing from Fairfield University and played on the men’s soccer teams at Fordham and Southern Connecticut State universities. Anthony Olivieri TWO WEEKS AFTER New Year’s, there was a bidding war over a baseball card at collectibles

5:01 PM ET CHICAGO — Tony La Russa is stepping down as Chicago White Sox manager because of health concerns that kept him out of the dugout for the final five weeks of the season, he announced in a statement released Monday. La Russa, who will turn 78 on Tuesday, hasn’t managed a game since

11:48 PM ET ESPN News Services HOUSTON — Aaron Nola took a perfect game into the seventh inning and Kyle Schwarber homered twice as the Philadelphia Phillies clinched their first playoff berth in 11 years with a 3-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Monday night. After Brandon Marsh caught Mauricio Dubon‘s fly ball in