MLB

11:47 PM ET ESPN News Services HOUSTON — The Houston Astros opened the second half of the season by sweeping the New York Yankees in a doubleheader Thursday to inch closer in the standings to the team with baseball’s best record. Yordan Alvarez and Alex Bregman both homered and combined for five RBI as the

5:49 PM ET Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas — Former sports superstar Bo Jackson helped pay for the funerals of the 19 children and two teachers killed in the Uvalde school massacre in May, revealing himself as one of the previously anonymous donors who covered costs for families after one of the deadliest classroom shootings in

7:00 AM ET Coming out of the All-Star break, a few teams have all but secured a trip to October, others are in the thick of the playoff hunt and some already have their eyes set on next season. Will the Yankees reach 116 wins this season? Can the Braves keep building on their momentum

9:06 PM ET Albert Pujols was named the 2022 recipient of the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award as part of the ESPYS on Wednesday night in Los Angeles, another accolade for the retiring St. Louis Cardinals slugger. The award is given to an athlete whose “continuous, demonstrated leadership has created a measured positive impact on

9:01 PM ET Associated Press NEW YORK — New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom pushed back a simulated game scheduled for Tuesday after experiencing muscle soreness in his right shoulder. New York said deGrom’s soreness was mild, and the right-hander’s live batting practice was delayed to Thursday “out of an abundance of caution.” The two-time

8:30 PM ET Associated Press LOS ANGELES — The Baltimore Orioles aimed high with their 13th-round draft pick. A full seven feet — and that’s before their new pitching prospect gets on the mound. The O’s selected 7-foot left-hander Jared Beck from Saint Leo University with the first pick in Round 13 of baseball’s amateur

11:42 PM ET LOS ANGELES — The first All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium in 42 years featured Clayton Kershaw starting in front of the home fans and appearances from Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera, but the final score looked all too familiar: The American League won 3-2 for its ninth straight All-Star victory and 21st

4:49 PM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” LOS ANGELES — Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday he “reject[s] the premise” that minor league players are not paid a living wage, prompting a barrage of criticism a day

7:00 AM ET Before Paul Goldschmidt was a seven-time All-Star himself, he was a kid growing up in the Houston area, going to Astros games and voting for his favorite All-Stars: Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Lance Berkman, from that great generation of Astros players in the 1990s and early 2000s. “The hard part was deciding

11:00 AM ET Juan Soto is your 2022 Home Run Derby champion after dueling it out with rookie Julio Rodriguez in a battle of the young bats on Monday evening at Dodger Stadium. At 23 years and 266 days, Soto becomes the second youngest player ever to win the Derby. He is the second Washington

10:00 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” Since his debut in 2019, nobody in baseball has hit more home runs than New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso. Nobody has come close, actually. Alonso’s 130 homers outpace the second-most-prolific home

7:23 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Jackson Holliday, the son of seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday, was selected by the Baltimore Orioles as the No. 1 overall pick in baseball’s draft on Sunday. Holliday, a high-school shortstop out of Stillwater High School in Oklahoma, is an elite hitter who made significant strides in several aspects of

12:00 PM ET BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK It’s 2022 MLB draft day in Los Angeles and the Baltimore Orioles have made their selection. With the No. 1 overall pick, the Orioles took Jackson Holliday, top prospect and son of former major leaguer Matt Holliday. The Arizona Diamondbacks followed up with another son

3:35 PM ET ESPN News Services Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, sidelined the last four games with back spasms, will not play in Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Los Angeles. The three-time American League MVP will be replaced on the All-Star roster by Ty France of the Seattle Mariners, and Byron Buxton of the Minnesota

7:00 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” AT FIRST, HE was a mascot, and then he was a marvel, and now, more than a decade after he first toddled into a major league clubhouse, Jackson Holliday’s transformation is complete.

8:34 PM ET Associated Press HOUSTON — After collecting his MLB-leading 12th win Saturday, Justin Verlander wasn’t ready to reflect on how far he’s come this season. But the 39-year-old did take a moment to note how his almost two-year absence from the game after Tommy John surgery has made him appreciate his success a

12:48 PM ET The Washington Nationals are willing to listen to trade offers for Juan Soto after the star outfielder rejected their most recent long-term offer, league sources confirmed to ESPN on Saturday. Sources said Soto turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer that would have been the largest contract in baseball history. Soto had

7:02 PM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” Major League Baseball will pay $185 million to settle the federal class-action lawsuit filed by minor league players who sought pay for minimum-wage and overtime violations by teams, pending a judge approving