PHOENIX — The San Francisco Giants aren’t not done quite yet.

After only mustering one hit through the first 10 innings, the Giants put up in the top of the 11th inning to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-1 on Wednesday afternoon, snapping a four-game losing streak and keeping their fading playoff hopes alive.

San Francisco and Arizona both...Read more

CHICAGO — The circle of Chicago Cubs life led me to Gallagher Way on Wednesday afternoon to watch Craig Counsell’s team clinch a postseason spot on the big screen video board outside Wrigley Field.

A dozen or so others also made the trip out to the park, and let out a mini-roar when Cubs left fielder Ian Happ caught the final out of an 8-4 ...Read more

CHICAGO — There’s running wild, and then there’s what the Orioles did against the White Sox on Wednesday afternoon.

Baltimore (72-80) tied a team record with seven stolen bases in its 3-1 win over Chicago, coming out with an aggressive game plan and executing it without being caught to earn a sweep and 3-3 split in their penultimate road ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Pop the champagne bottles: The Chicago Cubs are heading to the postseason.

The Cubs clinched a playoff spot Wednesday with their 8-4 win against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s their first postseason berth since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and first in a full season since 2018.

They’re well positioned to host a wild-card...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani said he is prepared to make a six-inning start in October. He said he is open to pitching out of the bullpen, even if remaining in the game after a relief appearance might require him to play in the outfield.

His unspoken reasons for wanting to do so are obvious: The Dodgers are terrible.

They aren't terrible ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — The difference between a 76-win team that fancies itself still in the wild-card hunt and the 74-win team that, inch by inch, recedes from such notions was clear from the opportunities exploited.

The Cincinnati Reds used all three of starter Andre Pallante’s walks to generate runs for a 6-2 victory against the Cardinals on ...Read more

NEW YORK — Cal Raleigh might not be done making history just yet.

When the Seattle Mariners slugger struck his 55th home run of the year on Tuesday night, he broke a tie with Mickey Mantle to set a new single-season record for homers by a switch-hitter.

And when Raleigh clubbed his 56th home run in his very next at-bat, he tied Ken Griffey ...Read more

It was a stressful decision. But it shouldn’t have been so consequential.

In the middle of the fifth inning Tuesday night, Shohei Ohtani returned to the Dodgers’ dugout after a clean inning of work on the mound. Waiting for him at the top step was manager Dave Roberts, who (according to the SportsNet LA television broadcast) wanted to ask ...Read more

Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer loves to talk about the fight in his team, even when it goes down swinging. It happened again Tuesday night at cold and rainy Coors Field, where the Rockies fell 6-5 to the Marlins.

“It’s a testament to the guys, they could have folded early,” Schaeffer said for the umpteenth time during the worst ...Read more

PHOENIX — For the second time in the last four days, the Giants have scored four runs in the first inning against a left-handed pitcher. For the second time in the last four games, the Giants have failed to protect that early lead.

San Francisco dropped its fourth straight game on Tuesday night at Chase Field, losing 6-5 to the Arizona ...Read more

The Yankees didn’t forget their bats on Tuesday night against the Minnesota Twins.

The night after tallying two hits in their shutout loss, the Bombers broke out the lumber, recording 16 hits to hang on and defeat the Twins, 10-9, and even the three-game series. It was a big night for Yankees manager Aaron Boone’s lineup, which included 10 ...Read more

CHICAGO — Playing before the backdrop of a near-empty ballpark, on a quiet Tuesday night in a game between two last-place teams, the inevitable became reality for the Orioles.

They won, beating the White Sox, 8-7, but it was nothing more than a moral victory. Wins by the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros cemented the Orioles’ disaster of ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Whether he steps into the batter’s box on the right or left side of home plate, Cal Raleigh will stand alone in the records of Major League Baseball.

When Raleigh, who was batting left-handed, smashed his 55th homer of the season — a towering solo homer to right field off right-hander Michael Wacha in Tuesday’s game ...Read more

DETROIT — Tigers' manager AJ Hinch saved his biggest left-handed bench bat for last.

Kerry Carpenter came off the bench with two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth with the Tigers trailing the Cleveland Guardians 3-2. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt had been alternating right-handed and left-handed relievers since the sixth inning, ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — While one Cardinals rookie silenced the Reds through seven innings Tuesday night at Busch Stadium, another Cardinals rookie produced a long-awaited offensive lift that supported his starter and helped propel his team to a win.

In the third inning, as starter Michael McGreevy worked around some early traffic vs. Cincinnati to ...Read more

NEW YORK — If ever there was a time to jump out to a big lead early in a game, it was Tuesday night.

Desperate to get starting pitching length, the Mets stacked two of them in the opening game of a three-game series against the San Diego Padres, the team directly ahead of them in the NL wild-card standings. Not to mention, the Mets have had ...Read more

TAMPA, Fla. — The Rays were expecting Ryan Pepiot to come out strong on Tuesday after skipping his last start Sept. 10 due to “total body fatigue” and saying that with the extra rest he felt “back to normal.”

The plan was for Pepiot to work five solid innings against the Blue Jays, then make another start or two to put a good finish ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On a night when Cal Raleigh continued his season of wonder, smashing two more home runs, one to break an MLB record held by a legendary Hall of Famer and another tie the franchise record held by an iconic Hall of Famer, his performance was somehow outshined by Dominic Canzone.

Wait, what?

Indeed, in the Mariners’ 12-5 ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Prior to Tuesday’s game, Pirates manager Don Kelly said Tuesday would be Paul Skenes’ final PNC Park start of the season. Skenes didn’t have the home finale he’d hoped for.

Skenes pitched just 3 2/3 innings on Tuesday night at PNC Park, taking the loss as the Cubs beat the Pirates 4-1. Skenes allowed three runs on seven ...Read more