CHICAGO — Paul Skenes learned plenty during his sole season at LSU.

The Pirates' prized right-hander furthered his repertoire, transformed his body and in turn became a No. 1 overall pick. While residing in Baton Rouge, La., Skenes also developed a curiosity toward grilling various meats, a familiar sight during tailgates at the Tigers' home ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — As soon as Thairo Estrada’s line drive cleared the left field wall Friday evening, the San Francisco Giants could rest easy.

The wall-scraping three-run blast in the fifth inning put the Giants ahead for good in their first of three games against the red-hot Colorado Rockies, a 10-5 win, and officially erased whatever damage...Read more

LOS ANGELES — James Paxton, control freak? That moniker would not have fit the veteran left-hander in his first month with the Los Angeles Dodgers, when Paxton had more walks (22) than strikeouts (15) in 252/3 innings over his first five starts.

But Paxton found some rhythm in his delivery and the strike zone in the process, delivering his ...Read more

ARLINGTON, Texas — Each time the Angels play a solid game in this disappointing season, manager Ron Washington says he’s expecting to eventually see those performances with more consistency.

This is a start. They’ve now managed a two-game winning “streak” each of the last two weeks.

The Angels beat the Texas Rangers, 9-3, on Friday ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — Statistically, the matchup didn’t bode well for the Cardinals. After all, the Boston Red Sox brought the stingiest pitching staff in the major leagues to town to face the National League’s least-productive offense.

So, of course, the Cardinals used this opportunity to turn home plate into a launching pad against the young ace ...Read more

BALTIMORE — All the Orioles needed to break their hitting slump was face a budding Cy Young Award contender in one of baseball’s best rotations.

Baltimore entered Friday with an 8-4 record in May, but the club’s hitters had their pitchers to thank for that. The offense scored just 3.8 runs per game during that stretch while hitting .220. ...Read more

CLEVELAND – There was live music playing outside Progressive Field on Friday evening and postgame fireworks were already on the schedule.

José Ramírez became the life of the party with a go-ahead solo home run off Twins closer Jhoan Duran in the eighth inning, launching a curveball into the right-field seats. The Twins snapped their ...Read more

NEW YORK — Aaron Judge continues to make his early-season slump a very, very distant memory.

The Yankees slugger smashed another home run during Friday night’s 4-2 win over the Chicago White Sox in the Bronx, giving him seven extra-base hits over his last three games.

The first-inning solo shot against Chicago starter Mike Clevinger jumped...Read more

Friday’s start against the Miami Marlins didn’t seem like much of an uphill battle for rookie Christian Scott after he held his own against a mighty Braves lineup and respectable Rays team in the first two starts of his career.

But Scott ran into trouble early and registered the worst start of his young career in Friday’s 8-0 loss to the ...Read more

TORONTO — With a string of rough outings, Tyler Alexander seemed to have pitched his way out of the Rays’ rotation with the looming return of Ryan Pepiot from the injured list.

But Alexander gave the team something to think about Friday with a dazzling performance, taking a perfect game into the eighth inning by retiring the first 22 Blue ...Read more

ATLANTA — Matt Waldron kept a game from getting away from him, and then he got a rare lead.

Then Padres manager Mike Shildt did something rare, having closer Robert Suarez work the eighth inning against the top of the Braves order and turning to Jeremiah Estrada to close out the game for his first career save.

The Padres hitters also did ...Read more

BALTIMORE — The partnership led by David Rubenstein will own about 97% of the Orioles when it completes the sale’s second phase in a transaction that could occur as soon as the end of May, according to the private equity billionaire.

“We originally structured the deal so that we would own about 40%,” Rubenstein told The Baltimore Sun. ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Zack Wheeler looked more like himself on Friday night. He allowed an uncharacteristically high three walks alongside two runs on three hits, but otherwise was dominant in a 4-2 win against the Nationals. Certainly more dominant than he was on May 12 in Miami, when he allowed more walks and runs than he had strikeouts.

Wheeler ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Jung Hoo Lee, the Giants’ Korean sensation, will not play again this season.

The 25-year-old center fielder will undergo surgery in the coming weeks to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder, the club announced Friday.

Lee dislocated his shoulder Sunday when he collided with the outfield wall while attempting to make a ...Read more

NEW YORK — Neither Juan Soto nor the Yankees are ruling out in-season discussions about a contract extension for the superstar slugger.

Soto, whose first season with the Yankees is off to a red-hot start, is set to become a free agent this winter, with some projecting the ultra-productive 25-year-old to fetch a historic pact exceeding $50 ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — What do you get the team that seems to have it all?

“I think we can always get better,” Bryce Harper said the other day, a few hours before the Phillies won … again. “Right?”

Sure. That’s how Dave Dombrowski sees it. In 30-something years at the wheel of baseball operations for five organizations, he has almost ...Read more

CHICAGO — When Ian Happ’s bat went airborne on a whiff in the first, it became abundantly clear Friday afternoon belonged to Paul Skenes.

In just his second career MLB start, the Pirates right-hander struck out each of the first seven batters he faced, coming two shy of matching Pablo Lopez’s modern-day record to start a game. Skenes is ...Read more

SAN DIEGO — The Dodgers lead the major leagues in attendance. They always do. No surprise there.

The team that ranks second in attendance is the one that has a rally towel hanging next to the home dugout, urging the players to "COMPETE FOR PETE."

Peter Seidler lived the final decade of his life transforming the Padres into a team that would ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Long lines snaked out from Dodger Stadium entrances a good three hours before Thursday night’s game, and most of the 53,527 fans in attendance were in their seats well before first pitch, a rarity for the notoriously late-arriving Chavez Ravine crowds.

The draw? A Shohei Ohtani bobblehead doll, the two-way star’s first as a ...Read more