LOS ANGELES — When the Dodgers last won the World Series in 2020, the championship was saved with the most unusual of scenarios.

The final seven outs of the deciding Game 6 victory against the Tampa Bay Rays were perfectly navigated by a pitcher who had worked out of the bullpen just once that season.

Julio Urías was not a reliever, but the...Read more

SEATTLE — Even as other teams provide them hope for an impossible outcome and offer opportunity for a mildly miraculous path to the postseason, the Seattle Mariners as they’ve done since mid-June — under both managers — simply refuse to capitalize on what has been given.

Needing to win to keep pace with the Houston Astros in the ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Hayden Birdsong’s rapid rise hit a speed bump in recent weeks.

But with a couple days of extra rest, the rookie right-hander got over the hump Thursday, even if it wasn’t enough for the San Francisco Giants (72-75) to pull out a win in their rubber match against the Milwaukee Brewers (84-62).

Birdsong, 23, completed five ...Read more

NEW YORK — With a rotation crunch coming, Nestor Cortes made a strong argument to remain part of the group on Thursday night.

The lefty looked sharp in the Yankees’ 2-1, 10-inning, walk-off win over the Red Sox, permitting just one earned run and three hits over five innings. Cortes also tied his season high with nine strikeouts while ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — If Francisco Lindor didn’t have your attention before Wednesday afternoon, he probably does now.

How on-brand would it have been for the Mets to get no-hit in the midst of a playoff chase? How many jokes would the internet have cracked if Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis had finished the job Wednesday at Roger ...Read more

Bottle it. Study it. Repeat it.

That’s what the Rockies should do with their 4-2 road victory over the Tigers on Thursday afternoon at Comerica Park.

The Rockies got a terrific start from Ryan Feltner, who went toe-to-toe with Detroit ace Tarik Skubal. They also got key hits in the clutch and another lights-out performance from their bullpen...Read more

ST. LOUIS — In four encounters against the Cincinnati Reds, Cardinals starter Sonny Gray had not come away as the game’s winning pitcher.

On Thursday at Busch Stadium, Gray spun six innings and made a bid at perfection to finally earn a win against his former club and give the Cardinals a series win after they dropped Tuesday’s opener.

...Read more

The frustration from losing a bid at perfection and then not being able to finish the seventh inning was obvious from Bryan Woo as he handed the ball to manager Dan Wilson.

But as Woo started to stalk off the mound toward first base dugout, the boisterous crowd of 21,129 rose in appreciation of what they had just witnessed.

With each step from...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — On their way to a 13-2 romp Wednesday over the Milwaukee Brewers, the Giants ventured outside their comfort zone a couple times.

Not only did they jump out to an early lead against Brewers starter Colin Rea, they did so with the help of some aggressive base running.

The home runs that followed may get the headlines, but it ...Read more

Shohei Ohtani continued his march toward baseball’s first-ever 50-50 season, belting his career-best 47th home run, stealing his 48th base and driving in three runs, and Tommy Edman hit two homers for the second straight game to lead the Dodgers to a 10-8 victory over the Chicago Cubs in Chavez Ravine on Wednesday night.

The score was tied 7-...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Major League Baseball had already disciplined Tampa Bay Rays reliever Edwin Uceta for intentionally hitting Nick Castellanos with a pitch before Wednesday night’s game had even started. But that didn’t stop the Phillies right fielder from dishing out some revenge where it really mattered: the scoreboard.

Castellanos scored ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Welcome back, Brooks Lee. Glad to see you again, Royce Lewis.

The Twins’ young infielders, both wrestling through maddeningly long hitless slumps, each provided a two-run double on Wednesday, leading the Twins to a 6-4 victory over the Angels at Target Field.

The win allowed the Twins to stave off any encroachment by Boston, ...Read more

BOSTON — As the Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles went into the bottom of the ninth locked in a 2-2 game, the stakes for Boston loomed clear on the Green Monster scoreboard.

The Detroit Tigers had already won 7-4 and the Minnesota Twins held a late 6-3 lead over the Los Angeles Angels. The Red Sox already have enough ground to make up in the ...Read more

NEW YORK — First Juan Soto drilled a ball off the top of his right foot. Then he drilled one well beyond the right field fence.

Such was the sequence on Wednesday night against the Kansas City Royals, as the Yankees’ superstar found himself in serious pain after a foul ball connected with his foot in the sixth inning. However, the right ...Read more

ST. LOUIS — For the second time in as many nights against the Cincinnati Reds, runs were scarce for the Cardinals and a choice opportunity late in the game was about to slip past their bats.

All they needed was a run.

Ryan Helsley assured all they needed one, single run.

With a tie game Wednesday night and the go-ahead run at second base, ...Read more

DETROIT — This looked like the baseball equivalent of a first-round knockout, except the Colorado Rockies stayed on their feet for the full nine rounds.

The Tigers batted around and scored six runs off rookie right-hander Tanner Gordon in the first inning and rope-a-doped the Rockies the rest of the way, holding on for a 7-4 win at Comerica ...Read more

WASHINGTON — On Tuesday night, Braves manager Brian Snitker spoke of Reynaldo López’s right shoulder with a hint of optimism. It seemed like Snitker did not fear the worst after López’s initial tests came back clean. But everyone understood nothing was for certain until the MRI.

López on Wednesday underwent an MRI that returned clean. ...Read more

CHICAGO — With the Chicago White Sox drawing national attention as they close in on the modern-day MLB record for losses, Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf conceded the obvious Wednesday, calling it a “very painful” season.

“Everyone in this organization is extremely unhappy with the results of this season, that goes without saying,” Reinsdorf...Read more

TORONTO — With the Mets down to their last three outs and facing the possibility of being no-hit in the midst of a playoff chase, their best chance to break it up was their best player: Francisco Lindor.

Lindor went down 0-2 to Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis. It would have been a great story for Francis, a 28-year-old career ...Read more