MLB

Rays reliever has wedding ring knocked off by comebackerST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) Danny Farquhar watched Logan Forsythe complete the third out of the inning, then panicked.The Rays reliever had his wedding ring, along with his glove, knocked off his hand by Jonathan Schoop's comebacker during Tampa Bay's 11-2...

BURBANK, Calif. (AP) George Genovese, a minor league shortstop and manager who became a scout for the San Francisco Giants and signed such future standouts as Bobby Bonds, George Foster and Gary Matthews, has died. He was 93.He died Sunday of a blood infection at Providence Saint Joseph...

PHOENIX (AP) St. Louis' John Lackey pitched seven strong innings to guide the Cardinals to a 3-1 win at Arizona on Wednesday, giving the team its best win-loss record in a decade and maintaining the handy lead atop the National League Central division.The Cardinals remained 4-1/2 games clear...

TORONTO (AP) David Price pitched seven shutout innings and Jose Bautista had two hits as the Toronto Blue Jays used a three-run first inning to beat the New York Yankees 4-2 and pad their lead in the AL East division on Monday.Toronto moved clear of New York by...

Associated PressBooming bats of Bautista, Encarnacion could leave Jays' nestBy IAN HARRISONTORONTO (AP) In back-to-back postseasons, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion hit the two biggest home runs Blue Jays fans had seen in a generation.But after making baseball history in Toronto, both might be about to become history...

AP Sports WriterPirates demote struggling Niese to bullpenBy STEPHEN WHYNOWASHINGTON (AP) Struggling Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Jonathon Niese will try to get on track in the bullpen after being removed from the starting rotation.Pirates manager Clint Hurdle announced the decision to demote Niese to the bullpen on Friday before...

CHICAGO (AP) The Chicago Cubs will send Jon Lester to the mound for Game 1 of the NL Championship Series on Saturday night, and Javier Baez will start at shortstop after Addison Russell was shelved by a left hamstring injury.Russell got hurt while legging out a triple in...

PHOENIX (AP) Cory Hahn had his dream of playing professional baseball snatched away by a freak accident on a baseball diamond.That forced Hahn to shift his dream to another aspect of baseball: Running a major league team.A quick study with beyond-his-years baseball knowledge, he appears to be on...

BATTERED BATTER San Francisco's All-Star catcher Buster Posey took Saturday off to rest but should return for Sunday's game. Manager Bruce Bochy said Posey was tired and "a little beaten up" and needed a day. Posey's health is key if the Giants are going to climb back into the postseason...

Venezuela rallies to beat Dominican in Caribbean SeriesBy The Associated PressMEXICO CITY (AP) Rene Reyes hit a two-run homer to cap a three-run rally with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning and Venezuela beat the Dominican Republic 4-3 on Sunday in the Caribbean Series.With Venezuela...

AP Sports WriterOrioles acquire LHP Miley from MarinersBy JAY COHENCHICAGO (AP) Baltimore is hoping Wade Miley can turn his solid July into a big finish with the AL East leaders.The Orioles acquired Miley in a trade with the Seattle Mariners on Sunday, giving manager Buck Showalter an experienced...

ST. LOUIS (AP) St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famer Lou Brock, a former base stealing champion, has had his left leg amputated below the knee due to an infection related to diabetes.The Cardinals and a longtime friend, Dick Zitzmann, confirmed that the 76-year-old Brock had had the procedure...