CHICAGO — Michael Soroka’s Chicago Cubs debut lasted only two innings.

And now the next time he will pitch in a Cubs uniform is concerningly unclear.

Soroka departed after the second inning Monday because of right shoulder discomfort in the Cubs’ ugly 3-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field. The shoulder issue will land him on ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — José Alvarado left town on May 18 without talking to even his Phillies teammates, most of whom got the news from manager Rob Thomson in a hastily called team meeting.

Eleven weeks later, the reliever finally broke his silence.

Alvarado returned to Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday, two weeks shy of the end of his 80-game ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Twins fans are right to be disappointed and even disgusted.

They are right to question the judgment and commitment of the Pohlad family, which has owned the franchise since 1984.

In the wake of the Twins’ historic player purge — nine trades in which 10 major league players departed, including stars Carlos Correa and Jhoan ...Read more

SEATTLE — Gallup doesn’t monitor the approval rating of MLB executives. But if it did, Jerry Dipoto’s would look like a seismograph during an earthquake with its sharp spikes and sudden drops.

There have certainly been times when the court of public opinion was ready to throw the book at the Mariners president of baseball operations. ...Read more

ANAHEIM — Angels left-hander Yusei Kikuchi didn’t appear like he’d stick around long enough to earn a victory on Monday night.

He needed 71 pitches to get through the first three innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, causing the bullpen to stir in the opener of the three-game series.

Kikuchi settled in over the next three innings, however,...Read more

PHOENIX — The last time the Padres played at Chase Field, in mid-June, the Diamondbacks took two of three games and appeared to be among a group of teams that would make the National League wild-card race a thrill ride.

On Monday, four days after the trade deadline, the Diamondbacks had a much different outlook. They traded their slugging ...Read more

LOS ANGELES – It took another pinch-hit single from the Cardinals' backup catcher to seize a lead for the new setup in the backend of the bullpen.

Yohel Pozo, one of the Cardinals' most reliable bats off the bench, poked an RBI single in the ninth inning to break a tie and give the Cardinals their third lead of the game. It was up to lefty ...Read more

Minutes after the New York Yankees revamped their bullpen at the trade deadline, Aaron Boone indicated that he still considered Devin Williams his closer and that he wasn’t necessarily thinking about using a committee for the job.

Boone could have gone the committee route, as the Yankees acquired experienced closers in David Bednar and Camilo...Read more

DENVER — Bo Bichette happened to the Colorado Rockies on Monday night.

The son of Blake Street Bomber Dante Bichette hit two long home runs, added a single and drove in a career-high six runs as the Toronto Blue Jays pulverized the Rockies pitching in a 15-1 victory at Coors Field.

Bichette’s big night was the headline, but the Rockies’ ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Johan Oviedo’s return didn’t go as the right-hander had hoped, but the Pirates found some ninth inning magic for a 5-4 walk-off win against the San Francisco Giants on Monday night at PNC Park.

The Pirates scored two in the ninth off Giants reliever Randy Rodriguez. Up 4-3, Rodriguez allowed two to reach on a walk and a hit ...Read more

NEW YORK — One of the Yankees’ pre-trade deadline pickups is already injured.

That would be Austin Slater, who exited Monday’s game against the Texas Rangers in the first inning with left hamstring tightness. Slater suffered the injury while running to first on a fielder’s choice at Globe Life Field. He had trouble getting down the line...Read more

BOSTON — Wilyer Abreu wasn’t even originally supposed to start on Monday, and it wasn’t until Roman Anthony was scratched moments before first pitch that he took his place in right field.

The Boston Red Sox were sure glad he was there with two outs in the top of the eighth.

After bludgeoning Kansas City Royals starter Bailey Falter and ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Polar Bear is two bombs away from becoming the Mets home run king.

No. 251 brought the Mets back to within two runs of tying the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night at Citi Field. A 4 for 5 night with four RBI helped the Mets go from down five runs to down two, to down only one, and sparked the rally that tied the game.

But ...Read more

DETROIT — Baseballs were flying out of Comerica Park Monday night.

The Detroit Tigers, a little bleary after some late night travel from Philadelphia Sunday night, slugged themselves awake in the middle innings, parlaying three homers into a 6-3 win over the trade deadline-decimated Minnesota Twins, in the first of three.

They were down 2-0 ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — As Kyle Schwarber lifted the bat off his shoulder, “M-V-P” chants rained down from the Citizens Bank Park crowd.

The Baltimore Orioles bullpen had been stripped down to the studs last week at the trade deadline, and right-hander Yaramil Hiraldo, recalled just four days before, had the unenviable task of facing Schwarber ...Read more

CHICAGO — Michael Soroka’s Chicago Cubs debut lasted only two innings.

Soroka departed after the second inning Monday against the Cincinnati Reds due to right shoulder discomfort. Television cameras captured Soroka talking to pitching coach Tommy Hottovy and head athletic trainer Nick Frangella in the dugout between innings.

Right-hander ...Read more

NEW YORK — The Yankees Maeda move for some starting pitching depth on Monday.

The Bombers announced that Kenta Maeda has signed a minor league deal with the club. The Japanese right-hander was assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Now in his ninth MLB season, the 37-year-old Maeda began the year with the Detroit Tigers before posting a...Read more

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers are leading the majors in on-base-plus-slugging percentage as an offense this year. They are second in the National League in scoring, and third in team batting average.

They have the league's top players in hitting (Will Smith batting .324 and Freddie Freeman batting .306) and OPS (Shohei Ohtani at .982 and Smith at...Read more

CHICAGO — The Chicago Cubs acquired Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros in December as the missing superstar in the lineup, and his strong start helped fuel expectations that a return to the World Series wasn’t just a pipe dream.

The Cubs acquired Michael Soroka from the Washington Nationals last week at the trade deadline to help fill a ...Read more

CHICAGO — A baseball season is a six-month journey with some lulls in between, but seldom does a stretch define a team like this one could define the 2025 Chicago Cubs.

From the finale of the City Series to the showdown with the Milwaukee Brewers to the trade deadline to Friday’s and Saturday’s tributes to Ryne Sandberg at Wrigley Field, ...Read more