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ATLANTA (AP) — Max Scherzer is lined up to throw the Los Angeles Dodgers' first pitch in the NL Championship Series only two days after delivering the final pitch in their NL Division Series-clinching win.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Only the San Francisco Giants themselves envisioned a season with success quite like this.
They were all but an afterthought given the defending World Series champion Dodgers and San Diego Padres had been heavy favorites to win the NL West out of spring training.
HOUSTON (AP) — Astros ace Lance McCullers Jr. has been left off Houston's roster for the AL Championship Series against Boston because of a strained muscle in arm, a huge blow to a team looking to advance to the World Series for the second time in three seasons.
HOUSTON (AP) — Bill Miller will be the umpire crew chief for the AL Championship Series that starts Friday night in Houston and Jerry Meals will lead the crew for the NL Championship Series.
The Boston Red Sox visit the Astros for Game 1 of their best-of-seven matchup.
A capsule look at the best-of-seven American League Championship Series between the Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros:
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Schedule: (All times EDT) Game 1, Friday, at Houston, 8:07 p.m.
CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs hired Carter Hawkins as general manager on Friday, dipping into Cleveland's front office in an effort to bolster their own player development system.
The 37-year-old Hawkins spent 14 seasons with Cleveland, including the last five as an assistant general manager.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns says nobody has been able to figure out the cause of Christian Yelich’s hitting struggles over the past couple of seasons.
A capsule look at the best-of-seven National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves:
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Schedule: (All times EDT) Game 1, Saturday, at Atlanta, 8:07 p.m.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — It’s always been one of the most murky areas in baseball: What exactly constitutes a check-swing?
Suffice to say, a lot of people were taking a swing at that one Thursday night after San Francisco's Wilmer Flores was ruled out on precisely that kind of call, ending the Giants' 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the deciding Game 5 of their NL Division Series.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Wilmer Flores swung — or he didn’t — and that was it. Last call for the San Francisco Giants.
A surprising and spectacular ride for the Giants came to a startling halt Thursday night.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Cody Bellinger pointed at the dugout and pounded his chest in triumph after delivering the biggest hit this season for the defending World Series champions.
Of course, it took until the ninth inning of the 24th and final meeting to finally separate the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants.
HOUSTON (AP) — Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora was already counting on a rematch with his former team even before the Houston Astros advanced to their fifth straight AL Championship Series.
“He told me (Monday), ‘see you soon,’” Houston star Carlos Correa said.
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Jalen Ramsey rounded up the Los Angeles Rams' defensive backs and took everybody to the Dodgers' NL division series playoff game earlier this week.
On Thursday night, the DBs assembled again and headed downtown to watch the Los Angeles Kings' NHL season opener at Staples Center.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Julio Urías won't start after all for the Dodgers in the deciding Game 5 of their NL Division Series on Thursday night against the Giants, giving Los Angeles a left-hander out of the bullpen who has been tough on lefty hitters.
A capsule look at the best-of-seven American League Championship Series between the Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros:
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Schedule: (All times EDT) Game 1, Friday, at Houston, 8:07 p.m.
The Cardinals fired former National League manager of the year Mike Shildt over organizational differences Thursday, just one week after St. Louis lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers on a walk-off homer in the wild-card game.
ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Braves are preparing to play without outfielder Jorge Soler in the NL Championship Series as they await his clearance following his positive COVID-19 test.
The Braves worked out Thursday at Truist Park without Soler, who was pulled from the lineup for Game 4 of the NL Division Series against Milwaukee on Tuesday.
CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox star Tim Anderson made his feelings clear about manager Tony La Russa. He wants the Hall of Famer to return for another season in Chicago.
NEW YORK (AP) — Olympians Allyson Felix and Jordan Larson were honored as Sportswomen of the Year by the Women’s Sports Foundation.
Felix won two medals at the Tokyo Games — giving her 11 in her career — to surpass Carl Lewis as the most decorated American in Olympic track and field history.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Gabe Kapler repeatedly blew bubbles with his gum and popped them during his postseason managerial debut against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and oh does Dave Roberts remember his division counterpart doing that during their playing days in Double-A.
A capsule look at the best-of-seven American League Championship Series between the Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros:
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Schedule: (All times EDT) Game 1, Friday, at Houston, 8:07 p.m.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Ray Fosse, the strong-armed catcher whose career was upended when he was bowled over by Pete Rose at the 1970 All-Star Game, has died. He was 74.
Carol Fosse, his wife of 51 years, said in a statement online that Fosse died Wednesday after a 16-year bout with cancer.
BOSTON (AP) — It was the middle of the pandemic, the Boston Red Sox stunk, and with major league ballparks empty in 2020, they couldn’t even count on the crowd to get them going. During one especially humdrum road game at the Rays' Tropicana Field, coach Jason Varitek suggested they needed to put some fun back into the game.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Everybody expected a playoff series for the ages between the century-old rival Dodgers and Giants, and now they've got it.
Anything less than a winner-take-all Game 5 would have been a baseball travesty, leaving the sport short-changed on the October stage.
CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox star José Abreu would have loved nothing more than to be gearing up for another game and a chance to keep Chicago's playoff hopes alive.
He wasn't about to let a bitter ending sour an otherwise sweet season.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies hired Kevin Long as their hitting coach on Wednesday, reuniting him with both manager Joe Girardi and star slugger Bryce Harper.
Long spent the past four seasons as the hitting coach for the Washington Nationals, where he worked with Harper, and was part of the staff in 2019 when they won the World Series.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers made a franchise-record fourth straight playoff appearance this fall and have the type of starting rotation that could enable them to keep that streak going in future years.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — It is only fitting that 70 years after Bobby Thomson's “Shot Heard 'Round the World” that the Giants and Dodgers will play in another all-or-nothing game.
Los Angeles' 7-2 win over San Francisco on Tuesday night in Game 4 of the NL Division Series evened the series and sent the first Major League Baseball playoff matchup between teams with at least 105 wins to Game 5 Thursday night at San Francisco's Oracle Park.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Facing a second elimination game in less than a week, the Los Angeles Dodgers kept the same calm and cool approach.
It was their 52,935 fans who went bonkers, celebrating a 7-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night to force a decisive Game 5 in their NL Division Series.