Sport Scores

HOUSTON (Reuters) – The city of Houston on Saturday witnessed two milestones on its road to recovery from Hurricane Harvey: a visit from the president of the United States and the return of baseball a week after deadly floodwaters engulfed the metropolis. President Donald Trump, in a widely watched test of his handling of the disaster, distributed food and played with children at a center for evacuees in his first…

Around 10 p.m. EDT Tuesday night, Brad Miller yanked a 2–1 slider from Brandon Maurer over the right-field wall in Kauffman Stadium, drawing the Rays to within a run of the Royals at 3–2 in a game they’d lose 6–2. The homer wasn’t anything special in itself, save for being the 5,000th home run of the 2017 season. It’s the 12th time in baseball history, all since expansion to 30 teams in 1998,…

Baseball is a religion in Venezuela. The country cheers Felix Hernandez, Miguel Cabrera and other local boys who’ve made it in the Major Leagues up north, then turns its attention to its very own winter league that runs from September through the end of the year. They’re raucous games featuring drumming, cheerleaders and copious amounts of beer. Alongside hot dogs, vendors hawk arepas. But this season, no one is in the…

CARACAS (Reuters) – Young baseball players from poor families in Venezuela are not getting the nourishment needed to realize their dream of playing professionally in the United States, as acute food shortages close off one of the few remaining avenues out of poverty in the recession-hit country. Venezuela is home to superstar players, including Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera and the Houston Astros’ diminutive but mighty second baseman, Jose Altuve….

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin picks between two pairs of red sneakers based on which ones have been on his feet during hard-to-come-by wins. Brewers catcher Stephen Vogt gets dressed in a specific sequence each day, down to how he pulls on his socks and in what order. Sometimes, Kansas City’s Brandon Moss pretends to be superstitious by going with a good-luck bat. Oakland manager Bob Melvin rotates between several parking…

They call it a deadline for a reason, you know. No matter. Twenty minutes into September, the world learned that the Tigers had traded Justin Verlander to the Astros before the clock struck midnight, convincing their franchise player to sign off on the deal at the last possible minute. And for Verlander’s Fantasy owners, it was well worth the wait. The defending AL Cy Young runner-up (note: he was robbed)…

Taunton High eighth grader Abygale Souza eyes a chance at playing on the diamond Steve Sanchez Gazette Sports Editor @Chezsports TAUNTON — Baseball is not just for boys anymore.Ask Taunton’s Abygale Souza.The Silver City resident is one of 100 girls — ages 9 through 16 — that currently play for the Girls Travel Baseball program.The organization, which celebrated its two-year anniversary this year, is divided into…

They call it a deadline for a reason, you know. No matter. Twenty minutes into September, the world learned that the Tigers had traded Justin Verlander to the Astros before the clock struck midnight, convincing their franchise player to sign off on the deal at the last possible minute. And for Verlander’s Fantasy owners, it was well worth the wait. The defending AL Cy Young runner-up (note: he was robbed)…

Let September 2017 be the tipping point. I, for one, will tolerate a month of horrific baseball if it finally motivates players, their union, front offices and the Commissioner’s Office to find unanimity to end what just might be the dumbest rule in sports. On Friday, teams can begin expanding their rosters — sorry for the annual rant — but if you want to know how stupid that edict is,…

This is Ashley MacLennan’s sixth and final piece as part of her August residency at FanGraphs. Ashley is a staff writer for Bless You Boys, the SB Nation blog dedicated to the Detroit Tigers, and runs her own site at 90 Feet From Home. She can also be found on Twitter. Read the work of all our residents here. “You gotta take care of your teammates sometimes. With me,…

Let September 2017 be the tipping point. I, for one, will tolerate a month of horrific baseball if it finally motivates players, their union, front offices and the Commissioner’s Office to find unanimity to end what just might be the dumbest rule in sports. On Friday, teams can begin expanding their rosters — sorry for the annual rant — but if you want to know how stupid that edict is,…

Cue the 30 for 30 voice: What if I told you there’s a place where the No. 1 football prospect in the country was just another face in the crowd? That place exists. It’s called a baseball diamond. And Baseball America expert Carlos Collazo was blind to the gridiron hype when he watched 5-star high-school quarterback Justin Fields play shortstop this summer. “I actually didn’t know much about him on…

Let September 2017 be the tipping point. I, for one, will tolerate a month of horrific baseball if it finally motivates players, their union, front offices and the Commissioner’s Office to find unanimity to end what just might be the dumbest rule in sports. On Friday, teams can begin expanding their rosters — sorry for the annual rant — but if you want to know how stupid that edict is,…

Michael Dwyer/Associated Press Clutch: -2.28 The Yankees are mainly worried about snapping Aaron Judge out of his second-half slump. But even if he can do that, he’ll still have to find his way out of clutch purgatory.  The rookie’s leverage splits break down like so: Low Leverage: 1.045 OPS Medium Leverage: .963 OPS High Leverage: .924 OPS Like Goldschmidt, part of the reason Judge’s clutch is in the red is that…

CARACAS (Reuters) – Young baseball players from poor families in Venezuela are not getting the nourishment needed to realize their dream of playing professionally in the United States, as acute food shortages close off one of the few remaining avenues out of poverty in the recession-hit country. Venezuela is home to superstar players, including Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera and the Houston Astros’ diminutive but mighty second baseman, Jose Altuve….

CARACAS (Reuters) – Young baseball players from poor families in Venezuela are not getting the nourishment needed to realize their dream of playing professionally in the United States, as acute food shortages close off one of the few remaining avenues out of poverty in the recession-hit country. Venezuela is home to superstar players, including Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera and the Houston Astros’ diminutive but mighty second baseman, Jose Altuve….

Ben Hansen (left) watches data on a hand-held device as Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Matt Benedict throws a ball. Benedict is wearing sensors that recorded 39 sets of measurements. Tamara Lush/AP hide caption toggle caption Tamara Lush/AP Ben Hansen (left) watches data on a hand-held device as Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Matt Benedict throws a ball. Benedict is wearing sensors that recorded 39 sets of measurements. Tamara Lush/AP In a stats-driven sport…

Albert Pujols of the Los Angeles Angels is the most feared hitter of his generation — one of the greatest ever to step into a batter’s box. He ranks eighth all-time in home runs, seventh in extra-base hits and 10th in total bases. At his peak, he won three MVP awards and was also the best position player in baseball — according to wins above replacement (WAR)1 — three times…