6:28 PM ET Associated Press HOUSTON — Astros ace Justin Verlander had Tommy John surgery on Wednesday. General manager James Click announced Thursday that Verlander had the procedure a day earlier and estimated his recovery time at about 12-14 months. That means the earliest Verlander could pitch would be in the 2022 season and it
MLB
7:00 AM ET ESPN.com staff The MLB playoffs frenzy turns up the heat Thursday with five (count ’em, five) elimination games. We’ve already said goodbye to the Twins, Blue Jays and Indians, and either the White Sox or A’s will be kicked off the American League island. In the National League, the Reds, Cubs, Padres
4:28 AM ET Associated Press CLEVELAND — It took the New York Yankees nearly five hours on the field, carried them from Wednesday to Thursday and September into October to complete the sweep. They stumbled into the 2020 postseason. They’re standing tall now. DJ LeMahieu‘s tiebreaking single in the ninth inning off closer Brad Hand
2:00 AM ET MLB InsidersESPN The Tampa Bay Rays own the American League’s best record and the league’s No. 1 seed in the 2020 MLB playoffs. The New York Yankees were the AL’s favorites coming into the season before an up-and-down regular season netted them the No. 5 seed. After both swept their way through
12:29 AM ET LOS ANGELES — Ryan Braun exited Game 1 of the Milwaukee Brewers‘ Wild Card Series with what manager Craig Counsell described as a strain near the middle of his back. Braun, who has dealt with nagging back issues over the past few weeks, initially injured himself during Sunday’s regular-season finale and at
9:37 PM ET Associated Press Ray Davis and the Texas Rangers ownership group will host the 2020 World Series, just as they had hoped when they broke ground on a new stadium three years ago. Just not with the team they expected. Instead of a splashy debut year in the the $1.2 billion ballpark with
6:35 PM ET Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS — Shaken up by a scandal before the virus outbreak shrunk the season, the Houston Astros barely played well enough to reach the playoffs — with the rest of baseball actively rooting against them. Well, they’re not ready to leave yet. Carlos Correa hit a two-out, tiebreaking home run
6:16 PM ET A limited number of fans will be allowed to attend the National League Championship Series and World Series next month in Arlington, Texas, with tickets going on sale Tuesday, Major League Baseball announced Wednesday. The statement said 11,500 tickets will be available for each game; 10,550 fans will be spread through regular
5:44 PM ET Associated Press ATLANTA — Freddie Freeman singled home the winning run in the 13th inning, finally ending the longest scoreless duel in postseason history as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Cincinnati Reds 1-0 in the opener of the NL Wild Card Series on Wednesday. The East champion Braves won the first game
4:41 PM ET The Minnesota Twins’ postseason losing streak has reached a stunning 18 games — and now their 2020 season is over. The Houston Astros eliminated the Twins with a 3-1 victory on Wednesday at Target Field, a disappointing finish for a team that had rallied to win their second straight AL Central title