A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.
Two days after the death of all-time great third baseman Brooks Robinson, the Baltimore Orioles have cause to smile.
The Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox 2-0 Thursday to set off a raucous celebration at Camden Yards as Baltimore clinched its first AL East title since 2014, guaranteed themselves home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs.
Baltimore, which lost 110 games in 2021, completed a stunning turnaround with its 100th win, accomplished for the first time since 1980.
Dean Kremer pitched 5 1/3 sterling innings and DL Hall, Yennier Cano, Cionel Perez and Tyler Wells pitched well out of the bullpen as the O’s held the Red Sox to just three hits – all singles.
Anthony Santander went deep off Chris Sale in the first inning, and Heston Kjerstad added some late insurance with a pinch-hit double in the eighth that plated Adam Frazier.
There was even more excitement at Camden Yards during the game when the team announced on the scoreboard that it had reached agreement with the state to keep the Orioles in Baltimore for at least the next 30 years.
The team’s lease at Camden Yards was set to expire at the end of 2023.
Crawford’s clutch hit gives Mariners vital win
J.P. Crawford singled home the tying and winning runs with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Seattle Mariners to a thrilling 3-2 victory over the Texas Rangers.
The Rangers entered the bottom of the ninth with a 2-1 run lead, but Aroldis Chapman gave up singles to Cal Raleigh and Dylan Moore.
Both runners moved up on a wild pitch and Ty France walked to load the bases before Chapman was replaced by Jonathan Hernandez. After Mike Ford popped out and Josh Rojas fouled out, Crawford lined a 1-1 pitch to the wall in left to give Seattle a much-needed win.
The Mariners pulled within one game of Houston for the final AL wild card.
Adolis Garcia and Leody Taveras homered for Texas, which could’ve clinched a playoff berth with a win.
Olson hits 54th homer as Braves win again
Matt Olson extended his major league lead with his 54th home run and the Atlanta Braves clinched home-field advantage throughout the postseason with a 5-3 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
Austin Riley had three hits and scored twice as Atlanta won for the sixth time in seven games and secured the best record in baseball.
Olson’s two-run blast gave him a team-record 136 RBIs, surpassing the 135 for Eddie Matthews in 1953.
The Cubs have lost three straight and 13 of 19 to fall one-half game behind Miami for the final NL wild card.
Diamondbacks acquire slugger Suarez from Mariners
The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired third baseman Eugenio Suarez from the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday in an attempt to bolster a position that lacked power during the team’s run to the World Series last season.
Arizona finished tied for 28th in Major League Baseball in 2023 with only 10 total home runs by its third baseman. Suarez, meanwhile, hit 22 homers of his own for Seattle.
“It adds a little bit of stability at that spot,” Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen said. “He’s a guy we’ve liked for a long time.”
Suarez, 32, was a 2018 All-Star for the Cincinnati Reds, who traded him to the Mariners in March 2022.
He’s hit .248 with 246 home runs and 730 RBIs in 1,313 career games for Detroit, Cincinnati and Seattle.
The Mariners acquired reliever Carlos Vargas and catcher Seby Zavala from Arizona, which lost in five games to the Texas Rangers in the World Series after going 84-78 during the regular season.
Aaron Nola staying with Phillies on 7-year contract
Starting pitcher Aaron Nola has agreed to a seven-year contract to remain with the Philadelphia Phillies, multiple media outlets reported Sunday.
The deal is worth a reported $172million, as the Phillies keep a cornerstone piece in their rotation.
Nola, 30, is the first major free agent to come off the board in a class that is headlined by two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani and includes fellow hurlers Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery.
Nola has spent his entire MLB career in Philadelphia and has finished in the top five of Cy Young award voting twice.
The right-hander saw his numbers slip a bit in 2023 with a 4.46 ERA but rebounded in the post-season with three quality starts and an ERA of 2.35 over 23 innings.
Nola and Zack Wheeler make up one of the best and most reliable rotation duos in baseball.
Since 2018, Nola has thrown 1,065 1/3 innings, the second most in the majors over that span. Wheeler is fourth on that list with 1,007 innings pitched.
Nola is one of five pitchers with at least 200 strikeouts in each of the last three seasons.
Nola was the priority in a vital offseason for the Phillies after making it to the World Series in 2022 and the NLCS last season but falling short of a title.
In 235 career starts, Nola has a 3.72 ERA and has 1,582 strikeouts in 1,422 innings pitched.
Athletics’ move from Oakland to Las Vegas approved by MLB owners
The Athletics’ move from Oakland to Las Vegas has been approved by Major League Baseball owners.
The 30 franchise owners voted unanimously in support of the team’s move from California to Nevada, with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred acknowledging that it was a “terrible day” for fans in Oakland.
The Athletics executives reached an agreement to build a new stadium in Las Vegas in May after the state’s legislature approved public financing towards the construction.
The Athletics have been based in Oakland since 1968, having previously been in Kansas City and Philadelphia.
MLB commissioner Manfred told a press conference: “I know this is a terrible day for fans in Oakland. I understand that, and that’s why we’ve always had a policy of doing everything humanly possible to avoid a relocation.
“I truly believe we did that in this case. I think it’s beyond debate that the status quo in Oakland was untenable.
“I absolutely am convinced that there was not a viable path forward in Oakland. We look forward to being in Las Vegas; there’s tremendous support locally for having the A’s there. We do believe over the long haul that Las Vegas will be a great asset to Major League Baseball.”
The Athletics’ owners had been unable to find a solution to keep the team in Oakland, with their existing Coliseum home in need of redevelopment.
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