GLOBAL NEWS

After not being a postseason participant since 2006, the San Diego Padres have it coming together in 2020. Not only are they currently in line to be the No. 4 seed in the National League playoffs, they are reaping the benefits of having baseball's top-ranked minor league system in both 2018 and 2019 -- by trading prospects for veteran additions who could provide an edge down the stretch and in the playoffs. And the trading deadline won't come until an hour before the Padres start the finale of their four-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Monday. The Padres have already made four trades in the past two days while giving up just one top-10 prospect. They acquired right-handed reliever Trevor Rosenthal on Saturday from the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Edward Olivares and a player to be named. On Sunday, the Padres made three trades: --They acquired designated hitter/first baseman Mitch Moreland from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for two prospe

After ending a nine-game road trip with a five-game losing streak, the Minnesota Twins are looking forward to beginning an eight-game stretch at Target Field in Minneapolis against the Chicago White Sox on Monday night where they've compiled a 12-3 record. Except ... First up is a matchup with red-hot White Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito who will be attempting to join Johnny Vander Meer as the only pitcher in Major League history to toss consecutive no-hitters. Vander Meer accomplished that feat 82 years ago in 1938. Now Giolito (3-2, 3.09 ERA) will make his first start since no-hitting Pittsburgh in a 4-0 win on Tuesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field, the 19th no-hitter in franchise history. The White Sox, meanwhile, are also trying for another kind of history, having bounced back from a 10-11 record on Aug. 16 to move into a first-place tie with the Cleveland Indians in the American League Central Division, while the slumping Twins have slid into third place. "We got l

The Pittsburgh Pirates will be going for a split of their four-game series in Milwaukee when the teams meet Monday at Miller Park. The Brewers, meanwhile, will be going for a series win and a season split. They are 4-5 against the Pirates going into the teams' final meeting of this shortened season. Milwaukee won games Friday and Saturday before the Pirates won Sunday. The combined home run count through the first three games of the series is up to 11. Pittsburgh got long balls from Josh Bell and Gregory Polanco in a 5-1 win Sunday. It gave Bell two homers in as many days, one right-handed and one left-handed. That doubled his total to four. He's batting .218 after hitting .277 with 37 homers last year. "I think the timing's better," Pirates manager Derek Shelton said of Bell. "I think he's being more consistent in his movement. As (people) saw last year, this guy can hit. He got off to a slow start, but I think we're starting to see signs of hi

The anomaly that is the 2020 baseball season has delivered many casualties, not the least of which is benchmark statistics. Players who have reached "at least" numbers in consecutive seasons likely will see those streaks end. That makes the record-setting season of Kansas City's Ryan McBroom even more remarkable. The first baseman, who made his major league debut last September after being acquired from the New York Yankees farm system, came with the reputation of being a power hitter. But he had to wait until this season to hit his first career home run after 75 at-bats without one in 2019. So far in 2020, McBroom has five home runs, including three as a pinch-hitter. Three pinch-hit home runs are a Royals record for a season -- and a career. He did it in a span of 18 days. "It's hard not to smile through this," McBroom said about his home-run streak. "It's been incredible. There are really no answers. There's no secret formula. I'm ju

If Sunday's offensive explosions are any indication, the Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves should be swinging for the fences on Monday night at Fenway Park. Both teams put up crooked numbers over the weekend against the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies, respectively, gearing up for another anticipated slugfest. The Braves used a 10-run second inning in their 12-10 win over the Phillies. Austin Riley homered and had three RBIs while Nick Markakis and Marcell Ozuna each had three hits and two RBIs. Atlanta manager Brian Snitker breathed a sigh of relief after his team held on to the lead in Philadelphia. "You're never safe in this ballpark," Snitker said afterward. "You don't feel comfortable ever with any lead." Winners of six of their last 10 games, the Red Sox are fresh off a 9-5 victory over the Nationals on Sunday at Fenway Park. The Red Sox feasted off Washington pitching with 15 hits, including four home runs. Third baseman Rafa

When the Tampa Bay Rays made their first trip to Yankee Stadium two weeks ago, they were just starting to roll. Now they are on a full-blown surge and will attempt to get their sixth straight win and widen their lead in the AL East on Monday night when they visit the New York Yankees for the opener of an important three-game series. The Rays lead the season series 6-1. They took three of four at home Aug. 7-9 and then completed their first sweep in New York since 2014 on Aug. 18-20. Tampa Bay entered its first series with the Yankees holding a 5-7 record and trailing in the division. Since then, the Rays are a sizzling 19-4 and own a 3 1/2 game edge on the Yankees. The Rays head to New York coming off a 12-7 win over the Miami Marlins that completed a three-game sweep and gave them a 12th win in 14 games. "This team is talented," said Rays left-hander Blake Snell, who noted before the first series that his team celebrates wins over the Yankees a little bit more. "W

Jo Adell will be in the starting lineup for the Los Angeles Angels on Monday afternoon against the Seattle Mariners in Anaheim, Calif., and will take his spot in right field, which the Angels are hoping will be his for years to come. Adell was not on the major league roster to start the season. But after Justin Upton's slow start, the Angels decided to call up the 21-year old on Aug. 4 and handed him the job in right field. Adell has started 19 of the Angels 25 games since he joined the club, but his first few weeks were anything but smooth. He struggled offensively, hitting just .175 with no homers, only one RBI and 28 strikeouts in 63 at-bats over 17 games. He also has been a work in progress defensively and had an embarrassing moment when a ball caromed off his glove and went over the fence for a four-base error at Texas. Adell, however, may have had his breakthrough performance on Saturday against the Mariners, hitting the first two home runs of his major league career. It