Nelson Cruz Hopes To Stay With Twins Yardbarker "Twins superstar designated hitter Nelson Cruz may have played his final game with the team Wednesday in a season-ending defeat against the Astros. If the pending free agent has it his way, though, he’ll remain with the Twins. “Hopefully, I’ll be back next..." October 01

Angels won't rush to fill GM opening MLB.com "The Angels have begun the early stages of their general manager search, as club president John Carpino said Wednesday they have already started to compile a list of potential candidates but that they don’t plan to rush their decision after parting ways with GM Billy Eppler on..." October 01

Orioles To Replace Coaches Doug Brocail & Jose Flores Masn "The offseason work conducted by the Orioles has moved past the 40-man roster today and impacted two coaches. The Orioles aren’t going to bring back pitching coach Doug Brocail and third base coach/infield instructor Jose Flores, according to multiple industry..." October 01

Carlos Correa on Astros' Critics After WC Series: 'What Are They Gonna Say Now?' Bleacher Report "The 2020 MLB playoffs have their villains. The Houston Astros swept their best-of-three series with the Minnesota Twins to advance Wednesday. Carlos Correa, whose solo homer in the seventh provided the go-ahead run in Game 2, leaned into what is..." September 30

Mariah Carey Describes First Time Sleeping With Derek Jeter, 'So Sensual' TMZ "Mariah Carey is opening up about her first sexual experience with Derek Jeter ... going as far as to detail his "honey-dipped skin." Carey spoke out about their romance in her new book, "The Meaning of Mariah Carey", saying she met the MLB legend at..." September 30

Giants Interested In Re-Signing Kevin Gausman, Drew Smyly MLB Trade Rumors "The Giants spent a combined $13MM on right-hander Kevin Gausman and southpawDrew Smyly in free agency last winter, and those short-term, buy-low deals worked out well for a club that narrowly missed a playoff berth. Now, the Giants are hoping to retain the pair, according to..." September 30

Miles Mikolas Takes a Shot at Manny Machado The Big Lead "Miles Mikolas is out for the season thanks to a torn flexor tendon in his right arm, but that doesn't meant the St. Louis Cardinals hurler is above a little trash talk. Hours before his Cards face the San Diego Padres in Game 1 of their NL Wild Card series, Mikolas threw some..." September 30

Twins lament latest playoff exit: 'We weren't expecting this' The Score "The Minnesota Twins will once again head home for the winter empty-handed after a season full of promise. After a regular season in which they finished tied for the American League's second-best record, the Twins were swept by the sub-.500 Houston Astros in the wild-card..." September 30

How Miguel Rojas became Marlins' glue guy through teardown, rebuild, playoff run USA Today "To reach the playoffs for the first time since 2003, the Miami Marlins needed extraordinary forces on their side. Three rosters, for starters: The group that started the year in Philadelphia, followed by an 18-man replacement squad after the novel coronavirus ravaged the team, and..." September 30

Cubs Select Josh Phegley, Designate Josh Osich MLB Trade Rumors "The Cubs have selected the contract of catcher Josh Phegley from their alternate training site and designated left-handed reliever Josh Osich for assignment in order to open roster space, per a club announcement. Phegley will make the team’s Wild Card roster. " September 30

Phillies source believes GM Matt Klentak will return The Philadelphia Inquirer "Day One of the Phillies' offseason passed without any news about Matt Klentak’s future as the team’s general manager. No news, of course, is not necessarily good news for Klentak in this case because it took managing partner John Middleton 11 days after the end of the..." September 30

Fan Calls Out ESPN For Using A Fleshlight In A Yankees Graphic After Playoff Game Total Pro Sports "The New York Yankees opened their quest for a world series title in epic fashion when they went out and smashed the Cleveland Indians all night long to the tune of a 12-3 victory. After the Game 1 victory, ESPN’s baseball tonight went to breaking down the game when a social..." September 30

Twins' Alex Kirilloff becomes first MLB player to make debut by starting postseason game USA Today "Before he even steps into the batter's box or makes a catch, Alex Kirilloff will enter baseball's records books. The Minnesota Twins prospect will become the first player in league history to make his debut by starting a playoff game. Kirilloff, 22, is playing right..." September 30

Haters gonna wait: Astros are back and getting 'loud' after beating Twins in Game 1 USA Today "Nearly three years after their crimes against baseball, you can’t help but wonder if America’s Antiheroes will ever receive their comeuppance. The Houston Astros stumbled into these expanded Major League Baseball playoffs as figurative losers – who..." September 29

Social Media Roasts Bettor Who Wagered $500K On Twins To Beat Astros In Opener Total Pro Sports "Welcome to the 2020 baseball playoffs, where a record 16 teams are squaring off for a right to play for a COVID-19 World Series title. The Minnesota Twins came into their playoff opener losers of 16 games in a row in the postseason. They were facing an under .500 Houston Astros team..." September 29

Athletics Interested In Re-Signing Tommy La Stella MLB Trade Rumors "The American League West champion Athletics’ postseason got off to a less-than-ideal start Tuesday with a loss to the Lucas Giolito-led White Sox, who held the A’s to just three hits in a 4-1 defeat. One of those hits came from infielder Tommy La Stella, whom the A’s..." September 29

The Minnesota Twins Just Lost Their 17th Straight Postseason Game The Big Lead "Life as a Minnesota Twins fan has to be excruciating. Yes, the franchise won World Series titles in 1987 and 1991, but things have been bleak ever since. On Tuesday, the Twins fell to the Houston Astros 4-1 in the opening game of their Wild Card series. That was the 17th consecutive loss in a..." September 29

Emerging theory behind Gary Sanchez’s Yankees nightmare New York Post "Sandy Alomar spent two decades catching in the majors, so he has an understanding of the difficulties Gary Sanchez has faced this season in trying to adapt to a new stance behind the plate. The results have been brutal, as Sanchez’s productivity at the plate plummeted this..." September 29

David Wright believes Steve Cohen will turn the Mets into ‘sustained winners’ Empire Sports Media "A new era is about to being for the New York Mets. Steve Cohen, the hedge fund billionaire, is about to become MLB’s wealthiest owner when he takes over the team. All it is left is owners approving the transaction, which is expected to come relatively soon. And New York..." September 29

White Sox Release Steve Cishek; Ross Detwiler Elects Free Agency The Florida Oracle "The White Sox have released right-hander Steve Cishek, according to the MLB.com transactions page. Both Cishek and left-hander Ross Detwiler were designated for assignment earlier this week, and Detwiler is also on the move, as the southpaw has elected to become a free..." September 29

Astros Sign Yuli Gurriel To One-Year Extension Houston Chronicle " James Click’s compelling offseason began early. Three hours before beginning their wild card series against the Minnesota Twins, the Astros re-signed first baseman Yuli Gurriel to a one-year contract extension worth $6.5 million in guaranteed money. " September 29

Rangers GM Jon Daniels discusses team's approach to offseason Yardbarker "On the heels of another disappointing season, one that saw the Rangers finish 22-38 and extend their playoff drought to four years, general manager Jon Daniels spoke to media, including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and TR Sullivan of MLB.com. With their..." September 29

Chicago Cubs' Kyle Hendricks gets Game 1 start against Miami Marlins ESPN "Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks will start Game 1 of their NL Wild Card Series against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday, manager David Ross announced. The decision was between Hendricks and Cy Young contender Yu Darvish. Darvish will take the ball in Game..." September 29

Trevor Bauer has new beef with MLB over family attendance rules Larry Brown Sports "Trevor Bauer has never been shy about taking on Major League Baseball, and the Cincinnati Reds pitcher was at it again on Monday. Bauer took aim at MLB and suggested that the league is not allowing the families of players on designated road teams to attend playoff games. " September 29

Rays Designate Sean Gilmartin For Assignment MLB Trade Rumors "The Rays have designated left-hander Sean Gilmartin for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster for top pitching prospect Shane McClanahan, tweets Juan Toribio of MLB.com. " September 29

Twins Designate Sean Poppen For Assignment CBS Sports "The Twins designated Poppen for assignment Tuesday. " September 29

Derek Jeter helped build a new culture with the Marlins’ rebuild. It’s showing in 2020 Miami Herald "While the Miami Marlins were celebrating at Yankee Stadium on Friday, basking in the glory of clinching their first playoff appearance in 17 years, CEO Derek Jeter began making a round of phone calls. He wanted to personally thank the dozens and dozens of people who made this..." September 29

Jerry Dipoto: Mariners playoff contention realistic in '21 MLB.com "After seeing most of his team’s young nucleus take a solid step forward this season, Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto believes the club is on schedule to make a strong push for the playoffs in 2021. Speaking on a postseason video call with the media on Monday, Dipoto said..." September 29

Yankees’ strange road to playoffs doesn’t matter anymore New York Post "Nothing tells you more about both the oddity of this 60-game whack-a-doo baseball season, and the way you can look at the Yankees if you choose to do so through cold, objective eyes, than this: In March, before the world as we knew it went into witness protection, there were two..." September 29

Likely 2021 MLB draft order gives Pittsburgh Pirates the No. 1 overall pick CBS Sports "While MLB has yet to announce the order of selections for the 2021 draft, at one point it was viewed as highly likely that it would be determined by the final 2020 standings. According to the March agreement between MLB and the players association, commissioner Rob..." September 29

Michael Lorenzen Could Start For Reds In 2021 Yardbarker "Having finished the regular season 31-29, the Reds are gearing up for their first playoff appearance since 2013. Regardless of how the postseason ends for Cincinnati, however, it will face important questions in its starting rotation heading into 2021. National League Cy Young..." September 29

Cardinals saving Jack Flaherty for non-guaranteed Game 3 vs. Padres The Score "St. Louis Cardinals ace right-hander Jack Flaherty may not get to pitch in the 2020 postseason. The 24-year-old is in the Cardinals' rotation for the wild-card series against the San Diego Padres, but not until Game 3, which won't be necessary if either team..." September 29

José Ramírez, Freddie Freeman are Players of the Month MLB.com "After slugging their teams into the postseason, the Indians' José Ramírez and the Braves' Freddie Freeman were named MLB's Players of the Month for September on Monday. Ramírez led the Majors with a 1.294 OPS during the month,..." September 28

Jays' Bo Bichette: Facing top-seeded Rays is '0% intimidating' The Score "Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette isn't sweating his team's matchup against the No. 1 seeded Tampa Bay Rays in their best-of-three wild-card series starting Tuesday. "Zero percent intimidating," Bichette said Monday, according..." September 28

World Series Predictions: Who's Going to Win It All? SI "Ready for October? A weird season has produced an even weirder postseason, with 16 teams vying for the title, including two (!) clubs that finished with a losing record. The road to the fall classic begins this week with all eight wild-card series beginning on Tuesday (AL) or Wednesday (NL) and..." September 28

Marlins top executive: COVID-19 outbreak became 'our rallying cry' MLB.com "Last year, the Marlins had the worst record in the National League, losing 105 games. Fast forward to February. Michael Hill, the Marlins' president of baseball operations, told MLB.com that Miami would be competitive in 2020, and he was right. The Marlins are now in the playoffs and will..." September 28

Angels’ Shohei Ohtani reflects on disappointing season and ahead to two-way role in 2021 Orange County Register "For Shohei Ohtani, like so many others in the world, 2020 has not been anywhere close to what he expected. Ohtani and the Angels and their fans and all of baseball, really, had hoped to see a healthy Ohtani reprise his role as a successful two-way player in the majors, picking up..." September 28

Former voice of the Reds' Thom Brennaman on homophobic slur: 'I know I hurt a lot of people' USA Today "Thom Brennaman tried but the self-inflicted pain is too great, resurrecting the memories of Aug. 19: the night he uttered that word on television, changing his life forever. He can’t bring himself to watch his Cincinnati Reds, who are back in the postseason for the first..." September 28

Will DJ LeMahieu re-sign with the Yankees? NJ " The Machine wants to stay put. If it were up to Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu, he’d re-sign in the offseason and stay in the Bronx. “I want to stay here. I’ve said that a few times. You never know how it goes. I thought I was going..." September 28

White Sox thrilled to face Athletics' Jesus Luzardo after dominating lefties The Score "The Oakland Athletics are entrusting rookie left-hander Jesus Luzardo with the starter role for Game 1 of their wild-card series against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday. The White Sox dominated left-handers during the regular season, going 14-0 against..." September 28

Bryce Harper throws down the gauntlet: Sign J.T. Realmuto NBC Sports Philadelphia " This wasn't a T-shirt. It wasn't a shout in an empty ballpark. It wasn't a signing motion in the air. This was a gauntlet being thrown to the ground. "J.T. Realmuto needs to be our catcher next year — plain and..." September 28

MLB Finalizes 16-Team Playoff Bracket MLB Trade Rumors "With a hectic final day of play in the books, the 2020 playoff field is officially set – which visual learners can view here from MLB Network. The defending World Series champion Nationals and their newly-crowned batting champion Juan Soto will watch from home. The..." September 28

Ryan Pressly Reaches Vesting Threshold For 2022 Option MSN.com "Ryan Pressly reached the vesting threshold for a $10 million option in 2022, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). For the option to fully vest, Pressly needs to appear in 60 games in both 2020 and 2021. This season’s appearances are prorated because of the..." September 28

Yankees' DJ LeMahieu becomes first player in modern era to win batting title in each league Yahoo! Sports "Yankees' DJ LeMahieu officially earned the AL batting title on Sunday after finishing the season with a .364 batting average. He became the first player in major league history to win the award in both the AL and NL, as he took home the batting title in 2016 when he hit..." September 28

Blue Jays Outright Wilmer Font MLB Trade Rumors "Blue Jays righty Wilmer Font cleared waivers and was outrighted off the 40-man roster, per the transactions log at MLB.com. Font remains in the club’s 60-man player pool, however, and because he was on the team’s initially listed playoff player pool, he’d be..." September 28

Nationals' Juan Soto becomes youngest player to win National League batting title Federal Baseball "Davey Martinez was concerned about Juan Soto, when the Washington Nationals’ 21-year-old outfielder was stuck in quarantine after a positive test for COVID-19 on the morning of the season opener back in late July. That followed a separate period in which he was forced..." September 28

Angels fire general manager Billy Eppler after five losing seasons Los Angeles Times "While the Dodgers embark on their eighth consecutive postseason run 30 miles away from Angel Stadium, Angels owner Arte Moreno will spend at least part of October shuffling through résumés. Moreno fired general manager Billy Eppler on Sunday after Moreno’s team..." September 27

Could Alex Cora return to Red Sox following Ron Roenicke firing? New York Post "The Boston Red Sox announced on Sunday that Ron Roenicke will not return as the team’s manager next season. That immediately led to speculation that the Red Sox could be planning to bring back Alex Cora. Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Braves is the final one..." September 27

Cardinals, Brewers clinch NL's last playoff spots on final day The Score "The St. Louis Cardinals secured a spot in the 2020 postseason after beating the Milwaukee Brewers on the last day of the regular season. St. Louis finished as the No. 5 seed in the National League and will face the San Diego Padres in the wild-card..." September 27