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Former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling announced his intention Tuesday to run for the United States Senate as a Republican against Massachusetts Democrat Elizabeth Warren in 2018.

Speaking on The John DePetro Show on Rhode Island’s WPRO-AM (h/t Tim Hill of the Guardian), Schilling added he still needs to clear the decision with his family.

“I’ve made my decision,” he said, per Hill. “I’m going to run. But I haven’t talked to Shonda, my wife. And ultimately it’s going to come down to how her and I feel this would affect our marriage and our kids.”

Schilling pitched for the Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks and Boston Red Sox, finishing his career 216-146 with 3,116 strikeouts, a 3.46 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He was a six-time All-Star and three-time World Series champion, and he finished second in Cy Young Award voting three times, though he never won the honor.

He’s been a more controversial figure in his post-baseball career, however.

In 2012, his video game studio, 38 Studios, went bankrupt two years after receiving a $75 million taxpayer-based loan from the state of Rhode Island, per Hill. The state ultimately sued, and Schilling and Rhode Island agreed to a $2.5 million settlement.

Schilling has also raised eyebrows with a number of public statements. In 2015, he was suspended by his then-employer, ESPN, after a tweet that compared the number of Muslim extremists to German Nazis. A year later, ESPN fired him after he shared an anti-transgender Facebook post that supported North Carolina legislation that made it illegal for transgender persons to use bathrooms that didn’t match the sex on their birth certificate.

Along with sharing the Facebook post, Schilling wrote: “A man is a man no matter what they call themselves. I don’t care what they are, who they sleep with, men’s room was designed for the penis, women’s not so much. Now you need laws telling us differently? Pathetic.”

Per Hill, Schilling has been hinting at running against Warren for some time.

“I thought about it, and one of the things I would like to do is be one of the people responsible for getting Elizabeth Warren out of politics,” Schilling said in August, according to Hill’s report. “I think she’s a nightmare and I think that the left is holding her up as the second coming of Hillary Clinton, but Lord knows we don’t even need the first one.”

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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The Cleveland Indians again relied on their bullpen in Game 3, earning a 4-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays to build a 3-0 lead in the American League Championship Series on Monday.

Starting pitcher Trevor Bauer was removed after recording just two outs, but six relievers combined to throw 8.1 innings, allowing only two runs.

Jason Lukehart of Let’s Go Tribe provided an incredible stat from Cleveland’s victory:

The Indians are one win away from reaching the World Series for the first time since 1997.

Bauer’s early exit was the big story of the game after a pinkie finger injury he suffered while repairing a drone pushed his start back from Game 2 to Game 3. The cut turned out to be more serious than expected, and his stitches opened a couple of batters into the contest, causing the finger to bleed all over the mound.

Buster Olney of ESPN The Magazine described the situation:

Fox Sports provided a gruesome image (warning: NSFW) of Bauer’s finger as he exited the game.

Bauer walked two batters and recorded two outs before Dan Otero found a way to get out of the first-inning jam. Cleveland was then forced to piece together innings from its bullpen for the rest of the night, although manager Terry Francona came prepared.

In addition to using a wide variety of relievers throughout the game, Francona asked closer Cody Allen to pitch in the seventh inning for the first time since 2014, per ESPN Stats & Info. Allen came through with 1.2 hitless innings.

Andrew Miller then followed with a four-out save featuring three strikeouts.

Jordan Bastian of MLB.com summed up Cleveland’s mindset:

Blue Jays starting pitcher Marcus Stroman couldn’t keep up, allowing four earned runs in 5.1 innings.

Mike Napoli sparked the Indians offense Monday. He got Cleveland on the board with an RBI double off Jose Bautista’s glove in the first inning and followed that up with a solo home run in the fourth.

Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com described the veteran’s confidence:

Napoli was 2-for-18 in the playoffs coming into the day but finished 2-for-3 with a walk, two runs and two RBI.

Toronto again struggled to generate much offense, although Michael Saunders did his part with a solo home run in the second inning.

Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer described the big hit:

The blast got the home fans excited, but the Blue Jays didn’t score again until the fifth, when Ezequiel Carrera hit a triple into the right-center field gap and eventually came around to score on a Ryan Goins groundout.

Eric Engels of Sportsnet praised the left fielder as Toronto evened the score at 2:

The tie didn’t last long, however, as Jason Kipnis drilled a solo home run to right, giving Cleveland a 3-2 lead in the sixth and knocking Stroman out of the game. Napoli then continued his great showing with heads-up baserunning after getting on with a walk. He advanced on a wild pitch before scoring on a Jose Ramirez RBI single.

Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com summed up the difference for the key players in Cleveland’s lineup:

The Blue Jays had a chance to cut into the lead with two runners on base in the seventh inning against Allen, but Josh Donaldson’s line drive ended up in Coco Crisp’s glove.

Toronto got the first runner aboard in the ninth inning but couldn’t do anything else as Miller closed out the 4-2 win.

After Toronto scored 27 runs in its first four games of the postseason, Cleveland has limited the Blue Jays to three runs in the ALCS.

The teams will return to action Tuesday for Game 4. Corey Kluber is set to take the mound on three days of rest for the Indians after tallying 13.1 scoreless innings in his first two postseason starts. Aaron Sanchez is scheduled to make his first start of the series for Toronto after allowing six runs in his only other playoff start this year.

Postgame Reaction

Francona has excelled this postseason at using his bullpen in creative ways, but getting a win after replacing the starter in the first inning was impressive even for this team. Still, it wasn’t exactly the plan, per Erik Boland of Newsday:

Meanwhile, the Blue Jays aren’t ready to give up despite being down 3-0 in the series.

“I still believe our offense is due to erupt,” manager John Gibbons said, per the Associated Press (via USA Today). “It hasn’t happened yet. But I’ve seen it too many times. Hopefully tomorrow is that day, we’ll see.”

Of course, breaking out against Kluber will not be an easy task Tuesday.

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The Los Angeles Dodgers evened the National League Championship Series at 1-1 with a 1-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night at Wrigley Field.

Pitching dominated the game, with the two teams combining for five hits and 16 strikeouts.

Kyle Hendricks gave the Cubs 5.1 innings, allowing one earned run on three hits. He struck out five batters and walked four.

On another night, those numbers might’ve been good enough to propel Chicago to victory, but Clayton Kershaw was magnificent for the Dodgers. He pitched seven shutout innings, allowed two hits, struck out six and walked one.

Despite being the best pitcher in baseball and a three-time Cy Young Award winner, Kershaw has yet to enjoy much success in the postseason. He entered Sunday night with a 3-6 record and 4.79 earned run average in 16 playoff appearances.

Kershaw pitched 12.1 innings in the National League Division Series, including the final two outs of Los Angeles’ Game 5 series-clinching win over the Washington Nationals. As a result, some questioned whether fatigue would be a factor for the dominant lefty.

CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes provided his workload over the past week:

Not only did Kershaw silence the high-powered Cubs offense, but he was also efficient in doing so. ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark noted how quickly the six-time All-Star breezed through the first half of Game 2:

Statcast showed how Kershaw kept Cubs hitters on their toes by locating his pitches all over the plate:

Kershaw didn’t need much offensive support, and Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez delivered enough in the top of the second with a solo home run to left-center field. The Dodgers provided a replay of the drive:

According to Baseball-Reference.com, it was the fifth home run Hendricks allowed at home this year, compared to 11 on the road.

After Kershaw threw four perfect innings, the Cubs got their first baserunner with two outs in the fifth. Second baseman Javier Baez and catcher Willson Contreras hit back-to-back singles, but right fielder Jason Heyward fouled out to end the inning.

Los Angeles got runners on first and second with one out in the top half of the sixth. Baez made a heads-up play, though, to complete a double play and prevent any damage.

Dodgers center fielder Joc Pederson hit a soft liner to second. Rather than catching the ball, Baez played it off a hop, which allowed him to get the force out at second. Shortstop Addison Russell then tagged out Gonzalez between second and third for the second out.

CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish and Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan praised Baez for thinking so quickly on his feet:

Baez was feet away from being the hero on offense in the bottom of the seventh.

With two outs in the inning and a runner on first, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts visited the mound, seemingly to replace Kershaw with closer Kenley Jansen. Instead, Roberts left his starter out for one more batter.

Baez drove a 1-0 fastball deep to center field, and the Wrigley Field crowd rose to its feet in anticipation of a go-ahead two-run homer. But the windy conditions inside the stadium knocked the ball down, and Pederson made the catch in front of the center-field wall.

Kershaw thought Chicago had taken the lead, per Stark:

According to Statcast, Baez’s flyout is a home run more often than not:

Jansen came on for Kershaw to start the eighth and set the Cubs down in order over the final two innings to seal the win.  

Rich Hill and Jake Arrieta will take the mound in Game 3 on Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Hill looked strong early in his two postseason starts, but Roberts showed he isn’t afraid to remove the veteran left-hander at the first sign of trouble. Hill made it through 4.1 innings in his first outing and 2.2 innings in his second.

Should the Cubs jump on Hill in the first few innings, Roberts may once again be forced to dip into his bullpen earlier than he otherwise would’ve wanted.

Arrieta picked up a no-decision in his lone postseason start. He pitched six innings and allowed two earned runs before handing Game 3 of the National League Division Series over to his relievers.

The 2015 Cy Young winner went seven scoreless innings against the Dodgers on May 31. If he can repeat that Tuesday, Chicago will likely take a 2-1 lead in the NLCS.

Postgame Reaction

Kershaw shared his thoughts after the game with Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (via Fox Sports: MLB):

Pederson praised Gonzalez, Kershaw and Jansen:

“Now it’s a race to three,” Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo said, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.

“The big thing with Kershaw is that if he’s on top of his game, man,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said, according to USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale. “It is what it is. You never anticipate scoring a lot of runs.”

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The Cleveland Indians again rode Andrew Miller’s left arm, along with strong starting pitching by Josh Tomlin and timely hitting by Carlos Santana and Francisco Lindor, to a 2-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday and a 2-0 lead in the American League Championship Series.

Cleveland’s postseason formula has been to take an early lead and let the starting pitching hold down the fort before turning it over to Miller and Cody Allen for roughly nine outs.

Saturday started out well for the Tribe, with Santana ripping a laser over the wall in left field for a 1-0 lead in the second inning against Toronto starter J.A. Happ.

Per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports, the right side was not Santana’s power side during the regular season:

After being shut out by Corey Kluber on Friday, the Blue Jays did not want to go quietly in Game 2, responding in the top of the third inning against Tomlin.

Darwin Barney, who started at second base after Devon Travis re-aggravated a knee injury in Game 1, singled with one out. He moved to second on a groundout by Ezequiel Carrera and scored on Josh Donaldson’s double.

The opposite-field double also moved Donaldson to the top of the Blue Jays’ record book, per StatsCentre:

ESPN.com’s Buster Olney provided a look at where the reigning AL MVP’s hits have gone in October:

Tomlin battled through the third inning, throwing 24 pitches before working his way out of trouble with just one run crossing the plate.

As they have done throughout the postseason, the Indians wasted no time responding.

After reaching first base on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the inning, Rajai Davis proceeded to steal second base and then took third on a wild pitch by Happ.

With two outs, Lindor, who was the hero with a two-run homer in the sixth inning Friday and singled in his first at-bat Saturday, gave the Indians a 2-1 lead with an RBI single.

Per Baseball Tonight, Lindor is getting accustomed to multihit games in the playoffs:

Jonah Keri of CBS Sports believes many people have found their new favorite baseball player based on early returns in October:

Jared Diamond of the Wall Street Journal noticed one thing three of the four remaining playoff teams have in common:

With the lead, Cleveland manager Terry Francona opted to let Tomlin pitch into the sixth inning against Donaldson, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista for the third time. He retired Donaldson and Encarnacion quickly before walking Bautista.

Francona then went to his bullpen, ending Tomlin’s day after 5.2 innings in which he allowed three hits and one run with six strikeouts and two walks.

Tomlin’s success since Sept. 1 has helped Cleveland get by without Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar. Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com shared the numbers:

The key to Tomlin’s success on Saturday was his ability to generate ground balls, per Jeff Sullivan of FanGraphs:

Because Miller threw 31 pitches in Game 1, Bryan Shaw relieved Tomlin and got Troy Tulowitzki to end the potential threat in the sixth.

Miller came out to start the seventh inning, striking out the side on 15 pitches before recording two more punchouts in the eighth inning, adding to his postseason legend in the process.

T.J. Zuppe of 92.3 The Fan tried to illustrate Miller’s postseason dominance with numbers:

Jared Carrabis of Barstool Sports took a different approach to illustrating what happens when Miller is on the mound:

You run out of words at some point with Miller, because this level of dominance is not supposed to happen, particularly in October against the best teams in baseball.

Just as he did Friday, Allen came on to relieve Miller in the ninth inning. Cleveland’s closer did his best imitation of Miller by striking out Encarnacion and Bautista before Tulowitzki flew out to center field to end the game.

This is what the Indians needed to happen. They were brilliant at home during the regular season, with a 53-28 record, and have yet to lose in four games at Progressive Field in the postseason.

The Blue Jays are down, but they are far from out in the ALCS. Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez will start Games 3 and 4 at Rogers Centre on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, while the Indians will counter with an injured Trevor Bauer and Mike Clevinger.

Toronto’s fans are going to be loud with support for their team. The Blue Jays need to get their offense going, but with the pitching advantage in each of the next two games, they have a chance to extend the series.

Postgame Reaction

As was the case on Friday, Miller became the main talking point after Game 2 for his dominant two-inning effort against the Blue Jays. 

“There’s a reason we gave up what we did for him,” Francona said, per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian and Gregor Chisholm. “We thought that he could be a guy that we could leverage in situations like we have. And it would make our bullpen that much better and give us a chance to keep playing. And that’s exactly what he’s doing.”

It would be easy to keep singing the praises of Miller, but the Indians don’t get a chance to use him without Tomlin shutting down the Blue Jays for nearly six full innings. 

Per MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince, Cleveland second baseman Jason Kipnis called Tomlin a guy who is “easy to root for” because “he’s had to work for all 89 mph on that fastball.”

The Blue Jays aren’t in a full-blown panic facing a 2-0 series deficit, just as they did last year against the Kansas City Royals, but manager John Gibbons is aware the sense of urgency is increasing. 

“Our back’s against the wall,” Gibbons said, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of SportsNet.ca. “That’s pretty obvious.”

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The ninth inning of Tuesday’s Game 4 of a National League Division Series will long be remembered as a nightmare for the San Francisco Giants.

The Giants were in full control at AT&T Park with a 5-2 lead after a brilliant outing by starter Matt Moore, but the Chicago Cubs exploded for four runs against five different relief pitchers to earn a 6-5 win and clinch the series.

The sequence: Derek Law allowed a leadoff single to Kris Bryant, Javier Lopez walked Anthony Rizzo, Sergio Romo gave up an RBI double to Ben Zobrist, Will Smith allowed a two-run single to Willson Contreras and got Jason Heyward to bunt into a forceout, and Hunter Strickland gave up the game-winning single to Javier Baez.

Rachel Nichols of ESPN reacted to the rally after the Giants had won a 13-inning thriller in Game 3 on Monday:

Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to give the Cubs a spot in the National League Championship Series.

Perhaps the most incredible takeaway was the fact the Giants lost an elimination game in an even year, as ESPN Stats & Info highlighted:

San Francisco won the 2010, 2012 and 2014 World Series, but Stats LLC (h/t Fox Sports) noted Chicago starter John Lackey was the last active pitcher to beat the Giants in an elimination contest (Game 7 of the 2002 World Series, when Lackey was with the then-Anaheim Angels).

Lackey didn’t eliminate San Francisco on Tuesday, as he struggled through just four innings of work, allowing three earned runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out four.

His counterpart, Moore, was nearly unhittable through eight innings. The southpaw gave up one earned run on two hits and two walks and struck out 10. He appeared primed to add his own chapter to the Giants’ postseason legacy until the fateful ninth.

Conor Gillaspie—who tallied a go-ahead two-run triple in the eighth inning Monday and the decisive three-run home run in a victory over the New York Mets in the Wild Card Game on Oct. 5—nearly played the role of offensive hero again with four hits, a run and an RBI. He even drew “MVP” chants from the crowd. Moore, Denard Span, Buster Posey and Joe Panik also drove in a run apiece for the Giants.

San Francisco wasted little time jumping on Lackey, as Span doubled to lead off the bottom of the first, advanced to third on Brandon Belt’s fly out and scored on Posey’s sacrifice fly.

Anthony Masterson of Stats LLC pointed out the Giants’ lead was nothing new:

Chicago bounced back in the third when David Ross drilled a home run to left field. At 39, he became the oldest catcher and Cubs player to homer in the postseason, per Andrew Simon of MLB.com.

Lackey kept San Francisco off the board in the bottom half, but it was Baez who turned heads. The second baseman made an incredible diving stop and nearly threw out the speedy Span on a play that was reviewed. He then slapped a lightning-quick tag on the leadoff hitter to help catch him trying to steal second.

Baseball journalist Andrew Baggarly called the first play the best he’s ever seen by a second baseman, and Bob Nightengale of USA Today praised the 23-year-old:

Baez couldn’t do anything to stop the Giants in the fourth. Gillaspie and Panik singled with one out, and Moore came up with the bases loaded after Gregor Blanco walked. Moore smacked an RBI single on an 0-2 pitch, and Span made it 3-1 on a fielder’s choice.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post underscored how unlikely the pitcher’s RBI was:

The Cubs got one back in the next inning when Baez advanced all the way to third on a throwing error by shortstop Brandon Crawford and scored on a sacrifice fly by Ross.

San Francisco appeared to break things open with one out in the bottom of the fifth. Hunter Pence singled, and Crawford blasted the ball off the top of the wall in right field. Pence didn’t score because he went back to re-touch second base, and Crawford ended up with a double.

SF Giants on CSN highlighted just how close it was to a home run:

Travis Wood came on in relief, but Gillaspie plated Pence with a single, and Panik scored Crawford with a sacrifice fly for a 5-2 advantage.

Chicago threatened in the sixth when Dexter Fowler drew a leadoff walk and Bryant dumped one into right field, but Pence charged the in-between ball and forced Fowler out at second. That was the last time the Cubs bothered Moore, who retired the Cubs 1-2-3 in the seventh.

The Giants reacted to his performance:

Moore struck out Ross and Fowler in the eighth to cap his night in style.

But as great as Moore was Tuesday, his showing will forever be a footnote thanks to Chicago’s offensive onslaught in the ninth. San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy didn’t give the ball to Romo to start the ninth after the closer recorded a blown save Monday, and Law, Lopez, Romo, Smith and Strickland couldn’t get the job done.

Adam Amin of ESPN noted the meltdown was nothing new:

The Giants will have all winter to think about their bullpen shortcomings after Tuesday’s collapse.

What’s Next?

The Cubs advanced to the NLCS, which starts Saturday at Wrigley Field. They will face the winner of Thursday’s decisive Game 5 between the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Chicago can reset its rotation of Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jake Arrieta and Lackey, while its next opponent still has to register one more win and will likely be without its best starter until at least Game 2. The Cubs were 5-2 against the Nationals and 4-3 against the Dodgers this season.

Chicago reached the NLCS last year only to be swept by the Mets. One key difference this time around will be home-field advantage, as the Cubs will look to get off to a quick start in front of the Chicago faithful.

Postgame Reaction

Gillaspie summarized things from the Giants’ perspective, per Baggarly: “It’s hard. We pour our whole lives into this. To see it end like this, to be honest, I’m still shocked.”

Bochy said he didn’t want to put Moore back on the mound for the ninth, per Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area: “That’s a lot of work [120 pitches]. He did his job. We were lined up.”

Bryant noted the Cubs’ confidence level in the final inning, per Steve Greenberg of the Chicago Sun-Times: “High. It’s always high. We’ve got a lot of guys on our team who have had unbelievable years.”

Baez talked about why he celebrated so much after his big hit, per Greenberg: “Their pitcher was staring at me for no reason.”

Rizzo said the Cubs have a larger prize in mind, per Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago: “You can’t take for granted what we’ve done last year and this year. But we got one mission, one goal in mind. That’s eight more wins.”

If they get those eight wins, Chicago will likely party until Opening Day next year.

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Despite being swept out of the 2016 American League Division Series by the Cleveland Indians, the Boston Red Sox reaffirmed their commitment to manager John Farrell on Tuesday. 

Dave Dombrowski, the team’s president of baseball operations, announced Farrell will stay with the team in 2017, according to Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.

In February 2015, the Red Sox extended Farrell’s deal to keep him on board through the 2017 season, with an option for 2018. Dombrowski declined to say whether Boston will exercise that option.

“Something of that magnitude I need to sit down with ownership and discuss that,” he said, according to Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald.

While the Red Sox finished the regular season with a 93-69 record, their postseason exit led to some criticism of Farrell’s handling of his team.

In particular, many questioned his decision to pinch-hit Chris Young for Andrew Benintendi in the bottom of the seventh inning in Game 3 of the ALDS. While Young walked during the at-bat, Boston was without Benintendi to lead off the bottom of the ninth as it looked to come back from a 4-3 deficit.

Boston.com’s Chad Finn was among those who thought Farrell made a big mistake:

Eric Wilbur of Boston.com thought the ALDS as a whole helped to illustrate the gulf between Farrell and a tactically astute manger such as the Indians’ Terry Francona:

Yet, this series perhaps exposed Farrell’s shortcomings as a big league manager all the same. You could give him and [Francona] two seats to deal with, and Farrell would probably still lose playing musical chairs to his old friend.

Farrell doesn’t have to stay because of the success that the Red Sox found this year, winning the American league East after back-to-back last-place finishes. He needs to go because of the continued promise of watching his in-game decisions backfire, and particularly after watching Francona manage circles around him, almost as if he were in his pickup willingly doing donuts on Farrell’s own manicured lawn.

In August, Abraham also took issue with how Farrell handled Red Sox pitchers:

Farrell also has had less of an effect on the pitching staff than you would have expected from an accomplished former pitching coach. Certainly, he needs to respect boundaries and let coaches do their jobs. But Farrell should be having more direct impact on somebody like David Price.

As a pitching coach, Farrell was an authority figure with the pitchers to a point that some feared him. He was their boss. As the manager, he seems too much like their protector.

Expectations will be high for the Red Sox in 2017, yet it’s doubtful a slow start to next year would result in Farrell’s firing in the first few months. The team hasn’t fired a manager in the middle of a season since Jimy Williams in 2001. Even Bobby Valentine finished out a disastrous 2012 campaign before losing his job.

With only one more guaranteed year left on his deal, Farrell will be under heavy pressure to deliver. Anything short of a trip to the American League Championship Series could put his job in serious jeopardy.

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The Atlanta Braves announced Tuesday that Brian Snitker will take over as the club’s full-time manager after serving in an interim role to finish the 2016 season. 

The organization relayed the news on its official Twitter feed.

Snitker took over the reins after Atlanta fired Fredi Gonzalez in May. The rebuilding Braves were off to a miserable 9-28 start and looked destined to finish in the MLB basement by a considerable margin before the 60-year-old Illinois native took over.

The Braves played much better following the managerial change. They went a respectable 59-65 under his guidance, climbing out of the cellar to finish with the fifth-worst record in the league, a small sign of progress as they look to make bigger strides in 2017.

David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution passed along comments from star first baseman Freddie Freeman in late September about the positive impact Snitker made:

I enjoy him. I loved him when he was here as a third-base coach. He’s just a calm guy. He goes out there, puts the lineup down and lets guys go to work. His presence is something that just makes you want to run through walls for. I think everybody in this clubhouse has responded to him, because he’s such a good guy, he treats everybody the right way. I love him, so you just want to go out there and do as good as you can for him.

Veteran outfielder Nick Markakis added: “A manager can only do so much, and for him to make it easy for us to go out there and do our job, it’s appreciated and I know guys like it.”

Despite those glowing reviews from inside the clubhouse, the Braves still went through a full interview process before announcing Snitker would return. Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball reported former MLB managers Ron Washington and Bud Black were the other finalists.

Next season will mark the first time Snitker will be a full-time manager in the majors. That said, he’s been with the Braves organization for four decades in a variety of roles, including managing several of the organization’s minor league teams.

The pressure level is beginning to rise in Atlanta, though. The Braves haven’t made the playoffs since 2013 and last won a postseason series in 2001. So they went through a complete retooling process to bolster the system with an eye on a brighter future.

Expectations are on the rise for 2017 as the club moves into its new home, SunTrust Park, which comes at the same time its prized prospects start to arrive. The new wave of talent is led by shortstop Dansby Swanson, who posted a .361 on-base percentage in his first 38 career games this season.

All told, Snitker deserved the opportunity to return as manager given how well the Braves finished, but the honeymoon period won’t last long if Atlanta starts slow next year.

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The Cleveland Indians haven’t won the World Series since 1948, while the Boston Red Sox boast three championships since 2004.

Baseball fans would have never guessed it during their American League Division Series.

Cleveland finished its three-game sweep with a 4-3 victory at Fenway Park on Monday. Starting pitcher Josh Tomlin allowed just two earned runs with four strikeouts in five quality innings, and the bullpen combination of Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen closed the door.

Tyler Naquin’s two-run single in the fourth inning and Coco Crisp’s two-run homer in the sixth provided enough run support for the Indians bullpen, which allowed just one run in four innings.

ESPN Stats & Info noted it wasn’t the first time Cleveland handled Boston in October:

The Red Sox put two runners on in the ninth but couldn’t come through, as Travis Shaw flied out to end the game. David Ortiz had a sacrifice fly and two walks in the final game of his career, while Hanley Ramirez and Andrew Benintendi each added an RBI.

Boston starting pitcher Clay Buchholz lasted just four innings, allowing two earned runs, and Drew Pomeranz gave up the long ball to Crisp.

While it wasn’t the ending he wanted, Ortiz leaves the game with a remarkable resume:

Things started ominously for the Red Sox when Carlos Santana hit a towering pop-up down the third base line to lead off the game. The wind blew the ball into fair territory, and shortstop Xander Bogaerts couldn’t make the play. Buchholz, however, prevented any damage by retiring Mike Napoli and Jose Ramirez after Francisco Lindor singled with one out.

Boston put a runner in scoring position in the second, and Cleveland did the same in the third, but the two starters escaped trouble.

Nick Friar of CSNNE.com questioned the Red Sox’s offensive strategy against Tomlin:

The Indians broke through in the fourth. After Ramirez singled and Lonnie Chisenhall walked, Naquin drove them in with a single following Crisp’s sacrifice bunt. Cleveland may have scored more than two runs if Dustin Pedroia hadn’t made a diving stop on Roberto Perez’s hard-hit, one-out grounder.

ESPN Stats & Info noted Naquin was an unlikely run-producer given his recent struggles:

Boston manager John Farrell gave the ball to Pomeranz to start the fifth. He retired the Indians 1-2-3, and the Red Sox got on the board in the bottom of the frame.

After Bogaerts singled with one out, he scored when Benintendi drilled a double off the Green Monster. But Tomlin limited the damage to just one run by striking out Sandy Leon and inducing a groundout from Jackie Bradley Jr.

Jordan Bastian of MLB.com praised the right-hander’s performance:

Pomeranz opened the sixth by walking Ramirez, and Crisp launched his two-run homer two batters later. Grant Brisbee of the McCovey Chronicles pointed out a dichotomy between the teams’ rosters:

After Pedroia singled to start the bottom of the sixth, Cleveland manager Terry Francona turned to Miller and his 1.45 ERA and 0.69 WHIP. The southpaw wasn’t his normal dominant self right away, as he allowed a double to Mookie Betts and sacrifice fly to Ortiz.

But Miller struck out Ramirez with Betts on second base to preserve the Indians’ 4-2 lead.

Joe Kelly pitched a 1-2-3 seventh for Boston, but Miller countered with a scoreless bottom half. Daren Willman of MLB.com illustrated how Miller kept the Red Sox lineup at bay and carried his team to within two innings of a sweep:

Koji Uehara did his part for Boston in the eighth thanks largely to a terrific over-the-shoulder catch by Betts and an impressive barehanded play by Bogaerts, and the Red Sox cut into the lead in the bottom of the frame.

Shaw entered and retired Pedroia and Betts but also allowed a one-out single to Shaw. Allen then came on and walked Ortiz on four pitches and gave up an RBI single to Ramirez. He held on to the lead, though, by retiring Bogaerts on a sharply hit line drive to second.

Bastian noted how close Boston came to tying the game:

In the bottom of the ninth, Allen surrendered a two-out single to Bradley and a walk to Pedroia before getting Shaw to end the game.

After the game, the Fenway Park crowd chanted “Papi! Papi!” and “Thank you, Papi!”

What’s Next?

The Indians will face the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series, which starts Friday in Cleveland.

The Blue Jays are a perfect 4-0 in the postseason with an 11-inning Wild Card Game win over the Baltimore Orioles and a sweep of the Texas Rangers in their ALDS under their belt. The Indians were 4-3 against Toronto in the regular season, including a 19-inning victory at the Rogers Centre on July 1.

Cleveland will have to deal with a loaded lineup that finished fourth in the majors in home runs and features Josh Donaldson, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista. If the Indians are going to reach their first World Series since 1997, they’ll need to limit the Blue Jays’ powerful bats—just like they did to the Red Sox.

Postgame Reaction

Betts noted that many of Boston’s outs were hard-hit, per Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal: “We’re producers, not directors.”

Ortiz saluted the crowd:

Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com said Ortiz was in tears, and the slugger addressed the moment, per MacPherson: “I’ve been trying to hold my emotions the best I can. That last second, I couldn’t hold it no more.”

Lindor described the journey as far from over, per Nick Camino of WTAM 1100 in Cleveland: “We’ve got a long way to go still. We’ve got a long way to go.”

Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis provided a glimpse into Cleveland’s mindset, per Camino: “We think it’s our turn.”

It certainly was Monday.

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The Washington Nationals own a 2-1 lead in their National League Division Series after an 8-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Monday.

Nationals left fielder Jayson Werth delivered in a big way, going 3-for-4 with two runs batted in and two runs scored.

Werth and the Washington offense delivered as starter Gio Gonzalez lasted only 4.1 innings. The veteran left-hander exited after surrendering three earned runs on four hits and one walk. He struck out four.

Dodgers starter Kenta Maeda struggled in the first postseason start of his MLB career. Over three innings, he allowed four earned runs on five hits, two walks and a hit batter while striking out four.

Command was an issue for Maeda, who threw 63 pitches. The Los Angeles Times‘ Andy McCullough opined that home plate umpire Ron Kulpa squeezed the strike zone:

The game began brightly for the Dodgers.

For the third contest in a row, rookie shortstop Corey Seager drove in the first run of the game. After homering in Games 1 and 2, he doubled to right-center field to plate third baseman Justin Turner.

MLB Network shared a replay of the extra-base hit:

The McCovey Chronicles’ Grant Brisbee isn’t looking forward to seeing Seager in the National League West for the foreseeable future:

Maeda averted damage in the first inning, striking out Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman with the bases loaded and two outs. In the third, the rookie right-hander wasn’t so lucky, as Washington scored four runs to take a 4-1 lead.

Center fielder Trea Turner led off with a single to center, and Werth doubled into the right field corner to get the Nationals on the board. The New York Times‘ James Wagner thought Turner showed tremendous speed by scoring from first base:

After second baseman Daniel Murphy flied out, right fielder Bryce Harper scored Werth with a single to right. Third baseman Anthony Rendon then stepped to the plate and hammered a fastball over the left-center field wall.

MLB Network provided a second look at the homer:

MLB.com’s Daren Willman showed Maeda couldn’t have done a worse job placing the two-seamer:

In the bottom of the fifth, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts opted to use Carlos Ruiz to pinch hit for reliever Pedro Baez, who had replaced Maeda to start the fourth. In 14 regular-season games with Los Angeles after being traded by the Philadelphia Phillies, Ruiz didn’t hit a single home run and slugged .333.

After the August deal, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported the Dodgers thought Ruiz could strengthen their lineup against left-handed pitching. The 37-year-old justified the trade when he hit a two-run home run to bring Los Angeles within a run.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, it was the Dodgers’ first pinch-hit homer in a postseason home game since Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.

The drive jolted the crowd, and the Los Angeles Times‘ Lindsey Thiry shared a clip of the fans’ reaction:

Sammy Solis replaced Gonzalez and quieted the crowd a bit when he got left fielder Howie Kendrick to ground out to second. After Justin Turner walked, Seager brought the fans to their feet with a long fly ball to center field, but it was well short of the wall and landed in the glove of Trea Turner.

The trio of Solis, Oliver Perez and Shawn Kelley did well to shut down the Dodgers offense, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out five over 3.2 innings.

In the top of the ninth, Werth put another run on the board for Washington with a solo homer to left field.

NFL Network’s Andrew Siciliano noted Werth joined elite company with the homer:

It was a surprising misstep by Los Angeles closer Kenley Jansen, who surrendered only four home runs in 68.2 innings during the regular season.

The trouble continued for Jansen, as he walked Murphy and hit Harper. Rendon then popped out, but Zimmerman followed with a two-run double to right field and moved to third when second baseman Chase Utley tried to throw Harper out at home.

ESPN.com’s David Schoenfield pointed out Jansen faltered in high-pressure moments this year:

Ross Stripling took over for Jansen and surrendered a sacrifice fly to pinch hitter Chris Heisey to make it an 8-3 game. It was the fourth run charged to Jansen. Rarely has the 29-year-old unraveled to such an extent, per Fox Sports’ C.J. Nitkowski:

The five-run lead was more than enough for Nationals closer Mark Melancon, who retired the Dodgers in order to end the game.

Julio Urias is scheduled to pitch for Los Angeles in Game 4, though McCullough reported Sunday that ace Clayton Kershaw, who won Game 1, could start. MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick added more information Monday:

Ideally, the Dodgers would hold Kershaw back so he can pitch Game 5 on Thursday with five days’ rest.

But Los Angeles has to win Game 4 on Tuesday in order to get there, so Roberts may not want to leave his best pitcher on the bench in a must-win situation. In addition, relying on a 20-year-old rookie in a critical playoff game could be risky—though Urias was 5-2 with a 3.17 FIP in the regular season, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

Roberts has a difficult decision on his hands as he looks to keep the Dodgers alive.

Postgame Reaction

Werth said the continuity of Washington’s roster is paying dividends in the postseason, per Gurnick and Jamal Collier of MLB.com:

We’re a resilient club. We’ve got a good group of guys. The nucleus of this club has been together a long time. We’ve got a lot of chemistry and all that stuff, but we’ve been doing it for years over here. We’ve come from behind to win a lot of games. We’ve been one of the game’s best teams the past four or five years as far as wins go. So we know how to play, how to win. I like our chances.

Roberts declined to name a starter for Game 4.

“The use of the pen today, no off day tomorrow, those are things we’re going to keep in mind,” he said, according to Jon Weisman of Dodger Insider.

Gurnick reported Roberts is unsure about starting Kershaw in Game 4 because he’d then have to use Urias on the road in Game 5.

Nationals manager Dusty Baker said his starter for Game 4 will be either Joe Ross or Reynaldo Lopez, per Collier.

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A wild play in the bottom of the 10th inning helped the Toronto Blue Jays complete a three-game sweep of the Texas Rangers with a 7-6 win in Game 3 to close out the American League Division Series on Sunday.

With two runners on and the score tied at 6-6, Russell Martin hit a potential inning-ending double-play ball to shortstop. However, Rougned Odor’s throw to first base was off and Josh Donaldson raced home for the walk-off victory:

The run put the Blue Jays in rare company, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Even Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau chimed in on the victory:

Britt McHenry of ESPN believes this is just the start for Toronto:

It was not a great night for pitching, as both starters struggled on the mound. Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis couldn’t get an out in the third inning, allowing five runs in 2.0 innings of work. Blue Jays starter Aaron Sanchez lasted 5.2 innings, but he was charged with six runs.

Mike Peasley of ESPN Radio praised the relievers on both sides, who performed better:

The Texas bullpen allowed only two unearned runs in 7.2 innings, while Toronto’s squad threw 4.1 scoreless innings.

However, the Blue Jays came through when it mattered in the 10th inning.

The Rangers got on the board without even recording a hit in the first inning. Carlos Gomez walked and eventually came home on a Carlos Beltran groundout.

However, the Blue Jays took control of the game thanks to first-inning home runs by Edwin Encarnacion and Russell Martin.

Alykhan K. Ravjiani of MLB.com broke down the impressive numbers on Encarnacion’s homer:

Martin also broke a rough stretch in the postseason, as Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports noted:

After an Elvis Andrus home run cut the Rangers’ deficit to 3-2 in the top of the third, the Blue Jays offense again came through with RBI hits by Josh Donaldson and Encarnacion to extend the lead to 5-2 in the bottom half of the inning.

The third inning got the Toronto crowd feeling excited about potentially clinching the series. The game was far from over, though.

Odor lived up to his role as the villain in Toronto by blasting a two-run home run to cut the deficit to 5-4 in the top of the fourth.

Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com noted the mood of the stadium:

Texas took the lead in the sixth inning on a two-run double by Mitch Moreland.

Barry Davis of Sportsnet noted how close Moreland’s hit was to being caught:

Nomar Mazara then made a great catch with runners on to keep Toronto from regaining the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Mazara’s play came immediately after Troy Tulowitzki tied things up at 6-6 on a passed ball.

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News questioned All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy’s defense:

The bullpens stepped up, though, as the game remained tied for the next three innings.

Donaldson started the Blue Jays’ rally in the 10th with a leadoff double, and he eventually came through with the game-winning run a few batters later, helping Toronto into the next round.

The Blue Jays’ win sent them to the American League Championship Series, where they will face the winner of the ALDS battle between the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox. Game 3 in that series was postponed, but the Indians hold a 2-0 lead and can clinch Monday.

Game 1 of the ALCS is set for Friday.

Post-Game Reaction

The bullpens were a big story of this game with Toronto closer Roberto Osuna pitching two shutout innings and earning the win. Donaldson was happy with his teammate’s performance, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet:

Meanwhile, Rangers manager Jeff Banister had to give credit where it was due after the series, per Newy Scruggs of NBC Sports:

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