Dark Horse Tavern » Sale pitched in the major leagues later th

A look at what’s happening around the majors today:YOU AGAIN?Cy Young Award contenders Chris Sale (12-4 http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/todd-gurley-ii-jersey , 1.96) and Jacob deGrom (8-9, 1.71) face off for the first time since their college days as Boston hosts the Mets. DeGrom was a two-way player at Stetson in 2010 when he hit his only college homer off Sale, the ace at Florida Gulf Coast. at season and has finished top-5 in AL Cy Young balloting for five straight years, though he has yet to win the award. DeGrom had just picked up pitching in 2010 when he and Sale matched up, and now he’s making a case to win the NL Cy Young Award — and possibly even MVP.SOME PUIGYasiel Puig has never missed the postseason since making his major league debut in 2013, and he doesn’t plan on ending that run. The Dodgers outfielder homered three times Saturday in a 17-4 rout of St. Louis that put LA ahead of the Cardinals for sole possession of the second NL wild card. Puig has five homers in two games heading into the series finale. “He’s focused, and he understands the importance of every pitch,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “For him to be as productive, have that day, get us on the board http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/cooper-kupp-jersey , have some space with the score, we needed every bit of it today. Guys fed off of his energy.”KIDS AT PLAYNL Rookie of the Year candidates Juan Soto and Ronald Acuna Jr. share the field one last time this season as Washington finishes a series at Atlanta. Soto added yet another milestone Saturday, surpassing Rickey Henderson to become the youngest player to steal three bases in a game. The 19-year-old also extended his on-base streak to 20 games, joining Hall of Famers Mel Ott and Mickey Mantle as the only teenagers to do that. The 20-year-old Acuna is going to be tough to beat in Rookie of the Year voting, though. His .583 slugging percentage is by far the best among NL rookies, and the Braves are now cruising to a likely NL East title.ACES UPCy Young Award winners Zack Greinke (14-9, 3.11) and Justin Verlander (15-9, 2.72) are set to pitch as Arizona concludes a three-game series at Houston. Greinke has allowed a career-high 27 home runs, including five over his past four games, though 20 of them have been solo shots. Verlander has 195 innings and 258 strikeouts http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/jared-goff-jersey , putting him in contention to lead the AL in both categories for the fourth time in his career. WASHINGTON (AP) — With so much attention focused on Daniel Murphy’s return to Washington for the first time since he was traded to the Chicago Cubs, it was his in-game replacement — David Bote — who once again tormented the Nationals.Bote had a pinch-hit RBI double and scored in the 10th inning as the Cubs came back to beat the Nationals 6-4 on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series.Bote, who hit a two-out grand slam in the bottom of the ninth to give the Cubs a 4-3 win over Washington on Aug. 12 at Wrigley Field, knocked a 100 mph fastball from Jimmy Cordero (1-2) into right field to score Albert Almora Jr. Bote came home on a single by pinch-hitter Taylor Davis.Bote, who finished the game at second base, was certain Nats fans hadn’t forgotten what he did in Chicago last month.“I heard the boos today,” Bote said. “I love it. It’s fun. You love to be part of that.”Murphy went 1 for 5 with a strikeout during his first game in Washington since he was dealt to the Cubs on Aug 21.While Chicago has the best record in the National League and leads the NL Central by 4½ games over Milwaukee, manager Joe Maddon is still looking to tighten up some things and admits he becomes a perfectionist at times.“We’ve got to work better at-bats,” Maddon said. “I’m talking about October, I’m not just talking about Sept. 6. I love the fight Brandin Cooks Jersey Elite , tremendous fight, but there’s little things now that have held us back in the past that I don’t want to see hold us back now.”Washington has lost three straight to fall to 69-72. The Nationals are three games under .500 for the first time since April 30.Pedro Strop (5-1) pitched a scoreless ninth, and Jesse Chavez earned his third save.Washington took a 3-2 lead in the fourth when Mark Reynolds belted his 13th homer of the season, a two-run shot to left field.Murphy scored on Ben Zobrist’s sacrifice fly to tie it at 3 in the fifth.Spencer Kieboom had a career-high three hits for Washington.Stephen Strasburg pitched 5 2/3 innings for the Nationals, allowing six hits while walking three and striking out six. He gave up three runs, two earned, while throwing 111 pitches — his most since tossing a season-high 115 on May 20.SUPPORTING MARTINEZDespite being traded away, Murphy had nothing but positives to say about Nationals manager Dave Martinez.“I thought that in the midst of a lot of trials he was always positive,” Murphy said. “I thought we always played hard for him, which I think is a reflection of the manager. I wish I would have been able to play more for him. I wish I would have been able to (play) better for him.”FORMER TEAMMATESStrasburg and Murphy were teammates from 2016 until last month http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/brandin-cooks-jersey , and in that time the Nationals pitcher tried to learn a thing or two about hitting from the 2015 NLCS MVP. “Yeah, he talks a lot about hitting, so I eavesdropped on him for a few years,” Strasburg said. “So, kind of knew what he was trying to do and have him avoid trying to barrel the ball.”TRAINER’S ROOMCubs: Maddon said OF Kyle Schwarber (back) is day to day. Schwarber left Wednesday’s game after hitting his 25th home run. He pinch-hit in the sixth Thursday, reaching on a walk. … RHP Brandon Morrow (right biceps inflammation) will throw from the mound Sunday, but his long-term plan is still uncertain. “Every time he does something we have to evaluate it afterwards and make sure everything is well,” Maddon said. “That’s where it’s at right now.”Nationals: 1B Ryan Zimmerman was rested and then used as a pinch-hitter in the ninth.UP NEXTCubs: LHP Jon Lester (15-5, 3.53 ERA) will start in Washington for the first time since the 2017 NL Division Series. Lester is 2-2 with a 4.25 ERA in seven career starts against the Nationals.Nationals: RHP Joe Ross makes his season debut and first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017. Ross is 0-2 with a 3.44 ERA in three career starts versus the Cubs.