The nominations are as follows:

NL MVP

• Cody Bellinger, Dodgers
• Christian Yelich, Brewers
• Anthony Rendon, Nationals

AL MVP

• Alex Bregman, Astros
• Mike Trout, Angels
• Marcus Semien, Athletics

NL Cy Young

• Max Scherzer, Nationals
• Jacob DeGrom, Mets
• Hyun-Jin Ryu, Dodgers

AL Cy Young

• Gerrit Cole, Astros
• Justin Verlander, Astros
• Charlie Morton, Rays

NL Rookie of the Year

• Pete Alonso, Mets
• Mike Soroka, Braves
• Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres

AL Rookie of the Year

• Yordan Alvarez, Astros
• John Means, Orioles
• Brandon Lowe, Rays

NL Manager of the Year

• Craig Counsell, Brewers
• Brian Snitker, Braves
• Mike Shilt, Cardinals

AL Manager of the Year

• Kevin Cash, Rays
• Rocco Baldelli, Twins
• Aaron Boone, Yankees

Many of these fields, like the AL MVP and NL Cy Young race, are wide open, while others, such as the NL and AL Rookie of the Year Award (Pete Alonso and Yordan Alvarez) are pretty much open and set cases.

The winners of these awards will be announced on different days throughout next week, beginning with the Rookie of the Year winners on Monday, November 11th.

The post MLB Names Award Finalists appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Braves beat the San Francisco Giants 6-0 on Friday night to clinch their second consecutive division title. It was sweet validation for a team that was largely ignored going into the season after watching division rivals such as the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals be picked to win the East.

Star second-year outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. hit his 41st home run of the season in the Braves win, along with veteran catcher Brian McCann, who went deep for the first time since September 7th.

Mike Foltynewicz delivered a brilliant start in the Braves’ clincher, allowing only four baserunners in eight innings while striking out 7 Giants batters.

The Braves celebrated their division-clinching victory with a massive celebration in the locker room filled with champagne, beer, and smiles.

It appears that the team is set to face the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Division Series, in which the Braves will attempt to win their first playoff series since the 2001 season.

The post Braves Clinch Back-to-Back NL East Titles appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

On Tuesday night, over two weeks before the end of the regular season, the Dodgers answered that question at Camden Yards with a 7-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

The Dodgers have won the division in every season since 2013, moving their streak of division titles to seven consecutive seasons. Los Angeles, which looks poised to win home-field advantage in the playoffs with the league’s best record, has been a dominant team throughout the entire season.

LA has seemingly been hot all season, with Cy Young candidate Hyun-jin Ryu leading their pitching staff and NL MVP candidate Cody Bellinger pacing one of the league’s best offenses. The Dodgers have been a team with few weaknesses since the season kicked off in late March, and they’ve now ridden their depth and talent to yet another NL West title.

Young standout Walker Buehler fired a gem for the Dodgers on Tuesday, striking out 11 and allowing zero runs over seven dominant innings. Corey Seager hit a pair of home runs to lead the Dodgers to victory, sending them to a euphoric celebration in the Camden Yards visitor’s clubhouse.

LA will now look to stay healthy and get ready for the playoffs in the season’s final weeks.

The post Dodgers Beat Orioles 7-3, Clinch 7th Consecutive NL West Title appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

After hitting for the cycle for the first time in his career on April 25, 2017, against the Colorado Rockies, he repeated the same feat against the same team on Tuesday night at Nationals Park.

Turner got arguably the most difficult step out of the way first, slamming a leadoff home run off of Rockies starter Peter Lambert to give his team a 1-0 lead.

He then rapped an infield single off of Lambert the next inning to accomplish half of the feat.

The next trick in his book was a leadoff fifth-inning triple, which was no problem for the talented shortstop given his impressive speed.

Finally, in the seventh inning, Turner smacked an RBI double off of reliever Jairo Díaz to give his team a 9-1 lead and complete his second career cycle.

Turner is only the 26th player in MLB history to hit for the cycle twice. He finished the night 4-5 with 3 RBIs, continuing what has been a strong season for him.

The Nationals took an 11-1 triumph over Colorado on Tuesday, moving to within 5.5 games of the division-leading Atlanta Braves in the standings.

The post Nationals SS Trea Turner Hits for Cycle in Win appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Nonetheless, despite making his first start at the Cubs’ home stadium in April of 2018, it wasn’t until July 17, 2019 against the Cincinnati Reds that he picked up his first win at his home stadium.

Darvish pitched six excellent innings, allowing only two hits and no runs while walking zero batters, to lead the Cubs to a 5-2 win over the division rival Cincinnati Reds. He struck out seven batters and held the Reds’ lineup completely in check.

It was easily the best start that Darvish has made at Wrigley since joining Chicago, a marriage that hasn’t been quite as fruitful as either party would’ve hoped. In 2018, Darvish made only 8 starts due to an elbow injury, and he recorded a bloated 4.95 ERA in those outings.

2019 has been a bit kinder to the Japanese righty, who has gone 3-4 with a 4.46 ERA, but he had still been unable to get over his home woes until Wednesday afternoon.

Now, he’s broken down a major barrier, and hopes to use this momentum to carry the Cubs’ rotation down the stretch and into the playoffs.

The post Cubs SP Yu Darvish Throws Gem to Pick Up First Win at Wrigley appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The team announced that Arrieta has been pitching through a bone spur in his pitching elbow, which has limited his effectiveness. The 33-year-old righty has had a rough go of it in 2019, being one of the biggest reasons why the Phillies have disappointed with a mediocre 47-43 record.

Arrieta has posted a bloated 4.67 ERA this season and is posting the lowest strikeout numbers of his career on a per-inning basis. The Missouri native, in addition, has allowed a staggering 18 home runs in only 108 innings on the mound.

In short, Arrieta’s performance hasn’t come close to what the Phillies expected from him after signing him to a 3-year, $75 million deal before the 2018 season.

Despite his injury, Phillies manager Gape Kapler has said that it’s possible that Arrieta will continue to pitch this season.

The Phillies manager recognizes the fact that the team’s minor league pitching depth is minimal, and that if Arrieta is physically able to pitch despite the bone spur, the team might have to continue relying on him to stay in their rotation through the end of the season.

For now, Arrieta is expected to make a Saturday start against the Miami Marlins, but his situation bears monitoring.

The post Phillies Starter Jake Arrieta Could Be Sidelined with Right Elbow Bone Spur appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Yankees added the American League’s current home run leader (21) in exchange for minor league pitching prospect Juan Than and cash considerations.

The Yankees already have the 4th-highest home run total of any team in the American League with 110, and with their addition of the veteran Dominican designated hitter, they have officially established their lineup as a deep stable of power threats that will be sure to terrify pitching staffs come playoff time.

Encarnación, who is now in his 15th MLB season, has been clobbering the ball so far in 2019. With Seattle, he compiled a .241/.356/.531 slash line with 21 home runs and 49 RBIs. Now, he’ll move to one of baseball’s most homer-friendly parks and look to do even more damage.

The Yankees will benefit from the veteran slugger’s experience and know-how, as his long MLB career and playoff experience will benefit New York come October. The AL East leaders and near-locks to make the playoffs, and Encarnación’s addition was certainly made with an eye looking forward to the postseason.

He is expected to slot into New York’s lineup as its everyday designated hitter, making an already formidable lineup even scarier.

The post Yankees Trade with Mariners for AL Home Run Leader Edwin Encarnación appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Gordon exited the Mariners’ Thursday affair with the Yankees in big pain after he was plunked by JA Happ.

Happ’s 90 mph fastball struck Gordon square in the right wrist. The speedy shortstop was in immediate pain and had to leave the game. Not only was Gordon injured, but he wasn’t also upset at what he perceived to have been a dangerous pitch from Happ.

Happ disagreed with Gordon’s comments, saying that he was only trying to pitch inside.

X-Rays performed on Gordon’s right wrist were inconclusive on Thursday night. After the swelling recedes, he is set to undergo further testing to see if the wrist is broken or if he’s merely dealing with a contusion.

Seattle will miss Gordon, whatever the length of his absence is. The 31-year-old shortstop is hitting .304 and has already stolen 10 bases in the young season.

Gordon was one of the reasons the Mariners got off to a hot start, leading the AL West during part of April. They’ve now cooled down, as their record sits at 20-21, 4 games back of the Astros.

The Mariners have recalled JP Crawford from AAA Tacoma to replace Gordon in the meantime.

The post Seattle Mariners Lose SS Dee Gordon to Wrist Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

d’Arnaud was released by the New York Mets last month after getting off to a 2-23 start at the plate. The 30-year-old catcher spent the better part of four seasons as New York’s primary catcher before undergoing Tommy John surgery last year.

The catcher, once considered one of the best prospects in all of baseball, hit 47 home runs and batted .242 in 407 career games with the Mets. Despite a solid career, d’Arnaud has never quite lived up to his top prospect billing.

Nonetheless, the Dodgers are happy to add the California native at a position where they have doubts. After the off-season departure of former starter Yasmani Grandal to Milwaukee, the Dodgers currently have Austin Barnes and Russell Martin splitting time at the position.

Both Barnes, hitting .220 with 4 home runs, and Martin, .231 and one 1 home run, haven’t gotten off to a hot start in their new roles.

The Dodgers may yet give a chance to d’Arnaud to show what he can do as the team’s backstop. At worst, he will be a decent bench option that gives LA a solid defensive catcher as well as a right-handed bat.

The post Dodgers Sign Catcher Travis d’Arnaud appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Harper got off to a roaring start in the team’s second game of the season towards that goal.

The Phillies right fielder blasted a majestic 465-foot home run into the second deck of Citizens Bank Park on Saturday. The blast off of Jesse Biddle extended the Phillies’ lead over the Atlanta Braves to 7-4.

Philadelphia eventually took home the win by an 8-6 final score to move their record to 2-0 on the season.

The home run was Harper’s first hit as a member of the Phillies. It was also the 185th of his young career.

The Phillies expect Harper to hit many home runs like this one over the course of the season. He paid tribute to the adoration that he has received from Phillies fans with a curtain call after he was given a standing ovation after his home run.

If Harper stays healthy over the course of the season, he’ll likely be a front-runner for the NL MVP award, largely due to his powerful bat and majestic home runs like these.

The post Bryce Harper Blasts First Home Run with Phillies appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The nominations are as follows:

NL MVP

• Cody Bellinger, Dodgers
• Christian Yelich, Brewers
• Anthony Rendon, Nationals

AL MVP

• Alex Bregman, Astros
• Mike Trout, Angels
• Marcus Semien, Athletics

NL Cy Young

• Max Scherzer, Nationals
• Jacob DeGrom, Mets
• Hyun-Jin Ryu, Dodgers

AL Cy Young

• Gerrit Cole, Astros
• Justin Verlander, Astros
• Charlie Morton, Rays

NL Rookie of the Year

• Pete Alonso, Mets
• Mike Soroka, Braves
• Fernando Tatis Jr., Padres

AL Rookie of the Year

• Yordan Alvarez, Astros
• John Means, Orioles
• Brandon Lowe, Rays

NL Manager of the Year

• Craig Counsell, Brewers
• Brian Snitker, Braves
• Mike Shilt, Cardinals

AL Manager of the Year

• Kevin Cash, Rays
• Rocco Baldelli, Twins
• Aaron Boone, Yankees

Many of these fields, like the AL MVP and NL Cy Young race, are wide open, while others, such as the NL and AL Rookie of the Year Award (Pete Alonso and Yordan Alvarez) are pretty much open and set cases.

The winners of these awards will be announced on different days throughout next week, beginning with the Rookie of the Year winners on Monday, November 11th.

The post MLB Names Award Finalists appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Braves beat the San Francisco Giants 6-0 on Friday night to clinch their second consecutive division title. It was sweet validation for a team that was largely ignored going into the season after watching division rivals such as the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals be picked to win the East.

Star second-year outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. hit his 41st home run of the season in the Braves win, along with veteran catcher Brian McCann, who went deep for the first time since September 7th.

Mike Foltynewicz delivered a brilliant start in the Braves’ clincher, allowing only four baserunners in eight innings while striking out 7 Giants batters.

The Braves celebrated their division-clinching victory with a massive celebration in the locker room filled with champagne, beer, and smiles.

It appears that the team is set to face the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Division Series, in which the Braves will attempt to win their first playoff series since the 2001 season.

The post Braves Clinch Back-to-Back NL East Titles appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

On Tuesday night, over two weeks before the end of the regular season, the Dodgers answered that question at Camden Yards with a 7-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

The Dodgers have won the division in every season since 2013, moving their streak of division titles to seven consecutive seasons. Los Angeles, which looks poised to win home-field advantage in the playoffs with the league’s best record, has been a dominant team throughout the entire season.

LA has seemingly been hot all season, with Cy Young candidate Hyun-jin Ryu leading their pitching staff and NL MVP candidate Cody Bellinger pacing one of the league’s best offenses. The Dodgers have been a team with few weaknesses since the season kicked off in late March, and they’ve now ridden their depth and talent to yet another NL West title.

Young standout Walker Buehler fired a gem for the Dodgers on Tuesday, striking out 11 and allowing zero runs over seven dominant innings. Corey Seager hit a pair of home runs to lead the Dodgers to victory, sending them to a euphoric celebration in the Camden Yards visitor’s clubhouse.

LA will now look to stay healthy and get ready for the playoffs in the season’s final weeks.

The post Dodgers Beat Orioles 7-3, Clinch 7th Consecutive NL West Title appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

After hitting for the cycle for the first time in his career on April 25, 2017, against the Colorado Rockies, he repeated the same feat against the same team on Tuesday night at Nationals Park.

Turner got arguably the most difficult step out of the way first, slamming a leadoff home run off of Rockies starter Peter Lambert to give his team a 1-0 lead.

He then rapped an infield single off of Lambert the next inning to accomplish half of the feat.

The next trick in his book was a leadoff fifth-inning triple, which was no problem for the talented shortstop given his impressive speed.

Finally, in the seventh inning, Turner smacked an RBI double off of reliever Jairo Díaz to give his team a 9-1 lead and complete his second career cycle.

Turner is only the 26th player in MLB history to hit for the cycle twice. He finished the night 4-5 with 3 RBIs, continuing what has been a strong season for him.

The Nationals took an 11-1 triumph over Colorado on Tuesday, moving to within 5.5 games of the division-leading Atlanta Braves in the standings.

The post Nationals SS Trea Turner Hits for Cycle in Win appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Nonetheless, despite making his first start at the Cubs’ home stadium in April of 2018, it wasn’t until July 17, 2019 against the Cincinnati Reds that he picked up his first win at his home stadium.

Darvish pitched six excellent innings, allowing only two hits and no runs while walking zero batters, to lead the Cubs to a 5-2 win over the division rival Cincinnati Reds. He struck out seven batters and held the Reds’ lineup completely in check.

It was easily the best start that Darvish has made at Wrigley since joining Chicago, a marriage that hasn’t been quite as fruitful as either party would’ve hoped. In 2018, Darvish made only 8 starts due to an elbow injury, and he recorded a bloated 4.95 ERA in those outings.

2019 has been a bit kinder to the Japanese righty, who has gone 3-4 with a 4.46 ERA, but he had still been unable to get over his home woes until Wednesday afternoon.

Now, he’s broken down a major barrier, and hopes to use this momentum to carry the Cubs’ rotation down the stretch and into the playoffs.

The post Cubs SP Yu Darvish Throws Gem to Pick Up First Win at Wrigley appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The team announced that Arrieta has been pitching through a bone spur in his pitching elbow, which has limited his effectiveness. The 33-year-old righty has had a rough go of it in 2019, being one of the biggest reasons why the Phillies have disappointed with a mediocre 47-43 record.

Arrieta has posted a bloated 4.67 ERA this season and is posting the lowest strikeout numbers of his career on a per-inning basis. The Missouri native, in addition, has allowed a staggering 18 home runs in only 108 innings on the mound.

In short, Arrieta’s performance hasn’t come close to what the Phillies expected from him after signing him to a 3-year, $75 million deal before the 2018 season.

Despite his injury, Phillies manager Gape Kapler has said that it’s possible that Arrieta will continue to pitch this season.

The Phillies manager recognizes the fact that the team’s minor league pitching depth is minimal, and that if Arrieta is physically able to pitch despite the bone spur, the team might have to continue relying on him to stay in their rotation through the end of the season.

For now, Arrieta is expected to make a Saturday start against the Miami Marlins, but his situation bears monitoring.

The post Phillies Starter Jake Arrieta Could Be Sidelined with Right Elbow Bone Spur appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Yankees added the American League’s current home run leader (21) in exchange for minor league pitching prospect Juan Than and cash considerations.

The Yankees already have the 4th-highest home run total of any team in the American League with 110, and with their addition of the veteran Dominican designated hitter, they have officially established their lineup as a deep stable of power threats that will be sure to terrify pitching staffs come playoff time.

Encarnación, who is now in his 15th MLB season, has been clobbering the ball so far in 2019. With Seattle, he compiled a .241/.356/.531 slash line with 21 home runs and 49 RBIs. Now, he’ll move to one of baseball’s most homer-friendly parks and look to do even more damage.

The Yankees will benefit from the veteran slugger’s experience and know-how, as his long MLB career and playoff experience will benefit New York come October. The AL East leaders and near-locks to make the playoffs, and Encarnación’s addition was certainly made with an eye looking forward to the postseason.

He is expected to slot into New York’s lineup as its everyday designated hitter, making an already formidable lineup even scarier.

The post Yankees Trade with Mariners for AL Home Run Leader Edwin Encarnación appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Gordon exited the Mariners’ Thursday affair with the Yankees in big pain after he was plunked by JA Happ.

Happ’s 90 mph fastball struck Gordon square in the right wrist. The speedy shortstop was in immediate pain and had to leave the game. Not only was Gordon injured, but he wasn’t also upset at what he perceived to have been a dangerous pitch from Happ.

Happ disagreed with Gordon’s comments, saying that he was only trying to pitch inside.

X-Rays performed on Gordon’s right wrist were inconclusive on Thursday night. After the swelling recedes, he is set to undergo further testing to see if the wrist is broken or if he’s merely dealing with a contusion.

Seattle will miss Gordon, whatever the length of his absence is. The 31-year-old shortstop is hitting .304 and has already stolen 10 bases in the young season.

Gordon was one of the reasons the Mariners got off to a hot start, leading the AL West during part of April. They’ve now cooled down, as their record sits at 20-21, 4 games back of the Astros.

The Mariners have recalled JP Crawford from AAA Tacoma to replace Gordon in the meantime.

The post Seattle Mariners Lose SS Dee Gordon to Wrist Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

d’Arnaud was released by the New York Mets last month after getting off to a 2-23 start at the plate. The 30-year-old catcher spent the better part of four seasons as New York’s primary catcher before undergoing Tommy John surgery last year.

The catcher, once considered one of the best prospects in all of baseball, hit 47 home runs and batted .242 in 407 career games with the Mets. Despite a solid career, d’Arnaud has never quite lived up to his top prospect billing.

Nonetheless, the Dodgers are happy to add the California native at a position where they have doubts. After the off-season departure of former starter Yasmani Grandal to Milwaukee, the Dodgers currently have Austin Barnes and Russell Martin splitting time at the position.

Both Barnes, hitting .220 with 4 home runs, and Martin, .231 and one 1 home run, haven’t gotten off to a hot start in their new roles.

The Dodgers may yet give a chance to d’Arnaud to show what he can do as the team’s backstop. At worst, he will be a decent bench option that gives LA a solid defensive catcher as well as a right-handed bat.

The post Dodgers Sign Catcher Travis d’Arnaud appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Harper got off to a roaring start in the team’s second game of the season towards that goal.

The Phillies right fielder blasted a majestic 465-foot home run into the second deck of Citizens Bank Park on Saturday. The blast off of Jesse Biddle extended the Phillies’ lead over the Atlanta Braves to 7-4.

Philadelphia eventually took home the win by an 8-6 final score to move their record to 2-0 on the season.

The home run was Harper’s first hit as a member of the Phillies. It was also the 185th of his young career.

The Phillies expect Harper to hit many home runs like this one over the course of the season. He paid tribute to the adoration that he has received from Phillies fans with a curtain call after he was given a standing ovation after his home run.

If Harper stays healthy over the course of the season, he’ll likely be a front-runner for the NL MVP award, largely due to his powerful bat and majestic home runs like these.

The post Bryce Harper Blasts First Home Run with Phillies appeared first on yoursportspot.com.