Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer will look to keep up his hot hitting in the World Series. (UPI-Yonhap)KANSAS CITY, Missouri (AP) ― Alex Gordon took a big rip at a batting-practice fastball, fouled it off badly into the cage, and ducked when the carom nearly hit him in the head.Gordon let out a huge laugh, and so did a bunch of his Kansas City Royals teammates watching Monday’s workout.“I can’t believe that just happened, dude,” pitcher James Shields razzed.It’ll be more frustrating

Oct. 21, 2014

Coming off an injury-riddled 2014 season, South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin of the Los Angeles Dodgers said Tuesday he will try to stay healthier next year in Major League Baseball.Ryu, who returned home last week after the Dodgers were eliminated from the National League Division Series, went 14-7 with a 3.38 ERA in his second big league season. These numbers easily could have been better had he avoided three trips to the disabled list.Ryu matched the win total from his rookie season in 2013 de

Oct. 21, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (AP) ― Buck Showalter knew he was in trouble when the seventh inning rolled around and his Orioles were trailing the Kansas City Royals in Game 4 of the AL Championship Series.Three innings later, Baltimore’s season was over.In each game of the series, the three-headed monster of Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and All-Star closer Greg Holland had slammed the door on the Orioles. They did it again in the clincher, a 2-1 victory that propelled Kansas City into the World Series af

Oct. 20, 2014

Nexen’s Park Byung-ho led the KBO with 52 home runs and 124 RBIs. ( Yonhap)Four teammates of the Nexen Heroes, plus a pitcher from the Samsung Lions, will vie for the top individual award in South Korean pro baseball this season.The Korea Baseball Organization announced five candidates for the annual MVP award on Saturday. Headlining the list is the Heroes’ first baseman Park Byung-ho, who won the MVP in 2012 and 2013.Park led the KBO with 52 home runs and 124 RBIs, and it’s the third straight s

Oct. 19, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― San Francisco’s Travis Ishikawa hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, sending the Giants to the World Series with a 6-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday. The Giants clinched the NL Championship Series 4-1 and now will face the Kansas City Royals in a World Series between two teams that began the playoffs in sudden-death wild-card games. San Francisco, which won the 2010 and 2012 World Series, will be on the road for this year’s opener on Tuesda

Oct. 17, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (AP) ― Crown these Royals the American League champions.After nearly three decades spent trying to return to the playoffs, Kansas City is taking its perfect postseason ride all the way to the World Series.With more dominant defense, an opportunistic offense that plated two runs in the first inning, and a bullpen that shut down the Baltimore Orioles once again, Greg Holland and the wild-card Royals wrapped up a sweep of the AL Championship Series with a 2-1 victory on Wednes

Oct. 16, 2014

Yamaico Navarro of Samsung LionsThe Samsung Lions clinched their fourth consecutive pennant in the top South Korean baseball league with a narrow victory on Wednesday.The Lions defeated the LG Twins 5-3 at their home in Daegu, about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to secure first place in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season this year with one game remaining. Second baseman Yamaico Navarro hit a tie-breaking solo shot in the two-run eighth inning, as the Lions improved to 78-4

Oct. 15, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Once the Giants finally got a bunt down, the rest was easy. A wild throw by reliever Randy Choate on a bunt allowed Brandon Crawford to score the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning, lifting the San Francisco Giants over the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 on Tuesday for a 2-1 lead in the NL Championship Series.Crawford drew an eight-pitch walk from Choate to begin the inning, ending a stretch of 16 straight Giants retired since Tim Hudson’s two-out single in the fourth. Af

Oct. 15, 2014

INCHEON (Yonhap) ― South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin of the Los Angeles Dodgers returned home after putting together a solid sophomore season in Major League Baseball, vowing to improve himself in 2015.In a roller-coaster 2014 season, Ryu went 14-7 with a 3.38 ERA, numbers that easily could have been better had he avoided three trips to the disabled list.Ryu matched the win total from his rookie season in 2013 despite making four fewer starts, 30 to 26. His ERA this year was slightly higher comp

Oct. 15, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Ned Yost has the revved-up Kansas City Royals on track for their first World Series trip in 29 years. Still, in his first postseason as a manager, every choice he’s made has been dissected ― and, in many cases, flat-out destroyed.Bruce Bochy has the San Francisco Giants positioned for a third trip to the Fall Classic in five years. Yet before and after games, he’s had to justify all sorts of decisions.That’s playoff baseball. Every move is magnified, and the scrutiny is rele

Oct. 14, 2014

ST. LOUIS (AP) ― Kolten Wong and the St. Louis Cardinals rallied again with their latest postseason power show, tying the NL Championship Series at a game apiece.After the final party at home plate, reality set in: They might be without Yadier Molina the rest of the way.Wong hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the ninth inning and the resilient Cardinals beat the San Francisco Giants 5-4 Sunday night.The Cardinals came back after losing Molina to a strained oblique muscle in the sixth. The A

Oct. 13, 2014

BALTIMORE (AP) ― Following another successful road show, the Royals are heading back to Kansas City with momentum and history on their side in the AL Championship Series.Alcides Escobar doubled in the go-ahead run in the ninth inning, Mike Moustakas extended his home run-binge and the Royals remained perfect in the playoffs, beating the Baltimore Orioles 6-4 Saturday for a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven matchup.Lorenzo Cain had four hits, scored twice and drove in a run for the wild-card Royals,

Oct. 12, 2014

BALTIMORE (AP) ― Speed versus power. The surprising Kansas City Royals and unflappable Baltimore Orioles are extremely similar with one significant exception: the fashion in which they score runs. The team that best utilizes its standard method of offense will likely win the best-of-seven AL Championship Series, which begins Friday night.Get ready for small ball versus long ball.Back in April, few could have predicted these two teams would be the last standing in the American League. But the fas

Oct. 10, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― The Dodgers were built to win a World Series, not just get into the playoffs. They struck out again.They rallied from 9 1/2 games back in the NL West to win the division for the second straight year and earned home-field advantage in the postseason.But the result was similar to last year ― another defeat by the Cardinals. The Dodgers lost the National League Division Series 3-1 in St. Louis on Tuesday, with probable NL Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw giving up another ga

Oct. 9, 2014