It’s hard to measure teamwork sometimes in a sport that boils down to individual confrontations between pitcher and hitter. It does exist, though, and the concept of buying into a team concept starts with the manager. More than any in-game tactical moves, a manager’s job is about handling the clubhouse and being prepared for all situations. So, as much as Monday night was a testament to Cleveland’s talent, it also reflected on Terry Francona, because as odd as the situation was with Trevor Bauer opening up his drone-induced wound in the first inning, the manager had his team ready for this circumstance....

The agreement is a one-year deal worth $3.25 million plus $550,000 in incentives. It's the third consecutive year K-Rod has signed a one-year deal with the Brewers. MORE: NL Central ‘Cold as Ice’ | PHOTOS: Iconic MLB moments The 32-year-old split time between the Brewers and Baltimore Orioles last year. Milwauke traded for infielder Nick Delmonico in a deadline deal with Baltimore, where Rodriguez's ERA jumped from 1.09 to 4....

REPORTED BY: Jerry Crasnick of ESPN THE DETAILS: Suzuki, who is 41, has also drawn interest from the Orioles and the Blue Jays. The Marlins already have Giancarlo Stanton,Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna in the outfield, so they would most likely use Suzuki in rotation. LAST SEASON: Suzuki batted .289/.324/.340 with one home run, 22 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 143 games for the Yankees. SN’S TAKE: At this point in Suzuki’s career, he can’t be extremely picky....

The Mariners, who have also reportedly expressed interest in Matt Kemp, are looking to solidify their outfield. They’ve already signed outfielder/DH Nelson Cruz to a four-year, $57 million deal this offseason. The Indians, who are “guardedly optimistic” in trading for Oakland slugger Brandon Moss, are likely only interested in Rios if the Moss talks fall through. The Royals, on the other hand, may be more interested in signing a greater offensive presence to an outfield that batted ....

Bones of the hands in particular. Since the exhibition season, an all-star team of players — more than a dozen in all, and double the number from a year ago — has been struck by pitches and suffered hand or wrist fractures, including the Cardinals’ Matt Adams and Paul DeJong; the Mariners’ Robinson Cano; the Phillies’ J. P. Crawford; the Blue Jays’ Brandon Drury; the Yankees’ Aaron Judge, the Pirates’ Josh Harrison; the White Sox’s Nicky Delmonico; the Rangers’ Delino DeShields, the Athletics’ Ramon Laurano, the Giants’ Evan Longoria, the Mets’ Kevin Plawecki, the Reds’ Eugenio Suarez and the Dodgers’ Justin Turner....

All but two divisional races appear locked up. The Braves surged into first place in August and are holding to the top spot early in September with the Phillies and Mets not too far behind them. The Giants have quietly been the best team in baseball for most of the season, yet find themselves holding off an incredibly talented Dodgers squad in the NL West. Both the races for the wild card look to be fights to the finish....

MLB announced the suspension stems from a July 14 trade in which pitcher Drew Pomeranz was traded from the Padres to the Red Sox. MLB’s Department of Investigations conducted a review, which included interviews with relevant individuals from both clubs. The White Sox, Marlins and an unnamed fourth team also reportedly objected to the Padres apparently withholding medical information on players from the central repository teams use to evaluate potential trades....

As the Aug. 31 MLB trade deadline approaches, the Padres continue to be active in finding pieces to round out their roster. They got an ace in Mike Clevinger, and they filled out other holes by adding relief pitcher Trevor Rosenthal, designated hitter Mitch Moreland and catchers Jason Castro and Austin Nola. San Diego’s 21-15 record sets it up for a postseason berth — in 2020’s expanded playoff format, eight teams from each league qualify....

Los Angeles has acquired lefty Adam Kolarek from the Rays for minor leaguer Niko Hulsizer, the team announced Wednesday. The Dodgers wanted to land Felipe Vazquez from the Pirates, but that deal never came to fruition so they moved on and got another good pitcher. Kolarek, 30, is 4-3 with a 3.95 ERA this season for Tampa Bay. Hulsizer is currently on the injured list in the minors, but he is batting ....

RUMOR: The Toronto Blue Jays are interested in acquiring outfielder Jay Bruce from the New York Mets. REPORTED BY: Jerry Crasnick, ESPN.com DETAILS: The New York Mets just re-signed Yoenis Cespedes to a franchise-breaking four-year, $110 million deal on Tuesday, so they may be looking to offload some money. Bruce was traded to New York form Cincinnati this summer before the trade deadline, but he only has one year left on his contract, and is set to make $13 million this season....

According to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers are open to moving the struggling Puig before the Aug. 1 trade deadline. It’s still unclear as to what the Dodgers will be looking for in return, but Rosenthal suggested a hard-throwing lefty reliever, or perhaps another power outfield bat. MORE: Taking a look at Puig’s career | Dodgers making a move for Evan Longoria? But there’s still a big question mark, and it’s Yasiel Puig himself....

Miley is going to Boston for pitchers Rubby De La Rosa and Allen Webster and infield prospect Raymel Flores. The teams announced the trade Friday after agreeing to it at the winter meetings Wednesday. The inclusion of Flores kept the deal on hold. MORE: Other Red Sox trade candidates | Miley deal not good for Sox | Masterson returns to Red Sox | Porcello for Cespedes In a separate move, the Diamondbacks traded right-hander Zeke Spruill to the Sox for right-hander Myles Smith....

We’ve all heard rumors about New York’s sky-high asking price for left-handed relief star Andrew Miller for months now, and we all saw the haul the Yankees got for their other left-handed relief star, Aroldis Chapman, in their recent trade with the Cubs. Still, this was a bit surprising. Lucas Giolito, you probably know, is the Nationals’ top prospect. Both Baseball America and MLB.com says he’s the No. 4 prospect in all of baseball....

REPORTED BY: Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi, Fox Sports. MORE: Eight MLB players who will be traded this year | Showalter can see Davis saga dragging into March DETAILS: Colorado, already flush with left-handed-hitting outfielders, brought another one, free agent Gerardo Parra, into the fold on Tuesday. It was a curious move perceived as a precursor to a deal that could net the Rockies long-coveted pitching talent capable of taming sluggers within the confines of Coors Field....

This new report echoes what Heyman stated last week. He said New York has made any and every prospect available in a deal for the man they call “Thor.” Per Heyman on last week’s edition of the “Big Time Baseball” Podcast: Heyman went on to say he believes the Mets would want Gleyber Torres in return for Syndergaard and he does not think the Yankees would do that. Torres has reportedly been made “unavailable” in trades....

The 30-year-old left-hander delivered his best start in a New York uniform and led his team to an 8-0 win over the Red Sox on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Paxton threw eight shutout innings while allowing just two hits and one walk. He struck out 12. “It’s a big deal, because it’s against Boston, especially being here (at home),” Paxton told reporters after the game. “We want to beat Boston every time....

Washington came away with a 7-2 win over the Phillies at Nationals Park on Monday. The victory moved the Nationals 1/2-game in front of the idle Brewers, who have won four in a row and pulled even in the standings one day earlier. The Nationals scored a run in each of the first three innings and then added two more in the fifth to pull away. Adam Eaton finished 3 for 4 with a home run and two runs scored while shortstop Trea Turner also scored three times in the victory....

The league confirmed Wednesday that the four prospective markets will make formal presentations to the MLS expansion committee and commissioner Don Garber on Dec. 6. The MLS Board of Governors will meet Dec. 14 in New York City to continue expansion discussions, with the league’s next two franchises to be announced before the end of the year. “The leaders of the Cincinnati, Detroit, Nashville and Sacramento MLS expansion ownership groups have bold visions and innovative plans for their clubs, stadiums and their involvement in their respective communities,” Garber said in a news release....

All 10 games will kick off at 4 p.m. ET, making for a hectic end to the campaign. Here’s who’s in, who’s out, and whats still left to play for: Already qualified EASTERN CONFERENCE New York Red Bulls New York City FC Toronto FC D. C. United Montreal Impact WESTERN CONFERENCE FC Dallas Colorado Rapids LA Galaxy Still in playoff contention EASTERN CONFERENCE Philadelphia Union New England Revolution WESTERN CONFERENCE...

Back when the 2017 season began, the one team most people would have put their money on pulling off the U.S. Open Cup-MLS Cup double was FC Dallas. Last year’s Supporters’ Shield winner came into 2017 with the highest expectations in the league. The Hoops made a run to the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals, and there was even talk of a potential treble. That’s how good FC Dallas looked, and how much promise Oscar Pareja’s squad showed....