Backed by home runs from Troy Tulowitzki, Kevin Pillar, Ezequiel Carrera and Edwin Encarnacion, the Blue Jays took Game 2 at Globe Life Park in Arlington on Friday, 5-3. Jays closer Roberto Osuna was able to covert a five-out save despite being listed as questionable to begin the series with shoulder soreness. MORE: Top 50 players in MLB playoffs The makeshift Jays bullpen did take another blow in the eighth when Francisco Liriano took a 102 mph line drive to the head....

And while I took part in Sporting News’ official 2019 predictions and made some sort of obvious guesses, I’m taking a different approach here. I’m going to tell you exactly how everything will play out. Everything you’re about to read is definitely going to happen. Write it down, then review in awe in October. Or, mock me on Twitter when I inevitably get something wrong. Either is fine. MORE: Watch ‘ChangeUp,’ a new MLB live whip-around show on DAZN...

Castillo also reported that the deal is not expected to become official until Monday. The Dodgers have not commented on the reports. The Angels released Pujols, 41, on Thursday after designating him for assignment May 6. Reports on Friday indicated that multiple teams were interested in the first baseman/DH once he became free to sign anywhere. MORE: Why did the Angels release Pujols? Pujols and the Angels agreed to part after the team decided to give some of Pujols’ DH at-bats to Shohei Ohtani and replace Pujols at first with Jared Walsh....

Francisco Liriano is finalizing a three-year deal worth $39 million to stay in Pittsburgh, according to a report from Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. While the deal hasn’t been announced, it would be the largest free-agent contract in Pirates team history, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Travis Sawchik. After signing former Pirate A.J. Burnett, Pittsburgh will likely seek to re-sign Edison Volquez. A two-time Comeback Player of the Year, Liriano, 31, has posted a 3....

You’d recognize the names: George Brett, Wade Boggs, Mike Schmidt, Brooks Robinson. Those men are four of the seven who have been voted in by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Seven others were voted in by the Veterans Committee, while the remaining two were voted in by the Negro Leagues Committee or another special committee. It’s an elite group, no doubt. But with what we’re seeing across baseball in 2017, the talent at the position is deeper than a Chuck Palahniuk book....

Entering Tuesday’s game against the Yankees, the Astros had scored only 17 runs in their previous eight games. That’s not the kind of offense that carries a team to the playoffs. Not surprisingly, the Astros’ lead over the Rangers in the AL West had shrunk to 3 1/2 games. MORE: Baseball’s best contracts | Can’t fault Gomez for playing his way Well, that changed Tuesday, as Houston erupted for 15 runs on 15 hits at Yankee Stadium to claim a 15-1 victory....

ESPN’s Buster Olney first reported that MLB is “expected” to move the July 13 game to Coors Field in Denver, home of the Rockies, after announcing last week that the game was being moved out of Atlanta. Reports from other journalists that tracked with Olney’s initial report later showed up on Twitter. FAGAN: Surprising move by MLB to move All-Star Game MLB is expected to announce the move Tuesday, according to multiple reports, including one by KOA Radio in Denver, the flagship station of the Rockies’ radio network....

The 41-year-old Colon signed a two-year deal with the Mets in the offseason. He’s having a solid year, with an 8-8 record, 3.99 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 18 starts. The 2005 Cy Young winner is not a top-of-the-rotation guy anymore, but it’s not surprising to see teams expressing interest. After all, Jeff Samardzija is off the market, and it’s not clear if the likes of David Price, Cole Hammels and Jom Lester will be available....

Deals have been done — since we first published this list on Friday, several players have been traded, including Asdrubal Cabrera, Mike Moustakas, Ryan Pressley and Brad Brach, to name a few — and more are on the way. This is the time of the year when we constantly refresh Twitter looking for news of who’s next to be traded. So we thought we’d help answer that question by ranking the players who could be dealt next....

The Astros have one of the best lineups in baseball and their power-hitting was on full display against Los Angeles. George Springer hit three home runs and added four RBIs while Alex Bregman and Aledmys Diaz also contributed homers. Astros starter Justin Verlander allowed two runs over five innings and improved his record to 20-6 this season. The Angels tallied eight hits and got two from Andrelton Simmons. Michael Hermosillo chipped in two RBIs....

The Indians lost to the Nationals on Friday, 8-2, which earned a wild-card spot for the Athletics. The Rays later punched their own wild-card ticket with a 6-2 victory over the Blue Jays. It will be their first postseason appearance since 2013. The Rays exceeded expectations this year, thanks in part to Tyler Glasnow. Although he missed almost four months with a strained forearm, when healthy the 6-8 right hander has been a beast....

Minnesota belted three homers in its 10-5 victory over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. In the process, the team completed a three-game sweep of Chicago and set an MLB record for the most road home runs in a season. Minnesota has 141 long-balls away from Target Field in 2019. The Twins jumped out in front early with four runs in the first inning. They tacked on two more in both the second and the third to take command and easily cruised to the win from there....

Sporting KC gives Peter Vermes a contract extension The change was announced as part of a larger initiative taken together with the Canadian Soccer Association and officials working the league’s three Canadian teams in an attempt to improve youth development for Canada. Previously, Canadian players only counted as domestic in MLS if they played for one of the Canadian-based sides: Toronto FC, the Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps. Otherwise, Canadian players counted toward U....

Two of the league’s previous MVPs, Sebastian Giovinco and David Villa, are always good for at least a few stunners per season. As you might expect, the duo feature on this list of Goal’s top goals of the 2017 MLS season. But they aren’t the only ones to make it. This year’s list features a household name, a center back and a jack-of-all-trades providing arguably the best assist of the season....

No arrest was made and an investigation is continuing, according to MLS. On Wednesday, the league suspended the player with pay from all club activities pending further developments. Paladini is out for the season after undergoing leg surgery in September. The Crew lost 4-2 to the New England Revolution in the Eastern Conference semifinals Saturday, with the two sides set to meet again Sunday.

Arena supports anthem policy Josef Martinez netted a hat trick and Miguel Almiron scored twice as Atlanta won the battle of the expansion franchises amid heavy snowfall in Minnesota. Atlanta impressed in last week’s opener before it was overpowered by the New York Red Bulls but there was no repeat Sunday after racing to a 3-0 lead before the half-hour mark. Martinez scored twice in that period, including the third-minute opener, while Almiron was also on target....

Former Juventus forward Sebastian Giovinco was at the forefront again as Eastern Conference leader Toronto accounted for the Philadelphia Union 3-0 on Wednesday. Giovinco opened the scoring at BMO Field, while Nicolas Hasler and Jozy Altidore were also on target for Toronto, which extended its lead in the race for the Supporters’ Shield to seven points over New York City FC. The deadlock was broken by Giovinco’s moment of brilliance after 10 minutes in Toronto....

It will serve as the latest in a series of milestones reached by a coach who has enjoyed a dream season after two nightmare campaigns in charge of the Rapids. After beginning 2016 looking like he might be doomed to wind up on the scrap heap of players who failed as coaches, Mastroeni has just guided the Rapids to the best regular season in club history, and a 21-point turnaround few saw coming....

Brooks has been leading the charge in the House of Representatives to object to Biden’s victory over President Donald Trump in several key battleground states. More than 100 Republican House members have publicly backed the effort, as have at least 13 GOP senators. Although the plan is widely expected to fail, thousands of Trump supporters have converged on the nation’s capital to protest the president’s election loss. “America does not need and cannot stand—cannot tolerate—any more weakling, cowering, wimpy Republican congressmen and senators who covet power and the prestige the swamp has to offer while groveling at the feet of the special interest masters,” Brooks said in a fiery speech at the protest organized on the Ellipse by Women for America First....