WHERE WILL THEY GO?: Johnny Cueto | Zack Greinke | David Price Coming off a 2015 season in which he was 13-8 with a 3.13 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in 181 innings for the AL East champions, Estrada, 32, has these options: — Accept the one-year, $15.8 million qualifying offer and plan on being a free agent next year. — Reject the qualifying offer and hit the open market this offseason, though any team that signs him will owe the Blue Jays draft-pick compensation, which could limit his marketability....

Other emergent cash sources such as hefty local TV deals, video streaming agreements and revenue sharing for small markets have helped ease strain on attendance-starved franchises. There are a lot of those organizations these days: Eight teams are currently drawing fewer than 20,000 fans per game, compared with just three teams a decade ago. MORE: Watch ‘ChangeUp,’ a new MLB live whiparound show on DAZN In a previous era, that would have been a much bigger problem for owners....

The Brewers have been feeble offensively in the early going, so manager Ron Roenicke decided to move outfielder Ryan Braun into the leadoff slot to change things up. Braun did have two hits but the Brewers still lost. The Mets, on the other hand, are riding a seven-game win streak and have ace Matt Harvey on the mound Sunday. The Yankees’ Chris Young and the White Sox’s Jose Abreu belted grand slams to help their respective teams win big....

It will take several years of sustained success for Max Scherzer to prove he’s worth all of his $210 million deal, but Saturday’s performance was certainly a major step toward achieving that goal. The Nationals right-handed pitcher was just one strike away from a perfect game when he hit Pirates outfielder Jose Tabata on the elbow with an inside pitch. Still, Scherzer struck out 10 Pirates over nine innings in a spectacular no-hitter to hand Pittsburgh a 6-0 loss....

Instead, backing the Blue Jays is as much about betting against the BoSox’s Clay Buchholz (5.94 ERA, 1.55 WHIP). In a way, it’s almost impressive that Buchholz has been able to log 122.2 innings in spite of his helium-inflated stat line. If allowing 1.5 base runners per inning and approaching an ERA of 6.00 isn’t enough to convince you that the Red Sox should be bet against, consider Buchholz’s 2014 numbers against tonight’s opponent....

The Pirates (11-8) come in on a five-game winning streak, which is tied with the Marlins and Rays for the longest current win streak in the majors. The streak started last week in Pittsburgh, after the Cubs took the first two of a four-game series. The Pirates would win the next two and then sweep the Diamondbacks in Phoenix over the weekend. Pittsburgh’s success can be attributed to its starting rotation getting the job done with a 1....

Every new season brings new questions and new storylines. Some things will go as we expect, and some things won’t. Other things will come out of nowhere to grab our attention and leave us wondering why we never saw it coming. It’s all part of the fun of an MLB season. With a new season upon us, here are 18 burning questions for the 2018 campaign. These definitely aren’t the only 18 questions, but we have to start somewhere....

Check The Linemakers on Sporting News’ odds page for current baseball lines from Las Vegas. Twins -110 (vs White Sox) Carlos Rodon (6-5, 4.15 ERA) vs Tommy Milone (6-4, 3.86 ERA) The Twins are pushing for the playoffs and have everything to gain in its series versus the White Sox, as opposed to Chicago, a team without much to play for in September. Minnesota is excellent at home, and the visiting Sox are a team they should beat comfortably....

That’s because the Yankees — 1-4 in the playoffs on the road — have to become road warriors to finish their mad dash through the American League. It certainly feels like momentum, if such a thing exists, is on the side of the guys in pinstripes, but Astros manager A.J. Hinch dismissed the mystical/mythical powers of momentum before Game 5. MORE: Three takeaways from Yankees’ ALCS Game 5 win...

Facing postseason elimination, Toronto kept its season alive with stellar pitching and timely hitting. MORE: Blue Jays look to overcome 0-2 hole, like these teams The Blue Jays still trail 2-1 in the series, but finally appear to have found some of the offensive form that led them to the AL East crown. Here are our five takeaways from Game 3: The Blue Jays can hit. This may seem like we’re stating the obvious about a team that tied for second in average during the regular season and sent 125 more players across home plate than any other team....

The Rangers weren’t able to mount a comeback after ace Cole Hamels was rocked for a career postseason-worst seven runs (six earned) in 3 1/3 innings. The outcome could have been different for Hamels, though, if not for defensive gaffes by Adrian Beltre and Ian Desmond that resulted in four runs for Toronto. MORE: Top 50 players in the playoffs Instead, the Jays, behind Marco Estrada’s gem, took a 1-0 series lead with a 10-1 win Thursday at Globe Life Park....

With the Rockies and the Yankees winning their respective wild-card games, we have nothing but series upon series from here on out. The battle of attrition starts now. So who’s coming out of each league? National League Los Angeles Dodgers: Nobody is pretending the 2018 season went according to the script for the Dodgers. It was bumpy. Ugly, even. They spent more time in third, fourth or fifth place in the NL West then they did in first place, and there were whispers that manager Dave Roberts’ job might be on the line....

The league has announced that all on-field personnel in Friday’s games will wear caps bearing an American flag patch on the side. Replicas of these commemorative caps will be available for sale, with all proceeds from MLB cap sales earmarked for the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, the Pentagon Memorial and the Flight 93 Memorial. MORE: Sports and the aftermath of 9/11 In addition to a moment of silence before all MLB games Friday, “We Shall Not Forget” silhouetted batter ribbons will be displayed throughout ballparks....

Their offense has been another story, though. First-time All-Stars Todd Frazier and Devon Mesoraco have had breakthrough seasons, and rookie Billy Hamilton has been playing like an All-Star after a slow start. But veterans Jay Bruce and Joey Votto have struggled like never before, and shortstop Zack Cozart and outfielder Ryan Ludwick have had their issues at the plate, too. Votto is on the DL for the second time this year, and franchise cornerstone Brandon Phillips is there, too, with a thumb injury....

According to MLB.com, the Tigers “remain uncertain” about whether to deal the 28-year-old lefty, one of the most sought-after starters on the market. The Phillies are rumored to be particularly interested in Boyd (4.07 ERA, 1.13 WHIP in 2019). The Yankees, Astros and Brewers have also been mentioned as possible trade destinations. But the MLB.com report notes that the Tigers’ “high asking price” for Boyd has made some baseball executives “doubt that he will be moved at this year’s deadline....

The Brewers and Cubs both have 82-69 records and are tied for the second National League wild-card spot after Chicago lost to the Reds, 4-2. The Brewers and Padres combined to tally eight hits on the night as each team totaled four apiece. The difference was that two of Milwaukee’s hits were home runs from Lorenzo Cain and Mike Moustakas. San Diego, on the other hand, had its only run driven in by a Hunter Renfroe home run in the seventh inning....

The first-place Phillies (24-16) have now won 11 of 15, and they seem to have a different hero every night. Against the Brewers, second baseman Cesar Hernandez had his turn. Hernandez homered, scored three runs and had two RBIs to power the offense. MORE: Watch ‘ChangeUp,’ a new MLB live whiparound show on DAZN And Harper, the Phillies’ $330 million free agent addition in the offseason, made a diving catch with the bases loaded in the seventh inning to prevent at least two runs and possibly save the victory....

LA Galaxy look flat in their opener Atlanta made its debut Sunday following Minnesota United’s bow Friday as the league expands from 20 to 22 teams this season. But the Red Bulls spoiled the party thanks to late goals in front of 55,297 fans at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta. Led by former Argentina and Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino, Atlanta dominated proceedings and threatened to overrun the Red Bulls, with its pace and penetration resulting in the 25th-minute opener....

Ignacio Piatti and Anthony Jackson-Hamel scored braces as Montreal beat an understrength Toronto 5-3 in the 401 Derby at BMO Field. Piatti was fortunate for the opener, blocking a clearance from goalkeeper Alex Bono and watching the ball find the back of the net. It was 3-0 inside 25 minutes as Marco Donadel unleashed a 30-yard rocket and Piatti finished clinically from just inside the area. A Deian Boldor own goal pulled one back for Toronto, who were without star duo Sebastian Giovinco and Jozy Altidore due to lower body injuries....

On the opposite side was NYCFC coach Patrick Vieira, who had been Rusnak’s manager when the Slovak midfielder played for the Manchester City under-21 side. Naturally, the Frenchman had a big influence on his career. “He was my coach for two years and he taught me a lot of stuff and also told me what I needed to work on,” Rusnak told Goal. “When I saw him in the game against NYC, he told me: ‘You finally made a good step in your career,’ with a laughing face....