MLB

7:00 AM ET Here we go, the Houston Astros versus the Atlanta Braves for World Series glory. While this matchup would have been a reasonable prediction back in spring training, it was an unlikely scenario at the trade deadline on July 30, when the Braves had a 2% chance to represent the National League and

9:08 PM ET The St. Louis Cardinals plan to hire Oliver Marmol as their new manager, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Sunday night, confirming an earlier report. Marmol, 35, served as St. Louis’ bench coach last season and is extremely well regarded within the organization. He was the favorite from the start of the

3:50 PM ET HOUSTON — The Houston Astros will start left-hander Framber Valdez against the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of the World Series, which begins Tuesday night. Valdez, 27, is coming off the best start of any pitcher this postseason after going eight innings and giving up just one run against the Boston Red

11:56 PM ET ATLANTA — For the first time since 1999, the Atlanta Braves are going back to the World Series. Eddie Rosario continued a torrid postseason with a three-run homer just inside the foul pole in the fourth inning, breaking a 1-1 deadlock and propelling Atlanta to a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles

12:05 AM ET For the first time in the 21st century, the Atlanta Braves are in the World Series, having claimed their first National League pennant since 1999. It’s not an insult or a revision of history to say that the Braves began this October run as something of an afterthought. The oddsmakers in Vegas

12:00 PM ET Seventy years after making his major league debut, Willie Mays is still one of the greatest baseball players of all time: the most spectacular combination of power, speed and defense the game has ever seen. And yet, when he graduated from Fairfield Industrial High School in Fairfield, Alabama, in 1950, it read

11:49 PM ET HOUSTON — The Houston Astros are headed to the World Series for the third time in five years after yet another pitching gem, beating the Boston Red Sox 5-0 in Game 6 of the ALCS on Friday night. Houston won the final three games of the best-of-seven series to clinch it. Two

3:00 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” HOUSTON — Here’s the thing: The Houston Astros really are just that damn good. They were that damn good in 2017 when they were cheating, and they are still that damn good

3:40 AM ET LOS ANGELES — Cody Bellinger had goosebumps. It was the eighth inning of a game his Los Angeles Dodgers already led by nine runs, but Chris Taylor was up to bat, sitting on three home runs, and Bellinger could sense a fourth one coming. “I felt like he was really going to

7:00 AM ET The 2021 World Series matchup will be decided this weekend. The Houston Astros have pushed the Boston Red Sox to the brink in the American League Championship Series, while the Los Angeles Dodgers have managed to stay alive in the National League against the Atlanta Braves. The Red Sox (down 3-2) meet

12:00 AM ET LOS ANGELES — When Chris Taylor hit his third homer of the game in the seventh inning, Braves manager Brian Snitker sat in his dugout chair and stared, unblinking, at some random spot in the Dodger Stadium outfield. What was taking place in front of him, and his reaction to it, seemed

3:18 PM ET The Houston Astros will start rookie Luis Garcia against the Boston Red Sox in Game 6 of the ALCS on Friday night, manager Dusty Baker announced on Thursday afternoon. Garcia, 24, left Game 2 of the series on Saturday with right knee discomfort, one batter into the second inning, and has only

1:52 AM ET LOS ANGELES — There’s hot, there is sizzling and then there is the Braves‘ Eddie Rosario. Rosario banged out four hits in a game for the second time in the National League Championship Series and tied a Braves postseason record with 12 total bases, leading Atlanta to a 9-2 win over the

12:00 AM ET BOSTON — Sisu. It’s a Finnish word that, according to Finland’s tourism website, typifies the enduring spirit of all Finns: “stoic determination, hardiness, courage, bravery, willpower, tenacity and resilience.” It’s also the word Houston Astros pitching coach Brent Strom used with his pitchers in a meeting before Game 4 of the American

6:11 PM ET LOS ANGELES — The Atlanta Braves‘ pitching puzzle for Game 4 of the NL Championship Series was complicated further by news that righty Huascar Ynoa would be unavailable because of tightness in his right shoulder. Atlanta made the announcement as manager Brian Snitker sat down for his pregame press conference. Ynoa had

2:12 AM ET BOSTON — Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi took two steps toward the dugout when his 1-2 curveball against Houston Astros catcher Jason Castro landed in the glove of catcher Christian Vazquez close to the top-right corner of the strike zone. With two outs already in the ninth inning, Eovaldi momentarily believed he

2:30 AM ET Jeff PassanESPN Close ESPN MLB insiderAuthor of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” BOSTON — By numbers alone, the 268th pitch in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series wasn’t particularly noteworthy. It left Nathan Eovaldi‘s hand at 80.4 mph and descended more than

8th Betts doubled to right center, Taylor scored. 5 6 8th Bellinger homered to right center (399 feet), Smith scored and Pollock scored. 5 5 5th Duvall singled to center, Albies scored, Riley to third. 5 2 4th Rosario walked, Duvall scored, Swanson to second, d’Arnaud to third. 4 2 4th Swanson singled to shortstop,