Baseball

In a vacuum, news that Washington Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg has strained the flexor mass in his right elbow might seem like a gut punch to the team’s hopes of winning the World Series.

Strasburg is, after all, a former No. 1 overall pick who has looked every bit an ace through much of the 2016 season.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Bryan Harper had just entered a tie game to start the ninth inning for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators, and he was now in a bind—loading the bases on two walks and a sharp single.

The next Portland Sea Dogs batter slammed a hard grounder up the middle for a short-to-second, inning-ending force out. A walk in the bottom half plated the run that made Harper a 2–1 winner.

It appears Tim Tebow will get the last laugh when it comes to his nascent baseball career. The former NFL quarterback and the New York Mets agreed to a minor league contract Thursday.

The Mets announced the deal, noting that Tebow will participate in the instructional league. ESPN's Adam Schefter first reported the agreement. 

Here come the New York Yankees.

Seriously, they're in this thing.     

That seemed like an absurd notion when the Yankees went into full-blown sell mode just before the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline, jettisoning veteran pieces such as relievers Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller and outfielder Carlos Beltran. New York was building for the future, the narrative went, waving a white flag and restocking its farm system.

Fact: Minnesota Twins second baseman Brian Dozier hit a home run in his fifth straight game on Tuesday. He joins Harmon Killebrew and Marty Cordova as the only players in Twins history to accomplish that feat. 

Roughly four weeks are left in the 2016 MLB regular season, and while the playoff picture is taking shape, there is still a lot to be decided before October.

In the American League, 10 legitimate contenders remain. The Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers have a strong hold on their respective division leads, but the AL East is a three-team race, and the two wild-card spots are wide open with the Detroit Tigers making a strong push of late.

When you share a lineup with Miguel Cabrera, it's easy to get overlooked. Two-time MVPs tend to cast long shadows.

So J.D. Martinez is probably used to toiling in relative anonymity.

He's having a monster month-plus, though, and has helped propel the Detroit Tigers into the thick of the American League playoff race. 

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez was removed from Tuesday's game against the Minnesota Twins after suffering a wrist injury on a hit-by-pitch.

Continue for updates.

The Miami Marlins have gotten their biggest bat back.

The Marlins reinstated Giancarlo Stanton from the disabled list and classified him as active for Tuesday night's game against the Philadelphia Phillies, which they announced via Twitter: 

As David Ortiz approaches the end of his Hall of Fame-caliber career, the Boston Red Sox slugger made his feelings known regarding a number of subjects Tuesday, including presidential candidate Donald Trump's comments on Latinos.