Column: Cubs need an unlikely leader to emerge from their battered bullpen  —  Chicago Tribune  —  For context on the quandary that is the Cubs bullpen, consider that the defending World Series champion Astros closed out their two most important games last season without a pitcher whose primary purpose was to get the final three outs.

Yankees activate Aaron Judge from DL, but will be limited  —  Check back for updates  —  The New York Yankees activated Aaron Judge before Friday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays.  —  However, Judge will be limited to only defense and base running.  He will not be able to hit yet.

Gregory Polanco likely to miss 7-9 months after shoulder surgery  —  PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates say right fielder Gregory Polanco could be out until June after having surgery on his left shoulder.  —  Polanco dislocated his throwing shoulder on an awkward slide into second base on a double last Friday against Miami.

Mets' David Wright could pinch hit before farewell game  —  New York Mets infielder David Wright could be used as a pinch hitter ahead of his final start on Sept. 29, manager Mickey Callaway said Friday.  —  Wright will be activated from the 60-day disabled list when the team returns home Sept. 25 …

Learning the outfield could help Cincinnati Reds top prospect Nick Senzel reach the Majors  —  Scott Schebler talks about Luis Castillo's start and the Reds' 3-1 victory over the Dodgers.  The Reds have a 6-0 record vs. the Dodgers this year.  Bobby Nightengale, Cincinnati Enquirer  —  CONNECT

Braves, Giants franchises molded by 1993, MLB's last great pennant race  —  SAN FRANCISCO — The last great pennant race left some with the most beautiful memories in their careers and others with the ugliest of scars.  —  It created the most radical change in baseball's playoff format …

Braves to begin sales of single-game NLDS tickets next week  —  The Braves announced that single-game tickets for a potential National League Division Series will go on sale Wednesday.  —  The Braves lead the National League East Division by 7-1/2 games over the second-place Phillies entering play Friday.

Astros return from another successful trip to face D-backs  —  HOUSTON — Even at this advanced stage of the season, with the Astros having long ago cemented their reputation as a dominant road team, their success away from Minute Maid Park remains stunning.

Matt Kemp is finally home again in LA  —  There is no easy way to tell a player he's been traded.  But generally whatever awkwardness or emotion an executive feels from those calls is offset by the excitement of the calls welcoming the players joining the club.

MLB playoff picture: Updated look at division, wild card races  —  With just more than two weeks remaining, the Boston Red Sox are the only team to officially punch their ticket to the postseason.  —  The Red Sox still have work to do to clinch the American League East, although that …

How big is Rays-A's this weekend?  Well ...  That the Rays are playing a series with even the slightest amount of playoff implications in mid-September is somewhat of an accomplishment.  —  How big the matchup with the A's that starts tonight at the Trop is depends on your perspective.

'It's like group therapy': How a rookie skipper won over the Cards clubhouse  —  Somehow, Mike Shildt got the St. Louis Cardinals to buy into “Ball Talk.”  —  It would've been all too easy for the Cardinals players, especially the veterans, to roll their eyes.

Flaherty-Buehler rematch highlights Cards vs. Dodgers  —  Two of baseball's top young righthanders — Jack Flaherty of the Cardinals and the Dodgers' Walker Buehler — will square off Friday in a 7:15 p.m. showdown at Busch Stadium.  —  Los Angeles won 9-7 in the opening game of the four-game series …

Weaver becoming nonfactor on Cards' pitching staff  —  Righthander Luke Weaver has gone from rotation member to sixth starter to mop-up man with the Cardinals lately and his four-run allowance in just 2/3 innings in the ninth inning on Tuesday was a jolt to him, he admitted.