Bassitt conscious after liner strikes face  —  Right-hander recovering in local hospital, per Melvin  —  CHICAGO — In the second inning of Tuesday's 9-0 loss to the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, A's starter Chris Bassitt was hit in the face with a line drive and had to be carted off of the field.

Dream on this: Cubs-Reds featured in planned Iowa sequel  —  CINCINNATI — It wasn't exactly heaven when the Cubs and Reds took the field Monday for the opener of a three-game series.  —  But maybe it was Iowa?  —  OK, maybe not even that.  Not yet.  —  But by this time next year …

San Diego Padres take chance on Jake Arrieta with Yu Darvish on IL  —  The San Diego Padres, in need of pitching reinforcements as they try to hang on to their wild-card lead, have signed right-hander Jake Arrieta to a minor league contract.  —  San Diego manager Jayce Tingler said Arrieta …

Trevor Bauer's accuser pressed on social media omissions at restraining order hearing  —  The demeanor of the woman who has accused Trevor Bauer of sexual assault changed noticeably under cross-examination on the second day of the hearing to determine whether a restraining order should be issued against the Dodgers pitcher.

The Honus Wagner T206 is the sports card GOAT, and it always will be  —  Nearly 100,000 people flooded onto the floor of the 2021 National Sports Collectors Convention in suburban Chicago, all jostling for space while peering into glass cases.  Some were there to buy, shelling out anywhere …

Pitch clocks, realignment and the end of blackouts: What MLB would look like if we were designing it now  —  Editor's note: From rising strikeout totals and unwritten-rules debates to connecting with a new generation of fans and a looming labor battle, baseball is at a crossroads.

2021 Midseason MLB Organization Talent Rankings  —  A lot has changed since we last rolled out Organization Talent Rankings before the 2021 season.  There's been another draft, a very busy trade deadline, a lot of graduations and most importantly, three months of minor league action …

Which contenders have the toughest path to the playoffs? 10 ways the MLB schedule could rock the races  —  The seven worst teams in baseball went 1-6 on Sunday and were outscored by a combined 17 runs.  This was no surprise.  Since Aug. 1, when all the players dealt at the trade deadline …

Mets fall to .500 with fourth straight loss as questionable choices abound  —  SAN FRANCISCO — The best team in baseball delivered one gut punch after another to the Mets, a crumbling club slipping quickly in the NL East standings.  —  Mets trade target Kris Bryant haunted them Monday night …

MLB umpires are squeezing the strike zone, and it's hurting some teams more than others  —  There are few more enduring — some might even say charming — aspects of baseball than arguments over balls and strikes.  They're expressed in a pitcher's glare, a batter's eye-roll, an R-rated chirp from the dugout.