ATHLETICS: Oakland called up outfielder Travis Buck from Class AAA Sacramento and he was in the starting lineup in right field and batting sixth against the AL West champion Los Angeles Angels. Buck, who was with the A’s on opening day, is on the big league roster for the third time this season. He rejoined Oakland the same night the Sacramento River Cats were playing for the Triple-A title that Buck helped them reach by way of winning the Pacific Coast League championship.
BLUE JAYS: Pitcher Shaun Marcum left the game against Baltimore after two-plus innings because of numbness in his right forearm. Marcum missed 27 games in June and July because of soreness in his right elbow. Marcum struggled after returning July 22, going 3-2 with a 6.19 ERA in seven starts, and was optioned to Class AAA Syracuse on Aug. 22 to work on his location. He had gone 1-0 with a 1.26 ERA in two starts since being recalled on Sept. 2.
INDIANS: Pitcher Anthony Reyes is done for the year because of a tender right elbow. The righty went 2-1 with a 1.83 ERA in six starts for Cleveland after being acquired July 26 from St. Louis for minor league reliever Luis Perdomo.
Impressed by his outings for Taiwan in the Olympics, the Cleveland Indians signed pitcher Chen-Chang Lee. The 21-year-old righty pitched nine innings in the Olympics, giving up six hits and two runs while striking out 11 in two games.
ORIOLES: Baltimore third baseman Melvin Mora threw his bat onto the field after he was ejected by home plate umpire Rob Drake in the third inning against the Blue Jays. After grounding out in the first, Mora was caught looking at a knee-high fastball from left-hander John Parrish for the first out of the third. He remained at the plate and yelled at Drake and was ejected as manager Dave Trembley ran out to try and break up the argument. As he left the dugout, Mora picked up his bat and flipped it into foul territory as Aubrey Huff was batting.
RED SOX: General manager Theo Epstein is nearing an agreement on a contract extension, team owner John Henry. Epstein, who left Boston for nearly three months after his previous contract expired at the end of October 2005, currently has a three-year deal that expires at the end of next month.
“We are not done but we expect to have an announcement very soon,” Henry said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. “I have asked all involved not to comment until this is done.”
WHITE SOX: Paul Konerko was back at first base for Chicago against the Yankees, making a quick recovery from a strained right knee. Konerko was emerging from a season-long slump when he sprained a ligament in his knee Sept. 9 after cutting off a relay and turning to throw to second base against Toronto. He missed just five games over the past week and is eager to help Chicago, which has a 1½-game lead over Minnesota in the AL Central.
YANKEES: Derek Jeter broke Lou Gehrig’s record for hits at Yankee Stadium, singling in the first inning against the Chicago White Sox. The hit off Gavin Floyd was Jeter’s 1,270th in the 85-year-old ballpark, scheduled to close Sunday. It came in Jeter’s 8,002nd major league at-bat, passing Gehrig for second on the Yankees’ career list behind Mickey Mantle (8,102). Gehrig played with New York from 1923 — Yankee Stadium’s opening season — until 1939, when he retired due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He died of ALS two years later.
BREWERS: Milwaukee relief pitcher David Riske is scheduled to have season-ending surgery September 23 to remove bone spurs from his pitching elbow. The right-hander is 1-2 with a 5.31 ERA in 45 games. He last pitched on September 7, when he allowed four runs on four hits, including a home run, in one inning of work. Riske has pitched for four other teams — Cleveland, Boston, the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City — during his nine-year big league career.
METS: Manager Jerry Manuel called a team meeting before the game against the Washington Nationals, hoping to help the team avoid a second consecutive September meltdown. New York holds a half-game lead over Philadelphia in the NL East but have lost three of their past four. Last season, the Mets held a seven-game lead with 17 games left in the season but missed the playoffs. Manuel closed the clubhouse for about 15 minutes before the game. He said he decided to call the meeting after a 7-2 loss to Washington on Monday night.
Mets outfielder Fernando Tatis is out for the season after separating his right shoulder in the fifth inning of Tuesday’s game against the Washington Nationals. Tatis was hurt when he attempted to make a diving catch on pitcher Odalis Perez’s double. Tatis landed on the shoulder and stayed on the ground as the ball rolled past him. He was replaced by Nick Evans.
PHILLIES: Philadelphia is looking for a boost from a rookie as they fight for first place in the NL East. Left-hander J.A. Happ, who has made just two starts this season, will replace Kyle Kendrick in the rotation for tonight’s game against the Atlanta Braves. Kendrick (11-9) allowed seven runs and six hits in 11/3 innings in a 10-8 loss to the Florida Marlins last Tuesday. He has allowed 13 runs in just 51/3 innings in two starts this month, leaving his overall ERA at 5.44.
MLB: Joe Torre, Ron Santo and Gil Hodges are among 10 players on the latest Hall of Fame ballot for Veterans Committee voters. Dick Allen, Jim Kaat and Luis Tiant are on the list, made up of major leaguers whose careers began in 1943 or later. Tony Oliva, Al Oliver, Vada Pinson and Maury Wills also were among the candidates announced. Voting results will be announced Dec. 8 at baseball’s winter meetings in Las Vegas. A player needs 75 percent to be elected — the living 64 Hall members will vote.
Associated Press
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