Baseball, Mlb Playoffs | featured news

Never in the long history of Major League Baseball has any team held a lead in September of eight games or more for a postseason berth and failed to clinch... And yet it could happen twice in 2011, because the Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves are teetering on the verge of collapsing in the season's final month the way no club has before.

The Tampa Bay Rays moved within 1½ games of Boston in the AL wild-card race, getting a clutch three-run homer from Johnny Damon in a 6-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday night.

Elvis Andrus took a home run trot at Rangers Ballpark, cheering a ball that landed 1,400 miles away. Prince Fielder enjoyed a victory lap at Miller Park, hugging fans along the way. Kirk Gibson pumped his fist at Chase Field, celebrating while the crowd chanted his name....

Matt Moore struck out 11 in five innings of his first major league start and the Tampa Bay Rays unloaded on the watered-down Yankees for a 15-8 victory Thursday, a night after New York clinched the AL East title.

Away from the madness of a cigar party for a moment, Jim Leyland nearly cried. For everybody who figured there was no way he would manage the Tigers beyond this season, for all those who couldn't envision a comeback after Detroit fell behind by eight games in early May, Leyland sat in his office puffing on his own celebratory stogie, a black "2011 MLB Playoffs" hat on his head.

Roy Halladay pitched a six-hitter and the Philadelphia Phillies became the first team to reach the playoffs this season with a 1-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Wednesday.

Baseball management is more likely to consider expanded playoffs for 2012 than for next year.

The San Francisco Giants advanced to the World Series by beating the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 on Saturday to clinch the National League Championship Series.

The Texas Rangers reached the World Series for the first time in their 50 years as a franchise by beating the New York Yankees 6-1 on Friday to win the American League Championship Series.

Juan Uribe hit a game-ending sacrifice fly off reliever Roy Oswalt with one out in the ninth inning and the San Francisco Giants moved within one win of the World Series, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 Wednesday night for a 3-1 lead in the NL championship series.