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CLEVELAND — Star slugger Bryce Harper is making his first start at first base Friday night for the Philadelphia Phillies, who want to see if he can handle the position before they make any moves ahead of the trade deadline.

The defending National League champions enter the weekend 10½ games out of first place in the NL East but in the thick of the wild-card race.

Harper, who has made a quick recovery from Tommy John surgery last year, has played 1,258 games and made two previous appearances at first, in 2018 and 2021. Usually an outfielder, Harper has yet to play defense this year while his elbow recovers.

Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson has been toying with the move with Harper for some time and finally made the decision before the Phillies opened a three-game series against the Cleveland Guardians.

A two-time league MVP and seven-time All-Star, Harper is batting .295 with four homers and 26 RBI in 63 games.

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Rangers’ struggling García to IL with ankle injury

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Rangers' struggling García to IL with ankle injury

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers put struggling slugger Adolis García on the 10-day injured list with a sprained left ankle and activated outfielder Evan Carter.

Texas, which is chasing an American League wild-card berth, made the moves their series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday.

Another outfielder, Wyatt Langford, was held out of the lineup because of forearm stiffness, but manager Bruce Bochy said he could be available to pinch-hit.

García is hitting .224 with 16 homers and 64 RBIs in 116 games. He hit .176 (6 for 34) during the nine-game homestand that ended with Wednesday’s game.

Carter, who turns 23 later this month, missed 10 games because of back spasms. He was in a 4-for-34 slump when he was placed on the IL on Aug. 2. He hit .238 with four homers and 21 RBIs in 55 games before then.

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D-backs’ DeSclafani to IL after turn as starter

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D-backs' DeSclafani to IL after turn as starter

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Arizona Diamondbacks placed right-hander Anthony DeSclafani on the 15-day injured list Wednesday because of right thumb inflammation after he made three starts.

DeSclafani (1-2, 4.36 ERA) has been primarily a reliever for the Diamondbacks but made the starts this month after Merrill Kelly was traded to the Texas Rangers at the deadline on July 31.

Arizona made the move with DeSclafani before the series finale at Texas, when Kelly was starting for the Rangers. The Diamondbacks recalled right-hander Casey Kelly from Triple-A Reno.

“We’re hoping for the minimal time. He’s going to get some imaging just to make sure that everything’s OK,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “This is something that popped up a couple days ago. We all felt that he was going to be able to take the baseball and go out there and compete, which he did. We saw the stuff in the first couple of innings, and we decided it was time to take him off the field.”

In the three starts this month, DeSclafani is 0-1 with a 5.59 ERA, allowing six runs in 9⅔ innings. He threw three innings Tuesday night, allowing two runs in a game Arizona won 3-2 on a homer by Ketel Marte in the ninth.

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Twins no longer for sale; owners eye investors

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Twins no longer for sale; owners eye investors

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins are no longer for sale, executive chair Joe Pohlad announced Wednesday on behalf of his family.

After exploring a variety of options over the past 10 months, the Pohlad family will remain the principal owner of the club and add new investors instead. Carl Pohlad, a banking magnate and the late grandfather of Joe Pohlad, purchased the Twins in 1984 for $44 million.

“For more than four decades, our family has had the privilege of owning the Minnesota Twins. This franchise has become part of our family story, as it has for our employees, our players, this community, and Twins fans everywhere,” Joe Pohlad said in his announcement. “Over the past several months, we explored a wide range of potential investment and ownership opportunities. Our focus throughout has been on what’s best for the long-term future of the Twins. We have been fully open to all possibilities.”

Pohlad said the family was in the process of adding two “significant” limited partnership groups to bring in fresh ideas, bolster critical partnerships and shape the long-term vision of the franchise that relocated to Minnesota in 1961 after originating as the Washington Senators. Details about the new investors will be kept private until Major League Baseball approves of the transactions, Pohlad said.

The Twins are on track for their lowest attendance total in 16 seasons at Target Field, and an ownership-mandated payroll reduction last year, among other factors, has contributed to a dissatisfied customer base. The Twins traded 10 players off their roster leading up to the July 31 deadline, furthering the frustration. Word that the Pohlads are staying put certainly won’t help the morale of Minnesota baseball fans, who’ve been waiting for another World Series title since 1991.

“We see and hear the passion from our partners, the community, and Twins fans. That passion inspires us,” Pohlad said. “This ownership group is committed to building a winning team and culture for this region, one that Twins fans are proud to cheer for.”

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