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LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers, with just three starting pitchers, will rely heavily on their bullpen to try to topple the New York Yankees and win the World Series. And they’ll have to do it without one of their top relievers.

Evan Phillips was left off the club’s roster, which was unveiled Friday morning ahead of Game 1 at Dodger Stadium, after suffering an arm injury during Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

“Each day has gotten better,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “First and foremost, we’re not going to put him in harm’s way, and where there’s an ambiguity around it, it’s not clear. And the way the Major League Baseball injury rule is written, we wouldn’t be able to replace him in that it was something that was preexisting.”

Phillips’ absence registers as a significant blow. The right-hander didn’t allow a run in 6⅔ innings across five postseason games through the NLCS after posting a 3.62 ERA with 18 saves in 61 appearances during the regular season.

The good news for the Dodgers is Alex Vesia, the team’s best left-hander, and infielder Miguel Rojas are on the roster after missing the NLCS with injuries. Brusdar Graterol, who hasn’t pitched in the postseason, was also included. Outfielder Kevin Kiermaier, who was used as a late-inning defensive replacement and pinch runner in the NLCS, was left off the roster.

Vesia, who posted a 1.76 ERA in 67 games during the regular season, was not available for the NLCS after suffering an intercostal injury during the NL Division Series against the San Diego Padres in which he logged three scoreless innings. He was cleared to return after throwing 15 pitches in a live bullpen session Wednesday.

Shoulder and hamstring injuries limited Graterol to just seven appearances during the regular season. The playoff-tested reliever owns a 1.64 ERA in 22 career postseason games.

Rojas has been dealing with a nagging adductor that has kept him off the field since he was removed from Game 3 of the NLDS. The veteran began the postseason as the Dodgers’ starting shortstop, but his role could change given that Tommy Edman, the NLCS MVP, moved to shortstop and starred against the New York Mets, and Kiké Hernández continued his October excellence when given the opportunity to play every day after Rojas’ injury.

For the Yankees, Nestor Cortes, out for the past month, was included on their roster, replacing infielder Jon Berti from their AL Championship Series roster. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Berti was left off the roster because he suffered a hip flexor injury in Game 4 of the ALCS.

Cortes, who hasn’t pitched since Sept. 18, finished the regular season with a flexor strain in his left forearm. He rejoins the club as a reliever, with a limit of 30 pitches, after making 30 starts during the regular season.

“I told them since the beginning that I just don’t want to be on this roster because it’s the World Series,” Cortes said. “I want to be able to contribute and make sure when I’m out there that I’m giving my best and close to 100% as possible.”

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Journalism rallies to win Preakness; Gosger 2nd

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Journalism rallies to win Preakness; Gosger 2nd

BALTIMORE — Journalism won the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, coming from behind down the stretch to make good on the lofty expectations of being the odds-on favorite in the middle leg of the Triple Crown two weeks after finishing second to Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby.

Finishing first in a field of nine horses that did not include Sovereignty but featured some of the best competition in the country, Journalism gave trainer Michael McCarthy his second Preakness victory. It is Umberto Rispoli’s first in a Triple Crown race, and he is the first jockey from Italy to win one of them.

Gosger was second by a half-length after getting passed by Journalism just before the wire. Sandman was third and Goal Oriented fourth. Journalism went 1 3/16 miles in 1:55.37.

Journalism thrived on a warm day that dried out the track after torrential rain fell at Pimlico Race Course for much of the past week. Those conditions suited him better than the slop at Churchill Downs in the Derby.

Sovereignty did not take part after his owners and trainer Bill Mott decided to skip the Preakness, citing the two-week turnaround, and aimed for the Belmont on June 7. That made this a fifth time in seven years that the Preakness, for various reasons, was contested without a Triple Crown bid at stake.

But Journalism staked his claim for 3-year-old horse of the year by winning the $2 million American classic race run at the old Pimlico Race Course for the last time before it’s torn down and rebuilt. The Preakness is set to be held at nearby Laurel Park, between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., next year before a planned return to the new Pimlico in 2027.

Journalism is the first horse to win the Preakness after running in the Kentucky Derby since Mark Casse-trained War of Will in 2019. Only two others from the 19 in the Derby participated in the Preakness: Casse’s Sandman and fellow Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas’ American Promise.

Lukas, the 89-year-old who has saddled the most horses in Preakness history, referred to McCarthy once this week as “the new guy.” This was just McCarthy’s second, and he’s 2 for 2 after Rombauer sprung the upset as an 11-1 long shot in 2021.

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‘So that’s why they’re called the 0’s’: Twins troll Orioles after shutout win

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'So that's why they're called the 0's': Twins troll Orioles after shutout win

The Minnesota Twins are on a roll. They extended their winning streak to 11 games Thursday with a 4-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles that completed a series sweep. Their confidence carried over to social media, too, as they trolled the Orioles.

Minnesota used a three-run third inning to propel itself to victory, with home runs from DaShawn Keirsey Jr. and Byron Buxton.

The Twins hold the longest win streak in MLB; its their their longest run of victories since winning 12 straight from April 22 to May 4 last season, according to ESPN Research. The franchise record is 15 set in 1991.

Minnesota poked fun at Baltimore’s namesake with a post after the game, referring to the Orioles also being known as the “O’s” — and swapping a zero in for the O.

The Twins have won each of their six matchups against the Orioles this season. All of them have come during Minnesota’s current win streak.

Minnesota (24-20) is fourth in the American League Central behind the Kansas City Royals, Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers.

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Red Sox rookie Campbell working out at 1st base

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Red Sox rookie Campbell working out at 1st base

Star Boston Red Sox rookie Kristian Campbell has started working out at first base in the wake of Triston Casas‘ season-ending knee injury.

Campbell worked out at first before Friday night’s series opener against the Atlanta Braves at Fenway Park, and Red Sox manager Alex Cora addressed the situation when he spoke to reporters before the game.

“Looking for options,” Cora told reporters. “Obviously, we’re getting Romy [Gonzalez] probably at the end of the week, early next week, but just introduce him to first base and see how he looks. That’s where we’re at.”

Casas ruptured the tendon in his left knee while running to first base during a game against the Minnesota Twins earlier this month. His replacement at first, Gonzalez, was placed on the 10-day injured list because of a left quad contusion last week.

One potential replacement, star slugger Rafael Devers, said after Casas went down that he would not be open to moving to first after he went from third base to designated hitter during spring training to make room for Alex Bregman.

Campbell, one of baseball’s top prospects, broke camp with the big league team and has been its primary second baseman through the start of the season. He has also played in the outfield and at shortstop and third base in his career, but never first.

Asked what he would need to see for Campbell to be a realistic option at first for his team, Cora added: “The process started, right? It can take 10 days, 15 days, a month, two months. But we started the process and introduced him to first.”

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