LEADING OFF: Yanks have new catcher, Bumgarner vs deGrom
A look at what's happening all around the majors today:
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NOT GEORGE'S YANKS
The Yankees are a changin', and that continued Tuesday when team owner Hal Steinbrenner said rookie catcher Gary Sanchez was taking over full-time responsibilities from veteran Brian McCann. Sanchez is hitting .360 with five homers and 11 RBIs in 53 plate appearances, and McCann called him a ''future All-Star'' in graciously acknowledging the shifting roles. Steinbrenner said he had to ''overcome a little bit of DNA issues'' to usher in New York's recent youth movement - his dad was George Steinbrenner, after all - but thinks Yankees fans are ready to embrace the Baby Bombers .
MARQUEE MATCHUP
Giants ace Madison Bumgarner (11-7, 2.11) will pitch the series opener against Jacob deGrom (7-5, 2.30) and the Mets. The All-Star Bumgarner threw seven shutout innings against Baltimore in his most recent outing to snap a streak of five winless starts in which he was 0-3 and the Giants were 0-5. DeGrom is 1-0 with an 0.65 ERA in his past four starts.
MARINERS SALE
Major League Baseball owners were set to vote on the proposed sale of a controlling stake in the Seattle Mariners from Nintendo of America to a group of minority owners led by John Stanton. As part of the sale, Stanton will take over as control person from current chairman Howard Lincoln, who is retiring. The agreement was announced in April and approval is expected. The sale could close this week.
LA STELLA BACK TO BASEBALL
Tommy La Stella is back in the fold with the Chicago Cubs and is expected to return to the majors next month. La Stella reported to Double-A Tennessee after refusing a minor league assignment in July and returning home to contemplate his career. La Stella, who was hitting .295 in 51 games with the Cubs this season, could be back with the Cubs by Sept. 1, said manager Joe Maddon.
BEATING THE BRAVES
Nationals rookie Reynaldo Lopez (1-1, 5.74) faces the Braves after delivering seven innings of one-run ball against Atlanta on Saturday. It will be Lopez's fourth big league start, and his first two went poorly before he pitched well in the 7-6 win against the Braves.
