MLB

The Baltimore Orioles entered the bottom of the eighth inning of Friday night's game against the Kansas City Royals trailing by two runs, but with the help of three big swings, they strolled into the ninth with a comfortable lead.

It helped that two of those big swings were grand slams.

Before the NFL distracts everyone on Sunday, DraftKings savants can devote Saturday to a full MLB slate.

Eliminated from the postseason or too far down the standings to mount a comeback, many traditional fantasy baseball players have lost interest. Worn down and defeated by the grueling season, they'll shift their attention to the gridiron, where a shiny new toy with a shorter schedule awaits.

With October baseball right around the corner, the importance of September games ramps up quite a bit. Over the next few slides, we'll analyze five of the biggest takeaways from the past week in MLB. 

As the season speeds to its conclusion, more attention is obviously being paid to end-of-year storylines. Playoff positioning and award races have become prime talking points across baseball circles.

NEW YORK — The ceremony will be simple, the New York Yankees say.

Nothing elaborate. No special guests. Just a nice little acknowledgement of what Alex Rodriguez did by reaching 3,000 hits.

Simple...as if anything with Rodriguez can ever be simple.

Just like what the Yankees did after Derek Jeter's 3,000th hit, except with A-Rod, nothing can be just like Jeter.

Johnny Cueto and Albert Pujols are just two of the MLB stars who are letting down their contending clubs at the worst possible moment.

With October looming, the Kansas City Royals righty and the Los Angeles Angels vet have been playing so poorly that their respective teams can no longer count on them down the stretch. The big leaguers who cracked this unfortunate list earned their spots for a variety of reasons.

Let's face it. The possibility exists that the New York Yankees will render this article moot in no time at all. All they have to do is win their next three games, and they're back atop the AL East.

But you sure get the sense that's not going to happen, don't you?

The luck of the Irish wasn't on the side of John Danks.

After losing a bet to broadcaster Ed Farmer, the Chicago White Sox pitcher rolled up to U.S. Cellular Field for warm-ups ahead of Friday's game against the Minnesota Twins dressed as a leprechaun—green bow tie and all.

On Friday, Nike unveiled Mike Trout's second signature cleat, the Nike Lunar Trout 2, which will also be available as a turf shoe—a first for the Los Angeles Angels center fielder.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto was ejected from Wednesday night's 5-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates following a heated argument over balls and strikes with home plate umpire Bill Welke, and MLB took action Friday, condemning the star's actions.

The New York Yankees' chances of winning the AL East took a major hit Friday, as further tests on first baseman Mark Teixeira revealed a leg fracture. The slugger is now expected to miss the rest of the season due to the injury.