HOUSTON—Kyle Tucker got the fans jumping with a leadoff homer in the second inning. Then he hit a three-run drive in the third. Ahead 5–0, the Houston Astros finally were going to win a World Series opener. Instead, Tucker’s first two Series home runs weren’t quite enough. Kyle Tucker (30) of the Houston Astros hits…

PHILADELPHIA—Bryce Harper slugged his fifth homer of the postseason, a two-run blast in the eighth inning that turned Citizens Bank Park into a madhouse, and the $330 million slugger powered the Philadelphia Phillies past the San Diego Padres 4–3 on Sunday and into the World Series for the first the time since 2009. Rhys Hoskins…

PHILADELPHIA—Rhys Hoskins homered twice, Kyle Schwarber hit a solo shot into shrubbery and Bryce Harper doubled to put the Philadelphia Phillies ahead for good in a wild 10-6 win over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night for a 3–1 lead in the National League Championship Series. Harper stood on second base after his hit…

SAN DIEGO—Down by four runs and on the verge of a second straight home loss, the San Diego Padres rediscovered their offense on Oct. 19 in time to level the National League Championship Series. Brandon Drury and Josh Bell homered on back-to-back, second-inning pitches to cut the Padres’ deficit in half, and San Diego came…

PHILADELPHIA—Brandon Marsh hit a three-run homer and J.T. Realmuto lined an inside-the-park home run that sent the Philadelphia Phillies bolting headfirst into the NL Championship Series for the first time since 2010 with an 8–3 win over the Atlanta Braves in Game 4 Saturday. Realmuto became the first catcher to hit an inside-the-parker in postseason…

PHILADELPHIA—The Philadelphia Phillies didn’t clinch a playoff spot until the last series of the regular season. It was the final playoff spot in the National League. Then the sixth-seeded Phillies swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the wild-card round, and now they need just one victory to oust the defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves…

Kyle Wright pitched six scoreless innings as the Atlanta Braves beat the visiting Philadelphia Phillies 3–0 on Wednesday to even their National League Division Series at one game apiece. Wright (1–0), who went 21-5 during the regular season, allowed two hits and one walk and while striking out six. He threw 83 pitches, 52 of…

Jean Segura hit a decisive two-run single in a six-run ninth inning as the visiting Philadelphia Phillies rallied past the St. Louis Cardinals 6–3 to open their best-of-three National League wild-card series. The Phillies trailed 2–0 entering the ninth but launched their comeback when Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley had trouble finding the strike zone. Helsley,…

Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper underwent surgery to repair his fractured left thumb, interim manager Rob Thomson said before Wednesday’s home game against the Atlanta Braves. “It went very well,” Thomson said before referring all other questions about the surgery to Harper. Thomson said there is no timetable for Harper’s return. Meanwhile, MLB.com is reporting…

Philadelphia lost Bryce Harper “for an indefinite period of time” Saturday night with a fractured left thumb when he was hit by a 97-mph Blake Snell fastball during the Phillies’ 4–2 victory over the Padres in San Diego. Harper fell to the ground in pain after getting hit in the fourth inning. He yelled at…