The latest on the League Championship Series. The Royals and Blue Jays play Game 3 of the ALCS in Toronto on Monday night. The Mets and Cubs play Game 3 of the NLCS in Chicago on Tuesday night. Here’s a look at what’s happening (all times EDT):
8:18 p.m.
Blue Jays center fielder Kevin Pillar just got all those white towels twirling in the first inning of Game 3 of the ALCS. After Ben Zobrist’s grounder scored the first run, Pillar made a fantastic catch on Lorenzo Cain’s flyball to straightaway center. Pillar grabbed the ball on the run and crashed into the fence. He gave the OK sign while sitting on the warning track. Pitcher Marcus Stroman turned to the outfield and applauded into his glove.
Pillar’s catch came just minutes after former Blue Jays outfielder Devon White threw out the ceremonial first pitch. White played for the Blue Jays teams that won back-to-back World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. He’s remembered for his spectacular catch on a deep drive by Atlanta’s David Justice in Game 3 of the 1992 World Series.
Left-hander Mark Buehrle, who is not on Toronto’s playoff roster, was behind the plate for White’s first pitch.
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7:39 p.m.
Cubs shortstop Addison Russell says he feels better every day and hopes to starting hitting again soon.
Russell strained his left hamstring while legging out a triple in Game 3 of the NL Division Series against the Cardinals. He was left off the roster for the NLCS against the Mets, but might be able to return if Chicago advances.
“This last week’s been great,” Russell said. “It’s showing some significant improvement day-in and day-out. Leg’s feeling a lot better. We’re in the strengthening phase now. The progression, I’m actually feeling a lot better than what the program is entailed right now. But we’re still gonna take those precautionary limits.”
Chicago trails New York 2-0 heading into Game 3 on Tuesday night at Wrigley Field.
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7:37 p.m.
Royals pitcher Chris Young got some family history out of the way early Monday — at the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Young, who is expected to start Game 4 on Tuesday, went to the Hall with his youngest son and wife, Elizabeth Patrick. Yes, that Patrick.
Elizabeth’s great-grandfather was Lester Patrick, who won six Stanley Cups as a player, coach and executive. Patrick Division, a former division in the NHL, was named for him, and the Lester Patrick Trophy is awarded for outstanding service to hockey in the United States.
Three other members of Elizabeth’s family are also enshrined in the Hall.
“There are four Patrick members in the Hall of Fame,” Young said. “I gave her a hard time, because I think in the past she told me five. She stood corrected this morning.”
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7:00 p.m.
Blue Jays center fielder Kevin Pillar was hit on the back by a batting practice flyball off the bat of teammate Dioner Navarro. Standing on the warning track in right field, Pillar jokingly fell to the turf. He appeared to be OK.
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6:11 p.m.
New York Mets ace Matt Harvey threw in the outfield at Wrigley Field, and the team says he should be fine for Game 5 if the NL Championship Series goes that far.
Harvey was hit by a comebacker off the bat of Dexter Fowler in the series opener on Saturday night. Manager Terry Collins said Monday that Harvey was “pretty sore and pretty swelled up,” but the right-hander came out after Collins talked and looked fine during his brief throwing session.
Harvey allowed two runs and four hits in 7 2/3 innings in New York’s 4-2 win in Game 1. The Mets lead the series 2-0 heading into Game 3 on Tuesday night in Chicago.
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5:23 p.m.
Fans in the upper deck at Rogers Centre for ALCS games between the Blue Jays and Royals are going to be drinking their beer out of plastic cups instead of cans. The Blue Jays banned can sales after fans threw them on the field during a ruckus earlier in the playoffs.
Blue Jays security and stadium operations head Mario Coutinho says beer will be poured into plastic cups starting Monday night at Game 3. The team reserves the right to cut off beer sales after the fifth inning if there are any problems.
Coutinho says the Blue Jays did an assessment of the situation with police and then talked it over with Major League Baseball. He wouldn’t say how many Toronto police officers would be at Monday’s game, but said the number was “fairly high.”
“We reviewed all our staffing levels and police deployment and we’re confident that was adequate,” Coutinho said.
In the seventh inning of Toronto’s Game 5 win over Texas in the ALDS, a raucous crowd turned rowdy when Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin hit Texas batter Shin-Soo Choo with his seemingly routine return throw to the pitcher, resulting in a go-ahead run for the Rangers. During an 18-minute delay to sort out the ruling, fans tossed beer cans among other garbage. Many of the cans didn’t reach the field, striking fans in the seats close to the field.
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4:20 p.m.
About an hour before batting practice starts ahead of Game 3 of the ALCS, Blue Jays relievers Roberto Osuna and Ryan Tepera were out on the field warming up — by playing soccer. The pair kicked an orange ball around in the outfield, then set up a goal. The goalie: a life-sized cutout of a left-handed batter.
Soccer has been a part of the team’s pregame routine all season. Catcher Russell Martin got it kicked off.
3:47 p.m.
Hours before they hosted Game 3 of the ALCS against the Royals, the Blue Jays were busy. Toronto claimed switch-pitcher Pat Venditte off waivers from the Oakland Athletics and designated for assignment infielder Darwin Barney. Barney was not on the postseason roster.
The 30-year-old Venditte made his major league debut this season. He was 2-2 with a 4.40 ERA in 26 relief appearances for the A’s.
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2:05 p.m.
The Chicago Cubs have started their workout at Wrigley Field on the off day before Game 3 of the NL Championship Series.
It is a sunny, windy day in Chicago, and the Cubs are hoping a change of scenery will help them get back in the series against the surging Mets. New York got another homer from Daniel Murphy in a 4-1 victory over Chicago on Sunday night and is just two wins away from a trip to the World Series.
Kyle Hendricks faces Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom on Tuesday night in the first NLCS game at Wrigley since 2003.
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