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Two second basemen who have demonstrated early on that they’re serious about making the National League All-Star team hope to continue fast starts at the other’s expense Saturday afternoon when Xavier Edwards and the Miami Marlins once again visit Luis Arraez and the San Francisco Giants. Both players had three hits Friday night, and Edwards’ teammates collected 13 more in a 9-4 triumph during the opener of a three-game series. Miami posted its sixth straight win in San Francisco dating back to August 2024. With a double, two singles and a walk in five plate appearances, Edwards raised his season batting average to .347, the second-best mark in the majors. The three-hit game was the 26-year-old’s second of the season.

The Boston Red Sox had counted on pitching to keep them close in some recent games. But it’s going to take the bats to get going for them to make a turnaround. They carry a four-game losing streak into Saturday afternoon’s road game against the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles hammered six home runs, including a pair of two-run blasts from Adley Rutschman, in Friday night’s 10-3 triumph. “All these guys have that capability in them,” manager Craig Albernaz said. “It was good to see kind of everything come together.” Coby Mayo has homered in three consecutive games for the Orioles. Rutschman was in his second game back coming off the injury list. “We’ve got great hitting coaches,” Rutschman said. “Everyone

The Toronto Blue Jays will be going to a closer-by-committee if the situation arises Saturday afternoon against the visiting Cleveland Guardians. Jeff Hoffman has struggled as the closer this season and he was told Friday by manager John Schneider that the team will mix-and-match for now instead of putting the onus on one particular pitcher in the ninth inning. “It’s still finding spots for guys, so whoever that may be in the ninth inning, for now, it’ll be that guy,” Schneider said. The Blue Jays did not need a closer in their 8-6 loss to Cleveland on Friday in the opener of the three-game series. Toronto fell behind 5-0 and never had a lead. Hoffman understood the move, saying there

Jesus Ferreira is in his second season with the Seattle Sounders, but he always enjoys playing his old club, FC Dallas. “There’s still, like, butterflies,” Ferreira said ahead of the teams’ Saturday night match in Seattle. “Going against your childhood club, the club that you grew up your whole life in … so, it’s exciting. I’m looking forward to it.” Ferreira, who is tied for fifth in MLS with five assists, and the Sounders (5-1-1, 16 points) will take a five-match unbeaten streak (4-0-1) into the Western Conference showdown with Dallas (3-2-4, 13 points), which is winless in its past three matches (0-1-2). Dallas is led by Petar Musa, who leads the league’s Golden Boot race with nine goals. Santiago