Having your $126 million arm on the mound in an elimination effort is one of those things that sounds good in theory, looks good on paper. But of course we knew better about Barry Zito.

Game 5 might have been decided early, as the Cards stranded runners in scoring position in the first, second and fourth innings.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, you haven’t been paying attention. These St. Louis Cardinals don’t play short series. You sign up to follow them, you’re going to get your money’s worth. And then some.

The five days leading up to Lance Lynn’s start were completely different. The game itself was all too familiar.

Now that the Tigers are back in the Fall Classic, Detroit fans might be best off staying away from 2006 World Series highlights the next couple days. It’s no prettier now than it was then.

Carlos Beltran, who sprained his left knee in Game 3, played all nine innings of Game 5 without incident.

The Astros on Friday named the first four members of the 2013 coaching staff that will work alongside new manager Bo Porter.

Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner delivered his postmortem on Friday, making clear that ownership doesn’t treat the close of the 2012 season callously.

Ryne Sandberg is happy to return to the big leagues as the Phillies’ new third-base coach. While his main goal is to become a manager in the Majors, Sandberg is pleased with his current position in Philadelphia.

The Tigers are one Cardinals win away from a rematch of the 2006 World Series. They are not going to reprise the way they spent waiting for that World Series to actually get under way.

Hours after visiting his mother in the hospital, and with much more than baseball on his mind, Matt Holliday stepped up to help lead the Cardinals to an 8-3 victory over the Giants on Thursday with a pair of RBI hits.

Major League Baseball is going purple on Friday. In support of “Spirit Day,” all 30 clubs are joining forces with players and fans to raise anti-bullying awareness and show those affected that they have help … lots of it.

The Tigers are four wins away from fulfilling the dream of owner Mike Ilitch and his embattled city, where his roots are firmly planted.

The Tigers didn’t need Jose Valverde to sweep the Yankees and get to the World Series. What happens from here, however, is an open question, and likely the biggest the Tigers will face leading up to Game 1 of the Fall Classic on Wednesday night.

For their last line of defense, the Yankees had ace CC Sabathia on the mound on Thursday, and they thought that just might be enough to avert a sweep in the American League Championship Series.

Royals pitcher Felipe Paulino came out of Kauffman Stadium in a white T-shirt and white pants, looking as if he were heading toward the beach.

With their offense in hibernation, the last thing the Yankees could afford in Game 4 of the ALCS was a defensive meltdown from a four-time Gold Glover. But that’s what happened to Mark Teixeira, and it not only cost the Yankees a run, it taxed ace CC Sabathia.