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LEADING OFF: Gausman brings bat, arm for NL West-leading SF

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San Francisco Giants' Kevin Gausman, rear, celebrates with Brandon Belt (9) after hitting a sacrifice fly that scored Brandon Crawford (35) during the 11th inning of the team's baseball game against the Atlanta Braves in San Francisco, Friday, Sept. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A look at what's happening around the majors on Tuesday:

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PITCH AND POP

Kevin Gausman returns to the mound -- and plate -- as he tries to help the Giants protect their lead in the NL West.

Gausman (14-6, 2.78 ERA) is lined up to start at Petco Park against the wild card-contending Padres. San Francisco holds a one-game edge over the Los Angeles Dodgers for the division lead.

An All-Star this year, Gausman’s latest contribution came with his bat, not his arm. With the Giants out of position players, he stepped up as a pinch-hitter for a rookie reliever who had never batted as a pro and delivered a game-ending sacrifice fly in the 11th inning to beat Atlanta on Friday night.

“Oh man, that was the coolest thing I’ve ever done in my entire career,” said Gausman, a .184 hitter this season.

Joe Musgrove (11-9, 2.99) is lined up to pitch for San Diego.

FOR THE WIN

MLB wins leader Julio Urías and the Dodgers open a series at Coors Field, hoping to gain ground in the NL West chase.

Urías (18-3, 2.99 ERA) is 9-0 in his last 13 starts, a big reason Los Angeles is only one game behind San Francisco in the division race.

The 25-year-old lefty has enjoyed a breakout season -- he was a total of 12-7 in his first five years with the Dodgers, though he played a key role last fall as a starter and reliever when they won their first World Series title since 1988.

REMEMBER ME?

Two-time All-Star pitcher Luis Severino has rejoined the Yankees almost two years after he last played in the majors.

The 27-year-old right-hander had Tommy John surgery in February 2020 and minor setbacks during his minor league rehab.

Manager Aaron Boone says he’ll use Severino out of the bullpen. New York is chasing Toronto and Boston for a wild-card spot.

A 19-game winner in 2018, he was limited by shoulder soreness the next year. He last pitched in a start against Houston in the 2019 AL Championship Series.

“It’s been long enough,” Severino said. “Definitely be ready for any situation.”

NEW LOOK

The last time Anthony Gose was in the majors, in 2016, he was an outfielder known for his speed. He’s back in the big leagues now and still getting attention for being fast -- with his arm.

A lefty reliever with 100 mph heat, the 31-year-old Gose was promoted by the Cleveland Indians from the minors on Monday.

“His story is something that makes me smile, it really does,” Indians interim manager DeMarlo Hale said.

Gose spent parts of five seasons in the majors with Toronto and the Tigers, hitting .240 with 57 steals, before returning to the minors as a pitcher in 2017.

Gose is in his third year in Cleveland’s system -- he struck out 49 in 33 innings at Triple-A this season, going 6-1 with a 3.55 ERA in 28 games. He also pitched four scoreless innings for the U.S Olympic team in Tokyo.

SHOWING THEIR METTLE

After falling short of winning gold at the Olympics and taking home silver with a loss to Japan in the final, members of the U.S. baseball team are achieving their other goal of making it back to the major leagues for late-season callups.

Cincinnati brought up catcher Mark Kolozsvary from the minors on Monday, the same night right-hander Shane Baz made his major league debut for the Tampa Bay Rays against Toronto. Reliever Anthony Gose was brought up by Cleveland for his first major league stint since he was a Detroit outfielder in 2016.

They joined Minnesota pitcher Joe Ryan, who made his big league debut on Sept. 1; reliever David Robertson, who returned to the majors that day with Tampa Bay for the his first big league appearance since 2019; and Miami infielder Eddy Alvarez, who came up to the Miami Marlins on Sept. 7.

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