Star right-hander Jacob deGrom said Sunday he is staying optimistic that he won’t be out for long after beginning his latest stint on the injured list due to inflammation in his pitching elbow.

The two-time National League Cy Young Award winner, who has dealt with injuries over the last three-plus seasons, said on Sunday that “there’s a little inflammation in there, so the goal is to get that knocked out here in the next few days and resume throwing. I’m staying optimistic about it.

“Everything structurally looks fine, so get a little bit of that swelling out of there and pick up from there.”

He went on the IL on Saturday, a day after he worked only 3 2/3 innings against the New York Yankees. It marked the second time this month he left a start due to arm issues. The soonest he could be activated is May 14.

deGrom, who signed a five-year, $185 million deal in the offseason, made just 38 starts and pitched 224 1/3 total innings in 2020-22. He pitched 217 and 204 innings per season in his Cy Young campaigns of 2018-19.

“I want to be out there. It was just some discomfort,” deGrom said, referring to Friday night’s shortened start. “It was not crazy, but it was just there and lingering so I looked in the dugout and was like, ‘Hey, it’s not feeling right.’ So that’s the goal: To get that feeling right.”

In six starts this season, deGrom is 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA and has 45 strikeouts and just four walks in 30 1/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

David Hensley and Martin Maldonado snapped lengthy hitless streaks while Jose Urquidy overcame a pair of solo home runs as the Houston Astros salvaged the finale of a three-game series against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies with a 4-3 victory on Sunday.

Hensley and Maldonado entered the series finale mired in 0-for-24 skids before Hensley doubled leading off the second inning and scored when Maldonado added a ground-rule double off Phillies left-hander Bailey Falter to give Houston a 2-1 lead.

Falter (0-5) had escaped with minimal damage in the first inning after loading the bases with no outs. The only run scored when he induced a double-play grounder from Jose Abreu.

The Astros reached Falter for single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. Jake Meyers launched a 407-foot home run with one out in the fourth that pushed the Astros’ lead to 3-1.

When Kyle Tucker added an RBI single in the fifth, the Phillies pulled Falter and Houston reclaimed its two-run lead at 4-2. Falter allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings, marking his shortest outing of the season.

The Phillies remained in contention with their power. J.T. Realmuto erased the Astros’ 1-0 lead with his two-out solo homer off Urquidy (2-2) in the second inning, and Kody Clemens homered for the third time in four games with one out in the fifth, a solo shot to left that drew the Phillies to within 3-2.

Urquidy held the line there before departing with one out in the sixth inning with a shoulder injury. He surrendered two runs on three hits and one walk with three strikeouts. Hector Neris inherited a baserunner and walked Brandon Marsh with two outs before retiring Realmuto to strand both runners.

Astros reliever Rafael Montero encountered a similar pinch in the seventh inning, allowing a pair of two-out singles before striking out Trea Turner on three consecutive four-seam fastballs.

The Phillies sliced the deficit in half against Bryan Abreu in the eighth courtesy of a fielding error on third baseman Alex Bregman that allowed Kyle Schwarber to score from second with two outs. Closer Ryan Pressly nailed down his third save with a perfect ninth.

Philadelphia stranded seven and finished 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

–Field Level Media

Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper is ahead of schedule in his rehab from Tommy John surgery and could return to the lineup as soon as Tuesday in a game at the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Harper has an appointment on Monday with Dr. Neal ElAttrache, an orthopedic surgeon who serves many pro athlete clients. If ElAttrache clears him, Harper will be able to make his season debut in Los Angeles.

The two-time National League MVP had surgery on his right elbow in November and the Phillies had hoped he’d be back sometime before the All-Star break.

The Phillies avoided putting Harper on the 60-day injured list at the outset of the 2023 season, though an early May return exceeded all expectations.

“He’s pretty geeked up about getting out there and playing,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson told reporters before the Phillies’ series finale at the Houston Astros Sunday night. “He’s itching.”

The Phillies plan to use Harper as a designated hitter once he returns so he doesn’t have to use his arm throwing balls from the outfield. The team has also been working him out at first base in case he can return to the field there at some point this season, though outfield play has mostly been ruled out for 2023.

Harper won MVP in 2015 with the Washington Nationals and in 2021 with the Phillies. In four seasons since signing a megadeal with the Phillies in February 2019, Harper has batted .282 with 101 home runs and 296 RBIs. He has a career .280 batting average and a .523 slugging percentage with 285 homers and 817 RBIs in 1,382 career games over 11 major league seasons.

Harper played in 99 games last season and was named an All-Star for the seventh time, but he was diagnosed with a partially torn UCL in his throwing arm in May and played through it — again as a DH. He also suffered a fractured thumb and missed most of July and August following surgery. He came back in time for the stretch run and helped the Phillies reach the World Series, where they fell to the Astros.

Harper batted .286 in 2022 with 18 home runs, 28 doubles and 65 RBIs.

–Field Level Media

David Peralta drove in two runs as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the visiting St. Louis Cardinals 6-3 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.

Jayson Heyward reached base three times and scored twice for the Dodgers, who drew eight walks in the game.

Dodgers starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (1-3) allowed three runs on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings in winning his first decision with Los Angeles. Evan Phillips closed out the ninth inning to earn his third save.

Starting pitcher Jake Woodford allowed three runs on four hits and three walks in 3 2/3 innings for the Cardinals, who finished 2-8 on their 10-game West Coast road trip.

Reliever Zack Thompson (1-2) allowed two runs on one hit and two walks while retiring just two batters.

The Cardinals broke out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Willson Contreras hit a one-out single and moved to third on Alec Burleson’s double. Dylan Carlson followed with a sacrifice fly, then Brendan Donovan hit an RBI single.

The Dodgers got one run back in the bottom of the inning. Heyward hit a double, took third on a groundout, and scored on Miguel Vargas’ grounder.

Woodford walked Heyward and James Outman to start the fourth inning and both men wound up scoring. Vargas advanced them with a hard smash to first base, then Peralta hit a run-scoring groundout and Chris Taylor followed with an RBI double to put the Dodgers up 3-2.

The Cardinals tied the game 3-3 in the fifth inning on Tommy Edman’s double and Lars Nootbaar’s single.

After Will Smith hit a leadoff double in the bottom of the inning, Thompson walked Max Muncy and Heyward. After Outman struck out, Drew VerHagen relieved Thompson and threw a wild pitch to put the Dodgers up 4-3.

Vargas walked to reload the bases and Peralta’s run-scoring forceout grounder made it 5-3.

The Dodgers expanded their lead to 6-3 in the eighth inning. Taylor hit a one-out single, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman drew walks — Freeman intentionally — and Smith hit a sacrifice fly.

–Field Level Media

Esteury Ruiz singled home Jace Peterson with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth to lead the Oakland Athletics past the visiting Cincinnati Reds 5-4 and salvage the finale of the three-game weekend series.

Ruiz got the chance to be the hero only after an umpire review overturned a hit-by-pitch ruling earlier in the at-bat against Reds closer Alexis Diaz on a very blustery afternoon.

Peterson singled off Derek Law (0-4) to open the ninth. Kevin Smith dropped a sacrifice bunt that first baseman Matt Reynolds misplayed to put the first two runners on. Diaz relieved Law and nearly plunked Ruiz before the center fielder hit his game-winning single to left.

Zach Jackson (2-1) pitched out of a ninth-inning jam when Kevin Newman singled and Spencer Steer doubled, putting runners at second and third with none out. Jackson fanned Jonathan India and Tyler Stephenson before Henry Ramos grounded out to end the inning.

The loss snapped Cincinnati’s season-high five-game win streak, while Oakland won for just the sixth time in 29 games this season.

Jesus Aguilar drilled a two-out homer deep to the seats in left-center to give the A’s a 2-0 lead in the first. The homer, measured at 428 feet, came just after Brent Rooker’s check-swing single to right field extended the inning.

For Aguilar, it was his fourth homer in his last seven games.

The Reds answered off Oakland starter Ken Waldichuk with a long ball of their own when Nick Senzel belted his second homer in four games, a high fly to the stairway beyond the left field fence to cut the Oakland lead in half, 2-1.

Rooker got the run back for Oakland with another homer off Cincinnati starter Nick Lodolo leading off the fourth. Rooker drove a long fly ball just inside the left field foul pole for his team-leading ninth homer and a 3-1 lead.

Waldichuk allowed three runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings and was knocked from the game in the sixth when Ramos and Senzel singled with one out, starting Cincinnati’s three-run rally.

Ramos scored from second on a throwing error by Athletics reliever Domingo Acevedo and Newman later put Cincinnati ahead 4-3 with a two-run single.

Cincinnati’s Tyler Stephenson went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts, ending his career-long 17-game on-base streak.

–Field Level Media

Matt Carpenter capped a three-run bottom of the eighth with a two-out, two-run double to short center off the glove of a diving Mike Yastrzemski to give the San Diego Padres a come-from-behind 6-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants and a sweep of the two-game series played in Mexico City.

Juan Soto opened the Padres’ game-winning rally by drawing the game’s only walk from Giants reliever Tyler Rogers. After Xander Bogaerts followed with a single, the Giants brought in closer Camilo Doval, who was greeted by a game-tying single from Jake Cronenworth.

Doval then struck out Nelson Cruz before Carpenter lofted a high fly to short center. Yastrzemski charged from his deep position and made a head-first dive. But the ball bounced off his glove as he landed hard on the artificial turf of Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu. As the ball rolled toward left field, Bogaerts and Cronenworth scored. Yastrzemski left the game with a hamstring injury.

Luis Garcia (1-2) pitched two scoreless innings for the Padres to earn the win. Josh Hader pitched a perfect ninth to earn his 10th save. Padres pitchers retired 18 of the last 21 Giants they faced. Rogers (0-2) took the loss.

Solo homers by LaMonte Wade Jr., J.D. Davis and Mitch Haniger helped the Giants forge a 4-0 lead against Padres right-handed starter Yu Darvish in the first four innings.

Leadoff hitter Wade homered on the game’s fifth pitch — pulling a 394-foot line drive into the seats in right for his fifth homer of the season. Davis went the opposite way with one out in the second, hitting a 382-foot drive to right for his sixth homer of the season.

Haniger then hit his second homer of the series — and the season — leading off a two-run fourth. Haniger made it 3-0 by driving Darvish’s first pitch of the inning 460 feet high into the left field stands at an exit velocity of 106 mph. Michael Conforto followed Haniger with a double and came around on back-to-back singles by Davis and Yastrzemski.

Meanwhile, Giants starter Alex Cobb held the Padres scoreless over the first four innings, giving up three hits plus hitting a batter. The Padres then pulled to within a run by scoring three in the fifth.

Matt Carpenter opened the fifth with a single and scored on Austin Nola’s first homer of the season — a 440-foot drive to straightaway center. Fernando Tatis Jr. then doubled with one out and scored on Juan Soto’s two-out single to right.

Cobb gave up three runs on seven hits and no walks with seven strikeouts in five innings. Darvish gave up four runs on nine hits and no walks with nine strikeouts in six innings.

–Field Level Media

Austin Gomber logged six strong innings and C.J. Cron finished a triple shy of the cycle as the Colorado Rockies defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 12-4 in Denver on Sunday afternoon to prevent being swept in a three-game series.

Gomber (2-4) surrendered just one run on three hits while walking two and fanning four to notch his second straight victory. Cron led the offensive charge by going 3-for-5 with four RBIs and two runs.

Harold Castro also had three hits while Charlie Blackmon, Elias Diaz, Randal Grichuk and Ezequiel Tovar each added two for Colorado, which snapped a three-game losing streak and won for just the fourth time in its last 18 games.

Evan Longoria smacked his third homer of the season and Emmanuel Rivera and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. both laced RBI doubles for Arizona, which had won four of its previous five games entering Sunday. Dominic Fletcher also had a double for his first major league hit.

Longoria opened the scoring in the top of the second by blasting a fastball 463 feet to left for a 1-0 Arizona lead, but the Rockies dominated from there.

After tying the game in the home half of the frame on Mike Moustakas’ RBI groundout, Colorado went up 5-1 in the third thanks to Cron’s three-run homer and Moustakas’ RBI single. Blackmon added a sacrifice fly an inning later to up the Rockies’ lead to five.

Diamondbacks starter Ryne Nelson (1-2) didn’t return for the fifth after allowing six runs on nine hits in four innings. He walked one and struck out two.

Grichuk, Castro and Tovar led off the sixth with consecutive doubles before Ryan McMahon’s RBI groundout and Cron’s run-scoring single made it 10-1.

Colorado tacked on two more runs in the seventh when Moustakas scored on Castro’s single and Grichuk scored on Blackmon’s double.

It wasn’t until the eighth that Arizona rediscovered its offense, as Fletcher, Rivera and Gurriel doubled in succession with one out to pull the visitors within 12-3. Alek Thomas’ RBI single in the ninth forged the final score.

–Field Level Media

Four home runs from the Texas Rangers gave way to a 15-2 victory over the New York Yankees on Sunday afternoon to win the four-game series in Arlington, Texas.

The Rangers scored a combined 10 runs in the fifth and sixth innings to pull away and not look back, winning their third straight game over the Yankees after being swept in a three-game road series at Cincinnati earlier in the week.

Texas starter Martin Perez tossed six innings, allowing just one run on six hits and a walk. Perez (4-1) has completed at least six innings in each of his last two starts.

Yankees starter Nestor Cortes took the loss, giving up seven earned runs on five hits and four walks in an outing that spanned 4 2/3 innings. Cortes (3-2) struck out seven but surrendered three of the Rangers’ four home runs.

Texas put itself in front in the first, when two consecutive walks and a single from Adolis Garcia loaded the bases with one out. In the following at-bat, Josh Jung sent an outside pitch just past the right-field wall, launching his first career grand slam as the Rangers went up 4-0.

Perez retired the Yankees in order in the top of the second, but New York recorded consecutive hits in the third — a single from Aaron Hicks and a double by Anthony Volpe — leading to the Yankees’ first run on Oswald Peraza’s RBI groundout.

That was the extent of New York’s scoring, but the Rangers pressed on, putting 10 runs on the board between the fifth and sixth. Consecutive homers from Nathaniel Lowe and Garcia ignited a four-run fifth as Cortes was soon replaced by Albert Abreu on the mound.

Jonah Heim, the first batter Abreu faced, swatted a home run of his own, extending the lead to 8-1. Abreu gave up six runs on just two hits, as four walks and a Robbie Grossman RBI single created two more runs for the Rangers in the sixth. After Jung’s bases-loaded walk pushed across another run, Heim answered the call again, doubling to center field to score two more runs. Ezequiel Duran’s two-run single widened the margin to 14-1.

Sandy Leon’s RBI double in the eighth inning capped the Rangers’ offensive outburst, as Texas scored 10 or more runs for the first time since its 18-3 win over Oakland on April 22. It marked the Rangers’ seventh game this season scoring in double digits.

–Field Level Media

Sonny Gray pitched six strong innings and Byron Buxton blasted a three-run homer as the Minnesota Twins cruised to an 8-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday in Minneapolis.

Nick Gordon and Christian Vazquez each had two RBIs for Minnesota, which took three of four from the Royals and have won six of its last eight games overall. The Twins held a commanding 8-0 lead after sending 12 batters to the plate and scoring seven runs in the third inning.

Kansas City went 2-for-13 with runners in scoring position and concluded its 10-game road trip with a 3-7 mark. Brady Singer (2-3) allowed eight runs on five hits over 2 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out five.

Gray (4-0) saw his majors-leading ERA tick up to 0.77 after giving up one run on five hits with one walk and seven strikeouts. The right-hander has allowed just three runs across 35 innings in his six starts this season. Jhoan Duran retired the only batter he faced with two runners on in the ninth for his sixth save.

The Twins claimed an early lead in the second inning when Buxton delivered a leadoff double, moved to third on Joey Gallo’s flyout and scored on Gordon’s safety squeeze.

Buxton began the Twins’ third-inning onslaught with a three-run homer to the third deck in left field. The two-out blast was Buxton’s fifth homer in his last eight games.

After the next two batters reached base, Gordon and Willi Castro followed with run-scoring singles. Singer was relieved by Josh Staumont, who yielded Vazquez’s two-run single before striking out the next two batters to end the inning.

Kansas City pushed a run across in the sixth when Edward Olivares’ groundout scored Vinnie Pasquantino, who doubled to begin the inning. Olivares singled in the second inning to extend his hitting streak to nine games, tying a career high.

Emilio Pagan relieved Gray to begin the seventh and allowed a run when Jackie Bradley Jr. doubled with one out and scored after Matt Duffy’s ground ball to second baseman Jorge Polanco was misplayed.

The Royals rallied with two outs in the ninth on Pasquantino’s two-run single against Josh Winder. Kansas City had the tying run on-deck after MJ Melendez doubled, causing the Twins to call on Duran for the final out.

–Field Level Media

Andrew Vaughn’s walk-off three-run homer capped a seven-run ninth inning as the Chicago White Sox snapped their majors-worst 10-game losing streak with a 12-9 win over the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday.

Down 9-5 heading into the ninth against reliever Jalen Beeks (0-2), Chicago gradually trimmed the lead and eventually tied it on Adam Haseley’s RBI single before Vaughn rocked a 2-2 curve off Garrett Cleavinger deep to left for the comeback victory.

Chicago’s Eloy Jimenez was 4-for-5 and Haseley went 4-for-5 with three runs, an RBI and a walk to account for eight hits in the team’s 18-hit attack — 15 of them singles. Yasmani Grandal added a home run.

Chicago began its rally in the ninth with RBIs via Jake Burger’s double, Oscar Colas’ sacrifice fly, Elvis Andrus’ single before Haseley’s game-tying single and Vaughn’s blast.

Aaron Bummer (1-1) allowed two runs in the ninth but won for the first time this season.

Tampa Bay’s Luke Raley went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBIs. Taylor Walls was 4-for-5 with a homer, two runs, two RBIs and two stolen bases. Christian Bethancourt added a solo homer and two RBIs.

The White Sox took a 1-0 lead on Gavin Sheets’ sacrifice fly in the first, but Tampa Bay used its power to go ahead in the fourth.

Off starter Mike Clevinger, Walls belted his fourth homer out to right. Raley followed five pitches later with a 431-foot blow to center for a 2-1 lead.

To open the bottom of the sixth, Jimenez singled through the left side against starter Drew Rasmussen. Grandal then clubbed a 3-1 cutter to center for his third homer to make it 3-2.

In the seventh, Chicago added a run with the bases loaded on an infield single by Jimenez, but the visitors matched it in their next at-bat when Isaac Paredes singled and right fielder Colas committed a fielding error that allowed Josh Lowe to come home.

With Walls on second with two outs after his second stolen base, Raley went to left-center for his seventh deep ball and a 5-4 advantage.

The next batter was Bethancourt, who greeted reliever Kendall Graveman with a 431-foot homer to center as the Rays hit back-to-back homers for the second time in the contest.

After Manuel Margot was hit by a pitch and stole second, more sloppy play by Chicago made it 7-4 when left fielder Romy Gonzalez dropped a routine fly ball.

–Field Level Media