Notes

MARINERS

Clevenger suspended

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Mariners suspended reserve catcher Steve Clevenger for the rest of the season without pay Friday in the wake of his tweets regarding a recent police shooting in Charlotte, N.C., and the Black Lives Matter movement.

"As soon as we became aware of the tweets posted by Steve yesterday we began to examine all of our options in regard to his standing on the team," General Manager Jerry Dipoto said in a statement.

Dipoto said Clevenger was informed of the suspension Friday.

Clevenger's Twitter account was changed to private Thursday night. Screen shots of the tweets showed Clevenger made disparaging comments about protesters and President Barack Obama, saying "everyone involved should be locked behind bars like animals!"

Clevenger released a statement to Fox Sports late Thursday night apologizing for "the distraction my tweets on my personal twitter page caused when they went public earlier today."

Clevenger appeared in 22 games for the Mariners this season. He was placed on the disabled list with a fractured hand on June 30.

METS

Syndergaard scratched

NEW YORK -- The playoff-contending New York Mets said star pitcher Noah Syndergaard has been scratched from his start tonight against Philadelphia because of strep throat.

Manager Terry Collins made the announcement before playing the Phillies on Friday night. Reliever Sean Gilmartin will make his first start of the season, taking Syndergaard's place.

Collins said Syndergaard might be able to start Monday or Tuesday at Miami.

The Mets began the day tied with San Francisco for the top NL wild-card spot, with St. Louis trailing by a half-game.

Syndergaard became the latest Mets pitcher to miss time this year. Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom already have been shut down. Steven Matz originally was set to pitch Friday night, but was scratched because of shoulder trouble.

Syndergaard is 13-9 with a 2.63 ERA and was an All-Star this season. He had been lined up to pitch Oct. 5 in a potential wild-card game.

"Right now, in our situation, we can't worry about Oct. 5 We've got to worry about being there Oct. 1," Collins said.

RANGERS

Jeffress cleared

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Texas Rangers pitcher Jeremy Jeffress, on MLB's restricted list since being arrested on DWI charges last month, has been cleared by Major League Baseball to return to team activities after completing an alcohol treatment program, and has traveled to Oakland to join the team.

It is unclear when or if the Rangers will reinstate him.

The Rangers, however, have recalled left-hander Andrew Faulkner, who had been working out with the Instructional League team in Surprise, Ariz., as extra bullpen depth. Faulkner, 24, struggled in an early-season stint with the Rangers, but pitched well at the end of the year with Class AAA Round Rock. He had a 2.75 ERA for 19 2/3 innings in the second half of the minor league season and held hitters to a .197 batting average.

Jeffress' situation is cloudy. The Rangers acquired him to be a key part of the bullpen for the stretch run and the postseason, but he landed in a Houston-area treatment facility after his August arrest on suspicion of DWI. He has not pitched in exactly 1 month since allowing 1 run on 1 hit in 1 inning against Cincinnati on August 23.

PIRATES

Polanco has contusion

PITTSBURGH -- Pirates left fielder Gregory Polanco left a game Friday night with a left facial contusion following a crash into the left-field fence while chasing a first-inning double by Washington's Bryce Harper.

Polanco stayed down on the ground for a few minutes, then was removed after being examined by team trainers. Adam Frazier moved from second base to replace Polanco, and Alen Hanson took over at second.

Polanco, normally the Pirates' right fielder, was playing left field because Starling Marte was out of the lineup with back spasms.

Marte was removed from Thursday night's loss at Milwaukee in the third inning. He missed 15 games before pinch hitting against the Brewers on Wednesday night.

Sports on 09/24/2016

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