Baseball-Major League Baseball roundup

Oct 5 (The Sports Xchange) - The Washington Nationals fired manager Matt Williams Monday morning. Williams' firing was expected as the Nationals, with a team-record $164-million payroll, finished with an 83-79 record and failed to reach the playoffs. - - New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia is checking himself into an alcohol rehabilitation facility. The decision means the manager Joe Girardi will have to rethink his rotation should the Yankees advance to play the Kansas City Royals. - - St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina apparently will try to play in the postseason with a splint protecting his injured left thumb. The team announced that Molina had his thumb examined by a hand specialist and was told that damage still exists in the ligament in his left thumb. - - Houston Astros outfielder Carlos Gomez is expected to play when the Astros face the New York Yankees in Tuesday's American League wild-card game. Gomez aggravated his left intercostal on a throw from the outfield on Wednesday on the final play of the game against the Seattle Mariners. - - Major League Baseball reported that the five most popular jerseys belong to a quintet of young stars -- the oldest being only 28. Chicago Cubs phenom Kris Bryant, 23, had the best-selling jersey. San Francisco ace Madison Bumgarner comes in at second. The Giants pitcher is only 26. - - The Milwaukee Brewers told five assistant coaches that their contracts would not be renewed. First base coach Mike Guerrero, pitching coach Rick Kranitz, bench coach Jerry Narron, outfield coach John Shelby and bullpen coach Lee Tunnell were informed they that they no longer would be part of manager Craig Counsell's staff. - - The U.S. Supreme Court rejected San Jose's allegation that Major League Baseball had used illegal monopoly powers to block the Oakland Athletics from relocating. The justice's ruling ends San Jose's attempt to get the Athletics to move and leaves intact Major League Baseball's antitrust exemption. That exemption is supposed to restrict monopolies and encourage competition. - - The Arizona Diamondbacks dismissed pitching coach Mike Harkey, the Arizona Republic reported. The Diamondbacks had a team earned-run average of 4.04, which ranked ninth among the 15 National League teams this season. - - The Oakland Athletics rearranged their front office somewhat, although the personnel has not changed. The A's promoted Billy Beane to vice president of baseball operations, and they named David Forst general manager, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Monday. (Editing by Frank Pingue)