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MLB: Marco Estrada signs to stay with Blue Jays

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Right-hander Marco Estrada called his decision to return to the Toronto Blue Jays “a step in the right direction.”

Not surprisingly, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins felt the same way.

Estrada signed a one-year, $13 million deal Wednesday to remain with Toronto in 2018. The 10-year veteran and 2016 All-Star said it wasn’t a tough call.

“I guess I could have tested the market and tried to get more than one year, but right now I’m happy here and I want to come back,” Estrada said. “I think we’re going to have a really good team to go for it and I want to be a part of it. I didn’t want to miss out on that ride.”

Estrada is 9-8 with a 4.84 ERA in 31 starts this season, his third with the Blue Jays.

“From his standpoint, he’s thinking about, `This is a place I want to be, it’s a city I love, it’s a team I think is going to win,“’ Atkins said. “For us, we were able to provide those things for him. It’s win-win negotiating.”

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After reaching the ALCS in each of Estrada’s first two seasons, the Blue Jays have slumped to last in the AL East this season. Estrada is one of four veteran starters now under contract for next season, a group that also includes left-hander J.A. Happ and right-handers Aaron Sanchez and Marcus Stroman.

“With those starting four guys, we definitely have a really good chance of going deep into the playoffs,” Estrada said.

Despite this year’s disappointment, Estrada said Toronto’s front office made it clear they intend to compete again in 2018.

“It was one of my questions to the GMs,” Estrada said. “I needed to make sure these guys wanted to win next season and they want to win. That’s all I needed to hear.”

Estrada went winless in 12 starts from June 1 to August 5, but has gone 5-1 with a 4.10 ERA in eight starts since. While declining to offer specifics, Estrada said “personal issues” were at the root of his midseason struggles.

“It was not about baseball,” Estrada said. “These things happen. It was unfortunate. Once I had a clear head, I think everybody has seen the results.”

Padres extend Richard

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The rebuilding San Diego Padres and left-hander Clayton Richard have agreed to a $6 million, two-year contract that runs through 2019.

The 34-year-old Richard is the oldest player on the team, which doesn’t envision being competitive until 2019 or 2020. He is 7-14 with a 4.82 ERA and has thrown 185 innings this season.

Richard could have become a free agent after the World Series. He had a $1.75 million base salary this year and has earned $750,000 in bonuses for making at least 25 starts.

General manager A.J. Preller said Wednesday that Richard wanted to remain with the Padres, and his veteran presence in a clubhouse full of young players is valuable. Preller said Richard will be in the rotation to start next season, but he understands it will be competitive from there on out and he could be used in other roles.

Young spectator injured

A young girl at Yankee Stadium was injured by a foul ball off the bat of Todd Frazier and taken to a hospital.

New York manager Joe Girardi said he was told by security that she was OK. The game was delayed while she was attended to in the fifth inning.

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