Fred VanVleet said Sunday there is nothing more that the Toronto Raptors can do to convince Kawhi Leonard to re-sign with the team, but he and several teammates expressed their hopes that the NBA Finals MVP decides to return.

Leonard, who led the Raptors to a six-game NBA Finals victory over the Golden State Warriors in his first season with Toronto, is expected to opt out of the final year of his contract and become a free agent.

"I think for us, there is nothing more that we can do. We've done it. The city has done it. This franchise had done it. The coaches have done it. My teammates have done it. We've done our job. The best way to recruit somebody is to just be yourself over the course of the year, and I would assume that he knows what is here and what makes this place special," VanVleet said at the team's first media availability since winning the NBA title.

"If it's enough than it's enough. If it's not then it's not. ... We would all love for him to be back and if he's not then we will move on from there. It's not the biggest deal in the world. He came here and did what he was supposed to do. So he brought this city a championship and I think he has earned his freedom and his career to do what he wants to do and we'll all respect him and admire him."

VanVleet added that if Leonard "is on another team, then we just have to kick his ass next year," drawing laughter from reporters in attendance.

"Hopefully he'll be back," he said.

Raptors forward Pascal Siakam said of Leonard that the Raptors "definitely want him back."

Center Marc Gasol said Sunday that Leonard's elite two-way game makes him "one of a kind.'' "I don't think there's any other player of his caliber right now in the NBA,'' Gasol said. "He's on a pedestal by himself.'' With status like that, longtime teammate Danny Green said Leonard's decision is sure to have a ripple effect across the NBA.

"Let's not be foolish,'' Green said. "His decision affects a lot of guys' decisions. He can change a whole organization.''

Raptors president Masai Ujiri also is the subject of speculation, linked to an offer from the Washington Wizards. Ujiri, who was not available Sunday, is expected to speak at Monday's parade, which will finish in the square outside Toronto's city hall.

Even after a year together, Raptors coach Nick Nurse said he has no idea which way Leonard is leaning.

"I don't really know,'' Nurse said. "I know he's got to make a decision here really soon, couple of weeks. I think he had a good season and people like him here, and we can give him a good deal.''

Gasol can also opt out of the final year of his contract, while Green, a free agent, said he hopes to return.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Atlanta Braves left-hander Sean Newcomb is expected to avoid the injured list after being hit on the back of the head by a line drive on Saturday night.

Newcomb had no concussion symptoms on Sunday, a day after he was knocked out of his spot start when he was hit by a line drive by Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto.

"I've had some (high school) football hits that were harder than that," Newcomb told reporters on Sunday, according to a report by MLB.com. "I've had a few concussions. Right away, when it hit me in the head and I was down on the ground, I popped up, and I knew I was alright. I knew it wasn't too, too bad."

Braves manager Brian Snitker on Sunday said Newcomb was sore but all the test results on the pitcher were good.

"He made it through the night good and felt good coming in. They exercised him just to see. He's going to need a couple days anyway after the start. But as of right now, he's feeling really good. We're fortunate we dodged a bullet there," Snitker said, according to a report by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The ball hit by Realmuto in the third inning at SunTrust Park on Saturday was clocked at 102 mph and caromed off Newcomb's head and sailed into the netting behind the Phillies' dugout on the third-base side. Realmuto covered his mouth with both hands as he ran to first base on what went as a ground-rule double.

Newcomb is expected to return to pitching out of the bullpen.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Catcher Martin Maldonado celebrated Father's Day by wearing a blue necktie on his chest protector and had three hits to lift the visiting Kansas City Royals over the Minnesota Twins 8-6 on Sunday.

Maldonado scribbled the names of his dad, brother, family and close friends on the tie, along with "Happy Father's Day'' at the bottom.

"Just wanted to do something different for the fathers out there, family members, friends,'' Maldonado said. "Something to wear for them.''

Pittsburgh Pirates backstop Elias Diaz wore a similar tie in Sunday's game against the Marlins. He entered the Pirates' 5-4 victory against Miami as a defensive replacement in the bottom of the eighth inning.

The ties were supplied by equipment manufacturer All-Star.

Maldonado drove in two runs, one with a single during a three-run second inning and another with a double in the eighth.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

CHICAGO -- Minutes after he was optioned back to Triple-A on Sunday afternoon, New York Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier admitted he was "pretty surprised" to find out he was being sent down.

"It's a tough pill to swallow, yeah," he said. "It's never fun, especially with how much I felt like I've contributed to this team this year."

The 24-year-old Frazier heads back to the minor leagues as Edwin Encarnacion, the one of the majors' more prolific active home run hitters, gets added to the Yankees' 25-man roster following the Saturday trade that brought him to the Bronx Bombers from Seattle.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Sunday's demotion was the product of needing to open a roster spot for Encarnacion, the American League's home run leader with 21.

The timing of the move was particularly surprising to Frazier because of the remaining subtractions that will happen in the coming days with outfielders Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge wrapping up minor league rehab assignments for their injuries. Frazier intimated he figured he'd be sent down once that happened in the coming days, but not quite now.

"Not because of Encarnacion," Frazier said, "but maybe because of Judge or Stanton."

Stanton is expected to be activated Tuesday when the Yankees host division foe Tampa Bay in the second game of an important three-game series. Judge likely will play a few more games at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before he becomes an option for the Yankees. Frazier, who was originally called up April 1 in the wake of Stanton's first injury, has had a big impact on the Yankees' offense.

Through 53 games, Frazier hit .283 with 22 extra-base hits. His 11 home runs are tied for fourth on the big league roster. He also has been one of the league's best hitters with runners in scoring position, carrying a .375 batting average into such scenarios entering Sunday's series finale at the Chicago White Sox.

"He's played a big role on a winning team, and that doesn't necessarily stop now, but this is where we're at with the roster situation," Boone said. "So obviously tough news to deliver, but hopefully he can make the most of it and continue to get better at his craft and know that he's going to play a role for us again."

"With a guy like Clint we want him playing all the time," Boone added. "He's got a chance to be a great player in this league, and he's already shown that."

Fellow outfielder Brett Gardner, a 35-year-old veteran and longtime Yankee who could get caught in the pending roster crunch as Stanton and Judge get healthy, had a message of encouragement for Frazier.

"Sometimes when decisions are made, you don't always agree with them, but you've just got to keep your head down and keep moving forward," Gardner said. "He's a guy that has a ton of talent. He's going to play this game for a long time."

There has been a belief that with so many powerful position players now being added to the Yankees' lineup, perhaps Frazier will become an important piece for New York to dangle in trade talks. He had been assured in past years that despite the previous rampant speculation about his role with the organization, he wasn't on the trading block.

But now, with the Yankees in such desperate need of starting pitching, that might not be the case.

"I've been traded once, so who knows?" Frazier said. "I can't control that, I just try to play as good as I can to put myself in a good position."

As strong as his offense has been, Frazier's defense has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks. The attention was at its highest two weeks ago, when he committed three errors during a loss to the Boston Red Sox that was aired nationally on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball.

Following that poor performance in the field, Frazier declined to speak to reporters in the postgame scrum in the clubhouse. He spoke later that night to ESPN, expressing remorse for the way he played in such an important game.

Frazier's personality also has been on full display this season, as he's spent the past two months capitalizing on his status as a member of the iconic New York franchise. Heightened in large part because of where he was playing and who he was playing for, Frazier's profile rose throughout the spring as he was recognized for the way he took high-end sneakers and added cleats to the bottoms of them. He drawn praise from world-renowned sneaker designers and ire for the way he's gone about playing in the nontraditional cleats.

DENVER -- In a historically high-scoring series, the outcome was decided by a pinch-hitting pitcher.

On a bases-loaded walk, no less, off a starter who was making his first major league relief appearance.

That seems appropriate for such a wacky series.

The Padres and Rockies set a modern-era record by combining for 92 runs in a four-game series, with San Diego pitcher Matt Strahm drawing a pinch-hit, bases-loaded walk in the ninth inning to rally past Colorado 14-13 Sunday.

"A four-game series here, it feels like a month,'' Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer said. "This was a grind.''

It was just another wacky day at Coors Field, especially in this split series in which the Rockies outscored the Padres 48-44 while the teams combined for 131 hits. Colorado's Charlie Blackmon became the first player since at 1900 with 15 hits in a four-game series. Adding to the zaniness: The finale was delayed once to clean up a big puddle in foul territory despite sunny skies, and again later because of weather.

"That's the great thing about baseball -- you see things you've never seen before,'' Rockies infielder Ryan McMahon said. "It didn't bounce our way.''

With the Padres trailing 13-10 in the ninth, Wil Myers had an RBI single and Greg Garcia promptly tied it with a two-out, two-run triple off closer Wade Davis (1-2). The Rockies brought in starter Jon Gray, who intentionally walked two batters to face Strahm. Gray fell behind 3-1 before throwing a strike. Taking all the way, Strahm watched a fastball narrowly miss for ball four.

"The 3-2 was down and I know I can't handle that with his velocity,'' Strahm said.

Rockies manager Bud Black said he went with Gray -- the starter Thursday -- because of his usual ability to throw strikes. Plus, the Rockies had some relievers who weren't available given their workload.

Gerardo Reyes (3-0) earned the win by striking out three in the eighth. Kirby Yates threw a perfect ninth for his 24th save.

Hunter Renfroe homered twice for San Diego, while Fernando Tatis Jr. had three hits, including a double and a triple.

All told, the four games took more than 16 hours to complete.

"I can't really explain some of the things that went on and honestly I'm just happy to get out of here [with] a split, for sure,'' Garcia said.

The Padres raced out to a 3-0 lead before a giant puddle suddenly formed along the right-field line due to an issue with the irrigation line. The grounds crew rolled the water away as the teams waited in the dugout during the 15-minute holdup.

In the bottom of the inning, Colorado responded with six runs. Blackmon led the way with two hits in the inning, including a solo homer to lead off.

The game was again halted in the sixth as weather moved into the area. The delay lasted 48 minutes.

Once the tarp was lifted, the Rockies quickly went to work by scoring three runs to make it 13-8. Ian Desmond, McMahon and Raimel Tapia had three consecutive doubles to start the frame. The trio went a combined 9-for-15 with six RBIs.

Blackmon remained red hot with three more hits. He has reached base safely in all 26 of his home games this season.

"Our whole lineup swung the bat good. Their lineup swung the bat good,'' Blackmon said. "It was the most offensive series I've ever seen.''

WILD WEEKEND

Colorado won the opener 9-6 and the third game 14-8, while San Diego took Friday's game 16-12. The 92 runs were the most in a four-game series since 1900. The all-time record is 112 runs between the Cleveland Blues and St. Louis Browns of the American Association in 1887, per STATS data.

DAVIS' MELTDOWN

Davis had his second blown save of the series.

"Wasn't behind the baseball and making good pitches,'' Davis said. "On a day like today, that's not going to work out. ... Try to wash it as much as you can. It hurts.''

SHORT STARTS

Padres lefty Nick Margevicius surrendered nine runs and 11 hits over 1⅓ innings as his ERA rose from 5.02 to 6.41. He also threw one pitch all the way to the backstop.

Rockies righty Peter Lambert gave up eight runs and nine hits over three innings as his ERA soared from 1.50 to 6.00. He threw two pitches to the backstop. Lambert chipped in on offense with a pair of RBI singles.