Lasith Malinga is set to retire from ODIs after the first game of the upcoming three-match series against Bangladesh. This will give Sri Lanka a chance to identify their next line of wicket-taking bowlers, which will be their "biggest problem" going forward, according to captain Dimuth Karunaratne.

"Our biggest problem is identifying wicket-taking bowlers in the months ahead, we need to find bowlers that can take wickets in the early overs, as well as the middle overs," Karunaratne said, when asked what the team's immediate plans were post World Cup.

"In the series ahead we will be giving chances whenever we can to identify that talent, because we know Lasith Malinga is not available after this series. Lasith is only going to play the first match and then he's retiring. That's what he's told me at least."

Karunaratne, who is a known stat buff, will have been likely well aware of his team's impotency in terms of wicket-taking when making his observations. At the World Cup, Malinga's 13 wickets at 28.69 in seven matches were more than twice that of the next best Sri Lankan bowler, Isuru Udana, who picked up six in the same number of games. Nuwan Pradeep, who picked up five in three games, is a possible contender to take over the mantle, but injuries have been a frequent hindrance for him.

As such, Karunaratne knows the only lasting solution is to plan well in advance, with his thoughts already turning towards building for the 2023 World Cup.

ALSO READ: Niroshan Dickwella, Akila Dananjaya, Lakshan Sandakan recalled for Bangladesh ODIs

"We also need to groom some youngsters for the next World Cup as well," Karunaratne said. "Yes, there's plenty of time, but we need to groom them one at a time and that takes time. Of course, we can't fix everything at once, but we have four years before the next World Cup so we need to see how we can groom our youngsters and pass on the experience of our senior players to them.

"We've been looking to give Shehan Jayasuriya a chance after his performances against India A, and Lahiru Madushanka who performed well against South Africa [for the Emerging Team]. Those are some of the players we have in mind, but of course we can't give everyone a chance just yet."

Following a World Cup campaign in which Bangladesh both impressed and disappointed, they will also be looking to test their fringe players. For them it's a temporary glimpse; Shakib Al Hasan - the unofficial player of the World Cup - is away on Haj pilgrimage, Liton Das is getting married, and captain Mashrafe Mortaza and Mohammad Saifuddin are injured. That's four World Cup starters out, and a chance for some fringe players to shine.

ALSO READ: Mashrafe Mortaza out of Sri Lanka tour with hamstring injury, Tamim Iqbal to lead

"The guys who have been picked in the squad are all very capable. I really don't like to talk about players who aren't here at the moment," stand-in captain Tamim Iqbal said, when questioned about Bangaldesh's plans for replacing Shakib. "I know he's a special player and has done fantastically well for Bangladesh, but he's not part of this tour so let's not talk about him. There are other 15 players and they all are very, very capable, and whoever plays in the first ODI, I'm sure they're ready to cash in on their opportunity."

Tamim, however, doesn't have as many concerns as Karunaratne. Bangladesh travelled with a well-settled squad for the World Cup, and at another time would have likely travelled to Sri Lanka at full strength and probably as favourites. But as things stand, Tamim was keen to focus on the players at his disposal, and helping his side take the step up from simply playing well to winning games consistently.

"I think we had a pretty decent World Cup, there were a few games we should have won. If you see the points table you'd think we had a very bad World Cup because we finished only eighth in the table, and we as cricketers know we could have done more. On the whole though we played some good cricket, but we know that in the end it's winning games that is important."

Houston Astros rookie slugger Yordan Alvarez homered and knocked in a pair of runs Monday night in an 11-1 win over the Oakland A's, making him the first player to have 35 RBIs in his first 30 career games since runs batted in became an official statistic in 1920.

Alvarez, 22, passed Albert Pujols, who had 34 in his first 30 games with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2001.

"I was very happy and very grateful (about the record), something I just found out about when I got here to the clubhouse," Alvarez said through an interpreter.

"Especially with (Pujols), it's an honor and a privilege. When we were in Anaheim, I spoke with him and he gave me a lot of advice, a lot of information to help me out."

The left-handed slugger from Cuba is now hitting .342 with 11 home runs and 35 RBIs since making his major league debut with the Astros on June 9. At the time, he was tearing up the Pacific Coast League with 23 home runs and 71 RBIs in 56 games.

Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow took to Twitter to laud Alvarez.

Cuban power!!! Yordan, Yuli, Aledmys! ??

— Jeff Luhnow (@jluhnow) July 23, 2019

Alvarez was one of three Cuban-born Astros players -- along with Yuli Gurriel and Aledmys Diaz -- to homer in the 11-1 trouncing of the A's Monday night. That had only happened once before in MLB history, when Jose Abreu, Alexei Ramírez and Dayan Viciedo did it for the White Sox in 2014.

CHICAGO -- The Chicago White Sox have become the first team in the major leagues to extend protective netting from foul pole to foul pole, starting Monday night against the Miami Marlins.

The extra netting at Guaranteed Rate Field was in place for Chicago's first home game since the All-Star break. The White Sox announced the safety measure last month, a week after a foul ball at the park sent a woman to the hospital with her head bleeding.

On Sunday in Cleveland, another fan was hurt by a foul. Indians star Francisco Lindor said he was told his line drive put a 3-year-old boy in the hospital.

"It's a great idea," White Sox pitcher Evan Marshall said. "It's a shame it wasn't done sooner and just almost a standard across baseball, I think. Finally the players are speaking out because everybody is tired of seeing people get hit.

"It just sucks the air right out of the game and we see it happen. It's hard to move on to the next pitch or do whatever because somebody's going to the emergency room," he said.

White Sox manager Rick Renteria agreed.

"I think they did a nice job ... It looks like there is no inhibiting factors in terms of seeing things but it should obviously keep high velocity screamers and some bats from going into the stands and causing injury," Renteria said.

Several fans, including a 2-year-old girl in Houston, have been injured by hard-hit fouls this season. Many players and fans have implored Major League Baseball to require pole-to-pole netting covering foul territory at every ballpark.

The new netting in Chicago will be 30 feet high above the dugouts and reach a maximum height of 45 feet down the lines.

As for ground rules, the nets will be treated like walls -- as in, a ball that bounces or is thrown into the netting remains in play.

White Sox rookie star Eloy Jimenez hit the foul last month that injured the woman.

"It's really good because now the fans are going to be more safe," he said. "Especially because line drive foul balls, most of the time they're super hard. I think it's going to be safe for the fans."

White Sox star Tim Anderson agreed that it's good for the safety of the fans, but did express some concern that it would limit players' ability to sign autographs.

The Washington Nationals were among other teams to announce this season they would extend their netting. It was in place at Nationals Park on Monday when the game against Colorado was rained out.

Commissioner Rob Manfred recently said extending protective netting down foul lines is a ballpark-to-ballpark decision because of differing configurations.

MLB recommended in Dec. 2015 that teams extend protective netting. That move resulted in all clubs extending netting to at least the near ends of dugouts by 2016. After a toddler was struck by a line drive at a Twins-Yankees game in New York in Sept. 2017, all teams had netting in place to at least the far ends of dugouts for the start of the 2018 season.

As the crowd entered the park for the Marlins-White Sox game, there were varying views of the new netting.

A fan named Michael, who declined to provide his last name, brought his 8-year-old son. They sat two rows off the field, two sections down from the White Sox dugout on the third base side.

"Tough call, safety versus pleasure," he said. "I would take safety. Now for sure you won't get hit; before you probably had to pay more attention. But the balls were coming off pretty hard, so anyone who's just not [paying attention] would get hurt.

"There's definitely an impediment with the net," he said. "It definitely changes the experience. It's not the same as before, getting balls, seeing through the net. It's not the same, but I'm sure people will get used to it."

Maybe not, said Missi Cundari, who brought 10-year-old son Dean. They had the same seats for a game earlier this season, three sections past third base dugout, a couple rows back.

She wasn't happy.

"The view and also the ball boys would throw us balls and the players would come up and chat. This is terrible," she said. "We never felt unsafe. The balls that were hit over here were groundballs.

"Honestly, looking at this makes me dizzy. This is terrible. Luckily these seats were not expensive."

White Sox manager Rick Renteria applauded the extra netting at his home park and said he doesn't believe the nets will get in the way of the fans' enjoyment.

"I think every organization will continue to do everything they can to allow the fans to get the experience in terms of the human connection," he said. "You can still see people through the netting, it's not like a wall, a blocked off wall.

"I'm sure fans will find a way to still get items through to get signed autographs and things of that nature. You'll still be able to have physical contact if you truly want to touch somebody, it's still possible," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Los Angeles Angels pitcher Andrew Heaney urged those at a private memorial service to remember a gift fallen teammate Tyler Skaggs gave to them.

"Take a moment, close your eyes and think of a story or even an image that reminds you of all the good times you had with Ty," Heaney said. "Take that memory and hold it in your hearts and in your minds. That is his lasting gift to everyone here."

Skaggs' teammates and family gathered Monday at a Catholic church in his native Santa Monica to remember Skaggs, who was found dead in his hotel room in Texas on July 1. He died shortly before his 28th birthday.

The mourners remembered Skaggs as a beloved son, husband, teammate and friend whose upbeat personality brought joy to everyone around him. The altar was flanked by two large red-and-white floral arrangements prominently featuring No. 45, Skaggs' uniform number.

Hundreds of attendees laughed and cried at the eulogies from 14 speakers. Several family members related stories of Skaggs as a precocious, upbeat kid who just happened to grow into a world-class athlete.

"To Tyler's parents and family, what an incredible job you did raising such a wonderful person," said Padres pitcher Garrett Richards, a longtime teammate who was drafted by the Angels along with Skaggs in 2009. "Carli, your husband had a big smile, but an even bigger heart. He truly cared about people. I feel so honored to have known and spent as much time with him as I did. He impacted me in so many areas of my life. Rest in peace, Skaggy."

The final speaker was Carli Skaggs, the pitcher's wife, who made a last-minute decision to share poignant memories of her life since their marriage last winter.

"I didn't think I'd be able to do it," Carli Skaggs said. "Tyler gave me some strength."

The current Angels and owner Arte Moreno were joined by former team members including longtime manager Mike Scioscia, Jered Weaver, Richards, David Freese and Matt Shoemaker. They were joined by Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers, Jack Flaherty of the St. Louis Cardinals and former major leaguer Trevor Plouffe, all Los Angeles-area natives and friends of Skaggs.

The Angels players and other members of the organization made the short trip from Anaheim in three buses. Skaggs grew up as a fan of the Angels instead of the closer Dodgers.

"He was a genuine and caring person," Heaney said. "His friendship is something that I'll always remember and cherish. He was the best friend anybody could ask for."

The Angels all wore Skaggs' No. 45 jersey in their first home game after his death on July 12, and pitchers Felix Pena and Taylor Cole stunningly combined to throw a no-hitter in a 13-0 win over the Seattle Mariners.

After the service, mourners were greeted by a catering truck from In-N-Out Burger, a Southern California institution and one of Skaggs' favorite meals.

Earlier in the day, the Major League Baseball Players Trust made a $45,000 donation to the Tyler Skaggs Baseball Foundation, which supports youth sports, projects and family services.

Texas authorities aren't expected to announce Skaggs' cause of death until October, after laboratory testing is completed.

SINGAPORE -- Luke Shaw has said Manchester United's campaign was so bad it ruined his holiday, but the defender is determined to make life more difficult for Manchester City and Liverpool next season.

A sixth-place finish saw Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side miss out on a place in the Champions League. To make matters worse, while Shaw was spending time in Los Angeles and Dubai, three of United's rivals won trophies.

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Manchester City won the FA Cup to complete their domestic Treble, Chelsea lifted the Europa League and Liverpool were crowned champions of Europe. The other two members of the top six -- Tottenham and Arsenal -- were both involved in major finals.

"It was really tough for all of us to take and you couldn't really enjoy your holidays and you see the Champions League final and the Europa League final and they're all English teams," Shaw said. "It makes you feel even worse and especially the way the finals went, none of us want that to happen again.

"Last season was a massive disappointment. How other teams were doing as well -- especially over the period when we had time off, there were teams winning trophies. It was very disappointing."

The main aim is an immediate return to the Champions League, but Solskjaer is also hoping to make up ground on Manchester City and Liverpool. Pep Guardiola's champions finished 32 points clear of United and while Solskjaer has been cautious about saying whether or not his team can challenge for the title, Shaw is keen to ensure City and Liverpool are put under more pressure.

"I think we've all come back again with a different mindset and of course we had that break to clear our minds but now we're all focused on getting United back to where they belong and not let the like of the teams that we've seen in the finals have it that easy," Shaw said. "Last season was so hurtful for everyone.

"I know the fans were really hurt, but we as a team were very hurt. For sure this season it will be a new United. They won't have it as easy as last season and people are probably already doubting us, but they can carry on doing that.

"For me and for us as a team we know what we are capable of doing and we will have a much better season than last season. It will be a new United this season, especially with the new ideas the manager is bringing in. They are very good ideas and I think the way and what kind of players we have it will benefit the way the manager wants to play."

After a miserable campaign there have been calls from some supporters to rip up the squad. Solskjaer even suggested himself after the dismal 4-0 defeat to Everton that there would be a major upheaval this summer.

But with just three weeks to go before the transfer deadline, only Ander Herrera and Antonio Valencia have left while Dan James and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have come in. United are still chasing two more additions including Harry Maguire from Leicester but Shaw said he does not blame fans for wanting to see more change.

"I fully understand the way they're thinking, especially after the season we had," he said. "There wouldn't be any reason for them not to be like that.

"But, like I say, we've got amazing talent but who knows? I don't know what's going on with the signings but you never know, there's still a little while left so maybe we might make another couple of signings and go from there."

Shaw was speaking at an event in Singapore to launch the new Manchester United Sunglasses Club Collection by Maui Jim.

The Washington Nationals placed first baseman Ryan Zimmerman on the injured list Monday with plantar fasciitis in his right foot a day after he left a game against the Atlanta Braves.

Zimmerman, who missed 53 games with plantar fasciitis in the same foot earlier this season, showed obvious discomfort while running down the line Sunday night following an infield single in the second inning.

He had an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the injury.

"Same foot, same sort of thing,'' Zimmerman said after the Nationals' 7-1 loss on Sunday.

Zimmerman, 34, is batting .246 with three home runs and 15 RBIs in 33 games.

The Nationals called up right-hander Michael Blazek and outfielder Andrew Stevenson from Triple A-Fresno, sent right-hander Kyle McGowin to Double-A Harrisburg and moved right-hander Justin Miller to the 60-day injured list with a rotator cuff strain.

Stevenson hit .250 in nine appearances for the Nationals earlier this season. Blazek last appeared in the majors in 2017 with the Milwaukee Brewers.

McGowin had a 9.69 ERA in five games (one start) for the Nationals this season.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Pirates have suspended reliever Keone Kela two games for an unspecified violation of his contract.

The team made the announcement on Monday shortly before opening a four-game series with St. Louis. The suspension came after the team activated Kela from the 60-day injured list. Kela went on the injured list on May 6 with right shoulder discomfort. He completed a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis over the weekend, allowing five runs in 3 1/3 innings across four appearances with the Indians.

Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said over the weekend the team anticipated getting Kela -- acquired in a deal with the Texas Rangers at last year's trade deadline -- back in the bullpen on Monday. Hurdle, however, demurred on Monday when asked about Kela's availability, saying only that the team was still in the process of evaluating Kela's status.

Kela is 1-0 with a 4.63 ERA in 14 games with the Pirates this season.

After hitting a walk-off home run against the Blue Jays to snap a six-game losing streak, Tigers outfielder Nicholas Castellanos took issue with how many homers he's missed out on due to playing at Comerica Park.

"This park's a joke. It's to the point where, how are we going to be compared to the rest of the people in the league for power numbers, OPS, slugging and all this stuff when we got a yard out here that's 420 feet straight across in center field?" Castellanos said after Sunday's game.

The 372-foot home run (hit to left field) in the bottom of the 10th to give the Tigers just their 13th win at home this season was Castellanos' 11th of the season.

He led the majors in triples in 2017 and leads MLB in doubles with 34 this season, a fact he owes to Comerica's cavernous center field.

"We get on second base or third base, and they're looking, like, 'Man, how do you guys do this?' We play 81 games here. I don't want to hear about your two that you hit that are questionable," said Castellanos, who is slashing .284/.342/.480 this year.

"Move in center field, right center, there is no reason that I hit a ball 434 off [Washington Nationals right-hander] Anibal Sanchez and it goes in the first row, that shouldn't happen."

Castellanos, 27, is also a candidate to be dealt as the July 31 trade deadline approaches, but he said he isn't preoccupied with the speculation.

"I'm at the point where I really don't care what happens. Why care? I can't control it. Why care if one day my hair is going to turn gray if I can't control it? I don't know if that analogy makes any sense, but it popped into my head."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.