MLB RUMORS AND NEWS

Newark Star-Ledger "Zack Wheeler’s first assignment upon joining the Mets was not on a baseball diamond. It was in the bowels of Turner Field Monday afternoon, one day before his major league debut, with the spotlight on him in a news conference. For the first time this season, the attention was drawn away from..." June 19

Arizona Republic "After the Marlins capped off a rally in the ninth the night before, it was the Diamondbacks’ turn Tuesday as Paul Goldschmidt belted a tie-breaking home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth to snap a four-game losing streak in front of 21,067 at Chase Field. The Diamondbacks didn’t want to..." June 19

New York Post "The moons have aligned in such a way that the Yankees need to get Alex Rodriguez before Bud Selig does. In the big picture, it would be best for the organization if Rodriguez never came back so it could collect insurance money and avoid the familiar A-Rod circus, and, perhaps, if he goes away..." June 19

PhillyBurbs.com "In a few days, Chase Utley will return to the Phillies’ active roster, and the everyday lineup that Ruben Amaro Jr. drew up in long and dreary winter days will finally be together again. At that point, Kevin Frandsen will return to his spot as one of the first guys off Charlie Manuel’s bench...." June 19

CSN Baltimore "In the last three games, the Orioles beat two of their chief tormentors. On Sunday, they defeated Jon Lester, who’d won 14 of his first 15 starts against them, and on Tuesday, Zach Britton bested Dettoit Tigers uberstar Justin Verlander. For years, Verlander has toyed with the Orioles,..." June 19

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Charlie Morton gave the Pirates what they needed Tuesday night and recalled visions of 2011 in the process. Morton had enough movement on his sinker to keep the Cincinnati Reds on the ground and off the scoreboard, and his control was good enough to keep them off the bases. Morton's outing..." June 19

Toronto Star "Esmil Rogers is an easygoing guy. Where other starting pitchers are anti-social on the day of their starts, shunning all conversation to maintain the sombre focus of a monk, Rogers chats amiably and jokes around as he does every other day. Perhaps that’s why he has converted so easily from the..." June 19

Boston Herald "It’s June 19 and the Red Sox are in first place, seven games ahead of the always-tough Rays after a doubleheader sweep on a long day and night at Fenway Park. But that isn’t the surprising part. No, the surprising part is that the Red Sox have maintained their status atop the AL East despite two..." June 19

Fort Worth Star-Telegram "The Rangers’ offense managed two runs on three hits and Yu Darvish allowed five runs, though only four were earned, in six innings to lose to the Oakland A’s 6-2. Oakland first baseman Brandon Moss smacked a home run off Yu Darvish to start the second inning. Eric Sogard then increased the A’s..." June 19

Chicago Tribune "The Cubs and Cardinals have played 20,321 games since 1876, but few have had stranger endings than Tuesday night's affair at Busch Stadium. Second base umpire Fieldin Culbreth called Cardinals runner Shane Robinson out for interference for trying to take out Starlin Castro on a potential double..." June 19

San Jose Mercury News "Manager Bruce Bochy isn't afraid to acknowledge that the Giants are "fortunate" to be in as good of shape as they are in the N.L. West despite a prolonged rough stretch. On Tuesday, the Giants were fortunate to escape with a victory over the San Diego Padres after twice blowing leads and needing..." June 19

Seattle Times "Navigating a bullpen minefield without his closer is something manager Eric Wedge had spent the past week dabbling in. And it almost blew up in his face Tuesday night when he dabbled with recently removed closer Tom Wilhelmsen in the eighth inning and saw him yield a tying home run to Albert..." June 19

Houston Chronicle "Through the initial three innings Tuesday, the Astros had only two hits and one run. Normally, the lack of meaningful contact and real production would have been major problems and a rebuilding club would have gradually moved closer toward its 46th defeat in 72 games. But Jordan Lyles was on..." June 19

Cleveland Plain Dealer "Closer Vinnie Pestano was mad. He thought he'd blown the lead and that Kansas City tied the score Tuesday night in the ninth inning. "I thought it was a new game," said Pestano. It wasn't, as the Indians escaped with an improbable 4-3 victory over the Royals to regain second place in the AL..." June 19

New York Post "The Yankees have lost their third baseman for at least 10-12 weeks and their first baseman for at least two. Kevin Youkilis has a herniated disc in his back and will undergo surgery on Thursday, sidelining him for 10-12 weeks at the minimum, Yankees GM Brian Cashman announced Tuesday afternoon...." June 18

San Jose Mercury News "With no progress after more than four years on the Oakland Athletics' planned San Jose move, the city Tuesday filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against Major League Baseball. The lawsuit argues MLB's decree that the San Francisco Giants have exclusive territorial rights to San Jose, which the..." June 18

Newark Star-Ledger "The ball smashed off Jason Heyward’s black lumber onto home plate, trampolining into the humid Turner Field air. A collective gasp followed, indicating the crowd’s sense of the sequence’s possible history-changing outcome in the Mets’ 4-3 win in the matinee of a marquee doubleheader. Over to..." June 18

ESPN.com "Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper has been cleared to begin testing his injured knee a week after receiving a cortisone shot and a platelet-rich plasma injection into the joint, according to local media reports. Harper, placed on the disabled list June 1 for bursitis in the left..." June 18

Boston Herald "The first game of the day-night doubleheader between the Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays is finally in the books after a three-hour rain delay. Alfredo Aceves only surrendered one run in five innings and David Ortiz went 2-for-4 with three RBI as the Red Sox improved to 8-2 against the Rays this..." June 18

Boston Herald "Clay Buchholz finally threw his bullpen session between games of the rain-delayed day-night doubleheader. Alas, he went on the disabled list anyway. As tonight's game was beginning, the Red Sox announced Buchholz has been placed on the 15-day disabled list and catcher Ryan Lavarnway has been..." June 18

New York Daily News "Zack Wheeler does not want to be Matt Harvey. Nor does the Mets’ top pitching prospect want to be a savior. Wheeler admitted he just wants to get though his major-league debut without getting sick on the mound. “It is going to be a big moment in my life. There are probably gonna be some nerves..." June 18

Denver Post "This much is certain: Roy Oswalt will start this week for the Rockies. The only question is when. All signs point toward Thursday in the series opener against the Washington Nationals, bumping Tyler Chatwood to Friday. That would leave Oswalt in line to face the Boston Red Sox at the end of the..." June 18

Tampa Tribune "Waiting for Wil Myers in the Durham Bulls dugout during the middle of the second inning Sunday was Bulls manager Charlie Montoyo, who delivered this message to the young prospect: “You're out of the game. You may or may not be going to the big leagues.” May or may not? The kid has been..." June 18

National Post "The numbers mean little, although optimistic observers will happily cite the figures next to the name of Jose Reyes. Reyes singled and scored in his first two at-bats as he began a rehab assignment Monday evening with the Toronto Blue Jays Class A affiliate in Dunedin, Fla. In the same game,..." June 18

Fox Sports Southwest "On Monday, Jurickson Profar became the youngest designated hitter in Texas Rangers history. Soon enough the 20-year-old could have another spot in the lineup — as an outfielder. Profar, who said he never has played outfield in his life, worked with outfielder coach Gary Pettis on Monday as..." June 18

NBC Sports "Braves placed C Evan Gattis on the 15-day disabled list with a strained oblique. No word on how or when the injury occurred, but oblique strains usually require some extended rest. Gattis has been one of the best stories in baseball this season, coming out of nowhere to hit .252 with 14 home..." June 18

Michigan Live "The American League welcomed its first 10-game winner Monday night. And the Tigers welcomed just their second starter in franchise history to the 10-0 club. Max Scherzer improved to 10-0 this season, tossing six historic-making innings as the Detroit Tigers cooled off the scorching Baltimore..." June 18

Philly.com "The shaving cream was still visible in Domonic Brown's hair when he arrived at his locker in a T-shirt and shorts. The single he knocked through the middle of the Nationals infield was not the most impressive hit of the night, but it was the last one, and that meant a heck of a lot for a..." June 18

Atlanta Journal-Constitution "After waiting more than 3-1/2 hours Monday night to start the game, then waiting around for 2-1/2 more hours to score, Freddie Freeman made sure all the waiting was worth it for the Braves. Freeman’s two-run, walk-off homer with one out in the ninth inning lifted the Braves to 2-1 win over the..." June 18

Toronto Star "When GM Alex Anthopoulos set out to upgrade the Blue Jays’ starting rotation this past off-season, Josh Johnson was his primary target. The six-foot-seven right-hander, ace of the Miami Marlins, was the seed from which grew the entire 12-player swap with Miami, remaking the Jays and setting the..." June 18

St. Louis Post-Dispatch "The reason for his early exit Monday night was different, but the route rookie Shelby Miller took to a fifth-inning ending was familiar enough to frustrate him. A cramp in his right calf muscle forced Miller from the Cardinals’ 5-2 victory against the Cubs at Busch Stadium and left the bullpen to..." June 18

Los Angeles Times "It began in Camden Yards on Wednesday with a six-run seventh inning that led to a come-from-behind win over the Baltimore Orioles, it carried through a weekend series against the New York Yankees, and it resumed Monday night against the Seattle Mariners. The Angels hitters are on a roll, much..." June 18

Fort Worth Star-Telegram "Losing streaks don’t go away easily, and the Texas Rangers are well aware of that. That explains the collective sigh of relief once Joe Nathan got the final out Monday night, a popup by Derek Norris, preserving an 8-7 victory over the Oakland Athletics to open a four-game series between the..." June 18

Kansas City Star "And so it continues. The Royals’ attack, in support of James Shields, remains colder than a witch’s dreams. Yet somehow, recently, it all turns out well. The Royals struck for two late runs Monday night in rallying for a 2-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. It was..." June 18

Cincinnati Enquirer "Reds manager Dusty Baker was saying before the game that the Pirates used their bigger ballpark to their advantage in the series at PNC Park earlier this year, i.e., the Reds' home run power was negated. Playing in the friendly confines of Great American Ball Park, the Reds put on a home run..." June 18

Miami Herald "Giancarlo Stanton saw enough of Heath Bell last year to know what to expect. Marlins fans probably had a pretty good idea, too. Stanton punished Bell’s shoulder-high fastball in the ninth for the go-ahead home run -- his second of the game and 100th of his career -- as the Marlins began..." June 18

Chicago Tribune "For the first time in nearly five weeks, the White Sox return Tuesday night to American League Central play, where they thought their offensive struggles had been cured. Instead, these next six games against the Twins and Royals could represent their last realistic chance to get out of a..." June 18

San Diego Union-Tribune "The streak continues, the Padres are now two games over .500 and the bullpen worked overtime again in a 5-3 win Monday over the San Francisco Giants. The Good: Venable and the Pen. At six wins coming into the game, the Padres’ winning streak looked like it was coming to an end when Juan..." June 18

Sporting Sota "One thing the Minnesota Twins have struggled to find is good pitching, both on the front and back ends of the rotation and bullpen. They seem to have found a solid closer in Glen Perkins but Minnesota Twins general manager Terry Ryan fully expects to field calls about Perkins as we near the trade..." June 17

Los Angeles Times "Clayton Kershaw soon could become the richest pitcher in baseball history. But Kershaw was upset that he had to talk Sunday about his ongoing negotiations with the Dodgers, whom he blamed for leaking information to Fox Sports. The previous night, Fox Sports reported that Kershaw and the..." June 17

New York Post "Mark Teixeira’s season isn’t finished ... yet. According to an MRI exam taken yesterday when the switch-hitting first baseman was examined by Dr. Chris Ahmad in New York, Teixeira didn’t tear the sheath that covers a tendon in the right wrist like he did in early March. Instead, inflammation..." June 17

Detroit Free Press "The Detroit Tigers have placed starter Anibal Sanchez and catcher Alex Avila on the disabled list and recalled catcher Bryan Holaday and outfielder Avisail Garcia from Triple-A Toledo. The Tigers also announced that Toledo pitcher Jose Alvarez will start Thursday’s home game against the Boston..." June 17

Tampa Bay Times "LHP David Price says it's not a setback, but the soreness he felt Saturday has at least delayed the schedule manager Joe Maddon discussed for his minor-league rehab assignment. Maddon had said Price, out since mid May with a left triceps strain, was exceeding expectations after Thursday's..." June 17