MLB RUMORS AND NEWS

Bleacher Report "The Minnesota Twins got off to an 8-5 start this season but currently sit four games under .500 and are on a seven-game losing streak. Their current struggles aren't sitting well with the team. After Minnesota closer Fernando Rodney blew a two-run lead and allowed three runs in the ninth..." April 26

Larry Brown Sports "Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Joe Kelly is not happy about losing his appeal. Kelly on Thursday will begin serving his 6-game suspension for his brawl with the Yankees’ Tyler Austin on April 11. Kelly’s suspension was handed down a week after the fight. He appealed the punishment, and MLB..." April 26

CBS Sports "Austin's suspension was cut down to four games Thursday, Meredith Marakovits of YES Network reports. He'll begin serving the suspension Friday. Austin was initially handed a five-game suspension back on April 12, but Major League Baseball saw something in his appeal to reduce the sentence by..." April 26

MLB.com "Tommy Pham didn't know what happened. One minute he was in the batting cage in the bowels of Busch Stadium, trying to perfect a swing that still feels off, despite his hot start. The next, he was disoriented, a gash opened across his right temple and his jersey pooled with blood. "It damaged..." April 26

MLB Trade Rumors "Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang has received a work visa and is expected to resume his career with the team, according to a report from Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic (via Twitter). Kang had not been able to secure a visa for quite some time after being convicted of a DUI in his native Korea. " April 26

NBC Sports Chicago "The Cubs will play a second straight game without Kris Bryant, but that doesn't mean fans should start panicking. Bryant hasn't played since getting hit in the head in the top of the first inning in Sunday's game with a 96 mph fastball. Bryant has been cleared by doctors in Colorado and..." April 26

The Score "The Boston Red Sox will be without a key piece of their bullpen for the next week. Joe Kelly's appeal was denied and he will begin serving his six-game suspension Thursday for his role in a benches-clearing brawl with the New York Yankees on April 11. The right-hander was initially suspended..." April 26

Newsday "Steven Matz and Mickey Callaway had a “good talk” Thursday morning, the manager said, and the Mets have no plans to skip Matz in his next start, which is scheduled for Tuesday at home against the Braves. Matz struggled Wednesday against the Cardinals, allowing seven runs (three earned) in 3 1/3..." April 26

Sporting News "For more than 40 years, the street that runs behind home plate at Fenway Park has been known as Yawkey Way, after the longtime Red Sox owner. But Boston's Public Improvement Commission voted unanimously Thursday to revert to the thoroughfare's previous name, Jersey Street, because of concerns..." April 26

NBC Sports Chicago "The silver linings aren’t always a joy to find during this rebuilding season. “Well, at least …” can become a somewhat tired refrain as the White Sox sit at 5-16. But that’s the reality for the rebuilding White Sox, for whom brighter days surely lie ahead. The stocked farm system keeps..." April 26

Hardball Talk "All spring training there was at least some mild confusion about Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman. He played in almost no regular big league spring training games, instead, staying on the back fields, playing in simulated and minor league contests. When that usually happens, it’s because a..." April 26

St. Louis Post-Dispatch "After reaching base seven times in two games as a leadoff man against an opposing lefthander, Tommy Pham reached base all five times Tuesday when he batted second. Manager Mike Matheny liked what he saw on both counts but, with another lefthander pitching for New York in Steven Matz, he moved Pham..." April 26

Cleveland Plain Dealer "Andrew Miller exited Wednesday's Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago Cubs game after throwing two pitches in the seventh inning. Miller reached for the back of his left leg on the follow through of his second pitch and then signaled to the Indians dugout for the training staff to come out to the..." April 26

Dayton Daily News "Cincinnati Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez returned from the disabled list and to the lineup Thursday for the finale of a four-game series against the Atlanta Braves at Great American Ball Park. Suarez suffered a broken right thumb when he was hit by a pitch April 8 in Pittsburgh. He missed..." April 26

New York Post "Sonny Gray looked first and foremost at the bottom line. And the bottom line contained a Yankees victory, 7-4 over Minnesota at the Stadium Wednesday. On the journey down to that line were some numbers that indicated this was yet another rough outing for Gray. For the fourth time in five starts..." April 26

NBC Sports Philadelphia "Three weeks ago, the Phillies returned from their first road trip of the season with a 1-4 record and first-year manager Gabe Kapler was booed before the home opener. Since then, the boos have turned to cheers. The Phillies entered play Wednesday night with a 14-8 record and Kapler has made..." April 26

Larry Brown Sports " Matt Harvey is having a rough go of it. The New York Mets pitcher did not talk with the media on Tuesday after his first bullpen appearance of the season. On Wednesday, he declined to speak with reporters again and even threw in a curse word for good measure." April 25

USA Today "Dusty Baker, standing behind the batter’s cage wearing a purple sweater and black corduroy pants instead of a baseball uniform, looks over his right shoulder, and sees the Washington Nationals trickling out of the dugout. They slowly start walking over, from coaches like carryover Bob Henley,..." April 25

The Score "Among baseball's unwritten rules, none seems to garner more controversy than sign stealing, and the Kansas City Royals insist they avoid the whole issue by refusing to partake. "We're the only team, when everyone talks about this, that doesn't steal signs," Royals manager Ned Yost said on MLB..." April 25

The Big Lead "We live in a time marked by hyperbolic headlines and short memory. Things earn the mantle of best thing since sliced bread before it’s prudent. And yet, somehow, I can’t escape the nagging notion that, against long odds, we’re not properly appreciating the pure brilliance of Shohei Ohtani. The..." April 25

The Sports Post "There’s arguably nobody who has more fun playing baseball than Carlos Gómez. But sometimes, almost too predictably, that rubs people the wrong way. And on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins, Gómez would lift the Rays with a two-run walk-off home run. Of course, it’s the celebration that would..." April 25

SNY TV " Orioles star Manny Machado will be a free agent at the end of the season, and has been a rumored target of the Yankees for quite some time. But there are a few issues. 1. Machado wants to play shortstop, where Didi Gregorius is currently entrenched. " April 25

NBC Sports Chicago "The Cubs offense has looked unstoppable the last week and the bullpen still ranks among the best in the National League. Now it's time for the starting pitching to step up. In a rotation packed with the resumes and reputations of Jon Lester, Yu Darvish, Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana, it..." April 25

USA Today "Jonny Venters' remarkable tale of resolve is nearly complete. Venters, who has not pitched in the major leagues since 2012, was recalled by the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday, this after undergoing what he's described as "two and a half" Tommy John surgeries since his last big league..." April 25

Larry Brown Sports "Matt Harvey made his first bullpen appearance of the season for the New York Mets on Tuesday night, and we have no way of knowing how the right-hander felt about it. After he allowed two hits and one earned run in two innings of relief work, Harvey refused to speak with reporters about his new..." April 25

MLB Trade Rumors "The Athletics have acquired righty Wilmer Font from the Dodgers, per a club announcement. Lefty Logan Salow will head to Los Angeles in return." April 25

CBS Sports "The Dodgers lost to the Marlins on Tuesday night, 3-2, evening their record at 11-11. It's one loss after a string of seven wins in eight games, so I don't see any reason to freak out. They need to score more than two runs in consecutive games against the Marlins, but it happens during the course..." April 25

Hardball Talk "Last night’s Angels-Astros game was a long affair with a bunch of homers and the use of 11 pitchers in all. The Angels used six pitchers and all of that business led to plenty of conferences. Six, in fact, which is their allotment under the new rule capping mound visits. As far as I can tell, that..." April 25

NBC Sports Bay Area "A's reliever Yusmeiro Petit suffered the worst kind of tragedy on Monday and still wanted to do his job. Petit's mother, Rubia, passed away Monday, and just hours later, he made sure manager Bob Melvin knew that he wanted to pitch in the game against the Rangers. "His mom passed away,..." April 25

New York Post "Woven into this season is a competition for next offseason, namely: Who wins the financial game between Bryce Harper and Manny Machado? So far it is close with both sporting eight homers and gaudy on-base numbers through Tuesday. Both will be rewarded financially, short of substantial injury..." April 25

Twin Cities "There are better places than Yankee Stadium to show up with a .091 batting average and have that displayed on the Jumbotron in center field, but Logan Morrison wasn’t too worried about hecklers this week. “I’ve heard a lot of stuff but it’s not original,” the Twins first baseman said before the..." April 25

Bleacher Report "The signs at Yankee Stadium featured an unfortunate error involving New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius' last name on Tuesday. During the team's game against the Minnesota Twins, a banner scrolled by with a promotional advertisement for "Didi Gregious Bat Day" on May 12. " April 25

NBC Sports Philadelphia "The spectacular beginning of Rhys Hoskins’ major-league career can be traced to a conversation he had with two members of the Phillies’ player-development department back in September 2014. Hoskins had arrived in the Phillies organization earlier that year as a fifth-round draft pick out of..." April 25

MLB Trade Rumors "The Marlins could soon be installing a pair of veteran arms into their struggling young rotation. Craig Mish of SiriusXM reports that lefty Wei-Yin Chen will be activated to start Saturday’s game against the Rockies (Twitter link), and it seems that right-hander Dan Straily won’t be far behind..." April 25

New York Daily News "A few weeks ago, I wrote that Dallas Keuchel could be a more likely option for the Yankees in next winter's ballyhooed free-agent market than Manny Machado, based on their potential need for starting pitching as well as Hal Steinbrenner's firm belief he doesn't need a $200-plus million payroll to..." April 25

Sporting News "The Rangers fell nine games below .500 Tuesday and lost another star in the process. Adrian Beltre exited Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the A's in the eighth inning after suffering a left hamstring strain. The All-Star connected on an RBI hit to the gap in right-center field but could barely reach..." April 25

New York Post "After going hitless in his first game, Gleyber Torres has shown at least some of why the Yankees have been so high on the second baseman. In Tuesday’s 8-3 win over the Twins, Torres had a pair of singles for his first multi-hit game and added his first RBI. “I feel like with Gleyber, outside..." April 25

Hardball Talk "Over the weekend, the Mets decided to move struggling starter Matt Harvey to the bullpen, hoping he would re-find success in a new role. His first appearance as a reliever this season wasn’t particularly impressive. Harvey entered in the top of the fifth inning Tuesday night against the..." April 25

ESPN "Top outfield prospect Ronald Acuna is set to join the Atlanta Braves. The Braves planned to promote the 20-year-old from Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday to join them in Cincinnati. Acuna is ranked No. 1 on ESPN Insider Keith Law's top 100 prospects list. He also began this season as MLB.com's..." April 25

New York Daily News "They were such contrived nicknames anyway. The Fab Five, the Five Aces or the Boys from Queens. Whatever you want to call the five former aces the Mets had been selling their fans for years as the future of this franchise, for the Mets marketing departments it was probably very exciting. For..." April 25

Larry Brown Sports "Shohei Ohtani impressed on the radar gun during his start against the defending World Series champions. The Houston Astros got their first look at Ohtani the pitcher on Tuesday. During an at-bat against Josh Reddick in the fifth, Ohtani delivered the fastest pitch this year by a starting..." April 25

New York Post "Fixing Matt Harvey is important to the Mets, but it hardly ranks as the team’s primary goal. So Harvey, in his new role as reliever, will be treated like any other member of the bullpen. In other words, the Mets will not create situations for Harvey to pitch just for the sake of getting him..." April 25

Toronto Sun "The Rogers Centre roof was closed for Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred when he dropped by for Tuesday’s game between the Blue Jays and Red Sox. At least it wasn’t leaking. That said, Manfred made it clear that the 29-year-old building is in serious need of updates — at the..." April 24

Bleacher Report "David Ortiz is a Boston Red Sox legend and a primary reason the franchise broke the storied Curse of the Bambino with World Series titles in 2004, 2007 and 2013, but to hear Theo Epstein tell it, the slugger wanted out in 2003. The Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations, who was the Red..." April 24

TSN "Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said Tuesday third baseman Josh Donaldson feels good and is expected to start a rehab assignment soon. Donaldson has been out since April 11 with right shoulder inflammation. The 32-year-old only played in the field six times in the 12 games he's played..." April 24

Hardball Talk "The Kansas City Royals activated catcher Sal Perez from the 10-day disabled list today. He started the year on the shelf after tearing the MCL in his left knee just before Opening Day. They originally said he’d be out 4-6 weeks, but he’s back a bit ahead of schedule following a 9-for-24, two-homer..." April 24

Baltimore Sun "With second baseman Jonathan Schoop already on the disabled list and infielder Tim Beckham potentially joining him, the Orioles claimed infielder Jace Peterson – a left-handed hitting utility man -- off waivers from the Yankees on Tuesday afternoon to provide immediate infield help. He is..." April 24

The Score "Only 24 pitchers in big-league history have been able to crack the 300-win mark. Clayton Kershaw doesn't believe he'll become No. 25. The Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander, who is arguably the game's best pitcher, is nearly halfway to 300 career wins (145) in his age-30 season, but that isn't..." April 24

Michigan Live "The case for baseball's all-time hit leader to be reinstated to the game appears to be getting worse with time as Pete Rose's wife claims in new court documents that he continues to be a high-stakes gambler. According to TMZ, documents filed in court recently by Rose's wife Carol state that..." April 24