Crawford could miss three months  —  CHICAGO — Globe colleague Nick Cafardo is reporting that Carl Crawford could miss three months because of his elbow injury.  —  The Red Sox will be issuing a statement shortly, we're told.  —  Suffice it to say, that seven-year, $142 million deal is looking worse every day.

Schilling: Pineda could be back in less than year  —  Girardi: ‘We Were Counting on Him’  —  Yankees manager Joe Girardi discusses the loss of Michael Pineda for the 2012 season and how the team will move on without him.  —  NEW YORK — Nearly two decades after suffering the same torn anterior labrum …

Tigers release Brandon Inge  —  Slumping third baseman Brandon Inge was released by the Detroit Tigers on Thursday.  —  The team announced the move following a 5-4 loss to the Seattle Mariners.  Inge is batting .100 (2 for 20) with a home run and two RBIs this season.

New arrival Allen's walkoff HR lifts Rays to sweep  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Brandon Allen hit a two-run pinch-hit homer in the ninth and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Los Angeles Angels 4-3 on Thursday.  —  Allen, recently acquired off waivers from Oakland, homered off closer Jordan Walden …

HRs by Jones, Davis Help Orioles Top Blue Jays 5-2  —  BALTIMORE (AP) — Adam Jones led off the eighth inning with a tiebreaking homer and the Baltimore Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-2 on Thursday night, completing a three-game sweep with their fourth straight victory.

Mets Rally in 9th, Hand Marlins 5th Loss in Row  —  NEW YORK (AP ) — Justin Turner drew a bases-loaded walk in a sensational 13-pitch at-bat and Kirk Niewenhuis hit an RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning as the Mets rallied past Heath Bell and Miami 3-2 Thursday, the Marlins' fifth straight loss.

Mike Pelfrey To Undergo Tommy John Surgery  —  Mets right-hander Mike Pelfrey is expected to miss the rest of the 2012 season to undergo and recover from Tommy John surgery.  Manager Terry Collins told reporters that Pelfrey will likely have ligament replacement surgery, Andy Martino of the New York Daily News reports (Twitter links).

How the Washington Nationals became baseball's sleeping giant … Billy Beane knew what he had in Gio Gonzalez: a young, durable, lefthanded strikeout artist.  If Beane, the Oakland A's general manager, was going to deal him last winter — even in the midst of a fire sale in which virtually every player …

Red Sox eke out a win  —  MINNEAPOLIS - The Red Sox converted Triple A starter Alex Wilson into a reliever this week to prepare him for the majors.  Veteran free agent Mike Gonzalez is under consideration and the possibility still exists that Daniel Bard could return to his old job in the late innings before too long.

Jones' RBI single in 9th helps Braves beat Dodgers  —  LOS ANGELES—Chipper Jones singled home the go-ahead run in his final regular season at-bat at Dodger Stadium after Dan Uggla tied it with his second RBI single earlier in the ninth inning, and the Atlanta Braves defeated Los Angeles 4-2 Wednesday night.