Will Youkilis finish season with BoSox?  —  I asked two general managers Thursday about Kevin Youkilis.  —  The first said that he would need to see Youkilis play for an extended period before determining whether his team had interest, citing Youkilis' declining offense, defense and health.

Source: Wood to say goodbye after final K … “Kid K” likely went out in fitting fashion: with a strikeout.  —  After sources said Friday that Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood would retire after making one last appearance, he whiffed the Chicago White Sox's Dayan Viciedo in the eighth inning and promptly left the game.

Harang Pitches Dodgers Past Hometown Padres, 8-1  —  SAN DIEGO (AP) — Aaron Harang held his former team to four hits in seven shutout innings and had one of Los Angeles' 12 hits as the Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 8-1 Thursday night to split a two-game series.

Acta and Chernoff: Optimizing the Indians Offense  —  As a small-market team with limited firepower, the Cleveland Indians need to optimize their run-scoring capabilities.  Whether they're doing that is hard to quantify: Cleveland ranks in the middle of the pack among American League teams in most offensive categories.

College grads in baseball a rare breed  —  College commencement ceremonies and Major League Baseball games are staples of American life in May.  —  Only a small number of men can say they have participated in both.  —  As of Wednesday morning, 917 players had appeared in at least …

Cooperstown Confidential: The tale of Charley Lau  —  Mickey Hatcher had become a polarizing figure in Southern California.  The Angels' manager, Mike Scioscia, felt fierce loyalty to his batting coach, who had worked with him for the past 13 seasons.  Many in the organization liked Hatcher's sense …

Venezuelan Links: Mora, Escobar, Cervelli  —  A trio of venezolanos try to claw their way back to la gran carpa.  Yes, that literally translates to “the big carp,” but it also means “the big top.”  Links are in Spanish...  - Melvin Mora will fly to the states this weekend to begin negotiations …

Interleague Play set to add intrigue to season  —  When Jeff Samardzija throws the first pitch for the Cubs in their Friday afternoon game against the White Sox at Wrigley Field, it will signify a powerful and memorable moment for Major League Baseball in 2012: the return of Interleague Play.

McCutchen, McDonald lead Pirates over Nats 5-3  —  WASHINGTON—James McDonald had a nasty curveball Thursday night, and the Washington Nationals couldn't lay off.  —  McDonald took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and struck out a career-high 11, and the Pittsburgh Pirates got two home runs from Andrew McCutchen in a 5-3 victory.

Wieters earns break after marathon duty  —  KANSAS CITY — Orioles manager Buck Showalter had a preliminary plan to pencil in Matt Wieters as his starting catcher on Thursday.  But the plan changed after Wieters worked 15 innings in a 4-3 win over the Royals on Wednesday night.