Red Sox beat Tigers 4-1 in rain-shortened game  —  BOSTON—Clayton Mortensen pitched 2 2-3 shutout innings after Josh Beckett left with back spasms and the Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 4-1 in a game halted by rain in the top of the sixth inning Tuesday night.

Rockies' Dan O'Dowd remains GM; Geivett to work more closely with big-league team  —  The Rockies are expected to announce a restructuring of responsibilities in their front office Wednesday, with general manager Dan O'Dowd staying in his position but focusing more on the minor leagues …

Phillips on calf: ‘No bueno’  —  Brandon Phillips won the game for the Reds, with a seventh-inning solo homer in a 7-6 win over the Padres.  But it wasn't all good news for Phillips, who left the game with a strained left calf — the same one that cramped up on him in Colorado Sunday.

Lincecum leads Giants past Mets to end losing streak  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Tim Lincecum struck out seven in seven innings and the San Francisco Giants took advantage of a two-run error by shortstop Ruben Tejada to beat the New York Mets 4-1 on Tuesday night and snap a season-long five-game losing streak.

Pierzynski Homers in 9th as White Sox Top Twins  —  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A.J. Pierzynski hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning and the Chicago White Sox held on to beat the Minnesota Twins 4-3 Tuesday night.  —  After Alex Rios singled off Jeff Gray (5-1), Pierzynski hit a -2 pitch …

Ackley has three RBIs to lead Mariners past Blue Jays  —  SEATTLE — Dustin Ackley drove in three runs and Jason Vargas pitched seven strong innings to lead the Seattle Mariners to their sixth consecutive victory, 7-2 over the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday night.  —  Vargas (12-7) allowed two runs and five hits.

The Midseason Top 50 Prospects  —  Doing a midseason prospect list is an exercise in managing hype and dealing with insufficient information.  Half-seasons mean small sample sizes, and while I'm speaking to scouts on a daily basis, I'm often dealing with two or three looks instead of four or six.

Wil Nieves expected to be outrighted by Rockies  —  Wil Nieves began a rehab assignment last week for a turf toe with a stipulation.  He agreed to remain in Triple-A Colorado Springs on rehab through Tuesday's trading deadline to see if a move was made with Rockies' catcher Ramon Hernandez.

Bryce Harper on his slump: “I'm trying to find some mellowness”  —  July has been the toughest month for Bryce Harper so far.  He's in the longest slump — and that's in relative terms — of his young major league career.  With his for 4 game on Tuesday, the Nationals 19-year-old rookie drifted deeper …

Diamondbacks top Dodgers on homers from Goldschmidt, Montero  —  LOS ANGELES — Paul Goldschmidt homered in the first inning for the second straight game, Miguel Montero added a three-run shot and rookie Wade Miley pitched eight dominant innings for the Arizona Diamondbacks in an 8-2 victory …

Rangers Acquire Ryan Dempster  —  The Rangers acquired Ryan Dempster from the Cubs for minor league third baseman Christian Villanueva and minor league right-hander Kyle Hendricks.  The Braves and Dodgers were favored at various points for Dempster, but the Rangers jumped in and made the move and the 35-year-old approved the deal.