Eric Young Jr. appears to be odd man out(field) now that Juan Lagares has returned for Mets  —  DENVER - Terry Collins stopped well short of declaring Eric Young Jr. the odd man out of the Mets' outfield logjam.  When pressed on the issue Thursday, he remained vague.

Braves sign Johnson to 3-year, $23.5 million extension  —  The Braves continued locking up players to long-term deals by signing third baseman Chris Johnson to a three-year, $23.5 million extension that includes a $10 million team option for 2018.  —  He's the sixth Brave signed …

Gonzalez, Braves can't confirm suspicions of sign-stealing  —  MIAMI —  When virtually the same Marlins lineup which struck out 11 times against Aaron Harang last week at Turner Field pounced on him for 10 hits and a career-high nine runs on Wednesday night in Miami, he and the Braves had their suspicions.

Rays edge Red Sox in 1st game of doubleheader  —  BOSTON — David DeJesus had a solo homer and drew a bases-loaded walk, and Tampa Bay's bullpen pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings to lift the Rays to a 2-1 win over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday in the opener of a day-night doubleheader.

Robinson Cano has 2 RBIs as Mariners beat Yankees again  —  NEW YORK — Robinson Cano shrugged off the boos in his return to Yankee Stadium and walked away a two-time winner.  —  Cano doubled and drove in two runs to help the Seattle Mariners beat the New York Yankees 4-2 Thursday night behind …

Versatile prospect Green to join club for Friday's game  —  Right-handed-hitting infielder/outfielder expected to see plenty of action  —  ANAHEIM — Angels prospect Grant Green is expected to be called up from Triple-A Salt Lake before Friday's game as the corresponding move …

Angels talk with developer about potential Irvine ballpark  —  The Angels, frustrated by talks with Anaheim over plans to keep the team at Angel Stadium, above, have met with the developer of the Orange County Great Park property to see whether the construction of a new ballpark might be feasible on the Irvine site.

Tigers add Hanrahan in effort to help bullpen  —  The Detroit Tigers made another move to upgrade their bullpen Friday by agreeing on a one-year contract with free-agent reliever Joel Hanrahan, general manager David Dombrowski announced Friday.  —  Hanrahan, 32, is 22-18 with a 3.85 ERA …

Blue Jays Beat Royals 7-3 to Avoid Series Sweep  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Mark Buehrle pitched into the seventh inning, Juan Francisco and Colby Rasmus each went deep and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals 7-3 Thursday night to avoid a series sweep.

Stanton, McGehee key rally, Marlins beat Braves for sweep  —  MIAMI — Giancarlo Stanton and Casey McGehee hit consecutive run-scoring singles off David Carpenter during a two-run rally in the seventh inning that led the Miami Marlins over the Atlanta Braves 5-4 Thursday night for a three-game sweep of the NL East leader.

Passionate Balsley brings out best in Padres' pitchers  —  Peavy among long line of hurlers to flourish under coach's guidance, influence  —  SAN DIEGO — It's difficult to know where Jake Peavy would be today had he not met Darren Balsley, who first was his pitching coach in the low levels …

Collmenter uses reading to shape philosophy  —  An avid reader, D-backs righty can usually be found with a book in clubhouse  —  PHOENIX — Walk into the Arizona Diamondbacks clubhouse when they're on the road and you'll likely find Josh Collmenter sitting in front of his locker reading a book.

Kershaw whiffs nine in second rehab start  —  Likely to rejoin LA rotation next week, he allows one earned run in five innings  —  MINNEAPOLIS — With a likely return to the rotation next week in Washington, Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw made his second Minor League rehab start Wednesday night …