Red Sox To Sign Rusney Castillo  —  11:12am: Castillo's contract contains a limited no-trade clause, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com (on Twitter).  —  11:00am: Rosenthal reports that the contract will be heavily backloaded, with very little money guaranteed to Castillo in 2014.

Ryan, Gardenhire expected to return to Twins  —  The Twins GM said those decisions will be made at the end of the year but implied they'll remain.  —  Terry Ryan indicated strongly Thursday that if he is the Twins' general manager when the 2015 season begins, Ron Gardenhire will be back for a 13th season as manager.

ESPN's Jayson Stark: Phillies shake-up coming, Ruben Amaro not safe  —  Don't be so sure Ruben Amaro is coming back, even though Phillies president David Montgomery told fans this week that the general manager “is not on the hot seat.”  —  That's the word from ESPN baseball writer Jayson Stark …

Zack Wheeler hopes to continue to grow with Mets  —  Wheeler sees his growth this season as part of the Mets' overall plan.  With the Mets' relying on young arms such as Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom and himself, Wheeler can almost see what he and the team have been working toward.

Surging Orioles set for challenges of stretch run  —  Rotation's continued success, Machado's return keys for Baltimore in pennant race  —  CHICAGO — The Orioles, winners in nine of their past 10 series, have their largest lead — nine games — in the American League East since 1997 …

Without Davis, Philadelphia falls to Chicago at LLWS  —  SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Chicago manager Darold Butler has a message for the Windy City.  —  “Keep cheering,” Butler said Thursday night after the biggest victory of his baseball career.  “We hear you.  It's working.  Make it louder.”

Chapman's return a bright spot for Reds  —  CINCINNATI — The only bit of good news to come from the Reds' 8-0 loss to the Braves on Thursday was the healthy return of closer Aroldis Chapman, who threw a perfect eighth inning.  The lefty struck out his first two batters and got a fly ball to center field.

Braves Beat Reds 8-0 for 6th Win in Last 7  —  CINCINNATI — Justin Upton extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a bases-loaded single during Atlanta's decisive third inning, and the Braves extended their offensive resurgence with an 8-0 victory over the fading Cincinnati Reds on Thursday night.

Richards carted off field after serious knee injury  —  Angels may lose top pitcher for rest of season as club awaits further evaluation  —  BOSTON — Jered Weaver could hear Garrett Richards' scream from the dugout.  —  The Angels' young starting pitcher was lying on the ground near …

Angels Acquire Gordon Beckham  —  6:01pm: The Angels initially claimed Beckham off waivers, according to Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (on Twitter).  —  5:07pm: Kay clarifies that the Angels will send a PTBNL or cash considerations to the White Sox in exchange for Beckham, not both, as he initially announced (Twitter link).

Gomes exits an inning after being hit in mask  —  MINNEAPOLIS — The Indians were not going to take any chances when catcher Yan Gomes began to feel ill after absorbing a deflected pitch off the mask on Thursday afternoon.  —  In the sixth inning of the Tribe's 4-1 loss to the Twins …