Niese, Mets keep Atlanta on the skids  —  ATLANTA — Jonathon Niese is gaining confidence as the season comes to a close.  The difference is obvious to Mets manager Terry Collins.  —  “That's the Jon Niese we know,” Collins said.  “That's the guy who pitches to contact, makes pitches, locates it, moves it around, changes speeds.

Astros Hit 5 HRs, Stop Mariners From Moving Up  —  HOUSTON — Seattle starter Chris Young got hit hard and the Mariners missed a chance to move up in the AL playoff race, yielding five home runs Saturday night in a 10-1 loss to the Houston Astros.  —  The Mariners stayed one game behind AL …

Brewers blank Pirates to tighten NL wild-card race  —  PITTSBURGH — Elian Herrera sprinted home on Logan Schafer's sacrifice fly in the ninth inning and the Milwaukee Brewers edged the Pittsburgh Pirates 1-0 on Saturday night to tighten the race for the second National League wild-card spot.

Zimmermann has two hits, RBI in return as Nationals beat Marlins  —  MIAMI — Ryan Zimmerman had two hits, including an RBI triple, in his return to the lineup and the Washington Nationals beat the Miami Marlins 3-2 Saturday night.  —  Zimmerman, who missed 55 games because of a hamstring injury …

Cubs phenom led Minors in HR, SLG, OPS; Pirates hurler led in opponents' average, was third in ERA  —  MLBPipeline.com's Jonathan Mayo discusses 2014 Prospects of the Year Kris Bryant and Tyler Glasnow.  —  One led all of the Minor Leagues in home runs and slugging percentage.

Butler captures first major league win as Rockies top D-Backs  —  DENVER — Eddie Butler pitched six solid innings for his first major league win and the Colorado Rockies beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-1 on Saturday.  —  Corey Dickerson and Josh Rutledge homered for the Rockies …

Cards' magic number at 1 with win over Reds  —  Recap  —  Box Score  —  Play-By-Play  —  Photos  —  Conversation  —  Cardinals hit three home runs to top Reds, move closer to playoffs  —  ST. LOUIS — Tony Cruz hit a three-run homer and the St. Louis Cardinals connected three times …

Seeing Eye Ball  —  The Royals tie the game at one in the bottom of the fifth inning after Jarrod Dyson doubles, and Alcides Escobar hits a grounder up the middle.  Ian Kinsler crossed over to the third base side of second and tried to back-hand the ball, but he did not get low enough and it rolled under his glove.

Lester, A's stifle Phils to regain top WC spot  —  Recap  —  Box Score  —  Play-By-Play  —  Photos  —  Conversation  —  Jon Lester holds Phillies to 5 hits as A's move ahead in wild-card race  —  OAKLAND, Calif. — Coco Crisp had two hits and drove in a run, supporting another strong outing …

Ortiz homers twice to lead Red Sox over Orioles  —  BALTIMORE — David Ortiz hit two home runs, including a two-run drive in the 10th inning that lifted the Boston Red Sox past the Baltimore Orioles 5-3 Friday night.  —  Although the AL East-champion Orioles are still in the running …

Tanaka likely to throw 70-75 pitches in Sunday start  —  7/3/14: Masahiro Tanaka pitches seven innings, allowing four runs on nine hits while striking out three to earn his MLB-leading 12th win  —  NEW YORK — After a successful bullpen session Thursday and some more long-toss throwing Friday …

Phillies issue statement supporting MLB's decision  —  Chris Rose and Kevin Millar break down the news of Jonathan Papelbon's seven-game suspension and his future with the Phillies on Quick Pitch  —  SAN DIEGO — Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon was suspended for seven games and fined …