Brian Cashman: Yankees won't pay A-Rod's $6M bonus for 660th homer  —  1h - MLB ALEX RODRIGUEZ NEW YORK YANKEES + more  —  Yankees infielder Alex Rodriguez pinch hits for Garret Jones and slams a home run in left field over the Green Monster to tie Willie Mays for fourth on the all-time home run list.

Balfour returns to Rays, will join Triple-A Durham  —  ST. PETERSBURG — RHP Grant Balfour may not be done pitching for the Rays, after all.  —  Released this week, Balfour passed on overtures from the Cubs, Red Sox and others to agree to a minor-league deal with the Rays …

Braves' Fredi G to stick with platoon at third base  —  Both Alberto Callaspo and Chris Johnson had good stretches at the plate during the first month of the season that, at one point or another, might have made them appear to be good options to play third base full time for the Braves.

Red Sox Promote Blake Swihart  —  SATURDAY: The Red Sox have formally announced that they've promoted Swihart and placed Hanigan on the disabled list.  —  FRIDAY: The Red Sox will promote top prospect Blake Swihart, Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com reports on Twitter.

Dilson Herrera could force Daniel Murphy out at second base for Mets  —  Every game, every series, every week matters for the 2015 Mets.  That's what a winning April earns, and why the move to temporarily reconfigure the infield was right, even if it was a Band-Aid.

Padres Beat Rockies 14-3, to Snap Three-Game Skid  —  SAN DIEGO — Ian Kennedy pitched six solid innings and the San Diego Padres broke a three-game losing streak by thumping the Colorado Rockies, 14-3, on Friday night.  —  Kennedy (1-1), who was rocked for eight runs in his previous outing, rebounded with a solid performance.

Adams Gives Cardinals 2-1 Win Over Pirates in 10 Innings  —  ST. LOUIS — Matt Adams hit a bases-loaded single with two outs in the 10th inning to give the St. Louis Cardinals a 2-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.  —  The Cardinals have won four in a row, and 14 of their last 17 at home against Pittsburgh.

Jon Lester, Addison Russell record firsts in win  —  Friday was a day of firsts for the Cubs.  —  Jon Lester threw seven scoreless innings for his first win, a 1-0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.  Addison Russell hit the first home run of his career, a solo shot in the third inning …

Gibson Pitches 8 Strong Innings, Twins Beat White Sox 1-0  —  MINNEAPOLIS — Kyle Gibson pitched eight strong innings and the Minnesota Twins scored on a wild pitch to beat the Chicago White Sox 1-0 Friday night.  —  Torii Hunter and Kennys Vargas each had two hits for Minnesota, which has won five of its last seven.

Pederson's 1st Career Slam Helps Dodgers Rout D-Backs 8-0  —  LOS ANGELES — Prized rookie Joc Pederson hit his first career grand slam, Andre Ethier and Justin Turner added solo shots and the Los Angeles Dodgers routed the Arizona Diamondbacks 8-0 on Friday night.

Canha Leads 7-Run 8th Inning for A's in 7-5 Win Over Rangers  —  ARLINGTON, Texas — Mark Canha started and ended Oakland's seven-run rally in the eighth inning, and the Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 7-5 on Friday night.  —  Canha led off the inning with a home run.

MLB Fixes the Trea Turner Problem for Everyone Else  —  Over the winter, the Padres, Nationals, and Rays agreed on a big three-way trade that shipped Wil Myers to San Diego, Steven Souza and a bunch of other stuff to Tampa Bay, and a couple of prospects to Washington.