Byrd Drives in 4, Reds Top Pirates 7-1  —  PITTSBURGH — Marlon Byrd homered and drove in four runs, Todd Frazier belted his National League-leading ninth home run and the Cincinnati Reds handled the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Tuesday night.  —  Byrd hit a two-run shot in the third inning off Jeff Locke …

Confirmed news on Rays' Alex Cobb: Partial tear in elbow, will try to pitch through it  —  Rays RHP Alex Cobb's season is very much in jeopardy.  —  The Tampa Bay Times has learned and confirmed that a new more detailed MRI revealed a partial tear in his elbow ligament.

Cardinals keep the rallies coming  —  Hours before his team found another way to win the improbable with contributions from the unexpected, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny described two different phases of the same club.  There is the team the Cardinals know they are, he said, and the team they dream of being.

Mets: Jeurys Familia relishes new role  —  NEW YORK - When Terry Collins told Jeurys Familia he would be taking over as the team's closer, Familia had a succinct message for his manager.  —  “Just give me the ball,” Familia recalled.  —  Thus far, giving the ball to Familia has turned out to be a successful strategy.

White Sox End 5-Game Slide With 5-2 Victory Over Tigers  —  CHICAGO — Jeff Samardzija pitched seven effective innings, and the Chicago White Sox snapped a five-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night.  —  Back at home after a strange road trip …

Diamondbacks weighing their options at catcher, could pursue Jarrod Saltalamacchia  —  DENVER - The Diamondbacks' bats have been mostly quiet for several days now, although, in fairness, they haven't had a chance to make noise at Coors Field, where the weather remained uncooperativefor a second consecutive day.

Stephen Strasburg leaves after 3rd with apparent shoulder injury  —  11m - MLB STEPHEN STRASBURG WASHINGTON NATIONALS + more

Toronto Blue Jays' Edwin Encarnacion casts doubt on MLB account of alleged physical clash between coach Brook Jacoby, umpire  —  TORONTO - Edwin Encarnacion says he was there in the Fenway Park tunnel when the fracas erupted, and saw everything: the loud, obscenity-laced …

Perez Ends His Debut With Walkoff Homer, Angels Beat M's 5-4  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. — Carlos Perez capped his major league debut with a game-ending homer in the ninth, and the Los Angeles Angels snapped their four-game skid with a 5-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.

It's Not Just the Pitching; Sox Stink With Runners in Scoring Position  —  The Red Sox are back in last place and, yeah, it's really easy to point directly at their subpar pitching as the biggest reason.  But their vaunted lineup has gone south as well during this current homestand …

Mets win, 3-2, over O's as Colon wins fifth game  —  The Mets ended a 21-inning scoreless streak and Bartolo Colon earned his fifth win of the year in a 3-2 win over the Orioles Tuesday at Citi Field.  —  The scoring drought ended in the fourth inning when Lucas Duda's leadoff double …

Hosmer Homer, Vargas Pitching Sends Royals Past Indians, 5-3  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Eric Hosmer hit a three-run homer, Jason Vargas shut down the Indians for the second straight start, and the Kansas City Royals went on to beat Cleveland 5-3 on Tuesday night.