Lorenzo Cain suffers hamstring injury in Royals' 8-4 loss to the Cardinals  —  Royals starter Yordano Ventura allows seven earned runs in five-plus innings  —  Royals drop six games behind American League Central-leading Cleveland Indians  —  A stoic glare formed on Lorenzo Cain's face …

Daniel Hudson believes playoffs aren't ‘impossible’ … When the Diamondbacks returned to Chase Field this week, they were greeted by a white sheet of paper taped to the inside of the main clubhouse door.  Printed on it is an inspirational quote by none other than the late Muhammad Ali.

Cubs use 3 different pitchers as OFs en route to 15-inning win  —  CINCINNATI — The Cubs played three different pitchers in left field in their 15-inning, 7-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday.  Two of them, lefty Travis Wood and righty Spencer Patton, alternated pitching and playing left …

Notes: Market for Cuban free agent Yulieski Gurriel is heating up  —  The infielder has auditioned for the Astros, Dodgers and Mets and other teams are intrigued.  —  Yuki Taguchi  —  No team is openly going to trumpet its pursuit of Cuban free agent Yulieski Gurriel …

Porcello gets 9th win, Red Sox beat Rays to stop 3-game skid … ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Rick Porcello stepped off the mound, gathered his thoughts and went back to work.  —  “I was off a little mechanically.  It was kind of tough for me to regain my focus, so I was doing everything …

Reds option JJ Hoover to Louisville, recall Sampson  —  Less than 12 hours after J.J. Hoover gave up his franchise-record sixth career grand slam, the Reds optioned the struggling reliever to Triple-A Louisville.  —  Right-hander Keyvius Sampson was recalled and will be in the team's bullpen …

Giants Select Ruben Tejada, Place Joe Panik On Concussion DL  —  The Giants have selected the contract of infielder Ruben Tejada, as Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area first tweeted.  To create roster space, the club placed second baseman Joe Panik on the 7-day concussion DL and put Chris Heston on the 60-day DL.

David Ortiz won't participate in Home Run Derby; Mookie Betts also unlikely to join event  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — David Ortiz was tempted, but has decided against it.  —  The Red Sox designated hitter isn't going to participated in the Home Run Derby during Major League Baseball's All-Star Game celebration in San Diego.

Phillies prospect Mark Appel has season-ending elbow surgery  —  PHOENIX — Mark Appel, a Phillies prospect and former first overall pick, underwent season-ending surgery Wednesday to remove a bone spur from his right elbow.  —  Appel, 24, was on the minor-league disabled list with a shoulder injury.

Yankees hoping Carlos Beltran misses just a day or two  —  NEW YORK — Yankees right fielder Carlos Beltran was forced to leave Tuesday's 7-1 loss to the Texas Rangers with what the team called a tight right hamstring.  An MRI revealed no damage, and the Yankees believe Beltran might be out only a day or two.

Giolito impresses in rain-shortened debut as Nats beat Mets … WASHINGTON — Lucas Giolito threw four scoreless innings in his rain-shortened major league debut, and the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 5-0 on Tuesday night.  —  Baseball's top pitching prospect allowed just one hit …

Stewart, Son Of A Scout, Gets The Call  —  The story of Brock Stewart's rise from high Class A to L.A. in less than a year is a good one, from a baseball standpoint.  The story of how one scout father handled his son's looming pro career is a complex one that every son who followed his father into business can understand.

Nationals, Mat Latos Agree To Minor League Deal  —  Free agent right-hander Mat Latos tells Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670 The Score that he's inked a minor league contract with the Nationals, pending a physical (Twitter link).  He'll report to the minors for now if the physical checks out.

Yankees Sign Blake Rutherford  —  The Yankees announced today that they've signed their first-round pick Blake Rutherford.  Terms of the agreement weren't included with the announcement, but MLB.com's Jim Callis reports (on Twitter) that the No. 18 overall selection will receive a significantly over-slot bonus of $3,282,000.

Urias Wins First, Dodgers Edge Brewers 6-5  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSJUNE 28, 2016, 11:55 P.M. E.D.T.  —  MILWAUKEE — Rookie Julio Urias battled through six innings for his first major league victory, Adrian Gonzalez had three hits and the Los Angeles Dodgers hung on for a 6-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night.