Blue Jays Option Aaron Sanchez To Minors  —  In a surprise move, the Blue Jays have optioned one of the American League's best starters, right-hander Aaron Sanchez, to Single-A Dunedin, reports Shi Davidi of Sportsnet (Twitter link).  To take Sanchez's roster spot, the club recalled left …

Forsythe Homers in Return, Rays Beat Rangers 8-4  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Logan Forsythe homered after missing four games due to back spasms, and the Tampa Bay Rays took two of three from the AL West-leading Texas Rangers with an 8-4 victory on Sunday.  —  Forsythe hit an opposite-field …

How Danny Duffy became the Royals' next homegrown ace  —  The pitch began as an experiment, a curious blend of desperation and preservation, a pitcher looking for something to spark a career.  It was a quiet afternoon last October, during the early days of the American League Championship Series …

Astros To Promote Yulieski Gurriel  —  Over a month after signing him to a five-year, $47.5MM contract, the Astros will promote infielder Yulieski Gurriel to the majors Sunday, reports Julia Morales of ROOT Sports (Twitter link).  —  [RELATED: Updated Astros Depth Chart]

Ortiz homers after being honored to lead Red Sox past Tigers … DETROIT — The Detroit Tigers honored David Ortiz with a pregame ceremony that included two of his closest friends in baseball.  —  It didn't help.  —  Ortiz's two-run homer in the fifth inning turned out to be the difference …

Marlins Activate A.J. Ramos From DL  —  The Marlins have activated closer A.J. Ramos from the 15-day disabled list and optioned right-hander Brian Ellington to Triple-A New Orleans, tweets Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.  Ramos landed on the DL Aug. 9 (retroactive to Aug. 6) with a finger injury …

Braves slugger Freeman out with injured finger  —  Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman didn't play Sunday against the Nationals after he had a painkiller injection for his right middle finger following Saturday's game.  —  “It's been hurting since spring training,” Freeman said.  “I've been grinding it out.

Bats overcome Stephenson's struggles, delays  —  In a game that seemed like it would never end, the Louisville Bats rallied past rival Indianapolis for an 11-7 win Saturday night at Slugger Field.  —  The game started around 6 p.m. and ended just a few minutes shy of midnight, due primarily to a 2:40 minute rain delay.

Yelich Hits Early Homer as Marlins Top Pirates 3-2 for Sweep  —  PITTSBURGH — Christian Yelich homered in the first inning, Miami added a pair of unearned runs and the Marlins rallied past the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-2 Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.  —  Jose Urena (2-4) …

Ray Fans 13, Yields 1 Hit in 7 Innings as D-Backs Top Padres  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSAUG. 21, 2016, 12:06 A.M. E.D.T.  —  SAN DIEGO — Robbie Ray struck out a career-high 13 and gave up just one hit in seven innings, pitching the Arizona Diamondbacks past the San Diego Padres 2-1 Saturday night.

Quintana Wins 10th, Abreu Homers to Lead White Sox Past A's  —  CHICAGO — Jose Quintana pitched into the eighth innings to earn a career-best 10th win and Jose Abreu homered for the second straight game to lead the Chicago White Sox to a 4-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics on Sunday.

Leake Strong, Cardinals Hit 4 Homers to Rout Phillies  —  PHILADELPHIA — Mike Leake pitched seven strong innings and hit a two-run single and the St. Louis Cardinals homered four times Sunday to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 9-0.  —  Jedd Gyorko, Stephen Piscotty, Brandon Moss and Jeremy Hazelbaker went deep.