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5:45 PM ET, April 20, 2017

Ballbug

 Top News: 
Associated Press:
Fowler, Leake lead Cardinals past Marte-less Pirates 2-1  —  ST. LOUIS (AP) — Mike Leake doesn't have too many secrets on the mound.  For the Cardinals right-hander, location is everything.  —  Leake owned the strike zone while pitching into the seventh inning, Dexter Fowler tripled and scored …
RELATED:
Bucky Dent / UPI:
Mike Leake, St. Louis Cardinals shut down Pittsburgh Pirates  —  ST. LOUIS — Like most of his St. Louis Cardinals teammates, closer Seung Hwan Oh hasn't been at his best in the first two-plus weeks of the season.  —  On Tuesday night, Oh struggled again, but found a way out of a difficult spot …
Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Peralta finds playing time scarce as Cards turn to Garcia and Gyorko  —  Photo by Chris Lee, clee@post-dispatch.com  —  The wrong turn the Cardinals took on their most recent road trip spurred some changes to the lineup that put third baseman Jhonny Peralta in the backseat …
Bucky Dent / UPI:
Matt Carpenter, Dexter Fowler fuel St. Louis Cardinals in sweep of Pittsburgh Pirates
Discussion: MLB on Yahoo! Sports
Associated Press:
Bruce powers Mets past Phillies 5-4 to stop 4-game slide … NEW YORK — Those pointed boos last summer at Citi Field have turned into a chorus of “Bruuuuce!”  —  Jay Bruce homered twice and drove in five runs , including a tiebreaking shot in the eighth inning that sent the New York Mets …
RELATED:
Marc Carig / Newsday:
Jay Bruce carries Mets with pair of homers, 5 RBIs to beat Phillies … The rumble in the stands would not cease.  The drizzle had thinned out the crowd on a chilly Wednesday night and Citi Field sat only a quarter full.  But the noise was enough for Jay Bruce to sense in the dugout.
Discussion: MLB Trade Rumors
Chris Iseman / NorthJersey.com:   Bruce hits 2 homers to lift Mets past Phillies
Max Gelman / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Preview: Cardinals at Brewers  —  CARDINALS AT MILWAUKEE  —  SCOUTING REPORT  • Coming off their sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Cardinals travel to Milwaukee to face another division foe in a four-game series.  The starting pitching appears to be on a roll while the offense continues …
RELATED:
Bradford DoolittleESPN / ESPN:
How is free swinger Eric Thames crushing his second act?  —  Here is a myopically male perspective: In life, there is a natural progression from youthful aggression to the patience of maturity.  In fact, it could be argued that those are the defining traits of those particular phases of life.
Discussion: Minor League Ball
Greg Auman / UPI:
Tampa Bay Rays edge Detroit Tigers on wild final play in ninth inning  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — On a night where defensive miscues hurt both teams, the Detroit Tigers made the last mistake with a two-out throwing error in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Tampa Bay Rays a wild 8-7 victory Wednesday night at Tropicana Field.
Discussion: Fox Sports and DRaysBay
USA Today:
Minor League report: Braves' Aaron Blair must earn way to big leagues  —  Left-handed pitcher Tom Glavine was 22 when he lost 17 games for the Atlanta Braves in 1988.  He had been a second-round pick of the Braves in 1984, the 47th player taken overall.  The 1988 season was his first full season in the majors.
Associated Press:
Indians-Twins rained out in advance; makeup date is June 17  —  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The rain gave the Minnesota Twins a reprieve from their three-game losing streak.  They caught a break with Cleveland's rearranged rotation, too.  —  The Twins will take what they can get.
RELATED:
ESPN:
Brian Dozier sees a plan in every puzzle
Discussion: Twinkie Town and MLB Trade Rumors
Brian Hall / UPI:
Cleveland Indians finding groove, rout Minnesota Twins
Pedro Moura / Los Angeles Times:
Angels in the outfield struggle in 5-1 loss to the Houston Astros  —  The Angels played an usually high number of spring-training games this year, 34, and young power hitter Jefry Marte started 20 of them.  But they did not manage to get him even one inning in left field all spring, after testing him there to poor results last season.
Discussion: MLB on Yahoo! Sports
RELATED:
MLB on Yahoo! Sports:
Keuchel, Reddick lead Astros to 5-1 win over Angels
Discussion: The Crawfish Boxes
Bill Shaikin / Los Angeles Times:
Clayton Kershaw rips Rockies' Tyler Anderson after Dodgers' 4-2 win  —  As Dave Roberts spoke with reporters Wednesday afternoon, the Dodgers had played 15 games this season.  They had 147 to play, and yet the Dodgers manager actually used the words “must win.”
Corey Seidman / CSN Philly:
Phillies call up pitching prospect Ben Lively; paternity leave for Pat Neshek  —  Another Phillies pitching prospect is on his way to The Show.  —  Right-hander Ben Lively, who is 12-6 with a 3.15 ERA and 0.93 WHIP for Lehigh Valley since the start of 2016, was recalled from Triple A.
Discussion: Minor League Ball
Nick Wass / Washington Post:
Redskins to host first Thanksgiving game in franchise history  —  For the first time in franchise history, the Washington Redskins will host a Thanksgiving Day game.  The New York Giants come to FedEx Field on Nov. 23, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
Discussion: FanRag Sports and ProFootballTalk
 
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 More News: 
Matt Snyder / CBSSports.com:
MLB Power Rankings: Blue Jays and Cardinals dig a hole and there's a new No. 1
Stefan Stevenson / Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
Rangers in need of turnaround after rough road trip out West
Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune:
White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana on his Jimmy Fallon segment: 'I'll keep pitching'
Jake Mailhot / Lookout Landing:
Taylor Motter, the man with a plan
Discussion: U.S.S. Mariner
John Jackson / MLB on Yahoo! Sports:
Schwarber, Cubs rally past Brewers to snap 4-game skid
Discussion: Brew Crew Ball and ESPN
ESPN:
Ichiro Suzuki: Had to ‘pinch myself’ after ninth-inning HR at Safeco
 Earlier Picks: 
Fox News:
Tomas, Miller way too much for Padres as D-backs win 3rd straight
CSNNE.com:
Red Sox-Blue Jays lineups: Porcello looks to get back on track
Mark Gonzales / Chicago Tribune:
Cubs headed toward another decision on Tommy La Stella and Matt Szczur
Alex Butler / UPI:
Phillies' Buchholz having surgery Tuesday, could miss five months
 

 
From WeSmirch:

Miranda Siwak / Us Weekly:
50 Cent Is ‘Going for Sole Custody’ of His Son With Daphne Joy After She Was Named in Diddy Lawsuit (Exclusive)

Jeff Conway / Forbes:
Olivia Colman Reflects On Her Beloved Career: ‘I Have Been Very Lucky’

People:
Rebel Wilson Says She ‘Got More Attention for Weight Loss Than Any Movie’ She'd Ever Done: ‘People Are Intrigued’ (Exclusive)

 
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