Nationals return to division play vs. Braves (Jun 12, 2017)  —  WASHINGTON — It has been nearly three weeks since the Washington Nationals played a divisional opponent in the National League East.  —  Since May 23, the Nationals have faced three American League teams that they will see just once this year …

As Mets begin to get healthy, focus must be on staying that way  —  ATLANTA — Maybe the Mets are starting to put this season back together.  It looked like that Sunday, when Seth Lugo returned from the disabled list to give the Mets their fourth quality start of the series.

Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez power duo could be something special for Yankees  —  We saw Gary Sanchez crush 20 home runs during an eye-opening 53-game binge at the end of last season, thinking we'd never witness a feat like that from a local rookie again.  —  We've seen Aaron Judge reach 21 …

Dodgers storm back against Raisel Iglesias to sweep Reds  —  LOS ANGELES - For the second game in a row, Corey Seager killed the Cincinnati Reds.  —  Saturday night, he'd tallied his first-ever walk-off hit to clinch the game for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  Less than 24 hours later …

Chris Sale, Boston Red Sox sail past Detroit Tigers  —  BOSTON — On a night when neither Boston's Chris Sale nor Detroit's Justin Verlander had dominant stuff, the Red Sox and Tigers spent most of the night trading leads after timely hits.  —  Mitch Moreland's hit proved to be the timeliest.

Giants break out of offensive funk with 13-8 win over Twins  —  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco Giants busted out of their offensive slump without a couple of key players.  —  Buster Posey led the way.  —  Posey had three hits and four RBIs, Hunter Pence added three doubles and scored three times …

Draft Notes: Twins, Reds, Rays, Braves  —  A day before the start of the 2017 MLB Draft, here are the current rumblings.  — The Twins look likely to select Vanderbilt righty Kyle Wright or Louisville two-way player Brendan McKay with the first overall pick, John Manuel of Baseball America writes …

Ivan Nova, Elias Diaz help Pittsburgh Pirates to 3-1 win over Miami Marlins  —  PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates veteran pitcher Ivan Nova had a talk with catcher Elias Diaz before Sunday's game.  Not to give the rookie some pointers or make demands but to offer some assurance.  —  “Just call the game.

Donaldson's homer leads Blue Jays to 4-0 win over Mariners  —  SEATTLE (AP) — Over three days that felt more like home games, the Toronto Blue Jays got depth from its starting pitching and — of course — another handful of home runs to find themselves back on the cusp of finally reaching the break-even mark.

Analytics Peg Hiura As Top College Performer  —  Scouts rank UC Irvine's Keston Hiura among the top college bats in this year's draft class.  The numbers also assert that he is the best.  Hiura produced at a rate, as measured by park-adjusted weighted runs created plus (wRC+), that surpasses all Division I batters.

Astros' Carlos Correa is driven to become the best player in the game  —  You're Carlos Correa, and this all started on Draft Day 2012.  —  You weren't the consensus No. 1 pick coming out of the Puerto Rican Baseball Academy.  There was no consensus No. 1 that year, no Bryce Harper, no Steven Strasburg.

Top 10 Prospects: June 12  —  Here's a look at the updated top 10 prospects for the 2017 season.  —  2017 stats: 51 G, .278/.372/.434, 36 R, 6 2B, 2 3B, 7 HR,19 RBI, 31 BB, 66 K, 13 SB at Triple-A Charlotte.  —  Since coming off the disabled list, Moncada is hitting .161/.314/.286 with 21 strikeouts in 70 plate appearances.

What if Loria doesn't end up selling the Marlins?  —  It's the nightmare scenario being whispered around the Miami Marlins, like a murmur, the groan of water through an old pipe:  —  What if Jeffrey Loria doesn't sell?  —  What if he keeps the team?  —  Because while negotiations …

Back injury could send Dodgers' Gonzalez back to disabled list  —  Adrian Gonzalez could be headed back to the disabled list after he said his back “started locking up” on him over the weekend.  —  Gonzalez said he would undergo an MRI examination Monday.  He said he is playing with a herniated disk.