Conforto homers, Matz strong as Mets beat D'backs 5-1  —  PHOENIX (AP) Michael Conforto homered and drove in four runs, Steven Matz pitched effectively into the seventh inning and the New York Mets beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-1 on Saturday night.  —  Conforto lined a three-run homer …

Severino sharp, Stanton and Sanchez HR, Yankees top Rays 4-1  —  NEW YORK (AP) Luis Severino pitched eight sharp innings and also jumped to steal away a popup from catcher Gary Sanchez, leading the New York Yankees over the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1 Saturday.  —  Giancarlo Stanton and Sanchez hit …

Angels, A's seek series win after splitting two games  —  OAKLAND, Calif. — One team already assured of a losing trip and another hoping to avoid a losing homestand meet up for the third straight day looking for a series win when the Los Angeles Angels face the Oakland Athletics on Sunday afternoon.

Hernandez, Kemp homer in Dodgers' 3-2 win over Giants  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) In his low-key way, Ross Stripling thinks of himself as “an unknown guy having a random good year.”  —  Dodgers slugger Matt Kemp, third among National League outfielders in All-Star balloting, hopes …

What Braves said after shutting out Padres  —  The Braves extended their hold on the National League East to 2.5 games with Saturday's 1-0 win over the Padres.  —  Sean Newcomb pitched six scoreless and Charlie Culberson's fifth-inning homer proved the difference.  —  Here's what the Braves said afterward:

Eflin stops Milwaukee again, Phillies slow down Brewers 4-1  —  MILWAUKEE (AP) — Zach Eflin has made all the difference for the Philadelphia Phillies against the National League's top team.  —  Rhys Hoskins and Andrew Knapp hit home runs and Eflin beat the Milwaukee Brewers for the second time in a week …

Cards notebook: Leone ‘turns corner’ in recovery; Bowman returns  —  Cardinals reliever Dominic Leone, whose season has been in question because of nerve trouble in his right arm and biceps, met with a specialist this past week and received encouraging news.  Leone's nerve injury has started to show signs of rejuvenation and recovery.

Manager vows that the Blue Jays won't give up  —  John Gibbons said he has managed, coached and played on teams that have stopped playing hard once they were out of the playoff picture.  —  And the 2018 Blue Jays, the club's manager insisted on Saturday, is not one of them.  —  “Yeah, (some teams) shut it down.

Astros win 10th in row, Keuchel get HR help to beat KC 10-2  —  Houston is now a season-high 22 games over .500.  The Astros had an 11-game win streak last season that ended in Kansas City.  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo.  —  The Houston Astros won their 10th straight game, with Dallas Keuchel …

White Sox catcher Kevan Smith working on nonverbal cues with pitchers  —  White Sox catcher Kevan Smith talks about working with starter Lucas Giolito before playing the Tigers on Saturday, June 16, 2018.  (Phil Thompson/Chicago Tribune)  —  Chicago Tribune

Detroit Tigers paying Miguel Cabrera because of Mike Ilitch's sentiment  —  It was never about money.  Though it's easy to think about the money now, as Miguel Cabrera recovers from surgery that repaired a ruptured biceps tendon, as he misses the rest of the year because of that injury he suffered last week …

Evan Longoria likely out 6-8 weeks for the Giants with fractured hand  —  San Francisco Giants third baseman Evan Longoria is expected to miss six to eight weeks following surgery on his left hand, scheduled for Tuesday.  —  Longoria fractured the fifth metacarpal in the hand in the fourth inning …

Rockies, Rangers look for elusive series win  —  Not much has gone right for Texas in the past week, but three things that the Rangers have been lacking aligned on Saturday to allow them to earn a 5-2 victory over Colorado that snapped a season-long seven-game losing streak.

Yankees are baseball's best and are only going to get better  —  Yankees are baseball's best and are only going to get better.  —  Maybe the big news of the week for the Yankees came on Wednesday night, when somebody else's kid won a game for his team.  —  The kid's name is Juan Soto …

Joe Maddon giving Cubs closer Brandon Morrow plenty of rest  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Brandon Morrow had eight days between appearances before he pitched Saturday against the Cardinals, as Cubs manager Joe Maddon wants to give the closer plenty of rest as the team begins a stretch of 17 games in 17 days.

J.T. Realmuto's 2 home runs, 4 RBI power Marlins past Orioles  —  During a horrid stretch in which the Baltimore Orioles keep finding ways to lose, J.T. Realmuto did his part to extend the downward spiral.  —  Realmuto homered twice and had four RBIs off Alex Cobb, and the Miami Marlins beat the skidding Orioles 5-4 on Saturday.