There's no ducking the numbers: MLB has a bad baseball problem that's only getting worse  —  It's a shame Eddie Gaedel isn't with us anymore.  This is his time to shine.  —  You remember, Gaedel?  He was the 3-foot-7 slugger hired by St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck as a publicity stunt …

Cubs show Dodgers — and everyone else — they're team to beat in NL  —  CHICAGO — Teams don't establish themselves as “the team to beat” on the basis of a regular-season series in baseball, especially one that unfolds over two chilly weekdays in the middle of June.

Cleveland Indians complete three-game sweep of Chicago White Sox with 12-0 win at Progressive Field  —  The Cleveland Indians completed a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox with a 12-0 win at Progressive Field Wednesday.  —  CLEVELAND — Good things happen when the Cleveland Indians …

Brett Gardner held out of Yankees' win, Gleyber Torres nixes Home Run Derby  —  Brett Gardner was wearing a compression brace on his right knee in the clubhouse Wednesday prior to the Yankees' game against the Mariners.  He said he felt “good” enough to play, but manager Aaron Boone still kept …

D-backs open 4-game series in Pittsburgh  —  The Arizona Diamondbacks open a four-game series Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and by the time they move on to Miami, their rotation could look different.  As in, more intact.  —  Right-hander Zack Godley (7-5, 4.77 ERA) …

Free agency checkup: Which stars are adding and losing money?  —  Let's check in on some members of the so-called greatest free-agent class ever — although it's admittedly a little less great given the results and/or injuries of Bryce Harper, Clayton Kershaw and Josh Donaldson …

Former Cubs pitching coach Billy Connors dead at 76  —  Billy Connors (right) with former Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte during spring training in 2010.  (Associated Press) Chicago Tribune  —  Former Cubs pitching coach Billy Connors died Monday at the age of 76.

Giancarlo Stanton walk-off home run caps Yankees' comeback victory  —  NEW YORK — The New York Yankees came back from a five-run deficit in the most Yankee way possible: by hitting home runs.  —  The team, which leads the league in homers by a large margin, hit two of them to walk off …

Phillies minor league report: Walk-off homer sinks IronPigs after late rally  —  Lehigh Valley's last effort at the plate was dashed and Reading busted out with 12 runs on 13 hits, while single-A clubs Clearwater and Williamsport had contrasting nights.  —  Here's a rundown of the Phillies' farm system for Wednesday...

PHILLIES 4, CARDINALS 3  —  PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Odubel Herrera hit a tiebreaking solo homer in the seventh inning, Cesar Hernandez had a two-run shot and Philadelphia beat St. Louis.  —  Herrera ripped a 91 mph slider from Sam Tuivailala (1-3) off the scoreboard on the facing of the second deck …

Brandon Morrow not fretting over people mocking his back injury  —  Cubs closer Brandon Morrow expects to be back in a week from back spasms that landed him on the disabled list (Mark Gonzales)  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Cubs closer Brandon Morrow deserves some credit for telling the truth about his back injury.

Hyphenated battery helps Rangers sweep Royals  —  Rougned Odor homered, and Austin Bibens-Dirkx picked up his first win of the season as the visiting  —  Texas Rangers completed a three-game sweep of the  —  Kansas City Royals with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday night at Kaufmann Stadium.

Rockies spent over $100M to have the worst bullpen in MLB  —  Wise baseball people often say that MLB teams committing millions of dollars to their bullpen can be a recipe for disaster.  Unfortunately for the 2018 Colorado Rockies, they've provided enough evidence to support that theory that it may no longer be open for debate.

The true madness of Max Scherzer  —  Max Scherzer swears he's normal.  The evidence points to the contrary.  —  The day before a recent start in Baltimore, the Washington Nationals' ace plopped himself in front of a laptop at the video table inside the visitors clubhouse.

Marc Topkin's takeaways from Wednesday's Rays-Astros game  —  RHP Nathan Eovaldi said before his rough start Wednesday against the Astros that he was pitching better than his numbers showed.  Well ... In four starts since his six no-hit innings debut, he's 0

Bailey's back with the Cincinnati Reds, but plan remains unclear  —  Homer Bailey was back in the Reds clubhouse Wednesday.  He did not add a whole lot of clarity to his situation.  —  As for an update?  —  “I don't have one,” he said.  “Ask other people.  They know better than I do.”