MLB RUMORS AND NEWS

Arizona Republic "Paul Goldschmidt clubbed two home runs and added two more hits in the Diamondbacks’ 9-2 rout of the Miami Marlins on Friday night, and perhaps the ultimate compliment for the burgeoning superstar is that no one seemed the least bit surprised. “Every time he goes to the plate,” third baseman..." May 18

SI.com "The New York Yankees have placed veteran left-hander Andy Pettitte on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left trapezious muscle, according to multiple reports. The 40-year-old was forced to exit Thursday’s game against the Seattle Mariners after just 4.2 innings on Thursday. The Yankees have..." May 17

Chicago Tribune "Matt Garza worked six shutout innings Thursday night for Triple-A Des Moines, allowing two hits, walking none and striking out six in a 1-0 win over Tucson. Barring the unexpected, he should make his 2013 Cubs debut next week. “I don’t need another start down here,” Garza said, according to the..." May 17

CSN Philly "The surgery was successful, and Roy Halladay may pitch again this season. But it seems just as possible he may not. Phillies team doctor Michael Ciccotti addressed the media Thursday afternoon to field questions following the team's announcement that Halladay underwent successful..." May 17

MLB.com "As we count down the hours before Jason Heyward returns to the Braves lineup for tonight’s series opener against the Dodgers, can somebody please kindly remind me how to get from Sandy Springs to Turner Field? The Braves have played just six home games since Heyward was placed on the disabled..." May 17

San Francisco Chronicle "The A’s just announced that Brett Anderson has a stress fracture in his right foot and will be re-evaluated again in four weeks, which means he will be out closer to two months, or maybe more, because obviously he will have to go through rehab and build his innings back up. Anderson told me the..." May 17

MLB.com "Second baseman Ian Kinsler is out of the lineup tonight vs Detroit. He has bruised ribs, probably from his awkward slide into 3rd base during the first inning of last night’s game. Leury Garcia will play second base tonight." May 17

MLB.com "Right fielder Jayson Werth was scheduled to play for Class A Potomac on Thursday, but he went to see his doctor in New York because he felt tightness in his right hamstring. However, Werth is expected to get a rehab start for Potomac on Friday and stay with the team a few more days, which means..." May 17

Boston Herald "Trailing 3-1 and down to their final strike in the ninth inning, the Red Sox scored three runs on Will Middlebrooks’ bases-loaded double against Tampa Bay Rays closer Fernando Rodney. But if not for a pair of stellar catches by right fielder Shane Victorino in the eighth, the game may have been..." May 17

Dallas Morning News "Catcher A.J. Pierzynski is on track to return to the active roster from a strained oblique muscle Tuesday, the first day he is eligible. Pierzynski took batting practice on the field Thursday for the first time since going on the DL on May 10, retroactive to May 6. The tentative schedule is for..." May 17

North Jersey "A few days ago, Mets manager Terry Collins was asked if he would consider using newly acquired outfielder Rick Ankiel as a pitcher if he needed an arm to spell his taxed bullpen. Collins mentioned not just Ankiel, but also first baseman Ike Davis and backup catcher Anthony Recker as potential..." May 17

Fort Worth Star-Telegram "The ballyhooed Justin Verlander-Yu Darvish matchup Thursday night looked nothing like a duel between two anticipated Cy Young contenders. Instead, the opener of the four-game weekend series between the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers resembled a Willie Blair-Mark Clark from 1999. Except..." May 17

L.A. Daily News "Mike Scioscia jinxed it. "I think we have guys down there right now who can hold leads if we get 'em," the Angels manager said Thursday. "We just haven't got enough of them to really let those guys impact our record the way they can." A few hours later, Scioscia pulled starting pitcher..." May 17

Boston Herald "Will Middlebrooks’ slump finally died last night. It happened at about 10:30 p.m., so you probably missed it, considering the Bruins were thundering away in overtime back home. But down to his last strike, and with the Red Sox trailing by two runs with two outs in the ninth inning, Middlebrooks..." May 17

Miami Herald "On the eve of Heath Bell’s return to South Florida, the pitcher who took the place of the much-reviled closer in the Marlins bullpen brought back memories of his predecessor. Steve Cishek coughed it up Thursday in a 5-3 loss to Cincinnati. Just after the Marlins rallied in the ninth to tie..." May 17

L.A. Daily News "Maybe it's the Miami in Paco Rodriguez, where endless sweltering days turn into long balmy nights until all you know is heat. Stick around long enough and your body adjusts to the conditions. Pretty soon what might seem scorching to everyone else seems normal to you. Maybe that explains why..." May 17

CBSSports.com "The Rays have placed left-hander David Price on the 15-day DL with a left triceps strain, the team announced. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner left last Wednesday night's start with triceps tightness. Price, 27, is visiting the DL for the first time in his career. He'd thrown at least 200..." May 16

Bombers Beat "Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte was forced to leave his start against the Mariners on Thursday after 79 pitches with an apparent undisclosed injury. Pettitte appeared to stiffen and wince after throwing his final pitch, a swinging strikeout of Kyle Seager for the second out of the fifth..." May 16

Foxsports.com "Did you really expect baseball commissioner Bud Selig to stand before the cameras Thursday and declare that, effective immediately, every pitch is subject to instant replay? Of course you didn’t. You’re a baseball fan. You understand your sport. You know it isn’t perfect. You also know that, in..." May 16

Washington Times "Feeling some slight tightness in his strained right hamstring, Washington Nationals right fielder Jayson Werth traveled to New York on Thursday to visit with the team’s specialist and get the issue examined. His expected return from the disabled list on Saturday will likely be delayed a few days,..." May 16

Hardball Talk "We already knew that Joel Hanrahan was having season-ending surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his right forearm, but doctors didn’t rule out the possibility that he would also require Tommy John surgery. Well, the worst-case scenario played out today. Hanrahan’s agent, Mike Dillon,..." May 16

Atlanta Journal-Constitution "Braves reliever Jonny Venters underwent a second ligament transplant surgery on his pitching elbow Thursday in Pensacola, Fla. A visit to Dr. James Andrews confirmed he would need “Tommy John” surgery to repair his ulnar collateral ligament, the same surgery Venters had after his 2005 season in..." May 16

Dallas Morning News "The Texas Rangers announced that Alexi Ogando has been placed on the disabled list with right biceps tendinitis, and are recalling right-handed reliever Cory Burns from Triple A Round Rock. Josh Lindblom, who is at Round Rock, will be recalled on Monday to start when Ogando's turn in the..." May 16

Detroit News "The Tigers four-game weekend series against the Rangers is a matchup of first-place teams. And fittingly, the opener features two of the premier pitchers — Tigers ace Justin Verlander (4-3, 1.93 ERA), who has led the American League in strikeouts three of the past four seasons, against Rangers..." May 16

CBSSports.com "Reid Ryan, son of the legendary Nolan Ryan and an accomplished businessman in his own right, appears in line to replace George Postolos as Astros president, sources told CBSSports.com. Ryan was first reported to be a "strong candidate'' for the top Astros job by FOX 26 Sports in Houston, and..." May 16

New York Times "The Mets, starting to suffocate under the burden of losing, found relief Thursday afternoon. Whether their 5-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals represents a building block or just a reprieve from their misery will be determined over time. Regardless, it was sorely needed, as they avoided a..." May 16

Tacoma News Tribune "Tuesday’s sixth inning brought on one of the Mariners’ worst nightmares: a grimace on Felix Hernandez’s face. Hernandez said he felt a “pinch” in his lower back, which has bothered him on occasion this season, when he turned and threw to second. Shifting his weight from one side to the other..." May 16

Washington Post "Wednesday in the ninth inning, two nights after he tested the structural integrity of the right field wall at Dodger Stadium, Bryce Harper hopped out of the dugout and stood in the on-deck circle. He had not talked his way into the game; Manager Davey Johnson simply sent him up to pinch..." May 16

CSN Chicago "Carlos Marmol found himself in the middle of another perfect Internet storm, denying a report that he wants out of Chicago. The Cubs had their version of Spygate on Wednesday, when Marmol met with his agent, Paul Kinzer, in the lobby of his apartment building. A fan eavesdropped on the..." May 16

MLB.com "Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira is pleased by his progress as he works his way back from a torn tendon sheath in his right wrist, and he hopes to rejoin the big league squad by the end of the month. "It's great -- I couldn't be happier with my rehab," Teixeira said. "I'm looking at the end..." May 16

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "The Milwaukee Brewers will have a new yet familiar face in their bullpen for their series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. Veteran right-hander Francisco Rodriguez will be selected from Class AAA Nashville on Thursday, culminating a month-long tryout of sorts that saw "K-Rod"..." May 16

L.A. Daily News "With Zack Greinke back in the fold for the Dodgers, his stint on the disabled list ending a month sooner than expected, someone had to come off the 25-man roster to make room for him. That someone turned out to be starter Josh Beckett, whose nagging left groin landed him on the disabled list..." May 16

San Diego Union-Tribune "If you want to get to know the real Stephen Strasburg, you do not put him on a podium, conference call or radio show. You don’t write him an email or send him a text, and you certainly don’t shove a microphone in his face. No, if you want to get to know the real Stephen Strasburg, you simply..." May 16

Cincinnati Enquirer "No. 1 starter Johnny Cueto will return to the Reds’ rotation Monday against the Mets in New York. Cueto has been on the disabled list since April 15 with a lat strain. He went five shutout innings Tuesday night for Single-A Dayton in his second rehab start. He allowed three hits, walked none..." May 16

Newark Star-Ledger "Zack Wheeler visited doctors today in New York after reporting soreness around his right clavicle Monday and doctors did not find structural damage, his agent told The Star-Ledger. "All good," Wheeler's agent Al Goetz said via text message. "No structural damage." Wheeler pitched on for..." May 16

Los Angeles Times "Arte Moreno has placed blame for the team's brutal 2013 start, its failure to make the playoffs for three straight years and several high-priced moves that have paid minimal dividends on the one person the Angels owner can't fire: Himself. "If you're going to blame anyone, you've got to..." May 16

ESPN.com "Trying to add depth to their injury-ravaged rotation, the Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to a minor-league deal with pitcher Jonathan Sanchez. Sanchez, 30, will report to Triple-A Albuquerque, but has an opt-out clause in the deal if he's not in the major leagues on July 1. The signing was..." May 16

L.A. Daily News "Zack Greinke recently sent Dodgers manager Don Mattingly a text message gauging his fitness level before taking the mound for the first time since fracturing his left clavicle last month against the Padres. The gist being, Greinke was more than ready to compete but expecting him to be in..." May 16

Seattle Times "There come times in every game where one swing can decide the outcome, and this particular moment was staring Raul Ibanez in the face. And Ibanez, as he did so often in the home team's uniform here a year ago, settled this Wednesday night affair for the Mariners before his squad's pitcher even..." May 16

Toronto Star "The San Francisco Giants must be happy their lone trip across the border this year is a short one after the back-to-back thrashings they received from the Blue Jays. Suffice to say the reigning World Series champs would be fine if they never saw the Rogers Centre and its artificial turf ever..." May 16

Boston Herald "John Farrell was aware of the numbers. Entering last night, the Red Sox had scored only 36 runs on 91 hits in their last 11 games. As a team, the Sox batted .244 with a .310 on-base percentage. And Tuesday night, they went 1-for-26 after David Ortiz’ first-inning home run. But Farrell is a..." May 16

Chicago Tribune "Not many people expected the Cubs to compete this year, so their 17-23 record 40 games into the season is no surprise. Even fewer thought they would go into the middle of May with only two combined victories from Jeff Samardzija and Edwin Jackson, the Nos. 1-2 pitchers in the rotation. The..." May 16

Dayton Daily News "Shin-Soo Choo's first home run landed in the nightclub beyond the left-field fence, catching by surprise revelers distracted by the Miami Heat on TV. His second homer dropped into the right-field bullpen amid Marlins relievers, who saw ball coming. Clearing the hard-to-reach fence both ways,..." May 16

Kansas City Star "A seven-run third inning and an eight-run lead and, still, it seemed like the Royals had to hang on all night Wednesday before securing a 9-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. It shouldn’t be this hard, right? “It never felt comfortable because their lineup kept turning..." May 16

St. Louis Post-Dispatch "Shelby Miller wasn’t perfect like he was for the final 27 hitters he faced last Friday. But, even with modest imperfections, he pitched shutout ball again Wednesday night against the New York Mets. This time, however, it was for only 5 2/3 innings and not nine. When Rick Ankiel, a Cardinals..." May 16

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Away from the cramped quarters of Miller Park, Wandy Rodriguez got his revenge. Rodriguez, three starts removed from a poor outing on the road against the Milwaukee Brewers, shut them down with seven strong innings in the Pirates' 3-1 win Wednesday night at PNC Park. Rodriguez (4-2)..." May 16