A look at what's happening around the majors today:WELCOME BACKStar second baseman Dustin Pedroia is set to be activated by the Red Sox after missing Boston's first 50 games while recovering from knee surgery. Manager Alex Cora says Pedroia will come off the disabled list for a weekend series at Fenway Park against Atlanta and will start one of the first two games.Pedroia's return to the AL East leaders will come exactly seven months after cartilage-restoration surgery on his left knee. The 34-year-old former AL MVP went 1 for 14 in a five-game rehab assignment at Triple-A Pawtucket.SKIDDINGThe Diamondbacks have lost seven in a row and 13 of 14, scoring a total of just 26 runs in that span and dropping out of the NL West lead. Slugger Paul Goldschmidt, an All-Star in each of the last five seasons, is batting .200 and has only four RBIs in his last 34 games. Arizona hopes for better results all around when Patrick Corbin (4-1, 2.60 ERA) starts a weekend series at Oakland.FAST STARTPittsburgh... [More]

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Chicago White Sox left-hander Carlos Rodon was removed from a minor league rehab start Thursday after being hit in the forehead by a line drive.Rodon was pitching for Triple-A Charlotte as he works back from offseason shoulder surgery. He fell to the ground, but bounced up quickly after being struck by D'Arby Myers' comebacker in the third inning.Rodon removed his hat and checked his forehead for blood — he didn't appear to be bleeding — as a team trainer ran to the mound. He seemed to want to remain in the game, but was led off by the trainer.The 25-year-old Rondon struck out six in 2 2/3 scoreless innings. It was his second minor league rehab outing and first at Triple-A.Third baseman Jake Elmore made an impressive over-the-shoulder catch on the play after the ball deflected off Rodon's head and behind third base.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

CLEVELAND (AP) — Charlie Morton remained unbeaten this season with six solid innings, Alex Bregman and Jake Marisnick hit three-run homers and the Houston Astros defeated the Cleveland Indians 8-2 on Thursday night.Morton (7-0) allowed two runs and five hits while extending his career-best winning streak to 10 games. The right-hander, who moved into a tie for the AL lead in wins, hasn't lost since Sept. 9, 2017, against Oakland. He walked three and struck out five.Morton fell behind after Michael Brantley's two-run single in the third, but his offense gave him plenty of support. Houston scored three runs in the fifth and added five in the sixth to put the game away.Mike Clevinger (3-2) opened with four scoreless innings, but couldn't hold a 2-0 lead in the fifth. Bregman capped the inning with his fifth homer over the 19-foot high wall in left field that put Houston ahead. He added an RBI double in the sixth.ORIOLES 9, WHITE SOX 3CHICAGO (AP) — Dylan Bundy struck out a career-high 14 and... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Charlie Morton remained unbeaten this season with six solid innings, Alex Bregman and Jake Marisnick hit three-run homers and the Houston Astros defeated the Cleveland Indians 8-2 on Thursday night.Morton (7-0) allowed two runs and five hits while extending his career-best winning streak to 10 games. The right-hander, who moved into a tie for the AL lead in wins, hasn't lost since Sept. 9, 2017, against Oakland. He walked three and struck out five.Morton fell behind after Michael Brantley's two-run single in the third, but his offense gave him plenty of support. Houston scored three runs in the fifth and added five in the sixth to put the game away.Mike Clevinger (3-2) opened with four scoreless innings, but couldn't hold a 2-0 lead in the fifth. Bregman capped the inning with his fifth homer over the 19-foot high wall in left field that put Houston ahead. He added an RBI double in the sixth.ORIOLES 9, WHITE SOX 3CHICAGO (AP) — Dylan Bundy struck out a career-high 14 and... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — From across the diamond, Kansas City closer Kelvin Herrera marveled at the oldest player in the major leagues — Texas pitcher Bartolo Colon, who turned 45 Thursday."I used to have pictures of him in my bedroom," Herrera recalled of his countryman, from his teenage days in the Dominican Republic. "He was my idol."Colon is pitching for his 11th big league club, having signed a minor league free-agent contract with Texas during spring training. He has made 10 appearances with the Rangers, including eight starts, and is 2-2 with a 3.51 ERA.Colon's 242 career wins rank 55th all time. He's one win short of tying Juan Marichal for the most career victory for a pitcher from the Dominican Republic."He's 45 and he's pitching and he does it very well," Rangers manager Jeff Banister said.Colon's practice is to speak to the media only after his starts. He's scheduled to start Saturday night against the Royals.Listed at 5-foot-11 and 280 pounds, Colon was given the nickname "Big... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Friday:WELCOME BACKStar second baseman Dustin Pedroia is set to be activated by the Red Sox after missing Boston's first 50 games while recovering from knee surgery. Manager Alex Cora says Pedroia will come off the disabled list for a weekend series at Fenway Park against Atlanta and will start one of the first two games.Pedroia's return to the AL East leaders will come exactly seven months after cartilage-restoration surgery on his left knee. The 34-year-old former AL MVP went 1 for 14 in a five-game rehab assignment at Triple-A Pawtucket.SKIDDINGThe Diamondbacks have lost seven in a row and 13 of 14, scoring a total of just 26 runs in that span and dropping out of the NL West lead. Slugger Paul Goldschmidt, an All-Star in each of the last five seasons, is batting .200 and has only four RBIs in his last 34 games. Arizona hopes for better results all around when Patrick Corbin (4-1, 2.60 ERA) starts a weekend series at Oakland.FAST STARTPittsburgh... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Dylan Bundy struck out a career-high 14 and pitched a two-hitter for his second complete game in the majors, helping the Baltimore Orioles beat the Chicago White Sox 9-3 on Thursday.Adam Jones and Trey Mancini hit solo home runs as Baltimore took a 9-0 lead after three innings. Jones and Manny Machado each had three hits, and Chance Sisco drove in three runs for the last-place Orioles. They won for just the third time in nine games and improved to 6-21 on the road.Jose Rondon hit a three-run homer with two outs in the fourth for the first hit off Bundy. It was Rondon's second career homer and second in two days.Earlier in the day, White Sox catcher Welington Castillo was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance. The commissioner's office cited use of Erythropoietin (EPO).Bundy (3-6) had been roughed up in losing four of five previous starts, but sparkled once again in an afternoon contest. The 25-year-old... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Star second baseman Dustin Pedroia will be activated by the Red Sox on Friday after missing Boston's first 50 games while recovering from knee surgery.Manager Alex Cora said Thursday that Pedroia will come off the disabled list for a weekend series at Fenway Park against Atlanta.Pedroia's return to the AL East leaders will come exactly seven months after cartilage-restoration surgery on his left knee. He played his final game for Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday, finishing 1 for 14 in his five-game rehab assignment."He's saving his hits for Fenway," Cora joked. "He was able to track pitches, and he had seven- and eight-pitch at-bats, so he'll be fine. The fact that he was able to play today, full-out, with no concerns, that's good enough for me."The 34-year-old Pedroia is in his 13th season with the Red Sox. He was the American League MVP in 2008 and ranks sixth among all Red Sox hitters in doubles (394) and stolen bases (138), and eighth in hits (1,802) and total... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays bullpen day is now a three-day affair.Rays manager Kevin Cash announced Thursday that reliever Sergio Romo is scheduled to start Friday night and Sunday against Baltimore, and Ryne Stanek is set to face the Orioles on Saturday.Tampa Bay planned to begin the regular season with four starting pitchers and have one bullpen day, but Nathan Eovaldi hurt his surgically repaired right elbow in his last spring training start. Another starter, Jake Faria, could miss six to eight weeks after straining his left oblique Tuesday."We're not trying to do anything that's cute," Cash said. "We're trying to do something that's right for us to win games."Romo, who had only pitched in relief in 588 games, started games last Saturday and Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels. He pitched one inning the first time, then 1 1/3 scoreless innings."Hey guys, I'm starting again," a smiling Romo said. "It's fun. We're trying to win ballgames. I'm going to try and do my best to make them look like geniuses."The Rays split the two previous games Romo started.Eovaldi is expected to join the rotation next Monday or Tuesday after coming back from a procedure to remove loose bodies in the elbow that has undergone two Tommy John surgeries. He last pitch in the majors August 10, 2016, for the New York Yankees.

TORONTO (AP) — The Los Angeles Angels are pushing back Shohei Ohtani's next outing as a starting pitcher to manage the workload of the two-way rookie, meaning he'll miss a much-anticipated showdown at Yankee Stadium against Masahiro Tanaka.Angels manager Mike Scioscia made the announcement before Thursday's 8-1 win over the Blue Jays.Ohtani is 4-1 with a 3.35 ERA in seven starts. The 23-year-old had been scheduled to pitch against his Japanese countryman on Sunday — Scioscia said Ohtani will be available to hit against Tanaka.Ohtani said he didn't mind missing out on the chance to pitch against Tanaka."Not so disappointed because I have a pretty good chance of facing him as a hitter," Ohtani said through a translator after the Angels' 8-1 win. "Either way, I'll get to face him."The Angels haven't set a date for Ohtani's next outing.Ohtani last pitched May 20 against Tampa Bay, winning his second straight decision and giving up two runs and six hits in a season-high 7 2/3 innings. The right-hander... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball on Thursday following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance.The commissioner's office cited use of EPO. Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates the red-blood cell production and often turns up in test results for cyclists.Castillo apologized in a statement through the players' union, saying he has "let many people down." He pointed to an "extremely poor decision that I, and I alone, made. I take full responsibility for my conduct."General manager Rick Hahn told reporters on Thursday that he learned of the suspension on Wednesday night as the White Sox pounded Baltimore 11-1."Obviously we were surprised, saddened and disappointed to learn of Welington's suspension." Hahn said. "He certainly has stood up and accepted responsibility for his actions. It doesn't change the fact that it's disappointing."I've gone through a lot of emotions over the last several hours,"... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball on Thursday following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance.The commissioner's office cited use of EPO. Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates the red-blood cell production and often turns up in test results for cyclists.Castillo apologized in a statement through the players' union, saying he has "let many people down." He pointed to an "extremely poor decision that I, and I alone, made. I take full responsibility for my conduct."General manager Rick Hahn told reporters on Thursday that he learned of the suspension on Wednesday night as the White Sox pounded Baltimore 11-1."Obviously we were surprised, saddened and disappointed to learn of Welington's suspension." Hahn said. "He certainly has stood up and accepted responsibility for his actions. It doesn't change the fact that it's disappointing."I've gone through a lot of emotions over the last several hours,"... [More]

TORONTO (AP) — The Los Angeles Angels are pushing back Shohei Ohtani's next outing as a starting pitcher to manage the workload of the two-way rookie.Angels manager Mike Scioscia made the announcement Thursday.Ohtani is 4-1 with a 3.35 ERA in seven starts. He had been scheduled to pitch against fellow Japanese right-hander Masahiro Tanaka at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. Scioscia said Ohtani will be available to hit against Tanaka.The Angels haven't set a date for Ohtani's next outing.Ohtani last pitched May 20 against Tampa Bay, winning his second straight decision and giving up two runs and six hits in a season-high 7 2/3 innings. His 110 pitches were also a season-high.Ohtani has started at designated hitter the past two games, hitting a tying two-run single in the ninth inning of Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Blue Jays. He's the DH again in Thursday's afternoon finale.In 26 games as a DH this season, Ohtani is batting .308 with six home runs and 19 RBIs.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Twins have reinstated third baseman Miguel Sano from the disabled list after he missed the last 24 games with a strained left hamstring.The Twins sent outfielder Jake Cave on Thursday to Triple-A Rochester.Sano went 6 for 16 with two homers and three walks on a five-game rehab assignment at Rochester. Before he was hurt, Sano batted just .213 with five homers and 14 RBIs with 36 strikeouts in 20 games. Sano, an All-Star in 2017, has never played in more than 116 games in the majors due to injuries.The Twins start a three-game series in Seattle against the Mariners on Friday. They are still missing three regulars from their lineup: shortstop Jorge Polanco (suspension), first baseman Joe Mauer (neck strain) and catcher Jason Castro (knee surgery).___For more AP baseball coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball on Thursday following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance.The commissioner's office cited use of EPO. Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates the red-blood cell production and often turns up in test results for cyclists.Castillo apologized in a statement through the players' union, saying he has "let many people down." He pointed to an "extremely poor decision that I, and I alone, made. I take full responsibility for my conduct."General manager Rick Hahn said the team was "saddened and disappointed." Castillo, he said in a statement, "understands that he has negatively affected the team and has fallen short of the expectations we have of our players."He is the eighth player suspended this year under the major league drug-testing program.Castillo is in his ninth major league season. The 31-year-old Dominican is batting .267 with six homers and 15 RBIs this... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball on Thursday following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance.The commissioner's office cited use of EPO. Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates the red blood cell production and often has turned up in test results for cyclists.He is the eighth player suspended this year under the major league drug-testing program.Castillo is in his ninth major league season. The 31-year-old Dominican is batting .267 with six homers and 15 RBIs this year on a team that is 15-31.Barring rainouts, he would be eligible to return Aug, 24 at Detroit. He would lose more than $3.5 million of his $7.25 million salary, which covers the period of 80 games plus the 11 off-days during that span.He is due $7.25 million next season, and the White Sox have an $8 million option for 2020 with a $500,000 buyout.Castillo has a .259 career average with 86 homers and 298 RBIs. He also has played... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox catcher Welington Castillo has been suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball following a positive test for a performance-enhancing substance.The commissioner's office said Thursday he tested positive for EPO. Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates the red blood cell production and often has turned up in the test results for cyclists.He is the eighth player suspended this year under the major league drug-testing program.Castillo is in his ninth major league season. The Dominican is batting .267 with six homers and 15 RBIs this year on a team that is 15-31.Barring rainouts, he would be eligible to return Aug, 24 at Detroit. He would lose more than $3.5 million of his $7.25 million salary.

A look at what's happening around the majors today:YOU AGAINHouston's Charlie Morton and Cleveland's Mike Clevinger get a rematch of their most recent outing when the Astros and Indians begin a series at Progressive Field. Morton (6-0, 1.94 ERA) pitched Houston to a 4-1 victory last Friday, striking out eight over seven innings. Clevinger (3-1, 2.87) got his first loss of the season after allowing three runs in 6 1/3 innings. The past two AL champions are in very different places, with Cleveland hovering near .500 while Houston is off to the second-best start in franchise history at 32-18 — trailing only last year's 34-16 opening.ROCKY ROADMinus injured sluggers Yoenis Cespedes and Todd Frazier, the Mets begin a stretch of eight road games in seven days against two teams currently in first place: Milwaukee and Atlanta. Left-hander Steven Matz (1-3, 4.42 ERA) opens the trip at NL Central-leading Milwaukee. Right-hander Zach Davies (2-3, 4.24), who lost to Matz 6-5 on April 13 at Citi Field,... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Adam Plutko was nervous. Not about making his second major league start, really. It was all about stepping to the plate.Once that was over, everything fell into place.Plutko carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Andrew Miller provided stellar relief work, helping the Cleveland Indians beat the Chicago Cubs 1-0 on Wednesday night."We know when (Plutko) commands everything, he can be pretty good," manager Terry Francona said. "But on a night when he didn't command real well, he still did pretty damn good."Plutko (2-0) was promoted from Triple-A Columbus to replace the struggling Josh Tomlin in Cleveland's rotation. The right-hander issued each of his four walks in the first two innings, but settled down after a successful sacrifice in the third in his first at-bat since he was a junior in high school in 2009."I was really nervous to hit, and so as soon as I got that bunt down in the third, I felt like a lot more calm and everything was a lot better," he said.Plutko's... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Justin Verlander got some run support for the first time in nearly a month and led the Houston Astros over the San Francisco Giants 4-1 on Wednesday.Verlander (6-2) struck out nine and walked one in six innings, allowing one run and three hits as his major league-leading ERA rose slightly to 1.08. He had given up just three runs over 29 innings during his previous four starts, but the Astros had scored just three runs in that span, getting shut out twice.Ken Giles pitched the ninth to remain perfect in nine save chances.George Springer hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the fifth on a 93 mph fastball from Jeff Samardzija (1-3), driving the ball off the facade above the left-field seats. Carlos Correa added an RBI single later in the inning.INDIANS 1, CUBS 0CHICAGO (AP) — Adam Plutko carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning and Andrew Miller provided stellar relief work, helping Cleveland beat Chicago.Plutko (2-0) struck out four and walked four in his second major league... [More]