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Marlins-Cubs Preview

(AP) -- The Chicago Cubs have languished offensively of late, but they inspired some optimism with a better showing their last time out.


They'll look for another improved performance Friday against the visiting Miami Marlins, who have fared surprisingly well since losing Giancarlo Stanton.


Chicago (42-35) had scored two runs or fewer in eight consecutive games before winning 6-1 against the New York Mets on Thursday, completing a three-game sweep at Citi Field. Though the Cubs fell to 9 for 65 with runners in scoring position over the last nine contests, Starlin Castro and Miguel Montero were both 2 for 5, with Montero and Jonathan Herrera homering.


Joe Maddon gave Kris Bryant his first day off since being called up April 17, perhaps in an attempt to help Bryant shake off his slump. He is 7 for 41 (.171) with 16 strikeouts in his last 12 games.


"I can't sit here and tell you we bludgeoned them," Maddon said. "I know they've been offensively challenged. So have we. It's the ebb and flow of the season."


The Marlins (34-46) swept San Francisco with a 5-4 win Thursday as Jose Fernandez homered and earned the victory in his first start in more than a year. They've won four of five since losing Stanton for four to six weeks with a hamate fracture in his left wrist. Stanton leads the majors with 27 homers and has 67 RBIs.


Christian Yelich is 9 for 14 with six walks since Stanton went down.


Miami's Tom Koehler (6-4, 3.66 ERA) comes off back-to-back seven inning outings for the first time this season, knocking off the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers. He limited Los Angeles to two runs in a 3-2 victory Saturday.


"I sit up here every time he pitches and talk about his gritty, gutty effort," manager Dan Jennings told MLB's official website. " ... He stuck his nose in there today and gave this club exactly what we needed. Tremendous effort by him."


While Koehler can win a third straight start in the same season for the first time, the last two victories came at home, where he owns a 1.79 ERA in seven starts. The right-hander sports a 6.21 ERA in seven road games and is 13-12 lifetime at home compared to 8-13 on the road.


Koehler didn't pick up a decision in his last matchup with the Cubs, giving up four runs - three on a Castro homer - over six innings in a 5-4 home loss June 16, 2014.


Castro is the only Cub with multiple hits off Koehler, going 2 for 7.


Jason Hammel (5-3, 2.92) had a tough time returning to the mound after a 1-hour, 43-minute rain delay Sunday at St. Louis. He was charged with a season high-matching four runs in four innings in a 4-1 loss.


Hammel, who has posted a 1.56 ERA in his last five home outings, has walked 10 in his past five starts after issuing seven in his first 10. He's 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA in his last four meetings with the Marlins, allowing one run and striking out a career-best 11 over 6 2-3 innings of a 5-1 victory June 1.


The Marlins took the next two in that series with Adeiny Hechavarria going 3 for 7. He's 9 for 16 in his last four against the Cubs.

Giants-Nationals Preview


(AP) -- The names of the pitchers San Francisco has relieved of starting duties are as big as their two replacements. Whether any of the four can perform on the level the Giants desire remains to be seen.


Jake Peavy gets his shot Friday night in Washington as the Giants try to recover from a midweek sweep in their first meeting with the Nationals since defeating them in four games in the NL division series.


Peavy's start comes a day after Matt Cain's return to the mound went poorly in a 5-4 loss in Miami. The Giants (42-38) have been underwhelming on the mound since Chris Heston's no-hitter June 9 with the rotation posting a 4.26 ERA in 21 games.


The bullpen, meanwhile, has a 7.20 ERA in the last seven and figures to be without closer Santiago Casilla for the next few games because of a tired arm.


"It just didn't look like the same Casilla out there," manager Bruce Bochy said. "He's just a little tired, I think."


The Giants seem to be fine on offense with a 5.8 scoring average over a 7-6 span. Gregor Blanco homered and is batting .485 in nine games. Buster Posey's homer also went to waste, and he's hitting .448 with 15 RBIs in eight games.


Cain and Peavy are replacing Tim Lincecum and Tim Hudson, who have combined for a 6.36 ERA since May 24. Lincecum landed on the disabled list Thursday because of a bruised pitching arm and Hudson is temporarily leaving the team for personal reasons.


Those numbers, however, have been better than Peavy (0-2, 9.39 ERA) showed in two starts prior to missing two and a half months with a back injury. The right-hander failed to make it through more than four innings, but apparently what he did for the club a season ago hasn't been forgotten.


Peavy was 7-6 with a 2.85 ERA in 16 starts after being acquired from Boston on July 26, which includes four playoff starts and an NLDS win over Washington. That 3-2 victory on Oct. 3 moved Peavy to 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA in his last four against the Nationals. Yunel Escobar is 1 for 14 in the matchup.


It could be the right time to catch the Nationals (43-36), who scored two runs with nine hits in consecutive losses at Atlanta. Thursday's 2-1 defeat closed a 3-3 trip, but they return to Washington looking to match a season-best seven-game home win streak.


The Giants won both games at Nationals Park in the postseason series, but it followed a 3-10 span there dating to the start of 2011.


Gio Gonzalez will be charged with helping turn things around, and his form in his latest full start was about as good as it's been during his up-and-down season.


Gonzalez (5-4, 4.41) pitched an inning in Saturday's game against Philadelphia before it was postponed, making a 9-2 home win over Pittsburgh on June 21 his last true test.


The left-hander gave up four hits in seven scoreless innings to reaffirm his comfort level at Nationals Park. He's 3-1 with a 2.65 ERA in six starts there as opposed to 2-3 with a 5.89 mark in eight on the road.


"I think he used his curveball a lot," manager Matt Williams told MLB's official website. "He threw some changeups, but for the most part his curveball was effective for him. ... It just makes his fastball late even better."


While Peavy opened the NLDS, Gonzalez was unable to help the Nationals extend it. He started Game 4 and allowed two unearned runs in four innings. He's 2-2 with a 2.36 ERA in eight starts against San Francisco. Justin Maxwell is 4 for 8 with a homer against him.

Rays-Yankees Preview


(AP) -- The New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays are searching for offense.


Both could have trouble generating any Friday night against the pitchers they are facing.


The Yankees have never defeated Chris Archer while the Rays have yet to beat Masahiro Tanaka as these right-handers open a three-game series in the Bronx.


New York (42-37) ended a three-game slide with Wednesday's 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels, capping a 3-4 trip in which it batted .214 and totaled 18 runs, scoring three or fewer six times.


"There's going to be times offenses struggle, everyone knows that," manager Joe Girardi said. "We've had a lot of big outputs and at times we've struggled just like anyone else."


Tampa Bay (42-39) is one loss shy of a season-high six-game slide from May 23-29. The Rays have totaled 11 runs with six walks and 51 strikeouts in this losing streak, capping a four-game sweep by Cleveland with Thursday's 5-4, 10-inning loss.


Archer (9-5, 2.31 ERA) and Tanaka (4-3, 3.88) have enjoyed success against each other's teams. Tampa Bay has won all seven of Archer's starts against New York while Tanaka is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in two career starts versus the Rays.


Archer is 5-0 with a 2.02 ERA against the Yankees. He's bidding to become the eighth pitcher to win his first six decisions against New York among players whose career began in 1914 or later; journeyman Mark Guthrie is the latest.


Tampa Bay has won 14 of his last 15 road starts, with Archer 6-0 with a major league-best 0.90 ERA in six in 2015.


Brett Gardner is 7 for 18 against Archer and batting .462 over a nine-game hitting streak, but many of his teammates haven't fared too well in this matchup. Stephen Drew is 1 for 12, Brian McCann is 2 for 11 and Alex Rodriguez and Chase Headley are each 0 for 5.


Archer gave up five runs over six innings in a 5-3 defeat to Boston on Sunday after going 6-0 with a 1.61 ERA in his previous nine starts. He allowed a career-high three homers.


Tanaka never yielded more than two homers in any outing until allowing three in five-inning stints in each of his last two. He was charged with six runs and did not get a decision in Saturday's 9-6 win at Houston.


"We'll get it ironed out," Girardi said. "We know what he's capable of doing."


David DeJesus is 3 for 6 against Tanaka, though he's mired in a 1-for-26 slump.


DeJesus isn't alone in his struggles. Evan Longoria is 3 for 18 during this losing streak, Kevin Kiermaier is 1 for 18 in that span and Logan Forsythe 1 for 15.


New York can relate. Rodriguez is in a 4-for-23 slump, Mark Teixeira a 2-for-24 slide and McCann a 3-for-19 stretch.


Both clubs could see key hitters return Friday.


The Yankees' Jacoby Ellsbury, out since May 19 with a sprained right knee, could be activated. Ellsbury is 12 for 18 against Archer. The Rays' James Loney is expected to return after being out since May 24 with a broken finger.


New York's Carlos Beltran sat out Wednesday with a strained ribcage.


The Rays have won 11 of their last 14 on the road. They are 4-6 overall against New York.

Blue Jays-Tigers Preview


(AP) -- In danger of dropping below .500 for the first time this season, the Detroit Tigers are not ready to panic but won't deny their collective frustration.


They might not have an easy time keeping Drew Hutchison from recording a fourth straight winning start for the visiting Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night.


En route to winning a fourth consecutive AL Central title last season, Detroit (39-39) never trailed the division leader by more than three games. After being swept in a three-game home set by Pittsburgh, the third-place Tigers are six back of Kansas City.


"I know we're frustrated right now, outfielder J.D. Martinez told MLB's official website following Thursday's 8-4 defeat. "I think we've definitely got to pick it up a little bit. ... I feel like now, going into the (All-Star) break, is when we kind of need to make up ground."


If the Tigers are to surge, they'll need to improve on a 6.20 ERA their starters have posted over a 5-9 stretch.


"We need to pitch better - there's no question," manager Brad Ausmus said.


Detroit, however, has averaged 7.3 runs while winning the last four starts by Anibal Sanchez (6-7, 4.63 ERA).


The right-hander, 3-0 during that stretch, didn't allow a run over 16 2-3 innings in the first two but has given up seven and five homers in 14 innings over the last two. Three of those homers and four runs came in seven innings while Sanchez didn't factor in the decision of Friday's 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox.


"When he's giving up home runs, it's balls not located where he wants them," manager Brad Ausmus said. "They're in the middle of the plate - maybe slightly elevated. There's no secret to it. When he's locating them, he's fine."


Sanchez is 2-2 with a 4.41 ERA in six starts against Toronto (83-79) and has not yielded a home run in the last four. Edwin Encarnacion has homered off Sanchez, but is 1 for his last 6 against him.


Hutchison (8-1, 4.99) has a 1.65 ERA in his last three outings but he's failed to complete six innings in each. He struck out eight and walked three while throwing 97 pitches through 5 2-3 of Sunday's 3-2 win over Texas.


The Blue Jays can use a longer outing from the right-hander after seven relievers followed Matt Boyd after he allowed seven runs without recording an out in the first inning of Thursday's 12-6 loss to Boston.


"They were hitting everything he threw up there," Toronto manager John Gibbons said.


Hutchison has an 8.92 ERA in eight road starts but is 2-0 thanks to a major league-leading 10.85 run support average.


His only appearance against the Tigers came in a 5-3 road win on June 3 of last year when he gave up three hits and struck out seven without a walk in seven scoreless innings.


Martinez and Alex Avila went a combined 0 for 5 with three strikeouts against Hutchison in that contest. Martinez, though, is batting .358 with 11 home runs and 24 RBIs in his last 16 games.


Avila has hit .200 with two homers and eight RBIs in 22 games this season but could see his first action since going on the disabled list May 9 with a knee injury.

Astros-Red Sox Preview


(AP) -- The Houston Astros had little time to enjoy a sweep of the AL leaders before learning they'd open a road swing without their leadoff man and top defensive outfielder.


With George Springer sidelined for an extended period, the Astros look to keep rolling with their fifth consecutive victory Friday night against the resurgent Boston Red Sox.


After hitting .207 over his first 38 games, Springer gave Houston a lift with a .380 average, six home runs and 10 RBIs in a 27-game stretch after being moved into the top spot in the lineup May 24.


The center fielder cooled recently but went 2 for 5 with a home run in his last two games before getting hit on the wrist by a fastball in Wednesday's 6-5 win over Kansas City. Springer, batting .264 with 13 homers and 29 RBIs, was placed on the disabled list Thursday with a broken right wrist.


The Astros recalled Alex Presley from Triple-A Fresno and expect fellow outfielder Colby Rasmus back after he missed five games due to an infected bug bite.


"We're going to allow it to heal on its own," general manager Jeff Luhnow told MLB's official website of Springer's injury. "It's definitely going to be a significant loss of time, but we'll have to find a way to overcome it."


Houston (47-34), which moved a percentage point ahead of the slumping Royals without playing Thursday, seeks its fourth win streak of at least five in the opener of this season high-tying 10-game trip.


The last-place Red Sox (37-44) have been playing better of late, winning nine of 14. They took three of four at Toronto after scoring eight runs in the first inning en route to Thursday's 12-6 victory.


Brock Holt and Xander Bogaerts had four hits apiece, while Alejandro De Aza and Mookie Betts each added three as part of Boston's season-high 19-hit attack.


"What Mookie, Brock and Bogie were able to do certainly set the tone for us," manager John Farrell said.


The Red Sox hope to continue that production for Justin Masterson (3-2, 5.58 ERA), who returned to the rotation Sunday after a five-week stint on the DL due to tendinitis in his right shoulder.


The veteran right-hander made the most of his opportunity after Joe Kelly's demotion, giving up one unearned run over five innings in a 5-3 win at Tampa Bay. He's facing Houston for the first time.


Jose Altuve, batting .368 over a 10-game hitting streak, has gone 6 for 10 in his last two games at Boston.


Dan Straily will make his Astros debut after replacing demoted Brett Oberholtzer in the rotation. The right-hander, who was 6-6 with a 4.06 ERA in 14 Triple-A starts, has gone 13-12 with a 4.21 ERA over 42 big-league outings with Oakland and the Chicago Cubs.


Straily has faced the Red Sox only once, allowing two runs and four hits while walking three over 4 1-3 innings in a 7-1 loss at Fenway Park on May 2, 2014.


Hanley Ramirez, who hit back-to-back homers with David Ortiz in the first inning Thursday, has a double in two at-bats when facing Straily. De Aza is 3 for 7 with two doubles in the matchup.


Shane Victorino is expected to come off the DL after missing 38 games with a calf injury.


The Red Sox, 17-6 all-time in the series, had been 7-0 at home against Houston until splitting a four-game set last August.

Brewers-Reds Preview


(AP) -- After digging itself an insurmountable hole through 81 games, the second half of last-place Milwaukee's season is going to be one of minor battles.


It begins fittingly Friday night in Cincinnati where the streaking Brewers will try to continue closing the gap between themselves and the fourth-place Reds.


Milwaukee (33-48) extended its season-best winning streak to five with Thursday's 8-7 11-inning victory in Philadelphia, completing a four-game sweep. The Brewers are within five games of Cincinnati after their first sweep since taking three at the Los Angeles Dodgers from Aug. 15-17.


Gerardo Parra is batting .382 in 14 games, Jonathan Lucroy was 8 for 15 in the series, Ryan Braun is 13 for 28 in his last seven and Adam Lind is hitting .405 in 12 to give the club promising stretches from its top-four hitters in the order.


"It's a four-game road sweep, that's a real good series," manager Craig Counsell said. "These have been real good wins for us. We've really battled."


Mike Fiers will try to keep it going on the mound. Fiers (3-7, 4.14 ERA) didn't earn the decision in a 5-3 home win over Minnesota on Sunday, though he limited the Twins to a run and four hits in seven innings.


The right-hander has dropped three straight starts against Cincinnati with a 6.75 ERA while never making it beyond five innings. The latest was the worst with Fiers giving up eight runs - four earned - and six hits with three walks in four innings of a 16-10 defeat on April 21.


Todd Frazier and Jay Bruce homered, and Frazier is 5 for 13 with two home runs and a double against Fiers. Billy Hamilton (0 for 6) and Brandon Phillips (2 for 13) have struggled.


The Reds (36-41) began a six-game homestand by taking two of three from Minnesota. In Wednesday's 2-1 win, Joey Votto drove in a run but was 0 for 2, dropping him to 2 for 20 in six games.


Hamilton is 5 for 11 in three games to boost his average to .230 for the first time since April 26, and he's also gaining bunting confidence to get on base and use his speed.


"I've learned the placement (of) the bunt is way better than my speed," Hamilton told MLB's official website. "You put a bunt down in an area where they can't get it, it's way better than running out of there and having a bad bunt."


They've won their last three home series of more than a game with a victory over Detroit sprinkled in and have taken 12 of 16 at Great American Ball Park while scoring 5.8 runs per game and batting .305.


The Reds have also taken the last three series with Milwaukee, including five of seven games this season. In Cincinnati, the Reds have won all four series since the start of 2014 with a 9-4 record.


Michael Lorenzen will try to start this one properly on the mound.


Lorenzen (3-2, 3.38) is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his last three starts, but he walked four in Saturday's 2-1 loss at the New York Mets. The right-hander gave up a run and six hits in 5 2-3 innings, then the game was suspended before lasting 13 innings the following day. Since re-entering the rotation on May 26, he's walked 4.89 batters per nine innings over seven starts.


The rookie made his major league debut on April 29 at home against Milwaukee and surrendered three runs and eight hits in five innings of an 8-3 loss. The scoring came on solo homers by Braun, Lind and the injured Khris Davis.

Phillies-Braves Preview


(AP) -- The Philadelphia Phillies have had little to celebrate this season, but the performances of several young players have given the misery a silver lining.


Things have gone a bit better for the Atlanta Braves, who are struggling at the plate but still managing to pick up some wins.


Looking to continue a successful homestand, Atlanta welcomes in the struggling Phillies on Friday night for the start of a three-game set.


Philadelphia (27-54) entered a series with then-29-win Milwaukee with the opportunity to move from the bottom of baseball's standings, but promptly lost all four games. The Phillies, who fell 8-7 in 11 innings on Thursday, totaled 19 runs in the series but posted a team ERA of 6.39 and surrendered an opposing OPS of .878.


Rookie third baseman Maikel Franco had three doubles in Wednesday's 9-5 loss, and 23-year-old Odubel Herrera - 8 for 15 in his last four games - had three hits and two RBIs Thursday.


"It's disappointing to lose, but there's a lot of positives," interim manager Pete Mackanin said. "It's great to see guys swinging the bats well and hopefully that's an omen for the future."


Fellow rookie Adam Morgan will get the start Friday looking to build off an impressive major league debut. The left-hander limited St. Louis to one run while walking two and striking out six in 5 2-3 innings of a 9-2 win on June 21.


Morgan followed with two scoreless innings Saturday against Washington, but the start was canceled due to a rainout. That weather, however, did little to dampen Morgan's enthusiasm.


"It's amazing. It's crazy," Morgan said. "I still catch myself thinking, `Wow, you're in the big leagues.' I don't ever want to lose that feeling."


Atlanta (38-41) enjoyed a stellar debut of its own Thursday, leaning on Manny Banuelos for 5 2-3 two-hit innings in his first MLB appearance. The Braves supported him with only five hits, but manufactured enough offense to walk off against Washington's Max Scherzer on Cameron Maybin's hit in a 2-1 victory.


The Braves have totaled 18 runs in their last 10 games, but they've won four of them.


"To get to our goal, we've got to take some games away from (the division leaders)," Andrelton Simmons told MLB's official website. "That was a pretty important win today."


Atlanta's starters have a 3.05 ERA in the last 10, but Julio Teheran's latest start did nothing to help that number. Teheran (5-4, 4.94), who had allowed more than five runs only twice from 2011-14, yielded six runs in six innings of an 8-4 loss at Pittsburgh on Saturday - his fifth game this year with six or more allowed.


The right-hander has a 6.14 ERA over his last seven starts.


"There's something there that we've got to fix," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We've got to take care of it collectively. Julio has a big voice in this. ... We've got to sit down and figure out what needs to be addressed."


Teheran seems to have things figured out at home. He's 4-0 with a 2.35 ERA at Turner Field.


Atlanta is 3-3 against the Phillies this season, taking two of three during a home series May 4-6. Teheran hasn't faced the Phillies in 2014, but he was 2-1 with a 1.17 ERA in four starts last season.


At 27 games under .500, Philadelphia's current record is its worst since ending the 2000 season at 65-97.

Angels-Rangers Preview


(AP) - Although the Los Angeles Angels' season hasn't been particularly good, it has been interesting in a lot of bad ways.


Two days after general manager Jerry Dipoto walked out on the Angels, they'll visit Arlington on Friday to face the Rangers and Josh Hamilton for the first time since Los Angeles paid him an astonishing amount to go away.


Weird tension and curious decisions have become normal for the Angels during mercurial owner Arte Moreno's tenure, but the dramas of the current season have been uncommonly disruptive, according to manager Mike Scioscia and his players.


Hamilton's prolonged departure and Dipoto's abrupt resignation have been major distractions, yet Scioscia takes comfort in the fact that the Angels are still 41-38 and just five games back in second place in the AL West.


"The one thing about this game is it doesn't stop," Scioscia said. "Every day, you have to go out there and perform. You learn how to filter out distractions, whatever they may be. Our guys are pretty good at that. So whatever distractions or drama creeps up, we're going to go out there and get ready to play a ballgame."


While the Angels flew to Texas to begin a nine-game road trip heading into the All-Star break, interim general manager Bill Stoneman started work Thursday in pace of Dipoto, who apparently quit in response to a pair of team meetings going poorly last weekend.


The team was likely grateful to get out of town even if it means they're running into Hamilton, who remains friends with several of his teammates from two lousy years in Anaheim.


"Obviously we bonded here and had a good friendship," AL MVP Mike Trout said. "He's a great guy. Just hopefully he doesn't get hits against us."


Moreno probably isn't his friend: He shipped Hamilton back to Texas (41-39) in late April, angrily agreeing to pay most of the remainder of Hamilton's $125 million free-agent deal after Hamilton self-reported a relapse in his sobriety.


Scioscia also criticized Hamilton on the way out the door, saying the slugger lacked "accountability" to his teammates. The manager is eager to see Hamilton's reaction to the Angels' arrival.


"Hopefully he'll publicly take an opportunity to thank the teammates that supported him," Scioscia said. "And again, I really think that he should reach out to Arte and let Arte know that maybe some of the things he did weren't what he signed up to do. We'll leave it at that."


Despite these distractions and a largely inept offense behind Trout and Albert Pujols, the Angels are playing some of their best baseball of the season, winning four in a row and six of eight before wrapping up a nine-game homestand with a 3-1 loss to the New York Yankees on Wednesday.


Trout and Pujols each hit three homers on the homestand while Erick Aybar went 10 for 27.


The Angels' starting staff has been even more impressive. Matt Shoemaker suffered the loss Wednesday, but still pitched 5 2-3 solid innings to cap off a seven-game stretch in which the rotation combined to allow just 10 runs in 45 1-3 innings - a 1.99 ERA.


Garrett Richards (8-5, 3.54 ERA) will be tasked with continuing that run on the road, where the Angels have dropped nine of 13 since May 23. They've posted a team ERA of 5.00 in those contests compared with a 3.11 ERA in 24 home games during that same span.


Richards allowed two runs over 7 2-3 innings in a 4-2 win over Seattle on Monday, but he has a 5.17 ERA away from Anaheim even after a pair of quality outings in his last two on the road.


He has won his last five starts against the Rangers behind a 2.16 ERA after allowing only three hits over seven innings in a 3-2 win against the Rangers on April 24.


Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-3, 2.59) takes the mound for a Texas team that beat Baltimore 2-0 on Thursday but was swept in its last home stay, losing three straight to Oakland from June 23-25. The rookie began that skid by allowing six runs over 5 2-3 innings and followed with his third consecutive defeat Sunday after giving up three runs over six innings at Toronto.


The Angels took two of three in both series with Texas this season and are 11-2 at the Globe Life Park in Arlington since July 10.


Hamilton is 3 for 8 with a run since returning to the Rangers' lineup on Tuesday.

Padres-Cardinals Preview

(AP) -- As the St. Louis Cardinals begin to see some off-field fallout from their hacking scandal, they'll try to avoid a season-high fourth consecutive defeat on the diamond Friday night.


Though Michael Wacha certainly gives them a chance to do so, their offense must find a way to come through against the visiting San Diego Padres.


Hours after the club announced the firing of scouting director Chris Correa on Thursday, St. Louis (51-27) fell 5-3 to San Diego in 11 innings. A member of the team's front office since 2009, Correa admitted he accessed the Houston Astros' player personnel database without proper authorization.


"At this time, it's still an ongoing investigation and there's really nothing more I can add at this point," Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said prior to Thursday's contest.


As the team and the FBI deal with that matter, St. Louis must get back on track after being outscored 14-5 and going 1 for 29 with runners in scoring position while dropping a season-high three straight at home. The major league-leading Cardinals are 29-10 at Busch Stadium, where they've lost one series of at least three games.


"I just feel like it's one of those times when it's not falling your way," said right fielder Jason Heyward, who is 8 for 20 in the last five contests. "The last three games it's just been that one AB where we didn't get the hit."


Wacha (10-3, 2.77 ERA) allowed a season-high five runs in five innings of a 9-2 loss at Philadelphia on June 21, then rebounded to yield a run through six of Saturday's 8-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Looking to join Pittsburgh's Gerrit Cole atop the majors with 11 wins, Wacha has a 4.17 ERA while splitting his last six starts.


However, he's 3-0 with a 1.94 ERA in nine during his career when pitching on six days' rest - as will be the case Friday.


This will be the right-hander's first appearance against the Padres (38-43), who on Thursday scored one more run than during a three-game skid that ended with their third victory in 12 games at St. Louis. Will Venable belted a pinch-hit two-run homer in the 11th and Yangervis Solarte also went deep for San Diego, which tries to win back-to-back road contests for the first time since a four-game run May 26-June 6.


Solarte, who was ejected for arguing a strikeout in the sixth, is 8 for 20 in his last six games.


Andrew Cashner (3-9, 4.22) went 0-2 with a 7.62 ERA in his first five June starts, then gave up two runs and struck out six without a walk in seven innings of a 7-2 win over Arizona on Saturday.


"I could have made some better pitches but I felt like I made some adjustments with my pitches," said Cashner, who walked 14 in his previous four outings.


Interim manager Pat Murphy believes Cashner earned some needed confidence from that effort.


"I think he showed mental toughness (Saturday) that reassured him that if he just stays the course, he can be pretty special," Murphy said.


Making his first start against the Cardinals, the right-hander faced them six times out of the bullpen but not since 2012.


Though Matt Carpenter is 5 for 34 (.147) in his last 10 games, he's batting .393 with 14 RBIs in 18 career contests against the Padres.

Twins-Royals Preview


(AP) -- With 22-year-old Miguel Sano chipping in late, the Minnesota Twins managed to creep closer to the AL Central-leading Kansas City Royals in the series opener.


Now Tommy Milone will have some extra motivation to keep closing the gap at Kauffman Stadium.


The left-hander looks to state his case to remain in the rotation Friday night when the Twins try to move within 2 1/2 games of the division lead by handing the Royals their worst skid in 14 months.


Much like Byron Buxton last month, all eyes were on Sano in his much-anticipated debut Thursday.


The big Dominican slugger, one of the baseball's elite prospects, struck out in the fourth and sixth innings with a runner on third base before hitting an infield single in the ninth.


Danny Santana and Eduardo Escobar had RBI triples and Kyle Gibson fired eight shutout innings as the second-place Twins (42-37) improved to 3-4 on a 10-game trip with a 2-0 victory.


Minnesota will try to win two straight for the first time since a three-game run from June 17-19 by giving the ball to Milone (4-1, 3.19 ERA) in the second of this four-game series.


Milone has limited opponents to two earned runs or less in five starts since being recalled from Triple-A, going 2-0 with a 2.03 ERA over that span. He pitched two-hit ball over six scoreless innings before leaving without a decision in a 5-3 loss at Milwaukee on Sunday.


Milone is hoping to make things difficult on manager Paul Molitor, who will have to decide who stays in the rotation when Ervin Santana returns Sunday from an 80-game suspension.


"I'm not going to make (the decision) before I have to," Molitor told MLB's official website.


Milone will face the Royals for the third time this season after going 1-0 with a 5.73 ERA in the first two starts.


Lorenzo Cain went 2 for 4 with a home run off him, while Mike Moustakas was 3 for 6 with a homer.


Eric Hosmer, however, is 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in the matchup this year. He walked and had one of Kansas City's four singles Thursday after missing three games with a sprained right ring finger.


The Royals (44-32) have batted .188 while totaling six runs during their four-game skid. The defending AL champions haven't dropped five in a row since May 1-5, 2014.


"My thoughts are more on the way Gibson threw the ball than our offensive output," manager Ned Yost said.


Jeremy Guthrie (6-5, 5.68) has held opponents to three runs or less in five of his last six starts, but only has two victories over that span while receiving 12 runs of support.


The right-hander yielded two runs while fanning a season-high seven over six innings in Sunday's 5-3 win at Oakland. He's pitched particularly well at home, going 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA in his last four starts.


Guthrie, 9-4 with a 3.48 ERA in 15 starts versus Minnesota, will try to avoid his second loss in the season series after giving up three runs and walking six over five innings in a 3-0 home defeat April 22.


Torii Hunter has gone 18 for 52 (.346) off him, while Joe Mauer is 9 for 26 (.346) with three home runs.

Mets-Dodgers Preview


(AP) -- Even after losing three straight starts for the first time ever, Clayton Kershaw might be in line for a shut-down performance.


He'll look to remain undefeated against the slumping New York Mets on Friday night when they visit the Los Angeles Dodgers.


Kershaw (5-6, 3.20 ERA) can't be blamed too much for the longest losing streak of his career - during which he's also extended his streak of quality starts to seven. The left-hander is averaging 2.6 runs of support while going 1-3 in his last five, and he's received three runs of support or fewer in 11 of 16 outings this year.


Dingy defense didn't help Kershaw's cause his last time out, either. Errors by Andre Ethier and Joc Pederson cost him two unearned runs in addition to the one earned he surrendered over seven innings in Saturday's 3-2 loss at Miami.


"I think winning, in general, is what Clayton's all about," manager Don Mattingly said. "I don't know if it's weighing on him. He may show frustration at the time, but when he gets away from it, I think he knows he pitched really well and gave us a really good chance to win."


Kershaw, who ranks second in baseball with 77 wins since 2011, had dropped back-to-back starts eight times in his previous seven seasons.


"It never feels good to lose," he told MLB's official website. "But I'm fine."


He's 5-0 with a 1.62 ERA in seven starts versus New York, allowing one earned run over 23 innings against them at Dodger Stadium.


The Mets (40-40) totaled one run and 15 hits while suffering a three-game sweep to the Cubs this week. They're averaging a major league-worst 1.6 runs per game since June 17, dropping 10 of 14.


Curtis Granderson is the only Met batting better than .163 while playing more than seven games in that stretch, and he's hitting .364 over his last 11. Lucas Duda is 5 for 35 with 16 strikeouts in his last nine and 0 for 4 off Kershaw with three strikeouts.


"They are so tense and so tight and so worried about making a big out instead of walking up there like they're going to get a hit," manager Terry Collins said. "We got to lighten it up, so I said just for heaven's sakes play the game with some fun, with some energy, with some enthusiasm."


Los Angeles (45-35) closed its 10-game trip by winning six of eight, including a 4-3 victory at Arizona on Wednesday. Howie Kendrick is 14 for 28 with eight RBIs during a seven-game hitting streak, while Jimmy Rollins, batting a career-worst .212, is at .295 over his last 11 contests.


The Dodgers will face Noah Syndergaard (3-4, 3.59), who threw a season-high eight innings Friday versus Cincinnati to end a four-start winless streak. He limited the Reds to one run in a 2-1 victory, after which Collins said it was the rookie's best performance "without question."


"And against a very, very good lineup," he said. "Very, very good outing."


Syndergaard is 0-3 with a 6.52 ERA in four road starts.


The Dodgers have won 13 of the last 16 meetings, including four of six last season.


Adrian Gonzalez is 25 for 64 (.391) with four homers, six doubles and 18 RBIs in his last 16 games versus New York.

Indians-Pirates Preview

(AP) -- The hot-hitting Pittsburgh Pirates can match their longest interleague win streak when they face struggling Cleveland Indians starter Trevor Bauer at PNC Park on Friday night.


Bauer, though, has often shined in interleague games and will try to lead Cleveland to a fifth consecutive victory.


Pittsburgh (45-33) completed a three-game sweep of Detroit with an 8-4 victory Thursday, its seventh in a row in interleague play. The Pirates produced 22 runs and 49 hits, including 17 for extra bases, in the series.


Neil Walker went 4 for 5 with three RBIs on Thursday and is 14 for 26 (.538) in his past six games. Jordy Mercer is hitting .469 in his last seven, and Starling Marte is batting .438 in his past eight.


"We're playing well. We've got a lot of confidence," Mercer said. "Everybody is chipping in. That's what makes it cool."


The Pirates had their only eight-game interleague win streak May 28-June 26, 2013, and will get to face a scuffling Bauer (6-5, 3.96 ERA) in the opener of a 10-game homestand. The right-hander is 1-3 with a 7.40 ERA in his last four starts, giving up four runs in seven innings in a 4-0 loss in Baltimore on Sunday.


Bauer was 4-1 with a 1.10 ERA in his first six road starts, including a 6-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on June 16. That improved him to 3-1 with a 1.71 ERA in eight all-time interleague games.


Bauer will face the Pirates for the first time as the Indians look for their fourth win in the last 15 matchups in Pittsburgh.


Cleveland (37-41) is coming off a four-game sweep of Tampa Bay, allowing four runs in the first three matchups before a 5-4 victory in 10 innings Thursday.


"We needed it. ... We needed to get greedy today," manager Terry Francona said. "You win three, it's easy to go three out of four. Today, it was a hard one to win, but we have to keep going."


Mike Aviles hit the go-ahead homer and Jason Kipnis went 2 for 5, giving him a .376 average while hitting safely in 24 of his last 26 games.


Kipnis, who is batting .484 in a nine-game interleague hit streak, will face Charlie Morton (6-1, 4.28) on Friday.


Morton allowed nine runs and eight hits while failing to make it out of the first inning in a 9-2 loss in Washington on June 21 before beating Atlanta 8-4 on Saturday despite giving up four runs and a season-high 10 hits over six.


The right-hander has tossed 12 scoreless innings in back-to-back wins in interleague play as he faces Cleveland for the first time.


Michael Bourn has the most experience against Morton among the Indians, going 7 for 20, and will return from a one-game suspension Friday after being penalized for bumping an umpire in Texas on May 16.


No active Pittsburgh player has ever faced Bauer.

Orioles-White Sox Preview


(AP) -- Normally one of the worst offensive teams in baseball, the Chicago White Sox finally flashed their run-scoring ability in an impressive road victory.


After winning a series against one division leader, the White Sox return home Friday night to face another as they open a three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles.


Chicago (34-42) ended an eight-game road trip on a high note with consecutive wins against MLB-leading St. Louis. Melky Cabrera and Tyler Flowers each hit home runs in Wednesday's 7-1 victory as five White Sox had multi-hit games for an offense ranked last in the AL with 266 runs.


The White Sox thrived on the mound as well, limiting the Cardinals to two runs and 15 hits.


"It's nice to come in here and beat a team like this," manager Robin Ventura told MLB's official website. "Offensively we put some runs up late, and the (starting) pitchers did what they did, and the bullpen did, too. There are some guys that are starting to swing it."


Another strong offensive showing could be needed with struggling John Danks (3-8, 5.38 ERA) starting Friday. The left-hander is 0-4 with a 6.85 ERA in last four starts and suffered the worst of those outings June 22, allowing nine runs - five earned - and three homers in 5 1-3 innings of a 13-2 loss at Minnesota.


Opposing batters are hitting .300 off Danks, the highest mark of his career.


"I've been one of the main components into why this season has gone this way," said Danks, who had his scheduled start Saturday skipped due to a rainout. "I've had a couple of good games, but I've had some games blow up in my face, where I didn't give us much of a chance to win, and had to kill the bullpen, at that.


"All I know to do is to keep working and get ready for Baltimore and go from there. Certainly I need to turn this around."


Danks is 1-3 with a 5.12 ERA in his last four starts against the Orioles, but he's managed to dominate four-time All-Star Adam Jones, who is 1 for 30 (.033) in their matchups. That's his worst average against any pitcher with at least 15 at-bats.


"You can't go into the game thinking he's out just because of past performance," Danks said. "You've got to get him out still."


The Orioles (42-37) enter this series after losing three of four at home to Texas, capped by Thursday's 2-0 loss which dropped them into a tie atop the AL East with the New York Yankees. Baltimore had won 18 of 23 before facing the Rangers.


"We just obviously didn't put much together offensively," manager Buck Showalter said.


Jones, who missed time recently with a shoulder injury, is 5 for 28 (.179) over his last eight games, while Matt Wieters is batting .143 (4 for 28) in his past eight.


Ubaldo Jimenez (7-3, 3.09) gets the ball in the opener looking to win his fifth consecutive start. The right-hander had his best outing of that stretch Sunday, allowing four hits in eight innings while striking out seven in a 4-0 victory over Cleveland.


He has led his team to a win in each of his last five starts against the White Sox, most recently yielding two unearned runs in seven innings of an 8-2 victory on April 29.


Adam LaRoche has had success against Jimenez, going 7 for 22 with a homer and three doubles.

Mariners-Athletics Preview


(AP) -- After ending a lengthy slide against the visiting Seattle Mariners, the Oakland Athletics take aim at finally getting the best of J.A. Happ.


Trying to remain undefeated against the A's, Happ also looks to avoid losing five consecutive starts for the first time Friday night in the second of a four-game series.


Scott Kazmir yielded two hits and struck out seven over eight innings to help Oakland (37-45) snap a five-game losing streak against Seattle with Thursday's 4-0 victory.


"I felt like I was in control with every pitch," Kazmir said after helping the A's win for the third time in four overall.


Despite owning the second-worst record in the AL, Oakland leads that league with 10 shutouts, including its two victories in seven meetings with Seattle (36-43) this season.


Marcus Semien ended a 45-game homer drought by setting a career high with his seventh. He has three home runs and six RBIs while batting .400 (12 for 30) against Seattle in 2015, including 6 for 8 with a homer when opposing Happ (3-5, 3.89 ERA).


The left-hander is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA in four starts against the A's. He's allowed three runs over 11 1-3 innings while going 1-0 in two this season.


Seattle, however, has totaled nine runs while losing Happ's last six starts. He fell to 1-3 with a 5.74 ERA in eight road outings after allowing four runs in seven innings of Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels.


"I'm sick of saying I'm frustrated," Happ told MLB's official website. "I'm sick of being frustrated. I felt good (Saturday) and I feel like if I stay right there, things are going to turn."


Though Happ admits he'll continue to be hard on himself, he's doing his best to remain positive despite the rough stretch.


"I can't expect to be perfect, and I don't think anybody expects me to be perfect," he said. "I'm going to make mistakes, guys are going to hit the ball. At some point, it's going to be OK."


Seattle's pitching staff wasn't perfect while blanking San Diego in two straight games before its offense mustered only two hits from Franklin Gutierrez in the opener.


"(Kazmir) had all of his pitches going and was throwing 93-94 mph," manager Lloyd McClendon said.


That effort matched Gutierrez's hit total in 11 at-bats through his first five games since he was called up from Triple-A Tacoma to make his season debut June 24.


Nelson Cruz went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts Thursday but is 4 for 8 with two homers and a double against Jesse Chavez (4-7, 3.27).


The right-hander allowed four runs in 6 2-3 innings of a 4-3 road loss May 10 to fall to 0-3 with a 4.50 ERA in four starts against Seattle. Chavez posted a 6.75 ERA while splitting his last two starts after going 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA in his previous two. He allowed three runs and six hits in 5 2-3 innings of Sunday's 5-3 home loss to Kansas City.


Kyle Seager is 2 for 11 with a double and a home run against Chavez, and 5 for 28 when facing Oakland this season.

Rockies-Diamondbacks Preview


(AP) -- Chase Anderson and Kyle Kendrick met in Colorado less than two weeks ago and the results were memorable - for the six players who hit home runs off the starting pitchers.


Ballhawks beware: The two share the mound again Friday night in Arizona as the Diamondbacks try to take the first two of a four-game set.


After Thursday's 8-1 win, the Diamondbacks (38-41) have taken six of nine in the season series while scoring 7.6 runs per game with a .338 average.


Paul Goldschmidt is batting .433 in his last 26 games against the Rockies, David Peralta is hitting .407 in the season series and A.J. Pollock is 11 for 26 in the last six meetings.


The Rockies (34-45) seem entirely incapable of keeping up with that given they've scored five runs in four games and are batting .201 in a 1-5 span. Carlos Gonzalez is in a 3-for-24 slump and 3-for-22 rut against Arizona, but Troy Tulowitzki remains on a career-best 15-game hitting streak while reaching base in a career-best 30 straight.


Anderson (4-2, 3.66 ERA) earned the decision in Sunday's 6-4 win in San Diego, but he allowed four runs and five hits in seven innings. Three of those were home runs, and six of the 13 hits he's allowed in the last two games have left the yard. The right-hander had given up three home runs in 79 1-3 innings over his first 13 starts.


"I feel like it was just six bad pitches in the last two outings," Anderson told MLB's official website. "I've just got to learn from the mistakes I made because I know I can pitch at this level and we have a good defense, I need to utilize those guys more than I have."


The first of those came in a 10-5 loss in Colorado on June 23 with Anderson giving up a career-high eight runs in 4 2-3 innings. It dropped him to 3-3 with a 6.00 ERA in six starts against the Rockies with three straight losses and an 11.40 ERA.


Wilin Rosario (6 for 8 with a home run), Tulowitzki (3 for 8 with a home run) and Nolan Arenado (3 for 11 with two home runs) have done the most damage.


Even with all the recent struggles, Anderson's ERA isn't two-thirds of Kendrick's.


Kendrick (3-10, 6.07) is a loss off the major league lead and finds himself back as one of three qualifying pitchers with an ERA over 6.00 after giving up five runs and eight hits in 5 2-3 innings of Sunday's 6-3 loss in San Francisco.


It followed a victory over Anderson in which he gave up four runs and eight hits - three homers - in six innings. Unlike Anderson, Kendrick can't call it an anomaly. The right-hander has surrendered seven in three starts and 23 for the season, which leads the majors by four. His rate of 2.15 per nine innings is on pace to be the highest since Jose Lima gave up 2.20 in 2000 for Houston.


When he faced the Diamondbacks on April 28, Kendrick matched a career high by allowing eight runs and 10 hits in 4 1-3 innings of a 12-5 defeat at Chase Field to fall to 0-2 with an 8.88 ERA in five career starts at the park.


Aaron Hill (8 for 17), Peralta (4 for 9 with a home run), Pollock (4 for 9 with a home run), Welington Castillo (4 for 10 with a home run) and Goldschmidt (4 for 10) have all hit him well.

Storm-Lynx Preview




Although they're playing their stingiest defense in a decade, the Minnesota Lynx thought a couple of performances weren't up to their standards in the early portion of the season.


After bouncing back with two strong efforts at the defensive end and then getting a lengthy break, the Lynx will try to pester the Seattle Storm as they look for an 11th consecutive home win in the series Friday night.


Minnesota (7-2) is allowing 69.0 points per game, its lowest mark since giving up 67.3 in 2005, but gave up more than 80 points in its two losses. Coach Cheryl Reeve shouldered the blame after an 86-78 defeat to Tulsa on June 21.


Her team responded with a 76-73 victory at Seattle four days later, its 13th in the past 16 meetings, and the Lynx were razor sharp Saturday against Phoenix. Minnesota spoiled Brittney Griner's return from a seven-game suspension with a 71-56 victory over a team that beat them 81-66 on June 14.


The Lynx held the Mercury to 33.3 percent shooting and a 3-for-12 performance from 3-point range while forcing 20 turnovers. They limited Griner to six points and four field goal attempts in the first three quarters.


"I think this group feels really good right now. That first stretch we went through was hard. It was really hard. We had to hear a lot of (criticism)," Reeve said. "The bear has been poked and the bear is awake. That's a really good thing for us.


"We're still a good defensive team. We just felt we weren't doing things at a high enough level to win the really hard games."


Minnesota held Seattle to 13 points in the final 17 minutes last week while rallying from an 18-point deficit. Damiris Dantas had the go-ahead 3-point play with 18 seconds left and Seimone Augustus scored a season-high 24 points.


Augustus was limited to six points on 3-of-13 shooting Saturday, but Maya Moore and Lindsay Whalen had 21 apiece.


The Lynx put together a more balanced effort in their first matchup with the Storm, a 94-70 home victory June 11. Tricia Liston's 15 points topped five players in double figures and Minnesota outshot Seattle 53.0-38.1 percent.


The Storm, near the bottom in the league with 69.8 points per game, snapped a five-game skid with a 74-69 win over the Shock on Tuesday. Sue Bird had a season-high 17 points and Jewell Loyd scored five of her 13 in the final three minutes.


"We are gaining experience," coach Jenny Boucek told the team's official website. "We had three games in a row that were basically one-possession games. We lost all of them, but each one saw progress and I thought we just continued to make progress tonight."


Seattle hasn't won at the Target Center since July 17, 2010.

Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack

-- ESPN apparently isn't happy with their Monday Night Football schedule; they claim the NFL stiffed them because some ESPN pundits constantly rip into Roger Goodell. One of those pundits has already been let go.

-- Hyundai has a $200M, four-year advertising deal for NFL games, more than twice what the league was getting from Chevy.

-- Joey Gallo is an incredible 1 for 49 this year with two strikes on him.

-- Alabama's Kirby Smart makes $1.5M a year; he is an assistant football coach, the defensive cootdinator yet he makes $1.5M a year. Wow.

-- Bartolo Colon had his first no-decision in his last 28 starts last night.

-- Which two teams will MLB choose to play the first series in Cuba? You know it is coming soon; will the Marlins play? This will be a high profile event.

**********

Armadillo: Thursday's List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud.........

13) Rough week for the Tampa Bay Rays; three games in a row (and 4th time in last seven games), they haven't had a batter reach base safely in the first five innings.

12) No NL West team had a winning record in June; Dodgers were 15-15.

11) Mark Buehrle is 207-156 in a fabulous 16-year career; he started 28 games when he was a rookie and has started 30+ every year since. Durable, reliable, pretty soon he is going to be a borderline Hall of Famer. In that entire 15.5 years, he has had only three starts (out of 476) when he struck out 10+ batters. Teams should take notice.

10) Adrian Gonzalez has played 156+ games the last nine years; he plays in the NL, which doesn't have the DH (he played most of one season in Boston, was DH twice). Much like Buehrle, he is reliable and dependable, a great player.

9) Nick Saban is 183-59-1 as a college coach, but only 8-8 in bowls, losing last two- I'm saying the Crimson Tide will win their bowl game this year. Early prediction.

8) Utah football coach Kyle Whittingham is 84-43 in ten years, 7-1 in bowl games, he is very successful, but the Utes will have their 8th different offensive coordinator in 11 years this season. That just seems weird, especially for a good team.

7) Floyd Mayweather had a better month of May then we did; he made $220M.

6) Bengals' WR Mohamed Sanu recently made a 60-yard FG during a workout at his alma mater, Rutgers. Some teams don't have kickers who can make a 40-yarder.

5) They were talking on the Padres' game about what a great hitter Edgar Martinez was; he used to take batting practice with a weighted donut on his bat.

4) San Diego wore its brown caps and throwback unis from the 80's yesterday; to me, their best uniforms were the ones Dave Winfield wore in the 70's, but as long as their color scheme went back to brown/gold, that would be a vast improvement.

3) Hope umpire Tom Hallion is feeling better; he took a direct hit to the mask on a foul tip and had to leave the Colorado-Oakland game after two batters Wednesday.

2) I don't care what anyone says; it is stupid to bat Jon Lester 8th. Lester has never gotten a hit, is arguably the worst hitter in MLB history. Lester has drawn one walk in his entire career-- against Guillermo Mota. He should always bat ninth.

1) Major League Baseball wants more scoring, faster games; hard to have both.

Teheran playing much better at Turner Field


Julio Teheran looks to remain undefeated at the friendly confines of Turner Field Friday, with the Colombian pitcher posting a 4-0 record in seven starts at home, with the Braves going 5-2 in those games.


Teheran has posted a 2.35 ERA with opposing batters hitting a mere .173 in Atlanta.


The Braves will host the Philadelphia Philles Friday.