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Thanks to Darren Ford‘s ankle sprain, it sounds like the Giants will soon have a roster spot open up.  However, manager Bruce Bochy said Wednesday that a move involving Brandon Belt isn’t likely. “To be honest, Belt is more of a longshot,” Bochy told the San Francisco Chronicle.  ”What we’re looking for is more of…

May 25, 1951 Less than three weeks after his 20th birthday, Willie Mays makes his major league debut for the Giants, going 0-for-5 in New York’s 8-5 win over the Phillies. Mays was called up after hitting an incredible .477/.524/.799 with eight homers and 30 RBI in 35 games for Minneapolis of the American Association.…

Incredibly, it took 30 days after Jered Weaver won his sixth gave for a major league pitcher to pick up his seventh win this season.  And the guy who did it was winless through three starts. Jon Lester cruised through six scoreless innings in Boston’14-2 rout of the Indians on Wednesday to become the first…

Veteran right-hander Ian Snell, who said he was retiring after he failed to make the Cardinals this spring, signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers on Wednesday. Snell was reassigned to minor league camp by the Cardinals on March 15 after giving up two runs in two innings during Grapefruit League play.   The 29-year-old right-hander…

Scott Kazmir, who was banished to the disabled list on April 9 with what the Angels called lower back tightness, struggled mightily in his return to the mound Tuesday, giving up six runs in 1 2/3 innings for Triple-A Salt Lake. He walked four and hit a batter before being pulled. The Angels went as slowly…

32-year-old infielder Alex Cintron, who had been playing with the Padres’ Triple-A club, decided to retire Tuesday, according to Tucson broadcaster Tim Hagerty. Cintron chose to quit even though he was playing quite well.  He had two hits in his final game Monday, and he was sporting a .350/.394/.500 line in 60 at-bats for Tucson.…

After visiting a concussion specialist on Tuesday, Brian Roberts was told to rest for two more weeks, meaning he won’t rejoin the Orioles prior to mid-June. Roberts was injured sliding head-first into first base in a game against the Red Sox eight days ago. With Roberts out of action, the Orioles have been trying to get by…

The Twins will move a step closer to getting a pair of regulars back in their lineup when Joe Mauer and Tsuyoshi Nishioka appear in extended spring games this week. Mauer, who has been on the DL since April 14 with bilateral leg weakness, is set to appear as a DH on Wednesday.  Nishioka, who suffered…

Brandon Webb took away some encouraging signs after throwing six innings against Padres minor leaguers in Arizona on Tuesday.  He hit 84 mph on the gun while allowing four runs — one earned — and six hits in six innings, Richard Durrett of ESPN Dallas reports. He struck out five and walked none, though he…

When 18-year-old Nationals prospect Yewri Guillen died in the Dominican Republic last month, bacterial meningitis was blamed.  An MLB investigation, however, determined today that the cause of death was a brain infection, the result of an aggressive sinus infection. The Nationals signed Guillen back in February.  He became ill while at the team’s camp in the…

May 23, 1991 Making just his second start of the season, the Phillies’ Tommy Greene, a former first-round pick of the Braves with six major league victories to his credit, pitched a no-hitter against the Expos, striking out 10 and walking seven in the process. Facing the Expos again five days later, he hurled a second…

Johnny Bench was released Monday after spending five days in a Rochester, N.Y., hospital with acute pancreatitis, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Bench, 63, fell ill a day after appearing as a guest at a taping for MLB Network’s “Greatest Games” show that aired Sunday.  He was on his way to a speaking engagement in Rochester when…

Jose Bautista, who went four straight at-bats Sunday without homering, got back in the swing of things Monday, taking Bartolo Colon deep in the first inning against the Yankees. Bautista now has 18 1/2 homers this season.  We’re giving the other half of this one to Yunel Escobar, who had Colon shaking on the mound…

Willing to try just about anything — well, short of calling up Jemile Weeks or Adrian Cardenas — to improve their lackluster lineup, the A’s have Conor Jackson starting at third base on Monday. It’ll be the first career start for Jackson at the hot corner.   He has played four innings there over two games this…

The Padres had to do something after scoring just two runs while being swept by the Mariners over the weekend, and the hammer came down on Will Venable today, as the team demoted it’s primary right fielder and called up Blake Tekotte. Venable, the Padres’ leader with 11 steals, was hitting just .224/.293/.291 with no…

Adam LaRoche got his second opinion Tuesday.  And it’s not that he’s ugly, too. LaRoche, who was diagnosed with a partially torn labrum back in spring training, rest his throwing shoulder for at least a couple of weeks, CSN Washington’s Mark Zuckerman reports.  Surgery was not recommended, but he was placed on the disabled list prior…

Nate McLouth‘s strained left oblique will put him on the disabled list, according to the Journal-Constitution’s Dave O’Brien, and the Braves are set to call up Jordan Schafer to replace him. Schafer, who opened 2009 as the Braves’ center fielder, is back in the majors for the first time since June of that year.  There…

As expected, the Rangers activated both Josh Hamilton (arm) and Nelson Cruz (quad) from the disabled list on Monday.  But they also made another move, bringing up reliever Yoshinori Tateyama from Triple-A Round Rock. The 35-year-old Tateyama, who was signed to a one-year deal in the offseason, had a 2.14 ERA and a 26/4 K/BB…

Center fielder Marlon Byrd was released from the hospital Sunday after an overnight stay, but the Cubs confirmed that he had suffered multiple fractures as a result of Saturday’s beaning and placed him on the disabled list. Needing some relief help after scratching Matt Garza from his scheduled start tonight, the Cubs called up right-hander…

Asdrubal Cabrera, the American League’s best shortstop since day one this season, delivered two homers as part of a 5-for-5, five-RBI game as the Indians routed the Reds 12-4 and completed a three-game sweep Sunday. Cabrera has nine homers, ranking him second only to Troy Tulowitzki among major league shortstops.  Jhonny Peralta is third with seven.  Cabrera…