Nick Tepesch threw 7 1/3 scoreless innings and helped bring the Rangers’ eight-game losing streak to an end in a 5-4 victory over the Twins on Friday night.

The White Sox used the long ball to lift themselves to a 5-4 victory over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Friday night.

The A’s got a big call overturned in their favor Friday night, one that kicked off a critical four-run ninth inning in a 9-5 victory over the Marlins.

In Toronto on Friday, Chicago’s Jose Abreu blasted two home runs and Toronto’s Edwin Encarnacion smacked one of his own to impress American League Home Run Derby captain Jose Bautista and create a three-way tie for the big league lead at 25 with Baltimore’s Nelson Cruz, who also went yard on Friday.

The Marlins did all of their work in the sixth inning, busting out for five runs on six hits, but it was the A’s who had the final say in this one, getting a run back in the eighth and four more in the ninth for a 9-5 series-opening victory at Marlins Park on Friday.

The Wilmington Blue Rocks must be wondering where their next hit is coming from. The Royals’ Class A Advanced farm club in the Carolina League was no-hit for the second straight night on Friday by the Lynchburg Hillcats, an Atlanta affiliate.

Angels center fielder Mike Trout center fielder scorched a solo homer that sailed into the second set of fountains in left-center at Kauffman Stadium, which sit adjacent to the scoreboard in dead center. The blast had jaws dropping in both dugouts.

John Baker backed up Jason Hammel by matching career highs with three hits and four RBIs in the Cubs’ 7-2 win over the Nationals in front of 30,683 at Wrigley Field. With the win, Hammel improved to 7-0 in nine career starts against Washington.

One week after losing his job as the Pirates’ closer, Jason Grilli on Friday was dealt by the club to the Angels. In a swap of deposed closers, the Bucs acquired right-hander Ernesto Frieri in return.

The Reds again have gone big on a Cuban pitcher, signing right-hander Raisel Iglesias to a seven-year, $30 million contract through the 2020 season on Friday.

Balloting continues for Major League Baseball’s 85th All-Star Game on July 15 at Target Field in Minnesota, and fans can cast their votes using the 2014 All-Star Game Ballot Sponsored by Experian. Deciding who should get voted into the starting lineup can be challenging. Today, Phil Rogers and Richard Justice discuss National League outfielders.

It’s all about the All-Star Game MLB.com Ballot Sponsored by Experian now. With the last paper ballots punched and collected during the Nationals-Cubs game on Thursday night at Wrigley Field, in-stadium voting is done and the largest All-Star balloting program in sports now comes down to its furious final week, exclusively online or via mobile.

Gregory Polanco went deep, stole a base and drove in four runs to back a strong Vance Worley as the Bucs cruised to a 5-2 win over the Mets on Thursday at PNC Park.

Ryan Zimmerman was dead to rights at home plate, but the umpires wanted to make sure catcher Welington Castillo wasn’t blocking the plate.

The Angels got to a Twins starter early for the third straight game and Jered Weaver held Minnesota to one run in seven innings during a 6-4 win Thursday afternoon at Angel Stadium. Albert Pujols went 3-for-4 with two RBIs.

Who’s on third? For the first time in a long time, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly was able to pencil in Juan Uribe at the hot corner Thursday.

While Juan Uribe was in the Dodgers’ starting lineup Thursday, shortstop Hanley Ramirez was still absent. Meanwhile, left fielder Carl Crawford has begun running again after experiencing a setback at the team’s training facility in Arizona.