J.J. Putz was back on the D-backs’ active roster Saturday and back in his closer’s role. Putz had been on the disabled list since May 8 with a strained elbow. Heath Bell was closing in Putz’s absence, and he went 13-for-15 in save opportunities over that stretch.

The latest update on Derek Jeter is that he has made it through all of his simulated at-bats fine and may be in position to progress to game action.

Led by talent, depth and clubhouse leadership, not to mention the commanding presence of manager Clint Hurdle, the Pirates have surged to the Majors’ best record. Still, after bad finishes in both 2011 and ’12, Pittsburgh fans are wondering about the second half of 2013.

Nick Swisher capped a four-run ninth inning with a solo homer to give the Indians a 9-8 win and a sweep of their doubleheader against the White Sox on Friday night in Chicago.

The A’s erupted for five runs in the second inning of a 6-1 victory in support of Bartolo Colon, who tossed eight frames of one-run ball for his 11th win of the season.

Delmon Young had six RBIs, Michael Young went 4-for-6 with a homer and John Lannan added three hits and an RBI to his gem on the mound as the Phillies cruised to an easy 16-1 victory over the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Friday night.

Trailing by three runs entering the seventh inning, the Mariners roared back to force extra innings thanks to Raul Ibanez’s game-tying triple in the eighth, setting up Mike Zunino’s walk-off single in the 10th in Seattle’s 5-4 win on Friday.

The Dodgers needed second baseman Skip Schumaker to pitch again on Friday night against the Phillies, his third career appearance and second in two months. The veteran worked around a hit and two walks in a scoreless ninth inning.

Jhoulys Chacin held the Giants scoreless for eight innings on 95 pitches, and Michael Cuddyer extended his club-record hit streak to 25 games with a home run in a 4-1 victory over the Giants at Coors Field on Friday night.

Eric Hosmer homered twice, while Billy Butler and Mike Moustakas also went deep to help righty James Shields get an elusive win as the Royals rolled to a 9-3 win over the Twins on Friday night.

Ian Desmond’s RBI double in the top of the ninth inning helped the Nationals edge the Mets, 6-4, at Citi Field on Friday night.

The Rangers continued their recent success behind Martin Perez’s strong start, defeating the Reds, 4-0, in the series opener on Friday night at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

Pitching in relief of T.J. McFarland, Kevin Gausman shut down the Yankees for 4 1/3 innings, and the Orioles beat the Yankees, 4-3, on Friday night at Camden Yards. With the win, the second-place Orioles pulled a little farther ahead of the Yankees in the American League East.

After the Braves retired Chipper Jones’ No. 10 during a star-studded pregame ceremony, Atlanta starter Julio Teheran stole the spotlight and stymied the Arizona bats with 10 strikeouts to propel the Braves to a 3-0 win over the D-backs on Friday night at Turner Field.

The Detroit Tigers have been playing baseball for 113 years and never before has one of their pitchers opened the season 12-0 — until Max Scherzer did so on Friday night against the Rays.

In a pinch-hitting role, Jonny Gomes did not disappoint, raking an RBI single to left with one out in the bottom of the seventh that snapped a tie and helped fuel the Red Sox to a 7-5 victory over the Blue Jays.

Logan Forsythe spearheaded a robust offensive effort Friday, with a go-ahead, two-run homer in San Diego’s 9-2 win against Miami. Edinson Volquez got the win as the Padres moved to 4-0 against the Marlins.