Cole Hamels grew up in north county San Diego and pitched at Rancho Bernardo High School. So it would figure that the Rangers’ star left-hander would have a laser focus on this year’s All-Star Game presented by MasterCard on July 12 at Petco Park.

It starts with grand marshals Trevor Hoffman and Dave Winfield, it ends with the Commissioner’s Trophy, and in between will be 68 of the best players in Major League Baseball on their way to a ballgame.

Playing a game that matters on Sunday at Fort Bragg certainly hits home for Marlins left fielder Christian Yelich. The trip carries special meaning because the 24-year-old’s brother, Cameron, is in the Marines.

It was last September when Royals manager Ned Yost happened to notice designated hitter Kendrys Morales shagging some fly balls in the outfield during batting practice.

Perched on a table in the Rays’ clubhouse following its first win in 12 games was a plain brown box with a plain white piece of paper taped to it. It was what the Rays hoped would turn around their worst losing streak in seven years.

A week after being diagnosed with right biceps tendinitis, Michael Brantley hit off a tee for the second consecutive day, Indians manager said Terry Francona on Tuesday.

A complete breakdown of which 2016 Draft picks from the first 10 rounds have agreed to terms, along with their reported bonuses and starting assignments.

Carlos Beltran, the most productive hitter in the Yankees’ lineup, was forced to exit Tuesday’s game against the Rangers with what appeared to be an injury to one of his hamstrings.

Every lineup, every day, as they are made public by the clubs.

Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw is flying home to Los Angeles for an exam to determine the cause of his back soreness, manager Dave Roberts said on Tuesday. The Dodgers remain hopeful that Kershaw will be able to start on Friday against the Rockies. Roberts said that Kershaw’s issue is back soreness, not related to his hip, as in the past.

Yu Darvish will throw a simulated game on Wednesday at Yankee Stadium and Chi Chi Gonzalez is expected to get another start on Saturday against the Twins.

Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard has a small spur in the back of his elbow, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reported Tuesday, while lefty Steven Matz will be pushed back in the rotation one game due to a spur of his own. Matz, initially slated to start Wednesday against Washington, will now take the hill Thursday vs. the Cubs.

Touted right-hander James Kaprielian is still experiencing discomfort in his pitching elbow and traveled to New York to be examined by team physician Christopher Ahmad on Tuesday.

Tigers manager Brad Ausmus announced Tuesday that Anibal Sanchez is moving back to the bullpen after the veteran right-hander allowed four runs over five innings in Detroit’s 6-0 loss to Cleveland on Saturday.

Jon Jay, the Padres’ most consistent offensive performer this season and one of their top trade chips, will likely miss at least a month with a broken right forearm. He will be placed on the disabled list Tuesday, and outfielder Alex Dickerson will be recalled from Triple-A El Paso in his place. The club has not yet confirmed the news, which was first reported by the Mighty 1090.

Rays closer Alex Colome will go on the disabled and reliever Dana Eveland has been recalled to take his spot on the roster. Colome’s stint on the DL is retroactive to June 19. He’d been perfect in his 19 save opportunities this season.

When United States Army Major Ron Colombo was attending airborne school at Georgia’s Fort Benning last summer, he called his high school buddy A.J. Pierzynski to get tickets for the Fourth of the July game against the Phillies at Turner Field.