Mike Minor held Miami to just one run and Jason Heyward homered twice to help the Braves beat the Marlins, 8-2, before 22,402 at Marlins Park.

Heading to Interleague Play this weekend in Pittsburgh, the Royals wanted another bat off the bench. On Thursday, they planned to add one by calling up first baseman Clint Robinson from Triple-A Omaha, effective Friday.

Roy Oswalt struggled in his second start with Triple-A Round Rock, going four innings and allowing five earned runs.

Washington will take a 15-game stroll through the brutal AL East, beginning Friday with a three-game series against the Red Sox. Each team in the AL East is above .500, with Boston at 29-28 and in last place.

The Mets and shortstop Gavin Cecchini, whom the team took with the No. 12 pick in the First-Year Player Draft, have agreed to terms on a contract for $2.3 million set to be officially signed on Friday, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. The deal is pending a physical.

Matt Cain allowed no earned runs over seven innings in winning his sixth straight, and the Giants belted three home runs in defeating the Padres on Thursday afternoon.

The Rockies have reached an agreement left-handed pitcher Jeff Francis, their ace during their World Series trip in 2007, and are expected to start him Saturday afternoon against the Angels at Coors Field, the Denver Post reported Thursday morning.

Things couldn't have been going better when the A's got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning in Thursday's game against Texas. But they received a most unwelcome sight when outfielder Yoenis Cespedes pulled up lame when running from second to third on Seth Smith's RBI single.

For a while now, A's manager Bob Melvin has been saying how important it was to get outfielder Coco Crisp back on track, what with Crisp's ability to affect games with his speed on the bases at the top of the order.

Cubs left-hander Travis Wood will be looking to follow up a sharp, albeit losing, performance in his last outing and break through for his first victory of the season against the Twins Friday in the opener of a three-game Interleague series at Wrigley Field.

The Blue Jays reached an agreement with 10th-round pick Alex Azor for $1,000, the college senior told MLB.com on Thursday.

The Royals have signed first-round pick Kyle Zimmer, the fifth overall selection in Monday's First-Year Player Draft.

Norichika Aoki's rare two-homer effort and John Axford's rare two-inning outing gave the Brewers a 4-3 win over the Cubs on Thursday at Miller Park and a badly needed series win at home.

The conclusion of Eileen McNamee's crucial appearance as a defense witness at the Roger Clemens trial included emotional testimony Thursday about how her son's medical condition became part of a national story, and how she was furious with both Clemens and her husband about it.

The Nationals agreed to terms with three of their top five picks from the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, director of scouting Kris Kline said on Thursday.

X-rays on Freddie Freeman's left index finger were negative, and the 22-year-old first baseman was relieved to learn that he should be back in the lineup a lot sooner than he anticipated.

The Red Sox's outfield has been in flux for a majority of the season with Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford sidelined with injuries, but the pair is nearing a return to the field.