The Arizona Diamondbacks have selected the contract of left-handed pitcher Zac Curtis from Class A Advanced Visalia and designated left-hander Keith Hessler for assignment, D-backs senior vice president and general manager Dave Stewart announced Saturday.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez indicated that he may replace one of the 13 pitchers the Braves have been carrying with a position player. Switch-hitter Emilio Bonifacio is a likely candidate.

Astros outfielder Carlos Gomez will miss the rest of the series against the A’s with a sore left rib cage suffered while diving for a ball in left-center during Friday night’s 7-4 loss.

With proven vets like Troy Tulowitzki and dynamic youngsters like Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor, the competition is fierce at AL shortstop.

After spending the past few weeks showing why they rank as two of baseball’s top prospects, Dansby Swanson and Ozzie Albies will now take the next step toward potentially spending this season’s second half together in Atlanta’s lineup.

Last year, the Cubs wore pajamas on the flight back from Los Angeles and players could wear shorts to Miami. The first theme trip this year will be Sunday, when they travel to Pittsburgh for a three-game series, and it will be what manager Joe Maddon called “a minimalist zany suit trip.”

Jose Oquendo announced that he will be undergoing right knee replacement surgery next month, which will preclude him from returning to the Cardinals’ coaching staff this season.

Alex Meyer had a tough season debut in relief against the Tigers in Friday’s 9-2 loss, but the right-hander is still on schedule to make his first start of the season against the Astros on Tuesday.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez made the easy decision to push Julio Teheran’s start back one day after Saturday afternoon’s game against the Cubs was postponed because of rain.

The Pirates on Saturday reinstated reliever Jared Hughes from the 15-day disabled list and optioned fellow relief pitcher Rob Scahill to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Jon Daniels is the accidental baseball executive.

He always loved sports, and baseball was his favorite, but he never seriously thought about a career in baseball in any capacity. When Daniels graduated from Cornell University, he worked in the private sector. However, one December, his college roommate A.J. Preller, who was working for Major League Baseball, invited Daniels to join him at the Winter Meetings.

Yonder Alonso notched his first homer of the season in thrilling fashion, launching a walk-off, three-run homer off Pat Neshek in the ninth inning for the A’s, who also watched their top pitching prospect, Sean Manaea, make his big league debut in the 7-4 series-opening victory over the Astros at the Coliseum on Friday evening.

Felix Hernandez threw 7 2/3 scoreless innings and Seth Smith belted a decisive homer to give the Mariners a 1-0 win over the Royals in Friday night’s series opener at Safeco Field.

Former Dodger Matt Kemp launched a towering three-run homer on an 0-2 pitch from Chris Hatcher with one out in the eighth inning to help the Padres snap a five-game losing streak on Friday night with a 5-1 win over the Dodgers, whose tailspin reached five straight losses.

An overturned call and a two-run homer by Danny Espinosa sparked the Nationals in a four-run fourth inning that proved to be just enough for them to hold on for a 5-4 victory on Friday night against the Cardinals.

The first month of the 2016 season has already delivered plenty of thrills, particularly of the grand slam variety. Since the regular season begin April 3, there have been a total of 17 grand slams, including two Friday.

On Friday, Trevor Story hit a two-run home run in the top of the fifth inning, his 10th of the season, to give the Rockies a 4-0 lead. The homer tied the MLB rookie record for home runs in April set by White Sox slugger Jose Abreu in 2014.