Braves talked to Marlins about Ross  —  Before trading for Nate McLouth, the Braves had serious trade discussions with the Marlins about outfielder Cody Ross.  —  The Marlins had made Ross available, major-league sources said, but later decided against making the trade with Atlanta.

New York Yankees' A.J. Burnett suspended six games for pitch … Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett has been suspended six games for throwing a pitch over the head of the Rangers' Nelson Cruz in Tuesday night's game.  Burnett has filed an appeal of the penalty, however, and will be allowed to pitch until the appeals process is complete.

Wang to start Thursday for Yankees  —  Hughes headed to bullpen; Sabathia pushed back a day  —  NEW YORK — No matter how well Phil Hughes was pitching in their rotation, the Yankees knew they could not keep one of the winningest starters in the American League shackled in their bullpen for long.

Rain wins, Big Unit forced to wait  —  Johnson's attempt at career win No. 300 pushed to Thursday  —  WASHINGTON — Their day began at the White House, where the San Francisco Giants met the first family.  It ended at Nationals Park, where the first left-hander — or at least the tallest left-hander …

The Rumor Mill: June Test Drive  —  According to an industry source, suddenly out of work pitchers Tom Glavine and Vicente Padilla will not be jobless for long.  —  One NL exec told BaseballDigest.com on Wednesday night the Phillies “like both pitchers and will sign one of them before the week is out.”

Beckett takes no-hitter into seventh as Red Sox tame Tigers  —  DETROIT — Boston Red Sox starter Josh Beckett, who grew up idolizing Nolan Ryan, nearly joined him in the record books Wednesday.  —  Beckett flirted with a no-hitter for 6 2/3 innings vs. the Detroit Tigers in Boston's 10-5 rout at Comerica Park.

White Sox to DFA Betemit, Promote Beckham  —  According to a tweet by MLB.com's Noah Coslov, the White Sox will designate infielder Wilson Betemit for assignment before Thursday's game and call up top prospect Gordon Beckham.  Beckham was the eighth overall pick in the 2008 Draft …

Dissecting the Disabled List by Team, Position, Year and Injury  —  More photos » by Jim Prisching - AP  —  I have always wondered why there isn't an injury database available for people to use for analysis since injuries play a huge role in determining player performance.

Good deal: Matt Holliday OK if Oakland Athletics trade him away  —  Matt Holliday always seemed destined to be a short-timer in Oakland.  But if the A's don't turn their season around, the outfielder's stay might be even shorter than expected — and he doesn't sound opposed to finishing this season with a contender if it comes to that.

Have a look at Hawpe and Helton  —  Colorado (20-32) at Houston (23-28), 6:05 p.m. MT  —  HOUSTON — Rockies first baseman Todd Helton and right fielder Brad Hawpe have been almost immune from the team's offensive difficulties.  —  Manager Jim Tracy wonders why other Rockies hitters aren't copying those two.

A-Rod takes brunt of boos in loss  —  Alex Rodriguez has gotten much of the credit for the Yankees' terrific play lately.  But on a night when their lineup was a dud and Andy Pettitte struggled to throw strikes, A-Rod took most of the blame, at least from fans, for the Yankees' 4-2 loss to Texas.

Brad Penny tops trade talks again  —  DETROIT - According to Brad Penny's baseball calendar, he's due to be traded next month.  He got traded from Arizona to Florida in July of 1999, then five years later he went from the Marlins to the Dodgers at the trading deadline in 2004.

Sammy Sosa planning to announce formal retirement  —  SANTO DOMINGO — Former Chicago Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa said Wednesday that he will soon announce his formal retirement from baseball and that he will not allow his legacy to be stained by steroid-use accusations.