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Asdrubal Cabrera's emergence as a star lights the way for first-place Cleveland Indians: Bud Shaw  —  CLEVELAND, Ohio — Only Miss Manners could say for sure, but is it considered poor taste to send a thank you card to a player best remembered now for what his departure brought in return?

Why all the parity in baseball?  —  Your eyes do not deceive you.  The standings do not deceive you.  There is indeed greater parity in baseball this season — so far.  —  Entering Sunday's play, 20 of the 30 clubs were within four games of .500 — the most ever on May 21, according to STATS LLC.

The Annotated WARP Leaders  —  Our collection of BP-flavored single-season WARP scores currently goes back to 1950.  Now that we've added fielding runs to the sortable choices, you can easily see the combination of offense and defense that made the top players during this period so valuable …

Switch-pitcher?  Ambidextrous HS star on rise … ELGIN, Ill. — Professional scouts are paying increasing attention to a right-handed pitcher and a left-handed pitcher from a tiny school in Elgin, Ill., and it happens to be the same player.  —  Ryan Perez has become a spectacle for fans …

A's Josh Outman to return against Angels  —  (05-22) 21:27 PDT — No pressure, Josh Outman.  First major-league appearance in nearly two years, on the road, Jered Weaver pitching for the Angels and the A's stumbling along on a five-game losing streak.  —  That's the assignment Outman …

Braves Sign Julio Lugo  —  The Braves signed shortstop Julio Lugo to a minor league contract that's pending a physical, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes.com.  Lugo will earn $12K per month in the minor leagues and a pro-rated portion of $650K if he makes the Major Leagues, Rojas reports.

BP Announces Free Public Access to Archives  —  Baseball Prospectus, owner of BaseballProspectus.com (BP), today announced it has made its entire archive of premium and fantasy content over one year old completely and permanently free to the public.  —  Hundreds of original articles …

Reds option struggling Volquez to Triple-A  —  Club calls up slugger Frazier, lefty Maloney, options Smith  —  The Reds have optioned struggling starting pitcher Edinson Volquez to Triple-A Louisville, the club announced Monday amidst a flurry of other moves.

Doc: After Yankees' Bartolo Colon, 10 More Pitchers Want Stem Cell Procedure  —  NEW YORK (WFAN/AP) - One of the doctors who assisted in a stem cell procedure last year on Yankees starter Bartolo Colon says that 10 other pitchers have expressed interest in undergoing the treatment that is being scrutinized by Major League Baseball.

Team hints it will move Slowey  —  Twins righthander Kevin Slowey, who has struggled as a reliever, looks headed to Class AAA Rochester to stretch out as a starter — but there are indications a different change of scenery is possible.  —  PHOENIX - Twins righthander Kevin Slowey …

Alexei Ramirez powers surging White Sox past Dodgers 8-3  —  CHICAGO — Alexei Ramirez homered and drove in a career-high five runs, and the suddenly surging Chicago White Sox beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-3 on Sunday.  —  Ramirez hit a two-run homer in the first inning …