Power outage for Adrian Gonzalez  —  MINNEAPOLIS — When Adrian Gonzalez agreed to compete in the Home Run Derby, he shrugged off the notion that his swing might be adversely affected.  —  But he has only one homer since the All-Star break.  —  Coincidence?

Girardi expects A-Rod return later next week  —  Alex Rodriguez is expected to rejoin the New York Yankees during their trip to Minnesota next week, according to manager Joe Girardi.  —  Rodriguez, out since July 8 with a torn meniscus in his right knee that was surgically repaired July 11 …

Wolf, Brewers beat Cards for 13th win in 14 games  —  ST. LOUIS (AP)—The Milwaukee Brewers showed no sense of satisfaction in the clubhouse, even though they'd just won for the 13th time in 14 games and appeared to be pulling away in the NL Central.  —  Far from it.

Lawrie Hits Grand Slam as Blue Jays Beat Athletics  —  TORONTO (AP) — Brett Lawrie hit his first career grand slam and the feisty Toronto Blue Jays beat the Oakland Athletics 8-4 on Wednesday night.  —  Before the game, Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos, manager John Farrell …

Pirates Re-Sign Michael Crotta  —  The Pirates re-signed Michael Crotta to a minor league contract, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter).  Pittsburgh designated the right-hander for assignment at the end of July and appear to have released him since.

Collmenter helps D-backs beat Astros, move atop NL West  —  PHOENIX — Josh Collmenter scattered four hits over seven innings and Willie Bloomquist homered to start a three-run first inning and help the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Houston Astros 6-3 on Wednesday night.

MLB announces postseason schedule, eliminates off days  —  Except for travel days, there will be no off days in this year's postseason schedule.  MLB announced the postseason dates today, with the ALDSs beginning on Friday, Sept. 30, followed by the NLDSs on Saturday, Oct. 1.

Under The Knife: Cards need more than threats to protect Pujols … The Moneyball movie is coming out soon and with a trailer that makes the story seem like a cross between Seabiscuit and Hoosiers, a whole population of people who haven't read the book, seen the term used and misused …

Florida Marlins place Hanley Ramirez on disabled list  —  At least in the short term, the Marlins ended the speculation about when Hanley Ramirez might suit up again.  The answer now is no earlier than Aug. 18.  That's when Ramirez will be eligible to come off the disabled list.

Bryce Harper's emotional ejection from Wednesday night's game likely to cause a nationwide stir  —  Sixteen of the 18 players who started Wednesday night's Eastern League game between Richmond and Harrisburg weren't too happy with the size of home plate umpire Max Guyll's strike zone.

Indians' Ubaldo Jimenez wins home debut  —  CLEVELAND - Ubaldo Jimenez showed why Cleveland traded for him, winning his home debut and rookie Jason Kipnis went 5-for-5 with four runs and three RBIs as the Indians shaved another game off Detroit's lead in the AL Central by beating the Tigers 10-3 on Wednesday night.

Votto takes newly-signed Millwood deep; Reds beat Rockies  —  CINCINNATI, Ohio — Toronto's Joey Votto hit the last of Cincinnati's three solo homers, spoiling Kevin Millwood's return to the majors, and the Reds turned a season-high four double plays Wednesday night, holding on for a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

There's no cryogenics in baseball!  Icy technique seen strengthening wooden bats  —  Over the past few decades, companies have shifted how they manufacture bats, resulting in an uptick in the number of splintered wooden bats in professional games.  According to a published report …