Teams are waiting for the Mariners to start selling solid veterans , but Seattle is apparently in no hurry to start the sale.  —  Kendrys Morales, Raul Ibanez and Oliver Perez — who has drawn interest from the Orioles, Braves and others — are the most obvious and valuable veteran trade targets.

Pirates Break Loose, Beat Athletics 5-0  —  PITTSBURGH — Francisco Liriano scattered four hits over seven innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Oakland Athletics 5-0 on Wednesday night.  —  Liriano (9-3) struck out six and walked one.  He trimmed his ERA to 2.00 as the Pirates snapped a four-game losing streak.

Nats could use boost, but Johnson has faith  —  WASHINGTON — The Nationals improved their bench by acquiring outfielder Scott Hairston from the Cubs on Sunday night.  Do the Nationals need to acquire more help before the Trade Deadline?  It's not a secret that manager Davey Johnson would like another experienced player off the bench.

White Sox should put Sale for sale  —  If I'm the White Sox, I'm making left-hander Chris Sale available.  —  The time is right; the market for starting pitching stinks.  —  Matt Garza is an oft-injured rental.  Yovani Gallardo has a 4.85 ERA.  Kyle Lohse is 35, Bud Norris has never pitched …

Reimold homers to lead Orioles over Rangers  —  BALTIMORE — Wei-Yin Chen returned from the disabled list to pitch seven innings of three-hit ball, and the Baltimore Orioles got a three-run homer from Nolan Reimold in a 6-1 victory over the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night.

Papelbon staying in Philly ... for now  —  Enough, for now, about the possibility of the Philadelphia Phillies trading Jonathan Papelbon.  —  They need to add a reliever, not subtract one.  —  The Phillies are in the midst of a mini-surge, even without one-time National League MVP Ryan Howard.

Cano hits homer, Overbay adds grand slam as Yankees top Royals  —  NEW YORK — Robinson Cano hit a three-run homer, Lyle Overbay added a grand slam and the New York Yankees snapped out of their offensive funk with an 8-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night.

Jay-Z's Roc Nation Chasing Puig, Cespedes  —  Jay-Z made waves earlier this year when he entered the sports representation world with his Roc Nation Sports venture and lured Robinson Cano away from Scott Boras.  Now, the company is wooing Dodgers star Yasiel Puig and also has an eye …

Giants pitcher charged with lewdness in Las Vegas  —  By MIKE BLASKY  —  LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL  —  San Francisco Giants pitcher Chad Gaudin has been charged with lewdness after police say he touched the breast of a woman on a gurney at a Las Vegas hospital earlier this year.

Cubs close to deal with No. 2 overall pick Kris Bryant  —  The Cubs are very close to signing No. 2 overall pick Kris Bryant, the big power hitter from the University of San Diego.  —  Though the deal isn't officially done, the sides are on the way to completing it with the slugging third baseman.