Yankees' Jordan Montgomery could miss 6-8 weeks with forearm strain  —  HOUSTON - Yankees lefty Jordan Montgomery will be out of the rotation for six-to-eight weeks, having been diagnosed with a strained left flexor tendon.  —  Right-hander Domingo German is the immediate replacement for Montgomery …

Mets' deGrom leaves loss to Braves with hyperextended elbow  —  NEW YORK - Jacob deGrom was pulled after four dominant innings with a hyperextended right elbow, and the Atlanta Braves broke out against the bullpen to back a stellar start by Sean Newcomb and beat the New York Mets 7-0 Wednesday night.

Betts homers 3 times as Red Sox beat Royals 5-4  —  BOSTON (AP) — Mookie Betts belted three solo homers and J.D. Martinez also went deep, powering the Boston Red Sox to a 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.  —  It was the fourth three-homer game for the 25-year-old Betts …

Is Trevor Bauer hinting that the Astros are doctoring baseballs?  —  Cleveland Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer seemingly implied via Twitter on Tuesday that the world champion Houston Astros are using nefarious means to improve the performance of their pitching staff.

Fernando Romero wins MLB debut for Twins, 4-0 over Blue Jays  —  MINNEAPOLIS — Fernando Romero's major league debut for Minnesota carried the extra weight of a Twins team that won only once in its previous 12 games.  —  No pressure, kid.  —  Well, he sure didn't appear to feel any.

Edwin Encarnacion, Corey Kluber lead Cleveland Indians past Texas Rangers 12-4  —  Encarnacion homered three times and drove in six runs.  —  CLEVELAND (AP) - Edwin Encarnacion homered three times and drove in six runs, helping Corey Kluber and the Cleveland Indians beat the Texas Rangers 12-4 on Wednesday.

Cubs' Yu Darvish surrenders 2-run HR in 1st  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Albert Almora Jr. and Javier Baez returned to the topfof the Cubs' lineup Wednesday in the series finale against the Rockies at warm Wrigley Field.  —  Neither Almora nor Baez played in Tuesday's 3-1 loss that snapped a five-game winning streak.

Yoenis Cespedes snaps chain sliding into 2B, leaving diamonds on the diamond  —  NEW YORK — Yoenis Cespedes left it all on the diamond Wednesday night — or, at least, probably several thousand dollars' worth of diamonds.  —  The New York Mets slugger snapped his glitzy necklace during …

Scooter Gennett will test his arm Friday, if it doesn't pass, Cincinnati Reds may be forced to make a move  —  Riggleman on Reds' loss to Milwaukee Wochit  —  Scooter Gennett was out of the lineup again Wednesday as planned.  The Reds' hope is he'll return Friday in the series opener against the Miami Marlins.

Tom Ricketts looks to stamp 'family's legacy' on Wrigley Field and neighborhood  —  Cubs owner Tom Ricketts talks with members of the press while attending the eighth annual Bricks & Ivy Ball at Navy Pier to benefit Cubs Charities Wednesday April, 18 2018.  (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)

C. Martinez sparks Cards to victory over White Sox  —  Cardinals righthander Michael Wacha arrived in the clubhouse in workout gear well after Wednesday's 3-2 Cardinals victory over the Chicago White Sox at Busch Stadium.  The one-run difference could be traced to the first home run struck _ anywhere …

Aaron Nola cements ace status, stops Phillies' skid by dominating Marlins  —  MIAMI — It started to happen last summer.  —  Pitch by pitch, start by start, every five days or so, Aaron Nola began to resemble the honest-to-goodness ace the Phillies lacked since they traded Cole Hamels midway through 2015.

Harper homers, Strasburg whiffs 11 as Nats top Pirates 9-3  —  Bryce Harper hit a leadoff homer and drove in three runs,  —  Stephen Strasburg struck out 11 and the  —  Pittsburgh Pirates 9-3 on Wednesday night for their fourth straight win.  —  Matt Adams clubbed his third homer in two games for Washington.

Dedelow, Gonzalez lead Kannapolis to 9-6 win over Hickory  —  KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (AP) — Craig Dedelow hit a three-run double in the fifth inning, and Luis Gonzalez singled three times as the Kannapolis Intimidators topped the Hickory Crawdads 9-6 on Wednesday.

Brewers 3, Reds 1: Road trip finishes on high note  —  CINCINNATI - Get out the brooms.  —  Responding in the best way possible to their four-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs last weekend, the Milwaukee Brewers took care of business with a sweep of their own of the Cincinnati Reds.

LaValley hits grand slam, leads Pensacola over Mississippi  —  PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — Gavin LaValley hit a grand slam in the seventh inning, leading the Pensacola Blue Wahoos to a 9-5 win over the Mississippi Braves on Wednesday.  —  The grand slam by LaValley capped a five-run inning …

Wells, Cronin fuel 5-0 Fort Myers win over Tampa  —  TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Joe Cronin hit a two-run triple in the third inning, and Tyler Wells allowed just two hits over six innings as the Fort Myers Miracle defeated the Tampa Tarpons 5-0 on Wednesday.  —  The triple by Cronin scored Robby Rinn …

Yankees' Didi Gregorius named AL Player of the Month  —  HOUSTON — Didi Gregorius was named AL Player of the Month for April.  —  The Yankee shortstop leads the majors with 10 homers, 30 RBI and a 1.159 OPS after the first full month of the season.  He batted .330 in an April filled with clutch hitting …