MLB scores and more: Selig finally retiring?, Cano no closer on contract, Floyd has elbow issues

Sunday’s scores

Yankees 3, Blue Jays 2 - R.A. Dickey pitched well, holding New York to just four hits in seven innings, but unfortunately two of those hits were big flies. Lyle Overbay delivered the go-ahead two-run shot in the seventh. With the win, the Yanks earned their first four-game sweep of the Blue Jays since 1995.

Marlins 6, Cubs 4 - Leave it to the Cubs to awaken a sleeping giant. Giancarlo Stanton blasted two home runs Sunday, giving him three for the weekend (and the year). Disgruntled employee Ricky Nolasco got his second win with a strong seven-inning effort.

Phillies 5, Mets 1 - Effectively wild Cole Hamels notched his first win of 2013, striking out eight (while walking six) over six innings to give the Phillies the sweep. Ryan Howard broke the 1-1 tie in the seventh with an RBI double.

Reds 5, Nats 2 - Rookie southpaw Tony Cingrani was spectacular yet again, fanning 11 in six scoreless frames. The left-hander now has 28 strikeouts (to just four walks) in 18 innings over his first three big-league starts. Not too shabby.

Red Sox 6, Astros 1 - John Lackey made a triumphant (and injury-less) return from the DL, holding the Astros to one run over six innings. With the four-game sweep, the Sox have now won 13 of their last 16 games.

Royals 9, Indians 0 (Gm 1.) - KC cruised to a victory in Part I of Sunday's double feature. Jeremy Guthrie shutout the Tribe for 6⅔ while Alcides Escobar and Alex Gordon led the offense attack with long balls.

Indians 10, Royals 3 (Gm 2.) - Mike Aviles turned in the rare one-hit, five-RBI night to help the Tribe take the nightcap. Corey Kluber went to 2-0 on the year with seven solid innings for Cleveland. Will Smith got hammered in his spot start for the Royals.

Rays 8, White Sox 3 - David Price finally got his elusive first win of 2013. The right-hander hung around for seven innings, just long enough for Ben Zobrist to spark a late-inning rally. Paul Konerko displayed some serious TWTW in the loss, blasting home run no. 426.

Twins 5, Rangers 0 - Well, the Rangers had to lose two in a row at some point, why not have be to Kevin Correia and the Twins? Correia continued his unexpectedly strong start to the season, tossing eight shutout innings for his fifth straight quality start of the year.

Pirates 9, Cardinals 0 - Jeff Locke put together another strong outing, keeping the Cardinals off the board for seven innings. The Bucs blasted four home runs on the day, launching them into first place in the NL Central.

Athletics 9, Orioles 8 (F. 10) - Yoenis Cespedes didn't wait long to have an impact upon his return to the lineup, hitting a game-tying two-run home run in the ninth. The A's won with some small ball in the 10th, plating the game-winner on a single and two bunts.

Mariners 2, Angels 1 - Jason Vargas had arguably the strongest start of the season for the Halos in his first matchup against his former club, but still managed to take the loss. So it goes with the Angels right now. Mike Morse mashed the go-ahead shot in the eighth.

D'Backs 4, Rockies 2 - The Angels are probably looking longingly on former prospect Patrick Corbin, who lowered his earned-run average to 1.91 with another quality start for the D'Backs on Sunday. Troy Tulowitzki left the game in the third with a shoulder strain suffered on one of the Rockies' several questionable base-running decisions.

Dodgers 2, Brewers 0 - Clayton Kershaw was back to being his magnificent self on Sunday, striking out 12 over eight frames. Kyle Lohse pitched well for Milwaukee but Carl Crawford had his number, launching two solo home runs off the right-hander.

Padres 6, Giants 4 - Chase Headley, Nick Hundley, and Alexi Amarista all hit big flies off of Giants starter Ryan Vogelsong to give the Padres the surprise sweep over San Francisco. Buster Posey hit his third in the loss.

Tigers 8, Braves 3 - Detroit continued its demolition of Atlanta Sunday night. Three-run blasts from Austin Jackson and Miguel Cabrera, and a solid start from Doug Fister, led the way for the Tigers' sweep. The hot-start Braves were outscored 25-7 in the three-game set.

The Big Three

1. Mark your calendars, folks. After years of toying with us about the prospect of retiring, Bud Selig's reign as commissioner may finally have a legitimate end date: January 15, 2015. Yes, the date is still two years away, which gives Selig plenty of time to change his mind, but considering that he turned down a five-year extension in favor of a two-year deal when his last contract expired leads me to believe he may actually step down after next season. Joe Torre's position in the commissioner's office seems to make him the heir apparent, but he doesn't really seem to fit the "Guy With A Weird Name" mold that most of the commissioners have had in spades.

2. Robinson Cano and his new representation continue to discuss a long-term contract with the Yankees, but the two sides are reportedly split on who the second baseman's comps are in terms of years and dollars. Cano's camp is looking for a top-shelf deal in the 10yr/$275MM Alex Rodriguez realm, while New York wants to pay him more like Mets third baseman David Wright, who inked an 8yr/$138MM extension over the winter. While any sort of deal in the nine figures seems completely crazy to me, even (literally) poor me can understand why a discrepancy of over $100 million might cause a rift in contract talks. I still fully expect Cano and the Yankees to reach a long-term deal, though at this rate it might not happen before the All-Star break. My guess is they come to a compromise at something like eight years and $175 million guaranteed with two option years on the end.

3. The Chicago White Sox might have to restrock magical injury-prevention elixir. The ChiSox have been far and away the best at keeping guys off the disabled list for prolonged periods of time over the last decade, but this year has not started well on that front. Right-hander Gavin Floyd is the latest South Sider to hit the DL, going on the 15-day list with a strained flexor muscle in his throwing elbow. Floyd joins Gordon Beckham, Dayan Viciedo, and John Danks as part of the club's injured reserve.

In Other News...

1. The Orioles acquired catcher Chris Snyder from the Angels on Sunday to give them more options behind Matt Wieters. He'll probably take over the backup spot until Taylor Teagarden returns from his thumb injury.

2. The Athletics DFA-ed outfielder Casper Wells, sending him to the waiver wire for the third time this month. As frustrating as it must be to sit around for weeks while waiting for a team to claim you, it's can't hurt too bad when you're being paid $500k.

3. The Yankees have lost catcher Francisco Cervelli for several weeks to a broken hand. The Yanks will go ahead with Chris Stewart and [Your Name Here] behind the plate.