With the Yankees making the World Series last year, manager Aaron Boone was tasked with managing the All-Star Game, and he chose his former second baseman to lead off for the American League. Torres admitted pregame that the decision had left him “surprised.”

Asked to evaluate his team’s performance heading into the All-Star break, Yankees manager Aaron Boone selected the word “incomplete.” He could have easily substituted “inconsistent.” There will be 66 games remaining when the Yankees take the field Friday evening in Atlanta,

DETROIT -- The Detroit Tigers have signed veteran right-hander Geoff Hartlieb to a minor-league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Toledo. Hartlieb, 31, made his debut for the Mud Hens on Sunday, retiring all four batters he faced and striking out two.

Torres, voted the American League’s starting second baseman, is having the best offensive season of his career. He’s reaching base at a .387 clip and helping lead a Tigers team that passed the Yankees in the standings weeks ago. But Boone’s praise lands a little differently considering how Torres left. It wasn’t exactly an amicable split.

ATLANTA — Eugenio Suárez said he is “happy” in Arizona and is doing his best to help a club that entered the All-Star break floundering but fighting: three games under .500, 11 games removed from the NL West lead and 5.5 games out of a wild-card spot.

New York Yankees left-hander Max Fried exited Saturday's 5-2 loss to the visiting Chicago Cubs with a blister on his left thumb after laboring through three innings.