Every Thursday Sporting News Fantasy will provide a snapshot of the upcoming week’s major league baseball schedule. Weekly leaguers should note how many games each team plays, as well as which players will gain/lose at-bats because of interleague play. Daily leaguers should note first-pitch times and Monday/Thursday off-days. SCHEDULE INFO FOR 4/5-4/12 Every team has six games INTERLEAGUE SERIES Teams losing a DH: Rays, Red Sox Rays (Fri.-Sun., @MIA). Most likely to lose at-bats: John Jaso...

While the notion of police officers patrolling dugouts and doling out $100 fines to millionaire offenders seems rather absurd, Major League Baseball is intent on ensuring that its players and staffers follow the letter of these particular laws. MORE: Baseball players who defied age | MLB’s most-hated players An MLB official told ESPN that players who violate municipal ordinances banning tobacco use will be subject to discipline by commissioner Rob Manfred, adding an extra layer of intrigue to an already divisive issue in the sport....

This year, instead of the “zonk” the Bombers got in Jaime Garcia, they hope to have opened Door No. 1 and gotten a great, valuable prize in Lance Lynn. MORE: Trade deadline tracker — Follow all the action in one spot On the other side, the Twins get a mixed bag with first baseman-outfielder Tyler Austin and minor league pitcher Luis Rijo. Here’s how it works out. MLB Trade Grades New York Yankees: B Most Yankees fans were confused when the trade came down, especially when looking at Lynn’s overall numbers in 2018: a 5....

New York sent scouts to watch Rangers left-hander Mike Minor’s start against the Astros this weekend and the team has some level of interest in him, according to the Dallas Morning News. The Yankees farm system is “deep enough to intrigue the Rangers” about a potential deal, the report says. The Rangers are “increasingly likely” to move Minor ⁠— who allowed four earned runs and struck out 10 in seven innings of work against Houston — before the July 31 trade deadline, according to an earlier report from MLB Network....

Atlanta has shown interest in Reds outfielder Yasiel Puig, according to a report from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Puig would be a rental since he is a free agent after the season. It may surprise some people that the Braves would pursue an outfielder with Ronald Acuna Jr., Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis in the outfield, but Markakis suffered a wrist injury in recent days, so this interest may indicate that he may be out for a little while at least....

Evans, the Giants’ general manager, has been with the organization since 1994, and he has seen his fair share of deep playoff runs, including World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014. The 2017 season, though, wasn’t quite like those magical seasons. The Giants went 9-17 in April and were 23 1/2 games behind the Dodgers in the NL West by the end of June. MORE: The latest Giancarlo Stanton trade rumors...

Rays pitchers — led by starters Moore and Odorizzi — have generated interest from at least a half-dozen teams and have been most frequently scouted by the Rangers, Dodgers and Pirates, the Tampa Bay Times reported. MORE: Worst in-season trades for every AL franchise Others seriously interested include the Astros, Marlins, Nationals and Red Sox, according to the Times. “I haven’t been around all that long, but every time something like this does happen and there is this deadline, or we may need something, it does kind of shake you up a little bit and make you appreciate your teammates and where you’re at even more,” said Moore, 27, a left-hander who is 6-7 with a 4....

THE RUMOR: Stephen Strasburg could be available in a trade after the Nationals sign Max Scherzer. REPORTED BY: Jon Morosi, FOX Sports THE DETAILS: With Scherzer signing a seven-year, $210 million deal Monday, the already talented Nationals rotation just got way more crowded — even their current sixth starter, Tanner Roark, rocked an impressive 2.85 ERA and 15 wins last season. So something has got to give, and it may the former No....

The Twins are said to have “strong interest” in the left-hander, according to USA Today. That interest may be waning a bit as ESPN reports Minnesota hasn’t had “high-level” talks with the Giants in recent weeks, but that doesn’t mean the Twins don’t want him. It may simply mean the Giants’ asking price right now for Bumgarner is too high, and several reports have indicated the team won’t settle on a trade for the postseason whiz....

The Yankees, Braves, Phillies and Athletics, among others, are all interested in the 32-year-old starter, according to a report from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Roark is scheduled to pitch for Cincinnati against the Pirates on Tuesday. Roark holds a 6-6 record with a 3.95 ERA in 20 starts for the Reds so far in 2019. He has struck out 106 and walked 34 in 107 innings on the mound....

Names such as Andrew McCutchen and Lorenzo Cain have been on seemingly every team’s shortlist, but Washington has the farm system to complete a deal. FAGAN: Nationals have struck out at Winter Meetings — so far Now there are even more names on the Nationals’ radar as they try to secure a star player after missing out on Chris Sale. Here are the top candidates Washington could bring in to play center field:...

The proposal calls for a two-day, 10-round international draft starting in March 2018, including a minimum-age requirement of 18 for eligible players by 2021. Baseball executives believe instituting an international draft would help alleviate some of the perceived corruption surrounding the acquisition of talent from Latino countries, the report said. Under the current system, for example, handlers sometimes demand fees from teams in order to sign their players. There’s also been a market of handlers smuggling players from Cuba....

It’s Atlanta’s seventh straight win. Left-hander Max Fried was brilliant, yielding only one hit and striking out nine in seven shutout innings. Ronald Acuna Jr. keyed the offense with a solo home run and a pair of runs scored. It was the 21-year-old’s 37th home run of the season. According to ESPN, only three players have hit more home runs in a season before age 22: Hall of Famers Eddie Mathews, who hit 47, Mel Ott (42), and Frank Robinson (38)....

That young Cole Tucker would have been jumping for joy to see how his MLB debut ended. In his third career at-bat, Tucker drove a pitch from Giants starter Derek Holland 431 feet into the wind to almost dead center field for his first career home run and hit. That two-run homer gave the Pirates a 3-1 lead in the fifth, and fans roared to get Tucker out for an encore....

The 22-year-old righty allowed just four hits and one run over seven innings to lead the Rockies to a 3-1 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He struck out nine and walked one while throwing 95 pitches. Lambert is the No. 4 prospect in the Colorado organization, according to MLB Pipeline. “Stayed calm, stayed under control — I mean, pitched, really pitched,” Rockies manager Bud Black said about Lambert after the victory, via MLB....

The Yankees topped the Athletics in dramatic fashion, as infielder DJ LeMahieu blasted a walkoff home run in the bottom of the 11th inning, vaulting his team to a 4-3 victory at Yankee Stadium. While LeMahieu went 1 for 5 on the day, he came up big when his team needed him most. Gary Sanchez was 2 for 3 at the plate and hit two home runs. New York only tallied six hits but four of them cleared the outfield wall....

Former Sweden captain Ibrahimovic took his tally to 499 as the Galaxy drew 1-1 against city rivals Los Angeles FC on Friday. In a career including spells with Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, Barcelona, Inter and Juventus, Ibrahimovic opened the scoring after 15 minutes at Stubhub Center. The 36-year-old appeared to poke the ball over the line but the referee did not award the goal, until a video review overturned the decision....

Deep into the fourth minute of stoppage time, Scott Sutter headed home Kaka’s free-kick to snatch a 1-1 draw in Seattle on Wednesday. TFC, Impact draw in cup final opener The Sounders thought they had claimed all three points after Will Bruin opened the scoring in the 19th minute at CenturyLink Field. However, a set-piece from captain Kaka and Sutter’s finish was all that Orlando needed to salvage a share of the spoils away from home....

All 22 teams are in action this weekend, and while teams like Toronto FC, Houston and Sporting Kansas City cope with multiple international call-ups, other teams are hoping to take advantage of the aforementioned absences. Arena: ‘U.S. saving no one for Mexico’ Two teams that were considered the best in MLS at one point earlier in the season head into the break eager to halt lengthy winless slides. The Portland Timbers went from looking unstoppable in March to registering a single point in May, while FC Dallas went from being the league’s lone unbeaten to riding a four-match winless slide while also having to cope without both starting center backs....

There are teams that have made considerable improvement (Orlando City and the Portland Timbers), and teams that have taken serious steps back (the Philadelphia Union and Colorado Rapids). We’ve seen new arrivals make immediate contributions (Jonathan Spector and Bastian Schweinsteiger), and some who have struggled to settle in (Joao Pedro and Cristian Colman). Some 2016 rookies look ready to take the next step (Jack Harrison and Alex Muyl), while some have found the sophomore slump to be a real thing (Keegan Rosenberry and Jonathan Campbell)....