Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. joined Andy MacPhail in taking in the Orioles' 8-3 loss to the New York Yankees. "I invited him out to a game, and he came," MacPhail said. "That's it. That's all you're going to get from me." That such a thing took place obviously is not that big of a deal, but it certainly is interesting timing. Foxsports.com reported earlier this month that Orioles owner Peter Angelos rejected Ripken's proposal for a front office job working with MacPhail. Angelos denied the report.

Orioles pitching prospect Chris Tillman threw a no-hitter for Triple-A Norfolk on Wednesday. It was Norfolk's first no-hitter since 1992 as he worked both his average fastball and above average curve for six strikeouts and just one walk. Tillman was a second round pick of the Mariners in 2006.

A few dozen immigrant rights activists chanted "Boycott Arizona" outside Wrigley Field in Chicago as the Cubs opened a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Protesters are upset over Arizona's new immigration law that makes it a crime to be in the U.S. illegally. Activists nationwide have called for a boycott of Arizona tourism and of state businesses.

According to a study, the percentage of black players in the major leagues decreased again last year. In contract, Major League Baseball equaled its best grades for racial and gender diversity hiring. MLB received an A for race and a B for gender hiring in the annual study released Thursday by the University of Central Florida's Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports. The number of black players dropped from 10.2 percent to 9 percent last season. Baseball hit a low point in 2007 when just 8.2 percent of players were black. "I think it's a reflection now of the long-standing fact that African-American youths are playing basketball and football more than baseball," Institute director Richard Lapchick said. "It's ironic only because the role of people of color running baseball is dramatically increasing."

Tigers outfielder Magglio Ordonez got the 2,000th hit of his career on Thursday afternoon against the Twins. Ordonez reached the plateau with a single in the fourth inning, becoming just the sixth Venezuelan to hit the mark. He joins Omar Vizquel, Luis Aparicio, Andres Galarraga, Dave Concepcion and Bobby Abreu and is just the 260th player in major history history to have 2,000 hits.

The Los Angeles Angels beat the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday night thanks to a walkoff bunt by the Angels' Howie Kendrick. Indians relief pitcher Chris Perez called Kendrick's game-winning hit 'a stupid play' after the game. "It was a bad baseball play that happened to work out," said Perez. "I don't want to say it was bush league. But you never see that. Ninety-nine percent of hitters in that situation would rather win the game with a hit, not a bunt." "It was a stupid play that just happened to work," said Perez.

Astros right fielder Hunter Pence got tangled with a ball boy in the third inning of Wednesday's loss to the Reds. With a runner at first base and one out, Cincinnati's Joey Votto hit a sharp grounder that rolled into foul territory just as the ball boy scrambled to get out of the way. "That was one of the stranger plays," Pence said. "I was trying to catch the ball in between a stool. I was trying to pick it up and get it in as fast as I can. There's some crazy caroms down that line. There's not much foul territory down there and there's angles and what not and you just try to read it the best you can." Votto recorded an RBI triple on the play.

The Indians are the most-hated team in baseball, according to an Internet algorithm built by Nielsen Co. The service typically uses various keywords to find out whether people have positive, negative or neutral reactions to different brands and products. Teams were measured on a scale from -5 to 5. While no teams registered negative, only six teams had a rating lower than 2. The Indians posted a 0.9, while the Yankees placed sixth-worst with a 1.8 rating. The Giants (4.5) and Athletics (4.2) were the most-liked team on the scale.

Nationals pitching prospect Stephen Strasburg has continued to impress at the minor league level and ESPN.com's Kevin Goldstein expects to see him in Washington by the beginning of June. The only blemish on Strasburg's record Tuesday was a dropped third strike as he threw five no-hit innings for Double-A Harrisburg. A call up in June would make sense for the Nationals, who are undoubtedly looking to manage his service time.

Reliever Alan Embree, who hasn't pitched in the major leagues since last July, is back with the Red Sox. Embree made 211 relief appearances with Boston from 2002 to 2005. "I feel great and I'm here to help out any way they want me," said Embree. "I'm hoping I get the chance to go back to Boston." The Red Sox will recall Daisuke Matsuzaka on Saturday, which will spell the end for one of the team's relievers.