The Braves have considered asking B.J. Upton if he would be willing to work out his struggles in the minor leagues.

After signing a five-year, $75 million deal with Atlanta, Upton is hitting just .146.

Fredi Gonzalez said that Upton has enough service time in the majors to refuse an assignment.

"In my own mind, you think about those things, but really I haven't gotten to that point," Gonzalez said. "I think there's some logistics -- contractual things and that sort of stuff -- that they might not be able to do it that easy."

Upton is hitless in the team's past seven games. He was out of the lineup Friday for the second straight night.

The Royals have named Hall of Famer George Brett their interim hitting coach.

Brett takes over for Jack Maloof and Andre David, who have been reassigned to the minor league organization.

"I'm thankful that this organization has one of the greatest hitters and more importantly one of the greatest competitors our game has ever seen in George Brett, and he has accepted our offer to join the coaching staff on an interim basis," Dayton Moore said.

Chris Sale will not change anything about the way he pitches despite concerns about the impact on his arm.

Sale has dealt with elbow soreness and shoulder tendinitis.

"Both of those injuries weren't serious, knock on wood," Sale said. "I wouldn't chalk those up as threatening injuries. I didn't go on the DL for either of them. I got a precautionary MRI last year because that was something I wanted to do.

"So, yeah, I mean people are going to say what they want to say. In one ear and out the other for me. I'm going to keep pitching the same way and just adjust accordingly."

Hideki Matsui will sign a one-day contract with the Yankees on July 28 and retire as a Yankee.

The team will then honor him prior to the team's contest against the Rays.

Matsui spent his first seven Major League seasons with the Yankees from 2003-09, hitting .292 with 536 runs scored.

The New York Yankees have a deep group of relievers and the market is expected to be thin this summer.

There has been talk that New York could move Joba Chamberlain sometime before the July 31 trade deadline if the right deal comes along.

The Tampa Bay Rays will call up Alex Colome to join their bullpen.

Colome has a 2.60 ERA with 61 strikeouts against 22 walks in 55.1 innings of work in Triple-A this season.

The Washington Nationals are not actively seeking help from outside the organization to improve the roster.

Washington is 27-26, more than four games back of Atlanta in the NL East.

Matt Kemp continues to struggle at the plate, but the Dodgers insist his health is not an issue.

Kemp struck out four times on Monday, the first time he's done so since 2010. He is in the second year of an eight-year, $160 million deal.

He underwent left shoulder surgery in October to repair damage he sustained when colliding with a wall in Colorado last August.

"I would tell you, internally, that we're all assured that he isn't [hurt], you know? So, he's not," Stan Kasten said in an interview with 710 ESPNLA. "We can't really put our finger on it. We certainly can't blame it on that, because he assures us he's not hurt. The doctors, the trainers have all assured me that he's not hurt, that it's just something he's working through."

Kemp is batting .253 with two home runs and 17 RBIs after 186 at-bats.

The Braves have a problem on their hands when it comes to who should be playing center field.

They signed B.J. Upton to a $75 million deal to handle the position, but Jordan Schafer has played well and moving Jason Heyward to center is an option as well.

Moving Heyward to center allows Justin Upton to slide to right and Evan Gattis to play left. Fredi Gonzalez is then able to keep Gattis' bat in the lineup, while playing Brian McCann at catcher.

Of course, this wouldn't be a debate if B.J. Upton wasn't hitting .148/.236/.252 after 176 plate appearances.

It has been 15 years since the Indians drafted a player that eventually became an All-Star.

Cleveland drafted CC Sabathia in 1998 and was an All-Star with the organization in 2007.

That is the longest drought in the American League.