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MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan reports that the Rangers have scratched Nick Tepesch from his scheduled Wednesday start against the A’s due to a blister on his right middle finger. Ross Wolf will be called up from Triple-A Round Rock to pitch in his place.

Tepesch developed the blister Friday evening on the only slider he threw during his solid five-inning outing against the Tigers. He is hoping that it will be fully healed by his next turn in the Rangers’ starting rotation — Sunday, May 26 against the Mariners.

Tepesch, 24, has posted a decent 3.98 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 31/13 K/BB ratio over 43 innings this season for Texas. Wolf, 30, has a 2.02 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 26/9 K/BB ratio in 35 2/3 innings this year on the farm.

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Larry Dierker has been part of the Astros family forever. He played there from 1964 through 1976, served as a radio broadcaster from 1979 through 1996 and managed the team from 1997 through 2001, winning the Manager of the Year award in 1998 and winning four division titles in his five seasons at the helm.

But then, after he was fired, there was a bit of an estrangement. I believe he’s held various titles in the organization, but there has certainly not been any embrace of Dierker in the past several years.

That has changed:

#Astros President of Business Operations Reid Ryan today announced that Larry Dierker has been named special assistant to the president.

— Maury Brown (@BizballMaury) May 21, 2013

I always got the impression that he was canned before he should’ve been and for that reason always had a soft spot for Dierker. Good to see him back in the fold.

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Memorial Day is next Monday, and there will be 16 MLB games. That means that every team is playing (and there’s a doubleheader)! Reportedly, they’ll all be wearing camouflage uniforms.

At first glance, this sounds great! Right? Well, Paul Lukas of Uni-Watch disagrees, quite strongly.

Memorial Day is not a day for celebrating the military. It’s a day for honoring the military dead. A more appropriate gesture would be an MLB-wide black armband. An even better gesture would be a pregame moment of silence, without anything on the uniform. But as is so often the case nowadays, merchandising and pandering trump common sense.

Lukas’s reasoning certainly makes sense.

What do you guys think? Is MLB a bunch of unsympathetic capitalists, a bunch of great pals of our brave, fallen soldiers, or something else?

Comment below.

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On Friday, 13-year-old Nick D’Annibale visited the MLB Fan Cave in New York City. D’Annibale, a lifelong Yankees fan suffering from acute lymphoblastic leukemia, was playing wiffleball on the streets of Manhattan when an ice-cream truck rolled past. Very few things in the world are more exciting than ice cream, but one of them is Yankees second baseman — and Nick’s favorite player — Robinson Cano. So you could imagine Nick’s reaction when Cano hopped out of the truck to join the game. Actually, you don’t have to imagine it. There’s video, and it’s pretty wonderful:  Awesome. Also, can you imagine how good Robinson Cano must be at wiffleball? From the looks of the video, he gets really good plastic on some of Nick’s pitches. Young Nick keeps pace pretty admirably, though. It’s also worth noting that this is the second documented instance of Cano distributing ice cream to New York-area children. But this latest one seems a lot more endearing.

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From DallasCowboys.com

Whether it’s a new contract or a new role in the offense, Tony Romo has been the center of attention this offseason. But when the OTAs kick off Tuesday at Valley Ranch, the Cowboys quarterback won’t be on the field.

Romo underwent surgery last month to remove a cyst from his back. The procedure will likely keep him out of the next three weeks of OTA practices and possibly the three-day minicamp in June. The Cowboys are confident their starting quarterback will be ready for training camp when the club leaves for Oxnard, Calif. on July 19.

Romo has not been participating in the Tuesday/Thursday throwing sessions that began last month. And he also hasn’t played recreational golf or basketball like he normally does this time of year.

Holding him out most of the summer would be a precautionary move by the Cowboys, who dealt with a plethora of injuries last year, including a back injury to Phil Costa The Cowboys’ center missed most of training camp and returned for the season opener in New York, only to play three snaps and had to miss that game and three others to rest the injury.

Romo reportedly suffered a broken rib in the season finale against the Redskins, taking several hard hits in the second half.

The Cowboys have yet to officially address Romo’s injury but it’s expected the quarterback, along with coach Jason Garrett and possibly owner/GM Jerry Jones will discuss the situation Tuesday following the OTA practice.

Romo signed a $108 million contract extension back on March 29 that included $55 million guaranteed and a $25 million bonus.

When Romo missed last week’s annual golf social held at the Cowboys Golf Club in Grapevine, Stephen Jones joked with the media his absence was a result of being back at Valley Ranch watching film like the other “coaches.”

This injury explains the Cowboys signing Aaron Corp for a few days earlier this month. Romo hasn’t been throwing during the week and when backup Kyle Orton wasn’t available one day to deal with a family matter, the Cowboys were left with only Nick Stephens. Corp signed to help throw and then after being released, participated in the three-day minicamp on a tryout basis.

For this week’s OTAs, Orton is expected to handle most of the first-team work, while Stephens and Dalton Williams, a rookie free-agent from Akron, will handle the rest of the reps.

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The more things change, the more they stay the same [MLB Power Rankings]

The Rangers are still on top of the league, and the Red Sox and Yankees are looking pretty solid again. There’s nothing too surprising about any of that.

On the other hand, the Indians and Pirates have cracked the top 10, and both LA teams are floundering.

Some exciting news for everyone except Ian Kinsler: We might be seeing the best prospect in baseball for the next couple weeks. Keep your eyes peeled whenever the Rangers are playing.
Without further ado, here are your MLB Power Rankings for week 6:
1. Texas Rangers (29-15) [Last week: 1] - The Rangers are still playing well, and the newest buzz is that we’ll get a chance to see uber-prospect Jurickson Profar, who will step in while Ian Kinsler is on the DL.

2. St. Louis Cardinals (28-15) [LW: 2] - Shelby Miller’s season hasn’t been without a couple hiccups, but overall he’s looking spectacular so far. The Cardinals’ +51 run differential trails only the Rangers in all of baseball.

3. New York Yankees (27-16) [LW: 4] - The Yankees have been playing extremely well, and they’ve now won 7 of their last 10. Hiroki Kuroda is having another excellent year in the Bronx, proving to be a bargain for them once again.

4. Boston Red Sox (27-17) [LW: 5] - The Red Sox are sitting on a 5-game winning streak, the longest active winning streak in MLB. I’m still not completely sold on this team, but they’re showing signs that they could be very good.

5. Cleveland Indians  (25-16) [LW: 11] - The Indians are heating up, with a four game winning streak. Carlos Santana, on the other hand, has cooled off a bit, as was expected. He’s still having a great season, just not quite as incredible as a couple weeks ago.

6. Atlanta Braves (25-19) [LW: 7] - Jason Heyward is back, and he could provide a nice boost to their offense. If he can play well, it might make up for the complete lack of production from BJ Upton, whose hitting has been the polar opposite of his brother Justin.

7. Cincinnati Reds (26-18) [LW: 9] - Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, and Shin-Soo Choo are all hitting the cover off the ball, and Jay Bruce is also hitting his stride as well. In other news, Johnny Cueto is coming back from the DL.

8. Detroit Tigers (23-19) [LW: 6] - Another week, and another epic story of Miguel Cabrera’s awesomeness. His latest: Yesterday’s 4-for-4 performance with 3 home runs. He walked in his only other plate appearance, and is now hitting .387.

9. San Francisco Giants (24-20) [LW: 3] - The Giants fall off a bit this week, thanks to their three game losing streak, and their -5 run differential. The (somewhat) good news is that they have the best record among all teams with negative run differentials.

10. Pittsburgh Pirates (26-18) [LW: 12] - The Pirates are hot right now, winning 8 of their last 10 games. Starling Marte is having an incredible season thus far. In other news, closer Jason Grilli has been flat out ridiculous.

11. Colorado Rockies (24-20)  [LW: 10] - Their pitching is inconsistent, but the Rockies’ lineup is one of the best in the National League, with pretty solid hitting from top to bottom. They’re currently on a 3 game winning streak.

12. Arizona Diamondbacks (25-19) [LW: 13] - If you aren’t yet acknowledging Paul Goldschmidt’s greatness, you’re wrong. The Diamondbacks’ first baseman is absolutely raking, and is developing into one of the best hitters in baseball.

13. Baltimore Orioles (23-20) [LW: 8] - Since last week’s rankings, the Orioles reeled off 5 straight losses. They’re also one of the few teams with a better record on the road (14-9) than at home (9-11). Also, Manny Machado is awesome.

14. Washington Nationals (23-21) [LW: 14] - The Nationals are still hovering a bit lower than where people projected them before the season, but it’s likely that they’ll improve and compete for the NL East.

15. Tampa Bay Rays (23-20) [LW: 16] - Matt Moore is off to a hot start, becoming the youngest pitcher to start the season 8-0 since some guy named Babe Ruth did it. I’m guessing that’s one of the only times we’ll hear those two pitchers compared to each other.

16. Oakland Athletics (23-22) [LW: 17] - The A’s seem to be just a series of random guys who get hot for a while, and later cool off. Hot right now: Josh Donaldson. The A’s third baseman is now hitting .317 with 6 HR and 27 RBI.

17. Kansas City Royals (20-20) [LW: 15] - James Shields, Jeremy Guthrie, and Ervin Santana have all had great starts, and the Royals have allowed the 4th fewest runs in baseball. Unfortunately, their offense isn’t anything special.

18. Philadelphia Phillies (21-23) [LW: 20] - Are the Phillies slowly moving their way up the rankings? Yes and no. They’ve been slowly moving up, but I’m not sure how much higher they can go, unless they somehow get their offense going.

19. San Diego Padres (20-23) [LW: 24] - Wait, the Padres made it out of the 20s? It’s partially because they’re coming dangerously close to being a .500 team, and partially because there are a lot of teams falling apart right now.

20. Seattle Mariners (20-24) [LW: 19] - They were doing ok over the past couple weeks, but getting swept by the Indians was their version of one step forward and two steps back. Interesting fact: Their only .300 hitter is Carlos Peguero, who has 6 at bats.

21. Chicago White Sox (19-23) [LW: 22] - Alex Rios is carrying the offense so far, and Chris Sale is starting to look just like last year, when he was a Cy Young candidate. They’ll need a little more if they want to become relevant, however.

22. Minnesota Twins (18-22) [LW: 18] - After being swept by the Red Sox, they’ve now lost five straight games. This isn’t a very talented team overall, despite the fact that Joe Mauer is playing as well as ever.

23. New York Mets (17-24) [LW: 25] - Matt Harvey continues to blow everyone’s minds, and the rest of the team continues to collectively let him down. Aside from Harvey and closer Bobby Parnell, their team ERA is over 5.

24. Chicago Cubs (18-25) [LW: 27] - Their pitching is average, and their offense is one of the worst in baseball. That’s a bad combination, and that’s why the Cubs will continue to be closer to the bottom than the top.

25. Milwaukee Brewers (17-25) [LW: 21] - Kyle Lohse was a solid last-minute free agent pickup, and Jean Segura has been absolutely incredible. Unfortunately, Lohse is their only good pitcher, for all intents and purposes.

26. Los Angeles Dodgers (17-25) [LW: 23] - The Dodgers seem determined to prove that money can’t buy wins. They’re the highest paid team in MLB history at around $220M but on the field, they’re awful.

27. Toronto Blue Jays (17-26) [LW: 26] - The Blue Jays got a bunch of players from the Marlins who were supposed to be good. As it turns out, the Blue Jays are about as good as the Marlins were last year. Shocking, right?

28. Los Angeles Angels (17-27) [LW: 28] - Another team with high expectations, the Angels are surprisingly bad. It certainly doesn’t help that they’ve given up the second most runs in all of baseball.

29. Miami Marlins (12-32) [LW: 29] - If a baseball team is terrible, but no one shows up to watch their games, are they still bad? The answer is yes, they are. Even though no one in South Florida knows (or cares).

30. Houston Astros (12-32) [LW: 30] - The Astros supposedly have a great farm system. I sure hope so, because their major league team is about as bad as it gets.

If you love these rankings, you’re probably a smart baseball fan. If you hate them, let me know why, in the comments below.

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After a devastating tornado in Moore, Oklahoma yesterday, I realize many folks are on edge about severe weather. I wish there was going to be blue skies and we could simply move on, but alas, mother nature has different plans. The threat of significant severe weather shifts south into Texas today. The Storm Prediction Center has issued a Moderate Risk (shown as the SIGNIFICANT RISK) on our graphics for today. A significant risk of severe weather means there is a nearly 1 in 2 chance that severe weather will occur close to your location. The D/FW Metroplex is included in this significant risk and that is most definitely a concern. Waco, Killeen (Fort Hood), Temple, Corsicana, Tyler, Longview, Texarkana, Clarksville, Paris, and Bonham are a few cities included in this significant risk of severe weather.

Lets talk about threats depending on storm mode. In a line of thunderstorms, the main severe weather threats will be damaging winds over 75 MPH and golfball size hail with a weak tornado threat. Any discrete thunderstorms (supercells) will have a higher tornado threat, including the possibility of strong tornadoes. Baseball size hail and damaging winds would be very likely with any supercell as well. The highest tornado threat will be in areas where boundaries are in place. The Moore, OK tornado was enhanced by a boundary left in place by storms on Sunday. The tornado threat will not be extremely high today, but is definitely enhanced and a greater concern than most other severe weather days.

Folks located in the red-shaded zone are in an elevated risk of severe weather. In this area, there is a 1 in 3 chance of severe weather occurring near your location. Like the significant risk zone, the hazards are nearly the same, but not as widespread. In a line of thunderstorms, the main severe weather threats will be damaging winds over 70 MPH and golfball size hail. Any discrete thunderstorms (supercells) will have a higher tornado threat, including the possibility of strong tornadoes. Baseball size hail and damaging winds would be very likely with any supercell as well. Finally, those located in the orange-shaded zone are included in a standard risk of severe weather. Those in this area have a nearly 1 in 6 chance of having severe weather occur near their location. Hazards in this area include large hail, damaging winds, and perhaps even a tornado. The severe weather could be just as significant in this area as the higher risk areas, but in less frequency.

The threat will likely begin developing after noon (early afternoon) across the west and continue through the evening in the east. Be sure to check the National Weather Service in Fort Worth for timing details later this morning.

There is no reason to be scared today. Being scared does no good and will probably do more harm than good. Simply understand there is a sizeable severe weather risk today. We’re not 100 percent sure about all the elements, but there is enough confidence that we could have issues to share this information with you. If we end up having a line of storms, the tornado threat will be lower. If we end up getting discrete thunderstorms, we’re going to have a higher tornado risk today. Either way, large hail and damaging winds are a good bet today. Have a way to receive weather warnings and be ready to enact your severe weather safety plan if you come under a warning. Don’t be scared, be prepared!

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Texas designated Derek Lowe for assignment after the 40-year-old right-hander allowed 13 runs in 13 innings out of the bullpen.

Just the other day Lowe was talking about how much he disliked sabermetrics, saying:

If you pump my numbers into the system compared to, let’s say, Tanner Scheppers, of course his stuff is going to outscore my stuff, I’m not naive. He’s a young kid who throws 98 mph with a great breaking ball. Listen, I know I don’t pass the test.

But it doesn’t take into consideration the human element of sports. Don’t get me wrong, I think those stats can be beneficial. But I use more of a human element. Where has the guy had success? What cities has he had success? What cities has he failed at? Has he performed well when it matters?

Lowe now has a 5.23 ERA in 343 innings since 2011, “failing” for four different teams during that time. At this point he should be hoping at least one other team out there cares more about “the human element” than those pesky statistics like ERA and runs allowed.

Helluva career, but he looks just about done.

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Houston Astros new president and CEO Reid Ryan was on Fitzsimmons & Durrett on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM on Monday and said there were “some hurt feelings” and “differences of opinions” within the Rangers organization, but believes things are fine now between his father, Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, and the club. Reid added that he doesn’t expect his father to join him in Houston.

“I think when he decided to stay, he did it for several reasons. One, when you start to build something you want to see it through to the finish line,” Ryan said. “That loss in 2011, it was gut-wrenching on a lot of levels for a lot of people in the organization. Everybody went away doing everything in their power to try to get back. Getting that close motivates you. He knows how good the team is there and he has a couple of years left on his contract. I think honestly he enjoying what he’s doing. There were some differences of opinions. There were some hurt feelings, a lot of issues that kind of popped up at an inopportune time, but I think all that stuff is water under the bridge and people have been able to repair those relationships.

“I really don’t see him making a change with what he’s doing right now.”

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From Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest comes word that the Rangers have placed second baseman Ian Kinsler on the 15-day disabled list with an intercostal muscle strain and recalled top infield prospect Jurickson Profar to fill the roster vacancy.

Kinsler suffered the strain Thursday while trying to duck out of the way of a pitch during an at-bat. He’s likely to be sidelined for at least three weeks, which will give us all a nice extended look at Profar — largely considered the top prospect in the sport.

Profar was batting .278/.370/.438 with four home runs, six stolen bases and 27 runs scored in 37 games this season at Triple-A Round Rock. The 20-year-old can play either shortstop or second base.