“When it comes to compassion, the Rays are batting .000.” – DELCIANNA WINDERS, Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement at the PETA Foundation. Miguel Cabrera, joining Luis Gonzalez of the Dodgers, becomes only the second player to hit a homer into the 10,000-gallon touch tank at Tropicana Field. The Tigers slugger’s round-tripper draws the attention of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), who, in a written letter to the Rays’ organization, requests the team to allow the 30 or more captive cownose rays be returned to their natural habitat because the animals are subject to harassment, loud crowds, and at the risk of being injured by baseballs.

On the day of Seattle’s 39th annual Pride Parade, the Mariners become the first major league team to fly a rainbow gay pride flag. The move comes a few days after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision declaring the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.

Eddie Gamboa throws a seven-inning no-hitter for the Bowie BaySox against the Harrisburg Senators in the first game of a doubleheader in the Eastern League. A week ago, Gamboa, who began throwing the knuckleballonly this year, had taken a no-hitter into the 8th inning of a game against Altoona.

After a 14-inning marathon further lengthened by a two-hour-and-twenty-minute rain delay, the Pirates defeat the Brewers, 2 – 1, for their 9th straight win. Both starting pitchers have to leave after the 2nd-inning thunderstorm, but relievers Tyler Thornburg for Milwaukee and Vin Mazzaro for Pittsburgh are both outstanding, the latter retiring all 15 batters he faces in order. Trailing 1 – 0, the Bucs tie the game on a pair of hits off Jim Henderson in the 8th and Russell Martin finally ends the game with a pinch-hit single off Francisco Rodriguez in the bottom of the 14th.

Chris Davis hits a pair of homers, including his major league-leading 30th, to lead the Orioles to an 11 – 3 win over the Yankees. Davis’s 5 RBI give him 79, just 6 shy of his career high for a season.

Pitcher Steven Matz has a great debut as he goes 3 for 3 at the plate and pitches into the 8th inning to lead the Mets to a 7 – 2 win over the Reds, completing a doubleheader sweep. He becomes the first pitcher to drive in 4 runs in his debut, settling down after allowing a home run to the first batter he faces, Brandon Phillips.

The Phillies end a six-game winning streak by the Dodgers with a 16 – 1 shellacking. Delmon Young has a career-high 6 RBI and John Lannan wins his first game for the team. For the Dodgers, it’s their biggest losing margin since moving to Los Angeles in 1958.

Having already matched Roger Clemens’ 1997 feat of winning his first 11 decisions of the season, the Tigers’ Max Scherzer becomes the first pitcher since “Rocket Roger” in 1986 to roll off 12 straight wins at the start of the year. Scherzer defeats the Rays, 6 – 3, although he is still two wins shy of Roger, who began his breakout season with 14 straight W’s. In support of Scherzer’s pitching, Miguel Cabrera has a four-hit game, including a pair of homers against Alex Colome.

On June 27, 2013 Japan’s players union calls for the resignation of Nippon Pro Baseball Commissioner Ryozo Kato following revelations that Kato introduced a new baseball without discussing with or notifying players. The new livelier ball has resulted in a sharp increase in home runs. Kato’s claim that he did not know the ball was changed does little to give anyone confidence…

The Pirates win their sixth straight game on the road, 4 – 2 over the Mariners, thanks to a two-run single by Jordy Mercer with two outs in the 9th. With the Cardinals’ 4 – 3 loss to the Astros, the Bucs are now tied for the lead in the NL Central.