MLB

The writing had been on the wall for several weeks.

On Tuesday afternoon, that writing finally spelled the end of Grady Sizemore's unlikely comeback story, as the Boston Red Sox designated the 31-year-old outfielder for assignment to make room for prospect Garin Cecchini, as tweeted by Alex Speier of WEEI.com.

Fact: Tony Gwynn is the San Diego Padres' all-time leader in games, batting average, hits, RBI, runs, walks, stolen bases and wins above replacement.

Bleacher Report will be bringing sports fans the most interesting and engaging Cold Hard Fact of the day, presented by Coors Light.

Source: ESPN Stats and Info

The San Francisco Giants have the best record in the majors (despite getting swept by the Colorado Rockies at home this past weekend), but it's still important to monitor the organization's farm system, which will largely dictate whether the team is able to replicate its recent success in the forthcoming seasons.

Hall of Fame outfielder Tony Gwynn has passed away, saddening Padres Nation and any number of peers and fans of the man and his accomplishments.

Imagine a world, if you will, in which MLB's All-Star Game, as you know it, does not exist.

The game has gone back to being an exhibition, no longer tied to the World Series, and the way teams are selected have changed.

Instead of fans voting for only the starting lineup from each league, they now have the power to send 30 deserving players—one from each team—to the Midsummer Classic. The voting does not take a player's position into account, opening the door for fans to select pitchers for the first time.

The international prospect market opens on July 2, and the New York Yankees are gearing up to spend a whole lot of money.

At 29-39 heading into Tuesday, the Chicago Cubs are on a familiar path. That is to say they're looking at their fifth consecutive losing campaign and their 106th straight season without a championship. And yet, for an organization that hasn't had much success lately—and even not so lately—there is hope.

The official non-waiver trade deadline may be July 31, but trade season really kicks into gear once the calendar turns over to July and often stretches well into August, with guys like Jake Peavy and Alex Rios being dealt through waivers last year.

There has already been no shortage of speculation as to who could be on the move this summer, but that second wild-card spot in each league could complicate things once again this year, as more teams will stand pat or be buyers in hopes of making a second-half run.

Outside of the MLB postseason, the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline is the most exciting time to follow the game. The rumors come fast, and they come furious. 

Now, last week was the first time this season when the names being mentioned broke away from guys like Jeff Samardzija and David Price, who are commonly discussed. There were some outside-the-box suggestions that could make sense given the right circumstances.

The San Francisco Giants have fallen on tough times in the past week, losing six of their last seven games. Fortunately for the Giants, they had built a sizable lead in the NL West and are still ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers by six games.