Top News:
La Velle E. Neal III / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Ponson dropped; rookie Jones to get a look — The Twins on Sunday addressed one of several problems as they designated righthander Sidney Ponson for assignment. — The Twins on Sunday addressed one of several problems as they designated righthander Sidney Ponson for assignment.
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Kelly Thesier / MLB.com:
Twins designate Ponson for assignment — First baseman/outfielder Jones called up from Triple-A — MINNEAPOLIS — Sidney Ponson's short stint in the Twins rotation has now come to an end. — The Twins designated Ponson for assignment on Sunday and called up first baseman/outfielder Garrett Jones from Triple-A Rochester.
StarTribune.com:
Ponson is out....here comes Garrett Jones — The Sidney Ponson experiment is over, as the righthander has been designated for the assignment for the third time in the last ten months. The Twins have 10 days to trade him, release him or send him to the minors.
Jeff Zrebiec / Baltimore Sun:
For O's, no time for relief … BOSTON // It started with a seemingly innocent pop-up in front of home plate, continued with a questionable decision by the manager and ended with a meltdown by the Orioles' top reliever. — The Orioles have found all kinds of ways to lose to the Boston Red Sox …
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
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Jeff Goldberg / Hartford Courant:
Rip Punches Hole In Beckett's Bid — BOSTON — The Red Sox learned a new word Sunday, and with it, a new worry. — Josh Beckett's bid to tie the franchise record with victories in his first eight starts came to an abrupt end when he was forced out after four innings because of an avulsion to the skin on his right middle finger.
Jimmy Golen / Associated Press:O's collapse in 9th after Guthrie's stellar outing
Discussion:
BBTF's Baseball Primer …
Craig Barnes / Sun-Sentinel:
Marlins' Julio sent packing in trade — Closer dealt to Colorado for Kim — · Jorge Julio gave up a two-out, walk-off grand slam to Ryan Zimmerman at 1:42 Sunday morning, giving Washington a 7-3 win. By the end of Sunday's 6-4 loss, the Marlins had traded him to the Colorado Rockies for Byung-Hyun Kim.
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Woody Paige / Denver Post:
Rockies in giant trouble — While the Rockies were otherwise occupied with being emulsified by the Giants on Sunday afternoon, Dealin' Dan O'Dowd emerged from his usual hiding place to grace the press with his presence and possibly to wave to his adoring public.
Joe Frisaro / MLB.com:
Fish acquire Kim, send Julio to Rox — Veteran South Korean righty can either start or relieve — WASHINGTON — Jorge Julio's tenuous tenure with the Marlins ended on Sunday when the 28-year-old right-handed reliever was traded to the Rockies for right-hander Byung-Hyun Kim.
Rick Eymer / MLB.com:
Cust saves the day for the A's in finale — Designated hitter's three-run walk-off HR leads to series win — OAKLAND — It all changed in a blink of an eye. The A's were down to their last strike against one of the league's top closers. Two strikes, two outs, game all but over.
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Josh Dubow / Associated Press:
Oakland 10, Cleveland 7 — OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Jack Cust capped off a memorable week with one more powerful swing. — Cust homered for the fourth straight day and hit his sixth in seven games since joining Oakland, capping a five-run ninth inning with a three-run drive that gave …
Kristie Ackert / NY Daily News:
Rookie shorn in to hair club for Mets — It took about three hours, a razor and a line-drive double for Carlos Gomez to be welcomed into the majors yesterday. — Gomez was brought up to fill in for the injured Moises Alou. An hour before the game, Gomez had his head shaved by several teammates and coaches.
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com
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Jay Cohen / Associated Press:Perez, Easley lift Mets by Brewers 9-1
Discussion:
The Musings and Prophecies …
Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates Notebook: Armas' rotation status up in air — Tony Armas is no lock to remain in the rotation. — For the time being, he is listed as starting Thursday in the finale of the four-game series with the Florida Marlins that opens tonight at PNC Park.
Discussion:
Pittsburgh Lumber Co.
Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com:
Indians trade Davis to Seattle — Tribe deals hurler to Mariners for player to be named later — OAKLAND — The Indians ran out of patience with and, more importantly, Minor League options on Jason Davis. — Now, they're shipping him off to a fresh start with a new club.
Discussion:
Let's Go Tribe
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Associated Press:
Chipper thinks Braves' interleague schedule unfair — PITTSBURGH — Chipper Jones likes interleague games, playing in ballparks he hasn't seen before and opposing teams the Atlanta Braves seldom face. What he doesn't like is this kind of interleague play.
Barry Svrluga / Washington Post:
Nationals' Sweeping Promises — Third Straight Win Highlights Roster Realities, Potential : Nationals 6, Marlins 4 — When the Washington Nationals filtered out of RFK Stadium for the first time yesterday — under the cover of darkness sometime after 2 a.m. — they did so with the knowledge …
Matthew Leach / MLB.com:
Cards' bats silent in loss to Padres — Redbirds manage just three hits, shut out for sixth time — SAN DIEGO — Anthony Reyes committed his share of pitching sins on Sunday afternoon, but even so, there was little forgiveness for the right-hander when he did stray.
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Clemens to face Class A on Friday — Yankees right-hander scheduled for only one start with Tampa — SEATTLE — The countdown for The Rocket's liftoff has begun. — Yankees manager Joe Torre said on Sunday that right-hander Roger Clemens is tentatively lined up to make his first Minor League appearance …
Discussion:
Bradford Files
Sal Baxamusa / Hardball Times:
How are closers being leveraged? — Last week, Dave Studeman took a look at Win Probability Added numbers so far this season. Drawing my inspiration from Dave, I decided to traipse through Dave Appelman's FanGraphs and see what piqued my interest. — Best for Bullpens
Will Weiss / Baseball Prospectus:
Green is a Go for the Reds — Initiatives at the Great American Ballpark — The Cincinnati Reds claim many firsts in baseball annals. The Reds are recognized as baseball's first all-professional team, and they were founding members of the American Association and later the National League.
Paul Sullivan / Chicago Tribune:
Hamstring still haunts Soriano — PHILADELPHIA — When Alfonso Soriano was thrown out at the plate while trying to score from second base on a single to right on Saturday, Fox analyst Tim McCarver questioned his hustle. — "Soriano's not running hard," McCarver said. "Look at this [replay].
