Nats near two-year extension for Young  —  PHILADELPHIA — First baseman Dmitri Young is close to signing a two-year extension with the Nationals, according to multiple sources.  The move would come a few days after the team signed infielder Ronnie Belliard to an extension.

Pirates end Mets' 3-game winning streak  —  NEW YORK (AP) — After five innings Thursday, the Pittsburgh Pirates had managed one scratch one infield hit against Oliver Perez and trailed by a run.  Eleven batters had gone down in a row, four straight on strikeouts.

Saltalamacchia-Teixeira deal in the works  —  PLAYER OF THE DAY JARROD SALTALAMACCHIA Catcher, Atlanta Braves  —  Long regarded as one of the top offensive prospects in the game, "Salty" could end up having been the key to the biggest deal of this year's trade deadline.

Schilling's words bring response from Canseco  —  Sox pitcher called hypocrite and liar  —  Barry Bonds came under fire on HBO's "Costas Now."  (DINO VOURNAS/REUTERS)  —  CLEVELAND — Former big leaguer Jose Canseco called Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling a "hypocrite and a liar" …

Fan's thrown water bottle hits Piazza in head  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Piazza said he will press charges against a fan who allegedly threw a half-full water bottle at him during Wednesday afternoon's Oakland Athletics-Los Angeles Angels game, hitting the A's designated hitter in the back of the head.

OMAR HAS TWO NATS IN SIGHTS  —  As the trade deadline nears, the Mets are prioritizing a late-game reliever followed by a second baseman - and it just so happens that Omar Minaya's old team has a player at each that the GM has targeted.  —  Minaya drafted and quickly promoted Chad Cordero …

KYLE HAS EYE OF TIGERS  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. - In what only can be described as a strange twist, the Tigers have an interest in taking Kyle Farnsworth off the Yankees' hands.  —  According to multiple sources, the Tigers are looking to make a deal that would bring Farnsworth back to the team he pitched 46 games for in 2005.

Wigginton trade talks intensify near deadline  —  BALTIMORE - With time until Tuesday's 4 p.m. deadline for nonwaiver trades winding down, the market for INF Ty Wigginton appears to be heating up.  —  At least four teams, the Dodgers, Red Sox, Twins and Yankees, have expressed serious interest …

Yank travel secretary subject of IRS probe  —  Yankee traveling secretary Dave Szen is the latest casualty of the IRS' investigation into illegal activity in baseball, the Daily News has learned.  —  Szen is under investigation by the IRS for allegedly failing to declare income derived …

Nats Drop The Ball  —  After Blunder in 9th, Washington Falls in 14: Phillies 7, Nationals 5  —  The final blow in a 4-hour 52-minute affair Wednesday night came off the bat of slugging Philadelphia first baseman Ryan Howard, a two-run homer that landed in the right field bleachers and ended …