Top News:
Anthony DiComo / MLB.com:
Mets snag college bats Davis, Havens — Team adds pop in first round with first baseman and shortstop — NEW YORK — Recent history has rarely seen the Mets have their way when it comes to the First-Year Player Draft. Their picks snapped away through free-agent spending …
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Baseball America:
First Round Recap — Scouting reports and stats on everyone taken in the first round — 1. Tampa Bay Rays — B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-0. Wt.: 188. Age: 18. — Scouting Report — Beckham solidified his status as the nation's top high school position player last year when he produced …
Mark Remme / MLB.com:
Tempers flare as Red Sox sweep Rays — Crisp ejected; Ellsbury and Ramirez exit early with injuries — BOSTON — Center fielder Coco Crisp started a heated exchange between Boston and Tampa Bay on Wednesday by intentionally sliding hard into Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura.
Discussion:
SOX & Dawgs, Bronx Banter, Red Sox Monster, Keep Your Sox On In Brooklyn and The House That Dewey Built
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Amalie Benjamin / Boston Globe:
No dirt on Ramírez-Youkilis dust-up — Although the most explosive portion of fight night at Fenway Park occurred during the bottom of the second inning, after James Shields hit Coco Crisp with a pitch, the undercard was no less intriguing. — Before the start of the fifth inning, there was an issue in the Red Sox dugout.
Discussion:
Surviving Grady
Associated Press:
Cubs beat LA on Fukudome's single in 9th — LOS ANGELES (AP)—It's always an intriguing showdown when one of the former stars of the Japanese League faces another in a major league game. So far, Kosuke Fukudome is having more fun than Takashi Saito when the Chicago Cubs play the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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Tyler Kepner / New York Times:
Waiting for the Call — NORWICH, Conn. — The ballpark here sits at the end of a winding industrial road, surrounded by trees, with no sense of place. It rained all day Wednesday, and most of the 1,353 paying fans stayed home. Kids were disappointed if they left with only one foul ball.
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Yankees draft fireballer in first round — Righty Cole goes No. 28; Stanford lefty first compensation pick — NEW YORK — The New York Yankees selected right-hander Gerrit Cole on Thursday with their first-round pick in the 2008 First Year Player Draft, using the 28th overall pick …
Discussion:
New York Post, New Jersey Online, SOX1FAN, Bugs & Cranks, iYankees, yankeesdaily.com, Big Apple Sports and The LoHud Yankees Blog
Associated Press:
Contreras helps White Sox sweep Royals — CHICAGO (AP)—Jose Contreras didn't have his best pitch, the split-finger fastball, and against the woeful Royals he didn't need it. — Last year it might have been a different story. — Contreras won his fourth straight decision and Jim Thome homered …
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Ryan Lavner / MLB.com:
Chipper hits No. 400 against Marlins — Third baseman goes deep in sixth inning off Nolasco — ATLANTA — Braves third baseman Chipper Jones hit his 400th home run in the sixth inning of Thursday's game against the Marlins. — Jones hit the homer, his 14th of the season …
Discussion:
Babes Love Baseball
Ben Shpigel / New York Times:
Pelfrey Is Solid, but Mets Still Lose — SAN DIEGO — This was a pivotal moment, a pivotal moment in the game, in Mike Pelfrey's development, and the Mets pitching coach, Rick Peterson, sensed it. He ran out to check on his struggling pitcher, putting his hands on Pelfrey's shoulders.
Kristie Ackert / NY Daily News:
Griardi overrules on Joba — Joe Girardi said Thursday that he does not understand claims by Johnny Damon that moving Joba Chamberlain to the starting rotation has weakened the bullpen and cost the Yankees wins. — “We're putting a great arm in the rotation that we believe is going to win games …
Discussion:
Bronx Banter
Ward Triplett / Kansas City Star:
Rush vocalist makes donation to Negro Leagues Museum — Close to 200 baseballs, all autographed by former Negro Leagues baseball players or backers, have been donated to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum by a somewhat surprising fan ... Rush singer/bassist Geddy Lee.
Roch Kubatko / Baltimore Sun:
O's take pitcher Matusz with fourth pick — LHP went 12-2 with 1.71 ERA with University of San Diego this season — The Orioles used the fourth pick in today's amateur baseball draft to select left-hander Brian Matusz from the University of San Diego. — Matusz, a finalist …
Discussion:
Baseball America
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Bob Nightengale / USA Today:
Mariners losing games, postgame refreshments — SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners front office and coaching staff, infuriated and embarrassed about the team's performance this season, decided Wednesday it was time to make the players accountable for having the worst record in baseball.
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