Phils acquire Blanton, send 3 minor leaguers to A's … The Phillies have reached an agreement with the Oakland Athletics to acquire right-handed pitcher Joe Blanton.  Blanton is 5-12 this season after going 14-10 with a 3.95 ERA last season.  —  The Athletics get second baseman Adrian Cardenas …

Yankees have tentative deal with first baseman Sexson … The New York Yankees have reached a tentative agreement with Richie Sexson, who was released by the Seattle Mariners a week ago.  —  Sexson fits in New York because the Yankees needed a right-handed slugger to match up against left-handed pitching …

Foot injury knocks El Duque out of B-Mets game  —  Orlando Hernandez cited a foot injury as the reason he exited after just one inning Thursday in the Binghamton Mets game against Connecticut at NYSEG Stadium.  —  Hernandez, making his fourth minor-league rehab start and first with the B-Mets, gave up two runs in the first inning.

D-backs reacquire Clark from Padres  —  San Diego receives Minor League pitcher as compensation  —  PHOENIX — The D-backs acquired veteran first baseman Tony Clark from the Padres on Thursday in exchange for a Minor League pitcher.  —  Clark, 36, waived a $500,000 assignment bonus from the Padres …

Clarification on Barry Bonds' ‘Talks’ with Yankees  —  The Bronx Bomber's report that former Giants outfielder Barry Bonds is in contract negotiations with Yankees general manager Brian Cashman comes from a source within the Yankees organization, though not through conventional channels.

Take latest trade on faith, A's know what they're doing  —  (07-17) 20:40 PDT — If you're an A's fan and took the time Sunday to watch the Futures game, a minor-league prelude to the All-Star game at Yankee Stadium, you're probably not upset or disappointed over the Joe Blanton trade.

Jason Giambi Eschews Your Petty Shot Glasses  —  The 'Stache must be sated.  And sated ain't coming from a glass.  Seriously though, does Giambi not have a buddy with him to point out that a night never ends well that begins with swilling straight from the bottle of JD?  Guess not.

postGame: Mets 10 Reds 8  —  The Mets (52-44) beat the Reds (46-51) by the score of 10 to 8 tonight in Cincinnati, increasing their winning streak to ten consecutive games.  —  For the first time since April 19th, the Mets are in first place, even if they do share it with the Phillies.

Church's slow return clouding Mets' plans  —  CINCINNATI - Ryan Church won't be activated Tuesday, when he's eligible to return from the DL, muddying the Mets' trading-deadline plans.  Mets officials insisted Church didn't have a setback with what they have concluded was migraine-related dizziness and fatigue.

Notes: Flores to return  —  FLORES TO RETURN  —  The Cardinals will activate Randy Flores from the 15-day disabled list in time for tonight's game, and to make room in the bullpen for the lefty the club optioned Chris Perez to Class AAA Memphis after Thursday's game.

He's back with a bang  —  Ortiz hits a homer in Pawtucket rehab  —  David Ortiz may have been feeling bottled up before the game by all those autograph requests in milk containers.  (Barry Chin/Globe Staff)  —  PAWTUCKET, R.I. - The sellout crowd brayed a mighty, encouraging “Papi!  Papi!

Carpenter set for rehab start  —  The Cardinals have decided pitcher Chris Carpenter is past the point of getting his arm healthy and is set to begin getting it ready.  —  Carpenter, who hasn't made a major-league start since opening day 2007, will begin a rehab assignment Sunday …

Jersey of the Week - All Star Yankee Hair  —  Okay, I really shouldn't have even titled this a Jersey of the Week post.  I was looking for a good All-Star related jersey and simply couldn't find one.  —  But it needed to be shared.  And since JotW is Home Run Derby's showcase …