Top News:
Jon Heyman / Sports Illustrated:
Mets skipper Manuel agrees to return — Jerry Manuel has agreed to return as New York Mets manager, SI.com has confirmed. Manuel will get a two year contract, plus a club option for a third season. — When Manuel took over as interim manager for the fired Willie Randolph in mid-June …
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Adam Rubin / NY Daily News:
Mets give Manuel key to the Citi — The self-professed “gangsta” will occupy the home dugout at Citi Field next season. — Jerry Manuel agreed on Friday to a two-year contract with a team option for 2011 to serve as Mets manager after a week of tougher-than-expected negotiations with team officials, the Daily News has learned.
Andrew Marchand / ESPN.com:Valentine all ears if Mets unable to sign Manuel
Discussion:
The LoHud Mets Blog
Nick Cafardo / Boston Globe:
Rays about to go 2-up in Series — (9:05, top of the ninth, Rays 6, White Sox 2 — Outstanding relief pitching by Grant Balfour and particularly lefty J.P, Howell allowed the Rays to hold on to a 3-2 lead until the Rays broke it wide open in the eighth with three runs to take a 6-2 lead.
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Marc Topkin / St. Petersburg Times:
Injured eye forces Pena from game — ST. PETERSBURG — The irritation in 1B Carlos Pena's left eye Wednesday night was nothing like the pain he went through taking himself out of Thursday's game after two innings. — Pena was relaxing at home early Wednesday night when he felt something in his left eye and rubbed it.
Adam Kilgore / Boston Globe:
Beckett definite; Lowell and Lowrie scratches explained — ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Lowell's hip injury did not worsen, but Terry Francona made what he said was a very difficult decision to sit him. Lowell wanted to play badly, Francona said. One factor in the decision was the fact that Joe Saunders …
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Michael Silverman / Boston Herald:
Josh Beckett news all good — Ace is on target for Sunday — ANAHEIM, Calif. - Josh Beckett [stats]'s 27-minute, 65-pitch side session at Angel Stadium yesterday produced the most positive outcome the Red Sox [team stats] could have hoped for. — It appears as if the ace's tweaked right oblique …
Carl Macgowan / Newsday:
Workers begin dismantling Shea Stadium — It's really happening, Mets fans. — Shea Stadium is coming down, one thousand-watt lamp and one sink at a time. Centerfield's iconic 410-foot sign now lies in a fenced-in area outside the ballpark, along with other pieces of the outfield wall.
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Scott Soshnick / Bloomberg:
Brewers Owner Attanasio Wants More Revenue Sharing From Yankees — Oct. 3 (Bloomberg) — Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio, seeking a “fair fight,” said high-revenue clubs like the New York Yankees should share more with the other teams. — “It's always amusing to me to hear the Yankees …
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MLB.com:
Best-of-seven series a better test — Five-gamer not always an accurate test of team's true strength — A five-game series in baseball is like getting all dressed up for the big dance and the music stops before you walk through the ballroom door. — For most managers and players …
Discussion:
crashburnalley.com
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Chicagosports / Hardball:
Curse removal backfires on Cubs — It was supposed to be a quiet ceremony with no publicity. — But when a TBS cameraman saw Rev. Father James L. Greanias spreading holy water in the Cubs dugout several hours before Game 1 of the Division Series on Wednesday, the priest …
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Bill Shaikin / Los Angeles Times:
Angels won't walk away with a victory — Despite facing Matsuzaka, who walks a lot of hitters, they don't plan to work the count in Game 2. — This could be the rare matchup that drives the purists and and the stat-heads nuts. Live from Anaheim: The team most likely to swing at a bad pitch …
Buster Olney / ESPN:
Clutch-hitting Helms gets two-year extension with Marlins … Wes Helms has agreed to a two-year deal with the Florida Marlins. — Helms, 32, batted .243 with five homers and 31 RBIs during the 2008 season, but came up with some big hits for the Marlins — including a pinch-hit homer on the last day of the season to beat the Mets.
Tom Haudricourt / Brewers Blog:
Brantley completes Sabathia deal — A source familiar with the deal just told me that the CC Sabathia trade has been completed with the Brewers sending minor league outfield prospect Michael Brantley to the Indians. — When the Brewers acquired Sabathia in early July …
Discussion:
Al's Ramblings
Kevin Goldstein / Baseball Prospectus:
Future Shock — Missing Bats — A great deal of the e-mails and chat questions that I receive concern pitching statistics, with most writers wanting to know what numbers they should look at when evaluating prospects, and which are more relevant than others.
Discussion:
Lone Star Ball
Tim Dierkes / MLB Rumors:
Rosenthal's Latest: Vlad, Cano, Peavy, Hardy — By Tim Dierkes [October 3 at 8:23am CST] — Today we have a fresh column from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. — Vladimir Guerrero's $15MM option for '09 is a lock, but perhaps the Angels will reconsider extending him beyond that.
Discussion:
Kranepool Society
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