YANKS OBTAIN HINSKE  —  The Yankees acquired veteran lefty hitter Eric Hinske from the Pirates for two minor leaguers not considered significant prospects, righty pitcher Casey Erickson and outfielder Eric Fryer.  —  The move was made by the Yankees for several reasons:

Bailey in Baltimore  —  BALTIMORE — Jeff Bailey has arrived in Baltimore, and will take the spot of Mike Lowell if the Sox decide to place the third baseman on the disabled list.  —  Lowell got an injection of Synvisc in his hip yesterday, and had 15 ccs of fluid drained from the hip.

Red Sox duo locked in close All-Star votes  —  Youkilis pulls ahead, Pedroia very near in balloting's final days  —  On his march to the Major Leagues, the little guy who plays second base for the Boston Red Sox has heard over and over again that he can't, but then he laces up his spikes, throws on his glove and proves everyone wrong.

Source: Steadman finds bruise, recommends rest thru ASG  —  Carlos Beltran's trip to Vail, Colo., provided a reassuring diagnosis, a source familiar with the examination told the Daily News.  —  Dr. Richard Steadman, who examined Beltran (pictured right) on Monday, agreed …

Nats swap with Bucs, acquire Morgan  —  Club also gets Burnett in exchange for Milledge, Hanrahan  —  WASHINGTON — The Nationals have traded reliever Joel Hanrahan and outfielder Lastings Milledge to the Pirates for reliever Sean Burnett and outfielder Nyjer Morgan on Tuesday afternoon.

Tom Verducci's AL, NL All-Star selections … With only three days left before polling closes, it's time to recognize the players who should be going to the All-Star Game, as if Ben Zobrist and Aaron Hill have any chance of catching Dustin Pedroia in the balloting.

At start of Mariano Rivera's Yankee career, Gene Michael almost traded him  —  All these years later, Gene Michael still laughs when he thinks about how Mariano Rivera became the greatest one-pitch pitcher in baseball history.  —  “He had a hell of a changeup when he was young …

Source: Beltran back after break  —  The Daily News will show you Citi Field.  Go on the field, into the clubhouse and see how the new stadium was built.  —  Sponsored by:  —  Today's Top Picks … Best Of NYDN.com

Game 76: Mariners at Yankees (with pre-game updates and Cashman audio — 8:05 new first pitch time)  —  YANKEES (43-32)  —  Pitching: RHP Joba Chamberlain (4-2, 3.81).  —  MARINERS (39-36)  —  Ichiro RF  —  Branyan 1B  —  Lopez 2B  —  Griffey LF  —  Sweeney DH  —  Gutierrez CF

Inside MLB Attendance - Interleague 2009  —  With Sunday's games in the books, Interleague Play for MLB in 2009 is nearly concluded (a June 16th rainout between the Cubs and White Sox still needs to be replayed), seeing average attendance drop from last year's record setting pace.

Papelbon ties Red Sox's saves record  —  Closer notches No. 132, remains in awe of Yanks' Rivera  —  BALTIMORE — Closer Jonathan Papelbon tied the Red Sox's club record for saves, set by Bob Stanley, with career save No. 132, notched in a 4-0 victory against the Orioles on Monday night.

Astros option Wright to Triple-A  —  Lefty pitches well, but team needs roster spot  —  SAN DIEGO — Left-hander Wesley Wright knew the news coming, but it didn't make it any easier to swallow.  —  The Astros optioned Wright to Triple-A Round Rock following Monday's 3-1 win over San Diego …

San Diego Padres outfielder Tony Gwynn finally comfortable with being himself — Tony Gwynn  —  Tony (don't call him Junior) Gwynn at ease following in his famous father's footsteps  —  SAN DIEGO — Every morning, this city wakes up to 1994.  Every morning, a sports page arrives with a box score …

Improved two-strike approach helping Tampa Bay Rays offense rank among baseball's best  —  TORONTO — LF Carl Crawford may have delivered the biggest hit of Monday's game, a two-run homer in the third inning off Blue Jays ace RHP Roy Halladay.  —  But it was his single up the middle …