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.

BLS poll: Derek Jeter vs. Mariano Rivera, who you taking?  —  earning his 500th save on Sunday night, an interesting debate has been born in the blogosphere.  —  Mariano Rivera or Derek Jeter  —  There's no doubt that both were the two biggest titans not named Joe Torre during …

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.

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

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.

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 …

2 + 2 = ?  —  This is, on the surface, all about the Kansas City Royals.  But really, I think, it's not.  It's about unexpected consequences, the vision thing and why two plus two does not always equal four.  —  So, here's the thing: Royals general manager Dayton Moore knows about a hundred times more about baseball than I do.

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.

Haren hits first career homer, pitches Diamondbacks past Reds  —  CINCINNATI (AP) — Dan Haren held the Cincinnati Reds scoreless into the seventh inning, showing why he's been the NL's stingiest pitcher in June, and connected on his first career homer Tuesday night during a 6-2 victory …

Dodgers are shut down by Rockies' Jason Marquis  —  L.A. gets only two hits against Colorado ace, who becomes the first 10-game winner in the National League.  —  The Dodgers' Chad Billingsley pitched well Monday night in his quest to become the National League's first 10-game winner.

Prado's four RBI propels Braves past Phillies in 10  —  ATLANTA (AP) — Martin Prado singled in the winning run in the 10th inning to finish with a career-best four hits and four RBIs, helping the Atlanta Braves beat Philadelphia 5-4 on Tuesday night for their first home win over the Phillies since 2007.

Surgery likely for Kontos  —  George Kontos is going for a second opinion on Wednesday, but an MRI on Monday revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament and it's likely that Kontos will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery.  —  We have the story online, with a lot information and quotes from Kontos.