Hughes provides welcome relief for Yankees  —  NEW YORK - Phil Hughes found something last week he thought he had lost a few years ago.  It was a 96-mph fastball.  —  The 23-year-old right-hander has been pitching in relief since the first week of June when the Yankees decided to return Chien-Ming Wang to the rotation.

The 39 strikeouts: Dodgers take series from Rockies with 1-0 finale victory  —  After striking out 17 Colorado Rockies in 13 innings Monday and 12 in nine innings Tuesday, Dodger pitchers wrapped up an almost dominating performance against their Rocky Mountain rivals, fanning 10 in a 1-0 victory today at Dodger Stadium.

Old bawl game  —  Rejuvenated Orioles wipe out nine-run deficit and wash away stunned Red Sox  —  BALTIMORE - By the time Jonathan Papelbon jogged in from the bullpen, the Red Sox celebratory mood had withered.  Where once they were mocking each other for leaving the field with just two outs …

Franco: ‘No leadership there’  —  (UPDATED) MILWAUKEE — Longtime Mets closer John Franco blasted his struggling former team in a radio interview this week, saying there is no leadership in the clubhouse and “too much individuality.”  —  Franco, who became the Mets' all-time saves leader during …

Dukes Optioned to Class AAA  —  The Washington Nationals sent Elijah Dukes to AAA Syracuse on Wednesday morning, saying Dukes was not a “finished product” and needed to play every day rather than sit on the bench in the majors.  —  The move came in response to the team's acquisition …

Dodgers make flurry of roster moves  —  Stults, Ellis, Jones optioned with Manny's return on horizon  —  LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers made a handful of personnel moves Wednesday, in part to prepare the roster for the Friday return of suspended outfielder Manny Ramirez.

Webb will not have shoulder surgery  —  D-backs ace will rest, exercise, hope for September return  —  PHOENIX — Brandon Webb will not undergo right shoulder surgery and hopes to return to action in September, the D-backs ace told MLB.com on Wednesday.  —  On Tuesday, Webb completed …

Pittsburgh Pirates players question timing of trades  —  The reaction in the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse to Tuesday's trades wasn't as vocal as it was when Nate McLouth was dealt to the Braves for three players last month.  But that doesn't mean Pirates players were happy with the timing, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

Post Game: Mets 1, Brewers 0  —  The Mets defeated the Brewers by the score 1-to-0 this afternoon.  —  For a full recap and boxscore, click here.  —  The Least You Should Know:  —  Mike Pelfrey was brilliant this afternoon despite committing his fifth balk of the season …

Trade deadline looms, excitement begins  —  October serves as baseball's platform month, the time when legends and scapegoats are made for the ages.  Yet for many fans, July can be equally thrilling and deflating.  —  Yes, welcome to peak trading season.  Friday, July 31, at 4 p.m. E.S.T., marks the non-waivers trading deadline.

July 2 Projected Top 25 List  —  The players below from Latin America are ranked based on their expected signing bonuses, not their projected talent.  In fact, that is important enough that it bears repeating: The rankings are not an attempt to gauge the talent, but a way to forecast the market.

Hot hitters squeezed out of Reds' order  —  Cincinnati (37-38) vs. Arizona (31-46), 7:10 p.m. ET  —  CINCINNATI — Some of the hottest bats the Reds have right now never left the dugout during Tuesday's game vs. the D-backs.  —  Outfielders Jonny Gomes and Chris Dickerson weren't in the starting lineup …

A's GM Beane not so far ahead of the pack  —  There is no truth to the rumor Sony scrapped the proposed “Moneyball” movie because lead actor Brad Pitt said “Connie Mack thought up all of this stuff first,” after reading the screenplay's ode to Oakland general manager Billy Beane.

July 2 Team-By-Team Forecast  —  Ben Badler previews the international signing period with a breakdown of what to expect for all 30 teams when the international signing period begins tomorrow.

Fair or not, Chicago Cubs' failures are Jim Hendry's fault  —  Fair or not, blame for failures squarely on Hendry's shoulders  —  If you think Milton Bradley is having a rough year so far, how about Jim Hendry?  —  The Cubs' general manager is responsible for signing the .238-hitting …

Another snoozer for Joba  —  Because of the rain delay, there was less time to write for the newspaper, so I had to pick my spots for interviews after the game  —  A little Girardi, a little Matsui, a little Jeter, some Mo, some Bruney, some Hughes.  —  I passed on Joba because he wasn't going to be a very big part of the story.

Morgan = Dunn  —  When the Nationals signed Adam Dunn over the winter to a 2 year, $20 million contract, the reaction from the sabermetric community was almost unanimously positive towards the move for Washington.  For a fraction of his original asking price, they got the guy who had become something …

Prospectus Roundtable: Fluke or No Fluke? by Baseball Prospectus  —  Matt Meyers, ESPN Insider: Welcome to the latest ESPN Insider Roundtable, and thanks in advance for participating.  This week's topic: “Is he for real?”  Or, as I like to call it, “how I learned to stop worrying and love Fernando Nieve.”

Ricky Romero wins third straight start, beats Rays 5-0  —  TORONTO — Ricky Romero pitched four-hit ball over eighth innings, Rod Barajas, Adam Lind and Scott Rolen each homered and the Toronto Blue Jays end the Tampa Bay Rays' seven-game winning streak with a 5-0 victory Wednesday.