Top News:
Jayson Stark / ESPN:
It's so wrong to celebrate Manny's return — Widespread love for Ramirez upon his being back in Dodgers' lineup a puzzling thing — That dreadlocked bon vivant, Manny Ramirez, will rejoin us — and the Dodgers — this weekend after eight weeks of purgatory on Planet Manny. Whoop-de-doo.
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Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Sheets May Not Pitch This Year — ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports that three teams with “at least some level of interest” in starter Ben Sheets say he he won't be able to help a big league team this year. He's five months removed from flexor tendon surgery, an operation that kept Jason Jennings out for a year and a half.
Metstradamus / The Musings and Prophecies …:
There's Some Grit In Them Furry Beasts — As if going to Pittsburgh for a one game rainout makeup isn't exciting enough, the Mets were also able to catch the phenomenon known as Anthrocon 2009, a convention where people can dress like animals. Boy, it was the club's lucky day ... let alone Kevin Burkhardt's lucky day.
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Brian Costa / New Jersey Online:
With three games, three cities in three days, New York Mets are a traveling circus … PITTSBURGH — Ryan Church walked into his hotel room around 9 p.m. Wednesday. In the span of nine hours, the Mets outfielder had left his hotel room in Milwaukee, taken a bus to Miller Park …
Bart Hubbuch / Mets Blog:
Game 79: Mets at Phillies — PHILADELPHIA — Now streaking in a positive direction, the Mets will try to keep pace in the NL East here tonight when they take on the rival Phillies behind Livan Hernandez at Citizens Bank Park. — The Mets begin play one game behind the Phillies and Marlins …
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Phillies Nation
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Sports Illustrated:
Star Cuban pitcher defects; Yankees interested? … A highly regarded Cuban pitching prospect has defected from the national team while playing in a tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands. His next stop could be in the major leagues, possibly with the New York Yankees.
Jon Heyman / Sports Illustrated:
BoSox in talks with coveted Cuban SS … The Red Sox are in serious discussions with Cuban shortstop whiz Jose Iglesias, according to a league source. — If finalized, the contract is expected to be for about $8 million, perhaps a little bit more than that, according to people familiar with the talks.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
Jon Heyman / Sports Illustrated:
If Cleveland's willing to trade Martinez, Boston's a likely suitor … Indians higher-ups say they aren't likely to trade hitting star Victor Martinez. Not only is Martinez one of the better hitters in baseball, with 14 home runs, 57 RBIs and .313 batting average, but the Indians hold …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
Dave Sheinin / Washington Post:
Boras's Next Assault on Draft Might Come From Far East — The Major League Rules is a sprawling, dense, little-known, 254-page document, periodically updated, that governs the business side of baseball. Among other things, it lays out, in painstaking legalese, the process and guidelines …
Ronald Blum / Globe and Mail:
Burnett shuts down Blue Jays — A.J. Burnett scatters six hits over seven innings as Yankees beat Blue Jays 4-2 to win for the eighth time in nine games — Special Report: Salt - Weather - Blogs - RSS Feeds - Globe Books - TV listings - Globe on Twitter
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Yahoo! Sports
Mark Zuckerman / Washington Times:
For Nats' Rizzo, it's about ‘character’ — Removal of Milledge, Dukes reflects effort to alter attitude — Manny Acta spoke earlier this season about “changing the culture” around the Washington Nationals' clubhouse, a veiled reference to what he believed was an aspect …
Jim Street / MLB.com:
Branyan punctuates win with long blast — Slugger hits restaurant in center field at Yankee Stadium — NEW YORK — After going nearly two games without hitting a ball between the white lines at Yankee Stadium, Mariners first baseman Russell Branyan hit one where no else has gone.
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Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Morosi On Yankees, Qualls, Tigers — Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports has a few more rumors worth passing along: — The Yankees' bullpen has been performing well, but that's not stopping the team from keeping a close eye on D'Backs closer Chad Qualls. — If Brian Bruney doesn't start pitching …
Associated Press:
Report: Rangers borrowed money from MLB — The Texas Rangers borrowed millions of dollars from Major League Baseball within the last week, according to a Yahoo! report. — Rangers spokesman John Blake told the website that the club would have no comment, and Rich Levin …
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