Phils Are Early Favorites For Halladay  —  One source told Ed Price of MLB Fanhouse that “the Phillies are leaders at this point” in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes.  However, that doesn't mean the Jays ace will be dealt.  As another source points out, J.P. Ricciardi is not in a hurry to trade Halladay …

Kershaw twirls more zeroes in Dodger romp  —  As they say in the news biz, “We have a developing story.”  And it's not about Manny Ramirez.  —  Clayton Kershaw pitched six shutout innings in the Dodgers' 8-0 blanking of the New York Mets.  — In his past five starts …

Bartolo Colon of Chicago White Sox missing with Triple-A start scheduled Thursday  —  Chicago White Sox pitcher Bartolo Colon is scheduled to make a minor league rehab start for Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday.  —  Problem is, the White Sox don't know where he is.  —  “I know where he is supposed to be right now.

Strike three for Lenny Dykstra: Former Met files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection  —  It's strike three - and Chapter 11 - for Lenny Dykstra.  —  The one-time Mets hero, facing divorce, foreclosure on his mansion and a multitude of lawsuits, filed for bankruptcy protection in California, his attorney said Wednesday.

Embree earns ‘W’ without throwing pitch  —  Rockies reliever first hurler to accomplish feat since 2003  —  DENVER — Call Rockies left-hander Alan Embree the winning picker.  —  Embree entered Tuesday night's game against the Nationals with two out in the eighth, Austin Kearns the runner on first and the score tied at 4.

Game 83: Yankees at Twins (Updates: Aceves to start Thurs., Halladay talk and Girardi pre-game audio)  —  YANKEES (48-34)  —  Pitching: LHP CC Sabathia (7-5, 3.85).  —  TWINS (43-40)  —  Span LF  —  Harris SS  —  Mayer C  —  Morneau 1B  —  Cuddyer RF  —  Crede 3B  —  Young DH

How the Nats Lost Last Night  —  Yesterday evening, I wrote that one of the reasons you have to keep watching this baseball team every night is because of the chance “that you'll see something the universe has never seen before.”  That was well-timed.  —  “In a weird, out of body experience way …

Brewers' Braun, Melvin clear the air  —  Star left fielder, GM talk, want to move forward  —  MILWAUKEE — Hours before the start of a key homestand, Brewers All-Star outfielder Ryan Braun and general manager Doug Melvin met for a tete-a-tete in a quiet dugout at Miller Park.

Punchless David Wright takes crack at the Mets  —  After another awful loss in a season already full of them before the All-Star break, David Wright stood in the home clubhouse Tuesday night at Citi Field and blasted the Mets for the way they've been playing.  They were the best hacks Wright has taken all week.

Dodgers outfielder Kemp carrying his weight  —  There was 240 pounds of Andruw Jones.  And there was 240 pounds of Matt Kemp.  —  The scale appeared balanced, but these two no longer are on a level playing field.  —  The Dodgers' Kemp is 6feet, 3 inches of fluid athleticism whose range hardly is contained to a single ZIP Code.

Time to get over steroids  —  Outrage over drug use doesn't matter to people who see it as only a game  —  Manny Ramirez may be a drug cheat in the eyes of media members and baseball diehards, but the casual fans could care less, writes Mike Celizic.  —  The Mets' play-by-play guy couldn't believe what he wasn't hearing.

Pena trade won't be last one for D-backs in '09  —  Jon Paul Morosi is a national MLB writer for FOXSports.com.  He previously covered baseball for the Detroit Free Press and Seattle Post-Intelligencer.  He began his journalism career at the Bay City Times in his native Michigan.  —  add this

Ross putting forth All-Star effort  —  Florida (43-42) at San Francisco (46-37), 3:45 p.m. ET  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Prior to the opener of the Marlins' series against the San Francisco Giants, manager Fredi Gonzalez was trying to figure out a scenario that would allow Cody Ross to make the National League All-Star team.

BLS Live Blog: A chat with Philadelphia's Shane Victorino  —  BLS Note: Earlier today, we were joined by Shane Victorino  —  for a little live chat that included topics like the chances of Roy Halladay  —  becoming a Phillie, Shane's favorite restaurants in Las Vegas and his take on Jon & Kate Plus 8.