Game 98: Athletics at Yankees (updates with Gardner going on disabled list)  —  YANKEES (59-38)  —  Pitching: RHP Sergio Mitre (1-0, 4.76).  —  NOTES: Thanks to Ernie Palladino for calling in the lineup. ...  The 1:05 p.m. game is on YES. ...  Oakland is starting LHP Dallas Braden (7-8, 3.40). ...

Rickey, Rice ready to join baseball immortals  —  Idyllic Cooperstown filled with anticipation of inductions  —  COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — Having thoroughly soaked this idyllic, tiny, tree-swathed town with a steady downpour for most of Friday, the skies relented as the sun surfaced Saturday …

Mariners place Erik Bedard on 15-day disabled list with shoulder inflammation  —  Erik Bedard is back on the 15-day disabled list this morning, clearing a roster spot for Jason Vargas to be called up to start today's game.  —  “At this point, we're not going to do an MRI,” Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu said.

Different varieties in Apple  —  Yankees flourishing, Mets floundering  —  They represent the same city, but the performances of the Mets and Yankees are as different as Mars and Venus.  —  While sports talk radio isn't always the best barometer, the airwaves generally are filled with angry, bitter fans.

Halladay traffic growing intense  —  Almost everyone agrees that, sooner or later, Roy Halladay will be on his way to Philadelphia, where he'll become the symbol of the Phillies' enduring dominance of the Mets.  The Blue Jays and Phillies are engaged in feverish, last-minute talks that might turn …

Gonzalez, Bell both unlikely to be traded  —  Teams are interested in All-Star duo, but no deals expected  —  WASHINGTON — Padres general manager Kevin Towers said he is getting a “ton of calls” from other teams regarding the availability of Adrian Gonzalez and Heath Bell …

Royals' Pena Jr. being moved from shortstop to pitcher  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Tony Pena Jr. has hit like a pitcher for the past two years, so the Kansas City Royals plan to convert him to one.  —  Pena, who was the Royals' shortstop on opening day in 2007 and 2008 …

Constant roster changes take a toll on NY Mets' clubhouse chemistry  —  HOUSTON — They sat in sofa chairs only a couple feet apart, but said nothing to each other.  Oliver Perez flipped through People magazine.  Elmer Dessens read Sports Illustrated.  —  They sat like this for more than …

Carpet bombing the Roy Halladay talks  —  The Times all but declared war on the Dodger starting rotation today, with no fewer than three columnists — Bill Shaikin, Bill Plaschke and Helene Elliott — arguing that the team must add a proven top-line pitcher to have any chance of winning the World Series.

Yankees Scouting Ian Snell  —  According to Jenifer Langosch at MLB.com, the Yankees have scouts in attendance to watch Ian Snell throw today at Triple-A Indianapolis.  —  The Yankees are known to be looking for a replacement for Chien-Ming Wang, and Snell has absolutely dominated since asking …

Yanks might consider trading Joba for Halladay  —  Here is some interesting news.  Jon Heyman reports on twitter that the Yankees might consider giving up Joba Chamberlain for Roy Halladay.  I would do it.  I would say Hughes is untouchable right now.  —  Let's see exactly what they want in return before we jump to any conclusions.

Can it Be?  Are the Tigers After Milton Bradley?  —  Two very solid baseball sources confirmed for me just moments ago that the Detroit Tigers are interested in Cubs RF Milton Bradley.  They believe that Bradley would be a much better fit as a DH than as a right fielder and that he would mesh well with Tigers manager Jim Leyland.

A's pound Pettitte, Aceves in 7th as streak ends  —  Hope rippled through the new Stadium Saturday when the Yankees staged a mini-rallies in the eighth and ninth innings, but neither could out-do the damage Andy Pettitte and Alfredo Aceves did in the seventh.