Long and short of it: Bard failed  —  Reliever jolted by back-to-back HRs  —  NEW YORK - Daniel Bard made the slow walk from the Yankee Stadium mound to the Red Sox dugout and began to assess what had happened.  “It was kind of a whirlwind,” he said later.

Sources: Several teams interested in aquiring John Smoltz  —  Some National League teams, as well as the Texas Rangers, have interest in acquiring John Smoltz, major league sources say, which is an early indication that he will have another opportunity to pitch this year — if he chooses to take it.

Ransom returning to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre  —  Cody Ransom has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.  He is scheduled to join the team toinght in Norfolk where the Yankees will have to make a move to open a spot on the roster.

Could baseball cards lead to the end of the antitrust exemption?  —  AmLaw Daily is talking about that MLB-Topps baseball card deal from last week and raises the notion that Upper Deck could file an antitrust suit.  Countering that is the assertion in the article that “In 1922 …

‘Concerning’ situation for Nats  —  Zimmermann's elbow could be problem that lingers  —  Before going forward, a caveat: It's possible orthopedist James Andrews will take a look at the MRI of Washington Nationals pitcher Jordan Zimmermann's right elbow, the one that acting general manager Mike Rizzo …

Yogi Berra answers your questions  —  It was fun to solicit your questions for players like Derek Jeter, CC Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, Phil Hughes and Jason Giambi.  But when it came to Hall of Famer Yogi Berra, it was more of a privilege.  —  More than 500 readers of the LoHud Yankees Blog …

Tampa Bay Rays' B.J. Upton upset after being moved to ninth in lineup  —  SEATTLE — B.J. Upton's frustration with his poor season has been made worse by the sting of being dropped to the No. 9 spot in the Rays lineup.  —  “It's almost like a kick in the face,” Upton said.

Jermaine Jackson gloves foul ball in L.A.  —  Singer makes nice catch behind Dodgers dugout Friday night  —  Jermaine Jackson found a new meaning for the word “Victory” on Friday evening at Dodger Stadium.  —  Jermaine, the singing brother of the late pop icon Michael Jackson …

Longtime minor leaguer awaits Orioles' call  —  Submariner Andy Mitchell racks up winning seasons in Triple-A  —  Andy Mitchell signed as a walk-on with the Orioles organization in 2001.  He helped Georgia Tech win a conference championship but was undrafted.  (Photo by L. Todd Spencer / The Virginia-Pilot / July 19, 2009)

Francoeur trade paying Mets dividends  —  New York (52-59) at Arizona (50-62), 9:40 p.m. ET  —  SAN DIEGO — Most of what little noise the Mets' offense made in four games in San Diego came in the final game Sunday.  They plated three runs in the sixth inning after scoring merely six in the first three games.

On numbers alone, J.P. must go  —  Gord Ash was fired after finishing third four consecutive times with the Blue Jays.  And nobody argued it wasn't the time.  —  J.P. Ricciardi, in his eighth season in Toronto, will finish no better than fourth out of five in the American League East for the second consecutive year.

Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen vows to retaliate for hitters getting plunked  —  After 3 more plunkings, aggravated Guillen lets his position be known  —  White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen is tired of seeing his hitters treated like pincushions and vowed Sunday to retaliate.

Authors and Publisher of Baseball Steroids Book Sued for Defamation, According to The Gibson Law Firm  —  The publisher and authors of a book about steroid use in major league baseball were sued today by a Texas man who says they falsely claimed he was “pushing” steroids to professional athletes …

False Hustle  —  More photos » by Mary Altaffer - ASSOCIATED PRESS  —  Think tanks, as a concept, seem morally bankrupt.  Entire companies exist just for publishing policy papers from one general viewpoint.  It works, too: there's enough evidence and data generated to defend basically any viewpoint.

Ejectorino: Can't question ump from CF  —  While in field, Victorino tossed by home-plate arbiter  —  PHILADELPHIA — In an odd moment of an odd game Sunday, the Phillies' Shane Victorino was ejected from his center-field position in the top of the seventh inning by home-plate umpire Ed Rapuano.

Jeter Speaking in Present Tense a Year Before Contract Expires  —  As Derek Jeter saw Kevin Youkilis flying toward him with a takeout slide Saturday, he made a clever decision.  Jeter jumped completely over Youkilis's beefy body, landed and then fired to first to complete the double play.