Top News:
Tyler Kepner / New York Times:
After a Disappointing First Season, Girardi Adjusts — Joe Girardi's hair is the color of steel, buzzed close to his scalp, suited for the military. The reason is that anything else would look frizzy. But the haircut, it seems, has always informed the narrative.
Discussion:
River Avenue Blues, The Yankee Universe, Bats, It's About The Money and Zell's Pinstripe Blog
RELATED:
Sean McAdam / Boston Herald:
Jon Lester will start it off — Sources: Red Sox go with lefty in ALDS opener — KANSAS CITY, Mo. - In 2003, he won Game 5 for the Florida Marlins in Yankee Stadium on three days' rest and was named World Series MVP. — Four years later, he won all four of his postseason starts for the Red Sox [team stats].
Mark Feinsand / NY Daily News:
Yanks want to clinch against Sox — The Yankees and Red Sox are both headed for October, but the two rivals would love to make a statement to assert themselves as the favorites in the American League. — With only 10 days to go until the end of the regular season, the two AL East contenders …
Associated Press:
Dodgers one win away from playoffs; Nats hit 100 losses — WASHINGTON (AP) — Rafael Furcal (FSY) hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning Thursday night, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat Washington 7-6 to hand the Nationals their 100th loss of the season.
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Lisa Winston / MLB.com:
Dodgers cut playoff magic number to one — Furcal collects four hits, including winning homer in eighth — WASHINGTON — Dodgers right fielder Andre Ethier quoted a wise baseball man — his own teammate, veteran outfielder Juan Pierre — to sum up the Dodgers' 7-6 win over Washington on Thursday night: “Both sides of the ball.”
Discussion:
Sons of Steve Garvey
Jim Rice / Ask 14:
Greinke is a Good Pitcher - Not Dominant — Zack Greinke didn't really impress me last night. He pitched well and maybe I caught him on a bad night, but to me he didn't seem dominant. Greinke has may have the lowest ERA in the AL since Pedro Martinez in 2000, but he doesn't strike …
Discussion:
Hardball Times, Circling The Bases, Can't Stop The Bleeding, Yawkey Way Academy and Amazin' Avenue
RELATED:
Canadian Press:
HERNANDEZ WINS NO. 17 AS MARINERS DOWN BLUE JAYS — TORONTO — There is lots of intrigue building around Felix Hernandez right now, and how his future plays out this winter is something the Toronto Blue Jays will be watching closely. — The dominant right-hander struck out a season-high 11 batters …
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Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates Notebook: Russell, staff not in trouble — A month ago, the Pirates' front office, all the way up to owner Bob Nutting, strongly endorsed the return of manager John Russell and the full coaching staff. And despite the historic losing stretch of late, that stance has stuck.
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Associated Press:
Tigers' Verlander strikes out 11 as Indians drop 11th straight — CLEVELAND (AP) — Justin Verlander (FSY) pitched the Detroit Tigers closer to a division title and pushed the Cleveland Indians within one loss of matching a franchise record for futility with a 6-5 win on Thursday night.
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Adam Kilgore / Boston Globe:
FINAL: Red Sox 10, Royals 3 — SOX WIN (11:51, TOP 9, 10-3 SOX) — After a long, ugly victory, the Sox cut their magic number clinch the AL wild card down to three. Clay Buchholz pitched 6 2/3 sterling, shutout innings, striking out eight and allowing five hits, all singles.
Jayson Stark / ESPN:
Best (and worst) of the playoff rotations — Starting pitching often rules in October, and that should bode well for the Red Sox — When you think of October, you think of Josh Beckett pitching a Game 6 shutout in Yankee Stadium. You think of Cole Hamels, carving his own little slice of Mr. October history.
Adam McCalvy / MLB.com:
Fielder is last candidate to play all 162 — Goal to be in lineup every day started in Little League — MILWAUKEE — When Baltimore right fielder Nick Markakis took a night off on Tuesday in Toronto, the Brewers' Prince Fielder became the season's lone iron man.
John Shea / San Francisco Chronicle:
Giants Beat: Lincecum open to long-term deal — (09-24) 22:52 PDT — Tim Lincecum answered the question exactly how Giants fans wanted him to. For the first time, the ace will be eligible for arbitration, meaning his salary will skyrocket, and he was asked if he'd be open to a long-term deal.
Jon Weisman / Dodger Thoughts:
Can you trust any national baseball writer? — National baseball columnists offer opinions on the Dodgers that you might or might not agree with. That's just the way it is. — Too often, however, their opinions are based on factual errors that, while not intentional, clearly reflect a lack of familiarity with the team.
ESPN:
Get in tune with Chris Coghlan … Florida Marlins outfielder Chris Coghlan recently spoke with ESPN.com about his musical tastes and preferences. — ESPN.com: I'm going to assume that being a rookie, you don't have control over what music is played in the clubhouse. Who does?
Discussion:
FishStripes
TSN.ca:
PHILLIES GET PAST BREWERS; INCH CLOSER TO DIVISION TITLE — Sports Network — Milwaukee, WI (Sports Network) - Jimmy Rollins went 2-for-4 and smacked a three-run homer during a six-run fifth inning, as the Philadelphia Phillies inched closer their third consecutive division title with a 9-4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
Discussion:
The Good Phight
