A-Rod's suddenly an afterthought  —  Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since Aug. 2005.  He appears weekly on MLB on FOX.  Follow him on Twitter.  —  Alex Rodriguez is two home runs shy of 600.  —  Does anyone care?  —  The Yankees do — A-Rod …

Padres to give Black three-year extension  —  SAN DIEGO — It's not his capacity to handle a double-switch, command a clubhouse or simply his experience as a player, coach and now manager that make Bud Black the best person to manage the Padres, second baseman David Eckstein said Sunday.

Baldelli set to return to minors tonight  —  Rocco Baldelli is set to make his return to the field as a player tonight for Class A Charlotte, the first step in what could lead him back to the Rays later this season.  —  Baldelli, 28, has spent this season working as a special assistant coach …

Quantity, not quality, hallmark of market for position players … Last Friday, I took a look at the best pitchers available in a trading market that has thinned now that the biggest prize — Cliff Lee, who was dealt from Seattle to Texas on July 9 — is off the board.

Injury update: Pettitte diagnosed with Grade 1 strain (UPDATED)  —  Andy Pettitte is already back from his MRI.  He was diagnosed with a Grade 1 strain of his groin.  Grade 1 is the least severe diagnosis.  —  The Yankees will continue to evaluate Pettitte over the next couple days.

Keeping Uggla might help Florida Marlins' payroll promise  —  The Boston Red Sox have phoned.  So have the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Colorado Rockies, Philadelphia Phillies and others as the July 31 trading deadline draws near.  But as the interest level remains high …

Mitre starting for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre tonight  —  Sergio Mitre will make a rehab start tonight for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.  According to general manager Brian Cashman, Mitre will throw 75 pitches.  He'll be working on short rest — he just pitched Thursday — but this should help him get a little more stretched out.

Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox suspended one game, pitcher Jonny Venters suspended four games  —  NEW YORK — Atlanta Braves pitcher Jonny Venters has been suspended for four games and fined by Major League Baseball for throwing consecutive pitches at Milwaukee's Prince Fielder last weekend.

July 19: a good day for pitcher debuts  —  Today, July 19, marks the anniversary of some rather impressive MLB pitching debuts.  —  It was on July 19, 1936 that teenager Bob Feller first stepped on a MLB mound. 74 years later, he's still with us.  How many people can say they're still around 74 years …

Madden: Andy's injury puts Yanks in arms race … BEST OF NYDN.COM

Red Sox, Yankees Interested In Scott Downs  —  The Red Sox and Yankees have “big-time” interest in Blue Jays reliever Scott Downs, tweets Ed Price of AOL FanHouse.  Downs, a free agent after the season, has a 2.56 ERA, 7.0 K/9, and 1.9 BB/9 in 38.6 innings this year.  —  Neither team's interest comes as a surprise.

Perez to join Mets Monday, assumes bullpen role  —  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Left-hander Oliver Perez is expected to join the New York Mets when they open a three-game series at the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday.  —  Perez was placed on the disabled list June 5 when the Mets said he had tendinitis in his right knee.

Three members inducted into Reds HOF  —  Sabo, Borbon, Mullane honored in 2010 Induction Gala  —  CINCINNATI — Past met present and more than a century of baseball history was remembered as the Reds capped off their Hall of Fame weekend with the 2010 Induction Gala.

Astros need to deal Lee at any cost  —  Now a word about Carlos Lee.  When he didn't show up for Thursday's workout, it spoke volumes about how much he cares about the Astros.  —  His alibi was that he couldn't find a pilot for his jet.  Don't you hate when that happens?  —  Listen, Lee is what he is.