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 …

Yankees Blog  —  With 12 days to go before the trade deadline, Brian Cashman is sticking to his plan even with Andy Pettitte on the shelf for 4-5 weeks.  —  That plan involves trying to bolster the Yankees' bench and possibly their bullpen, but it does not include the pursuit of a starting pitcher.

Venters suspended for throwing at Prince Fielder  —  NEW YORK (AP)  —  Atlanta Braves pitcher Jonny Venters was suspended for four games and fined by Major League Baseball on Monday for throwing consecutive pitches at Milwaukee's Prince Fielder last weekend.

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 …

MLB likely to speak to Phil Cuzzi, discipline possible  —  Phil Cuzzi missed a game-altering call Sunday, and that was just one of several strange ninth-inning moments for the home plate umpire in the 4-3 Mets win over San Francisco.  —  Afterward, Mets catcher Henry Blanco called for baseball …

Cardinals blast Kendrick with homers, pound Phillies 8-4  —  ST. LOUIS (AP) — No worries about offense on Matt Holliday's (FSY) day off.  The St. Louis Cardinals had plenty of it without their cleanup hitter.  —  Albert Pujols' (FSY) two-run home run in the fifth inning began a barrage …

Rockies lose as Marlins walk off with two-run home run  —  MIAMI — Pinch-hitter Donnie Murphy hit a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning Monday night, and the Florida Marlins beat the Colorado Rockies 9-8.  —  It was the fifth lead change in the game.

Analysis precedes action in Arizona  —  The telephone Josh Byrnes used to answer at Chase Field has a recording that deflects the caller to another in-house number, “for any general manager-type calls,” which, it turns out, is the wrong number, too.  —  Jerry DiPoto, a general manager-type …

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.

Crowe's career-high 4 hits lead Indians past Twins  —  MINNEAPOLIS—Trevor Crowe drove in two runs and had a career-high four hits, and the Cleveland Indians collected a season-high 20 hits in their fifth straight win, 10-4 over the Minnesota Twins on Monday night.

Red Sox-A's game updates from Oakland-Alameda Coliseum  —  Game Over: Red Sox 2, A's 1  —  Jonathan Papelbon recorded his 21st save by retiring the A's in the 9th, ending the A's five-game winning streak before 19,341 at Oakland-Alameda Coliseum.  Big win for the Sox with Daisuke Matsuzaka …

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.