Top News:
ESPN:
Ex-Yankee Leyritz admits to using amphetamines — While baseball's latest focus in its fight against ridding the sport of performance-enhancing drugs is on human growth hormone, it's another banned drug that a former Yankee fan favorite has confessed to using.
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Howard Bryant / Washington Post:
Congress Might Seek Blood Tests For Baseball — Fifteen months after a seminal confrontation with Major League Baseball over its drug-testing policy, members of Congress expressed disappointment yesterday over the inability of the sport to deter the use of performance-enhancing drugs …
Discussion:
The Baseball Journals
Ken Davidoff / Newsday:
Leyritz: I was taking 'greenies' — In his April 19 interview with federal officials, Jason Grimsley reportedly said, "Everybody had greenies. That's like aspirin." — Count Jim Leyritz, Yankees fan favorite, as one of "everybody." — In an interview yesterday morning with radio shock jocks Opie …
Tyler Kepner / New York Times:
Wright Crumbles in Sixth and Yanks Follow — They will part for the next 10 weeks, stalking each other from afar. The Yankees and the Boston Red Sox do not play again until Aug. 18, in a doubleheader at Fenway Park. They are separated by a half-game, and they expect it to be roughly the same the next time around.
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Tony Massarotti / Boston Herald:Pauley to 'pen: No room for rookie in reshuffled rotation2-4562
Discussion:
Boston Sports Media Watch
Barry Svrluga / Washington Post:
Soriano Keeps Nats Running — There is a generations-old image of what a leadoff man should look like, how he should hit, what pitches he should take and at which ones he should swing. At various points, the Washington Nationals wanted men named Endy Chavez and Brandon Watson …
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Ken Rosenthal / Fox Sports:
Matsui's contract an obstacle for Mets — The Mets, continuing their efforts to trade second baseman Kaz Matsui, could find a surprise taker: The Rockies. — Utility man Eli Marrero would go to the Mets in a proposed deal, FOXSports.com has learned, but Matsui's $8 million salary remains an obstacle to any move.
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Mark Hale / New York Post:
MATSUI A LOST KAZ? — June 9, 2006 — PHOENIX - In the near future, Kazuo Matsui's days as a Met could be over. — When Xavier Nady comes back from the disabled list - which could be as early as Tuesday - Matsui is a candidate to be released by the Mets, according to a person with knowledge of the club's thinking.
Hal Bock / Associated Press:
Sheffield to undergo wrist surgery — NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees right fielder Gary Sheffield will undergo surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist but is not expected to miss the rest of the season, general manager Brian Cashman said on Thursday — The surgery will be performed …
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Ben Shpigel / New York Times:
Arizona Sees a Hernández It Didn't Know Before Trade — PHOENIX, June 8 - The Arizona Diamondbacks spent seven weeks of spring training getting acquainted with Orlando Hernandez, their new teammate, and another seven weeks learning his quirks and habits. — That familiarity yielded a whole lot of nothing Thursday night.
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Baseball America:
Daily Dish: June 9 — See also: Yesterday's Daily Dish — Mets righthander Mike Pelfrey was impressive in Thursday night's showdown against Phillies lefthander Gio Gonzalez. — Pelfrey allowed just two hits over seven shutout innings, striking out seven and walking one in Double-A Binghamton's 5-1 win at Reading.
Discussion:
Metsblog.com
Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Cards trade talks have intensified — The day after his replacement first baseman detected a "flat" aftertaste to the Cardinals' three-game sweep by the Cincinnati Reds, general manager Walt Jocketty confirmed Thursday the club has accelerated its search for another hitter to support …
Discussion:
Viva El Birdos
Susan Slusser / San Francisco Chronicle:
Injuries dim A's victory Harden back on DL, Crosby hurt — Cleveland — Oakland's optimism as players began to trickle back from the disabled list is over. Thursday, before the team's 4-1 victory over the Indians, the A's placed one of their most important players back onto the DL …
Discussion:
At Home Plate
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Baseball Prospectus:
Prospectus Notebook — Indians, Rangers — CLEVELAND INDIANS — The Indians are the poster child for wild inconsistencies in the young 2006 season. At times they appear as an offensive juggernaut with a talented rotation and bullpen, and at other times they look like they are fielding …
David Lennon / Newsday:
Mets shrug off Grimsley's HGH involvement — STAFF CORRESPONDENT; Staff writer Jon Heyman contributed to this notebook. — PHOENIX - The Diamondbacks still are dealing with the fallout from Jason Grimsley's alleged involvement with steroids and human growth hormone.
Richard Durrett / Dallas Morning News:
Cordero is finally coming around — Former closer has momentum back on his side — KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Francisco Cordero's confidence is up and his ERA is down. — Cordero pitched in pressure-packed, late-game situations Tuesday and Wednesday nights and responded with two saves.
Discussion:
Lone Star Ball
Chris Haft / Contra Costa Times:
Giants accept gift-wrapped win, thank you — San Francisco prevails in the bottom of the ninth inning on a two-out, bases-loaded wild pitch — SAN FRANCISCO - Anybody suspecting that the Giants might be leading a charmed life should refer to their charmless 5-4 victory Thursday night over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
Clark Spencer / Miami Herald:
Agent has vested interest — Agent Matt Sosnick represents several key Marlins players, including four-fifths of the rotation. — cspencer@MiamiHerald.com — SAN FRANCISCO - It's nothing personal. — ''I love Brian Moehler,'' Matt Sosnick said. ``He's a great guy.''
