Top News:
Anthony McCarron / NY Daily News:
Mets must lean on other stars — Hip hampers cranky Pedro — Pedro Martinez answered a few innocuous questions from reporters about making the National League All-Star team last night, but when talk turned to his ailing right hip, the Met righty snapped, "I got no comment," and walked away.
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
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Adam Rubin / NY Daily News:
Star-studded Mets hit pick-6 — The Mets don't officially play in Pittsburgh until September, but the All-Star Game in the Steel City on July 11 will make it seem otherwise. — A franchise-record six Mets - Carlos Beltran, Tom Glavine, Paul Lo Duca, Pedro Martinez, Jose Reyes and David Wright …
Toni Ginnetti / Chicago Sun Times:
Baker cites fireworks show by Angel in outfield — With a disabled list containing Kerry Wood, Mark Prior and Derrek Lee, Cubs manager Dusty Baker's refrain about how much his team missed rookie Angel Pagan usually fell on deaf ears. — Everyone was listening Sunday.
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Mike Kiley / Chicago Sun Times:
Williamson positive he's not negative about Dusty — Cubs reliever Scott Williamson strongly denied implying anything negative about manager Dusty Baker during a radio interview Sunday morning. — Williamson had told WSCR-AM (670) that playing time can be sporadic on Baker's Cubs …
Discussion:
CubsNet.com
Tyler Kepner / New York Times:
Rodriguez's Two Homers Quiet Mets and Win Over the Fans — In the broad view, Alex Rodriguez spends the regular season killing time. It is not enough to simply lead the Yankees to the playoffs, as he did last season. The fans at Yankee Stadium quickly forgot that after Rodriguez failed in the postseason.
Discussion:
Bronx Banter
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Ben Shpigel / New York Times:
Mets' A.L. Nightmare Is Over, for Now — The Mets will wake up today in a place where pitchers bat and No. 8 hitters do not bat .280. No more Yankees or Red Sox, bleacher creatures or Green Monsters. — Their world, the National League, has teams like the Pirates and the Cubs, and the Mets are thankful to be playing them soon.
Discussion:
Metsblog.com
Paul Sullivan / Chicago Tribune:
9th-inning knockout — Pierzynski gets revenge with HR off Dempster — It was a tale of two seasons in one precious moment, played out in brilliant sunshine on a windy summer afternoon in a city where baseball is secondary only to breathing. — In one corner stood the Cubs …
Discussion:
Exile in Wrigleyville
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Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Cards Notebook: Ponson up Thursday — The perception is that pitcher Sidney Ponson toes a fine line as a Cardinals starter, having already been moved to the bullpen once this year, only to emerge with his finest performance of the season when pressed into action.
Discussion:
St. Louis Cardinals Blog
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Contra Costa Times:
A's All-Stars as elusive as hits — THE AMERICAN LEAGUE All-Star team was announced Sunday. Stop us if you've heard this one before — the A's offense got shut out. — So profound is the team's inability to put bat on ball at this point that manager Ken Macha couldn't even feign indignance.
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
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Kevin Baxter / Miami Herald:
Moehler to have an MRI on foot — Right-hander Brian Moehler will undergo an MRI on his sore right foot today and is hoping he'll be able to come off the disabled list shortly after next week's All-Star break. — ''The X-rays were negative. There's no stress fracture,'' said Moehler …
Mark Newman / MLB.com:
The choice is yours in Final Vote — Fans get to choose the final All-Star for each league — They are 10 Major League players who have appeared in a combined 5,445 career games, ranging from the 1,408 by All-Star veteran Bobby Abreu of the Phillies to the 18 for hot rookie pitcher Justin Verlander of the Tigers.
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Murray Chass / New York Times:
No-Hitter Requires a Complete Game — THERE are as many no-hitters in the front office of the Los Angeles Angels as there have been in the major leagues for more than four seasons. — Bill Stoneman, the general manager of the Angels, pitched two no-hitters for Montreal, one in 1969 and the other in 1972.
Richard Durrett / Dallas Morning News:
Eaton on target for late-July return — ARLINGTON - Adam Eaton has a calendar of his planned rehab starts for July sitting in his locker. He's quick to point out July 21, the day planned for his final rehab start. — "That means five days later, I could be back in the rotation," Eaton said.
Discussion:
Lone Star Ball
Thomas Boswell / Washington Post:
Finally, Bowden Gets To Deal With a Full Deck — For the past 20 months, Nats General Manager Jim Bowden has made what seem like a vast number of trades, free agent signings and draft picks. The impression among Washington fans is that Bowden deserves to be a controversial figure …
Discussion:
Oleanders and Morning Glories, fredericksburg.com, Nats Triple Play, District of Baseball, MLB.com and Ben Maller
Sid Hartman / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Twins pitching star leaves Morris in awe — Francisco Liriano's confidence and command of pitches impress the 254-game winner, who knows a little something about those attributes. — Jack Morris, one of the all-time great American League pitchers, watched Francisco Liriano blank the Brewers …
