Top News:
Adam Rubin / NY Daily News:
Aaron on hook in loss to Fish — Fails in 8th, Mets waste Pedro effort — MIAMI - Pedro Martinez envisioned Dontrelle Willis in a Mets uniform by now. Instead, the aces remained opponents last night, delivering a stellar pitcher's duel in a game that wasn't decided until Martinez turned the ball over to the bullpen.
Discussion:
Metsblog.com
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Clark Spencer / Miami Herald:
Girardi set to turn to Olivo — With Matt Treanor going on the disabled list because of a strained left shoulder, Miguel Olivo can expect to handle the bulk of the Marlins' catching duties the next two weeks. — ''Olivo is going to catch a lot,'' manager Joe Girardi said.
Discussion:
FishStripes
Clark Spencer / Miami Herald:
Willis, Cabrera lead Marlins past Mets — Dontrelle Willis' gritty pitching performance overshadowed Pedro Martinez's outing, and the Marlins remained in contention for the NL wild card. — cspencer@MiamiHerald.com — When he saw his bases-loaded smash rocket past New York Mets third …
Juan C. Rodriguez / Sun-Sentinel:
Willis' work pays off — Cabrera backs lefty up with game-winning three-run double in eighth inning — MIAMI GARDENS — He shows emotion all the time. After a big strikeout. After a big defensive play. After his team scores. — About the only time Dontrelle Willis is unreadable is when it comes to balls and strikes.
Discussion:
FishStripes
Associated Press:
Cabrera clears bases in eighth, Marlins take series from Mets — CBS SportsLine.com wire reports — MIAMI — Angry after giving up a run, Dontrelle Willis shouted at the plate umpire as he walked off the mound. One inning later, he threw a celebratory roundhouse punch as he skipped to the dugout.
ESPN:
Report: Red Sox get catching help in Javy Lopez — Looking for help at catcher following the injury to captain Jason Varitek, the Red Sox have acquired veteran Javy Lopez from the Baltimore Orioles, ESPN Radio 890 in Boston reported. — Lopez, who will join the team tomorrow in Tampa …
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Nick Cafardo / Boston Globe:
Deal is struck for Orioles' Lopez — The Red Sox acted quickly yesterday in addressing their need to fill the gaping hole left by the knee injury to catcher Jason Varitek. According to major league sources, Boston has struck a deal for disgruntled Baltimore catcher Javy Lopez in exchange …
Discussion:
Surviving Grady
Tony Massarotti / Boston Herald:In a catch phase: Sox make deal for O's Lopez
Discussion:
District of Baseball
Amalie Benjamin / Boston Globe:
Going, going ... gone — Indians go deep as Sox fall a game behind Yankees — While Craig Hansen warmed up to begin the eighth inning, a trivia question flashed on the JumboTron in center field. Who was the last Red Sox pitcher to homer in a game? — The answer? Josh Beckett.
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Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Wainwright's next stop: The rotation? — As the Cardinals' starting rotation has hit skids and had its moments in flux throughout the past two months, a pitcher groomed to be a starter for the Cardinals has hummed along as one of the teams' most reliable relievers. — Supply meet demand.
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Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:Phillies rock Weaver, relievers, adding to misery at Busch
Discussion:
Faith and Fear in Flushing
Dick Kaegel / MLB.com:
Royals agree with top pick Hochevar — Former University of Tennessee righty signs Major League deal — KANSAS CITY — Pitcher Luke Hochevar has become a Royal. — Hochevar, the No. 1 overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft this year, agreed to a four-year Major League contract, the Royals announced on Thursday.
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Julian Garcia / NY Daily News:
Giambi has familiar look — Cory Lidle was having flashbacks yesterday, and they weren't caused by the heat. Instead, Jason Giambi was the one responsible. — When Giambi blasted a three-run home run in the first inning of yesterday's 8-1 win over the Blue Jays, and later knocked …
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Marc Topkin / St. Petersburg Times:
Dukes plans return; Bulls say no thanks … ST. PETERSBURG - Suspended Devil Rays prospect Elijah Dukes has no intention of quitting baseball and is eager to return to the field, his agent said Thursday. But the vice president of the Rays' Triple-A Durham team said Dukes is not welcome to rejoin the Bulls.
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Associated Press:
Mets lock up Reyes with four-year, $23.25 million deal — NEW YORK — Jose Reyes can count on buying a nice, big house in New York. — The speedy All-Star shortstop signed a $23.25 million, four-year contract extension with the Mets on Thursday, the sides working quickly this week to ensure him a home through the 2010 season.
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates Q&A with Dejan Kovacevic — Q: Is it too soon to put my name on the waiting list for playoff tickets? Shawn Chacon, a couple of middling Class AA players and a part-time outfielder ... Woo-hoo! We will! — We will rue the day that the Pirates made a colossal blunder …
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates Notebook: Wilson shrugs off calf injury — By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette — Jack Wilson shrugged off the strained right calf that kept him out of the Pirates' lineup yesterday, even though he might miss today and tomorrow, too. — "It's no big deal," he said.
Barry Svrluga / Washington Post:
With Deadline Past, What's Ahead? — Schneider, Johnson — and Maybe Soriano — Give Nats Base to Build On — Their lockers are all in a row at RFK Stadium, Brian Schneider's followed by Nick Johnson's followed by Alfonso Soriano's. Each day over the previous month, they would arrive at the ballpark …
Discussion:
William F. Yurasko
Bob Klapisch / NorthJersey.com:
Doc writes that life behind bars is 'torture' — The reunion at Shea is scheduled for Aug. 19, when everyone will officially be transported back to 1986. On that day, Keith Hernandez will still be the lean, chiseled hitter who was impossible to retire after the seventh inning.
