Oakland parting ways with Bradley  —  Oft-injured outfielder to be traded or waived  —  Milton Bradley's career in Oakland — a tranquil time, compared with some of his more contentious stops in Cleveland and Los Angeles — has ended, and unexpectedly early.

Wrist injury puts Tejada's streak in jeopardy … SAN DIEGO // Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada extended his consecutive games streak, to 1,152 yesterday, but that's where it is probably going to end.  —  Tests were taken on Tejada's left wrist late Wednesday night, and the results received …

Nats' Balester rising to the top  —  Life in the minor leagues can change for any player Baseball America rates as the top prospect in an organization.  Pitcher Collin Balester experienced the increased attention when he moved to the top of BA's list for the Washington Nationals this offseason.

Emotional Changeup By Tavarez  —  ATLANTA — Julian Tavarez has been easily typecast.  —  Whether it's rolling balls to first base for outs, enduring lengthy head rubs from Manny Ramirez, punching dugout phones in the 2004 postseason or players at home plate in a 2006 spring training game, Tavarez is often pegged as a loose cannon.

In Colorado, Yankees Take a Turn for the Worse  —  As Roger Clemens threw his warm-up pitches before the bottom of the first inning, a fan in the front row at Coors Field held up a sign chiding the Yankees for paying "$28 million for a dinosaur."  —  During the course of a remarkable 24 …

Not for the Birds: Girardi turns down Orioles job  —  BALTIMORE — Joe Girardi declined an offer Thursday to become the new manager of the Baltimore Orioles, saying the timing wasn't right "for the Girardi family."  —  "Baltimore is a fine organization, a fine team, and I'm flattered …

Giambi agrees to meet with Mitchell investigation  —  NEW YORK — Jason Giambi agreed Thursday to meet with baseball steroids investigator George Mitchell and apologized for his actions, becoming the first active player known to cooperate with the former Senate majority leader.

MISSING MIKE  —  PIAZZA WILL BE ON DL FOR A'S TRIP TO SHEA  —  It's unlikely that Mike Piazza will have a second homecoming against the Mets this weekend.  —  The legendary former Met, who returned to Shea last year with the Padres, is with the A's now, and Oakland will face the Mets …

Sox' weekend could be a blast  —  Having to deal with Round 2 of the media-hyped Cubs-White Sox crosstown rivalry isn't a high priority for the Sox, who are chin-deep in quicksand with likely just a few more deep breaths left.  —  That was made evident when starting pitcher Mark Buehrle …

Nats' Top Prospect Has Major Potential  —  HIALEAH GARDENS, Fla. — When the talent is this obvious, and the future is this limitless and the ball jumps off the bat like this — with a sound that, swear to God, involves two syllables instead of one: "ska-POW!"  — you keep your thoughts to yourself.

Win-loss records don't tell the whole story … How often have you heard this question asked this season:  —  What's wrong with Johan Santana?  —  Uh, how about nothing?  —  Yeah, his win-loss record is "only" 7-6.  Yeah, that's exactly the same record as Miguel Batista.

Florida Marlins pitcher Anibal Sanchez has season-ending surgery  —  Nine and half months after throwing a no-hitter and getting a triumphant ride on his teammates' shoulders, Anibal Sanchez must start over.  —  The Venezuelan right-hander learned Thursday he would miss the rest of the season …

Notes: Patterson makes rehab start  —  Pair of prospects to represent Nationals in Futures Game  —  WASHINGTON — Nationals right-hander John Patterson, who is on the disabled list because of a sore right elbow and biceps, had another rehab start for Class A Potomac on Thursday night.

UNC stops Rice, earns rematch with Oregon St.  —  OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — North Carolina powered its way back to the College World Series finals.  —  After hitting just one home run in their first 13 postseason games, the Tar Heels lit up Rice for four long balls in a 7-4 victory Thursday night.