White Sox keep ace Buehrle with four-year deal  —  Mark Buehrle won't be the biggest ticket available at the trading deadline.  —  The White Sox ace agreed to a four-year, $56 million contract with Chicago on Sunday, taking the most attractive pitcher on the rumor mill off the market.

Striking performance … ARLINGTON, TEXAS // When he recorded his last strikeout on a night full of them, Erik Bedard pounded his glove with his fist and then hugged his catcher, Ramon Hernandez.  It was a display of emotion the Orioles have rarely seen from the stoic Bedard, but it certainly was fitting for the occasion.

Mets' Maine misses out on another All-Star avenue  —  HOUSTON - John Maine was snubbed again yesterday.  Not by National League All-Star manager Tony La Russa, but by his fellow players.  —  Maine was passed over for a spot on the All-Star team when Arizona righthander Brandon Webb was named …

WAGNER: I'D BENCH LOAFER REYES  —  Jose Reyes is lucky he doesn't have Billy Wagner meting out his punishment.  —  "I think speaking only as if I was the manager - not Willie - he wouldn't play," Wagner said before last night's 5-3, 17-inning victory over Houston.

ESPN Series on '77 Yanks Has Jackson Burned Up  —  Reggie Jackson said yesterday that he was unhappy about the ESPN miniseries "The Bronx is Burning."  He said he was a significant part of the 1977 season for the Yankees but was not consulted about the script of the eight-episode series, which begins tomorrow night.

Manny to SF?  —  Manager Terry Francona told the media (or, rather, us) that Manny Ramirez is suffering from a bout of "intestinal turmoil" and will not be in the lineup today.  The intestinal turmoil apparently started yesterday.  —  Francona did say that he didn't think it would affect …

July 7 — WHY NOT MADSON?  —  DENVER — That, ladies and gentlemen, is not a happy Charlie Manuel.  —  This picture was taken a few moments after Yorvit Torrealba's two-out single gave the Rockies an improbable 7-6 win last night.  Improbable, I say, because the Phillies were leading 6-1 in the sixth inning.

Government Expected to Try to Protect Names in Radomski Case  —  The federal government is expected to file papers in federal court Monday in an effort to protect the redacted names of baseball players who were supplied performance-enhancing drugs by Kirk Radomski, a former Mets clubhouse attendant.

Back injury forces Polanco out of Tigers' lineup  —  DETROIT — Tigers All-Star second baseman Placido Polanco was out of the lineup Sunday against Boston, a day after leaving a game because of a back injury.  —  Polanco said he was encouraged by his health when he woke up.  —  "It feels a lot better," he said.

The juice behind the numbers  —  Touching Base  —  When the 1938 Yankees became the first team to boast five hitters with at least 20 home runs, they were legends.  —  The fearsome fivesome included Hall of Famers Bill Dickey, Joe DiMaggio and Lou Gehrig, as well as nine-time All-Star Joe Gordon and five-time All-Star Tommy Henrich.

New stadium is a must for Drillers  —  THE TEXAS LEAGUE, once the home to similar cities such as Tulsa, Wichita, Little Rock and Shreveport, has undergone a facelift in recent years.  —  Next season, it will be the home of such diverse communities as Springdale, Ark., Springfield, Mo., Corpus Christi, Texas, and Frisco, Texas.

Mariners' Hernandez blanks A's again  —  OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Felix Hernandez ended the first half of his season the same way he started it: with a dominating performance against the Oakland Athletics.  —  Hernandez held Oakland scoreless for a second straight start and Adrian Beltre homered …