Source: Scott Boras is out as A-Rod's agent  —  Alex Rodriguez has fired uber agent Scott Boras and is now being represented full time by Pittsburgh attorney Jay Reisinger.  —  Bob Nightengale of USA Today was the first one to run with this this morning, but for reasons that are unclear, the link disappeared as soon as it showed up.

Pedroia expected to have surgery  —  Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia is expected to have surgery to insert a screw in his left foot sometime tomorrow at Massachusetts General Hospital according to a major league source.  —  Pedroia was examined last night by Massachusetts General …

Is it time to push back trading deadline?  —  A dozen GMs weigh in on possible change to system and, naturally, they don't all agree  —  Here's an idea whose time needs to come:  —  Move back the trading deadline.  —  Move it back to Aug. 31.  We'd even settle for Aug. 15.

Was last night's Rays outfield the fastest in baseball history?  —  With rosters expanding yesterday the Rays called up speedster Desmond Jennings from Triple-A and started him in right field.  They also had Carl Crawford in left field and B.J. Upton in center field, which has me wondering whether …

Coach says Mariners were told of Josh Lueke's criminal past  —  The Mariners knew all about Josh Lueke's 96-mph fastball when they acquired him from the Texas Rangers in the Cliff Lee deal.  But Mariners executives insisted they knew nothing before the July 9 trade about the 25-year-old minor …

Free Agent Stock Watch: Carl Pavano  —  Carl Pavano isn't the best pitcher in the Twins rotation - that honor goes to Francisco Liriano - but he has quietly been one of the best pitchers in the American League this year.  Pavano ranks second in the AL in walk rate (1.5 BB/9), third in innings pitched and 14th in ERA (3.52).

Costly repair bills for new Cubs owners  —  Ricketts ownership has them now; question is, what's spending limit?  —  Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts says it's up to general manager Jim Hendry to identify the right guy to replace Lou Piniella as manager.  —  But no matter how good Hendry's new manager is …

Jerry Manuel would love to know his job status … ~ Mike Puma, New York Post  —  Here's the thing about Manuel, how is a difference maker?  What has he done to justify keeping his job?  By the way, being a nice guy and entertaining reporters is not a sufficient answer.  —  I look at Buck Showalter.

Adversity aside, White Sox poised to pounce  —  South Siders have overcome injuries, poor play  —  BOSTON — If an overriding theme was attached to the White Sox first 133 games of competition, it quite possibly could look something like this:  —  Chicago White Sox, '10: It could be a lot worse

Delgado diagnosed with tear in left hip  —  BALTIMORE — Carlos Delgado won't play for the Red Sox this season.  —  Delgado, who signed a minor-league contract last month with the hope of being a left-handed-hitting complement to fill-in first baseman Mike Lowell, has a small tear in his left hip, according to his agent David Sloane.

Only longevity separates Pujols, Votto  —  Prince Albert has met his 2010 equal in Reds' rising slugger  —  ST. LOUIS — Taken on the merits of their 2010 seasons, very little separates Albert Pujols and Joey Votto, save for eight games in the standings.  —  They are the leading candidates …

Lee gets treatment on sore back in Arlington  —  KANSAS CITY — Rangers pitcher Cliff Lee was sent back to Texas on Tuesday to have his sore lower back examined by Dr. Keith Meister.  Lee brought the problem to the Rangers' attention following Tuesday's 10-9 loss to the Royals.

Harper: Change may be all Burnett needs  —  For two years, Dave Eiland has been trying to sell A.J. Burnett on the possibilities of a changeup the righthander was often reluctant to throw.  Perhaps it took a dose of desperation for Burnett to buy into those possibilities …

Latos' 10 K's wasted as skid runs to seven  —  PHOENIX — The glass-half-full approach, which the Padres are sure to take, is as follows: They have 30 games to protect a three-game lead in the National League West.  —  The glass-half-empty approach, which observers back in San Diego can't possible ignore …

Nyjer Morgan Needs to Go  —  That guy is just out of control.  First the cheap shot on Bryan Anderson, then he throws a ball at a fan, then he takes out another catcher, tells another fan to “shut up fat b****,” then steals second and third down 11 runs (barreling into the second and third basemen …

Nats fire Dibble as TV announcer  —  WASHINGTON (AP)  —  The Washington Nationals say Rob Dibble will no longer work as a TV analyst for the team's games, a split that comes after the former reliever made comments critical of rookie pitcher Stephen Strasburg.