Mets closer Francisco eggs on Subway rival by calling Yankees ‘chickens’  —  Mets on Twitter  —  At least somebody isn't afraid to talk trash about a cross-town rival.  —  “I can't wait to face those chickens,” Mets closer Frank Francisco told The Post when asked about playing the Yankees …

A big blast from Ortiz  —  Angry DH rips media scrutiny  —  David Ortiz is having one of the best seasons of his career and is sure to be an All-Star again.  But he's not having fun, and the media is to blame.  —  It's even to a point, the designated hitter said, where he is unsure about returning next season.

Two groups push to buy Padres, sale could be agreed to by All-Star break  —  Owner John Moores' asking price for the Padres is in the neighborhood of $800 million.  (US Presswire)  —  Is the O'Malley family close to returning to baseball ownership, a couple of hundred miles south …

Burnett, Pirates shut down Tigers 4-1  —  PITTSBURGH—A.J. Burnett pitched six shutout innings to win his seventh consecutive start and the Pittsburgh Pirates won for the fifth time in six games, 4-1 over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night.  —  Burnett (8-2) allowed two hits and three walks …

Former Brewer Hall tweets Livan deal with Crew  —  MILWAUKEE — It's a brave, new, social media-dominated world when a former Brewers player breaks news about the newest member of the team via Twitter.  —  Bill Hall, a onetime Milwaukee utility man who is currently playing for the Orioles' Triple …

Twins Ink Bard For $1,227,000  —  The Twins signed supplemental first-round pick Luke Bard for $1,227,000.  His bonus matches the assigned value for his No. 42 overall selection.  —  A righthander like his brother Daniel (Red Sox), Bard missed much of his junior season at Georgia Tech after tearing a lat muscle in late March.

Oswalt ready to resume career on his terms  —  Here comes the midseason return of Roy Oswalt in circumstances of his own choosing; for the team he wants to pitch for, in a place not that far from his Mississippi home, at a time he found suitable, just after the summer solstice.

Paulino likely headed for Tommy John surgery  —  KANSAS CITY — Right-hander Felipe Paulino could be the fourth Royals pitchers to have Tommy John surgery this year.  —  Team doctors have diagnosed Paulino with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, which usually leads to reconstructive elbow surgery.

2012 College Player Of The Year: Mike Zunino  —  Few players have had more of an impact on college baseball over the last three years than Florida catcher Mike Zunino.  —  Maybe Zunino's offensive numbers this spring weren't eye-popping, but they were plenty robust—he tied for fourth …

Tim Lincecum's struggles a Giant mystery  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. - San Francisco Giants ace Tim Lincecum took the team bus back to his hotel room Tuesday night, called the 425 area code on his cellphone and undraped his soul for 1½ hours, not hanging up until nearly 2 in the morning.

Moreland lands on DL with strained hamstring  —  ARLINGTON — Rangers first baseman Mitch Moreland was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Friday due to a strained left hamstring, and an MRI exam indicated that he will be out four to six weeks.  —  Moreland suffered the injury while running …

Mike Trout and the AL MVP  —  Despite playing just 48 games and only just recently qualifying for the FanGraphs leaderboards under standard search filters, Mike Trout has been one of the most valuable players in all of baseball.  And at his current pace, his +3.5 wins above replacement …

Phillies' optimism just turns into another loss  —  PHILADELPHIA — One by one, they walked to the dugout as the boos rained down.  First, Chad Qualls, then Hunter Pence, then Shane Victorino.  In order: a suspect relief appearance, a strikeout with the tying run on second and nobody out, a pop out with the tying run on third.