Halladay, Nix, Brown, Lee, oh my  —  NEW YORK — Plenty of tidbits on this Thursday.  Here they are:  — Roy Halladay will throw a bullpen Saturday then likely head to Florida for a rehab assignment during the All-Star break.  —  “We can set up some things were he does simulated stuff too,” Ruben Amaro Jr. said.

David Ortiz ‘humiliated’ and ‘embarrassed’ by offseason  —  OAKLAND - Next offseason is going to be different.  David Ortiz is certain about that.  No more arbitration process.  No more one-year deal.  And possibly no more Boston Red Sox.  —  The longtime Boston favorite …

Midseason Top 50 Prospects List  —  For non-subscribers, here's the list of the Top 50 Prospects at the midseason.  Subscribers can read further analysis of these players, as well as looks at breakout prospects of the first half, prospects who have disappointed and those who are stuck on the disabled list.

Lee Has Solid Debut as Marlins Beat Brewers 4-0  —  MILWAUKEE (AP) — Carlos Lee doubled and scored in his Miami debut, Mark Buerhle struck out a season-best eight over 7 2-3 innings and the Marlins beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 Thursday to split the four-game series.

Plan won't hinder Nats' playoff bid  —  WASHINGTON  —  On the Fourth of July, I'm prepared to make a patriotic proclamation.  —  The Washington Nationals will win the National League East.  —  The statement sounds bolder than it actually is.  The Nationals have the best record, lowest team ERA and largest division lead in the NL.

Quintana solid, Youkilis homers as White Sox beat Rangers  —  CHICAGO — Rookie Jose Quintana allowed two hits in eight stellar innings, Kevin Youkilis came through again with a go-ahead homer and the Chicago White Sox completed a three-game sweep of the Texas Rangers with a 2-1 victory Thursday.

Bullpen could use work, but righthanded bat would be a bigger relief for NY Mets  —  What do the Mets really want before the July 31 trading deadline?  ‘A righthanded bat,’ one prominent player said, voicing a desire felt elsewhere in the room.  'We can't hit lefties.'

Heavy workload catches up to Jonny Venters and his elbow  —  Jonny Venters' left arm may have finally succumbed to the strain of his heavy workloads, as the Braves placed the setup man on the disabled list with an elbow impingement.  —  David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution notes …

Yankees' Joba ‘feeling good’ with rehab progress  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — It might not have been the smartest move, but Joba Chamberlain heaving a ball from foul territory along the third-base line deep into the left-field seats Wednesday morning after a bullpen session was a strong hint the right elbow is fine.

Dodgers put Andre Ethier on the disabled list  —  Right fielder goes on the 15-day DL because of a strained muscle in the rib cage and calls the move precautionary.  Mark Ellis is activated from the DL.  —  Andre Ethier took batting practice Wednesday and performed the other baseball-related drills …

Paul Maholm's pitching leads Cubs to 7th win in 9 games  —  ATLANTA — Manager Dale Sveum stated the obvious before Wednesday night's game at Turner Field when he said the Cubs have “underachieved” in the first half.  —  But the outlook is a little brighter as the offense continues to show a pulse.

Fans make Darvish Rangers' eighth All-Star  —  ARLINGTON — Rangers right-hander Yu Darvish is going to the All-Star Game.  —  Darvish is the American League's winner of the 2012 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Firestone (#FinalVote), having beaten out White Sox starter Jake Peavy …