Top News:
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Blue Jays Extend Edwin Encarnacion — 2:05pm: The deal guarantees Encarnacion $29MM, including a $2MM buyout for the $10MM club option in 2016, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. Encarnacion will earn annual salaries of $8MM, $9MM and $10MM. — 10:17am: Edwin Encarnacion has been traded …
Discussion:
MLB Daily Dish, Bluebird Banter and Yahoo! Sports
RELATED:
Paul Casella / MLB.com:
Blue Jays sign Encarnacion to three-year extension — Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion, in the midst of a breakout season, signed a three-year, $27 million contract extension on Thursday that includes a $10 million club option for the 2016 season. — Encarnacion, 29, is hitting .295 …
Associated Press:
Blue Jays give INF Encarnacion $27 million deal — TORONTO — Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion has signed a three-year contract extension. — The $27 million deal announced Thursday includes a $10 million club option for the 2016 season.
Yahoo! Sports:
MLB will uphold Rangers' deal with Jairo Beras but suspend Dominican prospect for age fraud — Major League Baseball will uphold Dominican teenager Jairo Beras' $4.5 million contract with the Texas Rangers but suspend him for a year after the league determined he had lied about his age, sources told Yahoo! Sports.
Discussion:
Baseball America, MLB Rumors, HardballTalk and Lone Star Ball
Rick Hummel / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Duncan sounds like he's done in the dugout — Dave Duncan, still officially the Cardinals' pitching coach, participated in his seventh All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Kansas City, sixth as a coach and one as a player. — He was in uniform for the first time since Game 7 of last year's World Series.
Discussion:
HardballTalk
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Record-low ratings for All-Star Game — KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The National League's 8-0 victory set a record low rating for baseball's All-Star game, just 4 hundredths of a point below last year's figure. — The blowout over the American League on Tuesday night, which had the third …
Discussion:
Baseball Prospectus
Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Votto wants Cards, Reds to ‘turn the page’
Votto wants Cards, Reds to ‘turn the page’
Discussion:
Red Reporter
Rick Hummel / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
La Russa knows he's ‘one and out’ as All-Star manager
La Russa knows he's ‘one and out’ as All-Star manager
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Cards in the market for pitching help — Image — Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak has tapped down expectations the last two years before transacting significant deals immediately before the non-waiver trade deadline July 31. While conceding the need for pitching help …
Discussion:
MLB Daily Dish, HardballTalk and MLB Rumors
Keith Law / ESPN:
Top 50 prospects update — Rangers shortstop Jurickson Profar moves into the top spot — At the MLB season's midpoint, just before the signing deadline for drafted players, here is a fresh look at the top 50 prospects still in the minor leagues, including a new name on top.
Discussion:
Lone Star Ball, Over the Monster, DRaysBay and Bucs Dugout
Adam Rubin / ESPN:
Mets pitcher Gee could face additional surgery — New York Mets right-hander Dillon Gee will be discharged from Manhattan's New York-Presbyterian Hospital later today, after doctors successfully broke up a blood clot in his pitching shoulder. — Gee may face an additional surgery to prevent …
RELATED:
Adam Rubin / ESPN:
Source: 2nd surgery may KO Gee for season
Source: 2nd surgery may KO Gee for season
Discussion:
New Jersey Online, MLB Daily Dish, Amazin' Avenue, HardballTalk and Baseball Nation
David Laurila / FanGraphs Baseball:
Q&A: Terry Ryan, Twins general manager — Few people in baseball understand the ins and outs of scouting and player development better than Terry Ryan. His expertise in those areas helped turn the Minnesota Twins into a model small-market franchise — six playoff berths from 2002 to 2010 …
Discussion:
Minor League Ball, THE BOOK and baseballmusings.com
Jonathan Mayo / MLB.com:
Six first-rounders unsigned as deadline nears — New CBA changes strategy; last day for clubs and picks to agree is Friday — When the new First-Year Player Draft system was collectively bargained, the expectation was that it would rein in costs, get players to sign early and avoid signing deadline drama.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
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Paul Sullivan / Boston Herald:
Cubs generally pleased with manager's job — After a victory over the Braves in Atlanta last week, Dale Sveum discussed the idea of watching Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo grow together as Cubs. — “Hopefully I'm around when they're here in 10 years,” the manager said.
Discussion:
Bleed Cubbie Blue
Dick Kaegel / Associated Press:
Royals demote Montgomery to Double-A — Kansas City moves Dwyer from Northwest Arkansas to Omaha — Lefty Mike Montgomery went 3-6 with a 5.69 ERA in 17 starts for the Storm Chasers. — KANSAS CITY — Left-hander Mike Montgomery, one of the Royals' top pitching prospects, is taking a step back in the hope it can help him forward.
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Zach Links / MLB Rumors:
Latest On Zack Greinke — Despite the constant stream of rumors surrounding Brewers right-hander Zack Greinke, General Manager Doug Melvin still sounds like he wants to see how the team fares early in the second half before making deals, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Journal-Sentinel.
Discussion:
CBSSports.com Sports News …, MLB Daily Dish and Al's Ramblings
