Ken Griffey Jr. OK'd Deal to the Chicago White Sox but it is not yet official, PLUS as I thought - the Manny to Florida Deal is almost dead!

Ken Griffey Jr. approved a trade from the Cincinnati Reds to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday. The deal is subject to the approval of commissioner Bud Selig's office, said a baseball source, who added that MLB approval is expected to be a "rubber stamp.'' The Reds will receive pitcher Nick Masset and infielder Danny Richar in return. Sources said the Reds and White Sox will essentially "split" what remains on Griffey's contract this season, along with the cost of his $4 million buyout for 2009. The Reds had a $16.5 million club option for 2009 on Griffey, but Chicago did not have to exercise the option as part of the deal.

Ken Griffey Jr is not what he once was but can still help a team with his bat -- where is Griffey going to play in Chicago? The outfield and DH are set...is he going to be a bench player? I don't think so...he'll bump someone or share a place with someone.... The Reds needed to get the most they could for Griffey & this deal might be so/so in doing that. The White Sox will be more dangerous....another bat that the Red Sox, Angels and dare I say RAYS will have to pitch to ..to get to the next World Series!!

Manny Ramirez dealt to Florida Marlins in 3 Team deal involving the Pirates ?!

I had hoped this wouldn't happen and it's almost official..that Manny Ramirezwill in fact be on the Marlins - which could mean that the Marlins might overtake both the Mets & Phillies...!!! We shall see....I still think a plug might be pulled on this...with the Pirates being involved too..

Reports are that the Manny Ramirez trade is in the final stages and a tenative, verbal agreement has been reached between the three teams: the Florida Marlins, the Boston Red Sox and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Here are the players involved:

Boston Red Sox get: Jason Bay, John Grabow
Florida Marlins get: Manny Ramirez, cash, prospect from Red Sox
Pittsburgh Pirates get: Ryan Tucker, Jeremy Hermida, one prospect from Red Sox

Yanks keep dealing before the deadline and get I-ROD (PUDGE)!!

The Yankees give up their relief pitcher Kyle Farnsworth to get a veteran catcher who has been an all-star in the past...and is still reliable despite being up there in age.
The Yanks are hoping Ivan Rodriguez can give them both defense and offense..not that they should have problems with offense...

A-ROD and I-ROD on the same team!! I think this move is pretty good..considering pasada is done for the season and maybe for good...

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The Los Angeles Angels got their man this week too in Mark Teixeira for picks..
He wasn't working out with the Braves & the ANGELS are begging for some offense!!

Lastly it seems Manny Ramirez might be on his way to FLORIDA?! God, please, I hope not -- but Manny never winds up getting traded...despite the fact that MANNY WANTS OUT OF BOSTON BAD!!! I think unless the Red Sox get something ridiculous, they'll hold on to Manny!

Xavier Nady & Damaso Marte traded to the New York Yankees!

Xavier Nady came out of the Pirates/Padres game in the first inning tonight but he wasn't hurt, he was now a NY YANKEE! Damaso Marte appeared in the Pirates dugout shortly afterwards, hugging players with a smile on his face. Then word leaked out that a deal was in place, pending physicals. Less than an hour later, most of the details have found their way to the internet and as per Will Carroll it looks like Nady and Marte are going to be Yankees for a quartet of prospects; Jose Tabata, Phil Coke, George Kontos and Ross Ohlendorf.
I loved Nady when he was a MET and the yankees knew how great and consistent a hitter he was - nice pickup for the yanks! The Pirates appear doomed...forever...poor, poor team!!

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND : Yanks pick up Richie Sexson while Mets win 10th Straight and move into 1st place!

The New York Yankees have reached a tentative agreement with Richie Sexson, who was released by the Seattle Mariners a week ago.

Sexson

Sexson fits in New York because the Yankees needed a right-handed slugger to match up against left-handed pitching -- and Sexson had a .344 average with five home runs in 71 at-bats against lefties this year. He'll be in the lineup Saturday against Oakland.
The Yankees will have to pay Sexson only the prorated minimum of $390,000 from his $14 million salary with the Mariners. Seattle is eating the remainder of the nearly $6 million Sexson is owed for the season.
Sexson was batting .218 with just 30 RBIs in 74 games when the Mariners cut him loose, on July 10. He hit a career-worst .205 with 21 homers and 100 strikeouts in 2007.

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The NY METS Score 4 runs in the 9th inning to come back for the 3rd time in a wild one where Ace Starter Johan Satana left in the 4th inning after giving up 5 runs off a few homers!
Mets go for their club tying record 11 in a row tonight and possibly sole possession of 1st place in the NL EAST! Pedro Martinez will skip his start Sunday after getting an injection into his groin!

Series Pitching Matchups:

Fri 7/18	NYM (Maine) @ CIN (Arroyo)	7:10 ET
Sat 7/19	NYM (Perez) @ CIN (Fogg)	7:40 ET
Sun 7/20	NYM (Pelfrey) @ CIN (Volquez)	1:15 ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE WINS ALL STAR GAME in 15 Innings - 4-3

Scoring Summary
			NLA	ALA
	5th	M Holliday homered to right field.	1	0
	6th	L Berkman hit sacrifice fly to center, H Ramirez scored.	2	0
	7th	J Drew homered to right, J Morneau scored.	2	2
	8th	A Gonzalez hit sacrifice fly to left, M Tejada scored.	3	2
	8th	E Longoria doubled to left field, G Sizemore scored.	3	3
	15th	M Young hit sacrifice fly to right, J Morneau scored.	3	4

Josh Hamilton's 28 HomeRuns in All Star Home Run Derby

George Steinbrenner didn't receive Ted Williams kind of love at this year's All Star Game!

Could it be that the fans were rebelling against the Steinbrenner love, mindful of all the abuses he has heaped upon his employees over the years? I'd like to think so, but probably not.

Maybe there should have been more of a build-up? Perhaps a reel of clips from George's more boisterous days? Him holding a World Series trophy? In his Miller Lite commercial with Billy Martin?

Plus Yogi Berra thought Sarah Jessica Parker "wasn't bad"! Hear that Matthew Broderick, NOT TOO SHABBY!!

BARRY BONDS will be ready to play in 10 days, Mets & Diamondbacks possibly interested!

If a team signs Barry Bonds now, his agent said he could be in its lineup by the end of the month.

"Give him 10 days to hit off live pitching, and he'll be ready," agent Jeff Borris told USA Today.

Borris told the newspaper that Bonds continues to work out. He would be available to play this season because his trial date for perjury and obstruction of justice isn't until March 9, 2009.

However, Borris told USA Today that he's not currently talking to any clubs about Bonds, who turns 44 this month.

"I am not talking to any club about Barry Bonds," Borris said, "because they all made it very clear to me they are not interested in him. Every club.

"I can't believe he doesn't have a job. No one has offered even the minimum salary. He made the All-Star team last year, and there's no reason to believe he wouldn't have a repeat performance in 2008, except for the conspiracy against him."

Richie Sexson CUT by Seattle Mariners for being in LONG SLUMP

The sunken Seattle Mariners finally released slugger Richie Sexson after a slump that lasted for most of two seasons and made him a target of constant booing from frustrated fans.

The team also on Thursday placed Opening Day starter Erik Bedard on the 15-day disabled list.

Since signing his four-year, $50 million contract with Seattle in December 2004, Richie Sexson has 497 strikeouts in 2,102 plate appearances.

Most strikeouts, AL hitters, since '05*

Player	Strikeouts	Plate app.
Grady Sizemore	507	2,609
Richie Sexson	497	2,102
Jhonny Peralta	496	2,199
Brandon Inge	463	2,043
Nick Swisher	463	2,215
*Entering Thursday's games.

The Mariners would have loved to have been able to trade the .218-hitting Sexson, but his $14 million salary this season made that nearly impossible. So now Seattle is eating the rest of that money in what may be the first of multiple moves to rid the last-place team of underperforming veteran players.

Jacksonville Jaguars Matt Jones arrested for DRUGS

Elton Brand Joins the Philadelphia 76ers

Baseball Breaking News: Chicago Cubs get Pitcher Rich Harden and Chad Gaudin

Talk about upstaging a division rival on the night its new pitcher is debuting: The Cubs just landed Rich Harden and reliever Chad Gaudin from the A’s for SP Sean Gallagher, OF Matt Murton, and two others.

Chicago and Milwaukee will battle it out but will they get by the Mets and Phillies?!?

CC Sabathia trade now official with the players involved!!

Milwaukee sent Cleveland outfielder Matt LaPorta, pitchers Rob Bryson and Zach Jackson and a player to be named. Shapiro said the player to be named would be one of two specified in the deal.

Melvin said the Brewers' strong farm system gave him flexibility to deal away a good prospect.

"Matt LaPorta is going to be a good big league player, and I hope he is," Melvin said.

Attanasio said the acquisition of Sabathia will push the team's payroll around $90 million this season. Attanasio said the move might prevent the club from turning a profit this year, but it was made possible by increased fan support and sound financial decisions in recent years.

C.C. Sabathia gets traded to the Milwaukee Brewers!!!!

The Brewers and the Cleveland Indians agreed in principle to a deal for the reigning AL Cy Young on Sunday. The deal is contingent on paperwork being finished and the exchange of medical records.

The trade was first reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Sabathia all but confirmed the deal.

"I'm good, excited," Sabathia wrote. "It's weird leaving these guys."

Cleveland would get Double-A outfielder Matt LaPorta, who is hitting .288 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 84 games for Huntsville, and others. The other players do not include top prospects Alcides Escobar or Matt Gamel, according to the Journal Sentinel.

Trading Up

If C.C. Sabathia had pitched for the Brewers his entire career, he would be considered one of the best, if not the best, in team history. Here's why:

• Sabathia has two 17-win, 150-strikeout seasons to his name. The Brewers have just three as a franchise in Teddy Higuera ('86, '87) and Chris Capuano ('05).
• His 106 career victories would be the second most in Milwaukee history.
• Sabathia has 237 career starts, which would rank second in Brewers history.
• His 1,265 career strikeouts would be a Milwaukee record.

The Brewers wanted Sabathia, who rejected a $72 million, four-year extension from the Indians during spring training, on their pitching staff in time to get him two starts before the All-Star break, according to multiple media reports. Sabathia, who is 6-8 with a 3.83 ERA this season, could debut in Milwaukee against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday.

Brewers general manager Doug Melvin told the Journal Sentinel on Saturday that a proposal was on table and he awaiting word from Indians GM Mark Shapiro.

"Mark said he'd be in touch with me," said Melvin. "I'm sure they've got to think through everything."

Laporta was scratched from Huntsville's lineup Sunday, another indication the deal was close.

Milwaukee, which hasn't made the playoffs since 1982, is second in National League standings behind the Chicago Cubs.

BASEBALL'S ALL STARS DETERMINED for 2008 - Cubs & Red Sox have 7 each!!

2008 All-Star Starters

Starters for the American and National League teams as voted by fans for the 2008 All-Star Game to be played at Yankee Stadium on July 15.

American League

Pos.	Player	Team
C	Joe Mauer	Twins
1B	Kevin Youkilis	Red Sox
2B	Dustin Pedroia	Red Sox
SS	Derek Jeter	Yankees
3B	Alex Rodriguez	Yankees
OF	Josh Hamilton	Rangers
OF	Manny Ramirez	Red Sox
OF	Ichiro Suzuki	Mariners
DH	David Ortiz*	Red Sox
*injured, will be replaced by the Rangers' Milton Bradley.

National League

Pos.	Player	Team
C	Geovany Soto	Cubs
1B	Lance Berkman	Astros
2B	Chase Utley	Phillies
SS	Hanley Ramirez	Marlins
3B	Chipper Jones	Braves
OF	Ryan Braun	Brewers
OF	Alfonso Soriano	Cubs
OF	Kosuke Fukudome	Cubs
DH	NA*
*to be selected by NL manager Clint Hurdle. Most All-Stars By Team The Cubs and Red Sox each have seven players selected for the 2008 NL and AL All-Star teams. Team 2008 All-Stars Cubs 7 Red Sox 7 Rangers 4 Angels 3 Twins 3 Yankees 3

Philadelphia Phillies Closer Brad Lidge signs 3 year contract extension

Closer Brad Lidge signed a $37.5 million, three-year contract extension with the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.

Lidge

Lidge would've been a free agent after this season. The 31-year-old right-hander has 19 saves in 19 chances and a 0.77 ERA in 35 appearances in his first season in Philadelphia.

Lidge is 2-0 with 47 strikeouts in 35 innings and set a club record by converting his first 19 save opportunities this season. He didn't allow an earned run through his first 17 appearances (17 innings), which was the second-longest by a Phillies pitcher to start his career with the team.

Phillies about to take on the Mets in Game 3! Will we see Lidge be the hero or former Philly, Billy Wagner?!?

Roger Clemens DNA found on Steroid Syringes?!?

Tests of syringes and other steroid paraphernalia that trainer Brian McNamee submitted to federal agents will test positive for Roger Clemens' DNA, according to a brief filed in court by McNamee's lawyers.
Whether Clemens did use steroids or not, I'm not sure how conclusive or admissable this evidence will be in court?!?

Atlanta Braves send struggling Jeff Francoeur for a minor league stint

Francoeur was booed at home Thursday night when he went 0-for-4 in the Braves' 4-1 loss to the Phillies. He hit .206 in June and is 1-for-12 in three games this month.

"It seems I can't catch a break, or when I feel I start to roll I just can't get things to keep rolling my way," Francoeur said.

The Braves hope Francoeur can relax at Double-A Mississippi and sharpen his mechanics. The plan is for Francoeur to rejoin the team following the All-Star break.

I'm not sure this will work but the Atlanta Braves need some serious hitting as they are right in the middle of the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets for the NL EAST Division Title! For the longest time, the Atlanta Braves always ran away with this division but their bats aren't what they used to be! I think the Braves need to make a move for a HUGE BAT!

New York Mets put 2nd Baseman, Luis Castillo on the 15 day disabled list

NY Mets are struggling as it is but LUIS CASTILLO being injured might actually help because he hasn't been hitting plus his defense has been shoddy all year!

Damion Easley will get a chunk of Castillo's playing time and he is only hitting slightly better!

The Mets, who demoted reliever Carlos Muniz on Wednesday night, purchased the contracts of outfielder Chris Aguila and second baseman Argenis Reyes from Triple-A New Orleans.

Aguila was batting .288 with 17 homers and 43 RBIs in the minors after going 1-for-6 with the Mets last month, while Reyes was batting .290 with 11 doubles, 13 steals and 22 RBIs in the minors.

Meanwhile the Mets are waiting for 42 year old outfielder, Moises Alou to get back to the team from his minor league rehab stint. Will his bat be alive or will it sputter out like it did last year?!

Hopefully the NY Mets can turn their promising season around but they are going to have to start winning WAY more games! They have the Phillies coming up which will be possibly the most important series so far in their season!

Nomar Garciaparra and Andruw Jones are coming off the DL to help the LA Dodgers, maybe

Infielder Nomar Garciaparra and outfielder Andruw Jones will come off the disabled list Friday and join the Dodgers in San Francisco.

Jones

Garciaparra

Garciaparra has been on the disabled list since April 26 with a strained left calf. Jones has been on the DL since May 25 with a right knee injury.

The All-Star duo started rehab assignments with Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday and played three games. Dodgers manager Joe Torre said they would both take Thursday off and fly to San Francisco, where the Dodgers open a three-game series against the Giants on Friday.

These two players are proven hitters but are they too hurt and broken to help the Dodgers?!?

Or too old? Only time and Joe Torre's decisions will tell.

Chicago Cubs activate starting pitcher, Carlos Zambrano off the DL!

The Chicago Cubs plan to activate right-hander Carlos Zambrano (8-3) to start the series opener against the Cardinals in St. Louis. Zambrano has been on the DL since June 19 with a strained throwing shoulder.

The CUBS hope Zambrano can give them a solid outing - at least 6 innings.
Cubs also activated Reed Johnson off the DL and was in the starting line-up, batting leadoff & playing left field vs the San Francisco Giants.

If these two players come back strong, the cubs might run away with the division title!