Chris Antonetti talks Chris Perez, Trevor Bauer and trade possibilities (Part 1) - morningjournal.com - Chris Anotnetti interview Part 1

Cleveland Indians GM Chris Antonetti reflects on first half, looks toward second half (Part 2) - morningjournal.com - Interview with Antonetti, Part 2

Tribe aims to establish winning identity in second half | indians.com: News - Entering the All-Star break within striking distance of the first-place Tigers in the American League Central, the Indians are aiming to establish their identity in the second half as a consistent, scrappy club.

Can the Indians keep up with the Tigers in the second half? | SportsonEarth.com : Jonathan Bernhardt Article - The playoff races in the American League are wide open. So are clubs like the Indians and Rangers going to make a move to take a run at first place in their respective divisions, or stand pat? Also, we examine the always-competitive AL East.

Oddsmakers pick Detroit Tigers to win World Series, sweep AL Most Valuable Player, Cy Young awards | MLive.com - Bovada lists the Tigers as having the best odds to win the World Series at 13-to-2. The St. Louis Cardinals are close behind at 7-to-1, followed by the Atlanta Braves (8-to-1) and the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers at 9-to-1.

Clippers: Success measured in help to Indians | The Columbus Dispatch - Review of the first half from Dispatch Clippers beat writer Jim Massie.

Minnesota Twins 'nervous' about Target Field after Kenny Chesney concert - TwinCities.com - This was never a problem at the Baggiedome.

Alex Rodriguez expects to return to Yankees on Monday - This will solve all the Yankees' problems, right?

Ailing union chief ready to take on MLB - Head of MLB players union isn't letting inoperable tumor stop him.

Derek Lowe 'officially' threw his last MLB pitch - LGFT Lowe, 40, was 176-157 with a 4.03 earned-run average in 681 career games.

Trade Talk: Cleveland Indians | StarTribune.com - The StarTribune speculates on trade matches with the Twins.

The New York Yankees recently asked the San Diego Padres about the availability of third baseman Chase Headley, but were told that there is no trade to be made, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Padres are willing to sell off assets as the trade deadline approaches, but they consider Headley close to untouchable.

Atlanta targeting left-handed relievers

The Braves are focusing in on the many left-handed options available on the trade market.

The Yankees are known to be looking hard for a third baseman on the trade market due to Alex Rodriguez's injury and potential upcoming suspension. They have shown continued interest in Michael Young, who may be moved by the Phillies in the next couple weeks. The Bronx Bombers are searching for right-handed hitting, and may have interest in a reunion with Alfonso Soriano, according to Heyman.

New York has long been interested in the 29-year old, who the Padres would like to sign to an extension in the near future. He has hit only .229 with 7 HR and 31 RBI in 82 games on the season, meaning that his trade value is probably much lower than it was last winter, when he was coming off a season in which he hit .286 with 31 HR and 115 RBI.

While Headley will probably remain a Padre after the 31st, other players will likely be moved. Edinson Volquez, Kyle Blanks and Huston Street are among the names that have been mentioned in trade rumors.

More from MLB Daily Dish:

• Padres trade rumors: San Diego looking to sell
• Yankees trade rumors: Hughes, Joba being shopped aggressively
• Giants trade rumors: Tigers, others interested in Tim Lincecum
• Eighty percent chance Garza is traded before start
• Join the MLBDD community and write a fanpost!

It came as a shock when both the Yankees and Alex Rodriguezagreed that he could be activated as soon as next Monday. There was never any real reason to think that he wouldn't be back with the Yankees eventually, but the constant drumbeat from the media predicting "A-Rod will walk away from his contract rather than face the hostile New York crowds" or "The Yankees will attempt to void A-Rod's contract because he has violated the Kellogg-Briand Pact" or "A-Rod is going to plea-bargain with Major League Baseball for a million-game suspension instead of coming back" or even "A-Rod will be caught furnishing his mansion with ivory poached from the Maasa Mari National Park in Kenya and forced to live on the International Space Station because there are no elephants there (that we know of)" was a form of not very subliminal conditioning that made it easy to believe that no, Rodriguez would not be returning. There was just too much against him, we were told over and over again in a form of special pleading that ignored the roughly 120 million green cotton-fiber reasons he had to find unsuspected reserves of courage.

Still, Wednesday's confirmation that Rodriguez's exile was (Selig pending) just a weird media wet dream felt like the fabled 12^th of Never had finally arrived, the day when Hell freezes over. If some part of you suspects that Rodriguez will show up for the Yankees' game at Texas on Monday only to find an empty clubhouse because ownership decided to take the team into hiding and forfeit the rest of the schedule rather than associate with this strangely self-defeating athlete, yes, the thought is irrational, but no, you're not alone.

It would almost be easier if the Yankees did that than deal with the weird on-field consequences that Rodriguez's return will bring. With the team's many semi-healthy geriatric ballplayers making their way back on the roster to join the journeymen and non-prospects who filled in for them, the Yankees may soon find themselves having to find playing time for a shortstop who is a DH, a third baseman who is a DH, and a DH who is a DH. Inevitably, some of these designated hitters (with the exception of human topiary display Travis Hafner, who will suffer complete molecular disintegration if he crosses the foul lines while wearing a glove) will be forced to play in the field. Then, when the team has half its infield playing on something less than the normal complement of legs and displaying all the range of King Tut, we'll find out how good Yankees pitching really is.

Photo credit: Streeter Lecka

The foregoing contains an assumption about Rodriguez's ability to play the field, one based not only on the fact that, having had both hips operated on, he is now seemingly two doors short of a sedan. Even when healthy, he was hardly Graig Nettles at third base. Belying his history as a Gold Glove-winning shortstop, he was merely adequate. He's now 37 years old and roughly 10 months removed from his last appearance on a major-league field. At this point, the arrow of time, and that of ballplayer skill along with it, only goes in one direction. As John Lennon said in "Revolution 9,""Every one of them knew that as time went by they'd get a little bit older and a little bit slower." (Also, "There's this Welsh Rarebit wearing some brown underpants," but that's not germane in this case.) It is possible that post-vivisection A-Rod will combine with Derek "Ankles Aweigh!" Jeter to form a range-free no-man's land on the left side of the Yankees infield, where no ground ball need fear being deflected while making its merry, hippity-hop way to the outfield.

Now, say that pessimistic forecast is wrong and a revivified Rodriguez can continue to be an adequate defender at third. If that is the case and -- further big if coming up here -- Rodriguez can hit even as well as he did last year, he might very well save the Yankees' season. They have received the least offensive production from their third baseman of any team in the major, with the position supplying just four home runs all season and very little of anything else. If Rodriguez can supply something like a league-average on-base percentage and a little bit of pop, a Yankees lineup that has been just good enough would suddenly be -- well, not good exactly, but more consistently able to support a pitching staff that is tied for second in the league in ERA despite playing in the baseball equivalent of a bouncing castle.

Alex Rodriguez injury: A-Rod expects to return to Yankees Monday

He's just reached Triple-A in his rehab, but is already setting a date for his big-league return. 

If Rodriguez did that and the Yankees were able to make the postseason despite chances which are currently estimated at roughly one in five, the guy who wasn't supposed to come back would be, against all odds, the hero of the season. Then Bud Selig could suspend him for 5000 games or equate him with Chick Gandil or the United Nations could send the black helicopters after him for the whole elephant-killing thing I totally made up before but, let's face it, is probably somewhere in the guy's repertoire of incredibly embarrassing, stupid things to do, but no one could ever take away that accomplishment or blame it on magic performance-enhancing bonobo glands or give the credit to Derek Jeter.

It's not likely to happen. It's more likely to happen than Rodriguez giving up all that money out of a sense of shame -- you'd think Edith Wharton was making this stuff up instead of professional sportswriters -- but it's a possibility. And, you know, the more I think about it, the more I'd like it to happen. Nothing is more simplistic than the prevailing PED narrative, that all of the hitting comes from the contents of the bottle. Rodriguez was, not so very long ago, a heck of a ballplayer, chemicals or not. We could stand to be reminded of that.

It wouldn't change the fact that he did something wrong, or that his sense of ethics scores something like a 1.2 on the Nixon Scale, but if it gave those who have exploited Rodriguez's fecklessness for their own gain, who have profited by throwing him down, a moment's pause, it would be worth it.

More from SB Nation:

• 6 bold predictions for the second half

• American League wins, 3-0 | Mo Rivera named MVP

• Was Leyland’s Mo blunder really a blunder?

• The ballad of the kid who ran on the field at the All-Star Game

• Longread: Brooklyn’s field of broken dreams

Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders: All-Star break

Michael Pineda pitches for the RailRiders today at 7:05 pm.

Double-A Trenton Thunder:L 5-6 vs. Reading Fightin' Phils

3B Reegie Corona - 0-4
CF Slade Heathcott 1-4
2B Jose Pirela 0-3, BB
1B Kyle Roller 0-3, BB, 2 K - first game back from injury
RF Yeral Sanchez 3-4, RBI - called up while Tyler Austin is on the DL
DH Andrew Clark 2-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBI - third homer with Trenton
SS Carmen Angelini 0-4, 2 K - batting .200 since his promotion
LF Cody Grice 0-3, K
C Jeff Farnham 1-3, K

Sean Black 5 IP, 10 H, 6 ER, 0 BB, K, HB - four groundouts, six flyouts
Graham Stoneburner 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB
Cesar Cabral 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB

Three runs in the top of the first inning got Trenton out to a nice lead, but they surrendered two runs in the bottom of the frame and one run in each of the next two innings. Each team would score two runs in one inning after that, and that was enough for the Thunder to get stuck with their 48th loss of the season, pulling them to an even .500. Zach Nuding gets the start for Trenton tonight at 7:05 pm.

High-A Tampa Yankees:L 4-3 vs. Jupiter Hammerheads

CF Mason Williams 3-5 - batting .429/.467/.595 over his last 10 games
RF Taylor Dugas 2-5
3B Peter O'Brien 3-5, HR, 2 RBI, K, E5(6) - fifth homer with Tampa
C Gary Sanchez 2-4, K, pickoff
LF Ben Gamel 0-4, K
2B Rob Refsnyder 0-2, BB
1B Saxon Butler 0-3, BB, K
DH Jose Toussen 0-4, 3 K
SS Ali Castillo 1-4

Scottie Allen 6.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, K - seven groundouts, seven flyouts
Diego Moreno 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, K
David Herndon 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB

Hits were plentiful but scoring was scarce until a three-run seventh inning put the Hammerheads on top for good. The Yankees pushed a run across in the ninth to pull within one, but their rally came up short. Corey Black starts for Tampa today at 12:05 pm.

Low-A Charleston RiverDogs:L 3-4 vs. Greensboro Grasshoppers

RF Danny Oh 2-3, K, SB, put out, 2 HBP - batting .287 this season
SS Cito Culver 2-5, K, E6 - throwing error, 13th of the season
1B Greg Bird 1-3, RBI, 2 BB - .409 OBP in his last 10 games
2B Angelo Gumbs 2-5, RBI, K, CS
3B Dante Bichette Jr 0-3, BB - 6 for his last 37 (.162)
CF Jake Cave 1-4, 2B, K - 24th double of the season
DH Reymond Nunez 0-3, BB, K
LF Aaron Gates 0-4, RBI
C Wes Wilson 1-4

Dan Camarena 5 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, WP - two groundouts, eight flyouts
Adam Smith 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Derek Varnadore 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K

The game was lost for Charleston after they tied the game in the third inning and allowed a run to the Grasshoppers in the bottom of the fourth. Both bullpens held the score where it was and the RiverDogs got saddled with their 40th loss of the season. Cesar Vargas gets the start for Charleston tonight at 7:00 pm.

Short Season-A Staten Island Yankees:L 6-8 vs. Batavia Muckdogs

2B Derek Toadvine 3-5, K
LF Michael O'Neill 0-5, 3 K, E7 - throwing error, first of the season
3B Eric Jagielo 2-4, BB, K - batting .375/.479/.500 over his last 10 games
RF Yeicok Calderon 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, K - sixth homer of the season
CF Brandon Thomas 0-5, 4 K
DH Kale Sumner 2-4, BB, K - batting .318 this season
1B Bubba Jones 1-4, RBI, BB, 2 K
SS John Murphy 1-4, RBI, 2 K, E6 - fielding error, second of the season
C Radley Haddad 1-3, 2 RBI, BB

Cale Coshow 2.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R/2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K - four groundouts, two flyouts
Sam Agnew-Wieland 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
David Palladino 2.1 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, WP
Dillon McNamara 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K
Andury Acevedo 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K, HB

Hits and errors were even but runs were not. A four-run rally by the Yankees in the eighth inning was not enough to overcome the deficit and they were handed their 13th loss of the season.

Notes from the Gulf Coast League:

GCL Yankees 1:

Game One:

SS Tyler Wade 2-4, 2 RBI, 2 K, SB - batting .476 this season
2B Gosuke Katoh 0-3, BB
DH Jimmy Falla 1-3, 2B, RBI, BB, K
RF Austin Aune 1-3, BB, 2 K
CF Jordan Barnes 0-2, BB

Hayden Sharp 4 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, WP - eight groundouts, two flyouts
Tim Flight 3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, BB, 3 K

Game Two:

SS Tyler Wade 2-2, 2 BB, CS
2B Gosuke Katoh 2-3, 2B, 3 B, RBI, BB - batting .321 this season
DH Ericson Leonora 1-3, 2B, 3 RBI, BB, K
RF Austin Aune 1-3, K, OF assist
CF Jordan Barnes 0-3, RBI, K

Brady Lail 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, BB, 5 K, WP - six groundouts, two flyouts
Eric Ruth 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

GCL Yankees 2:

DH Bryan Cuevas 1-4, 2 K
SS Thairo Estrada 0-3, BB
1B Renzo Martini 1-3, BB, CS, 2 E3(fielding) - batting .289 this season
RF Daniel Aldrich 2-4, 2B, 2 K

Angel Rincon 5 IP, 3 H, 3 R/2 ER, BB, 3 K
Joaquin Acuna 2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, K
Tim Giel 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB - 0 ER this season

Heading into the 2013 campaign, outfield prospect Mason Williams was ranked as the 32nd and 41st best prospect in baseball by Baseball America and MLB.com, respectively. He was also ranked as the second-best prospect in the Yankee organization by our very own Pinstriped Bible. This all came after he hit .298/.346/.474 across two levels and 91 games last year. Williams didn't have the same success to begin 2013, though, not even close, but over the past month and a half, he has heated up to the point where the first part of the season was just a thing of the past.

Although Williams had a strong 2012, it ended abruptly in August when he tore the left (non-throwing) labrum in his shoulder. His misfortunes in the Florida State League with the Tampa Yankees carried over to this year when, on April 25, he was arrested for a DUI in the wee hours of the morning. He was doing fine at the plate before then (.271/.400/.371, 87 plate appearances), but fell off a cliff after the arrest (.200/.266/.278 next 130 PA's through May 29).

To make matters worse, a scout in mid-May compared him to Ichiro Suzuki, in a negative way, where he takes a step towards first base and just kind of slaps at the ball instead of driving it. His energy, or lack thereof, and his off-the-field makeup were questioned as well. Despite those criticisms, scouts still believe he plays a good center field while also running and throwing well.

To his credit, Williams has worked hard to put some of his early season troubles behind him. Since May 31, the 21-year-old center fielder has torn the cover off the ball, hitting .355/.398/.482 in 122 PA's. This hot stretch raised his season line from an ugly .227/.319/.314 line through May to a much more respectable .275/.347/.376 clip.

There are probably a multitude of reasons why Williams struggled early on. He could have been shaking off some rust following the shoulder surgery, the DUI could have gotten into his head, or it could've been a completely different matter. Whatever it was, it's nice to see one of the better prospects in the organization battle through some adversity and turn his season around for the better.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Yankees trade rumors: Pursuing Justin Morneau, JR Murphy being shopped
• Yankees' Gary Sanchez makes Fangraphs' mid-season prospect list
• CC Sabathia and staring at the face of mediocrity
• Yankees trade target: Mike Olt
• Alex Rodriguez expected to be in Yankees lineup on Monday

Name:Brett Gardner

Position: Outfield (CF/LF)

Born: August 24, 1983 (Holly Hill, SC)

Yankee Years: 2008-present

Primary number: 11

Yankee statistics: 568 G, .267/.351/.379, 74 2B, 28 3B, 22 HR, 150 SB, 80.6 SB%, 101 wRC+, 17.9 rWAR, 17.4 fWAR

Biography

Unlikely rise from cut to the Show

Brett Gardner grew up in a very small town in South Carolina that actually already had an established All-Star Yankee--Willie Randolph. His high school, Holly Hill-Roberts, only had 22 people in his 2001 graduating class. Although some college scouts liked his speed, no one felt comfortable offering him a Division I scholarship. Undeterred and unwilling to immediately accept a Division II scholarship, Gardner attended the nearby College of Charleston and decided he would try out for the baseball team. His audition was a disaster; not a single hit reached the outfield and his throws from the outfield were unimpressive. Gardner recalled, "If I was a coach, I'd be like, 'This kid's not going to cut it.'" The college's coaches agreed, and he did not make the team.

Gardner brought his baseball equipment back home to Holly Hill, figuring his baseball days were done. His father Jerry, a former minor league infielder in the Phillies organization from 1973-76, thought that his son had the talent to make the team. A little while later, Jerry wrote to John Pawlowski, the College of Charleston's coach, appealing that his son at least receive a second chance. Pawlowski and his colleagues figured it couldn't hurt, so Gardner was given a second shot in some scrimmage games. He impressed, and the next season as a starter, he hit .284/.370/.353 in 56 games, swiping 28 bases while only being caught five times. His play elevated further in his junior year, as he hit .397/.475/.574 with twelve doubles, nine triples, and four homers in 60 games, then became an All-American in his senior year, a phenomenal .447/.506/.571 campaign with 122 hits and 38 steals in 63 games. Jerry was right; the kid could play.

In the 2005 MLB Draft, the Yankees made Gardner a third-round pick, 109th overall in a mostly-unimpressive draft class headlined by flameouts C.J. Henry and J.B. Cox, though an unsigned Doug Fister was a sixth-round pick and high school outfielder Austin Jackson was an eight-round pick. The Yankees felt they were taking a gamble on Gardner, who they viewed as a speedster with "great plate discipline," but no power. Vice-president of scouting Damon Oppenheimer stated, "He's an absolute flyer. He's a fast runner who can really patrol center field. He can steal bases, has instincts to run and has performed with the bat." Minor League Balls' John Sickels thought Gardner was an slight overdraft and only gave him a C+ rating in 2006 book.

In Staten Island in '05, Gardner hit .284/.377/.376 with 19 stolen bases in 73 games. While he was there, he took his girlfriend on a tour of Yankee Stadium, telling her that the next time he came back, he wanted to be playing. In just three years, he would get his wish. Gardner impressed in High-A Tampa at the start of '06, crushing Florida State League pitching to a .323/.433/.418 line with 30 steals in just 63 games. He spent the next two half-seasons in Double-A Trenton, eventually earning him a promotion to Triple-A Scranton for the latter part of '07. By midseason '08, the Yankees needed an outfielder for the bench. Gardner finally got the call, and he made his MLB debut on June 30, 2008.

Bench player to the starting lineup

Photo by Otto Greule Jr., Getty Images

Gardner had a modest rookie year in the big league with a weak .223/.283/.299, 54 wRC+ batting line, but he did have one big highlight. In just his sixth game, he had the first multi-hit game of his career, and the second hit was a walk-off single against Jonathan Papelbon in a Yankees/Red Sox game. He did impress Joe Girardi with his baserunning (13 steals in 14 attempts) and defense (1.2 dWAR) though, which almost alone helped him become a one-win player despite a poor performance at the plate.

In '09, Gardner split time in the outfield with Melky Cabrera, appearing in 108 games with a 91 wRC+ and 26 steals as the Yankees won their first division titles in three seasons. Gardner was mostly a defensive replacement in the playoffs, as Melky received the lion's share of the starts until he went down with a hamstring injury in the World Series. Gardner started the final two games of the Fall Classic as the Yankees finished off the Phillies to win the championship. His hometown and college coaches were ecstatic that one of their own was a World Series winner.

Gardner has since moved on from the bench and is now a regular in the Yankees' outfield, as the Yankees chose him, not Melky, to be a regular from 2010 onward. The first season was the best of his career thus far, as his 7.4 rWAR ranked fifth in the American League, and his 6.0 fWAR ranked eighth. He won his first Fielding Bible Award and finished third in the league with 47 stolen bases. In 2011, he tied with Coco Crisp for the AL stolen base crown, swiping a career-high 49 bags.

Since 2010, Gardner has rewarded the Yankees' confidence with a .270/.359/.387 triple slash good for an even 101 OPS+ and 14.3 rWAR in total in just four seasons (one of which was injury-plagued). His 80.6% stolen-base percentage ranks fourth in team history behind only Rickey Henderson, Alex Rodriguez, and Johnny Damon, and his rising total of 150 stolen bases ranks 12th in team history. With just four more steals, he will pass Horace Clarke, Roberto Kelly, and Mickey Mantle to reach ninth in team history.

It's fantastic that 2010 and 2011 Fielding Bible Award-winning defense, as seen in the GIFs below, has become the norm for Gardner.

Gardner might move up on this list as the years pass, but he has done a terrific job already through his superb defense and surprising plate performance. Not bad for a kid who couldn't make a college baseball team.

Andrew's rank: 96

Tanya's rank: 87

Community's rank: 97

Avg. WAR rank: 87.5

Season Stats

Stats from Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs

References

Araton, Harvey. "Face of the New Yankees Leads Off."The New York Times. 31 Mar 2011.

"The Babe, Joltin' Joe and ... Brett."College of Charleston Sports. 11 Nov 2009.

Bans, Willie. "Yanks bring up speedy Gardner."MLB.com. 30 Jun 2008.

"Brett Gardner."Baseball Cube. (College statistics)

Curry, Jack. "For College Walk-Ons, a Road Less Traveled Makes All the Difference."The New York Times. 11 Apr 2009.

Feinsand, Mark. "Yankees go to school in Draft."MLB.com. 8 Jun 2005.

Sickels, John. "Prospect Report Redux: Brett Gardner."Minor League Ball. 1 Sep 2010.

Other Top 100 Yankees

• #97 Jimmy Key
• #98 Mickey Rivers
• #99 George Pipgras
• #100 Johnny Lindell

About one month ago, the Dodgers could've been considered sellers at the deadline. Flash forward to present day, and nearly every rumor mentions the Dodgers as potential suitors.

The possibilities are endless during the trade deadline, per Mike Petriello of Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illnes. Petriello mentioned the Dodgers will be looking for bullpen help, interested in acquiring another starting pitcher while adding one new infielder.

Yasiel Puig won't be relocating any time soon, but he does posses incomprehensible value, per Dave Cameron of Fan Graphs.com.

Among the most coveted relievers is Minnesota Twins' Glen Perkins, and the Dodgers are very interested, per MLB Trade Rumors.

Matt Kemp will be back in the lineup on Sunday, per Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles. Saxon states numerous reasons why the Dodgers will win the NL West.

The optimism about the Dodgers continues, and Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register (code necessary) addresses their solid chances.

After the recent impressive future's game performance, Dodgers outfield prospect Joc Pederson is on the rise, per Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (insider).

Fans are getting excited about the Dodgers-Yankees series, and single game tickets are now available, per Dodgers.com.

After several days without Mets baseball due to the All-Star break, the second half gets underway tonight as the club takes on the Phillies. The Mets will use Jeremy Hefner, Zack Wheeler, and finally Matt Harvey on Sunday as they look to continue their good play of late.

Following the All-Star Game being played at Citi Field, there has been all sorts of talk about the home of the Mets. Rob Neyer added his thoughts to the discussion yesterday.

Howard Megdal looked at the decision to leave Ruben Tejada in Triple-A, and pointed out how important a return to form would be for the Mets going forward.

The Star-Ledger offered up a brief review of the first half of the season, as well as some predictions for the second half.

Checking in at the Adam Rubin lobby saw some entire sensible talk about what we could be seeing at the TRAID deadline.

Faith and Fear had a reader share his experience meeting one of his all-time favorite Mets, and it's definitely worth checking out.

While big league clubs had the night off, our minor league affiliates were in action on Thursday. You can check in on the highlights here.

Yesterday at AA

Sandy Alderson spoke at length with WFAN, and Chris McShane took the time transcribe the entire interview for us here at AA.

This date in Mets history points out several huge events on July 17 that led to the birth of the Mets.

Around Baseball

Derek Lowe has been struggling for the past several seasons, and yesterday decided to retire. When I read that, the first thing I though of was Oliver Perez. What is wrong with me?

Another player that probably isn't all that far away from retiring found himself on the 15-day DL this morning. It's not clear who the Yankees will be replacing Derek Jeter with at this point.

Well, this news did not come as much of a surprise:

#Yankees announce Jeter to DL.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 19, 2013

Your 2013 Yankees, ladies and gentlemen! Here one day, gone the next, return awhile later, and gone immediately afterward. After his first game back from the 60-day disabled list in an early return, Derek Jeter strained his quad running to first base. He missed the final three games before the All-Star Break and will now go on the 15-day disabled list retroactively as of Friday July 12th. Chris Cotillo of SBN's MLB Daily Dish was the first to break the news.

Jeter will be eligible to return during the Yankees' next home series, which is against the Tampa Bay Rays on July 26-28. To be specific, he can return on Saturday, July 27 (A-Rod's birthday present!). At least the quad strain wasn't a recurrence of the ankle injury, I suppose. Hopefully it heals without any setbacks, but someone should bubblewrap the Captain just in case there are any ravenous pitching machines around his area.

According to Josh Norris, the Yankees will call up former White Sox utilityman Brent Lillibridge to replace Jeter on the roster. If fans remember Lillibridge, it is likely because he robbed the Yankees of a win in April 2011 with two terrific catches in right field. He's not a very exciting player since he's a career .207/.271/.339, 63 wRC+ player who is better in the outfield than the infield (where help is more imperative), but after getting dealt to the Yankees from the Cubs in a minor June deal, he hit .355/.425/.724 with seven homers and a 209 wRC+ in 87 plate appearances in Scranton. Since he has a poor MLB track record and only had a 98 wRC+ in 48 games with the Cubs' Triple-A team beforehand, it's easy to chalk that up to small sample size noise.

The Yankees will have to make a move to get Lillibridge onto the 40-man roster, but no move has been announced yet. All logical 60-day DL transactions have been made, though I suppose if Jayson Nix or David Phelps's injuries are worse than we know, the Yankees could move one of them there. Of the minor league players on the 40-man roster, it seems like David Adams, Corban Joseph, Brennan Boesch, Brett Marshall, Melky Mesa, or Thomas Neal are most in danger of being DFA'd. Even though he's done well in Triple-A, my money is on Neal, though it could very well be Boesch since he's injured and useless right now, too.

Update

Boesch has indeed been given his release, according to the Yankees' Twitter account. In 23 games with the Yanks, Boesch hit .275/.302/.529 with a 123 OPS+, but his hits never seemed to come at the right time, as evidenced by his -0.50 WPA. He became expendable when Curtis Granderson briefly made his return, and the Yankees sent him down to Triple-A. When Grandy got hurt, Boesch returned but was sent down again once Andy Pettitte was activated from the DL, since the roster was tight at the time and the Yankees didn't want to lose Lyle Overbay. He was removed from a game with shoulder tightness on June 5th and never returned. The Yankees could try to re-sign him to a minor league deal as they did when they cut David Adams from the 40-man roster in early April, but Boesch might want to move on. It seemed pretty clear that he wasn't returning from injury anytime soon though, so it's not much of a loss.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Baby Bomber Recap 7/18/13: Michael Pineda strikes out eight in win
• Yankees Prospect Interview: Brett Gerritse
• Yankees Prospects: Gary Sanchez and Rafael De Paula are midseason top prospects
• Yankees Trade Chip: Dellin Betances
• Who was the Yankees' first half MVP?

As first reported by MLB Daily Dish and subsequently confirmed by the Yankees, Derek Jeter has been placed on the 15-day disabled list, the denouement to the quadriceps strain he had suffered on July 11 when making his season debut for the New York Yankees following a long recovery and rehabilitation for a fractured ankle. With the long All-Star break approaching, the Yankees had decided to play shorthanded until after the break, reevaluating Jeter at that time. Apparently the injury has not healed sufficiently for him to return.

Jeter's disabled list stay was backdated to July 12, so he'll be eligible to return as soon as Saturday July 27 against the Tampa Bay Rays. Should Jeter return at that point, he'll have missed only 11 games.

The Yankees have called up veteran infielder Brent Lillibridge from Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre to take Jeter's place on the roster (a corresponding move to clear a spot on the 40-man has yet to be accounced). The 29-year-old had been acquired from the Cubs on June 21 in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. He's hit .302/.358/.521 at Triple-A this year after going 1-for-24 in a brief stint in the majors.

A career .207/.271/.339 hitter in 347 major-league games, Lillibridge's best season came in 2011 when he hit .258/.340/.505 in 97 games for the White Sox. He slumped to open 2012 amidst sporadic playing time and was quickly out of Chicago's plans. Although primarily a shortstop in the minor leagues, Lillibridge has made more appearances in the outfield and at second base in the majors. He's played very little at third.

Once a highly-regarded prospect, Lillibridge had some early success in the low minors but hasn't hit much at the higher levels and is strictly fringe material. With the Yankees, he'll mostly man the bench while Eduardo Nunez continues to play shortstop.

More from SB Nation:

• Rumor: Rangers close to acquiring Garza from Cubs

• Brisbee: 5 shocking predictions for the 2nd half

• Minor League Ball’s midseason prospect rankings

• Marlins to host ‘Legends of Wrestling’ night

• Longread: Brooklyn’s field of broken dreams

Good morning prospect watchers. Trade rumors are flying, particularly the rumored Matt Garza transaction between the Cubs and the Rangers, and we'll have prospect analysis for any transactions that occur.

***Yesterday's Minor League Ball Gameday thread.

***The Chicago Cubs promoted infielder/enigma Junior Lake to the major league roster, replacing the injured Brian Bogusevic. Lake was hitting .295/.341/.462 for Triple-A Iowa. Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2007, Lake is a chiseled 6-3, 215 pound right-handed hitter with an amazing throwing arm (we are talking Shawon Dunston-quality arm here) and considerable power in his bat. He is also extremely erratic: he'll look like a superstar one day, then like a rookie ball washout the next. We'll do a full profile on him soon.

***San Francisco Giants right-hander Joan Gregorio had an outstanding start yesterday for Low-A Augusta, fanning 10 in seven hitless innings against Lakewood, walking one. On the season, he has a 3.12 ERA with a 73/13 K/BB ratio in 60.2 innings with 50 hits allowed. He attributes his strong performance this year to better command of his secondary pitches. Ultra-projectable at 6-7, 190, the 21 year old from the Dominican Republic already has a 90+ fastball, so improving his slider and changeup has made him a more complete pitcher. Keep a close eye on him.

***Minnesota Twins second base prospect Eddie Rosario went 2-for-4 yesterday for Double-A New Britain and is now 11-for-22 (.500) in his last five games. This drives his numbers up to .312/.372/.464 in 32 games since being promoted from High-A.

***New York Yankees outfield prospect Mason Williams went 1-for-3 yesterday and is hitting .400 in his last 10 games for High-A Tampa. He's been hitting well for about a month now and has pushed his season line up to .275/.349/.376, not great but certainly a considerable improvement after his slow start.

***Meanwhile, a wrist injury sidelined fellow outfield prospect Tyler Austin, who is now on the DL for Double-A Trenton. Austin was hitting .244/.344/.367 on the season, maintaining his plate discipline but not replicating the big power numbers he posted in '12 and '11. The injury is diagnosed as a bone bruise. Austin says he first hurt the wrist in early July; he's hitting .188/.278/.281 this month, so it does show up in the numbers.

***Ken Wolums at Beyond the Boxscore points out flaws in the competitive balance draft lottery and proposes changes. Ken's conclusion:

The current Competitive Balance Lottery doesn't make much sense. It uses ineffective variables such as market size and the random nature of a lottery to award picks to teams. By the current system, teams like the Cardinals are awarded extra picks and teams like the Athletics are left without compensation for their current financial situation. Fixing the system is rather easy, too.

The league needs to ditch the random nature of the lottery and use more efficient variables such as team value. In addition to this, picks need to be moved higher up into the draft in order to create additional value and actually work towards fair compensation. If and when this is accomplished, the league can call the picks true "Competitive Balance" compensation.

I agree with most of this. The whole "Lottery" thing smacks of NBA and I hate the NBA. I don't want that in MLB. Get rid of the lottery part. I also agree with Ken's idea to rework the team value/market size/revenue issue. On the other hand, I don't have a problem with the current location of the picks within the draft framework and I wouldn't change where they currently slot.

***Jon Johnston at CornNation, SB Nation's Nebraska Cornhuskers community, believes that college football will be dead within 20 years, or at least radically changed from its current form. He links this to upheavals in the way universities will conduct themselves due to economic and technological changes that will dismantle most classroom education in favor of a cyberpunk dystopia....err, people getting their degrees on line.

This could happen, although I think 20 years is too soon. I don't expect that the world will completely resemble a Bruce Sterling or William Gibson novel until after I'm dead, thank Goddess.

More from Minor League Ball:

• Minor League Ball Gameday, July 19
• Prospect of the Day: Henry Urrutia, OF, Baltimore Orioles
• 90-year-old Former Minor Leaguer Sinks 2nd Hole-in-One
• Minor League Ball Gameday, July 18
• Minor League Ball Top 75 Prospects: Mid-Season Update

The Humbler is coming for you. It fully finished disassembling Derek Jeter's quad several hours after we recorded.

Podcast link (Length: 48:02)

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Sound off in the comments if you have any questions you'd like us to answer for next time, or if you have any feedback on the podcast! Send your tweets to the Tweetbag by tweeting @pinstripebible.

The Yankees have placed Derek Jeter on the 15-day disabled list with a Grade 1 strain of his right quadriceps, an injury suffered last Thursday in his first game back from the twice broken ankle that had, to that point, kept him out of action all season. The DL move is retroactive to last Friday, making Jeter eligible to return a week from Saturday, and a Grade 1 strain is the least severe, but the simple fact that we are once again speculating about when the 39-year-old Jeter will be able to return to action, with just four designated-hitter at-bats separating his current DL stay from the nine months of rehabilitation required by his ankle injuries emphasizes the fact that the date that is most quickly approaching is not necessarily Jeter's next major league game but his last.

Of course, those of us who have covered the Yankees in recent years, as I've done intermittently for the Pinstribed Bible, have foretold the end for Jeter many times over as his offensive performance dipped and recovered in 2008 and 2009 then again in 2010 and the later part of 2011 into 2012. Attendance, however, was never really a problem. Jeter missed 18 games with a calf strain in mid-2011, but he used that down time to fix his swing and emerged from that brief absence reborn as a hitter. Prior to that, his last disabled list stay came when he dislocated his shoulder on Opening Day in 2003. Using Baseball Prospectus's injury data, Jeter missed a total of 82 games due to DL stays in his career prior to his broken ankle. Including the postseason, he has since missed 97 and counting.

Ballplayers get old. It happens to all of them, but seeing this happen to Jeter is particularly fascinating because of the way he has used denial as a weapon throughout his career. "It's fine. I'll play tomorrow," was his unflinching, unchanging response to every in-game injury between the separated shoulder and the ankle break, and with only one exception, that calf strain, his determination was validated. There were times when he probably should have gone on the disabled list but didn't, times when what he presented as stoic determination was closer to reckless disregard for his health and his ability to make a positive contribution to his team, but in the end, he always came out looking like the hero.

Now, at 39, Jeter's body is rebelling, or perhaps just failing, but it makes me wonder. What happens to a man whose entire life has been one big "yes" when he is finally given an irreversible, fateful "no?"

Remember, Derek Jeter was a kid who grew up a Yankees fan whose dream it was to become the Yankees' shortstop. That's an absurdly specific wish. Consider how fantastic is the dream of being a major leaguer of any kind, or even a professional ballplayer of any kind, how long the odds. Yet, Jeter not only became the Yankee shortstop, he became the greatest Yankee shortstop of all time, in fact, one of the greatest shortstops, period, of all time. He was a first-round draft pick, a blue-chip prospect, a Rookie of the Year and World-Series winner at the age of 22. At 24 he was one of the best players on one of the best teams in major-league history, by 26 he had four championships, by 29 he had six pennants, and it wasn't until he was 34 that he had experienced a major league season without a trip to the playoffs. Meanwhile, there was the parade of girlfriends and starlets, a veritable who's who of Hollywood it-girls and beauty pageant winners, more than a quarter-billion dollars in salary, not counting his many high-profile, lucrative endorsements, the New York penthouse, the custom-built, waterfront mansion in Tampa.

The Star-Ledger-USA TODAY Sports

Now I'm not going to pretend that Derek Jeter hasn't had hardships in his life. He grew up a mix-raced kid in Michigan in the late ‘70s and ‘80s. His sister battled Hodgkin's disease. He's a human being. Life isn't easy for anyone, but he's also someone who has had an insane amount of good fortune (his sister has been cancer-free for more than a decade). So what happens to that person when what has been the headspring of much of that good fortune is taken away? For all of Derek Jeter's good fortune, as a 39-year-old bachelor, what does he have waiting for him in retirement?

I don't see Jeter becoming a coach or a manager. As has been reported in various places, often in contrast to Alex Rodriguez's obsession with the game, Jeter doesn't watch much if any baseball when he's not at the ballpark, and I can count on no hands the number of stories I've heard about him taking a younger player under his wing or dispensing wisdom the way Mariano Rivera often does, holding court in the bullpen or in the outfield, showing off and even teaching his cutter grip to players regardless of their team affiliation.

Part of that, I believe, is that Jeter doesn't think small. He seems to prefer to push minor details, such as a bone bruise in his ankle that he can grit his teeth and play through, out of his head. Remember when Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long, who has worked wonders for so many other Yankees, tried to help him fix his swing coming off his miserable 2010 season and Jeter couldn't be bothered to use the new mechanics in games?

Jeter sets his expectations high. Yankee shortstop. A world championship every season. Miss Universe. What's next? Team ownership.

Jeter has made no secret of his desire to own a team, and while there's far more to purchasing a major league baseball team than desire and spending power -- opportunities are sparse, competition is great, and league politics can be complex and illogical -- I wouldn't put it past him to achieve that goal as well.

What I find most fascinating about the idea of Derek Jeter, team owner, is the fact that I can easily see him being a very difficult man to work for. Remember, this is a man who does not accept failure, be it from his body or his team. Every Yankee season that ends without a championship ends with Jeter declaring it a failure. This is a player who had his best seasons under George Steinbrenner and refers to him, still, as "the greatest owner in all of sports," and appears to genuinely mean it. So what happens when someone like that takes over the sort of team that typically comes up for sale, one in financial straits, burdened by bad contracts and/or years of poor finishes and worse attendance?

Steinbrenner took over the Yankees in 1973 and in his fourth season at the helm they went to the World Series, did it three times in a row, in fact, winning twice, and he was still insufferable, not just when that the pennants dried up in the 1980s, but while they were winning. I'm not saying that Jeter is or would be as much of a megalomaniac as Steinbrenner, but I do think the second half of Derek Jeter's life could reveal far more about his character than the first half, in large part because the man he is today has been formed by his success and his perceived influence over that success up to this point. What happens when Derek Jeter discovers that he doesn't have as much control over his ability to succeed as he thinks?

From my perspective, Jeter's current injuries, from which he has now twice attempted to return ahead of schedule, only to suffer a subsequent injury extending his absence, are merely his first taste of what is to come in the next phase of his life.

More from SB Nation:

• MLB expands Biogenesis investigation

• The magic of ceremonial first pitches

• Royals Review: Dayton Moore has to go!

• All-Star streaker faces year in jail

• Longread: Brooklyn’s field of broken dreams

Tonight's Yankees lineup for their game against the Red Sox is out:

Young New England Lineup: Gardner 8, Suzuki 9, Cano 4, Wells DH, Almonte 7, Overbay 3, Lillibridge 5, Nunez 6, Stewart 2, Pettitte 1.

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughSL) July 19, 2013

Woof. Dark times at Fenway. The Yankees face lefty Felix Doubront tonight, and while the top three hitters in the lineup are all also lefties, it doesn't matter. The rest of the lineup is just ugly anyway.

Brent Lillibridge makes his Yankees debut batting seventh at third base while Luis Cruz and Alberto Gonzalez ride the bench. For what it's worth, he has a slight platoon advantage against southpaws, though it's still nothing impressive: .227/.276/.416 vs. .191/.267/.282 against righties. The only power he has seems to come with lefties on the mound, so maybe he can make like Bucky Dent and pop a fly over that big green thing in left field. Don't count on it though.

On a related note, it's pretty depressing that Eduardo Nunez is batting eighth in this lineup behind Overbay (who is terrible against lefties) and Lillibridge (who is just terrible). The Yankees talked him up as some kind of a "lefty killer" in September last year and the beginning of 2013, but his stock has fallen far enough that the aforementioned struggling infielders are batting ahead of him. This year has been an utter bust for him so far in his attempt to show that he could possibly succeed Derek Jeter at shortstop. With Jeter out for at least another week and his future in the field unclear, the Yankees could really use some production in the lineup out of the shortstop position.

Triple-A Scranton takes on the Louisville Bats tonight in the Electric City, and Alex Rodriguez will be in the lineup as the designated hitter. This will be his fourth game out of eleven on his rehab assignment as the DH. Ken Rosenthal reported that a scout who saw A-Rod last night thought he was moving much better than Jeter was during his brief rehab stint, and that he liked what he saw at the plate. The Yankees are desperate for any kind of righty production; even if a limited A-Rod could be a boon for the lineup and provide Robinson Cano at least some protection beyond Vernon Wells and Travis Hafner.

YES's Lou DiPietro has a 40-man roster suggestion that could get Lillibridge onto the squad without needing to cut ties with anyone:

40-man move is a crapshoot. SWB has roster opening, so NYY could I think activate Boesch off AAA DL, recall/60-day DL him, add Lillibridge.

— Lou DiPietro (@LouDiPietroYES) July 19, 2013

Brennan Boesch has been injured seemingly forever with a bum shoulder, so this makes a lot of sense. We'll see what the Yankees do though. Also, I recently learned that Corban Joseph is out for the year due to shoulder surgery, so they could move him to the 60-day DL as well.

The second half of the 2013 season began much like the first half began and ended. The Yankees' offense was as quiet as we've come to think of it recently and the team lost yet another player to the disabled list. Andy Pettitte struggled early in the game, giving up a home run to Jacoby Ellsbury on the second pitch, but he settled in and retired 14 of the last 17 batters he faced. Unfortunately, that was too much for the feeble offense to overcome.

Jonny Gomes also managed to take Pettitte deep one inning after Ellsbury. Pettitte walked one batter and struck out four in his 6.1 innings of work. Shawn Kelley, Boone Logan, and Preston Claiborne followed Pettitte from the bullpen and held the Red Sox to no runs for the remainder of the game.

Brett Gardner got the Yankees on the board in the fourth without a run when he walked, stole second, and stole third. Jarrod Saltalamacchia threw the ball into left field trying to catch Gardner at third, which allowed the run to score. Lyle Overbay doubled and came home to score on a double by Chris Stewart in the fifth inning. Gardner was up next and could have tied the game at three with a single, but was called out on a 3-2 low strike (the second strike was actually worse since that one was a ball). Gardner fired his helmet down in disgust, and home plate umpire Mike Everitt tossed from the game, forcing the Yankees to use Alberto Gonzalez in left field and bat leadoff. Can't be doing that.

The two runs would be the only Yankees offense for the night. They had a chance to tie the game again in the eighth inning against lefty reliever Craig Breslow when Ichiro and Robinson Cano came up with back-to-back one-out hits, a single and a double. The game could again have been tied with a single (or at least halved with a timely fly ball), but because the Yankees' 4-5 hitters were Vernon Wells and Luis Cruz, they Vernon Wellsed and Luis Cruzed. A soft lineout and grounder to short ended the threat, and the Yankees went down quietly in the ninth against Koji Uehara.

In true 2013 fashion, not all participants on the Yankees side made it out alive. Zoilo Almonte injured his ankle in the second inning of the game and was forced to leave in the fifth. He's now headed to the disabled list with an ankle sprain. Of course he is.

John Lackey and Hiroki Kuroda square off tomorrow at 4:05 eastern time for the second game of the series on FOX.

Almonte headed to DL with ankle sprain. Second half starts pretty much the way the first half went.

— Sweeny Murti (@YankeesWFAN) July 20, 2013

Melky Mesa and Thomas Neal packing their bags, heading for New York.

— Donnie Collins (@RailRidersTT) July 20, 2013

Boxscore

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Pinstripe Alley Podcast Episode 15: Attack of the Humbler
• Yankees GIFs of the Week: Failing in the rain and Mariano's All-Star finale
• Looking for a second half rebound from Andy Pettitte
• Does A-Rod have anything left?
• Derek Jeter to the DL with quad strain, Brent Lillibridge called up, Brennan Boesch released

Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible

• Yankees 2, Red Sox 4: No offense and injuries. 2013 rolls on.
• Yankees lineup vs. Red Sox, Alex Rodriguez DHing for Scranton
• Derek Jeter injury: Who will be designated for assignment for Brent Lillibridge?
• Pinstripe Alley Podcast Episode 15: Attack of the Humbler
• Yankees GIFs of the Week: Failing in the rain and Mariano's All-Star finale
• Looking for a second half rebound from Andy Pettitte
• Does A-Rod have anything left?
• Derek Jeter to the DL with quad strain, Brent Lillibridge called up, Brennan Boesch released
• Baby Bomber Recap 7/18/13: Michael Pineda strikes out eight in win

Around the Internet

• SB Nation | Cliff Corcoran: Derek Jeter has experienced nothing but winning, however, as he reaches retirement he will find that he might not be as fortunate going forward.
• New York Post | Joel Sherman: An A-to-Z list on how the Yankees (and Mets) can improve their lot in the second half.
• Bronx Baseball Daily | Greg Corcoran: A post-draft top 50 Yankees prospects list that mixes new and familiar faces.
• LoHud | Chad Jennings: Heading into the second half of the season there are many questions about injuries and possible trades that need to be answered.
• ESPN New York | Ian Begley:Alex Rodriguez talked up Michael Pineda and believes he will be a factor this season.
• An A-Blog For A-Rod | Brad Vietrogoski: The Yankees rotation out of the break shows that the team does not trust their young pitching in a big series.

Quick Hits

Questions of the Day

• What place do you think the Yankees will place?
• Who will be the next Yankee to return after Alex Rodriguez?
• What is the hottest temperature you have ever experiences?
• What is your least favorite text speak abbreviation?

Coming Up Today

• Baby Bomber Recap 7/19/13: Greg Bird homers three times and drives in seven @ 10 am
• Yankees injury updates: Zoilo to the DL, both Thomas Neal and Melky Mesa recalled? @ 11 am
• Yankees prospects: 2013 mid-season #11-20 @ 12 pm
• Caption this Yankee #5: Robinson Cano @ 2 pm
• New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox at 4:05 pm (Game Thread at 3:30 pm)

Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders:L 1-2 vs. Louisville Bats

2B David Adams 1-3, HR, RBI, HBP - fourth homer of the season
DH Alex Rodriguez 2-4, K
RF Adonis Garcia 2-4, K - batting .364 with SWB
1B Dan Johnson 0-3, BB, K
3B Ronnier Mustelier 0-4
C JR Murphy 1-4, K, E2(2) - batting .301 with SWB
CF Melky Mesa 0-3, K
LF Thomas Neal 0-3, 2 K, E7 - fielding error, third of the season
SS Walter Ibarra 0-2, K

Brett Marshall 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R/1 ER, 4 BB, 4 K - eight groundouts, four flyouts
Chase Whitley 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, 3 K
Mike Zagurski 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K

The difference in the game was an unearned run for the Bats. The RailRiders out-hit the Bats 6-4, but couldn't push an extra run across when they needed to.

Double-A Trenton Thunder:L 3-4 (10 innings) vs. New Hampshire Fisher Cats

LF Ramon Flores 1-5, 3B, 2 K - third triple of the season
2B Reegie Corona 0-4, RBI, K, E4 - throwing error, tenth of the season
CF Slade Heathcott 0-5, 2 K
DH Kyle Roller 2-4, 2B - 20th double of the season
RF Yeral Sanchez 1-3, 2B, BB, K, OF assist
1B Andrew Clark 0-3, BB
SS Carmen Angelini 1-3, RBI, 2 K, E6 - fielding error, fourth of the season
3B Casey Stevenson 1-2, 2 BB, CS - batting .250 with Trenton
C Jeff Farnham 0-4, RBI, K

Shane Greene 5.2 IP, 8 H, 3 R/1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 2 HB - ten groundouts, three flyouts
Aaron Dott 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K
Mikey O'Brien 2.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, K - allowed a homer
Cesar Cabral 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB

Trenton rallied to tie the game at three in the eighth inning but the Fisher Cats took the win in extra innings with a run in the top of the tenth inning.

High-A Tampa Yankees:L 5-6 vs. Jupiter Hammerheads

CF Mason Williams 2-5, 2B, RBI, SB, put out - batting .405/.444/.524 over his last ten games
RF Taylor Dugas 2-4, 2B, RBI, BB
3B Peter O'Brien 2-5, 2B, RBI, 2 K - batting .304 with Tampa
C Gary Sanchez 1-5, 2B, RBI, K - batting .262/.311/.381 over his last ten games
1B Saxon Butler 2-4, RBI, K
2B Rob Refsnyder 0-4, K
DH Tyson Blaser 2-3, BB
SS Dan Fiorito 2-4, K - batting .274 with Tampa
LF Jose Toussen 1-4, K

Bryan Mitchell 5 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K - three groundouts, three flyouts
Joel De La Cruz 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, BB, K
David Herndon 1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, BB, K

The Yankees got on the board first with two runs in the top of the first inning but the Hammerheads took the lead with three runs in the third. They'd continue to tack on from there and, despite one run from Tampa in the ninth, the Yankees couldn't complete the comeback.

Low-A Charleston RiverDogs:W 7-5 vs. Greensboro Grasshoppers

CF Jake Cave 2-4, CS, HBP
SS Cito Culver 3-5, SB - batting .286/.348/.452 over his last 10 games
DH Greg Bird 4-5, 3 HR, 7 RBI, K - 12th, 13th, and 14th homers of the season
2B Angelo Gumbs 0-5, 4 K
3B Dante Bichette Jr. 1-4, BB, K
RF Danny Oh 3-5, 2 2B, SB - seventh and eighth doubles of the season
1B Reymond Nunez 1-3, 2 BB, K
LF Kelvin De Leon 0-5, 2 K, E7 - fielding error, second of the season
C Wes Wilson 0-4, 2 K

Evan Rutckyj 5 IP, 4 H, 3 R/2 ER, BB, 6 K, WP, HB - two groundouts, five flyouts
John Brebbia 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K
Derek Varnadore 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R/1 ER, 0 BB

Greg Bird must have heard that the only thing I cared about seeing since I was going to be at the game last night was him hitting a home run. He treated me to three - a solo shot to right field, a two-run homer to left center, and a line drive homer to right - coming a grand slam short of the homer cycle. He drove in all seven of the RiverDogs' runs. Such an awesome game to be at. A few pictures and possibly a post of its own coming sometime soon, maybe.

Short Season-A Staten Island Yankees: L 2-3 vs. Batavia Muckdogs

CF Brandon Thomas 1-4, 3 K
DH Michael O'Neill 1-4, 2B, 2 K - ninth double of the season
3B Eric Jagielo 0-3, BB, 2 K
RF Yeicok Calderon 1-4, 2 K
1B Kale Sumner 1-4, K - batting .304 this season
2B Jose Rosario 2-4, K
C Isaias Tejeda 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, BB
SS John Murphy 0-4
LF Mikeson Oliberto 0-4, 2 K, E7 - fielding error, third of the season

Caleb Smith 3 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Philip Walby 2.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K - two groundouts, one flyout
Stefan Lopez 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, E1
Nick Rumbelow 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, K - 0 ER with SI this season

Neither team scored more than one run in an inning, the problem was that the Muckdogs scored one run in one more inning than the Yankees.

Notes from the Gulf Coast League:

GCL Yankees 1:

SS Tyler Wade 0-4, BB, 2 K
2B Gosuke Katoh 1-5
RF Austin Aune 0-5, 3 K
1B Jimmy Falla 1-4, 2B, K, HBP
CF Jordan Barnes 1-4, 2 K

Pat Venditte 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K, WP
Hayden Sharp 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, HB
Hector Bello 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

GCL Yankees 2:

SS Thairo Estrada 1-6, 2B, RBI, K - batting .307 this season
C Luis Torrens 1-3, 2 BB
1B Renzo Martini 2-5, K - batting .306 this season
2B Jose Javier 4-5, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI
CF Jorge Alcantara 1-4, 2B, RBI, BB, K

Omar Luis 2 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
Rich Mascheri 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, BB, 5 K
Ethan Carnes 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, K

The Streamer Report provides you with daily startng pitcher streaming selections for owners who prefer to stream starting pitchers on a daily basis. This report identifies starting pitchers who are owned in less than 50% of ESPN leagues, and who either has a decent track record vs their opponent, has pitched well of late, or has a decent matchup.

Before I get to Sunday's streamers, here is how my streamer picks performed on Friday night:

Kyle Kendrick vs Mets -5.2 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, BB, 7 K, W

Felix Doubront vs Yankees - 6.1 ER, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 5 K, W

Jorge De La Rosa vs Cubs - 6 IP, 5 H, ER, 3 BB, 4 K,

Combined stats: 18 IP, 17 H, 8 ER, 7 BB, 16 K, 2 W, 4.00 ERA, 1.33 WHIP

Sunday's Streamers

Chris Archer vs Blue Jays

Archer is owned in 41.2% of ESPN leagues and his ownership percentage is growing as a result of his last two starts, where he has not given up a run over his last 15 innings of work. Over his last five starts, he has given up just six runs over his last 32 innings.

Wily Peralta vs Marlins

Peralta is owned in just 8% of ESPN leagues and I wonder if he has finally figured how to get major league hitters out. Over his last three starts, he has given up just one earned run on 13 hits and 8 walks over 21+ innings or work. He gets the Marlins on Sunday afternoon, so the streak could continue.

Jordan Lyles vs Mariners

Lyles is owned in under 2% of ESPN leagues and face a Mariners team that is playing well since they called up a bunch of prospects. He has given up 2 runs or less in 9 of his 14 starts this season and will look to bounce back from from a few poor starts on Sunday.

Alex Rodriguez was scheduled to play third base for the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders tonight in another rehab appearance for the Yankees third baseman. Right before the game, it was announced that A-Rod would no longer be playing third base, and would be in the game as the designated hitter instead. If you've been paying attention at all to the 2013 Yankees injury situation, that struck fear in your heart. Turns out that fear was at least a little justified.

According to Yankees, A-Rod moved to DH from third tonight because of left quad tightness

— Erik Boland (@eboland11) July 20, 2013

The plan has been for A-Rod to rejoin the Yankees on Monday when he 20-day rehab stint is over. If he is unable to play after that time, the team would have to wait five days before sending him on another 20-day assignment. Brian Cashman said that the final decision can be flexible and will depend on how Rodriguez is feeling. Quad tightness may be a bad sign for that, as it is the same feeling that forced Derek Jeter from his first big league game of the season before an MRI revealed a strain and sent him to the disabled list.

If A-Rod makes it through the game tonight without any complications, it will be a good sign for his scheduled return. If he is unable to complete the game or play in the RailRiders' game tomorrow, the return of another hitter that the Yankees lineup desperately needs could be put on hold for longer still.

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Some tightness in the quadriceps of New York Yankees third-baseman Alex Rodriguez forced the 14-time All-Star to move to the designated hitter position in the lineup of his rehab game with the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre team on Saturday night, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

Tight quad forces switch to DH for ARod

Tanya Bondurant of Pinstriped Bible reacts to the news of tightness in the quad of Alex Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, 37, has yet to play in a major league game during the 2013 season as he continues to work to recover from offseason hip surgery; however, he expects to return to the Yankees lineup as soon as Monday. While the tightness in his quad could mean that the timetable for his return could be pushed back, the fact that he's in the lineup at all would seem to indicate that the discomfort is not serious.

The majority of Rodriguez's rehab games have featured the three-time American League MVP playing at third base, but Saturday's game will not be his first at designated hitter, as he has played in the role for a few of his rehab assignments.

The Yankees are scheduled to travel to play the Texas Rangers in a four-game series beginning with the first game on Monday where Rodriguez may make his return.

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