Josh Hamilton trying new contacts

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton went out for batting practice wearing contact lenses designed to cut down on the amount of light coming into his eyes to help him see the ball during the day.
The new contacts make Hamilton's eyes look red.

"I've never worn contact lenses in my life and I really would like to see the ball in the daytime, so therefore I'm trying any means possible to do that," Hamilton said. "I actually care and I want to be better and I don't want to suck in the day."
Hamilton said afterward that the contacts did help during batting practice. Manager Ron Washington throws a few batting practice sessions every day and Hamilton said normally he has trouble picking up Washington's throws because they come at him with the bleachers as the background. But he could see the ball better with the lenses on Friday.
Under the sun this season, Hamilton's numbers are dim. He is batting .122 (6-for-49) with no home runs, four RBIs and eight walks. He also has 17 strikeouts and a .429 OPS.
At night, it's a different story. Hamilton is hitting .374 (41-for-109) with six home runs, 28 RBIs, seven walks and a 1.076 OPS. And he only has 14 strikeouts while playing under the lights.
During his 2010 MVP season, the blue-eyed Hamilton hit a respectable .286 during the day and .384 at night.
Hamilton said Wednesday that he has a tougher time seeing the ball because he has blue eyes. An optometrist who talked to ESPNDallas.com on Thursday supports Hamilton's theory and explained why.
"Because of the lack of pigment in lighter color eyes -- like blue or green eyes as opposed to brown -- you get a lot more unwanted light and that can create glare problems," said Dr. Richard L. Ison, O.D., an optometrist since 1990 who currently works in Murphy, just northeast of Dallas.

Ison said the phenomenon is called intraocular light scatter, meaning the light scatters as it enters, producing a focal point that isn't as good.
His solution for Hamilton: Find a pair of sunglasses that he's completely comfortable wearing while batting.
Maybe these new contacts will take care of the issue.
Hamilton said the contacts will be used only during day games. He's not going to change what he's been doing at night. The slugger said he talked to a few club officials about his vision during the day and they suggested the lenses.
"It's just hard for me to see [at the plate] in the daytime," Hamilton said during the pregame show on 103.3 FM ESPN on Wednesday. "It's just what it is. Try to go up [to the plate] squinting and see a white ball while the sun is shining right off the plate, you know, and beaming right up in your face."
The Rangers have two day games against the New York Mets this weekend, and Washington, who said he'd never heard anything about pigmentation in the eyes affecting at-bats during the day, plans on starting Hamilton on Saturday. He hasn't decided about Sunday yet.

Justin Morneau to have neck surgery

MILWAUKEE -- Minnesota Twins first baseman Justin Morneau thought his sore left wrist would be taken care of with a short trip to the disabled list. His worrisome neck pain needed more immediate attention.

The Twins announced before Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers that Morneau will have neck surgery Wednesday to remove a herniated disk fragment, keeping him out another six weeks.
Morneau was placed on the 15-day disabled list earlier this month with a strained left wrist that was put in a cast to try to stabilize it. That also gave him time to rest his neck.
But after seeing a second neck specialist, the organization made the decision that surgery was the best option to help Morneau regain the form that led him to the 2006 AL MVP and two Silver Slugger awards.
"I was honestly kind of looking forward to him getting out of this cast and seeing where he was at, kind of hoping we'd have him back here in four or five days or whatever," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I know Morny didn't want any part of this, really, he's been fighting this stuff with the surgery and trying to stay away from anything like that so he can finish out the season. ... I know it's frustrating for him, so I feel bad for him more than anything else."
Twins trainer Rick McWane said the procedure is non-invasive to remove the fragment but will keep Morneau out until August.
"He should be back playing full in six weeks," McWane said. "Even though the risk is small, there still is a risk that if he continued to play through this and not get it fixed that his full strength would not come back, so we made the decision."
Morneau is hitting .225 with four homers and 20 RBIs in 55 games, a year after missing the final 78 games of the season with a concussion.
McWane said the concussion and neck problems were not related.
"He's had a history of neck injuries. It's hard to tell when it happened," McWane said. "He had a documented and measurable concussion in addition to what we saw on an MRI. They both have physical signs. I don't believe they're associated."
The Twins have had daily injury updates that have at times lasted longer than Gardenhire's talks with reporters.
Minnesota activated reliever Joe Nathan (right forearm) before the game after he missed 28 games. Jim Thome (left quadriceps) also rejoined the team, though he will not be activated until Saturday at the earliest after he was slated to take batting practice on Friday.
Right-hander Kevin Slowey (abdominal strain) will throw two or three innings for Class A Fort Myers on Saturday. Right fielder Jason Kubel (left foot) is close to returning sometime during Minnesota's upcoming nine-game homestand beginning Monday. Center fielder Denard Span (concussion) played catch and hit off a tee for the first time without trouble.
All the injuries have contributed to Minnesota's uncharacteristic 32-41 record, which was fourth place in the AL Central entering Friday. Now the Twins will have to overcome Morneau's missing contributions for longer than expected.
"We'll do the best we can like we always do, but I feel bad for Morny because he really wanted to get back from this wrist thing, get back out on the baseball field and help us," Gardenhire said. "This neck thing is going to knock him out for a little bit longer, but we'll get him back. We'll get him back probably August, I'm guessing, and he'll help us down the stretch."

Mark Cuban ponders Dodgers

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban calls the Los Angeles Dodgers' situation a "mess," but he hasn't ruled out making a run at the team if it is put up for sale.
"I have an interest in Major League Baseball for the right deal," Cuban said in an interview with TMZ.com. "But it's just such a mess, right? I can't imagine that it's not going to be such a mess that it's [not] going to make it hard to turn around."

This week MLB rejected a proposed $3 billion television deal between the Dodgers and Fox. Cash from that deal was fundamental to the divorce settlement between owner Frank McCourt and his ex-wife, Jamie. The settlement is now scuttled, putting the future of the franchise in limbo.
The Dodgers have been under the supervision of MLB, which is investigating the finances of the team. Baseball very well could take over the team and force a sale. Or, the courts could rule that the team is community property in the divorce proceedings and force a sale of the franchise.
Whenever any team is about to go up for sale, Cuban's name comes up. He says that he "looked at the Rangers. I looked at the Cubs." But to him, the Dodgers' financial woes are more of a hurdle.

"But if it's just so screwed up, that the pieces are so messed up, that it takes 20 years to fix. ... I mean, there's literally franchises out there that are just in such disarray and such a mess, in multiple leagues, that no one can fix them," he said to TMZ.com.
Still, his desire to own an MLB franchise might be too strong to resist owning even a financially troubled outfit like the Dodgers.
"If the deal is right and they're fixable, then I'm very interested," he said.
One of the issues that Cuban sees with the team is how McCourt has structured the franchise.
"He's got his parking lots and he's got this and that -- all these sub-corporations. So who knows what's included," Cuban said.
For now, he just waits like everyone else to see what MLB does to deal with the situation. He believes the wait could last awhile.
"They (MLB) might just take it back and decide not to sell it for a while, right, because they're not stupid, either," Cuban said. "They might say we'll take it back, we'll fix it up some, and clean up some of the mess and then we'll sell it then, kind of like what the NBA did with the New Orleans Hornets."

Cliff Lee tosses six-hit shutout as Phillies top Cardinals

ST. LOUIS -- Cliff Lee approaches every start aiming to go nine innings. The St. Louis Cardinals put up little resistance in the left-hander's second straight shutout.

"There's total gratification," Lee said. "Every time I want to throw the whole game, there's no doubt about it. I think I could have gone the 10th and the 11th, too."

Lee scattered six hits and the Philadelphia Phillies got homers from Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard in the fourth inning of a 4-0 victory Wednesday night.

The Cardinals have totaled two runs and 11 hits in their first two games without injured Albert Pujols, who is expected to miss six weeks with a fractured left wrist. It didn't help that they have faced two of the game's best, with Roy Halladay giving up four hits in six innings Tuesday.

"He's arguably the best player in the National League," Lee said of Pujols. "He's an obvious threat and anytime he's not in the lineup you feel better about that when you're the opposing pitcher."

Kyle Lohse (7-4) worked eight innings to match his season best, allowing three runs and seven hits with no walks or strikeouts. He struggled only in the fourth when Rollins led off with his seventh homer and Howard hit a two-run shot, his 16th overall, with one out following a single by Chase Utley.

Lohse said he had to alter his game plan because strikes on the inside corner weren't getting called. He thought he had Rollins struck out a few pitches before giving up the homer.

"I kind of fell behind Howard and he was looking away and I left the ball up," Lohse said. "Other than that, I felt like I was in control. It was just an unfortunate night to be going against Lee."

Utley added an eighth-inning sacrifice fly for the NL East-leading Phillies, who have won 10 of 12 and will go for a three-game sweep on Thursday with Roy Oswalt facing Chris Carpenter.

Howard, who grew up in suburban St. Louis and still lives there, also singled and is a career .374 hitter with nine homers and 34 RBIs in 25 games at Busch Stadium. Both are highs for visiting players at the 6-year-old ballpark and the homer broke a tie with Adam Dunn and Prince Fielder.

"It's home, I think it's a little bit different when a guy gets to go back home and play where it all began," Howard said. "You're just a lot more comfortable, I guess."

Lee (8-5) has won all four of his starts this month, allowing only one run in 33 innings while lowering his ERA from 3.94 to 2.87. The 2008 AL Cy Young winner followed a two-hitter over the Florida Marlins with his eighth career shutout and has a 23-inning scoreless streak.

Leaning on his cutter, Lee retired 11 straight between the third and seventh inning and threw a career-high 126 pitches. Only Lohse reached third base after hitting a leadoff double off a curveball in the third for his first extra-base hit of the season.

"He threw the ball well all night as advertised," said Cardinals leadoff man Ryan Theriot, who had a single and walk. "You know what you're going to get. I thought we had a few little chances there, but Cliff's a great pitcher and that's what he does."

Lee is 6-1 since losing 3-1 at St. Louis on May 16 when he walked a career-high six in 6 1/3 innings. He opened this game with seven straight balls before settling in and made a nice leaping stab on Pete Kozma's grounder up the middle to help keep the Cardinals off the board in the third.

Including the loss at St. Louis in May, Lee had been 0-3 with a 5.84 ERA in his four previous road starts.

"That's just someone breaking down stats and nitpicking little things," Lee said. "To me, it doesn't matter if I pitch at home or on the road. It's all the same."

Game notesThe Cardinals turned a season-high four double plays. ... It was the longest outing of Lohse's career without a strikeout or walk. ... Both Howard and Rollins have four homers this month. All 16 of Howard's homers are against right-handed pitchers. ... The Phillies' 10-2 victory Tuesday was only the franchise's second in the last 66 years scoring double-digit runs without an extra-base hit. The other time was on Sept. 17, 2005, at Florida. ... Howard is 7-for-16 with two homers and eight RBIs against Lohse. ... Utley has 12 RBIs in the last 10 games. ... Shane Victorino has a 16-game hitting streak against the Cardinals, batting .368 (25-for-68) with four homers and 13 RBIs.

Padres defeat Red Sox in rain-shortened game

BOSTON -- The way things had been going for Clayton Richard, it only figured that he'd have to go through a day like this to get a win.

Will Venable hit a leadoff home run and Richard got some support for a change, lifting the San Diego Padres over the Boston Red Sox 5-1 Wednesday in a game delayed by rain four times before it was called after 7 1/2 innings.

Richard (3-9) lasted through two of the delays during the game, giving up one run and eight hits over five innings to snap five-game losing streak. The left-hander had lost five of his last six starts with a no-decision in the other despite holding opponents to three or fewer runs five times.

"It's good that he was rewarded for a performance that lasted like a 5 1/2-hour period," Padres manager Bud Black said. "He started warming up at 1 o'clock and I told him he was out of the game at 5:25. He deserved that."

Richard, who escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first by getting David Ortiz to bounce into an inning-ending double play grounder, felt as if all the Padres hitters were bothered by the lack of scoring in his starts.

"I think it's just frustration as a team," he said. "As a team you have a little more frustration."

It was the second straight win for San Diego after a season-worst six-game losing streak. The Padres finished their road trip at 3-6.

Adrian Gonzalez hit four singles against his former team to raise his major league-leading average to .359 and drove in Boston's run. The Red Sox lost for just the fourth time in 18 games and absorbed consecutive losses for the first time this month.

Ortiz went 0 for 3, stranding seven baserunners.

The game's start was delayed 35 minutes. Play was halted with two outs in the top of the third for 38 minutes and again in the middle of the fifth, with that delay lasting 31 minutes. The final one in the middle of the eighth -- was 40 minutes.

In the third delay, crew chief Ed Rapuano called for the tarp, but never left the field when he asked for the grounds' crew to take it off a few minutes later while the rain appeared to be falling at a similar rate.

"I thought (Ed) did a great job in a very tough circumstance -- with the weather and the field -- to keep the integrity of the game," Black said.

The Padres, who entered the day with the majors' worst batting average at .233, scored their runs on just seven hits, but benefited from wildness by John Lackey (5-6).

Lackey left in the fourth inning and exited to a spattering of boos, continuing his rough season.

"He went back out after the rain delay and just looked like he lost his feel," Boston manager Terry Francona said. "I don't think the conditions were good for either pitcher, but he just lost his feel."

Boston had 10 hits -- all singles -- and grounded into a pair of double plays.

Venable hit the game's seventh pitch into the right-field seats -- one of deeper parts of Fenway Park -- for his first homer of the season and the first leadoff shot of his career.

"Off the bat (I thought I hit it out). But when I saw (Mike) Cameron running back I wasn't sure," Venable said. "You hit the ball in a lot of other parks and you don't even have to look at it. But here, you've got a long way to go."

The Padres took advantage of Lackey's wildness, chasing him with four runs in the fourth. Orlando Hudson drew a leadoff walk and Anthony Rizzo was hit by a pitch before Cameron Maybin laid down a well-placed bunt for a single.

Lackey threw a wild pitch to allow a run and walked Venable, forcing home another. He also hit Jason Bartlett in the back with a 2-2 pitch with the bases loaded and Chase Headley had an RBI single, making it 5-0.

When asked about pitching in the conditions Lackey said, "They weren't great. I don't think I've ever hit anybody with the bases loaded before."

Lackey allowed five runs on four hits and four walks in 3 1/3 innings, raising his ERA to 7.36. He had seemed to turn his season around, winning his previous three starts before Wednesday when he was booed briefly as he walked off after being pulled.

Gonzalez's RBI single cut it to 5-1 in the fifth.

After ending the first, Ortiz left a pair of runners on in the third and fifth.

Game notesSan Diego improved to 18-18 on the road. ... Gonzalez went 8 for 14 with four RBIs in series. ... Francona said he's still not sure RHP Josh Beckett, who missed Tuesday start with a stomach ailment, will be able to start Saturday in Pittsburgh. "He's really sick," Francona said. "We're going to have to play this by ear. He's got a good, old-fashioned case of the flu." LHP Andrew Miller is a likely to start if Beckett can't. Francona appears to be leaning toward playing 1B Gonzalez in right field during Boston's upcoming nine-game road trip of all inter-league, thus allowing Ortiz to play first. "I don't want David to go 11 days without playing," he said. ... Black announced Tim Stauffer, Dustin Moseley and Cory Luebke will start the three home games against Atlanta this weekend, Luebke making his first start of the year. ... Hudson stole his career-best 11th base. ... Both teams have off-days Thursday.

Best 2011 baseball homerun

Best catch ever

Bryce Harper hits 502ft baseball home run in the 2009 Power Showcase

David Ortiz, Red Sox use seven-run 7th to sweep Yankees

David Ortiz got more than even for getting drilled.

Ortiz broke loose soon after CC Sabathia hit him with a pitch, starting and finishing a seven-run burst in the seventh inning that led the Boston Red Sox over the Yankees 8-3 early Friday in a rain-delayed game that ended at 1:43 a.m.

When it was over, Ortiz seemed more angry at the media -- maybe for playing up the possibility of trouble between the teams -- than at Sabathia.

"Finally got hit," Ortiz said in a short rant that included some profanity.

After a wait of almost 3 1/2 hours, Josh Beckett (5-2) outpitched Sabathia (7-4) for the third time this season. The Red Sox outscored New York 25-13 while completing their second three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium in a month.

Only a few thousand fans were left in the ballpark when Boston wrapped up its sixth win in a row overall and beat the Yankees for the seventh straight time. The Red Sox are 8-1 against their longtime rivals this year.

"It's not how you wanted it to end tonight, it did and you've got to move on," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.

A storm that brought lightning bolts over the Bronx delayed the start for 3 hours, 27 minutes. Shortly after the game began at 10:32 p.m., Beckett and Sabathia began zapping hitters, further ramping up baseball's most-spirited rivalry.

Plunked in the right thigh by Sabathia's 97 mph fastball in the third inning, Ortiz swung things in Boston's favor a little later. The Red Sox trailed 2-0 when he singled off Sabathia to start the seventh, and his two-run double off David Robertson capped the big rally.

"He feels good about himself, and he should," Boston manager Terry Francona said.

Bad blood seemed to be brewing from the get-go on a humid night. Ortiz appeared a likely target after homering in the first two games of the series -- he irked the Yankees by admiring one of those shots, which came after a brushback, and some in pinstripes talked about how Big Papi looked too comfortable at the plate.

Beckett had already hit Derek Jeter -- near the elbow, with his second pitch of the game -- and Alex Rodriguez around the hip when Ortiz came up in the fourth with one out and a runner on first.

Sabathia's first pitch was a heater that squarely nailed Ortiz.

"The ball just got away from me," the lefty ace said.

Plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt immediately pointed at both dugouts to issue warnings against further hostilities.

"I'm still trying to figure out whether David got hit for something I did," Beckett said.

Ortiz slowly walked to first base as the crowd chanted "CC! CC!" When the inning ended, Sabathia shot a glance toward the slugger before heading to the dugout, where his Yankees teammates met him with fist bumps, high fives, handshakes and back slaps.

"Jeter always gives me a pound after every inning," Sabathia explained.

To Yankees fans, perhaps it was long overdue. In his 15-season career, Ortiz had been hit by a pitch only once by the Yankees, that coming in 2003 AL playoffs. Rodriguez, meanwhile, had been hit by Boston pitchers 14 times since joining New York the next year.

Curtis Granderson, who hit a two-run homer in the first inning, was clipped on the left foot by Beckett's breaking ball in the fifth. That plunking didn't cause any problems -- the three HBPs matched the most by an AL team this season.

Granderson launched his 18th home run right after Jeter was hit. Beckett had been 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 14 innings against the Yankees this season, outpitching Sabathia both times. Beckett threw four-hit ball over seven innings in this win.

Sabathia gave up Carl Crawford's single in the second, then didn't allow another hit until Ortiz singled in the seventh. Jed Lowrie followed with an RBI triple that snaked past right fielder Nick Swisher, Mike Cameron hit a tying double and Jacoby Ellsbury's single put Boston ahead 3-2.

Adrian Gonzalez hit an RBI single that finished Sabathia, Kevin Youkilis greeted Robertson with a run-scoring single and Ortiz doubled to deep left-center field. Gonzalez added an RBI single in the ninth.

The ballpark was fairly filled for the first pitch. During the delay, fans watched Game 5 of the NBA Finals between Dallas and Miami on the videoboard, mostly jeering LeBron James and the Heat. There were cheers in the second inning, too, when the Yankees announced ticket stubs could be redeemed for a future free ticket.


Game notes

Jeter singled for his 2,990th career hit. ... Yankees C Francisco Cervelli made his third throwing error in two games. ... Yankees DH Jorge Posada was back in the lineup. He was out Wednesday night because his son was having surgery for a skull condition. ... Lowrie started for the first time since Sunday. He'd been out with a sore left shoulder. ... RHP Phil Hughes (shoulder inflammation) threw a two-inning simulated game at the Yankees' complex in Tampa, Fla. He is set to start Tuesday for the Gulf Coast Yankees. ... Last month, the Red Sox lost to the Angels in a rain-delayed game at Fenway Park that ended at 2:45 a.m.

A's fire Bob Geren; Bob Melvin interim

With his banged-up team mired in a nine-game losing streak and rampant speculation about the tenuous status of manager Bob Geren, Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane felt he had no other choice than to make a change.

The A's fired a manager during the season for the first time in a quarter-century on Thursday, letting Geren go after four-plus seasons and bringing in former Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners skipper Bob Melvin for the rest of the season.

"It felt like at this point a change was necessary," Beane said. "It got to the point where the emphasis was on the status of the manager on a daily basis and no longer on the field. When that starts to happen, you need to shift the focus to what's really important, which is performance. That's how we came to this decision."

Geren's tenure in Oakland was marked by numerous injuries, a lack of offense, questions about his communication skills and high-profile departures as he was unable to post a winning season after taking over an AL West championship team from Ken Macha.

Geren posted a 334-376 record, including a 27-36 mark this season that has left Oakland eight games behind the Texas Rangers in last place in the AL West.

The A's currently have four starting pitchers on the disabled list, including a season-ending shoulder injury for Dallas Braden. Oakland was also without injured All-Star closer Andrew Bailey for the first two months and is last in the American League with just 223 runs through the first 63 games.

"Bob Melvin will inherit some of the challenges that Bob had," Beane said. "Bob lost four starting pitchers in the space of three weeks. That was a tough body blow for the team. That was very difficult from Bob's standpoint."

Melvin, 49, took the helm for the series opener in Chicago against the White Sox on Thursday night. He posted a 493-508 record in seven seasons as manager with Seattle and Arizona. He led the Diamondbacks to the NL West title in 2007 and also won 93 games in his rookie season with the Mariners in 2003.

Melvin was also on Bob Brenly's staff as bench coach in 2001 when the Diamondbacks won the World Series and the following year when they won the NL West. Melvin also coached for the Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers. He was fired by the Diamondbacks 29 games into the 2009 season but got another chance when Beane decided it was time to let Geren go.

"He really knows how to work with young players," said Oakland outfielder Conor Jackson, who played for Melvin in Arizona. "It's a great team for him. We have a lot of young talent and I feel like he's a pretty good molder of personalities and baseball players as well."

Melvin played 10 seasons in the majors as a catcher with the Tigers, San Francisco Giants, Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and White Sox. He batted .233 with 35 homers and 212 RBIs in 1,955 career at-bats.

Melvin is a Bay Area native who was born in Palo Alto, went to high school in Menlo Park, played college ball at Cal, spent time with the Giants in the majors and now gets to manage the A's.

"It's a dream come true," he said. "This doesn't happen very often in baseball, where you literally get to come home in the capacity that I do."

The beleaguered Geren had come under criticism from his bullpen in recent weeks for a lack of communication with reliever Brian Fuentes and former Oakland closer Huston Street publicly criticized him.

That started the speculation about whether Geren would make it through his final season under contract.

"I can't say it was a surprise," Fuentes said. "Regardless whether it was our team or any other team, when things don't go well there are always moves that are made."

It was the rash of injuries and the total lack of offense that led to the current losing streak that finally spelled the end of Geren's tenure.

With no homegrown hitting stars and disappointing starts by offseason acquisitions like Hideki Matsui and David DeJesus, the A's find themselves in last place despite a stellar young pitching staff headed by All-Star Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez and recently injured Brett Anderson.

"It's got great pitching, good athletes and we're going to try to play the game we're suited to play," Melvin said. "We're probably not going to sit around and play for three-run homers a whole lot. We play in a ballpark that's probably more conducive to being aggressive and that's what we're going to try to do."

The current skid is the longest for the A's since a 10-gamer in July 2008 and the fifth-longest single-season losing streak since the team moved to Oakland in 1968.

This is the first time the A's have fired a manager during the season since getting rid of Jackie Moore after 73 games in 1986. Jeff Newman took over for 10 games on an interim basis before Tony La Russa was brought in to start a run that included four division titles and the 1989 World Series championship.

Beane said he started the process of evaluating Geren's status a few weeks ago before making the ultimate decision.

"Whenever you replace your manager, it's a drastic move," Beane said. "I've never had to do it in my tenure as general manager. This is a new script for myself. I don't know if you ever know what the right time is."

Schedule tomorrow 11 2011

Schedule friday, 10 2011

Schedule thursday, 09 2011

Result Thursday, June 9, 2011

Joba Chamberlain likely done for year

Yankees setup man Joba Chamberlain has a torn ligament in his right elbow and will likely miss the remainder of the season, manager Joe Girardi said.
"My guess is he probably is going to have to have surgery," Girardi said.
Girardi said Chamberlain will likely have Tommy John surgery.
"With Tommy John, you are talking [being out] 10 to 14 months," general manager Brian Cashman said.
"This sucks," Chamberlain said. "There's no way to sugarcoat it. It's something I didn't expect with no pain. The most frustrating part is not being there for the team. [But] everything happens for a reason. I'll come back and be even stronger."
Surprisingly, Chamberlain said he feels "no pain" and has "no idea" how the injury occurred. But he felt tightness after throwing long-toss on Tuesday and went in for an MRI on Wednesday, which revealed he had a strained flexor tendon.
Chamberlain was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday, but a dye contrast MRI on Thursday morning revealed that the injury was more significant.
"I was just trying to get out of there before I broke down," Chamberlain said of his reaction to the devastating news "I shed a couple tears. (But) you can't let it beat you. You gotta get stronger and get better."
Chamberlain's MRI results will be sent to renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, where it will be determined whether or not he needs to undergo Tommy John.
At this point, Chamberlain has no plans to see Andrews.
"There's not much more we can do," Chamberlain said.
Heading into the season, the Yankees bullpen was expected to be a strength, with Chamberlain and Rafael Soriano getting the ball before elite closer Mariano Rivera.
Soriano, who was signed for three years and $35 million this offseason, has been a major disappointment and is on the disabled list with right elbow inflammation.
Soriano has not started throwing yet, Girardi said, and is not close to returning. David Robertson will be the Yankees eighth-inning man for now, Girardi said.
After Rivera and Robertson, the Yankees bullpen coniststs of Luis Ayala, Boone Logan, Jeff Marquez, Lance Pendleton and Amauri Sanit.
Besides Chamberlain and Soriano, the Yankees are without lefty specialists Pedro Feliciano and Damaso Marte. Both may be out for the rest of the season as well.
Girardi said the team is "confused" by Chamberlain's injury because the reliever has not experienced any of the typical symptoms of pitchers who need Tommy John surgery. "He said (Wednesday) was a normal long-toss for him so it really has us all kind of scratching our head," Girardi said on Thursday. "When you talk about the symptoms that someone has when they hurt that ligament, Joba doesn't have them."
When asked about the extent of the injury on Wednesday, Chamberlain said: "If you asked me to pitch today, I would tell you I could pitch today."
On Thursday, Girardi added, "He has no idea when this happened."
Before the latest diagnosis, the Yankees thought Chamberlain would sit two weeks to a month and then start a throwing program, Girardi said.
Chamberlain had emerged as the team's setup man in the absence of right-hander Soriano and in 28 2/3 innings had 12 holds and a 2.83 ERA. The Yankees placed rules on Chamberlain to limit his innings in 2009, when he was used as a starter.
"If there were no 'Joba Rules' in place, could it have possibly happened earlier? I don't know," Girardi said. "There's no exact science because everybody is different."

Jose Pagan dies at age 76

Former big leaguer Jose Pagan, who drove in the eventual winning run for Pittsburgh in Game 7 of the 1971 World Series, has died. He was 76.
The Pirates announced his death after learning of it from Pagan's family. No cause was given for his death Tuesday.
There was a moment of silence before Tuesday night's game against Arizona at PNC Park.
Pagan broke into the majors with the Giants in 1959 and was traded to Pittsburgh in 1965, helping the franchise win the World Series in 1971. His double in the eighth inning of Game 7 gave Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead over Baltimore, and the Pirates hung on to win 2-1.
Pagan also played for Philadelphia during 15 seasons in the majors. He hit .250 with 52 homers and 372 RBIs before retiring in 1973.

Indians recall rookie 2B Cord Phelps

The Cleveland Indians have brought up infielder Cord Phelps from Triple-A Columbus in hopes he can spark their stagnant offense.
The club optioned Shelley Duncan to the Clippers on Wednesday to make room for Phelps. The Indians also transferred starter Alex White from the 15- to 60-day disabled list. He's out with an injured middle finger.
Phelps is making his major league debut Wednesday at second base and batting seventh in the series finale against Minnesota. The switch-hitter batted .299 with seven homers and 40 RBIs at Columbus.
Manager Manny Acta is looking for someone to kick-start Cleveland's offense and says Phelps has earned his opportunity after two productive seasons in the minors. Cleveland is 8-12 and batting .224 in its past 20 games.

Chipper Jones calls out Jason Heyward

Outfielder Jason Heyward likely will take the baton soon from third baseman Chipper Jones as the Atlanta Braves' biggest star.
Before that happens, though, Heyward has to learn how to play through pain, according to Jones.
Heyward, who has a sore right shoulder, could have returned from the 15-day disabled list Tuesday, but because he hasn't swung a bat in more than two weeks, he likely won't be back for another week. Heyward likely is still a few days away from hitting off a tee, according to manager Fredi Gonzalez.

The 21-year-old Heyward has said he did not want to return until he's completely healthy. Jones, 39, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the second-year slugger needs to realize how important he is to the Braves, even if he isn't 100 percent.
"I think where Jason might have erred was the comment that he made, 'I'm not coming back until it doesn't hurt anymore.' That has a tendency to rub people the wrong way," Jones told the newspaper. "And we understand where he's coming from -- he wants to be healthy when he plays, so he can go out and give himself the best opportunity to be successful. I get that.
"What Jason needs to realize is that Jason at 80 percent is a force, and Jason at 80 percent is better than a lot of people in this league. And that there are a bunch of his teammates that are out there playing with discomfort and not healthy, and still going at it."
The Braves (33-28) trail the first-place Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East by three games.
Heyward had been in pain since spring training. He has had two MRIs, which have found inflammation of the shoulder but no major problems.
He has struggled this season, batting .214 with seven homers and 14 RBIs in 45 games. He finished second to San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey in 2010 NL Rookie of the Year voting when he hit .277 with 18 home runs and 72 RBIs.
Jones told the Journal-Constitution that playing through pain was something he had to learn to do when he was a young player.
"It's just a situation where, I don't think he really realizes how much of an impact he has on the game just by his presence," Jones told the newspaper. "And that's something I had to learn, too. When I started going through my injuries early on, obviously I wanted to get healthy and whatnot. But I realize that, even now, my presence in the lineup means something, whether I'm healthy or not."

Most disappointing 2011 seasons

There's nothing unusual about getting off to a bad start. When a star begins the season poorly, people rightfully shrug and figure that the player will eventually start playing at his normal level. But as April turns into May and May turns into June, the doubts start to speak a bit louder. We're more than a third of the way through the season, and while going into full-blown panic usually isn't warranted, one does need to adjust expectations downward for a player who is still scuffling.

Not all bad seasons are created alike, though. For example, changes in walk and strikeout rate are far more likely to be retained going forward than changes in batting average on balls in play (BABIP). A homer outage for a home run hitter is a greater cause of concern than a singles hitter having a single outage.

So, which full-time players with worse-than-usual season lines should we be most concerned with? With the aid of the ZiPS projection system, I found the hitters and pitchers whose poor years have most negatively affected their short-term and long-term performance. For each player, I've included their projection from before the season and their expected projection for the rest of the season (BA/OBP/SLG for batters and ERA for pitchers).

Hitters

5. Adam Dunn -- Preseason: .252/.383/.539, Update: .235/.369/.490

There were good reasons going into the year to expect Dunn to do well in Chicago. While Dunn has always displayed what Bill James referred to as old players' skills -- walking and hitting homers -- he's only 31 and had hit 38 or 40 home runs in every year going back to 2005. U.S. Cellular Field is the best homer park in the AL and it seemed custom-fit for the former Nationals slugger. Instead, it's June and he has a slugging percentage worse than Juan Pierre. Dunn will end the year with an OPS better than .623, but the odds are that we're seeing the start of his decline.

Jake Peavy headed back to DL

White Sox right-hander Jake Peavy is headed back to the disabled list with a strained right groin.

The team hasn't made it official, but Peavy said before Tuesday's game against the Mariners that he's talked to general manager Ken Williams.
"I just saw the doctor, and I think we're going to have to go the conservative route," Peavy said. "Obviously, I wanted to try to push through it and do what we needed to do, but I think we're looking at the disabled list just because of the MRI result and how may exam just went with the doctor."
Peavy was removed from Sunday's game against the Detroit Tigers in the fourth inning. He had been dealing with a sore right groin since his May 30 start at Boston and aggravated it Sunday while trying to cover first base. He continued to pitch, giving up six runs in the inning.
An MRI confirmed he suffered a groin strain.
Peavy thinks his absence could be just a couple of weeks.
The former Cy Young winner was working through an ankle strain when he was traded to the club in 2009. He blew out his latissimus dorsi muscle and needed surgery last season. When rehabbing from that injury this spring he went through a bout of rotator cuff tendinitis.
He was making his fifth start on Sunday since returning from the surgery last July.
Manager Ozzie Guillen said before Monday's game that the White Sox will return to a five-man rotation for as long as Peavy is out. They had been using a six-man rotation since Peavy came off the disabled list on May 11.

Bryce Harper blows a kiss at pitcher

Bryce Harper's first year of professional baseball has had its share of highs and lows -- sometimes on the same play.

The Washington Nationals outfield prospect had another of those moments on Monday night, blowing a kiss to the opposing pitcher after hitting a home run in Hagerstown's 3-2 loss to Greensboro in the Class A South Atlantic League.
With the game scoreless in the sixth inning, Harper hit a home run to right-center field and took a few seconds to admire his handiwork from the batters' box before slowly tossing his bat aside and heading to first.
Greensboro pitcher Zachary Neal apparently didn't care for Harper's display and let Harper know how he felt as he rounded the bases, according to media reports. Harper replied by puckering up in Neal's direction as he reached home plate.
On Harper's next trip to the plate, with Hagerstown trailing 3-2 in the eighth, Greensboro relief pitcher Grant Dayton backed Harper off the plate with a high and inside first pitch. Harper connected with the second, but his long fly ball was caught at the fence.
"I just missed it by an inch," Harper said, according to the Hagerstown Herald-Mail. "It was a curve up and I just missed it. I thought it was out ... I get it out and it ties the game up and gives us a chance to go extra innings."

The incident was treated as a learning experience for Harper and his teammates and was handled within the team, a Nationals source told ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney.
"This was taken as a teaching moment for Bryce Harper and this entire Hagerstown club," the source said. "Twenty-five to 30 guys learn a group lesson as to the right way to play this game. So, the matter was talked about internally and is now considered closed."
Harper was on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he was 16 and accelerated his way into college, setting himself up to be the No. 1 overall pick by the Nationals in last year's draft. He signed a $9.9 million contract, the biggest payday for a drafted position player.


On ESPN's "SportsCenter," Baseball Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt -- who hit 548 career homers -- advised Harper to "tone it down and play the game."
"I would say Bryce, if you're going to hit a lot of 'em ... you'd better learn not to show up the pitcher because it's just going to get tougher and tougher on you if you watch your home runs," Schmidt said. "Just hit your home runs and hit 'em like you're used to hitting 'em, not like you're surprised when you hit one."
Asked what would happen if Harper had behaved in similar fashion in the majors, Schmidt said the benches would have likely cleared.
"I hate to bring this into it, but I would think at some point the game itself, the competition on the field, is going to have to figure out a way to police this young man," Schmidt said. "If indeed his manager won't, the game will end up taking care of it."
While some Nationals fans are clamoring for Harper to be promoted to the struggling major league team, much of Harper's game remains a work in progress.
"One of the biggest sins you can make is putting guys into position where they're going to fail early," said Doug Harris, who keeps a close in-person eye on Harper as the Nationals' director of player development. "We're really committed, but lay the blocks before we try to put in some chandeliers and some granite countertops. We want to make sure we've built a good foundation, not only on the field but in the clubhouse."
Harper validated Harris' point perfectly in a game last Thursday. While the headline will forever record that Harper hit his first walkoff homer with the Suns -- a two-run shot in the bottom of the 10th for a 9-8 win over Greenville -- the details reveal that earlier in the game he was twice erased from the bases by simple mistakes. He was picked off in the first inning, then got caught in a rundown in the fifth trying to advance on a ball in the dirt.

Jonathan Papelbon to appeal ban

Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon has been suspended for three games and fined an undisclosed amount in the aftermath of Saturday's ejection by plate umpire Tony Randazzo.

MLB said in a statement Tuesday that it was banning Papelbon because of "his inappropriate actions, which included making contact with (the) home plate umpire." The suspension was to begin Tuesday night against the New York Yankees, but Papelbon is appealing.

In the ninth inning of Saturday's extra-inning win over the Oakland Athletics, Papelbon was tossed by Randazzo after showing displeasure over called balls and strikes. The pitcher said something to Randazzo after Conor Jackson's two-run single and the umpire took off his mask and replied. Papelbon rushed toward the umpire and was ejected. At one point during the argument, Papelbon bumped Randazzo with his chest.

Before Tuesday's announcement, Papelbon said he had not been interviewed by anyone connected with Major League Baseball about the incident. Nevertheless, he suspected he would be disciplined.

"It's me," he said. "You know I don't get away with anything. I've been fined for being three seconds late (between pitches)."

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said Tuesday he had not talked to anyone either, but added: "I don't think it's closed."

Johnny Bench puts Buster Posey at fault

Hall of Famer Johnny Bench says Buster Posey's season-ending injury was the result of a mistake -- on the Giants catcher's part.
Bench, who knows all too well the physical toll of playing catcher in the major leagues, says preventing collisions at the plate is a major key to the success of any catcher.
"Buster was a finalist for the Johnny Bench Award (as the top collegiate catcher in 2008) and is a great kid -- I called him after the World Series last year," Bench told the Tulsa World this week. "When I heard about the injury, I was anxious to see how this happened. Buster put himself in such a bad position."


Posey, last year's NL rookie of the year, was knocked out for the season on a play at the plate with Marlins outfielder Scott Cousins last week, a sequence that resulted in widespread, vexing rhetoric -- and apologies from both sides.
Bench, a spring training instructor for the Reds, was playing in his third All-Star Game in 1970 when Cincinnati teammate Pete Rose barrelled over Ray Fosse at the plate for the game-winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning.
Fosse, a rookie catcher for the Cleveland Indians, was seriously injured on the play, his promising career permanently scarred.
Cousins' run also came in the 12th inning to send the Marlins past the Giants 7-6.
"First of all, my catchers don't sit in front of home plate. They stand away from home plate and work back to the plate," Bench told the Tulsa newspaper. "But we (catchers) are just fair game. You've got a guy running around third base at 210 to 220 pounds with 3 percent body fat and with sprinter's speed."
Cousins, a rookie, has been receiving death threats despite repeatedly apologizing for the May 25 collision that left Posey with a broken bone in his lower left leg and three torn ligaments in his ankle. He's had surgery and is done for the season.
"I teach my kids to stay away from the plate when you don't have the ball so the runner actually sees home plate and his thought is, slide," said Bench, who has undergone hip replacements on both legs in the past seven years after a 17-year career that ended in 1983. "But Buster is laying in front of home plate, and it's like having a disabled car in the middle of a four-lane highway. You're just going to get smacked."

 

Posey has said he felt Cousins could have slid around him but also said it was a legal play.
"Show them the plate," Bench said. "You can always catch the ball and step, or step and catch the ball, as long as you've got the runner on the ground. And if you have the runner on the ground, there's less chance of any severe collision."
Giants general manager Brian Sabean criticized Cousins on his weekly radio show, calling the play malicious and unnecessary. Sabean also said "if I never hear from Cousins again, or he doesn't play another day in the big leagues, I think we'll all be happy."
Sabean's comments got the attention of Major League Baseball, and executive vice president of baseball operations Joe Torre spoke with Sabean on Friday. The Giants also issued a statement saying Sabean's comments were made out of frustration, and the GM was trying to reach Cousins.
"We intend to move beyond conversations about last week's incident and focus our attention on Buster's full recovery and on defending our World Series title," the team said in the statement.
Cousins also issued a statement Friday and apologized again for the collision.
Florida manager Edwin Rodriguez said before Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers that he doesn't have to defend his young outfielder because Cousins didn't do anything wrong.
"As a team we don't have anything to say," Rodriguez said. "If people want to keep talking about that, let them talk."

Red Sox Marco Scutaro starts rehab

Boston Red Sox infielder Marco Scutaro, who has been on the disabled list since May 8 with a strained left oblique muscle, has joined Pawtucket on a rehab assignment for three games in Durham, N.C.

Manager Terry Francona said he will play a game at shortstop, a game at second and be the designated hitter for one game, and if all goes well Scutaro will rejoin the club prior to the series with the New York Yankees, which begins Tuesday night in New York.

Scutaro was batting .235 in 22 games (18 starts) at the time he was hurt, and had lost the starting shortstop job to Jed Lowrie. With plans to have him play second for Pawtucket, clearly the Red Sox intend to keep things the same.

Lowrie, who got off to a great start, batting .400 as late as April 28, has cooled since then. In the 20 games since Scutaro went on the DL, Lowrie is batting .260 with no home runs. But since becoming an everyday player, he has gone hitless in back-to-back games just once. That happened last week in Cleveland, prompting Francona to give him a day off. Since then, he has hit safely in his last five games, batting .333 (6 for 18). That includes the RBI single he had in Friday night's 8-6 win over the Oakland Athletics.

Lowrie is hitting nearly 200 percentage points higher against left-handers (25 for 58, .431) than right-handers (26 for 110, .236), but Francona said he has always been a better hitter from the right side.

"Offensively he's not a worry,'' Francona said. "(But) I don't think he's going to hit .400."

The manager said he also has few concerns about Lowrie's durability, despite his injury issues in the past.

"I think he's dying to show he can do this,'' Francona said.

Francona also has decisions to make regarding pitcher Clay Buchholz, who expressed sufficient concern about his back after Friday's start. The Red Sox are thinking about giving him a couple of days' extra rest, Francona said, which would knock him out of his scheduled start Wednesday in New York.

Francona said that Buchholz, whose previous start had been cut short after five innings because of back stiffness, told the club he didn't feel pain Friday, but it "was on his mind" whether it was going to hurt.

"We're going to sit down with him and talk about the best way to go forward,'' Francona said.

Tim Wakefield will throw a bullpen Saturday in case he is needed to start against the Yankees on Wednesday.

Red Sox overcome 4-run deficit to beat A's, end losing streak

Carl Crawford has struggled all season against left-handers. And when it comes to driving in runs, he's been much better on the road.
With one pitch Friday night, that all changed.

Crawford blooped a go-ahead, two-run single to center field in the seventh inning off Brian Fuentes and the Boston Red Sox ended a four-game losing streak with an 8-6 victory over the Oakland Athletics.

"You've got the bases loaded with two outs" and a full count, Crawford said. "You know he can't really play around too much right there. You know at some point he has to throw you a pitch where you can hit."

It actually was a tough pitch to hit -- inside and close to Crawford's hands. Still, he managed to send it just beyond second base to give Boston a 7-6 lead.

"We had a chance to bring Brian in against a lefty that's been hitting about .100 against lefties," Oakland manager Bob Geren said. "It's unfortunate. He made a good pitch."
Before his hit, Crawford was batting just .103 (7 for 68) against lefties this season. Of his 21 RBIs before Friday, only six were at Fenway Park, although two came from walk-off hits.

"He worked the count really well," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. "By no means did he crush that ball, but he stayed on it enough and it found the outfield grass and made everybody happy."

Joey Devine (0-1) had loaded the bases in the inning when he allowed a double by Adrian Gonzalez, hit Kevin Youkilis and walked David Ortiz. After retiring Jed Lowrie on a fly ball, Devine was replaced by Fuentes.

"In the sixth with our bullpen with the lead, I like our chances," Geren said. "We have a good bullpen."

Boston had rallied from a 4-0 deficit in the first and trailed 6-5 when Crawford, who has nine RBIs in his last nine games, delivered.

"I was just hoping it got through," Crawford said. "When I saw that, I was feeling a lot better, just watched it all the way until it dropped."

Bobby Jenks (2-2) got the win and Jonathan Papelbon pitched a perfect ninth for his 11th save in 12 opportunities.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia added a solo homer, his fifth of the year, for the Red Sox in the eighth.

The Red Sox ended their longest losing streak since they began the season 0-6. The A's dropped their fourth straight after winning four in a row.

"The type of ball we were playing (early in the season) compared to now is just two different teams," Jenks said. "Going out of spring training, this is what we were all expecting to start the year. It just showed up a little late but it's here now."

The A's ripped Clay Buchholz for four runs and five hits in the first, but the Red Sox came back to take a 5-4 lead after the third. Oakland tied it with a run in the fourth before taking a 6-5 lead on Daric Barton's RBI single in the fifth.
"It's good to get some runs early," Oakland's Josh Willingham said, "but you have to give them credit. They came back."

David DeJesus started the first-inning rally with a single, took second on a single by Willingham and scored when Hideki Matsui grounded into a fielder's choice for the second out. Then Buchholz gave up three straight hits -- a single by Kurt Suzuki that sent Matsui to second, an RBI single by Barton and a two-run single by Mark Ellis.

The Red Sox began chipping away at the 4-0 lead with two runs in the bottom of the first. Jacoby Ellsbury led off with a single, took second on his 20th stolen base of the season and third on a wild pitch, then scored on Gonzalez's groundout. Youkilis followed with a double and scored on Ortiz's single.

Ellsbury's sacrifice fly made it 4-3 in the second and Boston took the lead in the third when Ortiz doubled in one run and Lowrie singled in another off starter Josh Outman. After retiring the next batter, Outman was replaced by Guillermo Moscoso, who pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings.


Oakland tied the score at 5 when Kevin Kouzmanoff singled, took second on a wild pickoff throw by Buchholz and third on a wild pitch before scoring on Coco Crisp's groundout.


Buchholz kept struggling in the fifth. Willingham led off with a double, moved up on a flyout by Matsui and scored on a single by Barton that drove Buchholz from the game.

Game notes
The Red Sox transferred RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka from the 15- to the 60-day DL and placed LHP Rich Hill on the 15-day DL, both with elbow injuries. Francona said after the game that Matsuzaka would have season-ending Tommy John surgery, probably next week. ... The Athletics placed RHP Grant Balfour on paternity leave and recalled RHP Fautino De Los Santos from Triple-A Sacramento. ... In his other appearance this season against Oakland, Buchholz allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings in a 5-3 win on April 20. ... Tommy Hottovy, a 2004 draft choice by Boston, made his major league debut, retiring the only batter he faced to end the sixth. ... Fuentes was 0-4 with two saves in his previous seven appearances.

Six Yankees lead in early All-Star voting

Arizona should start preparing for a New York invasion.
In the first update of voting for the 2011 American League All-Star team, the Yankees have six players who are the top vote-getters at their positions, including the entire starting infield.
The six players are catcher Russell Martin, first baseman Mark Teixeira, second baseman Robinson Cano, third baseman Alex Rodriguez, shortstop Derek Jeter and center fielder Curtis Granderson. The All-Star Game is July 12 in Phoenix.
As Jeter gets closer and closer to his 3,000th hit, he's also closing in on his 12th All-Star team, garnering 931,410 votes so far, putting him comfortably ahead of Cleveland's Asdrubal Cabrera.
Rodriguez could grab his 13th All-Star spot and his first start since 2008, with 945,127 votes in the early going. He's ahead of Texas' Adrian Beltre and Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria.
Cano has the second-most votes of all players, behind only Toronto's Jose Bautista, and has more than twice the votes of second-place Dustin Pedroia. Teixeira also leads a member of the Boston Red Sox in the voting, as he is almost 142,000 votes ahead of Adrian Gonzalez.
New catcher Russell Martin has a cushy lead over Minnesota Twins backstop Joe Mauer with 843,459 votes. He's looking for an appearance on his third All-Star team and his first start since 2007, when he was with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Granderson has the second-most votes among outfielders with 994,315.
The only Yankees not in first at their positions are outfielders Brett Gardner (11th), Nick Swisher (7th) and designated hitter Jorge Posada (3rd). Michael Young leads at DH, while his Texas teammate Josh Hamilton would be the third outfielder.
The starting rosters for the game will be announced July 3 during the All-Star Game Selection Show on TBS.

Daughter: Gary Carter 'ready to battle'

Gary Carter is resting comfortably at home in Florida, preparing for a cancer treatment that calls for 6½ weeks of radiation and one year of chemotherapy, his daughter wrote on a private family website Thursday morning.
Carter's daughter, Kimmy Bloemers, wrote in a journal entry that his treatment will likely begin Monday.


"Doctor said they are going after these tumors aggressively. ... Dad is ready to battle," Bloemers wrote.


Bloemers added that Carter is "happy" and "motivated" after some much-needed rest on Wednesday.


"He sounds like a completely different person. He is in fantastic spirits," she wrote.


Doctors treating Carter confirmed on Tuesday that he has glioblastoma, a form of cancer that affects the brain and central nervous system.


Doctors said surgery "is not a good option given the location of the tumor."


Carter has been approved to take Avastin, Bloemers wrote. According to the drug's website, Avastin's purpose is to prevent the growth of blood vessels that feed tumors.


The 57-year-old Carter, who just completed his second season as Palm Beach Atlantic University's baseball coach, announced May 21 that an MRI had revealed four small tumors on his brain.


After being diagnosed, Carter, perhaps best known for his contributions to the New York Mets' 1986 World Series-winning squad, said, "My wife, Sandy, and our children and family thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We ask you to please respect our privacy as we learn more about my medical condition."


Carter, an 11-time All-Star, was inducted into Cooperstown in 2003 after retiring in 1992 with the Montreal Expos. He finished his 19-year career with a .262 average, 324 home runs and 1,225 RBIs.

By: http://sports.espn.go.com/

Roy Halladay gives up 3 HRs but Phillies find a way past Nats

In most cases, when a pitcher gives up two hits to open the seventh inning after a long outing, a manager would think about making a move to the bullpen. With Roy Halladay on the mound, Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel didn't flinch.

Halladay got out of the seventh inning jam by striking out Jayson Werth and beat the Washington Nationals for the 10th straight time, with some help from Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez.

Halladay allowed 10 hits and four runs over 7 innings, striking out five without a walk. Howard and Ibanez hit back-to-back homers in the fourth and each drove in a run in Philadelphia's seventh-inning rally for a 5-4 win Monday.

After the Phillies took the lead in the top of the seventh, the Nationals appeared poised to snatch it back. Alex Cora led off with a double, and a bunt single by Ian Desmond put runners on the corners with no outs. Despite the trouble, Manuel trusted his ace, and Halladay (7-3) came through.

"He was there all the way. He got out of it, didn't he?," Manuel said. "That's who he is. He wants to be there, and that's what a No. 1 does."

Halladay knocked down a grounder up the middle by Rick Ankiel and caught Cora in a rundown for the first out, then Danny Espinosa popped out before Werth's strikeout.

"It was a grind, it really was," Halladay said. "Fortunately we did enough offensively. They picked me up a couple times. It was a nice way to end it, for sure."

The Phillies' offense put Halladay ahead in the top of the seventh with three big at-bats by left-handed hitters -- Chase Utley, Howard and Ibanez -- against the Nationals' left-handed reliever Sean Burnett.

Starter Livan Hernandez left with a 4-3 lead in the seventh inning after allowing a one-out single to Placido Polanco. Burnett (0-2) then walked Utley and Howard followed with a run-scoring single to tie the game. Ibanez's sacrifice fly scored Utley with the go-ahead run.

"That was a key point for us in the game, to be able to come back," Howard said. "It was a hard-fought game by both teams, back and forth."

Halladay gave up solo home runs to Michael Morse, Espinosa and Laynce Nix, the first time this season he's given up multiple homers in a game. Halladay had allowed a total of two home runs in his first 11 starts.

"It's hard to walk away from this one," Burnett said. "Livo threw a good game. Our offense put up four on Halladay, that's not going to happen too much. We need a win, and we had it won if I can execute and get the lefties out I'm supposed to get."

Halladay is 11-1 against the Nationals and Expos franchise since losing June 28, 2002, in Montreal.

Washington has now lost three in a row and eight of nine.

Howard and Ibanez keyed two big Phillies rallies. The back-to-back homers started a three-run fourth inning to put Philadelphia ahead after Washington had taken a 2-0 lead in the second on Morse's homer and Hernandez's sacrifice squeeze bunt.

Espinosa tied the game at 3 with a two-out home run into the right field seats in the fifth, and Washington took a 4-3 lead on Nix's shot in the sixth inning.

Manuel said he knew teams would start to score runs even against his star pitcher with the weather warming up. The temperature was 92 degrees when the game started at 1 p.m.

"This is hitting season," Manuel said. "It's hot, it's warm, they're swinging. Teams get up for Roy, which is good. He likes that. That's part of competing, and part of who he is. ... Some days you're going to get hit, and he passed the test pretty good today."

Game notesPhiladelphia is 24-0 when leading after seven innings this season. ... Ibanez has 999 career RBIs. ... Halladay has gone at least six innings in 60 straight road starts, the longest streak since Walter Johnson did it in 82 straight from 1911-1915. ... Ryan Madson pitched a perfect ninth for his 12th save in 12 chances. ... Nationals SS Desmond was held out of the starting lineup to rest, although he entered as part of a double switch in the seventh inning. Washington manager Jim Riggleman said Desmond has some "aches and pains." ... Both teams wore stars-and-stripes themed caps for the Memorial Day holiday. "If you're going to play on Memorial Day, I can't imagine anyplace else to play a baseball game than Washington, D.C.," Manuel said. "That's pretty good."

Docs think Gary Carter has glioblastoma

The family of Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter received an update from Duke University doctors on Carter's cancer diagnosis Saturday night. Doctors informed Carter's family that they were "99 percent sure" that he has a Grade 4 glioblastoma, which affects the brain and central nervous system. It is inoperable.

Amid the sad news on Gary Carter, we look back at happier times at the Hall of Famer's top Mets moments.

The doctors will know more Tuesday and are expected to confirm results then. Despite the difficult diagnosis, the family remains hopeful that Carter can be cured completely, Carter's daughter, Kimmy Bloemers, wrote on a family website.
"This will not be an easy road at all, nor is this a simple battle but WE WILL FIGHT," Bloemers wrote late Saturday night.
Doctors told the Carter family that Carter's tumors are "like a snake of tumors that are connected across the back of the brain," according to Bloemers' post on the family website.
But Bloemers writes that Carter's doctor, Dr. Henry S. Friedman, remains optimistic.
"We are going for it, attacking it and doing all we can to shrink these tumors. (Friedman) explained that we are not fighting to prolong Dad's life, instead, we are fighting to cure him completely," Bloemers writes. "He is encouraged that dad will be able to fight well because he is so young, strong and healthy."
Doctors from Duke University said in a statement released Friday that Carter's tumors appeared to be malignant.

The 57-year-old Carter, who just completed his second season as Palm Beach Atlantic University's baseball coach, announced May 21 that an MRI had revealed four small tumors on his brain. Doctors performed biopsies on a single tumor on Friday before announcing that it appeared to be malignant. Carter had been complaining of headaches and forgetfulness before his diagnosis.

After being diagnosed, Carter said, "My wife, Sandy, and our children and family thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We ask you to please respect our privacy as we learn more about my medical condition."
Carter, an 11-time All-Star, was inducted into Cooperstown in 2003 after retiring in 1992 with the Montreal Expos. He finished his 19-year career with a .262 average, 324 home runs and 1,225 RBIs.
The effervescent Carter, nicknamed "Kid," is perhaps best known for helping the New York Mets win the 1986 World Series. He had 24 homers and 105 RBIs that year, then drove in 11 runs in the postseason.
Carter is surrounded by his family while being treated at the The Preston Robert Tisch Brian Tumor Center at Duke.