June 2012 - Baseball Wiretap

Nationals Made Decision On Strasburg In April
Stephen Strasburg will make the second-to-last start of his season on Friday against the Marlins.

Zack Meisel/MLB.com

Justin Upton At Peace With Uncertain Future
With less than a month left in the season, Justin Upton is well aware that his time with the Diamondbacks could be coming to an end.

Nick Piecoro/Arizona Republic

If Scioscia Is Fired, Red Sox Will Court Him
The Red Sox and Angels have both struggled this season.

Bob Nightengale/USA Today

Chris Berman Signs Extension With ESPN
Chris Berman joined ESPN in October 1979, less than a month after the network launched.

Associated Press

Valentine Tells Radio Host He'd Like To Punch Him
Glenn Ordway asked Bobby Valentine if he had "checked out", and the manager took issue with the question.

Gary Dzen/Boston Globe

Niese Could Bring Solid Return For Mets
Jon Niese is enjoying a career-year and many around baseball suggest that he could bring a nice return to the Mets in a trade this winter.

Andy McCullough/Star-Ledger

Source: Mets Loss Falls To $23M
The Mets cut their 2012 payroll by $50 million from 2011.

Josh Kosman/New York Post

Red Sox Expected To Target Farrell, Wallach To Replace Valentine
Boston wanted to hire John Farrell last winter, but the Blue Jays blocked the lateral move.

Michael Silverman/Boston Herald

Berkman Plans To Get Degree, Coach In Retirement
If he chooses to retire after this season, Lance Berkman plans to return to Rice University to finish his degree and work as a student assistant coach for the baseball team.

FOX Houston

Red Sox Unlikely To Go On Spending Spree With Newfound Flexibility
The Red Sox saved $260 million from now through 2017 when they traded Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett to the Dodgers last month.

Brian MacPherson/Providence Journal

After Flurry Of Deals, Dodgers Looking To Extend Colletti
The guaranteed portion of Ned Colletti's contract expires at the end of the season.

Bill Shaikin/Los Angeles Times

Clemens Insists He Won't Pitch For Astros This Season
Roger Clemens will make a second start for the Sugar Land Skeeters, but insists that he won't pitch for the Astros this season.

Associated Press

Orioles Climb Back Into First Place Tie With Yankees
The Orioles beat the Yankees 10-6 on Thursday night at Camden Yards, hitting a season-high six home runs.

ESPN.com

Brandon McCarthy Showing Improvement After Surgery
A's pitcher Brandon McCarthy is showing signs of improvement after having surgery Thursday for a skull fracture and brain contusion caused by a line drive.

ESPN.com

Clemens-McNamee Lawyers Agree To Pretrial Schedule
Lawyers for Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee have agreed to a pretrial schedule in the suit between the pitcher and his former personal trainer.

ESPN.com

Jered Weaver To Miss Next Start With Sore Shoulder
Jered Weaver will miss Friday's start against the Tigers because of shoulder tendonitis.

ESPN.com

Clemens Will Pitch To Son In Second 'Sugar Land' Start
Roger Clemens will pitch to his oldest son, Koby, when he makes his second Independent League start on Friday.

ESPN.com

Chad Billingsley Done For This Season
The Dodgers transferred Chad Billingsley to the 60-day DL Wednesday, eliminating any chance of returning to the team this season.

ESPN.com

Juan Carlos Oviedo Has Tommy John Surgery
Marlins relief pitcher Juan Carlos Oviedo underwent Tommy John surgery on Thursday.

ESPN.com

Dickey Has Deal For Three Children's Books
R.A. Dickey has a deal with Dial Books for Younger Readers for three books, which includes a kid's version of his memoir.

ESPN.com

Valentine Calls First Season With Red Sox 'Miserable'
Bobby Valentine said that he was joking about punching a Boston sports radio host.

ESPN.com

Utley Preparing For Possible Move To Third
Chase Utley fielded balls at third base on Tuesday, but Charlie Manuel wasn't at liberty to discuss whether that means a position change is imminent.

Mark Clements/MLB.com

Teixeira Hopes To Return Soon; Yankees Just 2-5 Without Him
Mark Teixeira hasn't played since Aug. 27 when he strained his left calf.

George A. King III/New York Post

Rollins Reaches 2,000-Hit Mark, Sets Sights On Bowa
Larry Bowa had 2,191 hits in his career and Jimmy Rollins is eager to pass his old skipper and verbal sparring partner.

Jim Salisbury/CSN Philly

McCann's Time With Braves May Be Nearing End
Brian McCann has struggled this season, posting career lows in both batting average and RBIs.

Andy Johnston/FOX Sports

Chris Perez Attacks Cleveland Management, Ownership
Chris Perez was asked about the differences between the Indians and rival Tigers.

Zack Meisel/MLB.com

Missing Playoffs Could Change Yankees' Plan To Lower Payroll
The Yankees are planning to get their payroll below the $189 million luxury tax threshold by 2014.

Ken Rosenthal/FOX Sports

Hammel Will Return To Bolster Surging Orioles
Jason Hammel is expected to come off the disabled list and start against the Yankees on Thursday.

Associated Press

Jered Weaver To Have Arm Examined
Jered Weaver has allowed more than three runs in just five of his 25 starts this season.

Associated Press

DeWayne Wise Pitches Scoreless Ninth For White Sox
The Twins scored 18 runs against the White Sox on Tuesday night, leading them to put outfielder DeWayne Wise on the mound for the ninth inning.

Scott Merkin/MLB.com