Billy Wagner is having arm troubles again.  The closer is heading for an MRI on his throwing arm on Tuesday, and even the most optimistic projections would have him missing some time.  Wagner has told the Mets team site that he won’t risk further injury by pitching through pain after having a scare a few weeks ago.  All bad news for the Mets.

The Twins didn’t make a move on Thursday allowing the trade deadline to pass without changing the roster.  The team still has a chance to improve its team in a big way by finally recalling Francisco Liriano.  The southpaw really should have been back up in the majors weeks ago, and the Twins finally appear ready to rectify this situation soon.

According to the Minneapolis Start-Tribune, Minnesota appears ready to release Livan Hernandez to create a spot for Liriano in the

The Angels acquired the big prize hitter on the trade market sending Casey Kotchman and minor league pitcher Stephen Marek to the Braves for slugger Mark Teixeira.  The move should better position the team from Orange County for a serious run through the playoffs.  The Angels are virtually assured of winning the AL West, but their offense would probably be an issue against the other contenders like Boston, Chicago, and New York.

Teixeira should fit nicely hitting either in front or behind Vladimir Guerrero.  With the additions of Teixeira, Torii Hunter, and Juan Rivera

Baltimore’s Adam Loewen has decided to give up pitching after suffering through several injuries to his arm and will try to become an outfielder.  Loewen was drafted No. 4 overall in 2002, and was named Baltimore’s top prospect by Baseball American in 2004.  He was rated second best in 2006.  This move is surprising given how rare a move like this is at the major league level, but the successful conversion of Rick Ankiel shows that it can be done.

Usually, an All-Star game of any kind is little more than an exhibition.  This year, baseball’s version lived up to its billing as the “Midsummer Classic.”  The American League continued its dominance winning the game 4-3 in 15 innings in front of a sellout crowd in the last year of Yankee Stadium.

 

Justin Morneau scored the winning run on a sacrifice fly by Michael Young by just beating Corey Hart’s throw to the plate.  The game last

Ben Sheets and Cliff Lee have been picked to start Wednesday’s All-Star game at Yankees Stadium.  Their selections mean that the final starting rosters have been set.  The All-Star festivities began on Sunday with the Futures Game that was won by the World team 3-0.  The events will continue on Monday with the Home Run Derby followed by the actual game on Tuesday.

Dodger shortstop Rafael Furcal will undergo surgery to repair a bulging disc leaving his season (and his team's playoff chances) in doubt.  He is expected to miss two months at the minimum, but that means he would be returning in September which leaves precious few games left in the regular season.  Los Angeles started Thursday just 1.5 games behind Arizona, and in the West two good weeks could create a comfortable cushion in the standings.

 

Furcal was hitting .366 with a 1.045 OPS at the time of his injury.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been a disappointment all season.  The off-season signings of manger Joe Torre and slugging outfielder Andruw Jones brought optimism to Chavez Ravine, but that has morphed into a 38-43 record at the halfway point.  Torre has not been able to ignite a punchless offense, and Jones is among 10 players currently on the disabled list (which is probably a good thing - he's been terrible at the plate).

By the miracle of the mediocre National West however, the Dodgers still stand just 2.5 games out of first place and the playoff spot that comes with

Here are some injury notes on some key players in baseball this week.  Fantasy players should pay close attention because some of the biggest names will be spending some extended time on the bench:

• Chipper Jones has already missed 8 games, and now he looks headed to the DL.  Jones has avoided the disabled list all season despite a nagging hamstring injury, but now he may also miss the All-Star game despite hitting .394 for the season.

• Yunel

During and after the fantasy football season a few of my fellow bloggers have been asking me how I was able to get all that traffic during the season. Although there were many reasons I was able to get that traffic, there was one strategy in particular that was responsible for the most. Today I'm going to share that traffic building strategy with you.

Also, not only will this simple strategy help you get a nice supply of traffic but it will help you find loyal readers, make more friends and have more fun blogging about the sport you love.

Although I used this strategy to promote