Boo birds greet Sox in enemy territory

NEW YORK -- The Boston Red Sox may be adopting Yankee Stadium as their home for the next two nights, but that doesn't mean Yankee Stadium has to adopt the American League East leaders.

One of the questions that has lingered over the 79th All-Star Game -- would Bronx fans overlook their Boston bias in favor of AL partisanship? -- was answered emphatically during Monday afternoon's workout.

And the answer: No! Or, rather: Boo!

Each of the six Red Sox wearing "American" practice jerseys was booed lustily as he took his turn in the batting cage.

Jason Varitek ... Dustin Pedroia ... J.D. Drew ... Manny Ramirez ... Kevin Youkilis.

This time, those cries really weren't "Youuuuk!" but "Boo!"

Even an ersatz Boston All-Star got the treatment. David Ortiz, knocked off the active All-Star roster by his recovering left wrist injury, took a turn in the cage and under the shower of boos.

Ortiz's workout, actually, was enough to encourage the first-place Red Sox, who hope to be able to soon reinsert him into their lineup. Ortiz took infield drills at first base, showing no problem making left-handed tosses. But the best sign of his improving condition was having to check his swing on a BP pitch, and doing so without grimace.

Those "American" pregame jerseys, incidentally, were Yankees colored.

Coincidence or not, the fan behind the home dugout couldn't resist yelling to Varitek, as Boston's team captain came off the field: "Hey, Varitek -- you look good in blue and white!"

Biggest star at All-Star Game is Stadium

NEW YORK -- Cliff Lee and Ben Sheets have been named the starting pitchers, and both Terry Francona and Clint Hurdle had a pair of stacked lineups to fill out, loaded with the best talent in the big leagues.

No matter. When the first pitch of the All-Star Game is thrown tonight, the biggest star will still be the building.

The 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game promises to be a celebration of Yankee Stadium and its rich history in the American sporting scene, revolving around the New York Yankees' final season in the game's cathedral before moving into a gleaming facility across the street next season.

"We are all aware of the history of what has happened because of the success of the franchise, and we're looking forward to competing against the National League," said Francona, who will pilot the American League squad after bringing the Red Sox to their second World Series in four years. "Hopefully, it will be a game that they will talk about forever."

From the iconic frieze ringing the outfield fences to Monument Park and the very patches of land where Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle roamed, there is plenty to celebrate at Yankee Stadium.

But it will be more than just an exhibition of hallowed ground, as the American and National Leagues again fight for home-field advantage in the World Series. The AL is looking to extend its unbeaten streak to 12 games, having last defeated the NL in the 2007 Midsummer Classic at San Francisco's AT&T Park.

"We're involved in this game, we play this game for the championship ring," said Hurdle, calling the shots from the NL dugout after bringing his Rockies within four victories of a title last October. "This game now gives a team a better opportunity, by winning this game, to win the championship ring. That is the one point that I do want to make sure that our club is aware of and responsible for as we take the field."

Lee gets the starting nod for the AL after going 12-2 with a 2.31 ERA in 18 first-half starts. He is tied for first in the AL in wins and he became just the fourth pitcher in Indians history to start a season 11-1 or better, but the first since Charles Nagy did it in 1996.

"I'm just honored to be here, to be honest with you," Lee said. "To get the start is icing on the cake. I've never even been in an All-Star Game, let alone this one in the final year at this ballpark. It's something special."

Sheets will take the ball for the Senior Circuit. In 18 starts this season for the Brewers, he is 10-3 with a 2.85 ERA and ranks in the top 10 in the National League in wins, ERA, strikeouts, WHIP (walks plus hits/innings pitched) and strikeout/walk ratio among other categories. Tonight will mark his first game action ever in Yankee Stadium.

"I'm going to take the opportunity to see everything, like, what do they call them, the monuments?" Sheets said, referring to Monument Park. "I'm going to do a sightseeing tour and I'm going to enjoy every minute of it."

The home team will be represented by leading vote-getter Alex Rodriguez and Yankees captain Derek Jeter, who will comprise the left side of the starting AL infield. Mariano Rivera is likely to be called upon in the ninth inning should the AL get a lead that far, closing out the final All-Star Game in Yankee Stadium history.

"It's going to be special," Jeter said. "It might be a little bit more special for guys like us who play with the Yankees, but I'm sure other teams are going to find it special as well. It's a celebration of the Stadium, that's the best way to put it.

"This is a stadium that's been important to society, not only to baseball, because so many things have happened. To get the opportunity to celebrate it with this All-Star Game, Major League Baseball deserves a lot of credit."

The fact that Major League Baseball has selected Yankee Stadium for this year's festivities is no accident. An official announcement was made in Jan. 2007, with commissioner Allan H. "Bud" Selig citing the Stadium's rich history and also owner George Steinbrenner's impact on the game.

A special pregame ceremony will feature the largest gathering of baseball stars in history, with more than 40 Hall of Famers who will be honored on the field prior to the game as a gesture to the majesty and history of Yankee Stadium during its last year. The pregame ceremony will begin at 8 p.m. ET and will air live on FOX.

The All-Star events will be tinged with sadness following the passing of longtime Yankees outfielder and broadcaster Bobby Murcer, himself a five-time All-Star. Murcer passed away Saturday at the age of 62 following a 19-month battle with brain cancer, and there are plans to honor him prior to the start of the game.

Tonight will mark the fourth time that Yankee Stadium has hosted an All-Star Game, with Midsummer Classics also having been held there in 1939, 1960 and 1977. The Yankees reached the World Series in all three of those previous seasons.

It is the first time that a ballpark has hosted an All-Star Game in its final year and also the eighth All-Star Game to be held in New York; the Polo Grounds hosted the event in 1934 and 1942, Ebbets Field in 1949 and Shea Stadium in 1964.

The 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8 p.m. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage that will also be available on XM Satellite Radio, while MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage.

Miles leads Cardinals past Bucs

PITTSBURGH -- The Cardinals and Pirates staged an offensive shootout, with the Cards posting an 11-6 victory in front of 21,052 on Sunday afternoon at PNC Park.

St. Louis captured two of the three contests in the final action prior to the All-Star break.

"The win is obviously why you play, because if you keep score you want to win," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "It was really important that we put that game last night behind us, and with this group, I could hear the conversations in there. They were getting themselves ready to play. What was important is we came out there and showed everybody that, look, you beat us last night and we're going to try to beat you today."

Cards starter Joel Pineiro was staked to a 4-1 lead, but he ended up with no decision after allowing six runs on 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings.

"Pineiro showed in Philadelphia what he has," La Russa said. "I just think sometimes he tries so hard to make a pitch that he just misses the zone. He makes a great pitch and gets a good result, and then he'll miss and he doesn't get away with it. This is the big leagues, and you just don't get away with it here."

Pineiro thought his outing left room for improvement.

"It could have been better," he said. "As a starting pitcher, I can't let a game get away like that. I went from throwing 50 some pitches to throwing 107 in five and one-third. That's when you give credit to the other team -- they battled back, but I've just got to find a way in situations like that to make better pitches and try to get out of the inning. I didn't do that today."

Pirates starter Ian Snell hurled five innings and surrendered four runs on five hits.

The Pirates jumped out to a 1-0 advantage in the bottom of the first inning. Chris Gomez singled and went to second when Ryan Doumit was hit by a pitch. Gomez scored on a Xavier Nady RBI single.

The Cards broke through against Snell in the fourth inning, plating four runs with two outs. Back-to-back doubles by Troy Glaus and Chris Duncan made it 1-1. After Yadier Molina drew a walk, Aaron Miles stroked a three-run homer to right field to put the Cards on top. It was Miles' second homer of the season.

Pittsburgh stormed back to tie the game at 4 in the bottom of the fifth inning. Pinch-hitter Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson had back-to-back singles and both scored on an RBI double by Doumit. Jason Bay sent Doumit home with an RBI single to left.

St. Louis recaptured the lead in the sixth inning, plating an unearned run off Bucs reliever Sean Burnett. Molina singled and advanced to second on an error by second baseman Gomez. Molina eventually scored on a fielder's choice groundout by Cesar Izturis to give the Cards a 5-4 lead.

The Pirates got to Pineiro again in the bottom of the sixth, knocking him out of the game. Burnett garnered his first Major League hit, a one-out double. Nate McLouth walked, and then Gomez smacked a two-run double to put Pittsburgh ahead, 6-5. Russ Springer came on in relief and got out of the inning.

The Pirates inserted reliever Franquelis Osoria. He was roughed up for four runs in the top of the seventh inning. As Glaus stroked an RBI double, Duncan had an RBI single and Miles stroked a two-run triple to give him five RBIs in the game.

"I got some good pitches to hit," Miles said. "I've been beat by Snell on the inside corner pretty much all year, and so I figured he might be coming in there and just got lucky and got my barrel on it and got it up."

Cards outfielder Ryan Ludwick connected for a solo home run in the eighth inning and Glaus added a solo shot -- his 15th homer of the season -- in the ninth inning.

Glaus finished the three-game series with 10 hits in 13 at-bats.

"It was just a matter of putting the barrel on the ball and not having it go to anybody," Glaus explained. "I hit a handful of balls hard and a few not so hard, but they got through."

St. Louis came into the series scuffling offensively, but the Redbirds pounded out 50 hits and scored 28 runs in the three-game series.

Uggla honored to take part in HR Derby

LOS ANGELES -- Yankee Stadium is a far cry from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

Distance-wise, we're talking about the span of the country or from New York to California. Yet, the two places on Monday night will share a common bond in the heart of Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla.

The 28-year-old All-Star is one of the four selected to represent the National League in the State Farm Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium at 8 p.m. ET.

Increasing in popularity, the Home Run Derby is a marquee event during the All-Star festivities. The only other time Uggla has ever participated in a long-ball challenge was in Rancho Cucamonga. The year was 2003, when he was playing in advanced Class A Lancaster in the California League.

Then with the Diamondbacks system, Uggla was picked to participate in a season where he ended up with 23 home runs.

How did he do?

"I didn't advance," he said. "I think I only hit one or two homers."

More than the outcome, Uggla was just happy to participate.

"It was a blast," he said. "It was a lot of fun."

The stakes will be higher at historic Yankee Stadium.

In all, eight will compete to take over the Home Run Derby reigns from Vladimir Guerrero, the 2007 champion.

Joining Uggla for the National League will be Lance Berkman of the Astros, Chase Utley of the Phillies and Ryan Braun of the Brewers.

The American League squad features Texas' Josh Hamilton, Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria, Cleveland's Grady Sizemore and Minnesota's Justin Morneau.

Of those involved heading into Sunday's action, Berkman has the most career homers, 281.

The way Uggla handicaps the Derby, the competition is wide open.

"It's such a significant event, I think anybody has got a chance to win it," said Uggla, who has 23 on the season and 81 in his 2 1/2-year Major League career.

Uggla is the first Major League second baseman in nearly 70 years to belt at least 20 home runs in each of his first three seasons. Joe Gordon with the Yankees had a string of four straight from 1938-41.

An aggressive hitter who takes big cuts, Uggla has a lot of power compacted on his 5-foot-11, 200-pound frame.

Admittedly he is a fan of the Derby.

"I grew up watching the Home Run Derby; I think a lot more people watch the Home Run Derby than they do the game," Uggla said. "It's just a special thing. It's a time to relax, have fun with each other. You can see a guy hit the ball a long way. This is one thing I never dreamed I'd ever be in."

Adding to the appeal is that the event will be at Yankee Stadium.

"Obviously, it's going to be a special time," said the Columbia, Tenn., resident. "Everybody knows the significance of Yankee Stadium. This is the last year that I'll get to play there. So obviously, yeah, I wanted to get healthy and have a chance to play in that stadium one last time."

As of a few days ago, there was a little concern if Uggla would be ready for the All-Star festivities. He sprained his left ankle on June 28, and he missed 11 games before returning to the lineup on Thursday against the Dodgers.

At the time he rolled his ankle, Uggla was leading the Major Leagues in home runs.

Laid back, Uggla is an old-school performer. He doesn't overthink or overanalyze the art of hitting. He looks for a pitch to drive, and pretty much takes a big cut.

To him, it doesn't matter who throws to him in the Derby. Normally in Marlins batting practices, Uggla will face either bullpen coordinator Pierre Arsenault or manager Fredi Gonzalez.

Uggla plans on just finding someone in New York to do the honors.

The reason Uggla isn't asking anyone on the staff is because he wants them to take the break off.

"I think the All-Star break, for most of these guys, they'll have a chance to be with their families," Uggla said. "That's what I want these guys to do. I'll get somebody to throw to me up there. It doesn't matter who it is. I think a lot of guys bring their BP throwers. But these guys have families they never get to see.

"To have somebody go up there to throw BP [or Derby rounds] to somebody, I don't really think it is worth it when you have a family to see. It's all just fun. I'll just find somebody up there to throw strikes."

The only weapons Uggla is bringing to New York to help with his Derby quest are some bats that belonged to teammate Jorge Cantu.

Cantu has given Uggla a few of his 34 1/2-inch, 31 1/2-ounce bats. Normally, the Marlins second baseman uses a 33 1/2-inch, 31-ounce bat.

The way Uggla is approaching the Derby is like it's just a higher-profile round of batting practice.

"I feel, with my good swing, if you catch it right and put it on the barrel, it's going to go out," he said. "It's not something I would change my swing for. It will be just like in BP without the batting cage."

Peavy turns in gem for Padres

SAN DIEGO -- Jake Peavy, for the most part, disregarded the first question asked to him by the media after the Padres' 4-0 victory against the Atlanta Braves on Friday at PETCO Park. He instead decided to give props to his catcher, Luke Carlin.

Peavy started by saying, "Tonight was a good night." Then he stopped and quickly switched gears.

"You know what? I can't speak highly enough of Luke Carlin. Carlin has done an outstanding job since he's been catching me. The amount of work he puts into it and the amount of pride he takes in catching me every fifth day. I want to give him some props, he's sure done a nice job."

Whatever Carlin is doing to help Peavy will be continuously welcomed by the Padres as long as Peavy continues to perform how he has in his past few starts.

After dealing with his stint on the disabled list, Peavy truly looked like the Peavy of old as he carved through a Braves lineup.

"It was a solid game against what I see as a good offensive team," manager Bud Black said.

Nevertheless, behind a Peavy line of seven shutout innings of four-hit ball with seven strikeouts, the Padres took an early advantage in both teams' last series before the All-Star break.

And it's a series that the Padres want to have.

"It would be great going into the All-Star break winning the series," Scott Hairston said. "That's always good to create momentum for after we come back. Hopefully, we can come back and win tomorrow."

Hairston again did his part and did it early, by leading off the first inning with a triple then trotting across home plate on an RBI groundout by Edgar Gonzalez to put the first run on the board.

Hairston then led off the third inning with a double to left. Edgar Gonzalez followed with a single to right before Adrian Gonzalez brought Hairston home on a single of his own.

"[Hairston's] seeing the ball well, he's taking good swings, he's confident and there's some momentum there," Black said. "When you are swinging at strikes and taking balls, those are signs of a guy who's swinging well."

Peavy continued to dominate as the Braves were kept off balance by his continual changing of speeds. His variation of speeds is what Black viewed as one of the strengths of Peavy's performance.

"He threw some slow curveballs, a couple to Chipper Jones, and that kind of planted the seed for the rest of the guys in the lineup," Black said. "There was a little variation of his 94, all the way down to around 70. That was something we talked about was the variation of the velocity. And I think the more that he can do that, he will be effective."

Offensively, Hairston got some help from Jody Gerut and an unlikely source -- Braves outfielder Gregor Blanco.

Gerut came up in the sixth inning to pinch-hit for Chip Ambres. Gerut hit a crisp ball to left that went through the legs of Blanco. What would have been a RBI single scoring Kevin Kouzmanoff turned into Gerut landing on third and Adrian Gonzalez also crossing the plate as Blanco was called for a two-base error, making the score 4-0.

"I thought it was a good matchup for Jody there," Black said. "Chip is playing well, he's taking good swings but I just felt in that situation, against [Braves' reliever Buddy Carlyle] that Jody was the right matchup for us there."

Black made the right adjustments when he needed to and the bats were awake on Friday. But what made Friday a good thing for the Padres was that it landed on a Peavy start.

"Jake was great tonight," Hairston said, "and that's all we needed really."

Francona, Sox thrilled Buchholz is back

BOSTON -- Before Friday's outing against the Orioles, it had been two months since Clay Buchholz started for the Red Sox, and manager Terry Francona was happy prior to the contest thinking about the 23-year-old making his way back to the rotation.

"We're excited," Francona said before the game. "I think the one thing is, we'll have to fight either way. If he throws a no-hitter, he's going to the Hall of Fame. If he gets hit around, he's not good enough."

Buchholz's return wasn't exactly the no-hitter Francona mentioned. The right-hander labored through a 29-pitch first inning before leaving after the fifth and taking the loss in Boston's 7-3 defeat. Still, there was room for optimism in what the Sox saw.

"I was trying to impress," Buchholz said. "Being down in Triple-A, knowing that I was sent down there to work on some stuff ... [I was] trying to show that I got better down there. Trying a little bit too hard."

Buchholz last pitched on May 12, against Minnesota. He was placed on the 15-day disabled list shortly after that contest with a broken fingernail on his right index finger and spent all of his time with Triple-A Pawtucket until Friday.

Francona and pitching coach John Farrell have stressed that the biggest initiative in keeping Buchholz with the PawSox for two months was to work on his arm-slot mechanics and improve his fastball. But on Friday he was back, facing the team he no-hit in his second career start in 2007 -- the Baltimore Orioles.

This outing did not go quite as smoothly.

"I thought he had times when he worked ahead and then tried to make a great pitch," Francona said. "[He] worked the count back into hitter's counts, or evened up, and it was 107 [pitches] after five [innings]. That's a lot, but I did think there's a lot to like."

Buchholz took the rotation spot of Justin Masterson, who was sent to Pawtucket earlier in the week to be converted into a reliever. Throughout his own stint with the PawSox, Buchholz showed his dedication toward making the necessary improvements to his game.

"He's done a good job of working," Francona said. "We've asked him to do some things, some a little differently, and he's done everything we've asked. And we're proud of him."

And even though Buchholz took the loss in this outing, there is room for optimism heading into the second half of the season.

"I felt really smooth, didn't feel like there were a lot of jerking motions going on," Buchholz said. "I felt good overall with the fastball and most of my pitches."

Holliday to start in All-Star Game

MILWAUKEE -- The Rockies' Matt Holliday will start in right field for the National League in Tuesday's All-Star Game, Colorado manager Clint Hurdle, the skipper of the NL squad, said on Thursday. Holliday will take the place of the Cubs' Alfonso Soriano, who was elected to the starting lineup but cannot play because of a left hand injury he sustained when struck by a pitch on June 11. "It's exciting," Holliday said. "I thought I might have a chance [to start] because Soriano might not have been able to play, so it's pretty cool, pretty exciting."

Hurdle said an MLB official told him that the league's Basic Agreement with the Players' Association stipulates that when an elected starter cannot play, the non-starting player at the same position who received the most votes on the player ballot gets the spot. Hurdle was happy he didn't have to make the decision himself. "To have Matt get in, I think it was meant to be that way," Hurdle said. "It's a clean transition, a seamless transition." Holliday said it was nice knowing that he gets the chance to start because his peers made him the top vote-getter on the players' ballot among NL reserve outfielders. "It's a nice feeling," Holliday said. "Your peers are important, those are the people you compete against and compete with. It's important and it means a lot to every player what the other guys think of you." The veteran has played very few games at Yankee Stadium in his career and reiterated how nice it would be to man right field -- where so many greats have played -- for the last All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. "It'll be neat to play right field in Yankee Stadium," Holldiay said. "And to do it in an All-Star Game will be pretty cool." Holliday, the National League MVP runner-up last season, has played in the past two All-Star Games, both times as a reserve before appearing in right field, and has gone 0-for-5 with a strikeout. There's a strong chance he will see significant playing time in the Midsummer Classic. "Priority 1 is to win the game," Hurdle said "I've been telling the guys that it's not going to be like Spring Training, where you put in the 'second line' in the fifth inning. We're going to play the game appropriately, and if I can, I'm going to get in as many guys as it works." The Brewers' Ryan Braun will start in left field and the Cubs' Kosuke Fukudome will open the game in center field, Hurdle said. "Fukudome has played a lot more center field than people give him credit for," Hurdle said. Hurdle will also need to name a replacement for Soriano on the team, and he said he will do that after the results of the Monster 2008 All-Star Final Vote are known Thursday night. He said the choice wouldn't necessarily be the runner-up. The decision could come as early as Friday, according to Hurdle. "It's not going to be easy," Hurdle said. "When you pick your All-Star team, there's a whole other All-Star team who was left off the list. That's the reality of it and that's how it will always be."