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Giants beat writer Henry Schulman wrote a piece suggesting that an Aaron Rowand for Carlos Zambrano trade with the Cubs would make sense for both clubs if the future contract obligations could be worked out.  It sounds like a textbook case of wishful thinking to me, because the Cubs would be damned fools to trade Zambrano for Rowand.

Welcome back, Dexter.

To add Cliff Lee or not to add Cliff Lee, that is the question surrounding a lot of teams as the trade deadline is just a few weeks away.

For the Texas Rangers, however, the answer to this question has to be a resounding-no.

For one, the team is currently four and a half games up on the defending AL West champion Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and don't look to be slowing down any time soon.

The fans may not have given the Red Sox much love when casting their ballots for the all-star game, but opposing players and managers- as well as Major League Baseball itself- certainly did as six Red Sox were chosen to play in the Mid-Summer Classic next week in Los Angeles.

And now Sox fans can help to make certain that another player gets to go along too, as a seventh player (1B Kevin Youkilis) is one of five non-selectees nominated in the MLB.com Final Vote.

NOTE: team and player statistics updated through Saturday, July 3.

1. Tampa Bay Rays (47-33)—Last Week: Second

Offense Rank: Fourth
Pitching Rank: Fourth
Last 10 Games: 5-5

2. New York Yankees (49-31)—Last Week: First

Offense Rank: Second
Pitching Rank: Ninth
Last 10 Games: 6-4

3. Texas Rangers (48-32)—Last Week: Sixth

With 82 games in the book, the Twins head into their final two series before the All-Star break.

With a new ballpark and the hometown hero Joe Mauer signed to a long-term contract, everything is rosy in Twins territory—or is it?

Following are the mid-term grades for the Minnesota Nine.

Stats are based on the first 81 games.

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The All-Star game rosters were announced today and there are a couple of snubs like there are every year.

But one stands out to me not just because I'm a Mariners fan but because statistically he deserves to be part of the All-Star game.

Felix Hernandez was robbed of a spot on the American League All-Star roster, because of his 6-5 record.

But that record is skewed. Hernandez plays for one of the worst offensive major league teams in the MLB and gets absolutely no run support at all.

The San Francisco Giants lost to the Colorado Rockies in 15 innings on Independence Day to fall further back in the NL West and NL wild-card race.

Since frustrated fans have run out of cockeyed ways to fix the lineup or the pitching staff, firing manager Bruce Bochy is now their solution to all of the club’s problems.

Fair enough.

Domonic Brown is, in a way, an insurance policy for the Phillies if they are unable to resign Jayson Werth this winter.  It’s pretty safe to say that the 22-year-old is quite the safety net.

Yes, I had this exact reaction when I saw the All-Star rosters when they were released on Sunday and I am sure I am not the only person who had the same reaction I did.

I understand that NL manager Charlie Manuel wants versatility in case of injury or if he runs out of players, which is impossible, but seriously why Omar Infante?

There are many players that are more deserving than Infante.

Josh Willingham, Ryan Zimmerman, Jayson Werth, Troy Glaus, Joey Votto, Aubrey Huff, and Dan Uggla are just some people who deserve Infante's spot.