Centrists

The Mariners will trade left-hander Cliff Lee only for high-level prospects who can contribute to the big club in 2011 or 2012, AOL FanHouse’s John Hickey reports.

Hickey speculates that, given the M’s organizational strengths, potential trade partners would need to offer primarily top-flight outfielders and pitchers, in particular left-handed starters. Seattle has a strong set of infielders and right-handers between Double-A West Tennessee and Triple-A Tacoma.

Some teams, including the Mets, reportedly are reluctant to part with top minor league talent for Lee, especially if they can’t first negotiate a contract extension with him. Lee can become a free agent after this season.

The Yankees likewise seem determined to hold on to their prospects and wait until Lee becomes a free agent in the offseason. They’ll get a chance to scout Lee tonight when he pitches against the Bombers at Yankee Stadium.

Mark Prior will work out for teams Wednesday as he tries to return to the majors, FoxSports.com’s Tracy Ringolsby reports.

The 29-year-old right-hander is schedule to throw at the University of Southern California, in front of scouts for "most major league teams," according to Ringolsby. The former Trojans star last pitched in the big leagues in 2006.

Prior’s career has become a cautionary tale for pitchers, most recently Nationals rookie Stephen Strasburg, who are expected to be stars at a young age. An 18-6 season in 2003 with the Cubs proved to be Prior’s pinnacle; a series of injuries soon forced him out of the game.

We’re changing things up a bit for this week’s power poll. This is "Buck says" week, featuring a poll infused with insights and opinions from TBS analyst Buck Martinez, a former big-league catcher and manager.

For example, Buck says: "Stephen Strasburg is the most interesting guy because everybody is clamoring for his appearance (at the All-Star Game). But, it’s difficult for me to suggest Stephen Strasburg is an All-Star selection given the fact it might keep someone else from being on there who’s played all year and is deserving."

Buck Martinez says he’s surprised by the Mets and Padres, but not the Mariners.

We’ll find out if Strasburg is an All-Star on Sunday, when the starters and reserves are announced on TBS’ All-Star selection show, which starts at noon ET.

Anyway, on to the poll.

1. Yankees (last week: 2). Buck says: "Robbie Cano’s certainly an All-Star, and he’s going to win a batting title one of these days." Cano might not have to wait long to claim that first batting title. He entered the week at .359, which was 13 points ahead of Minnesota’s Justin Morneau and Texas’ Josh Hamilton, and has been a stronger second-half player through his career. He’s hit .299 before the All-Star break and .329 after it, so don’t expect much of a letdown from that lofty .359 mark.

2. Rangers (5). Buck says: "Ron Washington is a terrific baseball guy, and he’s got those guys in Texas understanding there’s more to baseball than just hitting the ball. They’ve done a great job tightening up their defense, and Vladdy Guerrero looks like he met Ponce de Leon at the fountain of youth because he looks terrific. I saw him the first series of the season against the Blue Jays and, boy, the bat speed was there, his legs look great and to his credit, with that extra work, he looks like the Vladdy of five or six years ago. And this Josh Hamilton kid has had some month of June, hasn’t he? He’s been incredible."

3. Padres (6). Buck says: "Nobody even talked about the Padres, but here they are pitching so well, and Buddy Black’s done a great job of encouraging his guys and pushing them to take it one game at a time. They’ve got impact players. (Chase) Headley’s become a leader, and the (Nick) Hundley kid has become a leader behind the plate. And they’ve got one of the least-known impact hitters in baseball in Adrian Gonzalez. I think Buddy’s done a great job with his pitching staff, and if you get into the back end of the game with (Luke) Gregerson, (Mike) Adams and Heath Bell, the game is over."

4. Red Sox (1). The Sox dropped, in part, this week because of a couple of losses on a West Coast road trip through Colorado and San Francisco. But the larger reason was the loss of star second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who is thought to be out at least six weeks with a broken bone in his foot. And then Victor Martinez broke a bone in his left thumb and Clay Buchholz hyperextended his knee. All in all, a horrible week for the Sox.

5. Braves (3). The Braves have been in first place every day since May 31, their longest such streak since they closed out the 2005 season in first place every day after July 22.

6. Rays (4). In the two seasons since hitting .288 with a .985 OPS in the 2008 playoffs, B.J. Upton has hit just .234 with an awful .694 OPS. With two more arbitration years before he becomes a free agent—and unavoidable raises from his $3 million salary in 2010—you wonder if the cost-conscious Rays would move Upton for the right price. A price that would certainly be significantly lower than it was a few short years ago.

7. Mets (8). Buck says: "The biggest surprises to me have been the Mets and the Padres. Look at the Mets. They’re right there staying with Atlanta and ahead of Philadelphia." David Wright has regained his "superstar" status with his bounce-back season. Yes, he’s striking out a lot—88 times in 74 games—but he’s also hitting .300 with a .928 OPS and leads the NL with 61 RBIs.

8. Phillies (17). Buck says: "They’re not in first place, but, boy, are they swinging hot bats right now. Up and down the order, they’re doing a great job and now they’ve got Jimmy Rollins back—he had a four-walk day on Friday and a three-hit day on Saturday. You look at them and they’re going to get (Ryan) Madson back, (Chad) Durbin doesn’t look to be out for a long time. J.A. Happ’s going to come back. These guys, they’re the team that can win a division that’s not in first place right now."

9. Reds (15). Scott Rolen and Joey Votto enter the week with identical home run and RBI totals (16 and 50). Votto has a higher average (.305 to .300) and on-base percentage (.411 to .367), while Rolen has a better slugging percentage (.571 to .552) and more extra-base hits (34 to 30).

Move over, Albert? Colby Rasmus is flexing his muscles in St. Louis.

10. Cardinals (11). Who would have thought, at this point of the season, second-year outfielder Colby Rasmus would have the same number of homers (16) and extra-base hits (32) as superstar Albert Pujols and more runs scored (46 to 40) and a better slugging percentage (578 to .542)?

11. White Sox (18). Buck says: "It was a surprise that they had not pitched better early on. How many people were so critical of Ozzie (Guillen) for calling his team out, saying ‘You’ve got to be better than this, we’re better than this.’ Well, they were. In this age where you’ve got to be politically correct, Ozzie rubs a lot of people the wrong way, but the reality is, he’s telling the truth and his players have responded. They’re a good team. They’re a very good team."

12. Angels (12). Buck says: "I think they will (contend) because they have the front-line pitching. Those are the types of guys who can keep you in the race. My concern is, where’s the offense going to come from? Losing (Erick) Aybar was a big blow. Can (Hideki) Matsui hold up for the long haul? Can Bobby Abreu and Torii Hunter maintain the standards they’ve held for so long?"

13. Twins (7). No contender had a worse week than the Twins, who were swept in Milwaukee and lost two of three in New York against the Mets. Their only win? A gem by Carl Pavano, who has thrown back-to-back complete games and has lowered his season ERA to 3.33.

14. Tigers (10). The Tigers are 10 games over .500 in day games, and their 22 day wins are the most in baseball. Leadoff hitter Austin Jackson is hitting. 353 in day games, .270 in night contests. Of course, Brennan Boesch is hitting .365 at night, and just .301 during the day.

15. Giants (9). For the first time all season, the Giants have given up at least four runs in five consecutive games. Not surprisingly, they’re 1-4 in those contests.

16. Dodgers (13). Buck says: "The Dodgers certainly have the best offense in that division, the Rockies have the best balance, but the Padres have enough, I think, to hang on." The Dodgers lead the division with 4.68 runs per game despite ranking fifth in the division with 55 home runs. They lead the division in batting average (.267) and on-base percentage (.337).

17. Blue Jays (14). Buck (who doubles as the Jays’ TV play-by-play voice) says: "It is amazing that they’ve been able to do that when both (DH Adam) Lind and (second baseman Aaron) Hill haven’t done anything. I mean, you’re talking about the two Silver Sluggers from a year ago—both guys drove in 100 and both guys had 30 home runs and they’re not doing anything. They’re both hitting around .200 and it’s been a season-long slump. Cito Gaston’s done a great job of convincing these guys to go up and look for a fastball, then pick your fastball and hit it. Mind you, when they run into a tough pitcher who’s not going to let you hit balls out of the ballpark, they have their troubles. But I don’t think anybody expected them to be where they are as we close in on the first half."

18. Rockies (16). Buck says: "If Colorado continues to get healthy, they have (Huston) Street back and when they get (Jorge) de la Rosa back, that’s going to make for probably the best division race in baseball." How’s this for a balanced offensive attack? The Rockies have five different players with either nine or 10 home runs, and they have six different players with between 30 and 34 RBIs entering the week.

A big part of Oakland’s future, Trevor Cahill is pitching like an ace.

19. A’s (20). Trevor Cahill, the A’s 22-year-old right-handed starter, is making a good case to be the team’s representative at the All-Star Game. Throw out his first start of the season and Cahill is 7-1 with a 2.31 ERA in 11 starts.

20. Brewers (24). Hey, Trevor Hoffman has thrown seven consecutive scoreless innings, and he’s faced the minimum three batters in five of those seven outings. And, the Brewers have won six of seven heading into a three-game series at home vs. the Astros.

21. Marlins (19). In his second season as the Marlins’ closer, Leo Nunez has lowered his ERA (4.06 to 2.27), WHIP (1.252 to 0.979) and batting average against (.230 to .202) while raising his strikeout-to walk ratio (2.22 to 3.88) and WAR (0.4 to 1.3).

22. Cubs (21). At this point, you have to wonder how much longer Lou Piniella will manage the Cubs. The losing in Tampa Bay wore on him, and that was with a team nobody expected much from. That’s not the case with the Cubs, who had high expectations but are nine games under .500.

23. Royals (23). Hey, the Royals took two of three from the in-state rival Cardinals and are 20-21 since Ned Yost took over from Trey Hillman (they were 12-23 under Hillman).

24. Nationals (22). Roger Bernadina has been the Nationals’ best hitter this month, posting a .333 average to go with three homers and 11 RBIs.

25. Diamondbacks (25). As a team, the Diamondbacks are third in the NL in slugging percentage (.426) despite the fact that their individual leader, Kelly Johnson, is only 19th in the league with a .491 slugging percentage.

26. Mariners (26). Buck says: "I did not expect Seattle to play well. Everybody was on their bandwagon, everybody expected them to be the team to beat, but I did not see the offense. I didn’t see them having enough offense to compete. Lately, they’ve been winning games because they’ve been shutting out everybody with their great pitching."

27. Astros (27). The Astros are two games over .500 against the NL Central and 20 games under .500 against everybody else.

28. Indians (29). We’re going to keep giving Carlos Santana updates until the dynamic rookie stops treating major-league pitchers like low-level scrubs. Through 15 games, he’s at .333 with a 1.179 OPS, four home runs, 11 total extra-base hits and 14 RBIs.

29. Pirates (28). The Pirates are 7-2 against the Cubs, 18-48 against everybody else. Wow.

30. Orioles (30). The Orioles are 5-4 against the Red Sox, 18-48 against everybody else. Wow, again.

Ryan Fagan is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at rfagan@sportingnews.com, and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ryan_fagan.

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and Dodgers manager Joe Torre called a truce in their cold war Sunday night.

The two had what Rodriguez called a "nice exchange" behind the batting cage prior to the new York-L.A. series finale at Dodger Stadium. They spoke briefly as cameras rolled and reporters watched intently.

"You don’t want to let things linger," Rodriguez told the media afterward. "You don’t know when’s the next time Joe and I are going to see each other. And at the end of the day, I just wanted to be a gentleman and do the right thing."

Rodriguez seemed to shun Torre the first two days of the weekend series, apparently still upset over Torre’s portrayal of him in the former Bombers skipper’s book "The Yankee Years."

As for why he waited until Sunday, A-Rod replied: "It was a big zoo on Friday," referring to the parade of other Yankees who greeted Torre prior to the series opener. "I didn’t want to be caught up in that. It took me a couple of days to get my thoughts and I did that today."

So, what did the two talk about? "I won’t share what we said," Rodriguez answered.

Carlos Zambrano was trying to encourage his Cubs teammates, not berate them, during the dugout tirade that led to his indefinite suspension, a source close to Zambrano tells the Chicago Sun-Times’ Gordon Wittenmeyer.

Zambrano’s teammates, in particular left fielder Alfonso Soriano, aren’t buying that explanation. "That’s not the way we see it." Soriano tells Wittenmeyer.

Adds another, unnamed Cub, "Anybody who believes [Zambrano’s version] must be smoking something."

The source close to Zambrano tells Wittenmeyer that all the pitcher wanted to do "was pump the team up. It was completely misunderstood," According to the source, Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee made the situation worse by taking things personally and telling Zambrano to "shut the (expletive) up."

Soriano planned to call Zambrano on Saturday to discuss the matter. "If he explains, maybe we can see it the way his friend sees it. But what he said wasn’t right," Soriano tells Wittenmeyer.

Lee appeared to be a target of Zambrano’s ire after Lee failed to stop a leadoff double by the White Sox’s Juan Pierre in the first inning Friday. Zambrano eventually allowed four runs in the inning.

Cubs sources tell Wittenmeyer that Zambrano yelled, among other things, "This team is horse(expletive)" during the bilingual (Spanish and English) outburst. That’s when Lee intervened.

Buck Showalter grudgingly confirmed Sunday he is interested in becoming the Orioles’ full-time manager.

He told ESPN’s Karl Ravech during "Baseball Tonight" that he has spoken with the club about the job, twice answering "Yes" to specific questions about having contact with the O’s his interest in the position. Showalter is an analyst for the show.

Asked by Ravech whether he wanted to get back into managing, Showalter replied: 

"Karl, you know, from that standpoint, right situation’s presented … Out of respect for the people that currently have a job, (interim manager) Juan Samuel has worked very hard to get an opportunity, and I don’t it’s ethical to be talking about this and that. … It’s an honor to have your name in that mix. Where life takes you, we’ll see."

Showalter, who managed the Yankees in the early 1990s, later was asked if he thought the O’s could compete in the AL East. "Sure they can," he replied. "They may have to do it a little differently than somebody else, but sooner or later you’re going to have to figure out a way to be better than the Yankees and Red Sox anyway, so a lot of people that maybe in the running for that job would say, ‘Bring it on.’"

The Orioles are seeking a permanent replacement for Dave Trembley, who was fired June 4. Samuel has guided the O’s to an 8-13 record, including a three-game weekend sweep of the Nationals.

SI.com’s Jon Heyman and FoxSports’ Ken Rosenthal report that Bobby Valentine is no longer in the running for the Marlins’ vacant managerial position.

Rosenthal reports talks broke down because of philosophical differences between Valentine and the Marlins. Valentine and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria are longtime friends, so Rosenthal speculates that the two could still get together and hammer out an agreement.

Earlier Sunday, Valentine told ESPN’s Karl Ravech on "Baseball Tonight" (where Valentine is a studio analyst) that he was still in the mix. "This managerial hiring is a process," he said. "People need to be interviewed, decisions need to be made. I think they’re right in the middle of this process.

"It’s a terrific situation where they have a new stadium coming up in a couple of years and an owner (Loria) who really wants to win and a front office who never makes mistakes."

Valentine demurred when asked by Ravech to put a percentage on his chances of managing the Marlins sometime this season. "I can’t even mention that chance, that percentage … because I’m in the middle of the process," he said. 

Valentine was thought to be the prohibitive favorite to succeed the fired Fredi Gonzalez, and there were reports several days ago the sides had reached a tentative agreement. But a Friday meeting with Loria was later postponed, with Valentine telling the Miami Herald that the "process needs a little more time."

Edwin Rodriguez is the Marlins’ interim manager. He interviewed with team executives on Saturday. Loria told MLB.com Rodriguez will be the manager for the club’s series with the Mets this week in Rodriguez’s native Puerto Rico.

Teammates Evan Longoria and B.J. Upton engaged in a heated exchange in the Tampa Bay dugout on Sunday, after Upton appeared to give a less-than-best effort to field a Rusty Ryal hit to centerfield in the fifth inning of the Diamondbacks-Rays game.

Ryal recorded a triple on the play and scored when Gerard Parra homered during the next at-bat.

H/T The Big Lead