RHP Mark Prior has been diagnosed with a tear in his shoulder capsule. ...

C Michael Barrett is progressing, however. ...

Tony Clark will see more action as the Padres use a DH in interleague play. ...

LHP Glendon Rusch has become a free agent after declining assignment to Triple-A Portland. ...

SS Khalil Greene visited a Baha'i temple while in Chicago. ...

2B Tadahito Iguchi reminisced about his White Sox days. ...

Coverage of the Padres' 4-0 loss at Chicago on Thursday comes from padres.com, the Union-Tribune, the Associated Press and the Cubs web site, ...

A roundup of Big League debuts includes Luke Carlin and Edgar Gonzalez. ...

Carlin, Gonzalez and the other recent call-ups have brought energy to the club. ...

Minor league games (Thursday):
Portland 7, Las Vegas 6
Corpus Christi 13, San Antonio 10
Stockton 2, Lake Elsinore 0
Fort Wayne 7, West Michigan 5 ...

CF Jim Edmonds was booed in his Cubs debut. ... The Cubs are working out how to split playing time in center field. ...

Missed a day of links, so cleaning up some old news, coverage of the Padres' 8-5 loss Wednesday comes from padres.com, the Union-Tribune, the Associated Press and the Cubs web site, ...

Minor league games (Wednesday):
Portland was off.
San Antonio 4, Corpus Christi 1: The Missions' shutout streak ended at 39 innings.
Lake Elsinore 3, Stockton 2
Fort Wayne 7, West Michigan 5 ...

The Mariners today will honor those college softball players who showed great sportsmanship after a player got hurt while running the bases on a home run. ...

Seattle is coming off a 12-inning victory over Texas. ...

LHP Arthur Rhodes might be turning the corner in his comeback from Tommy John surgery. ...

The Mariners have played shaky defense. ... And they are playing below expectations. Sound familiar?

FJ

The Padres manager is going this year, however.

Colorado Rockies manager Clint Hurdle named his Padres counterpart to the National League coaching staff for the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium.

Check out the MLB press release.

Willie Randolph will be the NL's other coach. Hurdle also will be supported by his Rockies staff.

Although this is Black's first offical All-Star honor, he has All-Star Game experience. In 2003, he accompanied manager Mike Scioscia as part of the Angels staff that worked the game at new Comiskey Park in Chicago. The Angels, of course, were World Champions in 2002 with Black serving as pitching coach.

Congrats, Harry Ralston Black III.

FJ

FJ

Now it's on to interleague play against the Padres' "natural rival." Hope the longstanding animosity between the Padres and Seattle Mariners doesn't boil over at Safeco Field this weekend.

It's amazing these fierce rivals can share the Peoria Sports Complex without hiring extra security to keep them apart.

OK, Friar John has resorted to sarcasm. Very un-Friar-like.

Guess FJ should just present some facts instead.

Here goes: The Padres are 80-96 overall in interleague play. They are 28-28 all-time vs. Seattle. Tony Clark, who will see most of the available time at designated hitter, has played 92 games as a DH. In 325 at-bats, he has batted .255 with a .343 on-base percentage and .475 slugging average. He is just barely less productive at DH than he is as a first baseman. Clark has 15 homers as a DH.

FJ 

Chicago (24-16)
Alfonso Soriano, LF
Ryan Theriot, SS
Derrek Lee, 1B
Aramis Ramirez, 3B
Kosuke Fukudome, RF
Jim Edmonds, CF
Ronny Cedeno, 2B
Henry Blanco, C
Ryan Dempster, P

Yep, Edmonds in center for the Cubs.

Game time is 11:20 a.m. PDT.

FJ

FJ

After hearing the early score, FJ figured it was a good night for the honeydo list. Had a moment to check out the action late and was surprised to see the Padres bring the go-ahead run to the plate in the ninth inning.

Nice to see a team that is having a rough season show no quit. Didn't get the payoff Wednesday, but teams that don't give away at-bats will reap the benefits eventually.

FJ

Chicago (23-16)
Alfonso Soriano, LF
Ryan Theriot, SS
Derrek Lee, 1B
Aramis Ramirez, 3B
Kosuke Fukudome, RF
Geovany Soto, C
Mark DeRosa, 2B
Reed Johnson, CF
Ted Lilly, P

Game time is 5:05 PDT.

FJ

FJ

Manager Bud Black is among those saluting LHP Shawn Estes for his perseverance. ...

OF Jody Gerut hopes to be in the lineup to stay. ...

Edgar Gonzalez got a start at third base Tuesday, his first start in the Big Leagues. ...

RHP Greg Maddux gave his usual poker face to Chicago reporters' speculation about his future. ...

Padres executive and Hall of Fame player Dave Winfield was at the head of a productive 1973 draft class. ...

The Portland Beavers web site has a Beavers Beat roundup. ...

Minor league games:
Iowa 5, Portland 2
San Antonio 5, Corpus Christi 0: The Missions have thrown 31 straight shutout innings.
Lake Elsinore 5, Stockton 3
West Michigan 11, Fort Wayne 3 ...

The Cubs are getting good results from their bullpen. ...

Felix Pie could be the odd man out in the Cubs outfield. ... Manager Lou Piniella is staying mum about the potential addition of Jim Edmonds to the roster. ... Padres general manager Kevin Towers says Edmonds might have had more time to turn things around in San Diego if the team had been winning. ...

ESPN.com reminds us how good Edmonds was at his peak. ...

Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez is not a work the count kind of guy. ...

Cubs INF Mark DeRosa has started a blog. ...

Cubs C Geovany Soto an All-Star? The Chicago Tribune makes his case.

FJ

Left-hander Shawn Estes' 100th Major League win came Tuesday night as the Padres beat Chicago at Wrigley Field after more than two years of waiting, of working, of hoping.

Estes suffered a ligament tear in his first Padres start in April 2006 and went through two years of rehabilitaiton before making his second Padres start Tuesday.

Then he fell behind 3-0 in the first two innings. As in his rehab, he didn't buckle under, and he kept the Cubs off the board for the rest of his 5 1/3 innings pitched.

And he scored the go-ahead run as the Padres scored four times in the fourth inning.

"It was never an easy inning today," Estes told reporters in Chicago.

Of course not, not much has come easy for the lefty in recent years. That makes No. 100 all the more impressive.

Kudos, too, to the 1-2-3 bullpen punch of Cla Meredith, Heath Bell and Trevor Hoffman, who preserved that slim lead.

With April behind him, we saw the Hoffman we know. He blew a 1-2 fastball past Reed Johnson. It had plenty of life and was spotted perfectly off the outside corner. With two strikes, Johnson had to offer and he had not chance to do anything with it even if he weren't so late with his swing. Then Hoffman used the change-up to toy with Mike Fontenot, who never had faced him.

Save No. 531. Nice.

So now the Padres have Jake Peavy pitching with the team coming off a win. It's only the second time this season that's happened. Arizona's Brandon Webb prevented Peavy from getting a winning streak going on April 27 at PETCO Park. This time, it's Ted Lilly trying to prevent the Padres and Peavy from getting on a roll.

FJ 

Chicago (23-15)
Alfonso Soriano, LF
Ryan Theriot, SS
Derrek Lee, 1B
Aramis Ramirez, 3B
Kosuke Fukudome, RF
Geovany Soto, C
Mark DeRosa, 2B
Reed Johnson, CF
Jason Marquis, P

Game time is 5:05 PDT.

FJ

Goose Gossage toured the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Monday, a prelude to his summer induction. More coverage comes from mlb.com, the Rocky Mountain News, the Daily Star, the Associated Press, the Times Union and the New York Post. ...

INF Edgar Gonzalez has joined younger brother Adrian in the Big Leagues. ...

LHP Shawn Estes makes his first Major League start since April 2006 tonight. ...

New blogger Paul DePodesta tackles the PETCO Park effect. the Padres executive's blog already is a hit, with lively debate among the reader comments. Nicely done, DePo. ...

It appears the Cubs will sign CF Jim Edmonds once he clears waivers. More on that from the Daily Herald and the Chicago Tribune. ...

If the Cubs pick up Edmonds, it might increase the chances the Padres go after a Cubs outfielder. ...

Discouraging news for Padres RHP Mark Prior. ...

C Michael Barrett saw some old Cubs teammates. Barrett is doing well in his rehabilitation from an elbow injury. ...

They still love RHP Greg Maddux in Chicago. ...

Corey Brock opens his Padres mailbag on padres.com. ...

A two-homer night got Triple-A Portland OF Will Venable up to .300 this season. ...

Minor league games:
Iowa 10, Portland 6
San Antonio 4, Corpus Christi 0
Stockton 9, Lake Elsinore 8
Fort Wayne 2, West Michigan 1 ...

Here's another report on Fort Wayne's win. ...

Tribune Co. chairman Sam Zell intends to sell the Cubs and Wrigley Field in a private transaction. ...

An unsettled rotation hasn't slowed the Cubs. ...

RF Kosuke Fukudome is delivering for the Cubs. ...

Cubs OF Daryle Ward has come through big lately. ...

Columnist Mike Downey points out that Chicago is a Cubs town.

FJ

FJ

Wolf gave runs right back after getting a fifth-inning lead. Padres pitchers issued nine walks. The defense made a mental error in the sixth inning as Adrian Gonzalez vacated first base, thinking the third out had been recorded on a force out at third base. It hadn't, and Kevin Kouzmanoff's subsequent throw to first found no glove waiting.

Never good to take another L, but it was a real shame to let the game get out of hand when there were two truly good things going on.

First, Jody Gerut had a breakout game, signaling that his comeback from multiple knee surgeries just might take. He hit his first Major League home run, a no doubter onto Sheffield Avenue, and reached base in four of his five plate appearances.

Second, Edgar Gonzalez got his first Major League hit -- and RBI -- with his brother Adrian there to see it. After nine minor league seasons, Gonzalez joined the Padres on Monday for his first Big League appearance and entered the game in a sixth-inning double switch. His seventh-inning single up the middle off Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano drove in Scott Hairston.

The Gonzalezes are the fourth pair of brothers to play with the Padres at the same time. Here's the list:

Sandy and Roberto Alomar, 1988-89
Tony and Chris Gwynn, 1999
Brian and Marcus Giles, 2007
Edgar and Adrian Gonzalez, 2008

FJ