The Yankees and Mets will send Bartolo Colon and Dillon Gee, respectively, to the hill today as they look to take the rubber matches of their weekend series. Before they get underway, let's run down this morning's New York links….
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Insider-only link) says the Yankees might approach the deadline like they did a year ago, when they acquired Lance Berkman, Kerry Wood, and Austin Kearns. As July 31st nears and teams decide to dump money, the Yanks could wait for the market to come to them and "gobble up depth."
- Andy Martino of the New York Daily News follows up on yesterday's tweet, in which he said the Mets are unlikely to trade anyone besides Carlos Beltran. Martino says that if the Mets do trade anyone else, left-hander Tim Byrdak may be the best bet.
- The Yankees may not be able to trade for a number two starter this week, but John Harper of the New York Daily News thinks GM Brian Cashman needs to try, given the shakiness in the rotation behind C.C. Sabathia.
- Jeff Bradley of the Star Ledger examines the tricky trade situations facing both the Yankees and Mets.
- Johan Santana talked to reporters yesterday about his rehab progress, and the Bergen Record's Steve Popper has a few quotes from the southpaw.
