The Brewers lead the NL Central at 44-40, and Owner Mark Attanasio said that there “have been discussions about whether the ahead-of-schedule success should change the way the Brewers go about their business” leading up to the July 31 trade deadline. Attanasio: “I had a meeting with [GM David Stearns and manager Craig Counsell] about a week ago, and I was very clear there would be no pressure from me to divert from the plan. If they want to divert, that’s different.” He added, “If David wants to come to me and say, ‘I want to blow up the big plan,’ his batting average is so high now, we’re going to listen to anything he recommends” (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 7/1).
HOOKS IN THE WATER: In N.Y., Claire Atkinson cited sources as saying that Derek Jeter "finally has the financial backing to execute his bid" for the Marlins. Jeter reportedly "now has Wall Street money lined up" -- though whether MLB "sees him as a serious 'control guy' is another question." Sources said that among the potential ownership groups, MasTec co-Founder & Chair Jorge Mas has the "biggest firepower and is the most likely to win the bidding," though the Jeter group is Marlins Owner Jeffrey Loria's "favored pick." Loria is "expected to make a decision by the end of the month" (NYPOST.com, 7/2).
LOSING THEIR STRIPES: In Detroit, Lynn Henning noted the Tigers, fourth in the AL Central, are four games from the 41-game midseason point in their home schedule and are the "lowest they have been in box-office receipts than in any year” since ’05. Heading into Friday’s game against the Indians, which was postponed due to rain, the Tigers were eighth in the AL in "total attendance (1,053,013) and seventh in per-game average (28,460)” (DETROIT NEWS, 7/1).
HEAVEN SENT: In San Diego, Nick Canepa writes of the 34-48 Padres, “Rather than groan and complain this is just another San Diego loser -- which it is on the record -- we not only should be enjoying them for the progressive work in progress that they are, but for the enthusiasm with which they play. We should like this team. We should like it more than a whole lot of Padres we’ve seen around here.” Canepa: “Maybe it’s because of their effort, the Padres have been better than a lot of people thought they would be. They have pop. They can run. They’re unpredictable to the point where they’re hard to get a finger on” (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 7/3).
