Fresh faces making it tough for MLB’s bargain shoppers

Fresh faces making it tough for MLB’s bargain shoppers
Baseball general managers are doing double-takes at the caller ID on their phones these days.

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Injuries, then diminished returns keeping teams wary
With players spending more days on the disabled list in recent years than at any point in history, injury analysis has become one of the hottest areas of study.

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Braves’ Jones, Hudson leave game with injuries
Atlanta slugger Chipper Jones and ace Tim Hudson left Wednesday night’s game against Florida with injuries, a pair of blows to the Braves‘ already slim playoff hopes.

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Giants Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

While talk swirls around the Bay Area about the Giants‘ likely purge of veteran players, one player who fits that description rarely hears his name mentioned.

Catcher Bengie Molina has become a team stalwart in just his second season in San Francisco. He proved his offensive worth again Tuesday, when he hit two homers in the Giants‘ 6-3 win over the Nationals. And his defensive worth is well-known, thanks to two AL Gold Glove awards earlier this decade with the Angels, plus a strong regard for his handling of the pitching staff.

So while the Giants have already sent second baseman Ray Durham packing, and they could be looking to move infielder Rich Aurilia and outfielders Dave Roberts and Randy Winn, Molina doesn’t figure to go anywhere.

Molina, who turned 34…