Enquirer news services

White Sox manager Jerry Manuel might not be with the team when it returns home Tuesday following a 14-game road trip.

Management reportedly is reluctant to fire Manuel, but the team is second-to-last in the American League in hitting and is in danger of falling out of the AL Central race.

Former managers Jim Fregosi and Buddy Bell are among the favorites to take over if Manuel is dismissed, but expect commissioner Bud Selig to monitor the situation closely because Manuel is one of only seven minority managers, and Fregosi and Bell are white.

INJURY REPORT: Boston Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez (4-2, 2.83 ERA), on the disabled list since May 16 with a right muscle strain, could return as early as Tuesday.

• St. Louis Cardinals closer Jason Isringhausen is scheduled to make his second rehabilitation appearance today. In his first outing Thursday, he threw a scoreless inning for Double-A Tennessee, striking out one.

Without him, St.Louis is 3-14 in one-run games, the worst record in the majors.

• Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Darren Dreifort (4-4, 4.03) was fitted with a brace for his sore right knee but felt pain, so an additional MRI exam was ordered. It revealed a sprained medial collateral ligament and he was placed on the 15-day disabled list. Now, it looks as if he'll need season-ending surgery.

NAME GAME: It's always fun to see which sons of former major-leaguers were selected in baseball's annual amateur draft.

This year, Tony Gwynn's son Anthony (Milwaukee, second round) headed the pack. The sons of Don Mattingly (Taylor, 1B, Yankees), Willie Randolph (Andre, 2B, Yankees), Gary Gaetti (Joe, OF, Rockies), Ozzie Virgil (Jose, OF, Cardinals), Fernando Valenzuela (Junior, 1B, Padres), Tom Pagnozzi (Matt, C, Cardinals), Carney Lansford (Josh, 3B, Rangers), Dave Cash (David, SS, Orioles), and Bip Roberts (Marcus, SS, Mariners) were selected.

ASCENDING ANGEL: Jeff DaVanon is making the most of his opportunity while regular center fielder Darin Erstad is on the disabled list.

In five games, he went 12-for-25 (.480) with 12 runs, 10 RBI and six home runs.

The six homers were one shy of his career total (in 63 games) coming into the season.

In three games against the Montreal Expos at San Juan, DaVanon became the first player to homer from both sides of the plate in consecutive games since Ken Caminiti in 1995 for San Diego.

NUMBERS GAME:

7-22: Colorado Rockies' road record, worst in the majors.

5-24: San Diego Padres' record in May, worst in team history.

$1,500: Price Chicago ticket brokers were charging for a $45 box seat to Saturday's Cubs-Yankees game at Wrigley Field.

56: Home runs hit in the Expos' first 14 games at San Juan.

SHORT HOPS: Ruben Sierra is back with the Yankees seven years after calling Joe Torre a liar. The two made peace a few years ago.

• George Steinbrenner keeps trying to show Torre who is boss. Steinbrenner never consulted with Torre about appointing Derek Jeter captain.

• The Expos weren't thrilled about playing a doubleheader last Sunday at the Vet. They'd have preferred one later in the season. But people in the Phillies' clubhouse pushed hard to play both games because Vladimir Guerrero was hurt. Good move. If Guerrero had played, he would have batted five times with men on base.

• Raise your hand if you thought Jamie Moyer (9-2) and Gil Meche (8-2) would be baseball's best 1-2 punch.

• Bruce Chen, waived by the Red Sox, soon will be with his eighth team since the start of 2000. He has been with five teams in the last 13 months. Chen is just 25. He could challenge Mike Morgan's record of pitching for 12 teams.