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Talks bog down over core issues

NEW YORK -- Baseball's labor talks hit a snag when the sides delved deeper into the key economic issues, leaving the union's executive board on track to set a strike date Friday.

Rob Manfred, the owners' top labor lawyer, has repeatedly expressed optimism, but even he admitted little headway was made at the bargaining table Wednesday.

"Occasionally in this process, you have bumps in the road. Today probably would be a bump in the road," he said.

When it met Monday in Chicago, the union's executive board deferred a decision on a strike date, preferring not to add pressure to talks when they were at a delicate stage.

The board is to hold a telephone call Friday, and without progress it probably would set a strike date, most likely Aug. 30.

"I think Friday is a big day," Seattle pitcher Paul Abbott said. "Setting a date would spark some negotiating."

Union officials did not comment after the day's second bargaining session. Players and owners moved only slightly on the key issues, according to several people on both sides. Today's bargaining will determine what the board does Friday.

"I'm hopeful we'll get back at it tomorrow and move the process ahead," Manfred said.

Management's proposal for a luxury tax on the payrolls of high-spending teams, as expected, is a divisive issue, one that could cause baseball's ninth work stoppage since 1972.

ASTROS: Shortstop Julio Lugo will be out for the rest of the season after surgery to repair a broken left forearm.

A'S: Left-hander Ted Lilly, on the disabled list with an inflamed pitching shoulder, began throwing lightly in preparation for a September return.

BLUE JAYS: Outfielder Jose Cruz is scheduled to be reevaluated today to determine the severity of his sprained left ankle.

BRAVES: Infielder Wes Helms is out 4-6 weeks with a partially torn ligament in his right thumb.

BREWERS: Right-hander Nick Neugebauer, who is returning from a shoulder injury, is scheduled to pitch Saturday for Triple-A Indianapolis.

D'BACKS: Infielder Craig Counsell went on the 15-day disabled list with a sore neck.

EXPOS: Officials in St. Albans, Vt., are urging the mayor of Montreal to do everything he can to keep the team from leaving. In a letter sent to Gerald Tremblay, St. Albans select board vice chairman Tayt Brooks said he wanted Tremblay to know the team, under threat of elimination, has plenty of fans on the other side of the border. St. Albans, with about 5,000 residents, is about 68 miles southeast.

INDIANS: Closer Bob Wickman plans to fly to Los Angeles today to have his stiff right elbow examined by Dr. Lewis Yocum.

MARINERS: Top pitching prospect Ryan Anderson is throwing for the first time since January. The left-hander is out for the second straight season after shoulder surgery.

METS: Catcher Mike Piazza was out of the lineup for the second game in a row after being diagnosed with tendinitis in his left wrist.

PHILLIES: Outfielder Ricky Ledee was scratched to be with his wife, Theresa, who is expecting the couple's third child.

PIRATES: Right-hander Bronson Arroyo, a former Hernando High standout, was recalled from Triple-A Nashville when right-handed reliever Josias Manzanillo was released.

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