Notes: Kotchman ready for more  —  Sidelined infielder cleared for full-time baseball activities  —  ANAHEIM — Casey Kotchman met with a local doctor specializing in infectious diseases on Friday and was cleared to begin full-time baseball activity.  —  The first baseman said he will travel …

Lester shows his stuff  —  Rookie allows Braves one run in six innings to collect first win  —  ATLANTA — This time around, there were no ominous clouds, no steady raindrops, no waiting for hours on end to finally take the ball.  Friday night was Jon Lester's second Major League start …

Heilman crashes party  —  Buoyed by a 9-1 road trip, a 9½-game lead over the second-place Phillies and a supportive crowd of 45,967 at Shea Stadium that cheered lustily as they took the field for Friday night's interleague game against the Orioles, the Mets were so charged up that they went out and ... short-circuited.

Notes: Road is no sore sight  —  After a tough homestand, D-Backs welcome trip  —  ARLINGTON — Usually a team will look forward to returning home after a road trip, but after the way the last 10 days in the Valley of the Sun went for the Diamondbacks, getting out on the road could be the best thing that happened to them.

Notes: Decision on Prior delayed  —  Cubs weighing options on where righty will pitch on Sunday  —  CHICAGO — The Cubs delayed a decision on whether Mark Prior will start Sunday for a day to make sure the right-hander was over any soreness in his shoulder from his last Minor League rehab outing.

Angels Option Jered Weaver to Salt Lake  —  Breaking News: The Angels just announced that Jered Weaver has been sent back down to the Salt Lake Bees, the team's Triple-A affiliate in the Pacific Coast League.  Bartolo Colon was activated and will start on Sunday.

Outfielder signs, spurns Gators  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. |  The Royals succeeded Thursday in luring switch-hitting outfielder Derrick Robinson, their fourth-round pick in last week's draft, away from a football scholarship to Florida.  —  "We've reached agreement with a guy who is electric …

Royals Address Credential Situation  —  Welcome to the first official blog about the Royals, by the Royals!  The Royals are committed to using Royals.com to educate, inform and entertain our fans.  In response to fans wanting to know the real stories behind a number of issues, we have created Around the Horn in KC just for you.

Power Rankings: Mets make their move to No. 1  —  ESPN.com  —  Yes, the White Sox had a fine week indeed.  They took two out of three from Cleveland before winning three of four in Texas.  Pitching, hitting, fielding — all were solid.  Nice job, Pale Hose.

Mets introduce commemorative coins  —  Quarters feature stars from '86 club to celebrate anniversary  —  NEW YORK — The Mets began their season-long salute to the 1986 World Series championship team with Friday's launch of a commemorative quarter series featuring six former Mets players.

Devil Rays prospect Upton facing DUI charge  —  CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Tampa Bay Devil Rays prospect B.J. Upton was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated, media outlets in North Carolina reported Friday.  —  Upton, 21, who is playing with the Triple-A Durham Bulls …

Tiger Stadium to get wrecking ball  —  Finally, something is going to happen with Tiger Stadium.  It is going to be demolished this fall.  There don't appear to be a ton of details, but the macro idea is to replace it with retail shops and housing.  The area that comprises the playing field …

Angels put pen to paper with No. 1 pick  —  Switch-hitting catcher Conger becomes 15th 2006 signee  —  ANAHEIM — The Angels signed Hank Conger on Friday, their first selection in this year's First-Year Player Draft.  —  Conger is a switch-hitting, right-handed-throwing catcher out of Huntington Beach (Calif.) High School.

Twins trade Castro to Reds  —  It was clear from the moment that the Twins announced the promotion of shortstop Jason Bartlett from Class AAA Rochester that Juan Castro's days as being a regular were over.  Now, two days after Bartlett's promotion, Castro's time with the Twins is complete.

Sign of the times  —  Video iPods helping Rockies prep for games  —  DENVER (AP) — Three hours before a start against Florida, Colorado Rockies pitcher Jason Jennings sits in front of his locker, puts on his headphones and stares at his video iPod.  —  He isn't watching the latest Coldplay video …