No Relief From the Nationals' Starter  —  Hernandez Lasts Only 12/3 Innings: Red Sox 11, Nationals 3  —  BOSTON, June 20 — Here were the two guys to defy any obsession with radar guns, who respond to urges for harder and faster with softer and slower.  Tim Wakefield took the mound Tuesday night …

Willis club's top winner as Marlins ties wins mark  —  BALTIMORE — The 1997 World Series champion Marlins never did it.  Neither did the 2003 group that brought a second title to South Florida.  —  No team in the franchise's 14-year history has been hotter for longer than this $15 million, future-is-now assemblage.

Plunk!  La Russa's return doesn't go well  —  Cardinals' manager chooses a fine night to start beanball war, writes Phil Rogers  —  Oh, brother.  —  Tony La Russa is a good guy, but he never has been a good loser.  Maybe it was just coincidence that his pitcher, Sidney Ponson …

Padres edge Rangers but Trevor makes it exciting  —  ARLINGTON, Texas - Mike Cameron hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the sixth inning to help the Padres beat the Texas Rangers 6-5 on Tuesday night - but just barely.  —  Trevor Hoffman got the final three outs for his 17th save of the season.

If it's 'best for team,' Smoltz says he's open to trade talk  —  ATLANTA — John Smoltz said he's ready to leave Atlanta if a trade can help the last-place Braves.  —  The 17-year veteran, who's played his entire career in Atlanta, said his once-firm opinion against leaving the Braves changed this year.

Damon, Yanks rally to upend Phillies  —  Center fielder laces go-ahead two-run triple in four-run eighth  —  PHILADELPHIA — It appeared as though the Yankees had run out of chances on Tuesday after Ryan Howard's seventh RBI of the night gave the Phillies a two-run lead in the seventh inning.

Mets' bats get back on Trach  —  4 homers back Steve  —  Willie Randolph settled into a chair in an interview room, responded to an inquiry about Cliff Floyd's health, then faced a zinger of a second question.  —  "You were 9-1 on your last road trip.  You dropped three of your last four at home.

Tough night for Maddux, Cubs  —  Veteran right-hander gives up three runs in the first  —  CLEVELAND — Greg Maddux is all about results.  —  So it's easy to see why the veteran right-hander found little consolation in the fact that he was able to recover from a rocky first inning on Tuesday night against the Indians.

Seat-diving, wall-crashing players … Where there's a wall, there's a way.  —  Where there's a will, there's a wall.  —  Something like that.  —  We're working on a slogan here, a slogan we'll be posting over the clubhouse door for our new favorite team:  —  The All-Run-Through-A-Wall team.

Segui: I told O's about need for hGH … Former Orioles first baseman David Segui, who revealed over the weekend that he is one of the players named in Jason Grimsley's affidavit on drug use in baseball, said Tuesday that he informed the club in 2003 that he had obtained a prescription for human growth hormone.

State of the NBA Finals  —  Forget about who's winning the championship.  I'm starting to feel like the future of the NBA is at stake.  —  We just spent the past two months raving about the "New And Improved" NBA — end-to-end action, loads of points, dramatic endings …

Notes: Mixed results for Wood  —  Injured right-hander throws sim game at Jacobs Field  —  CLEVELAND — Kerry Wood threw a simulated game at Jacobs Field on Tuesday, but it's unlikely that he will start for the Cubs this weekend.  —  "I would not rule it out, but I would put doubt on it," head athletic trainer Mark O'Neal said.

Baseball Won't Save Samples For Testing  —  While Commissioner Bud Selig reiterated that Major League Baseball was eventually hoping to find a urine test to detect human growth hormone, he said he did not envision freezing urine samples from baseball players for future testing.