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 …

One more instance of Rhodes kill  —  PHILADELPHIA - No matter his uniform's color, the town or the situation, the Yankees always seem to pound well-traveled reliever Arthur Rhodes the way they did last night in the pivotal eighth inning of their 9-7 victory over the Phillies.

Cards Thursday starter becoming clear  —  Reyes likely to get the call against the White Sox  —  CHICAGO — Rookie Anthony Reyes is almost certain to start the Cardinals' game on Thursday against the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field, but the right-hander has not officially been announced at this point.

Lee takes BP, eyes weekend return  —  CLEVELAND — First baseman Derrek Lee might make his return to the Cubs' starting lineup this weekend in Minnesota.  —  He wasn't quite ready to predict an exact date for his comeback, but he made it clear he is leaning toward returning this weekend …

Notes: Randolph raves about Reyes  —  Streaking shortstop locked in at top of Mets lineup  —  NEW YORK — Mets skipper Willie Randolph spent a good part of his pregame conference with the media discussing the maturation of Jose Reyes.  —  The topic of Reyes came about because of the Mets …

Rookie Nolasco faces off against O's  —  Florida (30-37) at Baltimore (32-40), 7:05 p.m. ET  —  Different opponent.  Same results.  —  After beating the Orioles, 6-2, on Tuesday, the Marlins matched their franchise winning streak of nine, now achieved three times.

Yanks' eye on Jacque  —  PHILADELPHIA - It's no secret the Yankees have several glaring needs, but they are finding it increasingly difficult to fill them on the trade market.  —  One source said GM Brian Cashman is running into the same wall on almost every call he makes …

Youngsters May Get Recalled  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Manager Mike Scioscia said the Angels are looking at "some creative ways" to add offense, and among the in-house options being considered are the recall of triple-A infielder Howie Kendrick and outfielder Tommy Murphy.

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 …

Moises Alou to have MRI  —  Giants notebook  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Moises Alou missed his third game in a row because of a cranky lower back, and the ailment has the Giants medical staff concerned enough to schedule the veteran outfielder for an MRI exam today.

D-Backs tripped up by Rays in opener  —  Batista's rough outing too much for offense to overcome  —  ST. PETERSBURG — When they watched the Devil Rays play on Tuesday the Diamondbacks saw something very familiar.  —  "They had runners on base all the time and they had us on the defensive …

A sense of relief for Francona  —  Bullpen gets job done this time  —  On a night when the manager introduced himself to the starting pitcher at 4 p.m., and when that pitcher entered the game with a 22.50 ERA, you need to have faith in your bullpen.  —  Last night, Terry Francona had no option …

When Cora's time comes, he makes most of it  —  It's a given that Alex Cora will do the little things every time he steps on the field.  But lately he's been doing the big things, too.  —  Last night that meant going 3-for-3 with a walk, steal, RBI and three runs scored in the Red Sox' 11-3 victory over the Washington Nationals.