A Piniella Return Could Benefit Rodriguez Most  —  Alex Rodriguez was still a young, sensitive and impressionable shortstop when he struck out against Dennis Eckersley in a tie game on Aug. 4, 1995.  Rodriguez, 20 at the time, remembered his atrocious swings against Eckersley as "breakfast, lunch, dinner and good night."

Rangers working on candidate list  —  Team has spoken with Piniella's agent, but not necessarily about him  —  The Rangers have been in contact with the agent for Lou Piniella.  But hang on: That doesn't even mean Piniella's name came up in the conversation.

Yanks' captain abandons ship  —  Refusal to help Alex hurt club  —  If George Steinbrenner thinks that bringing in Lou Piniella is going to solve his Alex Rodriguez problem, and all of the bad karma it has wrought, he clearly isn't in touch with his ballclub.

Harsh Words From Steinbrenner, but No Word Yet on His Manager  —  At his darkest moments, George Steinbrenner has longed in recent years to replace Joe Torre with Lou Piniella as the manager of the Yankees.  The question now dominating the organization is whether that impulse will prevail after careful consideration.

Cubs' search changes in New York minute  —  Piniella reported to be possible Torre replacement  —  As they did four years ago when Cubs general manager Jim Hendry was looking for a manager, the baseball playoffs could affect the decision-making process.  —  That process was supposed …

Out with old, in with Lou  —  The Boss must show Joe the door & hire Piniella  —  George Steinbrenner does not make his pitching any younger, or better, by firing Joe Torre.  He does not turn Alex Rodriguez into Mr. October, instead of the guy who just puts the O's in October.

Wallace Matthews  —  Hey Willie, enjoy it while it lasts  —  LOS ANGELES — The names are forever linked in our town like New and York.  Joe and Willie.  Joe Torre, Willie Randolph.  Mentor and pupil.  Now, manager and soon-to-be ex-manager.  —  At about the same time that Randolph's jubilant players …

Rolen's shoulder inflamed; so is La Russa  —  For much of September his manager had asked Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen the same question and received the same answer.  —  Saturday afternoon, after a distressing Game 3 performance in a 3-1 loss to the San Diego Padres, Rolen's answer changed.

Mettle, More Than Muscle, Fueled Mets' Series Sweep  —  Someday, fathers and sons may gather 'round The Baseball Encyclopedia or, more likely, a Web site, to reminisce about a team that defied all conventions in winning a world championship.  In completing the first step of their journey …