Yanks return, Torre twists  —  Source: Texas wants Joe  —  The row of executive offices that front the loge level at Yankee Stadium were dark yesterday.  There was no pow-wow, no summit of Yankee hierarchy.  While George Steinbrenner issued a statement that labeled the 2006 season a …

Carpenter gets a timely visitor  —  As his ace's pitch count climbed and dire trouble threatened in the first inning Sunday, Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan plotted how the game could go from there.  Chris Carpenter was capable of finding his gear, Duncan thought.  Carpenter would settle in.

Mets' pen off to fine start  —  Willie-style relief may sweep majors  —  The White Sox rode their starting pitching to a championship last season, getting seven innings apiece from Jose Contreras, Mark Buehrle, Jon Garland and Freddy Garcia in the World Series en route to a sweep of the Astros.

A Trade Throw-In May Become a Playoff Starter  —  Oliver Pérez joined the Mets in the trade that brought them Roberto Hernández and cost them Xavier Nady, the trade they made at the trading deadline July 31 because they needed an experienced reliever to replace Duaner Sánchez …

Improved pen a must for Sox  —  GM Williams could add three relievers for '07  —  The No. 1 priority the White Sox will be addressing this offseason hasn't been kept a secret.  —  Not by manager Ozzie Guillen or general manager Ken Williams.  —  ''My first priority right now is to get my bullpen …

Infielder gets the surprise of his life  —  A's notebook  —  OAKLAND — Mark Kiger spent the last three weeks teaching baseball to a group of teenagers in Temecula, which allowed him to play catch every day and hit every few days, but never in his wildest dreams did he expect to get the phone call he received last Wednesday.

Trade Jeter, not A-Rod  —  Enough is enough.  Just reaching the postseason might qualify as success in smaller markets such as Minnesota or Los Angeles, but not in New York.  The world's greatest team has such lofty standards that even winning the World Series is a disappointment if it takes more than five games.

The List: Bliss for Yankee haters  —  It has become an annual tradition since the most recent Yankees' dynasty ended after their 2000 World Series win.  —  The New York Yankees' season ends without another World Series title, and Yankee haters everywhere rejoice.

Tom Candiotti fesses up: fantasy baseball scheme  —  You gotta admire a ballplayer who will do anything, even risk injury, to help his team win.  Unless it's his fantasy-league team, and the injury he's risking is to someone else.  —  This, then, is a cautionary tale of a guy who took the rotisserie stuff waaaay too seriously.

Peavy says shoulder sore in Game 1  —  Right-hander recounts other ailments in 2006  —  ST. LOUIS - Jake Peavy revealed yesterday that shoulder soreness plagued him entering his Game 1 outing, requiring a stronger oral anti-inflammatory medicine.  —  Peavy, who allowed five runs in the defeat …