Rainout puts La Russa, Cards in good spot  —  ST. LOUIS - Before the postponement of Game 4 of the World Series on Wednesday, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said he faced a potentially "hellacious" decision regarding his starting pitcher for Game 5.  —  Instead, the Cardinals now stand …

Pudge can't mask Series reality  —  Ex-Ranger's struggles indicate age might be catching up with him  —  ST. LOUIS - There has been no shortage of news on the former Rangers front from the World Series.  —  Craig Monroe homered in each of the first two games.

Sheffield warns: I won't deal with sign-and-trade  —  ST. LOUIS - One day after the Daily News reported that the Yankees are planning to pick up Gary Sheffield's 2007 option as a precursor to trading him, Sheffield made it clear that he is not at all happy with the idea.

Glum Pujols darkens baseball's spotlight  —  Cards slugger could take a page from Sosa  —  ST. LOUIS — Try to imagine how much fun Sammy Sosa would have had if he'd only had the opportunity to play in a World Series with the Cubs.  —  Now picture the exact opposite of Sosa …

Nationals won't renew Siegle's contract  —  Assistant GM negotiated contracts, traveled with team  —  The Nationals informed assistant general manager Tony Siegle on Tuesday afternoon that his contract would not be renewed by the club.  Siegle's last day with Washington was Wednesday and his contract expires on Oct. 31.

Sportswriters ask MLB to put St. Louis All-Star Game on hold  —  The Baseball Writers' Association of America moved Wednesday to request that Major League Baseball withhold awarding the 2009 All-Star Game to the Cardinals until significant improvements are made to a press facility …

May Be A Few Years Before Rays Start Turning A Profit  —  TAMPA - The Devil Rays have yet to enjoy the advantages of what Commissioner Bud Selig considers a Golden Age for baseball.  —  While a new labor agreement between players and ownership - announced Tuesday in St. Louis …

Television freezes our warm fuzzies off  —  ST. LOUIS — Mickey Rivers may have said it best years ago before a Rangers game in early April at Milwaukee's old County Stadium was postponed because of rain and cold.  "It's so cold out there," the Mick said, shivering, "I saw a dog chasing a cat and they were both walkin'."

Musial tosses gutter ball over Garagiola split  —  Although it was quickly overshadowed by Chris Carpenter's pitching effort, Cardinal fans were wondering what happened to Stan Musial, who had been scheduled to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 Tuesday night.

No light reading for La Russa  —  St. Louis - The similarities are striking.  —  St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and Broncos coach Mike Shanahan are brilliant, arrogant, controlling and locks for the Hall of Fame.  They rankle opponents with their wild success …

Brantley to the booth  —  Jeff Brantley is the choice to be the third man in the Reds' radio booth.  —  An announcement could come shortly after the end of the World Series.  Brantley, a former Reds reliever, is currently working the World Series for ESPN.