JOE IN JEOPARDY AS YANKS BOMB  —  BOSOX HAND TORRE'S TEAM 7TH STRAIGHT LOSS  —  A seven-game losing streak has George Steinbrenner so concerned he is wondering if replacing Joe Torre is the answer.  —  Last October, The Boss came very close to boxing Torre after the second straight first-round elimination in the postseason.

Former Mets Bat Boy Says He Gave Players Steroids  —  A former New York Mets bat boy pleaded guilty in federal court on Friday to distributing performance-enhancing drugs to dozens of former and current Major League Baseball players and their affiliates for a decade.

Notes: Pelfrey remains in rotation  —  Young right-hander has struggled to be consistent early on  —  WASHINGTON — General manager Omar Minaya and manager Willie Randolph both said Friday that Mike Pelfrey will remain the team's fifth starter for now.  —  Pelfrey has struggled in his first three starts, going 0-2 with a 7.90 ERA.

Cubs: No Tinker.  No Evers.  No chance.  —  We put a new twist on an old poem* to capture in verse why the Cubs will never break the curse ... and list the reasons they are destined to not win a World Series.  —  These are the cruelest of echoing words:  —  No Tinker.  No Evers.  No chance.

Pirates Notebook: Other closer options exist if 'spiral' continues  —  The Pirates wore the No. 42 last night, honoring Jackie Robinson against the Reds at PNC Park.  —  The Pirates' unquestioned preference is for Salomon Torres to be their closer.  —  If he overcomes his recent struggles …

The Jason Schmidt question  —  How he injured his shoulder and lost his velocity remains a mystery.  —  SAN DIEGO — Which came first, the shoulder inflammation or the decreased velocity?  —  When it comes to pitcher Jason Schmidt, the Dodgers don't know the answer.

An Ugly Month Gets Even Uglier for Rivera  —  Even on his worst days, Mariano Rivera rarely suffered the indignity of handing the baseball to Manager Joe Torre in the middle of an inning.  But this has been an April of indignities for the Yankees' closer, and Rivera had another such moment Friday night.

Lineups, etc.  —  It has pretty much progressed from quiet to dead in the clubhouses today, especially on the Yankees side.  Media are pretty much the only people around there.  —  Terry Francona's pregame availability was quieter than normal as well, though that could have been attributed …

Cleveland 5, Baltimore 4  —  CLEVELAND (AP) — Perhaps the only player in the ballpark that could have caught Grady Sizemore's home-run ball was the guy who hit it.  —  Sizemore sped around the bases with an inside-the-park home run, Jake Westbrook got his first win in five starts …

Randolph replaces White  —  The Astros purchased the contract of lefthander Stephen Randolph from Class AAA Round Rock prior to Thursday's game to replace righthander Rick White, who was put on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday with a strained oblique.  —  Randolph was called upon to escape …

Hoffman honored, then blows save in loss (AP)  —  SAN DIEGO (AP) — It was Trevor Hoffman Night — and wouldn't you know it, he blew the save.  —  Hoffman, baseball's career saves leader, disappointed a sellout crowd at Petco Park by giving up four runs in the ninth inning …

Lester solid in rehab start, may join BoSox soon  —  PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Red Sox left-hander and cancer survivor Jon Lester pitched five shutout innings for Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday night in what is expected to be his second-to-last rehab outing before he returns to the Boston rotation.