Team's rap is no better than kid's  —  Cliff Floyd, in the role of mentor, sat down with Lastings Milledge last season and tried to explain to the kid that the Mets are no place to strut your nonsense.  —  "I told him, 'When the career's over, your friends will still be there,'" Floyd said last night at Shea.

New York vs. Chicago  —  Preview  · Winning Edge  · GameCenter  · Full Play-by-Play  · Box Score  · Game Chart  · Live Commentary (Glog)  —  CUBS 1ST  —  Jason M. Vargas pitching:  —  Strike looking, Theriot grounded out to shortstop.

Blackout Policy to Be Discussed, but Change is a Ways Off  —  As reported in April (index.php?option=com_content task=view id=1041 Itemid=52), one of the topics that will be covered today at the Owners Meetings in New York will revolve around blackout restrictions for packages such as MLB Extra Innings.

Bad news keeps coming for Twins  —  Club learns Crain likely out for season after another loss  —  CLEVELAND — The bad news seems to be piling on the Twins lately.  —  It just wasn't enough to pick up another loss to an American League Central opponent on Wednesday night.

Sosa, Mets outlast rain, Cubs in 8-1 win  —  NEW YORK (AP) — A three hour-plus rain delay couldn't dampen Jorge Sosa's stellar night.  —  Sosa pitched seven-plus innings of one-hit ball, David Wright had two RBIs and the New York Mets beat the Chicago Cubs 8-1 on Wednesday night …

Mets place Alou on DL, recall Vargas  —  Callup scheduled to start Thursday's finale against Cubs  —  NEW YORK — The Mets made their anticipated roster move early Thursday morning, placing injured outfielder Moises Alou on the 15-day disabled list and recalling left-hander Jason Vargas …

Former closer Percival thinking about return  —  Troy Percival is considering a comeback.  —  The four-time All-Star closer, who retired as an Angel on Opening Day, resumed throwing about a month ago and is serious about reviving his major-league career, according to his agent, Paul Cohen.

Notes: Ruiz maturing behind plate  —  Backstop has made great strides since Spring Training  —  PHILADELPHIA — A glance at Carlos Ruiz's .295 average shows how far he's come at the plate, but to understand his confident strides behind it, ask Jamie Moyer.

Ramirez to try hitting third  —  PITTSBURGH — Hanley Ramirez leads the majors with a .343 batting average from the leadoff spot, but he won't bat there for a while.  —  After helping spark a 9-3 victory Tuesday, Ramirez was back in the third spot Wednesday for the second straight game.

Church, Bullpen Are Nats' Saviors  —  Washington Takes 5th Win in 6 Games: Nationals 6, Braves 4  —  The Washington Nationals have been sending starting pitchers to the disabled list with disturbing regularity.  Opportunistic hitting and an unflappable bullpen, however, have provided the remedy.

Times are tough — is team, too?  —  Josh Beckett will miss tomorrow's start, plus who knows how many more.  J.D. Drew would have been out of the lineup last night after losing a Tuesday night duel with the fence in right-center.  No longer is it a perfect little Red Sox world.

Pirates Notebook: Marlins also put pressure on Armas  —  One would think Tony Armas has enough pressure on him tonight — as in "Pitch at least decently or look for a seat in the bullpen."  —  But there could be another layer of stress on the right-hander as he enters his start against Florida tonight.

Ten Things I Didn't Know Last Week  —  It's the weather  —  In my weekly Heater article, I reviewed the current status of run scoring.  In a nutshell, runs are down because home runs are down.  If teams keep scoring at the current pace (admittedly, pretty much a meaningless presumption) …

Scioscia is sticking with Hillenbrand  —  The Angels' manager is confident his designated hitter will break out of season slump.  —  SEATTLE — The Angels make a considerable financial commitment to a veteran with a good track record, the player remains in a deep offensive funk well into the season …

Burnett's gem leads Jays to sweep  —  Right-hander throws a complete-game three-hitter  —  TORONTO — There are plenty of times when A.J. Burnett turns into a big kid inside Toronto's clubhouse.  He was at it again on Tuesday, running around the room with a toy gun and seeking out various targets for a stream of foam darts.