JOE HEARS THE BRONX CHEERS  —  FANS TEE OFF ON TORRE AS THE ANGELS SWEEP  —  Good thing the Yankees are leaving town for 11 days - it will take at least that long to fumigate the Stadium from the rancid odor left behind by the home team.  —  The fans even let Joe Torre have it yesterday …

Redbirds give Reyes a ticket down to Memphis  —  One day after conceding concern about winless starting pitcher Anthony Reyes, the Cardinals on Sunday optioned their former top prospect to Class AAA Memphis, promoted lefthander Troy Cate and moved recent waiver claim Todd Wellemeyer from the bullpen into Reyes' rotation slot.

Sweep in heart of Texas  —  Red Sox get away with one  —  Red-hot Kevin Youkilis flies home with the tying run the eighth inning, much to the chagrin of Texas reliever Akinor Otsuka.  (LM OTERO/ASSOCIATED PRESS)  —  ARLINGTON, Texas — Waiting beside Coco Crisp's locker in the visiting clubhouse …

Gordon: Caught looking … Editor's Note: This story appears in the June 4 edition of ESPN The Magazine.  —  These are desperate days for Alfredo Reyes.  But he's trying not to think about it on this sun-drenched morning at a dusty field in La Isabelica, minutes after a Venezuelan winter league matinee.

Hit batter by Marmol finishes debacle  —  LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers found a way to beat the Cubs without even putting the bat on the ball in the 11th inning of their 2-1 victory Sunday at Dodger Stadium.  —  "Oh, Lord," exasperated Cubs manager Lou Piniella said afterward.  "Oh, Lord."

Is Andruw Jones Overrated?  —  I first became aware that Andruw Jones was going to be the lead story in Jayson Stark's new book The Stark Truth: The Most Overrated and Underrated Players in Baseball History during a radio interview several months ago.  In the discussion Stark mentioned …

Pirates Notebook: Sharpless' card drawn for call-up  —  CINCINNATI — Josh Sharpless and three of his Indianapolis teammates were playing cards in his hotel room in Scranton early yesterday morning.  —  Fittingly, the card game is named "Pluck."  —  That's because during the card game …

Pirates maintain their strong hitting over the holiday weekend, pick up slack for Duke  —  CINCINNATI — Jim Tracy probably had a few flashbacks to his days as a youngster growing up in nearby Hamilton, Ohio.  —  Memorial Day weekend.  Picnics.  Slow-pitch softball games at North End Park.

Bonds may not share mementos with Hall of Fame  —  NEW YORK — As Barry Bonds nears his record 756th home run, he's stockpiling quite a collection of souvenirs — bats, balls, helmets and spikes, pieces of baseball history perfectly suited for the Hall of Fame.

Source: Vick a 'heavyweight' in dog fighting  —  He arrived at the hotel room, where our cameras were set up, in a T-shirt and jeans.  "I'm nervous," he said, surveying our lights and camera equipment.  "I've never done anything like this before."  —  Our confidential source said he's been involved in dog fighting for over 30 years.

Nats End Trip With Powerful Statement  —  Belliard Hits HR, Langerhans a Slam: Nationals 7, Cardinals 2  —  Forgive the Washington Nationals for puffing their chests a bit as they packed Sunday night, putting a successful road trip behind and heading home on a legitimate high.

Sweep hurts, but when it's Mets ... !  —  · Pete Schourek was the winning pitcher over fellow starter Jack Armstrong.  —  That's how long ago it was.  —  Chuckie Carr's 58th and final stolen base of the year was among the few Marlins highlights.  Oh, and Orestes Destrade's three-hit outburst in a 9-2 loss.

Slowey likely to replace Ortiz in rotation  —  The Twins haven't officially announced anything, but all indications are that righthander Ramon Ortiz, who has a 10.97 ERA this month, will be demoted to the bullpen.  —  That would open the door for Class AAA Rochester righthander Kevin Slowey to step into the rotation.

How Baseball Moved Its 24-Hour Channel Into Scoring Position  —  Major League Baseball plotted for two decades to create a 24-hour channel, and last month it got its way after months of tortuous negotiations with DirecTV and cable operators.  —  The channel first envisioned …