Notes: Loney to see playing time  —  Little says first baseman could regularly spell Garciaparra  —  LOS ANGELES — Dodgers management didn't call up James Loney and Matt Kemp over the weekend to sit on the bench.  —  Loney replaced Nomar Garciaparra in the lineup again at first base on Monday …

Ejected and dejected  —  I started covering the U of L baseball team almost two weeks ago, following them to Columbia, Mo., and throughout their amazing NCAA Tournament run.  —  I just wish I could have written about them today, when they clinched a spot in the College World Series and capped an unbelievable ride.

Surgery to end Milton's season  —  Left-hander to have ligament replaced in pitching elbow  —  CINCINNATI — It was learned on Monday that injured Reds starting pitcher Eric Milton will have season-ending ligament replacement surgery on his problematic left elbow.

Pre-Game Notebook: Green is back  —  Shawn Green was activated from the DL and is in the line-up in right and batting second.  A local deli greeted him with two huge corned beef sandwiches waiting in his locker.  Green said he feels good and likes the idea of facing Dodgers lefty Randy Wolf tonight …

Notes: Ramirez placed on DL  —  Slugging third baseman eligible to return June 22  —  CHICAGO — Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday, retroactive to June 7, to give him more time to heal his sore left knee, while outfielder Cliff Floyd was reinstated from the bereavement list.

Harold Reynolds: Harold Reynolds Is BACK, Baby!  —  Harold Reynolds Is BACK, Baby!  —  Well, it only took almost a freaking year, but you're never gonna believe who finally has a new job, folks.  —  That's right: Your friend and ours, Mr. Harold Reynolds, out of a job since being fired by ESPN for now …

White's rock quarry could net pitcher billions  —  VERO BEACH, Fla. — Matt White, a journeyman pitcher trying to make the Los Angeles Dodgers, could become baseball's first billionaire player.  —  It has nothing to do with his arm.  He owns a rock quarry in western Massachusetts.

Notes: Crede to have back surgery  —  Sox won't know how long he'll be out until after procedure  —  PHILADELPHIA — Joe Crede will undergo back surgery on Tuesday, performed by Dr. Robert Watkins, as announced by the White Sox after Monday's 3-0 loss to the Phillies.

Sunday Starter  —  I mentioned a few days ago that the Dodgers — the team that came up with the five man rotation as a response to having an excess of pitchers — had a chance to be creative.  I invited readers to chime in with their ideas and we had some solid ones.  Subscriber Dan Graulich had the following:

What are the ESPN Player Ratings? … At the start of 2006, I was challenged to come up with a formula that ranks all major league players.  After bouncing ideas off the Elias Sports Bureau, MIT and others over the last year, I eventually wrote the formulas that produced the ESPN Player Ratings.

Abreu back in the swing  —  Demanding Yankee followers wanted to know what the heck was wrong with Bobby Abreu when the season appeared on the brink last month.  —  Nothing, apparently.  —  Abreu's batting eye is as keen as ever and his swing as sweet again, as his white-hot June continued with a 4-for-4 …

Milestone Marks What Phillies Fans Already Knew  —  During the 1920s and '30s, when the Phillies inhabited a park called the Baker Bowl, the fence in right field was adorned by a giant advertisement for soap that read: "The Phillies Use Lifebuoy."  —  This only encouraged fans to add a sour retort: "And they still stink."

Prospect Hot Sheet: June 11  —  For most pitchers Henry Sosa's last three starts would be outstanding: 3-0, 1.12 with 20 strikeouts in 16 innings piched.  But for Sosa they're actually below average.  Sosa saw his ERA climb to a still microscopic 0.76 easily the best in the minors.