Sources: Mets close to acquiring Conine  —  FOXSports.com, Updated 21 minutes ago  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  The New York Mets are on the verge of acquiring utility player Jeff Conine from the Cincinnati Reds for two Class-A position players, according to Major League sources.

Wakefield strong as Red Sox top D-Rays  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - Tim Wakefield continued his dominance over Tampa Bay, allowing four hits over seven innings as the Boston Red Sox blanked the Devil Rays 6-0 on Monday night.  —  Wakefield improved to 19-2 …

'Wild Bill' Hagy dies at 68  —  Longtime Orioles fan known for leading raucous cheers at Memorial Stadium in the 1970s and 80s  —  Orioles fan 'Wild Bill' Hagy pumps up the crowd at Memorial Stadium in 1978.  —  William "Wild Bill" Hagy, the bushy-bearded cab driver from Dundalk …

Face of the Franchise  —  ESPN.com's SportsNation has convened a panel of 64 experts — writers, bloggers, and a former player — to give their picks for which current player, manager, owner, or mascot is the "face" of each of baseball's 30 franchises.  Their picks will be announced throughout the week …

Run differential isn't everything  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  Run differential is overrated.  —  All right, maybe that's overstated.  But those crazy Diamondbacks are merely the latest club to outperform its estimated won-loss record based on its runs scored and runs allowed.

NL West: Predictions  —  Over the past three weeks, Arizona has taken control of the National League West.  I asked team bloggers from around the division whether they thought the Diamondbacks would hang on and what the NL West order of finish would be.  Here's what they said:  —  Jim McLennan, AZ SnakePit:

No fight in Red Sox  —  Angels deliver early KO, earn a split decision  —  Julio Lugo tries to cheer up spot starter Julian Tavarez after the righthander was pulled following six effective innings.  (JASON JOHNS/FOR THE GLOBE)  —  There was a moment, brief though it was …

Ryan Braun: Greatest First-Year Slugger Ever?  —  Ryan Braun led off the second inning yesterday with his 24th home run of the season to give Milwaukee an early 1-0 advantage although the Brewers later blew a five-run lead and lost 7-6 to the Cincinnati Reds.

Report: Vick agrees to plea deal, prison possible  —  (CNN) — Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick has accepted a plea deal that could send him to prison, ending a federal dogfighting prosecution that jeopardizes his pro football career, a Virginia newspaper is reporting.

Olney On Johan Santana  —  ESPN's Buster Olney kicks off his blog today with his thoughts on Johan Santana.  Fresh off a team-record 17 strikeout performance, Santana is a hot topic around baseball.  Olney believes Santana trade talk could dominate the offseason.

Power Progress  —  Jeremy Hermida hit his eleventh home run of the season in the first inning today, a three-run shot that helped the Marlins to a 4-3 lead over the Giants in the fourth inning.  At age 23, Hermida still has plenty of room to improve, and he's now slugging 100 points better than last season at .469.

Cards now 3 games out of 1st, beat Cubs  —  CHICAGO (AP) — Rick Ankiel showed off the arm that once made him a promising pitcher.  His perfect peg from left field in the first inning cut down a runner and got the St. Louis Cardinals headed toward victory Monday.