Harper: Scouts down on Yanks' young arms  —  So the wheel officially begins to spin now on Brian Cashman's grand gamble to ride the Yankees' young pitching in 2008 and beyond.  And premature as it may be, there is no avoiding the question that will be asked countless times this season …

Ziegel: Remember to forget  —  MIAMI - Remember the Alamo, if that's your idea of a good time, but forget about the Mets' final 17 games last season.  The five-game losing streak, the next five-game losing streak, the seven-game lead that disappeared in a hurry, the 11 different Mets pitchers who lost games in September.

Zim blast christens Nat Park  —  WASHINGTON - Ryan Zimmerman raised a fist when he rounded first, then tossed away his helmet as he approached the plate and the mass of teammates waiting to celebrate his game-ending homer.  —  The kid sure knows how to throw a housewarming party.

Jack Cust eats fastballs for lunch  —  Getting a major league job  —  Early last year, the Oakland Athletics watched as nearly their entire contingent of major league outfielders went down with one injury after another.  —  The bad news started in spring training, as center fielder Mark Kotsay underwent back surgery on Mar. 8.

Marlins pump up volume, not payroll  —  It's opening day and here's the Marlins' best pitch:  —  Come for the party.  Stay for the baseball.  —  For a franchise caught in limbo, that's about the best it can do to get fans in the stands.  —  The Marlins, always a tough draw in fickle South Florida …

Ethier wins left-field job  —  Pierre forced to bench after hitting just .169 this spring  —  LOS ANGELES — Andre Ethier won the Dodgers' starting left-field job from veteran Juan Pierre and will start Opening Day vs. the Giants on Monday, Los Angeles manager Joe Torre announced Sunday.

GREEN … Baseball impends, and, with the flags aloft in the Bronx and, next week, at Shea, fans will grab at the chance to forget about the abysmal closing innings in these neighborhoods last fall.  The looming left-field presences of the new Yankee Stadium and the Mets' Citi Field …

Bondy: Fear is factor for Creatures of habit  —  So this is it, the beginning of the end below the Utz potato chip sign.  If there is such a thing as life after Section 39, then the Bleacher Creatures don't really want to know about it, not yet.  —  There are at least 81 games left in the old cathedral, Yankee Stadium.

Kielty mulling trip to Minors  —  Outfielder might jump at big league job if one is available  —  LOS ANGELES — When the Red Sox depart for Oakland following Sunday's game with the Dodgers, right fielder Bobby Kielty will relocate to his Southern California home for the next couple of days …

What Happened to Jason Bay?  —  One of the big mysteries of the 2007 season was the decline of Pirates' OF Jason Bay.  The question everybody has is how it happened.  —  Was it injuries?  Bay did battle knee discomfort for much of the 2007 season and was coming off arthroscopic knee surgery from the previous offseason.

Orioles release outfielder Gibbons  —  BALTIMORE — Jay Gibbons was released Sunday by the Baltimore Orioles, who lost patience waiting for the oft-injured outfielder to regain the form that enabled him to hit 26 home runs in 2005.  —  Gibbons batted .189 with no homers and four RBIs …