Beckett pulled  —  Josh Beckett has been pulled from tonight's start because of a stiff neck.  Beckett had been fighting the same illness that has taken Jason Varitek out of the lineup for the past couple of days.  —  So the Red Sox, anticipating that there might be a problem, had pulled David Pauley from his start on Monday.

Game 21: Yankees at White Sox  —  YANKEES  —  Chien-Ming Wang's history against the White Sox  —  Jose Contreras' history against the Yankees  —  Notes: Cynthia and Alex Rodriguez had a baby girl in Miami last night.  The as-yet-unnamed kiddo checked in at 7 lbs, 2 ounces.

Cedeno has grand finish to homestand  —  Ronny Cedeno learned a valuable lesson Monday night after coming up with a clutch two-out hit to help the Cubs beat the New York Mets at Wrigley Field.  —  Don't mention anything about the World Series in April, at least if you're a Cub.

Gross traded to Tampa Bay  —  The Milwaukee Brewers made a pre-emptive strike to clear an upcoming logjam in the outfield by trading Gabe Gross to Tampa Bay for right-handed pitching prospect Josh Butler after their game today.  —  Oddly enough, Gross scored the winning run in the 12th inning …

Canseco meets with federal investigators  —  LOS ANGELES (AP)—Jose Canseco reaffirmed Tuesday that Roger Clemens did not attend a party at his house that has become a focal point of a federal investigation.  —  Canseco was interviewed by federal agents and answered a series of questions …

Defensive shakeup follows Tigers' rout  —  After victory, Leyland says Cabrera is moving to first base, Guillen to third.  —  DETROIT — The Tigers hit three bombs during Tuesday night's 10-2 victory over the Rangers, but announced a bigger one after it.  —  In a major positional switch …

Smoke-free Shea might dampen Cox's cigar ritual  —  ATLANTA — Puffing on his usual postgame cigar, Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox flashed a startled look when asked what he thought of Shea Stadium's total ban on smoking.  —  “You mean the new one?” he asked, referring to Citi Field …

Smoltz joins 3,000- strikeout club against Nats  —  Starter, reliever, All-Star, likely Hall of Famer.  John Smoltz can likely add that last description to his resume after the Atlanta Braves pitcher picked up his 3,000th career strikeout on Tuesday night.  —  Smoltz whiffed Washington …

Wrapping up at Wrigley  —  Here's the unhappy recap from a brutal showing at Wrigley Field, where the Mets lost to the Cubs, 8-1, to get swept in a two-game series.  —  • Carlos Delgado had the worst play, costing Nelson Figueroa during what was otherwise another solid outing by the journeyman.

You can't put a price on leadership  —  The game of baseball sure has changed.  —  It's not everyday that you release the guy that lead your team in homers and RBIs the season before, but the Jays did.  I guess it's like the old Janet Jackson song, “What have you done for me lately?”

Cruceta looking as good as advertised  —  Reliever pitches three scoreless, hitless innings for Toledo  —  TOLEDO, Ohio — For one night, at least, Francisco Cruceta looked as good as advertised.  —  The acclaimed right-handed reliever pitched three scoreless, hitless innings for Triple …