Young Rays have passed Yankees in standings and in talent  —  Having spent a little time being both, I feel qualified to say this: Being young is better than being old.  —  Generally speaking, running is preferable to standing still, energy is better than entitlement and today is better than yesterday.

Rumer has it this fan is no Bartman  —  The Rockies have a friend in the diamond business.  —  After the Rockies' 3-2 victory over the Twins on Saturday night — in a gem of a game — the jewelry chain that honors the star of the game should have given the sparkling bauble to . . . Eric Rumer.

Royals give contract extension to Soria  —  Closer gets early birthday gift: a deal with options through 2014  —  MIAMI — Nice birthday present for Royals closer Joakim Soria.  —  Soria, who will turn 24 on Sunday, received a three-year contract extension through 2011 followed by three option years …

Masterson, Colon to pitch  —  The Red Sox have announced the starters for Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, against the Kansas City Royals.  Justin Masterson will be brought up on Tuesday, swapped with Chris Smith (who came up today).  Then Masterson will return to the minors after the game …

Secret papers show how Yankees became richest team in sports  —  The Yankees are floundering in the standings but the team's reputation as the money machine of American sports is as dominating as ever.  —  The millions of dollars earned by the Bronx Bombers - whose estimated $1.2 billion worth makes …

They still have something left  —  Glavine and Moyer are wise old hands  —  The 40-something lefthanders were positioned at opposite ends of Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, but you'd swear they had telepathy.  Tom Glavine, the Brave, Jamie Moyer, the Phillie, shared common concerns and outlooks.

Notebook: Hamilton ready for a break  —  rdurrett@dallasnews.com  —  ARLINGTON - Manager Ron Washington pulled Josh Hamilton aside in spring training and made it clear the slugger should tell him when he needed a break.  —  “He still reminds me even now,” Hamilton said.

FORMER YANKEE ELLIS FIGHTING FOR HIS LIFE  —  Dock Phillip Ellis' voice reveals how much pain he is in.  The former pitcher speaks slowly, haltingly about his battle with cirrhosis of the liver.  “It's pretty bad,” Ellis said...  A-ROD GOES DEEP IN FIRST REHAB GAME

Red Sox offense getting up to speed  —  + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email + Bio  —  The Red Sox [team stats] still have their share of pitching questions as they plod along in this 2008 season, but here's the good news: Perhaps like at no other point in their recent history …

Marlins' Uggla riding offensive wave  —  Florida (24-18) vs. Kansas City (20-22), Sunday, 1:10 p.m. ET  —  MIAMI — Dan Uggla's offensive fireworks in May have placed him in elite company among Major League second basemen.  —  Going into Saturday's contest with Kansas City, Uggla …

Girardi opens pan-Joba's box again  —  And Brian Cashman thought he was done with those chatty managers with a tendency to speak out of school.  —  The Yankees' general manager was mildly irritated last season when then-manager Joe Torre publicly disclosed the “Joba Rules,” …

A's end Braves' home winning streak at 8  —  ATLANTA (AP)—Jack Cust hit a solo home run and Ryan Sweeney added a three-run shot, and the Oakland Athletics held on to beat the Atlanta Braves 5-4 on Saturday night to end a season-worst four game losing streak.