Piazza hangs up catching gear after 16 seasons  —  BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Mike Piazza is retiring from baseball following a 16-season career in which he became one of the top-hitting catchers in history.  —  “After discussing my options with my wife, family and agent …

Amid big expectations, just paper Tigers so far  —  The ashtray is filled with cigarette butts and the pack of Marlboros is sitting next to an empty bag of chips inside the visiting manager's office at Arizona's Chase Field, but Jim Leyland is just getting started.

Masterson is masterful in Red Sox win  —  BOSTON - Rookie Justin Masterson pitched 6 1-3 strong innings one day after Jon Lester [stats]'s no-hitter against Kansas City and the Boston Red Sox [team stats] silenced the Royals bats again in a 2-1 victory Tuesday night.

Martinez could be back next week  —  Expected to throw bullpen session Wednesday or Thursday  —  ATLANTA — The reunion of Pedro Martinez and the Mets, not to be confused with the return of Martinez to active duty, is to happen this week while the team is here to play four games in three days against the Braves.

Yost furious over false report  —  Blog entry alleges that skipper to be dismissed  —  PITTSBURGH — A furious Ned Yost admonished media outlets for feeding what he called “a frenzy” on Monday over an erroneous blog report that he was to be dismissed.  —  “That's bull,” the Brewers' manager …

McCutchen called to Triple-A … Still haven't heard who's being sent down from New York to make room for Alex Rodriguez, but I'm starting to lean toward Chris Britton over Shelley Duncan.  Still a guess, though.  —  Miley said he still wasn't sure whether Juan Miranda would be placed on the disabled list …

Hank Steinbrenner weighs in on Lester  —  Yankees boss Hank Steinbrenner, who watched highlights of Jon Lester's no-hitter Monday night, said he hopes some of his younger pitchers can begin performing like Lester did.  —  “Obviously, a great, great story,” said Steinbrenner on his cell phone.

Did Yankees construction worker bury more Red Sox gear?  —  Just when the Yankees thought it was safe to move into their new stadium next spring ...  Evidently the rogue construction worker who buried a David Ortiz jersey in the fresh cement of the new building — since removed to much fanfare …

Jeter leaves game after taking pitch to left hand  —  NEW YORK — Derek Jeter was hit on his left hand by a pitch Tuesday night, forcing him out of the Yankees' 12-2 loss against Baltimore, and the teams nearly came to blows when New York tried to retaliate three innings later.

Travel  —  Like many baseball people, I've been traveling for the past few days doing some last-minute coverage for the amateur draft.  This morning I'm off to the SEC Tournament in Hoover, AL.  —  Typically, I wouldn't broadcast my whereabouts, as part of the game in the draft is trying to figure out what players other teams like.

Halls of Fame  —  Throughout this final season of memories at both Shea and Yankees Stadium, we will look back at all the great times we have shared with our teams and fellow fans.  —  Yankees  —  Klapisch: Some troubling times for Girardi  —  It's not often the Yankees are thankful for a Mets' crisis …

Prospects or Suspects?  (Part Two)  —  In Part One of Prospects or Suspects? we profiled four players - Daniel Bard, Jay Bruce, Jamie D'Antona, and Mike Hessman - who are enjoying outstanding starts to their 2008 campaigns.  Today, we are going to take a look at another foursome.

Dobbs' pinch-hit pushes Phillies past Nationals  —  WASHINGTON - Greg Dobbs' RBI pinch-hit single in the ninth inning gave the Philadelphia Phillies a 1-0 win against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.  —  Dobbs picked up the game-winning RBI as a pinch hitter for reliever Tom Gordon.