Analysis: Minaya's rule a reign of error  —  Manager Willie Randolph (l.) has felt the heat this season, but GM Omar Minaya added injury-prone players ...  You are watching the painfully slow demise of The New Mets, the vision Omar Minaya articulated four years ago but built as a house of cards.

Rivera, Yanks stunned by late homer  —  In tie game in ninth, closer victimized by Royals' Guillen  —  NEW YORK — Johnny Damon saw it, and thought he had it.  Mariano Rivera agreed.  But still Damon backpedaled, shifting his gaze up, up, and finally, behind.

Rocket's game got boost from Viagra  —  Roger Clemens, whose claims he never took steroids are under federal investigation, has apparently discovered the benefits of another performance-enhancing drug sweeping the sports world - Viagra.  —  Clemens stashed the clearly marked …

Griffey joins kings of clout with No. 600  —  Reds slugger belts historic homer off Marlins lefty Hendrickson  —  MIAMI — As Ken Griffey Jr.'s deep drive landed in the right-field seats at Dolphin Stadium on Monday night, he moved out of the batter's box and trotted through the door of the elite 600 home run club.

Ryan Tucker another Marlin who must cover up arm tattoos  —  MIAMI GARDENS - Including the guy it was named for, the Marlins now have two pitchers subject to the “Justin Miller rule.”  —  Ryan Tucker made his major league debut in 86-degree heat Sunday wearing a long-sleeved black undershirt.

Royals notebook: Yabuta finally finding his groove  —  It was easy to overlook Yasuhiko Yabuta on Monday in the glare of José Guillen's ongoing power flex and the nail-biting finish in which Joakim Soria closed out a 3-2 victory over the Yankees.  —  Finally, though …

The 10 worst No. 5 hitters since 1957  —  Our tour of the most pitiful performances in the various spots in the batting order has so far visited leadoff, the second slot, No. 3, and cleanup.  This time we'll look in on the fitful flailers of the fifth position, as defined by starting at least …

Belliard activated from DL  —  Nationals infielder misses three weeks with left calf strain  —  WASHINGTON — The Nationals activated infielder Ronnie Belliard from the 15-day disabled list and optioned right-hander Tyler Clippard to Triple-A Columbus on Monday.

Pirates Rattle Big Unit to Defeat Diamondbacks  —  PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates took advantage of a rattled Randy Johnson and a reversed home run call to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 on Monday.  —  Johnson limited the Pirates to six singles and struck out three in 5 2-3 innings …

Pudge, Inge to split time at catcher  —  Leyland concerned Rodriguez could wear down without rest  —  DETROIT — Brandon Inge became a former Tigers catcher four years ago when the club signed free agent Ivan Rodriguez.  Now, they're basically a catching platoon.

Giants finish 4-game sweep of Nationals  —  In the sixth inning, Jesus Flores fouled off five pitches against Matt Cain before striking out on a slider, stranding runners on first and third.  —  One long turn at the plate ended successfully, the other in failure.

THIS TEAM'S GOING NOWHERE!  —  Nothing's working for the Mets these days - not even elevators.  —  Above, Pedro Martinez (center) and team COO Jeff Wilpon (striped shirt) smile as they and at least seven fellow passengers endure a stuck lift at Richards clothing store in Greenwich, Conn., where some Mets appeared at a charity event.

Mariners fire hitting coach Pentland  —  Players take full blame for inept offense  —  TORONTO — The hitters are to blame.  —  That's the result of a quick poll of Mariners players Monday in the wake of the firing of hitting instructor Jeff Pentland, who was replaced by former Mariners hitting coach Lee Elia.