Pavano to Start Saturday and Restart His Career  —  TORONTO — On June 27, 2005, Carl Pavano boarded a train with his bags and his golf clubs and stepped out at Penn Station in Baltimore.  He pitched for the Yankees that night, taking his turn in the rotation for the 17th time that season.

Jays obtain insurance in Bautista  —  The Jays yesterday obtained third baseman Jose Bautista from the Pirates for a player to be named later.  The club claimed Bautista on waivers, then negotiated with the Bucs for a suitable minor-leaguer to be sent back later.

Cubs won't take struggling Nats lightly  —  Chicago (78-49) vs. Washington (45-83), Friday, 1:20 p.m. CT  —  CHICAGO — For the Cubs, the playoff chase is heating up.  September is on the horizon, and October is coming into focus.  For their opponents, April can't come fast enough.

Mets sweep Braves, Delgado wins it  —  Carlos Delgado's game-ending drive to left field officially was scored his fifth hit of the game.  Either way - error or single - the result allowed the Mets to open a season-high lead in the NL East.  —  Omar Infante lost Delgado's one-out …

Red Sox' time is now  —  Sox need to clinch early to have chance in October  —  + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email + Bio  —  The obvious priority, as David Ortiz [stats] recently noted, is to “win games, win games, win games.”  But the more the Red Sox [team stats] can win now, the better their chances later.

Former Met great Tom Seaver not sad to see Shea go  —  There are memories everywhere for Tom Seaver at Shea Stadium.  —  When he looks out at the field, he sees the ghosts of teammates past.  When he looks into the stands, he hears the fans who cheered him during his 11 seasons as a Met.

Marlins' Ramirez not sure when he can return … SAN FRANCISCO — Hanley Ramirez tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep Wednesday night because he was worried.  —  The reason?  —  “I knew right away I couldn't play [Thursday],” Ramirez said Thursday, one day after injuring his right thumb while stealing second base.

Church's return to Mets a good thing, Manuel says  —  Ryan Church's expected return to the lineup tomorrow creates some issues for manager Jerry Manuel.  Issues he's more than happy to deal with because he views Church as “a great, great addition to us.”  —  Church went -for-4 …

Yankees to play NL East in 2009  —  The Yankees next year are scheduled to face the entire National League East in interleague play.  —  According to a major-league official who has seen the proposed 2009 schedule but asked not to be named because it is not yet finalized …

Foto Friday #8: New York's Cup Runneth Over  —  As a segue to Bob Timmermann's guest column yesterday on “The World of Catcher's Interference,” we bring you Foto Friday #8.  —  Nope, that's not a gas mask, folks.  That's a holy cup, so to speak.  —  Your mission, should you choose to accept it …

Andino delivers PCL's fifth cycle  —  Goes 5-for-6 with two RBIs in Albuquerque's 16-8 rout of New Orleans  —  It's the year of the cycle in the Pacific Coast League.  —  Robert Andino became the fifth PCL player to achieve the feat this season, going 5-for-6 with two RBIs …

A's set unfortunate team record  —  Team has now used the DL 23 times during 2008 season  —  SEATTLE — The Athletics broke a team record Sunday, but not one that will bring any smiles.  —  By placing starting pitchers Justin Duchscherer and Sean Gallagher on the 15-day disabled list …