Homers trump ‘pen woes in Mets’ win  —  Relief corps makes it interesting, but bats lead charge over Nats  —  WASHINGTON — It was something less than the manager had sought.  Jerry Manuel had ordered up a shutout Wednesday afternoon.  —  “Nine innings of shutout ball — I won't take anything less …

A-Rod reaches a milestone of his own  —  New York (81-71) vs. Chicago (84-67), Thursday, 7:05 p.m. ET  —  NEW YORK — It has been a homestand of milestones for the Yankees, who are bidding farewell to the storied Yankee Stadium by reaching a little history of their own.

Schilling: Manny's antics disrespected teammates  —  The media called Manny Ramirez's quirks “Manny being Manny.”  Curt Schilling sees it differently.  —  In an interview Wednesday on Boston radio station WEEI-AM, the injured Boston Red Sox starter took his former teammate to task …

Rays rout Red Sox 10-3, lead East by 2  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP)—Baseball's feel-good story of the year is on the verge of getting even better.  —  The AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays beat the Boston Red Sox 10-3 Wednesday night, moving closer to their first playoff berth with another …

Sheets feels ‘cutting’ sensation in elbow  —  Brewers ace has been dealing with discomfort since August  —  CHICAGO — The Brewers might be without Ben Sheets for the second straight September, right when they need him most.  —  The right-hander was forced out of his start against the Cubs …

Likely there's a Sabean in Giants' future  —  (09-18) 04:00 PDT Phoenix — William Neukom will have many important items on his agenda when he becomes the Giants' managing general partner Oct. 1, but it appears his to-do list will not include a general manager search.

Ichiro ties MLB record for 200-hit seasons  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki matched Willie Keeler's major league record of eight straight 200-hit seasons Wednesday night, beating out on infield single in the eighth inning for his third hit against Kansas City.

CHANGE: GIRARDI'S MANTRA FOR 2009  —  YANKEE Stadium will not close its doors until Sunday night, but in many ways the 2009 season started last night with Phil Hughes back on the mound and Joe Girardi talking about learning from his experiences this season.  There is only one way to learn …

Ramirez exits win with bad shoulder  —  NL East standings Team W-L Pct GB  —  Philadelphia 85-67 .559 -  —  New York 84-67 .556 1/2  —  Florida 79-72 .523 51/2 NL wild-card standings  —  New York 84-67 .556 -  —  Milwaukee 84-68 .553 1/2  —  Houston 80-71 .530 4  —  Florida 79-72 .523 5

Bedard could miss 6-9 months  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Given his general demeanor, Erik Bedard wasn't about to spend much of the past three months talking about his injuries.  He's not big on talking, and what would have been the point?  Bedard couldn't pitch, his left shoulder was sore and it wasn't getting better.

Pioneer League Top 20 Prospects  —  Rockies catcher impressed at plate and behind it  —  The Rookie-level Pioneer League is always a tricky league to evaluate, as it's somewhat of a tweener circuit.  The Diamondbacks and Rockies don't have complex-based teams so their PL club serves as their lowest-level U.S. affiliate.

Dodgers outslugged by Pirates  —  Billingsley lasts 4 2/3 innings; Nomar reinjures left knee  —  PITTSBURGH — The Dodgers, who won a game earlier this year without a hit, had 18 of them Wednesday night and lost.  —  In a real mess of a game, Adam LaRoche slugged two homers with five RBIs …

Miranda thrilled about call-up to Yankees  —  The Yankees had big hopes when they signed first baseman Juan Miranda to a four-year major-league contract worth $2 million in December 2006 after he defected from Cuba.  —  Miranda, 25, reached the Bronx yesterday after the team called him up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.