Grand slams by Howard, Ibanez fuel Phillies' rally over Nationals  —  PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez each hit a grand slam, rallying the Philadelphia Phillies to a wild 13-11 win over the Washington Nationals on Monday night for their fifth straight victory.

Quality Start and 9 Hits Add Up to Mets Victory  —  A bucket of baseballs was crushed to the nether regions of Citi Field on Monday night, but only one hit plopped into the stands.  It was sent there by Mets catcher Omir Santos, their backup turned starter, for a grand slam that had furious competition …

Verlander fans nine as Ordonez, Tigers hand Yankees fourth straight loss  —  DETROIT — Justin Verlander pitched like the ace the Detroit Tigers need him to be for a change.  —  The New York Yankees wish they could say the same about CC Sabathia.  —  Verlander had a season-high nine strikeouts …

Bay, Wake hand Red Sox 11th straight  —  Knuckleballer one-hits Tribe, three-run homer in ninth seals it  —  CLEVELAND — Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield can't pitch much better.  No way.  Impossible.  Well, maybe he could pitch a no-hitter or a perfect game.

Is Papelbon OK?  —  So far, Jonathan Papelbon has gotten the job done for the Red Sox, but The Boston Globe's Amalie Benjamin wonders if something is wrong with the Sox closer because he's not getting as many batters to swing and miss this season.  Is it a concern?

Houston Astros closer Jose Valverde still out with calf injury  —  CINCINNATI — Houston Astros closer Jose Valverde reached down and pressed his right thumb against the side of his right shin.  The tip of the thumb made an indentation that stayed long after he pulled his hand away.

Greinke to appear on this week's cover of Sports Illustrated  —  Zack Greinke will have to battle more than the Toronto Blue Jays when he looks to extend his streak of innings without an earned run Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium.  —  There now will be the added weight — and alleged jinx …

Padres add Gaudin, designate De La Cruz  —  Veteran righty was signed to Minors deal April 12  —  Chad Guadin has made it back to the big leagues.  —  On Monday, the Padres purchased the contract of the right-handed pitcher from Triple-A Portland.  To make room for Guadin …

Ruiz scratched from Triple-A lineup  —  Phils catcher feels discomfort in strained right oblique  —  PHILADELPHIA — Catcher Carlos Ruiz was scratched from the lineup for Triple-A Lehigh Valley in a rehabilitation game Monday night.  —  Ruiz took batting practice, but felt discomfort in his strained right oblique.

Alex Rodriguez, Chien-Ming Wang step up rehab programs in Tampa  —  TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez increased the intensity of his workout and pitcher Chien-Ming Wang threw in the outfield Monday as part of their rehabilitation.  —  Rodriguez, who had surgery …

Easy does it with Lugo  —  CLEVELAND - Armed with a 10-game winning streak and an effective Nick Green, the Red Sox aren't going to go crazy trying to incorporate Julio Lugo into an everyday role at shortstop until he shows he can handle it physically.  —  That seemed to me the theme of both Lugo and Terry Francona this afternoon.

Brewers win 13th straight over Pirates  —  Buzz up!  —  MILWAUKEE (AP)—Trevor Hoffman waited so long for his first appearance with Milwaukee that he got a call from manager Ken Macha asking him if he still wanted to pitch.  —  Rickie Weeks broke open a tie game in the eighth inning …

Pineiro improves to 4-0 as Cardinals edge Braves  —  ATLANTA (AP) — Rick Ankiel drove in two runs for St. Louis to back another strong outing by Joel Pineiro, who equaled the best start of his career when the Cardinals edged the Atlanta Braves 3-2 Monday night.