Red Sox continue mastery of Yankees  —  Johnny Damon hits a three-run home run in the bottom of the third against the Red Sox.  (Audrey C. Tiernan, Newsday / May 5, 2009)  —  If the Yankees trail the Red Sox by just a tad in the final 2009 standings, they won't have to wonder why.

The NL West Race Is Over  —  Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers for clinching the first playoff spot of the 2009 season.  —  Okay, fine, it's only May 6th.  The Dogers have another 134 games to play.  Things could go wrong.  The whole team might get the swine flu.

The A-Rod book: One thing's wrong, for sure  —  It took me less than an hour to find a mistake in A-Rod, The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez , the Selena Roberts book that debuted this week.  —  And I wasn't even trying.  —  I got to page 79, read that A-Rod was “hitting a dismal .105 …

Press Box Layoff: How the Baltimore Sun Fired Me  —  Full disclosure: the first two times I was given stunning news about my newspaper job - in 1986 at the about-to-merge St. Petersburg Evening Independent, and in 1991 at the about-to-be-defunct National Sports Daily - I didn't get it face-to-face either time.

Meet the New Nats.  Same as the Old Caps.  —  In the bottom of the 11th inning of a 10-10 farce of blunders at Nationals Park yesterday afternoon, a shroud was put over the field.  Okay, a tarp.  At the sight of the Nats and Astros bullpens, the sky had laughed 'til it cried.

Castro, Wright back Livan as Mets top Braves  —  ATLANTA - So who are these Mets?  The soft, smiling do-gooders as characterized by their own general manager last weekend?  Or the serious, take-care-of-business grinders who swept the Braves out of Turner Field in this two-game mini-series?

Bio hazard: A-Rod author has credibility issues  —  Jason Whitlock brings his edgy and thought-provoking style to FOXSports.com.  Columnist for the Kansas City Star, he has won the National Journalism Award for Commentary for “his ability to seamlessly integrate sports and social commentary …

Taylor making progress one start at a time  —  Florida (15-12) vs. Atlanta (11-15), 7:10 p.m. ET  —  MIAMI — Graham Taylor was a different rookie pitcher in his second start at Wrigley Field.  Don't believe him?  Just look at the tape, he said.  —  “It's completely different if you put …

Proctor shut down after suffering setback  —  Right-hander will visit Dr. James Andrews next week  —  MIAMI - Scott Proctor just can't catch a break with his right elbow.  —  The 32-year-old right-hander, who had surgery this offseason, was limited to just one Grapefruit League appearance this spring and …

Coonelly expresses confidence in Q&A  —  Bucs president addresses recent slump, Draft and more  —  Frank Coonelly: Hello everyone.  Welcome to this month's chat and thank you for joining me today.  —  bucsin09: What happened to Kyle Bloom?  I know we received him back from Detroit …

CLEVELAND INDIANS  —  Baseball News, Schedule, Pictures, and More  —  Cleveland Indians promote Matt Herges, option Rafael Perez to Columbus  —  BOSTON — Matt Herges joined the Titanic of bullpens and he was glad to come aboard.  —  The Indians purchased Herges contract from Class AAA Columbus …

Pitchers Drafted in Top 10: Not a Reassuring History  —  The Nationals have the Nos. 1 and 10 overall picks in the draft on June 9.  So, I thought you folks would enjoy having the definitive FACTS on what has happened in 44 years of drafting to help you form your opinions.

Tim Lincecum relates to kid pitcher from ‘Rookie of the Year’  —  says he loves pitching at Wrigley Field and his performance there on Tuesday suggested as much.  —  But no matter the results, the Cy Young award winner says he appreciates the ballpark's history, its bricks, its ivy and …

CAMERON MAYBIN WILL STAY IN MAJORS  —  Give manager Fredi Gonzalez credit for using humor to deflect controversy.  —  Rookie CF Cameron Maybin, who struck out three times Monday, was out of the lineup Tuesday.  Alfredo Amezaga will start in CF.  —  “It's a new league rule,” Gonzalez said when asked why Amezaga was replacing Maybin.