Troncoso's huge strikeouts preserve Dodgers victory  —  Nibblers.  Dinks.  It looked as if the Dodgers' comeuppance had come up.  Nursing a 2-1 lead with Jonathan Broxton unavailable, the Dodgers and Manager Joe Torre placed all their faith in Ramon Troncoso — even letting him bat …

Lupica: Mets, Yankees enjoying the view  —  The opening of the fancy ballparks was supposed to be the start of the baseball season in New York.  But two months later, it feels as if the good parts are about to start now, as if April and May were just some out of town tryout.

Welcome, Matt: Wieters debuts tonight  —  Highly touted Orioles catcher rocketed through Minors  —  BALTIMORE — Nothing about this situation is normal.  —  When Matt Wieters makes his Major League debut tonight, he'll do so with the unremitting glare of a media spotlight that has been trained on him ever since he was drafted.

REHABBING DELGADO NOT SURE WHEN — OR IF — HE'LL MAKE METS RETURN  —  If the Mets want a slam dunk, they should trade for LeBron James.  —  Carlos Delgado returning to the lineup this season?  Not a slam dunk.  That assessment comes from none other than Delgado, who last night …

Cleveland Indians drop David Dellucci; recall Rafael Perez  —  CLEVELAND — David Dellucci, the man Indians bloggers loved to hate, has been designated for assignment to make room for left-hander Rafael Perez.  —  Dellucci, for whatever reason, became a symbol for everything that has gone wrong …

Phil Coke Is a Go-To Guy in Yankees' Depleted Bullpen  —  The Yankees arrived in Cleveland on Thursday with fewer problems than they have had all season.  —  Their fearsome lineup is welcoming back Jorge Posada.  Their deep rotation has a starter to spare in Chien-Ming Wang.

From the first pitch, Alex Rodriguez has been a blast for Yankees … (Page 1 of 2)  —  CLEVELAND - Has a .258 hitter ever made as much of a difference as Alex Rodriguez has over the past three weeks?  —  Ever since A-Rod and his surgically repaired hip returned from the disabled list on May 8, the Yankees have been rolling.

Pirates Draft Outlook: Boras not factor in making first pick  —  The midnight-deadline wrangling.  The 2 1/2-month machinations.  The tense and terse times that included a grievance, a hearing and legal eagles from both Major League Baseball and the players association.

Jim Leyland steamed after Tigers' loss  —  Baltimore — Once or twice a season.  —  That's how often the post-game fire within manager Jim Leyland burns so intensely that it eventually fries his patience.  —  Thursday night's 5-1 loss to the Orioles was one of those times.

Jerry Manuel vs Manny Acta: The Quotes  —  Here's a little two-part challenge for everyone.  —  Part 1: Read the following quotes from two current big league managers — Manager A and Manager B — and try to figure out which is Jerry Manuel and which is Manny Acta (easy!).

Orioles getting younger, winning and having fun  —  Buzz up!  —  BALTIMORE (AP)—The younger they get, the better the Baltimore Orioles seem to play.  —  And boy, are those kids having fun.  —  The Orioles extended their winning streak to four games Thursday night, using two home runs by Luke Scott

MLB on Blackout Policy: “There's still more work to be done”  —  There was hope in August of last year, albeit thin, that Major League Baseball was finally ready to make good on their efforts to address the television territories in the league that was creating so much consumer outrage when coupled with MLB's blackout policy.

The Cervelli backstory  —  Had a chance in Texas to have a long conversation with Francisco Cervelli.  Get this: He has been catching only since 2003 when the Yankees signed him out of Venezuela.  —  “I was a shortstop and a second baseman and I pitched in Venezuela,” Cervelli said.

Steroid suspect juiced to ‘be like’ Arnold Schwarzenegger  —  The Florida bodybuilder who told authorities that he supplied illegal performance-enhancing drugs to big-league athletes says he got into steroids because he wanted to emulate his hero, Arnold Schwarzenegger.