Ibanez vows to fight PED innuendo  —  'I'll come after people who defame or slander me'  —  Phillies outfielder Raul Ibanez is vowing to go on the offensive against people who speculate that his impressive production might be linked to the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Accusations bring A-Rod, Teixeira to tipping point  —  BOSTON - Hours before they were to do battle with the Red Sox Tuesday night, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez were involved in different type of confrontation, this one inside the Yankees' clubhouse.  —  Upset with an accusation …

Blue Jays Agree To Sign David Dellucci  —  ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that the Blue Jays have agreed to sign David Dellucci.  The Indians released Dellucci last Monday after he started the season hitting .275/.333/.350.  He will report to Triple A and will likely be promoted to the majors soon.

Shea Goodbye (The Leonard Lopate Show: Tuesday, 09 June 2009)  —  Former Mets All-Star first baseman Keith Hernandez on his behind-the-scenes look at the Mets' final season at Shea Stadium, Shea Good-Bye: The Untold Inside Story of the Historic 2008 Season.  —  Events: Keith Hernandez will be signing books

Ex-Brave Morton leaves after just one inning  —  Former Braves pitching prospect Charlie Morton left with tightness in his right hamstring after just one inning Wednesday night in his season debut for the Pirates — a start against his former team at Turner Field.

Baseball draft: No. 1 draft pick Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals is among best of the best, agent Scott Boras says  —  WASHINGTON — Agent Scott Boras says No. 1 overall pick Stephen Strasburg is “a different breed of cat,” worthy of a contract far above those of this year's other draft selections.

Verlander's complete game helps Tigers edge White Sox  —  CHICAGO (AP) — Justin Verlander pitched a six-hitter for his first victory ever at U.S. Cellular Field as the Detroit Tigers defeated the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Wednesday night.  —  Jim Thome hit his 552nd career home run …

MLB warns Dodgers about Manny Ramirez in the clubhouse  —  Ramirez visited the clubhouse before Tuesday's game, in violation of baseball's rules regarding suspended players.  The Dodgers were not penalized for the infraction.  —  The Dodgers have been warned by the commissioner's office …

Alex Rodriguez of New York Yankees tell-all book selling poorly  —  NEW YORK — Remember that tell-all book about A-Rod?  —  Just a month after making headlines with its allegations that the New York Yankees star likely used steroids as far back as high school, Selena Roberts' “A-Rod …

A Lack of Power May Derail the Dodgers  —  Managed by a future Hall of Famer and manned by an impressive group of young stars in the making, the Los Angeles Dodgers have the best record in baseball and nearly everything a team might need to win a World Series.  Too bad for them that they can't hit the ball out of the infield.

Touching All the Bases: New Yankee Stadium Home Run Derby  —  After analyzing the 29 games played and the 105 home runs hit at the new Yankee Stadium, AccuWeather.com has determined that a portion of the home run derby that has taken place this season cannot be directly attributed to the weather.

Rays 9, Angels 5  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Carlos Pena and Willy Aybar homered Wednesday night, helping the Tampa Bay Rays stop a three-game losing streak with a 9-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels and nemesis John Lackey.  —  Pena hit a solo homer in the third inning and Aybar added …

Cardinals 13, Marlins 4  —  MIAMI (AP) — Rick Ankiel finished a single shy of the cycle and Colby Rasmus also homered as the St. Louis Cardinals snapped a five-game losing streak with a 13-4 victory over the Florida Marlins on Wednesday night.  —  The Cardinals scored their season high runs on 18 hits.

Mets lift Johan with three-homer night  —  Wright, Beltran, Church go deep; Santana serves up four  —  NEW YORK — The race for the National League East championship has had its bags packed for some time now, ready to move out of Citi Field as soon as it can reserve a seat on a flight to Atlanta or maybe even Miami.

Subway has found a new Jared, and his name is Hong-Chih Kuo.  The Dodgers setup man is the sandwich chain's pitchman in Taiwan and the star of this bizarre commercial in which he dons a No. 69 Subway jersey.  If you're wondering why, the six-inch subs cost NT$69, which comes out to two bucks in the states.

Mets select local high school product Steven Matz with first pick  —  FLUSHING, N.Y. — The New York Mets selected left-handed pitcher Steven Matz with their first selection, 72nd overall, in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft.  —  Matz, a senior at Ward Melville High School in East Setauket …