Ortiz at first, Penny at home, Francona in Philly  —  Three topics dominated the pregame chatter today.  We'll start with Terry Francona's initial lineup adjustments in the Red Sox' first game of the season in a National League park.  —  Francona went with David Ortiz at first base …

Papelbon fined for pace-of-game violation  —  BOSTON n- Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, who picked up his 16th save of the season in last night's 4-3 win over the Yankees at Fenway Park, tying him with the Angels' Brian Fuentes for the American League lead, was fined by Major League Baseball earlier …

Game 61: Mets at Yankees (with pre-game updates and the arrival of a new belt)  —  Pitching: RHP Joba Chamberlain (3-1, 3.79).  —  METS (31-27)  —  Cora SS  —  Martinez LF  —  Beltran CF  —  Wright 3B  —  Church RF  —  Sheffield DH  —  Murphy 1B  —  Schneider C  —  Castillo 2B

Bradley struggles in right, Cubs fall to Twins 7-4  —  Joe Mauer and the Minnesota Twins felt loved at Wrigley Field while the home fans took out their frustrations on one of their own, mistake-prone right fielder Milton Bradley.  —  Mauer, batting .413 after getting two more hits …

Surprise performances (cont.)  —  1. David Ortiz, Red Sox DH.  Boston people remain worried despite Ortiz's improved hitting of late.  And judging by his recent dugout fits, Ortiz remains worried, too.  —  2. Chien-Ming Wang, Yankees SP.  Wang's ERA is the highest in history after five starts.

Melvin: Talk of imminent deal ‘absolutely false’  —  I bit the bullet this afternoon and asked Doug Melvin about the trade rumors that have swirled on the Internet over the past 36 hours about an imminent trade for a front-line pitcher.  —  His two-word response: “Absolutely false.”

Halladay tweaks groin … TORONTO (AP) — Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay has left his start against Florida after apparently injuring his groin.  —  Halladay grimaced after throwing his second pitch in the third inning Friday night.  Catcher Rod Barajas went to the mound, then motioned to the dugout …

Cleveland Indians search for answer to Lake Erie gull problem  —  CLEVELAND — There were two sets of birds at Progressive Field on Friday — the St. Louis Cardinals and the Lake Erie gulls.  —  The Cardinals will leave on Sunday.  No one knows when the gulls will.

Friday's news and notes  —  An unintended consequence of the Washington Nationals' move out of Jose Rijo's complex near San Cristobal was the costs that would fall on the San Diego Padres and Detroit Tigers, the two other teams that have academies near San Cristobal.

A Q&A with Jonah Keri  —  Many of you know Jonah Keri form his time at Baseball Prospectus, or his time at ESPN.com, or .... well, everywhere else.  He's everywhere nowadays and even has a book coming out next year covering the Tampa Bay Rays rise to prominence.  He was also kind enough to answer a few questions from our staff.

Rehab stint around the corner for Rays' Kazmir … ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Scott Kazmir has thrown 44 pitches in a three-inning simulated game and hopes to begin a rehabilitation assignment next week.  —  Kazmir three 44 pitches on Friday, while also working on his mechanics.

Washington Nationals and former Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Elijah Dukes still trying to get his life in order  —  TAMPA — Former Rays outfielder Elijah Dukes returns to Tropicana Field tonight for the first time in nearly two years, when the then-rookie was placed on the inactive list amid swirling legal …

Chien-Ming Wang is Doing Something Wrong  —  After another less than stellar performance last night, the Yankees have to be worried about Chien-Ming Wang.  Wang, who entered the 2008 season fresh off back-to-back 19 win seasons, suffered a season ending sprain to his right foot while running …

Rays reportedly work out Pedro  —  Strange report out of the Dominican Republic today, as Listin Diario cites a source saying Pedro Martinez threw 20 pitches—all fastballs—for Rays officials in Santo Domingo and another workout (in which he'll also use his breaking stuff) is scheduled.