Rays avoid collapse, beat Red Sox 8-5  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Pat Burrell snapped an eighth-inning tie with a RBI single and Evan Longoria followed with a two-run homer Wednesday night to help Tampa Bay avoid falling farther back in the AL playoff race with an 8-5 victory over Boston.

Senate hopeful of the day: Curt Schilling  —  Add another name to the growing list of pols and would-be pols eyeing a run for Edward M. Kennedy's Senate seat: former Red Sox ace Curt Schilling.  —  That's right, Mr. Bloody Sock himself told NECN's Brad Puffer in an interview today that he has been …

Giants bring up top prospect Posey  —  Fifth overall pick in '08 Draft added for catching depth  —  PHILADELPHIA — Buster Posey's speedy ascent to the Major Leagues reflects the Giants' concern about their injury-afflicted catching corps, manager Bruce Bochy said Wednesday.

Joe Nathan blows it for Twins in 4-2 loss to White Sox  —  MINNEAPOLIS — Joe Nathan gave up back-to-back home runs to Gordon Beckham and Paul Konerko with two outs in the ninth inning, and the Chicago White Sox got to Minnesota's four-time All-Star closer to win 4-2 on Wednesday.

Ned Colletti wants to return to the Dodgers  —  The general manager, a day after acquiring Jim Thome and Jon Garland, says he'd love to be back next season.  —  Ned Colletti's contract as Dodgers' general manager includes a mutual option for 2010.  (Alex Gallardo / Los Angeles Times)  —  On The Dodgers

Felix spoils Kazmir's dazzling debut with Angels … SEATTLE(AP) Felix Hernandez knew he had to be at his best against a potent Los Angeles lineup.  —  Hernandez pitched eight scoreless innings to spoil the Los Angeles debut of left-hander Scott Kazmir and the Mariners beat the Angels 3-0 on Wednesday night.

Sternberg talks attendance, Kazmir  —  Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg addressed the media this afternoon, touching on the hot topics of the moment—primarily attendance and the team dealing away Scott Kazmir last week.  —  Sternberg didn't seem too interested in latching onto …

Teams interested in Braves pitching surplus  —  The Rockies and D-backs both sent scouts to watch Tim Hudson make his return last night.  Like Hudson, these clubs are wondering whether the Braves will bring the veteran right-hander back to Atlanta next year.

Sabathia wins 16th as Yankees pound Orioles  —  BALTIMORE (AP) — CC Sabathia (FSY) allowed one run in seven innings to earn his AL-leading 16th victory, Alex Rodriguez (FSY) got his 2,500th hit and drove in four runs, and the New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-2 Wednesday night for a three-game sweep.

Lilly shines for Cubs, blanks Astros 2-0  —  CHICAGO (AP) — Ted Lilly (FSY) pitched eight shutout innings to reach the 10-win mark for the seventh consecutive season and Derrek Lee (FSY) hit a two-run homer Wednesday, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 2-0 victory over Aaron Boone (FSY) and the Houston Astros.

Old is the New New?  —  Tyler Kepner tossed out that Betances had a procedure similar to Mariano Rivera today, but with that aside, he outed something that I had never heard before.  Mark Newman of the Yankees told the press that Betances' procedure was an “overlay TJ,” …

Bad blood bubbling in Baltimore  —  When A.J. Burnett allowed a home run by light-hitting Felix Pie in the first inning yesterday, he turned around and shouted some unkind words in the direction of the Baltimore outfielder.  —  The words weren't necessarily at Pie, they were more an expression of frustration.

Swisher baffled by homers on the road  —  New York (84-48) at Baltimore (54-79), 7:05 p.m. ET  —  BALTIMORE — Maybe Nick Swisher really just loves eating meals off a room-service tray?  It's as good an explanation as anyone has been able to come up with for his bizarre home run stats in 2009.