Game 153: Yankees at Angels  —  YANKEES (96-56)  —  Pitching: RHP A.J. Burnett (11-9, 4.22).  —  ANGELS (90-61)  —  Figgins 3B  —  Aybar SS  —  Abreu RF  —  Hunter CF  —  Morales 1B  —  Rivera LF  —  Kendrick 2B  —  Matthews RF  —  Napoli C  —  Pitching: LHP Scott Kazmir (9-8, 5.08).

Bobby Valentine close to making return to TV, nears deal with ESPN  —  It appears that BOBBY Valentine won't be unemployed for long.  —  Television industry and baseball sources say Valentine, completing his final season as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan's Pacific League …

Chicago Cubs' Milton Bradley would return to team if allowed, his mother says  —  The mother of banished Chicago Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley said her son would consider returning to the team if it will have him back.  —  The Cubs suspended the volatile Bradley on Sunday for the rest …

Mets' top official for Latin American talent canned  —  Fred Wilpon may have offered a vote of confidence to Omar Minaya, but the GM's inner circle quietly is being dismantled.  —  The Mets have fired Ramon Pena, the organization's top official in charge of signing Latin American talent, the Daily News has learned.

GCL Top 20 Prospects  —  Braves' Bethancourt tops the list  —  As usual, the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League was filled with young, raw prospects who flashed impressive tools but still needed plenty of seasoning.  International position players dominated our GCL Top 20 list …

Murphy's law: Never say die  —  NEW YORK — It was the ninth inning Monday night, the stands depleted by another miserable performance by the Mets, when Daniel Murphy stepped to the plate in an 11-3 loss.  —  Though most of the fans already had given up and maybe his teammates were ready to hit the showers …

DIVIDED LOYALTIES: WHY ONE SOX OFFICIAL WILL FIND IT HARD TO ROOT AGAINST ZACK GREINKE … digit from 88 to 96 mph on the radar gun with his fastball.  —  But in 2005, Greinke took his lumps.  He went 5-17 with a 5.80 ERA, marks that were puzzling based on his stuff and his feel for the game.

Slugging on Balls in Play  —  Two of the first things you learned about sabermetrics were that batting average is not a very good measure of a hitter, and that fielding percentage is not a very good measure of a fielder.  Not all hits are created the same, and extra-base hits cause a lot …

Safe at Second, but No Stolen Base to Show for It  —  A player takes an unchallenged lead off first base, dashes to second and makes it safely without a throw.  The runner has advanced but because there was no attempt to thwart him, he does not receive a stolen base.

Hernandez, Nationals Are Throttled at Home By Dodgers  —  Livan Hernandez was young once, like his current Washington Nationals rotation-mates, except when he was young, he was on magazine covers.  He was hoisting hardware.  At 22, Hernandez was most valuable player of both the Nationals …

(Excerpts) Interview with Mariners Broadcaster, Dave Sims  —  The following are excerpts from the Dave Sims interview that can be seen here in its entirety on The Biz of Football  —  UPDATE: It was announced Tuesday that Sims will lead the broadcast team for the first season of the United Football League …

Webb not interested in taking pay cut  —  Right-hander Brandon Webb said if Diamondbacks executives are preparing to approach him about restructuring his $8.5 million contract option for 2010, they ought to save their breath.  —  He's not interested.  —  Webb, who hasn't pitched since Opening …

Jays buzz  —  Looking toward next season, manager Cito Gaston's wish-list includes “some help in the starting rotation.”  That would be especially acute if Roy Halladay is traded in the off-season in advance of his free agent year.  —  “A lot depends on free agency,” Gaston said.

Padres Team Report  —  Because Kevin Kouzmanoff has been the Padres' third baseman as long as Chase Headley has been in the major leagues, Headley has been playing out of position in left field.  —  But with Kouzmanoff out of the lineup since Sept. 8 because of a strained left calf muscle …

Game 152: Yankees at Angels  —  YANKEES (95-56)  —  Pitching: RHP Chad Gaudin (1-0 3.68).  —  ANGELS (90-60)  —  Figgins 3B  —  Izturis 2B  —  Abreu RF  —  Guerrero DH  —  Hunter CF  —  Morales 1B  —  Rivera LF  —  Aybar SS  —  Mathis C  —  Pitching: vs. RHP Ervin Santana (7-8, 5.43).

Bobby Cox: “Everything is fine.  [Wren] has been outstanding”  —  Bobby Cox says all's well between him and Braves GM Frank Wren.  (AP photo)  —  Bobby Cox responded this morning to a Yahoo! Sports report of discord between him and Braves GM Frank Wren.  Said Cox, speaking via iPhone from New York: “Everything is fine.