Nats 2, Mets 1: Five to go  —  Congratulations to Nationals lefthander Ross Detwiler, who picked up his first major-league win Monday at the Mets' expense.  Nelson Figueroa again was the hard-luck loser as the Mets lost to Washington, 2-1.  The tiebreaking run came in the sixth on Mike Morse's solo homer off Figueroa.

Knoblauch charged with assault  —  HOUSTON — Former major leaguer Chuck Knoblauch was charged with assaulting his common-law wife.  —  A judge set Knoblauch's bond at $10,000 after he appeared in court Tuesday.  According to a criminal complaint, Knoblauch's wife told police he hit …

Bobby Valentine returns to ESPN as Baseball Tonight analyst  —  Bobby Valentine, fresh off his six-year stint as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan, is returning to ESPN as an analyst on “Baseball Tonight.”  —  Valentine, who led the New York Mets to the World Series in 2000 …

In a cinch, Angels clinch AL West title  —  Halos rout Rangers to claim third straight division crown  —  ANAHEIM — The Angels have joined another postseason party, hoping to hang around to the finish this time.  —  Attacking swiftly and often, the Angels flattened the Rangers, 11-0 …

Time for Jon Lester to Hope He's Not the Next Matt Clement  —  With the postseason looming large, the Red Sox always knew that a lot would be riding on the left arm of Jon Lester this September.  No one was thinking much about his right leg.  —  But now, with Lester working hard to recover …

Mets manager Jerry Manuel says he's not worried about losing his job … WASHINGTON — Jerry Manuel has received enough assurances from Mets ownership to be confident this atrocious season won't cost him his job.  But he also knows the unspoken truth about his situation.

Some good news to share with you  —  Now that everything is finalized, here is some more news for you.  —  I'm thrilled to announce that The Journal News has hired Chad Jennings of the Times-Tribune in Scranton and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees Blog to cover the Yankees.  Chad starts on Oct. 7.

Gardenhire is the Twins' steady hand  —  Ron Gardenhire was born on a couch in Germany.  He arrived so suddenly it was too late to drive to the hospital.  First Sgt. Clyde Gardenhire, a soldier and not a doctor, didn't panic.  The previous time Mary Jo Gardenhire went into labor …

Francoeur: It's great to be young and a Met  —  New York Mets' Jeff Francoeur follows through with his swing as he hits a home run, scoring teammates Carlos Beltran and Daniel Murphy, during the second inning of a baseball game against the Florida Marlins, Friday, Sept. 25, 2009, in Miami.

Top amateur to choose Japan or MLB  —  Kikuchi would be first high schooler to opt for big leagues  —  Yusei Kikuchi, the 18-year-old left-hander projected to be the No. 1 overall selection in next month's Japanese amateur draft, is expected to decide as early as this week whether to become …

Selig: Pirates not putting profits over winning  —  MLB commissioner: 'If they weren't doing it, you'd hear from me'  —  The Pirates are “absolutely not” putting profit over winning, Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig said in an extensive interview with the Post-Gazette about his sport's most woeful franchise.

New York-Pen League Top 20 Prospects  —  Pair of electric Latin arms spice up NY-P list  —  While 2008 was a strong year for the New York-Penn League, with catchers (led by Jason Castro and Derek Norris) and power arms (topped by Adam Reifer and Brad Holt) in abundance …

With fate hanging in balance, Trembley soldiers on  —  ‘You worry about it, but you try not to show it,’ manager says of his job status  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - All the losses and the uncertainty eat at Dave Trembley, keeping him up late into the night and pulling him awake in the early hours of the morning.

Is Sano saga finally nearing end stages?  —  There was a time when it seemed like the Orioles were one of the favorites to sign Dominican shortstop Miguel Angel Sano.  —  That no longer seems to be the case, but the O's aren't out of it yet, either.  —  John Stockstill, the O's director …