Staff at Arizona cryogenics lab Alcor used Ted Williams' frozen head for batting practice: book  —  Workers at an Arizona cryonics facility mutilated the frozen head of baseball legend Ted Williams - even using it for a bizarre batting practice, a new tell-all book claims.

Warrant issued for ballplayer Shawn Chacon over gambling markers  —  Onetime All-Star accused of failing to pay Caesars Palace $150,000  —  Shawn Chacon pitches for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Atlanta Braves on Aug. 3, 2006, in Pittsburgh.  —  2 a.m.

Daisuke Matsuzaka shines again, Boston beats Cleveland 6-2  —  BOSTON — Daisuke Matsuzaka [stats] tuned up for the postseason with his fourth straight strong performance and the Boston Red Sox [team stats] sent the Cleveland Indians to a club-record 13th straight road loss with a 6-2 win Friday night.

The 30 best moves of this year (cont.)  —  Source: Reyes didn't tear hamstring completely, but surgery still looks likely  —  Star shortstop Jose Reyes, who personifies the Mets' disastrous and injury-wracked season, now has received an initial recommendation to have the hamstring tendon that's …

South Atlantic League Top 20 Prospects  —  The Sally League had a number of power arms in 2009  —  Most years, the best teams are led by the best players.  In the previous two years in the low Class A South Atlantic League, for example, No. 1 prospects Desmond Jennings (Columbus in 2007) …

Weiner elected by Players Association  —  Fehr's successor has been a member of union for 21 years  —  Michael Weiner has been elected as the new executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, the union announced on Friday.  He replaces Don Fehr, who gave notice that he intended to retire earlier this year.

AL Central-leading Tigers fall to Peavy, White Sox  —  DETROIT (AP) — Jake Peavy (FSY) delayed Detroit's chance to move closer to the AL Central title, pitching the Chicago White Sox past the slumping Tigers 8-0 Friday night.  —  The Tigers went into the final weekend with a two-game lead over Minnesota …

Rockies' go with righties vs. Dodgers; L.A. loses Kuroda to neck injury  —  LOS ANGELES — Any question of whether the Rockies were going for the division title was eliminated with today's lineup.  Todd Helton is in there.  So is shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.  Both are guys that could use a rest with a playoff berth locked up.

Mariano Rivera: Another Appreciation  —  For my last post of the regular season I wanted to examine one of the most singular and interesting players in major league baseball, Marino Rivera.  I know I have written about him before but the amazing Sports Illustrated cover of him inspired me to look deeper into his pitchf/x numbers.

At Sold-Out Fenway, a Way in for Patient Fans  —  BOSTON — Joan George was in the mood to treat herself to a Red Sox game at Fenway Park, where every game since May 15, 2003, has sold out.  —  So a few hours before a recent game, she went to the back side of the ballpark along Lansdowne Street …

Olney On Type A Free Agents  —  ESPN.com's Buster Olney looks back to last winter when players like Juan Cruz saw their value tumble because the Elias rankings classified them as Type A free agents.  Some players are good enough to qualify, but not tantalizing enough for teams to give …

Dick Pole fired as Cincinnati Reds pitching coach; remainder of coaching staff to return for 2010  —  CINCINNATI — Pitching coach Dick Pole has been fired by the Cincinnati Reds.  —  Pole was finishing his third season with the team, which began Friday seventh in the National League with a 4.52 ERA.

The Market For Jason Bay  —  Jason Bay admits that he had no idea what to expect from his first time in a free-agent walk year.  Now in the final season of a four-year, $18.25 million deal he signed while with the Pirates, he was curious whether he might start viewing his performance through …

Ascanio has shoulder surgery  —  CINCINNATI — Pirates pitcher Jose Ascanio had surgery this morning to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder.  —  It was performed by Dr. James Andrews at his office in Pensacola, Fla.  —  There is no timetable for Ascanio's return, general manager Neal Huntington said.

Raissman: Ron not Darling of Yank fans  —  The Yankees Entertainment & Sports Network will shut down its play-by-play operation Sunday afternoon following the Bombers' regular-season finale in Tampa.  Depending on your cooking preferences, this is either good or bad news.

Several Chicago Cubs have wish lists  —  And they're not all so obvious  —  Reed Johnson turns after striking out during the second inning.  (Nam Y. Huh, Associated Press / October 1, 2009)  —  Cubs manager Lou Piniella said last week that adding an RBI guy in 2010 is No. 1 on his offseason wish list.