Branyan's 2-out, 2-run single in 9th lifts Indians  —  CLEVELAND—Russell Branyan hit a two-out, two-run single in the ninth inning Thursday night, rallying the Cleveland Indians to a crazy 8-7 win over the Boston Red Sox.  —  Cleveland overcame three errors in one inning by third baseman Andy Marte …

GOODEN ‘IMPRESSED’ BY PHENOM  —  Niese's fastball ran about three to four mph faster than Santana's, and his curve ball was devastating.  —  Chris Denorfia played the role of Jimmy Qualls, the journeyman who broke up Seaver's 1969 perfect game bid in the ninth inning.

Suppan on way back to Cardinals  —  Jeff Suppan is coming back to the St. Louis Cardinals.  —  He will be joining the team in Phoenix and hopes to be active early next week.  He will be signing for the pro-rated minimum, his agent Scott Leventhal said.  —  Suppan has not officially signed yet …

Angels shouldn't chase first baseman  —  Morales' injury has some wondering if a move should be made, but L.A.'s not in position  —  OAKLAND — The question that seems to be hanging over the Los Angeles Angels ever since Kendry Morales went down with a grimace on top of home plate …

Ozzie, Ken in spite club  —  It became obvious Thursday that there won't be a pretty ending.  —  After the White Sox' 3-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers, the Sun-Times was told by a team source that general manager Ken Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen “almost came to blows in a heated shouting match” …

Hamilton, Young lead Rangers past Mariners  —  ARLINGTON, Texas—Josh Hamilton homered for the fourth time in seven games, Michael Young went 3 for 4 with a homer, and the Texas Rangers won their third straight over the Seattle Mariners, 12-3 on Thursday night.

A-Rod's numbers, early exit troubling  —  Slugger invokes name of hip surgeon after leaving game early with right groin ‘cramp’ … BALTIMORE — On this date a year ago, Alex Rodriguez was hitting .234, with eight home runs, 25 RBIs, an on-base percentage of .393 and a slugging percentage of .495.

Keeping Score: One Game Says Little About Strasburg  —  It did not take long for declarations of greatness to start after Stephen Strasburg's debut for the Washington Nationals on Tuesday.  —  He had some impressive numbers in his 5-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates: 7 innings, 14 strikeouts, 4 hits, 2 earned runs and no walks.

Johnson gets revenge on Halladay, stifles Phillies  —  PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Josh Johnson knew he didn't have to be perfect to beat Roy Halladay .  —  Just plenty good.  —  The Marlins ace outdueled Halladay in their perfect game rematch, pitching eight dominant innings and leading Florida …

Mets use 2010 Draft as a call to arms  —  NEW YORK — When it came time to make the seventh overall selection in this week's First-Year Player Draft, the Mets took right-handed pitcher Matt Harvey out of North Carolina because, as their director of amateur scouting, Rudy Terrasas, put it, he reminded them of Mike Pelfrey.

ESPN analyst Dick Vitale, a long-time Rays season ticket holder, gets struck by line drive  —  ESPN analyst Dick Vitale, a Sarasota resident and long-time Rays season ticket holder, suffered a scare when he was struck in the stomach area by a line drive foul ball on the first pitch of the game Thursday.

Astros getting what they paid for  —  Roy Oswalt didn't know his trade request would be made public.  —  Tracy Ringolsby is a Hall of Fame baseball writer.  He is in his 35th year covering Major League Baseball, is a co-founder of Baseball America, and appears on pre- and postgame shows …

Minnesota Twins place J.J. Hardy on 15-day disabled list  —  MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins placed shortstop J.J. Hardy on the disabled list again with a sore left wrist that has been bothering him for more than a month.  —  Hardy  —  Hardy took a cortisone shot on Tuesday, hoping that would alleviate the lingering pain.