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.

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” …

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 …

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 …

Betemit hits 2 HRs, Royals beat Twins 9-8  —  MINNEAPOLIS—Wilson Betemit hit solo home runs from both sides of the plate and Joakim Soria picked up his 14th save in a hairy ninth inning and the Kansas City Royals beat the Minnesota Twins 9-8 on Thursday night.

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.

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.

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.

The Manny Acta Interview  —  The Washington Nationals travel to Cleveland this weekend for an interleague series with the Indians, led by former Nats skipper Manny Acta.  Acta was relieved of his duties in Washington at last season's all-star break after compiling a 26-61 record in 2009 …