Zimmerman to begin assignment in Class A  —  PHOENIX — Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, on the disabled list with an abdominal strain, played in his second extended spring training game, playing four innings and going 0-for-4.  —  After the game, Zimmerman went home to Washington …

Rolen's single gives Arroyo all he needs in Reds win  —  CINCINNATI, Ohio — Scott Rolen hit a two-run single with two out in the fifth inning, sending Bronson Arroyo and the Cincinnati Reds to a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night.  —  Arroyo (4-5) allowed one run and five hits …

Gerrit Cole still the top choice  —  But prep outfielder Bubba Starling could rise all the way to Seattle at No. 2  —  With three days to go until the 2011 MLB draft, it seems as if the names are clearer but the order is foggier.  Picks three through five are probably the same names …

Hottovy's dream of reaching Majors realized  —  BOSTON — About two months ago, Tommy Hottovy was just another Minor League reliever throwing Spring Training games when the Red Sox regulars skipped a road trip.  —  “But in Spring Training, you take a three-hour bus ride …

J.P. Arencibia, Blue Jays slam Orioles 8-4 to halt skid  —  BALTIMORE - J.P. Arencibia hit his first career grand slam, Rajai Davis had three hits and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-4 on Friday night to end a two-game losing streak.  —  Carlos Villanueva (3-0) …

Source: Torre, Sabean to talk about comments  —  Joe Torre, who oversees baseball operations for Major League Baseball, plans to call Brian Sabean regarding comments the San Francisco Giants general manager made in a Thursday radio interview, a source told ESPN on Friday.

Let's play 154!  —  Shortening the season would ease players' mental and physical burdens, improve play  —  By our count — and it took a LOT of counting — you can find 158 big leaguers hanging out on somebody's disabled list.  —  And amazingly, that counts only Rich Harden ONCE.

Final Score: Braves 6 Mets 3  —  The New York Mets (26-31) were defeated by the Atlanta Braves (32-26) tonight by a score of 6-3.  —  For a full box score and game recap, check out SNY.TV.  —  The Least You Should Know:  — Jon Niese threw 7.2 innings and allowed eight hits, two runs and a walk, while striking out seven.

Mono forces Inge to disabled list  —  Third baseman has been struggling with bat; Santos recalled  —  CHICAGO — The Tigers have had their share of early-season injuries and maladies, but they got a new one on Friday and had to place third baseman Brandon Inge on the 15-day disabled list with mononucleosis.

Schafer exits after fouling ball off lip  —  NEW YORK — Braves outfielder Jordan Schafer left Friday night's game against the Mets after a fouled bunt attempt struck him above his lip on the right side of his face.  He was taken to a local hospital to undergo X-rays.

The Shortest Possible Baseball Road Trip  —  (You can also read the results from this post in the Wall Street Journal here)  —  Every year thousands of baseball fans take long multi-city road trips to ballparks across the nation.  When planning such a road trip, a normal person would plan …

Pitching will be primary target as Yankees seek to upgrade roster  —  Perception vs. reality.  —  It feels like the Yankees offense and bullpen have underachieved this year and that the rotation has been central to success.  —  Yet, at the exact one-third-of-the-season mark, 54 games …

Alexi Ogando raises record to 6-0, Rangers rout Indians  —  CLEVELAND - Alexi Ogando won his sixth game without a loss, Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz homered in a five-run seventh inning and the Texas Rangers routed the Cleveland Indians 11-2 Friday night.  —  Ogando (6-0) held the Indians to one run and four hits in eight innings.

Experts Draft 2.0  —  Our draft writers take another crack at the first round … 1. PIRATES (Conor): It's a bit of a muddled year at the top, but my decision still came down to the two players we've had up there for most of the year: Rice third baseman Anthony Rendon and UCLA righthander Gerrit Cole.

Sources: Jon Garland headed to DL  —  CINCINNATI — Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Jon Garland, who hadn't been on the disabled list in 11 years until this spring, is expected to be placed there for the second time this season with a right-shoulder injury, the severity of which isn't immediately known …

Defending the win: Correia racks up Ws  —  We shouldn't have to defend the win.  When Felix Hernandez won the American League Cy Young Award last season with only 13 wins (and 12 losses), it was considered something of a landmark moment for the slide rule set; a validation of sabermetric analysis …

Victorino returns after stint on disabled list  —  PITTSBURGH — Center fielder Shane Victorino was reinstated from the disabled list Friday and was in the lineup for the first game of the Phillies' three-game series in Pittsburgh.  —  Victorino, placed on the disabled list with a right hamstring injury …