Harper's arrogance is just what baseball needs  —  Baseball's greatest villain is an 18-year-old minor leaguer with a heinous mustache, an equally off-putting mullet and the scent of someone who emptied a bottle of Eau du Arrogance all over himself.  —  And you know what?  He's exactly what the sport needs.

Red Sox closer Papelbon banned for 3 games  —  NEW YORK — Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon has been suspended for three games and fined an undisclosed amount in the aftermath of Saturday's ejection by plate umpire Tony Randazzo.  —  MLB announced it was banning Papelbon on Tuesday because of …

Game 60: Red Sox at Yankees  —  It's a beautiful day in New York.  Here are the lineups:  —  RED SOX (33-26)  —  Ellsbury CF  —  Pedroia 2B  —  Gonzalez 1B  —  Youkilis 3B  —  Ortiz DH  —  Crawford LF  —  Saltalamacchia C  —  Drew RF  —  Scutaro SS  —  Pitching: LHP Jon Lester (7-2, 3.94)

Reinsdorf, White Sox remain confident  —  CHICAGO  —  The White Sox are stuck below .500.  Fan enthusiasm has been tepid.  Adam Dunn, their $56 million slugger, is hitting .176.  —  Jerry Reinsdorf has seen this before.  —  Sort of.  —  Reinsdorf is in his 31st season as chairman of the White Sox.

Year after debut, Strasburg focuses on health  —  SAN FRANCISCO — A year ago on Wednesday, Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg made his Major League debut against the Pirates and what a debut it was.  He pitched seven innings, allowed two runs on four hits and struck out 14 batters.

Jeter would ‘love’ to reach 3K hits while at home  —  NEW YORK — Derek Jeter said he would “love” to reach 3,000 hits on the New York Yankees current 10-game homestand.  Jeter is 14 hits shy of becoming the first Yankee to reach the mark.  —  “I would love to do it here,” …

Agent: Ramirez won't give up no-trade clause  —  Although the Chicago Cubs may consider a youth movement if their struggles continue, the agent for Aramis Ramirez says the veteran third baseman isn't inclined to drop his no-trade clause.  —  Ramirez is in the final year of a five-year, $75 million contract.

Could Rizzo be on his way to San Diego?  —  SAN DIEGO — Could the San Diego Padres be close to promoting first baseman Anthony Rizzo from Triple-A Tucson?  —  A baseball source said Monday that it's “quite possible” that the 21-year-old will join the team this week.

In-depth: How moving walls impacts HRs  —  After one year as CEO of the San Diego Padres, Sandy Alderson made the above change to the wall in right-center at Petco Park during the 2005-06 offseason.  —  Sandy Alderson makes measured rather than rash decisions.

D-backs' Vasquez, Gibson handed suspensions  —  Major League Baseball handed down suspensions to D-backs pitcher Esmerling Vasquez and manager Kirk Gibson for their involvement in Sunday's intentional throwing incidents between the Nationals and the D-backs, the league announced Tuesday afternoon.

Jim Leyritz writes of DUI ordeal in book  —  CINCINNATI — Few feats are more invigorating for a major league baseball player than hitting a home run that turns the World Series around for his team, especially when that team is the New York Yankees.  —  Jim Leyritz, a graduate of Turpin High School …

Player Q&A: Jose Reyes talks focus, Wright & Tejada  —  Last week, MetsBlog's Rich Coutinho talked with Reyes for a one-on-one conversation about keeping focus on the field; missing David Wright; staying healthy; and the development of Ruben Tejada; which you can read here:

Stark: Key players performing well below expectations  —  Scouts try to pinpoint reasons for struggles of Danks, Jimenez, Uggla, Soria, others  —  With every day that goes by in this crazy season, we can't help but ask: Is there a more confusing sport than baseball?  —  Curling, maybe?

Pirates Designate Jose Ascanio For Assignment  —  The Pirates designated right-hander Jose Ascanio for assignment to create 25-man roster space for left-hander Tony Watson, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter).  Manager Clint Hurdle will have the second lefty reliever …

Lopes misses Philly  —  If you were wondering whether there are any hard feelings lingering over Davey Lopes departure from Philly, the answer is no. A resounding no. The former first base coach exchanged a hug with general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. and spent a significant time during pre …