• Marlins 2, Mets 1: Remember when the Marlins helped spoil the Mets' seasons in 2007 and 2008? Now the Mets can do the same to their National League East rival, but not if they hit as they did Tuesday. They got seven hits -- six singles -- against Sean West and the Marlins bullpen. Nelson Figueroa did well in filling in for Johan Santana -- out for the year with bone chips in his elbow -- but it wasn't enough. Gary Sheffield also left this game with lower back cramps. Oh, and J.J. Putz is done for the year also. What else can go wrong?
• Rangers 10, Yankees 9: With the Yankees cruising atop the American League East, the team can worry about how many days Joba Chamberlain gets between starts. Well, maybe they should consider fewer. Working on 10 days' rest, Chamberlain allowed seven runs on nine hits and took the loss. He also blew a 4-0 first-inning lead. The Yankees did almost come back from a 10-5 deficit in the ninth, but it was not to be. He'll start on normal rest against Chicago on Sunday.
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• Braves 5, Mets 3: That was not the start to the season's nominal second half that the Mets were looking for. Oliver Perez skated through six innings, walking four -- which is probably low for him -- and allowing three runs. The bats scored three runs in the fourth inning (Gary Sheffield, Jeff Francoeur and Daniel Murphy had the RBIs) to take a 3-2 lead but only got two hits the rest of the night. Philadelphia won, so the Mets now trail the Phillies by 7 1/2 games in the National League East. And they're in fourth place. And the injury news is mostly murky, too.
• Galaxy 3, Red Bulls 1: Even with David Beckham rusty in his return to the Galaxy, the Red Bulls still put forth a subpar effort. Juan Pablo Angel scored the only goal, and it was on a penalty in the 87th minute with his team down 3-0.

• Yankees 6, Blue Jays 5: Jorge Posada singled home Alex Rodriguez with the winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning, but the Yankees were left without starter Chien-Ming Wang, who left his start after 5 1/3 innings with what was later diagnosed as bursitis in his right shoulder. The Yankees won their second straight and ninth in 10 games. But Wang is headed to the disabled list, and the Yankees could call on the likes of Sergio Mitre to make a start Thursday in Minnesota. The bullpen could be taxed that day, but it appears up to the challenge. After David Robertson let in a run in the top of the sixth, the relievers slammed the door. Brian Bruney, Phil Hughes, Mariano Rivera and even Brett Tomko kept Toronto off the board.

Brewers 10, Mets 6: In his first three starts, Fernando Nieve allowed 10 hits and three runs in 18 2/3 innings. Start No. 4 didn't go quite as well as he allowed three runs on 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings. The Mets were able to close a 3-0 gap to 3-2, but a Casey McGhee grand slam off Brian Stokes blew the game wide open. Down by seven in the ninth, the Mets tried to rally behind a David Wright RBI double and a Gary Sheffield homer, but Brian Schneider hit into a game-ending double play. The Mets sit below .500 for the first time since May 5, but they are only three games behind Phillies. The National League may just be bad enough for the Mets to stay in it. more ›

Yankees 9 Mets 1: The final score may not have been close, but the Mets threw the game away by committing three errors in the second inning. The first one, a wild throw by David Wright is somewhat understandable, he had picked the ball up barehanded and was off-balance as he threw it. That put Melky Cabrera on second and he scored when Ramiro Pena blooped a double down the rightfield line. Pena then scored when C.C. Sabathia hit a single up the middle to make it 2-0 Yankees. more ›

• Yankees 3 Cleveland 1: The bugs were back in Cleveland, but this time it didn't bother the Yankees. Andy Pettitte didn't have much control, he walked five, but he only allowed one run over five innings. Pettitte's back locked up on him and he left the game, but Aceves and Mo pitched the last four innings to preserve the win. The victory puts the Yankees into first place for the first time this season and for the first time since the end of the 2006 season. Yesterday also marked the return of Jorge Posada, who went 2-3 in the game.
• Mets 2 Florida 1 (11 innings): It took awhile, but the Mets finally prevailed. Omir Santos proved the hero once again, bringing home Gary Sheffield from third with the winning run in the 11th. It was his second RBI for the game, as he hit his third homer of the season earlier in the game. Pedro Feliciano got the final out in the eleventh to earn the victory. After the game, the Mets announced that they traded catcher Ramon Castro to the White Sox for right-hand pitcher Lance Broadway, who will be assigned to triple-A. Castro's trade solves the Mets' catcher glut — Brian Schneider is being activated for Saturday.

• Yankees 11, Rangers 1: When Phil Hughes last pitched in Arlington, Texas, he had a no-hitter through 6 1/3 innings when he left with an injured hamstring. This time around, he allowed three hits and no runs in eight scoreless innings. Alex Rodriguez went 5-for-5 with four RBIs, and the Yankees, looking foolish in red Memorial Day caps, started a seven-game road trip off on the right foot. Johnny Damon had three runs scored and Kevin Cash tripled his hits total for the season by going 3-for-5. Joba Chamberlain will start Tuesday, but Brian Bruney is headed back to the disabled list.
• Mets 5, Nationals 2: Good thing Omar Minaya picked up Gary Sheffield. While Ryan Church alternates from being a punchless outfielder to injured, Sheffield hit a go-ahead three-run homer off Washington starter -- and Long Beach native -- John Lannan in the sixth inning. John Maine pitched six innings of one-run ball, striking out four and and walking three. Ramon Martinez and Carlos Beltran also had RBIs.
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• Yankees 8 Toronto 2: New York had a great night at the plate, despite missing four starters from their Opening Day lineup. Brett Gardner had a triple and a home run while driving in three runs. Mark Teixeira had two hits and two RBI’s and Johnny Damon continued his hot hitting with two more hits. All of the runs supported Andy Pettitte, who pitched six innings of up and down baseball. Pettitte only allowed two runs, but he walked four batters and gave up five hits. If Toronto had been able to get a clutch hit, this would have been a very different game. But, they didn’t and now the Yankees have a chance to climb back to .500 tomorrow.
• Atlanta 8 Mets 7 (12 innings): Should Jose Reyes have been running? Absolutely, but his play isn’t the only reason they lost. Down by a run, Reyes led off the 11th with a shot to left field that he thought was out of the park. But, the ball stayed in and Reyes’ lack of hustle left him on second, when he probably should have been on third. Still, the Mets got him to third with one out and had two chances to tie the game. But, Carlos Beltran took three-straight strikes for the second out and Gary Sheffield was called out on strikes to end the game.

Does Joe Torre, manager of the Yankees, treat black and white players differently? According to former Yankees outfielder Gary Sheffield, he does. In an interview that is scheduled to air Tuesday on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumble. Sheffield makes some shocking allegations in the interview with Andrea Kremer, saying that he wasn't the only black player that had issues with Torre. more ›

- Newsday is passing along information that the new Mets ballpark will be named CitiField. The source of their information? A blog - though their link to the site is incorrect. Someone wrote into Hot Foot with this bit of information:

I was talking to my father who is working on the new mets stadium and he told me that they just put up a sign saying : "CitiField: Coming in 2009"..also if you didnt know, theres going to be a ground breaking ceremony Monday for the new stadium.

Joe Torre opened his press conference this afternoon by saying that he had “just gotten off the phone with George Steinbrenner and he has informed me that I will be the manager in 2007.” So closes one of the more bizarre 48 hours in Yankees’ history. First we heard Joe was gone, then he was coming back, and then no decision had been reached. (And somewhere in there, Giuliani called Steinbrenner to save Torre's job.) Now we know, Torre is returning. more ›

In what has to be considered a huge upset, the Tigers defeated the Yankees 8-3 Saturday to advance to the ALCS. New York’s vaunted offense was putrid, getting only six hits and simply looking overmatched. Detroit will face Oakland starting Tuesday in a matchup of two teams with great pitching. more ›

-Braves 13 Mets 1: The question isn’t whether or not Pedro Martinez should start the first game of the playoffs; it’s whether or not he should start any of them. Pedro had his worst start since coming off the DL, giving up seven runs on eight hits and not throwing above 86-mph. After the game, Pedro admitted that he was “not at the level of Glavine or El Duque” but is he even at the level of Trachsel or Maine? more ›

-Yankees 5 Orioles 4: It’s a weeklong audition for those Yankees who haven’t cemented a place on the playoff roster, so Cory Lidle’s six strong innings were certainly timely. So was another scoreless inning from Brian Bruney and a 1-4 night from Gary Sheffield. Yes, Gary Sheffield has not guaranteed himself a spot on the playoff roster and it is doubtful he will unless he starts to hit again. Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano both went 2-4 to close the gap in their batting race with Joe Mauer. more ›

-Yankees 16 Tampa 1: How strange are these days for the Yankees? Well consider tonight when they used 17 position players, including Gary Sheffield at first and Mariano came in to pitch the seventh inning of the game. That’s what happens in the last week of September when you have the division wrapped up. Jaret Wright didn’t exactly dominate the Devil Rays, but he probably pitched well enough to win the job of fourth starter in the playoffs. Brian Bruney continued to impress with a 1-2-3 eighth. Robinson Cano went 2-4 to raise his average to .342 and move to within 2 plate appearances of qualifying for the batting title. more ›

- Mets 12, Nationals 6: What's left for the Mets this season? All they have to do is rest their regulars, fine tune their starting pitching (no crying in baseball, right?), and figure out who their first round opponent. Last night, potential fourth starter, John Maine took the mound and didn't look all that impressive - not the best way to earn a spot in the starting rotation. Maine allowed four runs over five innings, but still picked up the win thanks to a six run 5th inning when the Mets batted around the lineup. Jose Reyes and David Wright both had 3 RBI in the win. Unfortunately for the Nationals, Nick Johnson broke his femur in the 8th inning when he collided with Austin Kearns. more ›

-Yankees 4 Tampa Bay 1: While New York spent most of September marching toward another division championship, there was one thought in the back of their minds. When will Mariano come back? Rivera had been sidelined since the end of August with a forearm strain and everyone knows that he is truly the indispensable Yankee come October. While we won’t know for sure until tomorrow, his return seems on track. Rivera struck out the side with a broken-bat single and a hit batter wedged in between. more ›

-Marlins 5 Mets 2: It was a better effort from Pedro, but with only one start left for him before the playoffs, Mets’ fans should be worried. Martinez struck out seven, but tired in the fifth inning and ended up taking the loss. He threw only 87 pitches before leaving, a figure that will not allow him to pitch very deep into any game. The question is, can he regain his stamina before the playoffs start? Whatever the answer, with the Cardinals loss last night, the Mets are assured of home field advantage until the World Series. more ›

For the Mets, the trading deadline represents opportunity and a time for caution. With a 12-game lead in the division, New York doesn’t necessarily need to make a trade, but it may be in their best interests to do so. If, and that’s a big if, a premiere pitcher becomes available, say a Zito or Willis, will Omar pull the trigger? With Steve Trachsel and El Duque struggling and John Maine and Mike Pelfry still unknown quantities, adding another starter would transform the Mets from playoff contender to playoff favorite. more ›

-Mets 7, Astros 0: As WIllie Randolph's Mets cruise through the second half of the season to the playoffs, pundits will say their postseason success will rest on their pitching. John Maine, part of the deal that sent Kris Benson to Baltimore, threw a four-hit shutout in the Mets' victory over the Astros on Friday. Maine's performance -- on short notice, no less -- will allow for optimistic Mets fans and management to see him in the third or fourth rotation spot come October. But a shutout against the Astros doesn't make a dominant starter, and, as impressive as it was, the Mets should wait to see more. more ›

- Mets 15, D iamondbacks 2: Pedro Martinez has waited a long time for his sixth win (since April 28), and the Mets didn't want their bullpen to have a chance to blow it. So they scored 15 runs and swept four games from Arizona, who entered the series leading the NL West (they've since dropped to second). The Mets continue to lead the NL East. more ›

-Red Sox 9 Yankees 3: For five innings it seemed like the Yankees might pull off an improbable sweep. They led Boston 3-1 heading into the sixth, but Jaret Wright suddenly lost control of his fastball and Boston jumped all over him and two subsequent relievers to cruise to a 9-3 victory. The loss leaves New York with a ½ game lead in the AL East. more ›

The dumbest streak in recent history is now finished, but not in the way the Yankees wanted. Hideki Matsui broke his wrist while diving to make a catch in the first inning of the Yankees’ 5-3 loss last night. Matsui will need surgery and will probably miss at least three months of the season. more ›

How many more times are we going to have to suffer through Tanyon Sturtze coming out of the bullpen? This is a guy who couldn’t cut it as a Devil Ray and now the Yankees view him as a key member of their bullpen? Since he became a Yankee in 2004, he has had two months where his ERA has been below 4, yet they keep trotting him out there, it’s infuriating. more ›

The Yankees 4-1 victory over Tampa Bay marked only the second time this season they have won when scoring less than six runs. Hideki Matsui provided the key hit, a two-run single in the sixth inning that gave New York the lead. Derek Jeter added a RBI-double and Jason Giambi also had a RBI to complete the scoring. more ›

The Yankees biggest question mark heading into the season was the quality of their starting pitching and the first eight games have done nothing to change that. Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina have been very good, while Chien-Ming Wang and Shawn Chacon have not. Yesterday Chacon was shaky against the Royals, but the Yankees offense bailed him out for a 12-5 win. more ›

Was the first game of the season an aberration or are the Yankees simply a victim of superior pitching? Does Gary Sheffield need another visit from Barry Bonds’ trainer? These are the questions they face as they look at a 1-3 start after losing last night in Anaheim 4-1. more ›

The Yankees imploded last night with shoddy defense and poor relief pitching, falling to the A’s 9-4. Jaret Wright was the loser while Joe Kennedy got the win. more ›