Pesky Nats rally past Mets in extras  —  Zimmerman ties game in ninth; Guillen homers in five-run 10th  —  NEW YORK — On Wednesday night, the game-time temperature between the Nationals and Mets was 44 degrees at Shea Stadium, and the Nationals' bats were just as cold for the most of the game.

Future Shock  —  2006 Draft Notebook, Part One  —  The upcoming draft is even more wide open than it was when last we checked in.  As more players continue to take steps backwards instead of forwards, the first round remains highly unstable—teams are struggling to find players they believe …

Kent injured as Dodgers drop finale  —  Pitching struggles as four-run first inning goes for naught  —  LOS ANGELES — Starter Odalis Perez lost a five-run lead and the Dodgers went on to lose Jeff Kent, Olmedo Saenz and Wednesday night's finale to the Atlanta Braves, 9-8.

GM Jim Hendry has made some shrewd moves with the Cubs, outweighing mistakes, writes Paul Sullivan  —  Studs offset duds  —  CINCINNATI — Jim Hendry is an unapologetic throwback, the kind of front-office executive who still values his scouts' opinions over a computerized printout of every statistic imaginable.

Thumbs Up!  New Busch earns accolades  —  How does Busch Stadium play?  —  1. The mound  —  "I like it.  I was really comfortable, like I'd pitched here before.  I think everybody on the staff is going to like it."  Sidney Ponson  —  2. The field  —  "I can't believe how good the field is. ...

Angels shut down by familiar face  —  Offense kept in check by former teammate Washburn  —  SEATTLE — Wednesday couldn't have turned out much better for Jarrod Washburn.  —  The left-hander hit his spots, caused batters to miss badly with his breaking pitches and otherwise commanded …

Notes: Schumaker in the mix  —  Eckstein fine day after collision; Rodriguez improving  —  PHILADELPHIA — Skip Schumaker's stock has risen considerably, while So Taguchi's has fallen only slightly.  Larry Bigbie is unavailable, but John Rodriguez is merely limited.

Padres beef up security after syringe tossed at Bonds  —  SAN DIEGO — In light of Monday's syringe throwing incident, another security measure was put in place for Tuesday night's game at Petco Park, which was rained out, after a syringe came flying out of the stands toward Barry Bonds.

No joshing — it was ugly  —  Game 2 was one to forget  —  ARLINGTON, Texas — Not much life in this one.  Red Sox starter Tim Wakefield fell behind, 4-0, before recording an out, new catcher Josh Bard forgot how many outs there were in the first inning of the second game of the year, and the Sox lost to the Rangers, 10-4.

On ESPN, Bonds Is Shaken, Not Perturbed  —  "Bonds on Bonds," the ESPN vanity series that made its debut last night, shows a Barry Bonds that few of us know: he weeps, he talks to his father at his gravesite, he mops up the mess from a busted aquarium pipe in his house, he wonders why he is not GQ's most-hated athlete.

Clemens gets ring, still uncertain about future  —  Clemens gets ring, still uncertain about future  —  HOUSTON (AP) — Even Roger Clemens' sons want an answer.  —  Clemens watched on television Monday night as the Houston Astros beat the Florida Marlins in their season opener.

Estes faces Giants, seeks 100th win  —  San Francisco (0-1) vs. San Diego (1-0), 7:05 p.m. PT  —  Following Tuesday's rainout, the first in San Diego since 1998 and 16th in Padres history, southpaw Shawn Estes makes his Friars debut against his original team, the Giants, on Wednesday night.

Gooden sentenced to a year in prison for violating probation  —  Gooden sentenced to a year in prison for violating probation  —  TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Former baseball star Dwight Gooden was sentenced Wednesday to a year and a day in prison for violating his probation by using cocaine …