Under The Knife  —  West Coast Love  —  Late West Coast games are simultaneously one of the best and worst things about baseball.  On the one hand, it's more baseball, and that's almost always a good thing.  Mixing in three good games in a day (day game, night game, West Coast game) …

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.

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.

A dazzling debut for new Busch  —  Minor Leaguers give stadium a test run  —  ST. LOUIS — The freshness and sparkle of the new Busch Stadium was on full display on a clear, cool and calm Tuesday evening as the venue's first game finally took place.  Judging by the buzz and conversation flowing throughout …

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.

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: LaRue plans on Tuesday return  —  First start at first pays off for Aurilia; Griffey passes legends  —  CINCINNATI — When the Reds and Cubs meet again on Tuesday at Wrigley Field, injured catcher Jason LaRue plans on being in the lineup.  —  LaRue, who is on the 15 …

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.

Notes: Gagne drops appeal  —  Dodgers closer to serve two-game suspension from 2005  —  LOS ANGELES — After undergoing an MRI exam described as prearranged, Eric Gagne informed the Commissioner's Office on Tuesday that he would drop his appeal and immediately begin serving a two-game suspension held over from last season.

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.

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.

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.

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 …

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.

"In The Best Interests of Baseball?"  An interview with author Andrew Zimbalist  —  I recently read "In The Best Interests of Baseball?  The Revolutionary Reign of Bud Selig", and was given an opportunity to interview author Andrew Zimbalist on the book, as well as on the current state of some economic topics in the game.

For Wagner and Rivera, Play It Again, Metallica  —  The song took hold in Houston and accompanied Billy Wagner to Philadelphia.  Between those stops, it has blared nearly 600 times, providing an intimidating backdrop for his entrance from the bullpen.  —  But until the song "Enter Sandman" …