Trachsel, Mets struggle vs. Brewers  —  Ohka notches first Shea Stadium win as bats fall silent  —  NEW YORK — It was the first game this season the Mets didn't play well enough to win.  It was the second game this season they lost.  —  So now, 161-1 is off the table.

Back injury will keep Casey out 6-8 weeks  —  Anyone who feels baseball is not a contact sport should check with first baseman Sean Casey.  —  The Pirates' first baseman will miss 6-8 weeks because of two fractures in his lower back, the team announced yesterday, in placing him on the 15-day disable list …

No free pass for the Giants offense  —  San Francisco's struggles at plate continue against the Dodgers  —  LOS ANGELES - Jason Schmidt was good enough to overcome most of his shortcomings Saturday night.  The same couldn't be said of the Giants' hitters.

Notes: Boomer lands on DL  —  DiNardo likely moves to rotation, Van Buren called up  —  BOSTON — A durable workhorse for most of his career, left-hander David Wells is suddenly feeling his age.  After coming off the disabled list and making one start, recurring woes in his right knee …

Newest star gathering is at 3rd in NL  —  At this decade's start, the trio was hyped as the Holy Trinity of Shortstops.  —  Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Nomar Garciaparra.  —  Quickly, Miguel Tejada joined them, beginning his streak of five straight 100 RBI seasons in 2000.

For true read on O's finances, Angelos needs to open books  —  It was the baseball business equivalent of a hanging curveball.  —  Orioles owner Peter Angelos told a Washington radio audience Friday that his club lost $15 million last year.  He threw that number out there and now I'm going to hit it out of the park.

Yanks Cover for Wright, Then Rivera Blows Save  —  MINNEAPOLIS, April 15 — Mariano Rivera's cut fastball bored in to break Justin Morneau's bat, but a game-winning two-run single dribbled into right field, leaving Rivera as stunned as the Yankees behind him on the field.

Pedro eyeing win No. 200  —  Pedro Martinez has the baseball from his 100th win, which came Aug. 8, 199,9 against the Angels.  Tomorrow, the ace tries to notch No. 200 and get another souvenir, when the Mets open their first series with the Braves.  —  Martinez said the milestone …

Rangers' loss a four-gone conclusion for Padilla  —  OAKLAND, Calif. - Maybe it was blues legend John Lee Hooker, with an assist from Jimmie Vaughan, who put it best:  —  "Boom, boom, boom, boom."  —  That pretty much summed up Vicente Padilla's outing against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday in the Rangers' 5-4 loss.

Struggling Izzy gropes for solutions  —  Not yet two weeks into the season, Jason Isringhausen already has walked into some strange places.  —  Isringhausen entered the eighth inning of a one-run game last Sunday at Wrigley Field.  Instead of earning what would have been only his fourth six …

Re-creating a classic  —  Before this story gets to the part where the kid lands his dream job because of a video game, some tired fingers and Bill Buckner, let's go back about 20 years.  —  On Oct. 25, 1986, Conor Lastowka was 5 years old.  He lived in Virginia, and bedtime was long …

Padres-Braves Preview  —  John Smoltz is familiar with starting a season slowly.  —  The hard-throwing right-hander looks to rebound from two difficult outings when the Atlanta Braves host the San Diego Padres on Saturday in the second game of a three-game series.

New Season, New Closer for Red Sox and Others  —  TERRY FRANCONA sat in his hotel room in Arlington, Tex., on the afternoon of the third game of the season.  He was mentally making pitching plans for that night's game with the Rangers.  That was when Jonathan Papelbon, a 25-year-old rookie, became the new Boston Red Sox closer.

Prospectus Notebook  —  Red Sox, Devil Rays  —  BOSTON RED SOX  —  A lot can change in a week.  The Red Sox went from having Coco Crisp in center and Trot Nixon in right to an outfield that now consists of some combination of Adam Stern, Wily Mo Pena, and Dustan Mohr, depending on the handedness of the opposing starter.

GRAVE AGAIN  —  MLB'S ONCE A YEAR CHARADE  —  WHY ARE THE TOP 20 EXECUTIVES  —  IN BASEBALL ALL WHITE BUD  —  Glorifying Jackie Robinson on April 15th  —  Baseball is also secretly very secretly celebrating its Great Relief that the likes of Jackie Robinson are dead and buried.