Not Pitching to Pujols Is an Automatic First-Guess  —  ST. LOUIS, May 15 — When the Mets open a three-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals at the new Busch Stadium on Tuesday night, every at-bat by Albert Pujols will present a dilemma for Manager Willie Randolph and whoever is on the mound at the time.

Avoiding fault line  —  Hendry says he supports Baker, doesn't blame injuries for team's current 2-14 tailspin  —  Cubs general manager Jim Hendry agreed to a question-and-answer session on Monday's off day, assessing a slumping team that has lost 14 of its last 16 games to fall to 15-22.

Padres blow hot then cold in desert  —  Barfield takes blame for loss after Green's single lifts D-Backs in 10th  —  PHOENIX - Padres rookie Josh Barfield blamed himself for a 6-5, 10-inning loss to the Diamondbacks last night.  —  The second baseman chafed over defensive miscues …

Zambrano could be finished  —  ST. LOUIS - Victor Zambrano's career is in jeopardy after the righthander yesterday unexpectedly had a second Tommy John elbow surgery.  —  Team doctor David Altchek found a torn ligament that required replacement during what was expected to be a less intense procedure.

Beckett lights up Birds  —  Right-hander celebrates 26th birthday by dominating Orioles  —  BALTIMORE — The game face wasn't quite there when Josh Beckett first entered the visiting clubhouse on Monday afternoon.  The right-hander noticed ace Curt Schilling slumped over on the couch …

San Antonio pulls Marlins stadium offer  —  As expected, San Antonio played a game of Texas Fold 'Em on Monday with the Florida Marlins.  —  Bexar County leaders formally pulled out of the Marlins relocation sweepstakes, throwing the spotlight on the team's rising hopes to build a stadium in Hialeah.

Sturtze's year could be over  —  Scott Proctor could tell something was wrong.  Before the Yankees' 4-2 loss last night to the Texas Rangers, he saw fellow reliever Tanyon Sturtze emerge from Joe Torre's office with a look on his face that made it clear he needed to be alone.  So Proctor kept his distance.

Baseball Is a Game of Numbers, but Whose Numbers Are They?  —  Like no other corner of American popular culture, baseball communicates in numbers.  From .406 (Ted Williams's 1941 batting average) to 755 (Hank Aaron's record home run total) to countless digits bandied about water coolers every morning …

Lopez's approach paying dividends  —  Young second baseman turning into offensive force  —  OAKLAND — To best demonstrate the maturation of Jose Lopez this season, you need to look no further than an at-bat he had against White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle last month.

Melky murky in left  —  Day three of life without Godzilla saw Hideki Matsui's replacement, Melky Cabrera, gun down A's catcher Jason Kendall at the plate, make four putouts and leap in vain for a Jay Payton home run in the sixth inning.  —  But the Yankees also experienced a little …

Go 2 Guy: Fruto looks like fine fit  —  TACOMA — Until Sunday afternoon in Anaheim, had you heard of Emiliano Fruto?  —  I hadn't.  Didn't even know he had been called up by the Mariners to help a bullpen depleted by a 13-inning game Saturday night.  —  Then there he was …

Angels Go Through Growing Pains  —  A once-promising young trio falters, but veterans say the players' response to their struggles will determine whether they'll be productive in the future.  —  Maybe they succumbed to the pressure of having to immediately produce for a pennant-contending team …

Padilla to test ankle  —  NEW YORK - The Rangers are relatively certain who will pitch for them Thursday and Friday.  They aren't quite as sure about the order in which Vicente Padilla and Robinson Tejeda will start.  —  Padilla, who has been bothered by right ankle tendinitis …

Canseco now crushing homers in rec league  —  With his Major League Baseball career well behind him, Jose Canseco has turned to another league to get in his home runs.  —  That league is the Los Angeles Men's Senior Baseball League.  —  Playing on junior college fields with no public address announcer …