Notes: Wood feeling some soreness  —  Right-hander skips work on Sunday; may throw Monday  —  CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood has some soreness in his right shoulder and will not start on Tuesday if he does not pass his next side session.  —  Wood did not throw on Sunday, which would've been a normal side session.

Wagner's rough ninth leads to Mets loss  —  Closer walks three, hits a batter in allowing four runs  —  NEW YORK — Denials could be heard in every corner of the Mets' clubhouse on Saturday.  Losing as they had lost, the Mets insisted, was no worse, no more horrifying because it had happened …

Gonzalez retires after 13 seasons  —  Phils' veteran infielder hadn't acclimated to backup role  —  PHILADELPHIA — Alex Gonzalez grounded to third in the eighth inning of Saturday's 8-4 loss to Boston.  —  The next morning, the Phillies infielder grounded his career, retiring after 1,396 games and 13 seasons.

Mets bring Soler to The Show  —  Right-hander has dominated Florida State, Eastern Leagues  —  After reaching out to Triple-A Norfolk in recent weeks for a pair of veteran pitchers, the New York Mets have turned to Double-A Binghamton and one of their top prospects.

Notes: Lawton sent packing  —  Veteran designated for assignment; Morse called up  —  SEATTLE — With playing time becoming increasingly infrequent for Matt Lawton, the Seattle Mariners decided to sever ties with the veteran outfielder by designating him for assignment before Saturday's game against San Diego.

Wells declares himself ready to return  —  Veteran left-hander pleased with five-inning rehab start  —  MOOSIC, Pa. — One day removed from his 43rd birthday, and five weeks after his last pitch in anger, Boston Red Sox left-hander David Wells pronounced himself fit and ready to return …

Royals' skid reaches nine games  —  Elarton remains winless with loss to Cardinals  —  KANSAS CITY — It was sweep and sour for the Royals.  Very sour, in fact.  —  "We're pretty much bad in every facet of the game," pitcher Scott Elarton said, warming to the topic.  "It doesn't look like anybody in here cares.

Notes: McCann remains optimistic  —  Catcher says left ankle is beginning to feeling better  —  PHOENIX — Much of the optimism Brian McCann possessed when he left Chase Field on Saturday night had diminished by the time he returned on Sunday morning.  —  But after the Braves closed …

Rookie Cain twirls shutout for Giants  —  Bonds raps two singles; Sweeney, Winn drive in two each  —  OAKLAND — There was never a doubt that Giants rookie pitcher Matt Cain could fire a baseball with hypersonic speed, but the trouble was his brain synapses were surging with too much voltage as well.

Glavine takes on Yankees in finale  —  Yankees (24-17) at Mets (25-17), 8:05 p.m. ET  —  Sweeps week is up and running across the television networks.  —  And heading into the ninth inning of Saturday's contest against the Yankees, the Mets were primed to join the race.

Ortiz Will Take Offense  —  Designated Hitters Often Are Maligned, but the Red Sox Slugger Has Proven His Worth  —  Very few of today's baseball players can be said to be the greatest ever at their positions.  —  If Roger Clemens decides to pitch again this year — and one guesses …

Bay red hot since one-day jolt of order  —  Outfielder's resurgence helping Pirates right ship  —  CLEVELAND — Jason Bay realizes he is "the guy" in the Pirates lineup.  So when things began to head south for the Pittsburgh offense earlier this month, he naturally tended to take it personally.

With Hobbled Offense, Torre Hopes for a Solid Defense  —  Joe Torre's first words after the Yankees' 11-inning comeback victory yesterday spoke a lot about what is on his mind.  "It was an ugly game for a long time," he said.  —  Torre, the Yankees' manager, is concerned about his team's defense.