By George, ace finds his groove  —  ALS patient puts things into perspective for winner Schilling  —  BOSTON — After a string of five exceedingly frustrating starts, Curt Schilling could promise only one thing following his most recent outing: "I will get better," Schilling offered …

Olsen, Marlins refuse to address fight  —  When Scott Olsen takes the mound for the Marlins tonight, he'll do so sporting an impressive shiner around his left eye, though Olsen and the Marlins were mum on how the bruise got there.  —  Olsen declined to discuss the injury Monday …

Notes: Escobar scratched from lineup  —  Injury-riddled outfielder hurt his left hamstring on Sunday  —  WASHINGTON — Nationals outfielder Alex Escobar was scheduled to bat sixth against the Astros on Monday night, but he was scratched around 5:00 p.m. CT after he informed the team's trainers …

Angry?  No, they're radio active  —  Dempster, Guillen make peace after 'misquotes' lead to heated rhetoric  —  MIAMI — After a long-distance war of words, Cubs reliever Ryan Dempster and White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen apologized to each other, but neither was happy about how the misunderstanding occurred.

Notes: Sheets gets good news  —  MRI shows no structural damage to right shoulder  —  thaudricourt@journalsentinel.com  —  Cincinnati - Milwaukee Brewers ace Ben Sheets was looking for some peace of mind, and he got it Monday.  —  A magnetic resonance imaging test on Sheets' ailing right shoulder showed …

Peavy Misses Bats, Padres Miss Winning  —  Yes, the Padres lost again Monday night, but in the process, right-hander Jake Peavy established a new franchise record for strikeouts in a game by fanning 16 Atlanta Braves.  Yes, we'd all rather have the win, but no dice, so let's take a look at Peavy's record-setting night instead.

Bonds meets Babe Ruth, but does anyone really care?  —  OAKLAND — There was no smile.  Fans didn't jump out of the stands chasing him around the bases like Hank Aaron after home run No. 715.  There was precious little emotion when Barry Bonds hit his 714th home run Saturday against the Oakland Athletics, tying Babe Ruth.

Cubs in no hurry to get Baker deal done  —  There might be a simple explanation for the Cubs' delay in signing manager Dusty Baker to a contract extension: The Cubs hold significant leverage over Baker, and don't need to rush.  —  Baker, 56, is one of the game's best-paid managers …

Notes: Angels struggling in May  —  Poor pitching, injuries contribute to 5-14 record to start May  —  ARLINGTON — The Angels made another dip into their talent pool when they called up Kendry Morales from Triple-A Salt Lake following Monday's 3-2 loss to the Rangers.

Mid-Season Blockbusters: May (Part Two: 1960-2003)  —  Picking up where we left off last week ...  May 13, 1960: The Philadelphia Phillies traded first baseman Ed Bouchee and pitcher Don Cardwell to the Chicago Cubs for second baseman Tony Taylor and catcher Cal Neeman.  —  Two struggling teams decided to shake it up.

Pirates Notebook: Duffy's absence stems from unhappiness with game  —  PHOENIX — Center fielder Chris Duffy's absence from the Pirates apparently is motivated by a general unhappiness with playing the game much more than dissatisfaction with the team, two sources close to Duffy said.

Monday Ramblin's  —  I'm well aware that many of you fine CD faithful do not speak "Bullshitese" AKA the unconditional loving of another athlete no matter your inner disdain so let me translate a few quotes you may have heard over the weekend.  When Bonds says "Now that I've got the record …

Mailbag: Dealing with all the injuries  —  Beat writer Mark Feinsand answers Yankees fans' questions … Why on earth would Bernie Williams start this often, even with the injuries to Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield?  None of his numbers are promising, and he cannot improve.  Same with Scott Erickson.