A-Rod offers a powerful case  —  Blasts Bosox and then critics  —  BOSTON - Be fair, Yankee fans.  —  If you're going to hammer Alex Rodriguez every time he fails to deliver in the clutch, or even when he hits too-late-to-matter home runs, you have to give him his due for taking Tim Wakefield out of the ballpark last night.

Shoulder pain forces Hamels to miss start  —  NEW YORK - Cole Hamels never sweats the small stuff.  —  Unless it has to do with his injury-plagued body.  —  Hamels, the Phillies' 22-year-old lefty phenom, felt a pop in his left shoulder while throwing in the outfield before last night's game.

It's wild time on O's runway … With a staff of starters who all pitched fairly well last season and the game's most successful pitching coach on hand, the Orioles spoke of the mound as an area of strength, or at least reliability, this spring.  —  Seven weeks later, it seems more like a disaster zone.

Soler to realize dream on Wednesday  —  Right-hander left Cuba to pursue passion for baseball  —  NEW YORK — For 10 minutes after batting practice on Tuesday, only the short wall along the right-field line separated Mets starter Alay Soler from his new adoring fans.  —  He smiled.  They smiled back.

Peavy strikes out 16 in loss to Braves, sets Padres record  —  CBS SportsLine.com wire reports  —  SAN DIEGO — Jake Peavy needed only seven innings to set a Padres record with 16 strikeouts Monday night but lost because the only ball the Atlanta Braves hit out of the infield against him also happened to leave the yard.

Ortiz Provides a Good Start  —  Nats Right-Hander Gives Up Just One Run in Seven Innings : Nationals 4, Astros 1  —  He was the guy they turned to after all the prominent names — from Kevin Millwood to A.J. Burnett to Matt Morris — looked at the Washington Nationals, considered their ownerless status and went elsewhere.

Beltran shot is sweet in 16  —  Carlos' HR sparks Mets in marathon  —  So many times it could've ended earlier, but the longest game in the majors this season - both in innings and time - was only just beginning at Shea.  —  Carlos Beltran over-slid second base in the 11th.

Grounder past Doumit keys Pirates' 7-3 loss to Arizona  —  But Tracy, some players differ on play by inexperienced first baseman  —  PHOENIX — It would be easy to blame Ryan Doumit.  —  A ball was sliced right at him, it slipped under his glove, and it set the stage for three Arizona runs …

Granderson's double helps Tigers hand Royals 11th straight loss  —  CBS SportsLine.com wire reports  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Even crusty old managers like Detroit's Jim Leyland can feel warm and fuzzy over wins like this.  —  Down 4- early to a Kansas City team desperate to snap …

Jim Bowden: Inside the Nationals' draft 'War Room'  —  WASHINGTON - When the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft begins at 1 p.m. June 6, we'll hold our portion of the draft via telephone conference call in our "War Room" on the fourth floor of RFK Stadium.

'He's not welcome'  —  Report reignites feud between La Russa, Ozzie Smith  —  ST. LOUIS (AP) — Comments made in a newspaper interview have reopened an old rift between Cardinals Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith and manager Tony La Russa.  —  In an article in Sunday's St. Louis Post-Dispatch …

Maddux perfect example  —  School will be in session for the Marlins' young pitching staff this afternoon when future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux takes the mound for the Cubs.  —  ''When it comes to pitching, he really knows what he's doing,'' Marlins manager Joe Girardi said of Maddux …