He's here to get major tweaking  —  The kid arrived at Shea a few minutes before 6 p.m., just in time to get his briefing from Willie Randolph, a run-down on the signs from the Mets coaches and a few swings off a batting tee.  —  For a brief while there at the Providence, R.I., airport yesterday …

Astros GM says Clemens situation is 'status quo'  —  Houston Astros general manager Tim Purpura denied a report on Tuesday that Roger Clemens had picked a team for 2006, saying the situation was "status quo."  —  Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, and Astros' owner Drayton McLane also denied the report.

Beckett, Sox stink it up: Wells blasts three homers in Jays' win  —  TORONTO - The Toronto Blue Jays will stage one of the more unique ballpark giveaways June 27 when samples of a cologne formulated by pitcher Gustavo Chacin are distributed to the first 10,000 fans entering Rogers Centre.

What would enhance RFK?  Nats fans are full of ideas … WASHINGTON // Eager to improve the game-day experience for Washington Nationals fans, the club's new owners plan to soon solicit fans' advice on what's working and what's not.  —  The owners had better be ready for an earful.

Pauley to start as Wells goes on DL  —  TORONTO — One day in March, as David Wells pitched in a mock game at the Sox' minor league complex, Double A righthander David Pauley sat behind the backstop charting Wells's pitches as a favor to the coaches.  Tonight, he will be taking Wells's turn in the rotation …

Sheff may go on DL yet again  —  DETROIT - Just as the Yankees thought Gary Sheffield was getting healthy, they find out he may be heading right back to the disabled list.  —  Sheffield was frustrated and despondent last night as he exited Comerica Park, stopping only briefly to talk with the Daily News and one other reporter.

Jose's 2nd coming  —  As long as he keeps homering every day, Jose Valentin can start at second base for the Mets.  —  Otherwise, no promises.  Not even after Valentin homered for the second straight game last night, continuing to contribute at a position where the Mets have been punchless.

Marlins sink talk of trade  —  DETROIT - There was plenty of speculation yesterday that the Yankees, Phillies and Marlins were working on a three-way deal that would put Pat Burrell in pinstripes, send Dontrelle Willis to Philadelphia and stock the low-budget Marlins with prospects, but the trade talk was quickly shot down.

Statistical Curiosities  —  A look at a few strange and unusual things in the baseball world that I came across over the past week or so.  —  Can't Buy A Win  —  Last week Jake Peavy struck out 16 batters in a game, but he took the loss as the Braves dropped the Padres 3-1.

Troubling ingredient in Hall vote  —  You know what I hate most about Barry Bonds and his joyless, fraudulent pursuit of the home run gods?  —  My Hall of Fame ballot.  —  And Mark McGwire.  —  The Barry Plague infects Shea Stadium this weekend, which means another tonnage of speculation …

Baseball's Rockies seek revival on two levels  —  DENVER — No copies of Playboy or Penthouse are in the clubhouse of baseball's Colorado Rockies.  There's not even a Maxim.  The only reading materials are daily newspapers, sports and car magazines and the Bible.

Sabres 2, Hurricanes 1, OT  —  BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — All Sabres center Daniel Briere wanted was to get his shot past the diving Carolina defensemen.  —  Then he saw the red light, heard the crowd cheer and suddenly: Game 7.  —  Briere scored a power-play goal 4:22 into overtime …