It hurts Jeter to watch, but kids help ease pain  —  Derek Jeter sat alone in front of his locker at about 20minutes to 5 last night, having answered all possible questions about his injured right thumb.  The rest of the Yankees were on the field for batting practice, but Jeter was not with them …

Rangers pick lefty from Alabama  —  ARLINGTON - Most things being pretty equal, the Rangers' first-round draft decision Tuesday came down to taking a lefty or right-hander.  —  In the case of the Rangers, left is always right.  —  And so, the club chose diminutive Alabama high schooler Kasey Kiker …

Tigers get a taste of Cintron … CHICAGO — There are, in fact, several living human beings who can remember the last time a Tigers-White Sox series felt like this.  —  Big.  Well, bigger than a Daily Lotto drawing, anyway.  —  Meaningful.  Well, more meaningful than a Nicole Jordan novel, at least.

Pitcher Spills Steroid, Speed Secrets  —  Diamondback Jason Grimsley's home raided in federal drug probe  —  JUNE 7—Federal agents yesterday raided the Arizona home of a journeyman baseball pitcher who reportedly admitted using performance enhancing drugs and gave investigators the names …

Reyes Is a Dynamo, but He's Still Not Playing the Percentages  —  LOS ANGELES, June 6 — Coming off a tough loss Sunday, José Reyes set the tone for the Mets' 4-1 victory Monday by hitting a homer to lead off the game.  It was his sixth home run of the year, one fewer than his career high, set last season.

Guillen's Road Back Takes Time  —  ATLANTA, June 6 — Washington Nationals outfielder Jose Guillen is eligible to return to the roster from the disabled list on Saturday, but Manager Frank Robinson said it will take him longer to return to form.  —  Guillen, on the disabled list since May 26 …

Gagne sore after first save  —  In his second outing, the Dodgers closer feels some discomfort  —  LOS ANGELES — Eric Gagne converted his first save in nearly a year on Tuesday night, but the grimace on his face and slow readings of the radar gun told the rest of the story.

Mets Are Bruised, and Martínez Is Battered  —  LOS ANGELES, June 6 — Not much went the Mets' way Tuesday night, the least of their problems being their 8-5 loss to the Dodgers.  —  José Reyes did not start because of a sprained right wrist.  Cliff Floyd sprained his ankle running …

Injury hampers lefty Anderson  —  Anderson has MRI after leaving game with elbow soreness  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Left-handed pitcher Brian Anderson had a setback on the road to recovery from Tommy John surgery.  —  Anderson was taken out of an extended spring game Monday after complaining …

Penned-up emotions  —  Wagner surprised that Willie didn't use him in save situation  —  LOS ANGELES - Billy Wagner sat alone on the dugout bench early yesterday afternoon, bouncing a baseball off the concrete steps as he searched for the right words to answer a series of delicate questions.

Was it right pick?  No one really knows  —  Here's the one thing we know for sure about baseball's amateur draft: We don't know anything.  To question the wisdom of the Royals taking Luke Hochevar with the first pick is like second-guessing your buddy for picking a Powerball number.

Nats pin future on young talent  —  WASHINGTON—With new ownership in place, the Nationals finally have a future, and they used yesterday's First-Year Player Draft to start building for it.  —  Unencumbered by cost restraints and under guidance from new ownership to build the franchise's farm system …

Mauer's bat not enough  —  Twin regains batting lead, but Liriano loses  —  SEATTLE — The buddy system of pitching success finally ran out on Francisco Liriano on Tuesday night in Seattle.  —  After beating pals Felix Hernandez and Ervin Santana in pitching matchups his previous two starts …

First Day Draft Chat  —  Q: … A:  —  John Manuel: Hey everyone . . . let's dive in because it's been an exhausting day.  The Diamondbacks once again come out looking good on the draft's first day.  Their first four picks were pitchers I'm fond of in Max Scherzer (who, when healthy …

Drawing the line at 1969 … In 1900, there was no such thing as air conditioners, movies, corn flakes or bubble gum.  But somehow, in baseball, we consider 1900 to be part of the "modern" era.  —  You couldn't listen to a game on a radio in 1900, let alone watch one on DirecTV.