It never gets old — Ortiz rescues Sox once again  —  Many members of the 1986 Red Sox undoubtedly remain haunted by the sudden turn of events in the World Series nearly 20 years ago, when a near-certain victory slipped away in extra innings at Shea Stadium.

L.A. closing in  —  on a starter?  Dodgers on verge of acquiring Hendrickson  —  MINNEAPOLIS - The Dodgers' struggling rotation might be on the verge of getting some help.  —  Following Monday night's game, an 8-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins in front of 22,528 at the Metrodome …

Love Him, or Love Him a Lot  —  BOSTON, June 26 — Four compact discs lay on the front desk at a small music store in Jamaica Plain, waiting for Pedro Martínez to come in and claim them.  "I'm sure he's going to stop by," said Franklin Cabral, owner of Franklin's CDs.

Prospectus Today  —  Driving the Story  —  Last night, the White Sox came back from a 9-1 deficit in the seventh inning to tie their game with the Astros 9-9 in the ninth.  They went on to lose in 13 innings, but it was an amazing display, nonetheless.  The Sox got homers in the seventh …

Having that selfless approach … Baseball is a game of intangibles.  It is a game that requires doing "the little things,'' which can mean something as big as barreling over a catcher or as subtle as a whisper in the ear of a teammate after a good or bad at-bat.

Marrero Signs On With the Nationals  —  The Washington Nationals came to terms with their top draft choice, high school outfielder Chris Marrero of Miami, last night, an agreement that means the team's two first-round picks from the draft this month both eschewed college scholarship offers …

Randolph: No hard feelings  —  BOSTON — Old loyalties die hard, especially when it comes to the Red Sox and Yankees, which is why Pedro Martinez wanted to make sure that playing for Willie Randolph would not be a problem if he ultimately decided to sign with the Mets back in the winter of 2004.

Field maneuvers  —  Defensive efficiency keeping Padres in contention  —  General Manager Kevin Towers stood in the Padres dugout before Friday's game and surveyed his players as they fielded fungo shots.  —  "With our type of club right now, if we don't play good defense, we would be in trouble," he said.

Prospectus Hit List  —  Week of June 25  —  Rk  —  Team  —  Overall W-L  —  Week W-L  —  Hit List Factor  —  Trend  —  The first team to win 50, and for those looking for omens, the last two times the Tigers did that—1968 and 1984—culminated in champagne corks popping.

Mets' Reyes Is Becoming A Superstar  —  Baseball players get hot all the time, and it's usually best not to make too much of it.  Over a week or a month the best hitter in the league can hit .100, and the worst can hit .400.  It's part of the nature of the game; more than in any of the other team sports …

Scouting Valentin  —  One of the decisions the Mets have coming up is what to do about second base: stick with Jose Valentin or go get an upgrade.  Statistical analysis of the situation is important, but let's not forget that the numbers can only take you up to a point; sometimes …

Rehab first step for Pena  —  Wily Mo Pena will head out on a minor-league rehabilitation as an outfielder, but it is hoped that he will return to the Red Sox as a capable, reserve first baseman.  —  Pena, who had a fractured hamate bone removed from his left hand at the end of May …

Rangers showing patience with Tejeda  —  DENVER — The Rangers have done a wonderful job of trying to make the David Dellucci-Robinson Tejeda trade look like a good one.  Three times this year, they've called Tejeda to the big leagues from Oklahoma, and, well, it's been less than an artistic success.

MLB: The only farce is Rocker's recent comments … John Rocker claims that sensitivity training is a "farce," and adds that he never paid a dime of the $500 fine levied against him for racist and homophobic remarks six years ago.  —  According to Major League Baseball, Rocker either has a bad memory or an overly active imagination.

Wright Manages To Improve Where Even Stars Stagnate  —  In 1996, when he was 20 years old, Alex Rodriguez hit .358 with 36 home runs and 59 walks, played Gold Glove defense, and scored 141 runs in 146 games.  It's a performance he's never improved upon.  —  That's no criticism of Rodriguez …