Chalk-board message the last straw for furious Gibbons  —  Team Turmoil will be back in action at the Rogers Centre tonight.  —  Oh yeah, and the New York Yankees will be there, too.  —  With the Texas Rangers in town last night, the volatility of the Cito Gaston-David Wells mound clash …

Wakefield out with stress fracture in rib cage  —  The Red Sox will have to make do without pitcher Tim Wakefield for at least three weeks, after extensive tests revealed he has a stress fracture in his rib cage, a source with direct knowledge of the injury confirmed.

Rangers stop off in Boston  —  Texas (49-46) at Boston (57-36), 1:05 p.m. CT  —  John Rheinecker pitches in Boston today and he didn't do badly in his first trip to Fenway Park, holding the Red Sox to three runs on nine hits over 5 2/3 innings in a game the Rangers eventually won, 7-4.

Nats Left Wishing on a Star  —  Frustration Mounts as Kearns Struggles, Florida Wins Series: Marlins 1, Nationals 0  —  MIAMI, July 19 — For a moment, there was some hope, albeit in the most marginal of forms.  Florida Marlins center fielder Alfredo Amezaga drifted back …

MLB: D.C. Government in Default of Lease Agreement  —  Major League Baseball has declared the District government in default of the lease agreement for the new stadium, charging that the city has failed to meet several deadlines for turning over critical documents.

Cubs coach Speier on leave after DUI  —  The Cubs put third-base coach Chris Speier on a leave of absence for several days after he was charged early Wednesday with drunken driving.  —  Shortly after leaving the Cubs-Astros game Tuesday, Speier was stopped several miles from Wrigley Field …

FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE  —  REDS IMPRESSED BY 1ST LOOK AT PELFREY  —  July 20, 2006 — CINCINNATI - There are other pitchers who are going to fire big-time heat to the plate, according to Adam Dunn.  But the Reds slugger said Mike Pelfrey's fastball is different.  —  "He's big and tall, and he's got a good fastball.

Yanks do trick, not trade  —  Until yesterday, and the wasted vintage pitching effort by Randy Johnson, there had been nothing but good tidings for Joe Torre's Yankees this second half of the season.  And, more and more, there has been reason to believe the "scrub squadders" of Melky Cabrera …

Mets could trade top prospect for Zito  —  The Mets have insisted for months that they won't trade their top position prospect, Class AAA outfielder Lastings Milledge.  But a growing number of major-league executives believe that the Mets will indeed part with Milledge, 21, if they can get the right starting pitcher in return.

Pedro makes pitch to hit 10-day target  —  CINCINNATI - Pedro Martinez has moved closer to returning from the disabled list.  The ace had a 60-pitch bullpen session yesterday, with a five-minute rest midway through the workout.  Martinez, whose 45-pitch session Sunday was his first since landing …

A's edge past Orioles  —  Crosby, Ellis hit back-to-back homers in third inning  —  BALTIMORE — Bobby Crosby was batting .111 so far on the A's current road trip, and Mark Ellis was batting .222.  —  So after Crosby ripped a two-run homer in the third inning Tuesday and Ellis followed …

Bullpen Looks Good to Tomko  —  PHOENIX — The Dodgers can only hope Brett Tomko's enthusiasm about moving from the starting rotation to the bullpen rubs off on Odalis Perez.  —  Tomko, who has made 143 starts in 145 appearances the last five years, will become a reliever when he rejoins …