Yankees pick Scranton, Mets beg to turn Tides  —  The Mets asked David Wright to place a late-night call to Triple-A Norfolk owner Ken Young after their loss to Florida last night.  But the last-ditch effort to prevent the Mets from losing Wright's hometown team as their affiliate appeared unlikely to work.

Rangers eliminated with 6-3 loss  —  ARLINGTON - There is only one hitch in the Rangers' desires to etch Robinson Tejeda into their starting rotation for 2007: He has yet to win a game in Texas.  —  That's a pretty significant issue.  —  In a 6-3 loss to Seattle on Wednesday …

Ortiz launches No. 50; Twins blast Red Sox  —  Just a single raised fist, rounding first base, accompanied David Ortiz on his historic run.  Just that fist, up for no more than a second, before he made his solitary way around second, around third, across home.

A Ninth Consecutive Division Title for Yankees  —  For Johnny Damon, it was the perfect convergence of joy and duty.  —  The Yankees' game had ended with a 3-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night, but the scoreboard told the players that the Boston Red Sox were also losing.

Clement not too open to closing  —  Of all the tasks facing the Red Sox this winter, finding a closer will be near the top of the list.  No incumbent pitcher has been ruled out, according to club officials, so it is not a big surprise that Matt Clement is a candidate.

Despite loss to Blue Jays, Yankees clinch ninth straight AL East title  —  TORONTO (AP) -Derek Jeter poured champagne over Joe Torre's head.  Johnny Damon swigged whiskey from a bottle.  Robinson Cano ambushed teammates with beer.  —  The New York Yankees celebrated their ninth straight AL East title like they'd never won it before.

Why Santana isn't the AL MVP … Johan Santana is the most talented, most charismatic, most dominating pitcher in this hemisphere.  And that's something we should all be able to agree on, except perhaps for certain members of Roy Halladay's immediate family.

It's a season of redemption for the staff ace  —  The Chicago Cubs, anchored firmly to the bottom of the National League standings and eagerly awaiting the end of hostilities, started a rookie pitcher last night for the 73d time this season.  —  Even as rookies, and Cubs rookies, generally go …

Wilpon deserves all the credit  —  A wealthy, genteel and proper gentleman who's probably used to drinking his bubbly from a crystal flute instead took it straight from the bottle, and had it all dumped right on his head.  Don't be misled; Fred Wilpon was not drunk the other night, at least not from liquor.

Aparicio ready to lead chagrined O's fans in protest  —  You say you've had it with the Orioles this time.  —  You've had it with nine straight losing seasons.  With another meaningless September.  With a jewel of a ballpark that sits empty and forlorn, except when it's invaded by thousands …

Notes: Washburn will miss final starts  —  Starter diagnosed with a strain or tear in his right calf  —  ARLINGTON — Jarrod Washburn immediately knew he was in trouble on Tuesday when he heard something "pop" in his right calf after he landed awkwardly after delivering a pitch.

Rapping to the Oldies  —  Peter J. Nash, a baseball author, historian and filmmaker, can eloquently describe players from 2006.  What makes him different from many other fans is that he can also smoothly discuss players from 1846.  Nash knows exhaustive details about the earliest days of baseball …

Royals manager takes medical leave of absence, return indefinite  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City Royals manager Buddy Bell is taking a leave of absence to treat a growth discovered near his left tonsil.  —  The Royals announced the move during the ninth inning of their game against …

Lies, Damned Lies  —  Secret Sauce  —  With the pennant races settling down more quickly than we might like, it's not too early to start thinking about which teams might have the pole position in the post-season derby.  As Dayn Perry and I found in Baseball Between the Numbers …

Willis a Met Next Season?  A Team Can Dream, Can't It?  —  Until the playoffs begin and games around here start to matter again, all there is left to do is wait.  A one-night-only reprieve came last night, when no one could have faulted the Mets' front office for putting aside …

Home at the ballpark  —  Gammons back to work for ESPN  —  And then, yesterday, he was back at the ballpark.  Home, as he sees it.  —  Little fanfare.  No promotional gimmicks.  Just some handshakes and heartfelt greetings from fans, players, and colleagues, and the inevitable kids …