Mussina thumped but OK  —  ST. PETERSBURG - Mike Mussina suffered a bruise near his left thumb when he was hit by a line drive yesterday, but said it wouldn't cause any problems in his final start of the season or the playoffs.  —  "My thumb's okay, just a little sore," Mussina said.

Crawford makes history in win  —  Ties league mark with 15 or more triples in three straight years  —  ST. PETERSBURG — Carl Crawford has set his share of records this season, just his fifth in the Major Leagues.  On Sunday, the speedy left fielder made history yet again.

Nomar hurting, but delivers again in clutch  —  If this were July, Nomar Garciaparra probably wouldn't be playing because of a sore left quadriceps that has bothered him for more than a week.  —  Fortunately for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he's helping them battle for a playoff berth.

Hot free agent  —  Soon-to-be-ex-Marlins skipper Girardi has ties to Cubs, Chicago  —  Joe Girardi may be very available when the Cubs start the search for a successor to Dusty Baker, who won't be retained after his contract expires at the end of the season.

Notes: Johnson's leg surgery a success  —  Doctors say first baseman should be ready by Spring Training  —  NEW YORK — From his hospital bed, first baseman Nick Johnson, recovering from his right leg surgery, watched on TV as his teammates dedicated their 5-1 win against the Mets to him.

Pirates Notebook: Burnitz, Randa face uncertain futures  —  By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  —  SAN DIEGO — The Pirates' Jeromy Burnitz spent much of this six-game road trip in an unfamiliar place to see some unfamiliar faces.  —  A place he sometimes calls home.

Case closed: Eyre says he prefers setup role  —  CINCINNATI — Scott Eyre is not interested in taking Ryan Dempster's place if the Cubs go looking for a new closer for next year.  —  "I like pitching the seventh and eighth [innings]," Eyre said.  "Bobby Howry and Demp can figure that out.

Completing the job seems to be a problem for Oakland  —  The A's aren't helping reputation as a team that can't finish off a foe  —  OAKLAND - This isn't helping the A's reputation as a team unable to finish off an opponent.  —  True, those nine straight losses in potential clinching games came in the playoffs.

Beltran's game to play tonight  —  It only rained briefly early in the game yesterday, but that threat was enough for Willie Randolph to hold Carlos Beltran out of the Mets' lineup for the sixth straight day yesterday.  —  Despite lamenting the possible need for a cortisone shot …

Dream a little dream of Sori  —  Randolph says all the right things about the pending free agent  —  In the fourth inning of the Mets' 5-1 loss yesterday, Alfonso Soriano unleashed a laser-like throw from the left-centerfield gap to catch Cliff Floyd trying to stretch a single.

Cards Notebook: Rolen is back  —  Scott Rolen returned to the lineup Sunday, one day after he considered himself "benched" against Houston Astros ace Roy Oswalt.  Rolen, whose left shoulder has been a source of concern since he underwent surgery last year, made certain Sunday that reporters knew …

Willie pitches in Trach talk  —  The games have grown so mundane that each passing day at Shea now is spent trying to read between the lines rather than dissecting what's actually happening between them.  —  Will Steve Trachsel or John Maine round out the playoff rotation?

LOU'S ANALYSIS ANYTHING BUT SWEET  —  THE GOOD, the bad, the usual.  Saturday on Fox's Nats-Mets broadcast, analyst Lou Piniella, yet another big-name hire just thrown into a booth, watched Nick Johnson collide with teammate Austin Kearns.  And he watched Johnson go down, stay down and not get up.

Gonzalez could be Girardi's successor  —  CINCINNATI — Joe Girardi's shaky status as manager of the Florida Marlins continues to play a key role in the Cubs' search for a new manager.  —  If Girardi is fired, sources say Atlanta Braves third-base coach Fredi Gonzalez …

Baker, Hawpe heat up right-field controversy … Next year's spring training battle between Jeff Baker and Brad Hawpe for the starting right-field job heated up Sunday on a glorious September afternoon.  —  Baker, a late-season call-up, got another start and hit his fifth homer of the season and the fourth in his past seven games.

Top rookie now a race  —  A convincing case could have been made a week ago for Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla to win the National League Rookie of the Year award.  —  Now, Hanley Ramirez has quite possibly emerged as the frontrunner to win the award, sizzling when Uggla is swooning.