Is tonight Buehrle's swan song?  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Mark Buehrle might want to start hiding personal belongings over the next few weeks.  His teammates and even his manager have started ''collecting'' memorabilia connected with anything the White Sox pitcher touches.

Mea culpa for damage done to A's  —  I LEARNED LONG ago the first two rules of journalism are: 1) Be accurate; and 2) Be fair.  —  Unfortunately, I was neither in my column on Monday, June 25, entitled "A's whitewashed by Beane, Mets," and for that I'd like to apologize to Billy Beane …

Sox extend contract  —  The Red Sox have extended their player development contract with the Portland Sea Dogs through 2012, according to a statement released by the team.  The deal extends the contract with Boston's Double-A affiliate by four years, the longest extension permissible by league rules.

MRS. A-ROD IS A BRONX F-BOMBER  —  OBSCENE SHIRT SHOCKS STADIUM  —  Oh, no, she didn't!  —  Yankee superstar Alex Rodriguez's long-suffering wife, Cynthia, may have finally flipped her pretty lid yesterday when she went to a game in The Bronx wearing a tight-fitting, white tank top bearing a foul message on the back: "F- - - you."

Reds replace Narron  —  Club to name Pete Mackanin interim manager tomorrow  —  CINCINNATI — At a press conference at noon Monday at Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati Reds president and chief executive officer Bob Castellini and executive vice president and general manager Wayne Krivsky …

Hargrove: 'I don't expect people to understand' … The only way the Mariners' homestand could have been stranger is if the team's mascot, Mariner Moose, took off his headpiece to reveal that he was actually Bill Gates.  —  When Ken Griffey Jr. and the Reds came to town last weekend …

NL West: Heroes today, gone tomorrow  —  The past week in the NL West saw the departure of a minor folk hero, a dispiriting losing streak by one team, a matchup of two of the NL's best starters and two outstanding efforts by young pitchers who hope to become two of the NL's best starters in time.

Petrick hitches his pants, faces cruel curveball  —  Disease stole his career, but not his gallant spirit  —  HILLSBORO, Ore. - The lineup card is on his basement wall, next to a page from a score book detailing that dreamy afternoon in Coors Field.  —  It was Sept. 1, 1999.

Rangers' Gagne a saver to savor  —  egrant@dallasnews.com  —  BOSTON - In the last week, Eric Gagne has repeatedly demonstrated that he can do the things the Eric Gagne of old used to be able to do regularly.  —  Pitch on back-to-back days?  Check.  Be available for more than two consecutive days?

Proctor's Fiery Temper  —  NEW YORK - In what was probably his way of trying to end his recent struggles, reliever Scott Proctor set his equipment on fire near the Yankees dugout after the Yankees' 7-0 loss to the A's Saturday, MLB.com reported.  —  Proctor, who allowed two singles …

Pirates Notebook: Duke on DL; Youman to start  —  The Pirates placed Zach Duke on the disabled list yesterday and announced that left-hander Shane Youman will join the starting rotation for the foreseeable future.  —  Duke will have an arthrogram this morning at Allegheny General Hospital …

The cream of the crap (Part 1)  —  A year and a half ago, some Yankees fans at the Baseball Think Factory had a great idea: Take a poll to determine the 28 greatest teams in baseball history, and run 1000 simulations to figure out who really were the best of the best.

Interview - Mark Shapiro - Exec. VP & GM - Cleveland Indians  —  Build it from within... make every cent count... balance risk.  That might be the best way to describe how Mark Shapiro, the executive vice-president and general manager of the Cleveland Indians, conducts business.

Efficient Baker  —  Scott Baker just finished the third inning, retiring all nine batters he's faced.  The Tigers are putting the ball in play early tonight, as Baker has just one strikeout and has thrown just 25 pitches.  Six of those were against ninth slot hitter Brandon Inge.