Johnson headed to disabled list  —  Right-hander exits after five scoreless innings vs. Padres  —  SAN DIEGO — Sailing along through five stellar innings on Wednesday, Josh Johnson's night came to a close while throwing warmup pitches before the sixth inning.

Rockies finish rare sweep of N.Y. teams  —  DENVER (AP) — If they can do it against New York, the Colorado Rockies figure they can knock anybody around.  —  Todd Helton and Garrett Atkins both drove in a season-high five runs and the Rockies pounded out 20 hits and routed the Mets again Wednesday night …

Williams to start 1st-half finale  —  DENVER - The Mets expect Dave Williams to start Sunday's first-half finale in Houston.  Jason Vargas originally had been listed as the starter, but he was sent back to Triple-A New Orleans after allowing nine runs in 3-1/3 innings in Tuesday's 11-3 loss to the Rockies.

Beltran seeing Stars  —  DENVER — When David Wright was selected to the National League All-Star team last year, it signified a public relations coming-out party, jetting from David Letterman to the home run derby.  But for Carlos Beltran, the invitation meant business.

Ailing Smoltz to skip All-Star Game  —  Righty will combat soreness with trainers during break  —  LOS ANGELES — Even though he knew he wasn't going to be able to pitch, John Smoltz still wanted savor his eighth All-Star selection next week with his son.  But after feeling prolonged tightness …

Angels offense kept quiet in loss  —  Two-run fourth not enough to give the Halos a win  —  ARLINGTON — To Jered Weaver, it's "a little funk."  To Mike Scioscia, it's nothing more than a "soft spot."  —  Whatever you call it, everyone agrees on the antidote: hard shots, one after another, generating noise and energy.

Buehrle wants no-trade protection  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  The staredown continues.  —  Jeff Berry, the agent for White Sox left-hander Mark Buehrle, said Wednesday night that Buehrle will not sign a proposed four-year, $56 million contract with the Sox unless it includes complete no-trade protection.

The Kazmir conundrum  —  It may well be the most lopsided trade ever made: On July 30, 2004, trailing the Atlanta Braves by seven games in their division with a 49-53 record, the New York Mets decided to pull the trigger to send top prospect Scott Kazmir to Tampa Bay for veteran pitcher Victor Zambrano.

So, who said there's no clock in a baseball game?  —  Betancourt gets penalty for taking too much time  —  DETROIT - Twelve seconds seems like long enough to throw a pitch.  —  Then again, nobody actually put a stop watch on it until Tuesday night, when Indians reliever Rafael Betancourt …

Notes: Padilla works toward return  —  Team aims to send pitcher to Double-A Frisco by July 12  —  ARLINGTON — The Rangers have set a schedule for pitcher Vicente Padilla, who was put on the disabled list on June 25 with triceps inflammation behind his right elbow.

Halfway Home (Part 2: The Offense)  —  Tuesday in this space I examined how the Twins' pitching staff performed through exactly one half of the season, concluding that they have a "championship-caliber" group that's capable of improving in the second half.  Today I'll take the same type …

Notes: To trade or not to trade?  —  Players, management have differing philosophies on direction  —  CHICAGO — The White Sox were not planning having a 36-44 record through the first 80 games of the season.  The disappointing first half has left the Chicago front office …