A few things.....  BALTIMORE - The Sox arrived here at about 2:30 a.m. this morning which was considered "a civilized" time by Sox manager Terry Francona.  The manager has his family with him on this trip as do a few of the Sox players.  —  The Red Sox are trying to rebound from a 6-4 defeat …

What will Gord do?  —  MILWAUKEE — Tomorrow afternoon, the Milwaukee Brewers will participate in coin flips with the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs to determine home field for potential one-game playoffs in the event of a tie for the Central Division title.

Varitek's single, Ortiz's HR lift BoSox  —  BALTIMORE (AP) — The no-hit rookie kept the Baltimore Orioles scoreless in his encore performance, and a trio of veterans helped Boston rally three times before prevailing.  —  Pinch-hitter Jason Varitek singled in the go-ahead run in the ninth inning …

Billy Beane AN Interview September 07 Part I  —  These are the times that try fan's souls.  But apparently not Billy Beane.  I sat down with Beane in his hotel when he came to the OC over the past Labor Day weekend and talked with him about pretty much everything that's happened in 2007.

Time to amend the save stat … One thing we never get tired of, here at International Rumblings and Grumblings Headquarters, is offering our completely voluntary services to save the game of baseball.  —  We're selfless like that.  —  So this week, what we'd like to help with, if this sport will just let us, is to save the save.

NL Central: The Ankiel Story  —  The Cubs started the season poorly, but have recovered and worked their way back into contention (they beat the Dodgers last night to remain a half-game ahead of the Brewers).  But no team has come back from a worse spot than the defending World Champs, who are just two games out of first place.

Ethier provides heroics for Dodgers  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  CHICAGO (AP) - Pinch-hitter Andre Ethier connected for a go-ahead, three-run homer off Ryan Dempster in the ninth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers stunned the Chicago Cubs 7-4 Thursday.  —  Alfonso Soriano hit two homers for the Cubs …

Mets notebook  —  Carlos Delgado left the Mets early Wednesday morning to return to New York for an MRI, which revealed a strained right hip flexor.  The Mets said he could be back in seven to 10 days, but were not about to commit for certain that he would be back in time for the postseason.

A Minor League Site of Their Own  —  Sean Forman has done it again.  The genius behind Baseball-Reference.com has now created a similar site for the minor leagues.  The minor league data goes back to 1992 and is current through September 4, 2007.  —  You can go to the home page …

For O's, it's another low  —  Pitchers rocked in 15-run loss; Pena hits slam in 8-run fourth for Devil Rays  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Radhames Liz should have seen it coming.  Not the ball that slammed into his left leg in the first inning, but the likelihood that his third major league start would turn gruesome.

Redding leaves with elbow injury  —  Right-hander left after diving for high-bouncing grounder  —  WASHINGTON — Nationals right-hander Tim Redding left Wednesday's game because of a right lateral elbow contusion.  He will be out seven to 10 days.  —  In the top of the third inning …

Wily Mo Redux  —  "His power is unbelievable.  He's like a 'Little Papi,' and I know that when his time comes, he will be a good player.  Nobody hits the ball like Mo—nobody."  —  In my inaugural column in this space back in March of 2006, I took a look at the prospects of outfielder Wily Mo Pena.

Alex Rodriguez limps into lineup and knocks two out in 7th  —  Alex Rodriguez began yesterday with a trip to the hospital for an MRI on his injured right ankle.  His night ended with a pair of trips around the bases, as the MVP front-runner continued his incredible season.

Playoffs Or Wedding?  Ian Kennedy May Have To Decide  —  With Roger Clemens ailing and Mike Mussina pitching like a Devil Ray, Yankees rookie Ian Kennedy has been thrust into the spotlight.  So far he's delivered, going seven innings in his first start and getting the win.

Robbery Suspect Shot in the Leg, Police Say  —  A man suspected of robbing a vendor during the Nationals game at RFK Stadium apparently shot himself in the leg by mistake late last night as he tried to elude security guards, authorities said.  —  The incident began shortly before 10:30 p.m. …