Maine's no-hit bid, brawl spark Mets win  —  NEW YORK (AP) — What a way to stop a late-season slide!  —  John Maine flirted with the first no-hitter in Mets history before allowing an infield single to Paul Hoover with two outs in the eighth inning, and New York snapped out of its September doldrums …

Brewers' 4-3 comeback victory keeps Padres from clinching  —  MILWAUKEE - The San Diego Padres are still waiting to clinch a playoff spot - and they can blame a familiar name.  —  Tony Gwynn Jr., son of the Hall of Famer whose statue stands outside the Padres' ballpark, hit a tying …

Chien-Ming Wang will start Game 1 of ALDS vs. Indians  —  BALTIMORE - For the second straight year, Chien-Ming Wang will kick off the postseason for the Yankees, as Joe Torre tabbed him to start this week's playoff opener against the Indians.  —  Following last night's game …

D-backs celebrate in style  —  San Diego's loss gives Arizona first NL West title since 2002  —  DENVER — The Diamondbacks clinched the National League West title before they took the field against the Rockies on Saturday night.  And after a raucous celebration the night before …

Beinfest, others extended, promoted  —  Marlins' Loria preserves team's future by wrapping up execs  —  NEW YORK — Showing a commitment to continuity in the front office, Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria on Saturday said the organization has extended the contracts of four top executives through the 2015 season.

Phils lose, fall back into 1st-place tie  —  PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies spent all season trying to overtake the New York Mets.  And once they took the lead, they gave it away.  —  So now, the NL East race comes down to this: The Phillies and Mets are tied with one game left.

Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson leaves game with apparent head injury  —  PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson was taken off the field on a motorized cart during the sixth inning of a game against the St. Louis Cardinals Saturday night with an apparent head injury.

Good year for Looper  —  PITTSBURGH — Braden Looper plans to be a starter next season, but the Cardinals have elected not to start him Sunday so they can guarantee he leaves his first year in the rotation with a favorable record.  —  "It's like hitting .300," manager Tony La Russa said of Looper's 12-12 record.

A-Rod needs to ease up as pressure builds  —  Regular season success means very little compared to success in postseason  —  With all due respect to the great years by my friends George, Wade and Brooks, the greatest year ever by a third baseman will very soon be owned by Alex Rodriguez.

Notes: Jenkins' future still up in air  —  He would have liked to say 'so long' if he's not returning  —  MILWAUKEE — If the Brewers do not intend to exercise his $9 million club option for 2008, Geoff Jenkins would like to know now so he could say good-bye to the fans who have (mostly) cheered him for 10 years.

Mets Chat Room  —  Welcome back to Mets Chat Room.  —  We're a few minutes from first pitch and there are a hundred thoughts swirling through my head.  The most prevailing is the odds of seeing the Mets after Sunday aren't good.  —  Does anybody expect Washington to beat the Phillies?

Playoffs to start Wednesday  —  The Red Sox will begin their 2007 postseason on Wednesday, choosing the eight-day Wednesday-Friday format instead of the seven-day Thursday-Friday format.  They were granted the decision by virtue of having the best record in the American League.