Three-year deal with Yankees tops Bobby Abreu's wish list  —  Bobby Abreu loves New York.  In the coming weeks, that love will be put to the test.  —  The outfielder will have to decide on his baseball future in the next month or two, as he hits the free agent market for the first time in his 12-year career.

Once Ramírez Picks Up A Bat, He Drops Worries  —  LOS ANGELES — In the litany of Manny Ramírez controversies, it was not as egregious as reportedly forgetting which knee hurt when he visited a doctor this July.  But Ramírez still caused a stir last October …

New York Yankees' Mariano Rivera to have surgery Tuesday  —  Closer Mariano Rivera will undergo arthroscopic surgery Tuesday to remove a calcification from the AC joint on top of his right shoulder.  The procedure will be performed by David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

Cordero agrees to terms with Nats  —  Righty closer avoids arbitration with one-year deal  —  WASHINGTON — The Nationals agreed to terms on a one-year, $6.2 million contract with closer Chad Cordero on Friday, avoiding salary arbitration.  —  Cordero said by phone that he was glad …

Manuel Plans to Give Mets a Lesson in Selfless Baseball  —  On his first official day as the Mets' manager, Jerry Manuel proposed molding his team into the Los Angeles Angels.  More of an East Coast version, actually.  —  Come spring training, Manuel said, he planned to do some …

Where are they now?  Former Yank Kevin Maas  —  Kevin Maas keeps sets of clothes for all types of weather and all types of sports in the trunk of his car these days and often changes en route from his office at Charles Schwab, where he is a financial consultant, to a gym or ballpark …

Angels' chances hinge on offense  —  Halos' lack of timely hitting has Sox in command for Game 3  —  BOSTON — Transforming adversity into opportunity is the Angels' new mission statement, as they navigate dire straits on the Atlantic Seaboard after going down twice on the shores of the Pacific.

Selig warns owners on high ticket prices  —  MILWAUKEE (AP)—Given the state of the U.S. economy, baseball commissioner Bud Selig warned team owners Saturday not to “get too cocky” and overprice game tickets.  —  “Because you do pay a price,” Selig said.  —  Speaking before Game 3 …

Wade will look to tweak Astros  —  Less work ahead for Houston GM than a year ago  —  HOUSTON — One year ago, a newly anointed general manager was handed the reigns of the Astros, with instructions from ownership to put together a competitive team on the big league level while rebuilding the farm system.

Why they'll win...  The Sox can, and I think will, win the World Series this year for a number of reasons:  —  UPDATE AFTER GAME 2!  Two really important pieces, that I think can mean quite a bit, or nothing at all, to different people.  They are coming home, where they are about as good as anyone …