The Tampa Bay Rays have gotten cocky  —  You know, with the Cubs out of the playoffs - I was kinda leaning towards cheering for the Tampa Bay Rays the rest of the way.  And why not?  They've been a great story this season and it would just be another expansion team to make or win …

Torre's brother: What Yanks did to Joe ‘was not right’  —  PHILADELPHIA — Frank Torre, the 76-year-old brother of Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre, walked onto the field Thursday at Citizens Bank Park, and had one question:  —  “I wonder what the (New York) Yankees are thinking …

Manuel's mom dies; he'll manage Phils in Game 2  —  June Manuel, the mother of Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, died Friday morning, the Phillies announced.  —  Manuel, who watched batting practice from his usual spot behind the cage on Friday afternoon, will manage Game 2 …

Yanks interested in Peavy  —  Free agency isn't the Yankees' only route toward restocking their starting rotation.  —  If the Padres are rebuilding, then unanimous 2007 NL Cy Young award winnner Jake Peavy might ask to relocate.  And, in the right scenario, the 27-year-old right-hander could switch leagues.

Out of Left Field: The Errors In Counting Black Ballplayers  —  For 61 years, ever since Jackie Robinson broke Major League Baseball's color barrier and won the National League's Rookie of the Year Award in the same season, African-American players have starred in the majors.

A.J. Burnett in no hurry to talk to Blue Jays  —  A.J. Burnett, in possibly his last game as a Jay, salutes the home crowd.  “It was storybook,” Burnett said of the sendoff on Sept. 24, 2008.  —  CATHAL KELLY  —  The Toronto Blue Jays may have to wait well into November …

Rays' numbers game  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Nine equals eight.  It's true.  —  Mathematics professors at Michigan State University say so.  They can prove it.  —  So can the Tampa Bay Rays.  All season they've worn T-shirts with what seemed a mathematically impossible message: 9 = 8.

AA Interview With Curtis Granderson  —  I don't know what it is, but I'm kind of anti website interviews.  Don't get me wrong, I think other sites do it well, but there just aren't enough people that I like to do them on a regular basis.  I've of course interviewed Gus Johnson …

Conspicuous by absence  —  Viewers of baseball on television, sometimes for good reason, have complained over the years about having to watch so many national telecasts involving the New York Yankees.  —  Pinstripes here, pinstripes there, pinstripes everywhere, has been known to grind …

Dallas Mavericks win, but baseball is the talk  —  CHICAGO — The Chicago Bulls opened their preseason Thursday night against the Dallas Mavericks so, of course, it was a perfect time to talk  ... baseball.  —  Cubs fans are still in mourning after their team was swept out of the playoffs …