Report: Randolph rejects chance to join Nats staff  —  Under consideration to be the next manager of the Milwaukee Brewers, Willie Randolph reportedly turned down a chance to return to the NL East in a coaching capacity.  —  Newsday reported Saturday that Randolph, who was fired as Mets manager in June …

World Series Game 3 preview … Rays at Phillies  —  Series: World Series, Game 3  —  TV: FOX  —  Starters: Matt Garza (2-1, 3.32 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (0-2, 13.50 ERA)  —  The Phillies won the game they were supposed to win behind Cole Hamels in Game 1.

Smoltz could follow Rocket's path  —  Could John Smoltz be the next Roger Clemens?  —  No, the longtime Atlanta Braves ace isn't going to face a Congressional panel, be investigated for perjury or have lurid details of his personal life cause him great embarrassment, but Smoltz could follow …

At Rutgers, Yankee Stadium 101  —  Typical first-year courses at Rutgers University include biology, calculus, English literature, history and economics.  But 20 freshmen — 19 of them Yankees fans — are enrolled in a research seminar called Yankee Stadium.

Dodgers coaching staff to return in '09  —  Torre to work with same cast that helped send LA to NLCS  —  LOS ANGELES — The coaching staff of Dodgers manager Joe Torre will return intact for 2009, the club announced Friday.  —  Hitting coach Don Mattingly, pitching coach Rick Honeycutt …

Which Braves prospects are untouchable?  —  Philadelphia — I'm in chilly Philly and Braves officials are not.  But neither are officials from most other teams, save for the participating Phillies and Rays.  —  Gone is the day when all major league teams sent all their top officials …

Newark Bears baseball team on the verge of folding  —  The Newark Bears, the minor-league team that brought baseball back to the city after a 50-year absence, is on the verge of folding, according to team and Essex County officials. … Marc Berson, a Millburn-based real estate developer …

Yankees Say They Would Have Left Bronx if Pushed  —  WASHINGTON — Randy Levine, the president of the Yankees, told a Congressional hearing Friday that if the city had not issued tax-exempt financing for the team's new stadium, it would have left town.  —  “It's been no secret for many years” …

The Happy Heckler Can't Be Heard Now in the Din at Tropicana Field  —  As Tampa Bay Rays Draw a Noisy Throng, Robert Szasz Gets Drowned Out  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For the past six years, the taunts of a lone Tampa Bay Rays fan could be heard echoing across cavernous Tropicana Field …

Unwritten in pen  —  Rays go by committee  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - On Opening Night of the 2003 season, the Red Sox [team stats] began an experiment that came to be known as “closer by committee.”  —  The concept was simple enough: Without an established reliever to nail down the final three outs …

Activision Taps Ratner For Star-Studded World Tour Ads  —  Thank you , Activision, for distracting Brett Ratner from ruining any more comic book movie franchises, at least for the small amount of time he spends working on the television ads for Guitar Hero World Tour.