Phillies back Lee's gem in Game 3 rout  —  Given big lead, lefty fans 10 over eight; Phils take NLCS lead  —  PHILADELPHIA — It seemed everybody but the Phillies wondered how they might recover from Friday's eighth-inning letdown in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series against the Dodgers.

In CC they trust: Sabathia to start Game 4  —  Big left-hander will take the hill on three days' rest  —  ANAHEIM — CC Sabathia was breaking a sweat at Angel Stadium on Sunday, getting re-acclimated to the West Coast after flying across the country.  He had an assignment to prepare for …

Saturday's AFL roundup  —  Simmons, Snyder lead Dogs to fourth straight win  —  Desert Dogs 11, Rafters 2  —  Athletics prospect James Simmons tossed three scoreless innings and Phoenix used a pair of five-run outbursts to post its fourth straight win.  The former first-round pick yielded …

Kenji Johjima opts out of final two years  —  One of the thorniest issues the Seattle Mariners faced - what to do with catcher Kenji Johjima - has been resolved: The 33-year-old catcher has decided to return to Japan with two years left on his contract.  —  “After lots of very deep thought …

Are these Yanks as good as '98 team?  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. — The date was Oct. 10, 1998, noted by Yankee historians as the sea-change moment in what we now recognize as a historic season.  At that point, a great team was gasping for air, down 2-1 against the Indians in the AL Championship Series.

Hawpe Not On Market  —  Brad Hawpe found himself watching more than playing in the post-season for the Rockies.  He, however, rmeans a key part in the Rockies long-range planning.  —  Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd has been surprised by media reports that the Rockies wll look to trade Hawpe …

Why Mike Scioscia won't switch  —  Judging from my blog comments and e-mail, everybody in Southern California, or at least Orange County, is asking the same thing today.  —  Why won't Mike Scioscia move the struggling Vladimir Guerrero out of the cleanup spot?

Veteran manager Bobby Valentine a finalist for Cleveland Indians' vacancy  —  CLEVELAND, Ohio — Bobby Valentine, whose New York Mets reached the World Series in 2000, is one of the finalists for the vacant Indians manager's job.  —  Valentine, 59, it has been learned, will come to Cleveland this week for a second interview.

The Biggest Secret of Baseball's Unwritten Rules: They Don't Exist  —  Say this about Erick Aybar's feet: they were a lot closer to second base than the Angels have been to playing crisp baseball.  —  Yes, his feet were in the so-called neighborhood of the bag in the 10th inning of Game 2 …

Non-Tender Candidate: Jeff Francoeur  —  When Jeff Francoeur was traded to the Mets, I figured he would play out the season and be non-tendered.  A massive disappointment for his hometown Braves, this is a player who was one of the top 5 least valuable players in all of baseball in 2008.

Stadium open to fans for Game 3  —  Public invited into Great Hall with Yankees in Anaheim  —  Yankee Stadium won't be the site of Game 3 of the American League Championship Series on Monday.  But that doesn't mean it will be empty.  —  The Yankees announced on Sunday that they will open …