Walter Reed controversy sure does raise issues  —  This Walter Reed controversy lives on, two days after Carlos Beltran, Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez declined to join their teammates in a visit to the military hospital.  This is actually a fascinating event, and it has blown up because it touches …

Johnson, Astros Beat Dodgers 3-2  —  HOUSTON (AP) — Rookie Chris Johnson hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning and the Houston Astros rallied to beat the slumping Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2 on Thursday night.  —  Johnson, who struck out in his first two at-bats, drove a full-count pitch from Ted Lilly …

Lewis ends losing streak as Rangers beat Blue Jays  —  (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Darren Calabrese)  —  TORONTO—Colby Lewis won for the first time since mid-July, Mitch Moreland drove in three runs and the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Thursday night.

New York Yankees' Andy Pettitte began minor league rehabilitation start Thursday night by breezing through Double-A hitters as he works his way back from groin injury  —  TRENTON, N.J. — New York Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte began a minor league rehabilitation start Thursday night …

Arizona Diamondbacks' Chase Field could become pitchers' haven with humidor  —  The fine reputation Chase Field has enjoyed among major-league hitters could change with the flip of a climate-controlled switch.  —  The Diamondbacks are considering storing their baseballs in a humidor next season …

Rasmus, Wainwright spark Cardinals  —  Outfielder rips two of club's four homers to back righty's effort  —  ATLANTA — When Adam Wainwright vowed that he wouldn't lose again, it's hard to imagine he envisioned it being quite like this.  But Wainwright and the Cardinals will take it.

Yankees top prospect Montero out with ankle injury  —  Yankees top prospect Jesus Montero will miss the remainder of Scranton/Wilkes Barre's playoff series against Columbus after undergoing a procedure on his ankle Wednesday night.  —  The heavily-hyped catcher suffered a bone bruise and decided to have the discoloring scraped out.

D-backs get Gorgen to complete Qualls deal  —  Right-handed reliever will be assigned to Triple-A Reno  —  PHOENIX — The D-backs acquired pitcher Matt Gorgen from the Rays on Thursday as the player to be named in the deal that sent reliever Chad Qualls to Tampa Bay just prior to the July 31 non-waiver Trade Deadline.

MLB On Pace to Have Lower Attendance Than Last Season  —  Major League Baseball is on pace to have attendance down slightly from last season's total of 73,418,529, the fifth highest attended season in MLB history, but down from record numbers the year prior.

Twelve Thoughts: Rockies' Dynamic Hitting Duo, Next Dodgers Owner?  —  Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez is moving up my MVP ballot.  —  Yeah, he isn't hitting much on the road, but Gonzalez, a five-tool talent, is having a home season for the ages.  And on the road, he's an asset defensively and on the basepaths.

Matsui's days with Halos may be numbered  —  ANAHEIM — Hideki Matsui wants to stay in the Majors next season, saying he has no intent to return to pro ball in Japan.  For reasons both in and out of his control, his current team might have no intention of bringing him back.

Washington Nationals' future lineup likely won't include Adam Dunn  —  Adam Dunn is done in Washington.  —  All season, the Nationals have had an internal debate over a classic question of baseball theory: Do the synergies a 40-homer cleanup hitter brings to a lineup outweigh the damage done …

Dungy revisits Ryan comments, discusses Bush Heisman  —  NBC's Tony Dungy joined Dan in New Orleans to talk about the upcoming season.  Here are some of his takes ...  — Dungy revisited his issues with Rex Ryan's language on Hard Knocks.  “It wasn't personal,” Dungy said.

Expanding the postseason  —  Two more wild-card teams would add drama, create incentive to finish in first place  —  Theoretically, Bud Selig couldn't ask for a better September plot line than this:  —  The two best teams in baseball, rampaging down the stretch, neck and neck …

Best NL Record Would Benefit Phillies in NLDS  —  The Phillies have a half-game lead over the Braves in the NL East and the best record in the league.  —  They obviously have plenty of incentive to win their fourth consecutive division title and finish with the best record in the league …

Jose Lima likely died of heart failure  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — The autopsy report for Jose Lima suggests that the former major leaguer probably died of heart failure and reveals there was no trace of illegal substances in his system.  —  “Now Jose will be able to rest in peace,” Lima's widow …