Young Nationals will learn as they play  —  If Monday night is an indication, the Nationals' final 18 games will include a lot of learning on the job.  The team started five rookies (although Ian Desmond and Roger Bernadina, with more than 800 at-bats between them, are hardly rookies anymore).

Price, CC put on Cy-worthy show  —  ST. PETERSBURG, FLA.  —  I can't tell you who should win the American League Cy Young Award.  —  But I saw him pitch on Monday.  —  The New York Jets?  The U.S. Open?  Please.  On this particular night, the best sports drama could be found at Tropicana Field …

Bullpen helps Padres fend off Rockies  —  DENVER — If he hadn't seen this before, with his own two eyes and on occasions far too many to remember, Padres pitching coach Darren Balsley might not have believed what he witnessed on Monday at Coors Field was actually possible.

Francisco Rodriguez faces new charge  —  NEW YORK — New York Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez faces more charges in his New York City assault case.  —  Rodriguez  —  Authorities said in court Tuesday that Rodriguez violated an order of protection by sending his girlfriend 56 text messages …

Tim Wallach seizes chance in minors  —  The Dodgers' Triple-A manager forges ahead with an eye toward the big league.  —  ESPNLosAngeles.com  —  ALBUQUERQUE — It was 5 o'clock in the afternoon, hot, and nothing about this mid-August New Mexico afternoon was signaling mercy.

Fewer Empty Seats May Mean More Runs  —  The San Diego Padres spent the past month fighting off their instate rivals atop the NL West, and the Tampa Bay Rays have battled the New York Yankees all season in the AL East.  If only a few more of their fans had actually attended their games …

Ozzie Guillen would be good fit to manage Marlins  —  Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since Aug. 2005.  He appears weekly on MLB on FOX.  Follow him on Twitter.  —  Ozzie Guillen to the Marlins.  It makes almost too much sense.  —  Guillen lives in Miami.

Ruiz lifts Phillies past Marlins, 11-4  —  MIAMI—Carlos Ruiz matched a career-high with four RBIs, Joe Blanton allowed one run in six innings and the Philadelphia Phillies continued their September sizzle beating the Florida Marlins 11-4 on Monday night.  —  Ruiz, Jayson Werth …

Source: Bob Melvin to talk with Cubs  —  The Chicago Cubs are expected to interview Bob Melvin, a former manager for the Seattle Mariners and Arizona Diamondbacks, for their managerial position sometime around the end of the season, a source confirmed Tuesday.

Clinton Portis on Ines Sainz situation — UPDATE  —  As part of the latest skirmish in the D.C. sports talk radio wars, both stations announced their big weekly gets for the season.  ESPN 980, which I love, has Donovan McNabb, Mike Shanahan and Bruce Allen.  106.7 The Fan, which I also love, has Clinton Portis and Chris Cooley.

Jay-Z, Eminem show thrills Yankee Stadium  —  First concert in new Cathedral an evening to remember  —  NEW YORK — As the clock struck midnight and Monday turned to Tuesday at Yankee Stadium, Jay-Z was leading a capacity crowd in singing Coldplay's “Viva La Vida,” with the band's lead singer, Chris Martin, playing the piano.

Twins look to bury White Sox  —  The first place Minnesota Twins take on the second place White Sox in a pivotal three-game series beginning tonight in Chicago.  The Twins lead the White Sox by six games in the American League Central division with 19 games left to play.

Cubs' Ramirez makes it clear: 'I'm staying'  —  ST. LOUIS — Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez dispelled speculation he might opt out of his contract by telling the Sun-Times on Monday that he will exercise his $14.6 million player option for 2011 and stay with the Cubs.

The Lueke Situation  —  I generally prefer to stay away from gossip.  I'm not an investigative journalist, and we're not here to try and dig stuff up.  But, given what has come out in the last few weeks, and given Carmen Fusco's firing today, this is something I feel compelled to write about.

Lester lifts Red Sox over Mariners  —  The Sports Network  —  Seattle, WA (Sports Network) - Jon Lester pitched eight impressive innings, leading the Boston Red Sox to a 5-1 win over the Seattle Mariners in the first of three games at Safeco Field.  —  Lester (17-8) allowed just one run …