Rays playoff chances take another hit  —  NEW YORK — The situation could not look any bleaker for the Rays at about 4 p.m. Wednesday.  They just lost a game they couldn't lose and they were facing CC Sabathia in the night portion of their day/night doubleheader at Yankee Stadium.

Tiebreakers could come into play  —  + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email  —  Last night's game at Fenway Park [map] may not have been the last one of the regular season after all.  —  The chance is quite slim, but should the Red Sox [team stats] and Los Angeles Angels wind …

Sox, not free agency, on Buehrle's mind entering final start  —  CLEVELAND — The Chicago White Sox are the only team that Mark Buehrle has pitched for during his storied career that started in 2000, and he'll try to temper his emotions Tuesday night when he makes possibly his final start …

Source: Ban foils Manny Ramirez's plans  —  Manny Ramirez will have to scuttle existing plans to play for a team in the Dominican Republic because his Major League Baseball-mandated drug suspension still has to be served, a source close to the situation told ESPN's Colleen Dominguez.

Moneyball still relevant for MLB today  —  The night the San Francisco Giants won the World Series, one of the team's senior advisers, Tony Siegle, told Kevin Kernan of the New York Post, “we've shown Moneyball is a bunch of garbage.”  —  Not exactly.  —  The Giants, to an extent, were playing Moneyball, too.

Mariners Hand Twins 11th Straight Loss, 5-4  —  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Ichiro Suzuki stopped Kevin Slowey's no-hitter with a two-out infield single in the sixth inning and added an RBI double in the seventh, spurring the Seattle Mariners to a 5-4 victory Wednesday night in Minnesota, the 11th straight defeat for the Twins.

Phillies drop 5th straight, 7-5 to Washington  —  PHILADELPHIA — Danny Espinosa and Wilson Ramos each hit two-run home runs to help the Washington Nationals beat Philadelphia 7-5 on Wednesday, sending the NL East-champion Phillies to their season-worst fifth straight loss.

Bankruptcy doesn't mean Dodgers can't offer big contracts  —  Despite financial problems, Dodgers may be able to extend Matt Kemp's contract or attract a blue-chip free agent this winter — if it can persuade top players to sign.  —  The playoffs will go on without the Dodgers again this fall.

Royals Designate Kila Ka'aihue For Assignment  —  It wasn't long ago that Kila Ka'aihue seemed like a promising piece of the Royals' future.  But the Hawaiian first baseman doesn't appear to fit into their long-term plans any more, despite the career minor league on-base percentage of .390 …

Braves lose to Marlins 4-0  —  MIAMI - Struggling to secure a postseason berth, the Atlanta Braves were thwarted by a playoff-caliber pitching performance.  —  Javier Vazquez allowed only two hits in seven innings Wednesday against his former team, and the Florida Marlins played the spoiler's role by beating Atlanta 4-0.

Giants keep hopes alive with win over Dodgers  —  LOS ANGELES — With their 8-5 victory at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday night, the San Francisco Giants assured one thing: The Arizona Diamondbacks cannot clinch the N.L. West title any earlier than Friday.  —  Of course, that's when the Giants arrive …

Transcript of Sandy Alderson's Interview on SNY  —  During the top of the third inning of the Mets' series-opener in St. Louis last night, Sandy Alderson joined Gary Cohen and Ron Darling in the SNY booth to talk about the organization's prospects, offseason plans, and potential changes to Citi Field.

Quade believes he will return to manage Cubs in 2012  —  Before the final home game of the season Wednesday, Chicago Cubs manager Mike Quade said he believes he will return in 2012.  —  “I haven't thought about, don't think about it, don't believe it,” Quade said when asked about this possibly …