Back, back, forth and forth

Baseball Update:
The Phillies rallied on Tuesday to nip the Mets, 8-7, however on Wednesday, it was the Mets that were able to get to Philadelphia's bullpen late in their 6-3 victory. Daniel Murphy hit a tiebreaking double in the eight after Carlos Delgado had tied the game with a two run homer. The win gave the Mets back a half game advantage.

Back in New York, the Yankees were severely injuring their playoff hopes with a 11-3 defeat. The Red Sox broke the game open in their seven run eighth inning, which included a grand slam by Dustin Pedroia.

The Rays notched their 80th win of the season thanks to a 1-0 nail bitter over the Blue Jays. Carlos Pena's fourth inning solo shot was all the offense Tampa Bay needed as Matt Garza and two other relievers combined for nine scoreless innings in the win.

Carlos Villanueva may have jumped the gun a bit, celebrating after getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh inning. The gesture by the Brewers reliever was just the motivation the Cardinals needed as they rallied back in the eighth to pick up a 5-3 win.

The Cubs continued their winning ways against the Bucs completing a three game sweep with their 2-0 shut out.

The Pirates No. 2 overall pick, Pedro Alvarez refuses to sign his contract and has now been placed on the restricted list.

Apparently no one wants to carry the NL West crown into the playoffs. The Dodgers lost their sixth straight game after falling to the Nationals, 5-6, while the Padres completed a three game sweep of the Diamondbacks with thier victory. The D'Backs still hold a three game lead in the Division, but who knows, maybe the Rockies will take the whole thing. Of course they lost to the Giants, 4-1 so maybe they don't want it either.

Speaking of Colorado, they will be unable to trade reliever Brian Fuentes by the trade deadline. The team had put him on waivers on Monday, but on Tuesday Fuentes was placed on the bereavement list. If they were to put him back on waivers on Friday, he would not be able to clear by the September 1st deadline.

Make it 10 straight for the Indians as they edged the Tigers, 9-7. Funny, when they had CC Sabathia and Casey Blake they couldn't win and now that they've lightened their load, they can't lose. Is that like the definition of addition by subtraction?

The Twins picked up a game on the White Sox with their 6-5 win and the White Sox 11-3 loss.

Royals GM Dayton Moore met with Jose Guillen about the whole heckler incident, which apparently occured when manager Trey Hillman was in the toilet. Because you know, "managers do have to use the restroom."

Instant replay goes into effect on Thursday (TODAY). The new technology will reportedly cost $2.5 million. Money well spent in my eyes.

Nascar Update:
Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards have been put on probation for their tangle at Bristol. This is looking like a full blown fued and frankly, that's what Nascar has been missing.

Joey Logano will get his feet wet in six Cup races this fall. In 2009, the 18 year old will be taking over Tony Stewart's #20 ride.

Jimmie Johnson can't wait for the Chase to start. Yeah, because that is the only time of year he can competely dominate the Series.

News&Notes: Shawne Merriman is skipping knee surgery and has decided to play this season. Because who really wants to walk without a limp at after age 30?...Speaking of people who are going against the advise of their doctors, Baltimore Ravens QB Kyle Boller will not undergo surgery to repair his partially torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. If it works for John Smoltz and Curt Schilling, oh wait a second...Warriors guard Monta Ellis will be out for three months with an ankle injury...Joe Sakic announced he will hold off retirement for at least one more season after signing a one year deal with the Colorado Avalanche. He'll be making $6 million. Yeah I'd put retirement on hold for $6 million...Jelena Jankovic powered her way to the third round of the US Open...Oscar De La Hoya nad Manny Pacquiao will square off on December 6...Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau has undergone surgery to remove a cancerous testicle. The Georgia native was diagnosised with cancer in June but elected to hold off surgery until after the Olympics. My well wishes go out to Eric!

Check this out: Guess who's hosting Saturday Night Live? Click here to find out.

It's been fun blogging with you,
Kate