Jake Peavy

The prevailing question in Philadelphia sports of late has been: Can Jake Peavy help the Phillies? The answer last night: As long as he is pitching against them. After Brett Myers was likely lost for the season with a hip injury last week, questions about the Phillies' already-inconsistent rotation intensified, and the front office actively sought an upgrade. As talk radio and the Internet spun rumors about a possible trade for the San Diego righthander, the Phillies summoned 23-year-old lefthander Antonio Bastardo from triple A to make Myers' scheduled start last night.

  Tonight at 10:05 RHP Joe Blanton (3-3, 6.14 ERA) vs. San Diego RHP Kevin Correia (1-3, 5.11).   Tomorrow at 10:05 p.m. LHP Antonio Bastardo (debut) vs. San Diego RHP Jake Peavy (5-5, 3.67).   Wednesday at 10:05 p.m. LHP J.A. Happ (3-0, 3.00) vs. San Diego RHP Chris Young (4-3, 4.45).

The Kansas City Royals placed outfielder Juan Gonzalez, a two-time American League most valuable player, on the 15-day disabled list yesterday with a back injury. Gonzalez, 34, who last played last Friday, has a strained muscle in his back and is going to the disabled list for the 11th time in his 16-year major-league career. He's hitting .276 with five home runs and 17 runs batted in this season, his first with the Royals. The San Diego Padres placed righthander Jake Peavy, who leads the National League in earned run average, on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained tendon in his right forearm.

General manager Frank Wren insists the Braves won't trade their most valued prospects, apparently not even to bring Jake Peavy to Atlanta. Speculation about the Braves' interest in Peavy has grown since the San Diego Padres confirmed they were fielding offers for the 2007 NL Cy Young winner. "From our perspective we still feel the same and we are looking to the future when that next wave of talent I spoke of arrives in Atlanta," Wren said in an e-mail to the Associated Press.

Brandon Webb got a little boost for his matchup with fellow ace Jake Peavy - the return of regular catcher Chris Snyder. Webb outpitched Peavy in a battle of the last two NL Cy Young Award winners, Snyder hit a two-run homer and the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks beat the San Diego Padres, 2-1, yesterday. Webb (6-0), the 2006 Cy Young winner, allowed just one unearned run and twice escaped bases-loaded jams before leaving after six innings. Snyder connected off Peavy despite playing with the flu, which sidelined him Saturday.

Phil Nevin gave San Diego a superb start to a key road trip. Nevin homered, doubled and drove in five runs and the visiting Padres built a big lead for Jake Peavy in a 9-4 win over the New York Mets last night. Coming off a 2-4 homestand, the Padres opened a 10-game visit to Shea Stadium, Montreal and St. Louis hoping to improve their wild-card position. "It was a long trip coming in from San Diego," manager Bruce Bochy said. "They came out swinging the bats well. We were jump-started there.

A pair of big swings and a parade of strong arms got the United States off to a successful start in the World Baseball Classic. Derrek Lee and Chipper Jones homered, Jake Peavy and six U.S. relievers combined on a four-hitter and Team USA beat Mexico, 2-0, yesterday at Phoenix. "Today I felt proud," Lee said. "I felt like the whole country was watching. " Lee hit a 1-1 pitch from starter Rodrigo Lopez over the rightfield fence and Jones homered on the first pitch he saw in the tournament - off Oscar Villarreal in the seventh.

Romero tweeting a different tune Toronto pitcher Ricky Romero did some griping Monday night after a 2-0 loss to Atlanta, so the Blue Jays did some talking before Tuesday night's game. Manager John Farrell said the Jays met to discuss Romero's remarks about his teammates. Farrell would not say whether he approached Romero or Romero approached him about speaking to the team before the game. Farrell told the Associated Press he thinks Romero recognized that some of his comments might have been misinterpreted, and he credited the lefthander for taking accountability.

Jake Peavy's goal is to get his San Diego Padres back to the playoffs for the third straight season. Along the way, he's putting together an impressive resume for the NL Cy Young Award. The righthander lowered his major league-leading ERA to 2.39, struck out 10 to take over the big-league lead with 225 and pitched the host Padres to a 5-1 win over last-place San Francisco yesterday. San Diego swept the Giants, winning its eighth straight against San Francisco. Peavy's 18 wins are the most in the NL and a personal best.

How bitter a pill would it be if the San Diego Padres' National League wild-card hopes end up having been crushed by Tony Gwynn? Yesterday, with San Diego one strike away from clinching the wild card, Milwaukee's Gwynn - the son of the Padres' Hall of Famer - slapped a two-strike, game-tying triple off Trevor Hoffman. The Brewers went on to win, 4-3, in 11 innings on Vinny Rottino's pinch single. "That," said Padres manager Bud Black of Gwynn's hit, "was quite ironic. " The painful loss kept the Padres from sewing up the wild-card berth and kept the Phillies, one game back, in the hunt.

We don't think many people saw this coming, but the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday gave general manager Neal Huntington a three-year contract extension through the 2014, a deal that includes a team option for 2015. Although the Bucs haven't had a winning season in nearly two decades, earlier this season they were relevant for a while: After beating the Reds on July 19, the Pirates had a 51-44 record and led the NL Central by a half-game. But, characteristically, they immediately started a 10-game losing streak and haven't recovered.

Romero tweeting a different tune Toronto pitcher Ricky Romero did some griping Monday night after a 2-0 loss to Atlanta, so the Blue Jays did some talking before Tuesday night's game. Manager John Farrell said the Jays met to discuss Romero's remarks about his teammates. Farrell would not say whether he approached Romero or Romero approached him about speaking to the team before the game. Farrell told the Associated Press he thinks Romero recognized that some of his comments might have been misinterpreted, and he credited the lefthander for taking accountability.

Jake Peavy pitched a three-hitter in his home debut this season, outdueling Justin Masterson and making Adam Dunn's sacrifice fly in the first inning stand up to lift the Chicago White Sox to a 1-0 victory over the Cleveland Indians last night. Peavy (1-0) struck out eight to cool off a Cleveland lineup that scored 31 runs in its three previous games. The 29-year old righthander had his fifth career shutout and ninth complete game. He only allowed one runner past first base, did not walk a batter and threw 111 pitches.

Jake Peavy delayed host Detroit's chance to move closer to the AL Central title last night, pitching the Chicago White Sox past the slumping Tigers, 8-0. The host Tigers went into the final weekend with a two-game lead over Minnesota, but got off to a bad start when Scott Podsednik hit a leadoff home run. Detroit lost for the fourth time in six games, all while the Twins were taking a big lead against Kansas City. Peavy (3-0) pitched eight scoreless innings and Carlos Quentin homered.

The prevailing question in Philadelphia sports of late has been: Can Jake Peavy help the Phillies? The answer last night: As long as he is pitching against them. After Brett Myers was likely lost for the season with a hip injury last week, questions about the Phillies' already-inconsistent rotation intensified, and the front office actively sought an upgrade. As talk radio and the Internet spun rumors about a possible trade for the San Diego righthander, the Phillies summoned 23-year-old lefthander Antonio Bastardo from triple A to make Myers' scheduled start last night.

  Tonight at 10:05 RHP Joe Blanton (3-3, 6.14 ERA) vs. San Diego RHP Kevin Correia (1-3, 5.11).   Tomorrow at 10:05 p.m. LHP Antonio Bastardo (debut) vs. San Diego RHP Jake Peavy (5-5, 3.67).   Wednesday at 10:05 p.m. LHP J.A. Happ (3-0, 3.00) vs. San Diego RHP Chris Young (4-3, 4.45).