San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres have taken the National League West race to the limit. They needed a three-game road sweep to overtake the Los Angeles Dodgers and win their first division title since 1984, and they are one game away.Tony Gwynn's bases-loaded single in the eighth inning yesterday broke a 2-2 tie and propelled the Padres to a 4-2 victory that set up today's championship showdown at Dodger Stadium.The victory guaranteed that both teams will make the playoffs, which might figure to remove some of the urgency from today's matchup, but the game still will have a significant impact on the playoffs.

What do the San Diego Padres have in common with the fleet of garbage trucks dispatched each day by the city of Charlotte, N.C.?The answer: Both have been the subject of mathematical formulas wielded by Lawrence Bodin, a University of Maryland at College Park business professor.Bodin, a serious baseball fan and fantasy league player, set out last year to figure out how the Padres could best get through the expansion draft without losing important players. He has written a report on his research, entitled "Who's on First -- with Probability .4," to be published in the International Journal of Computer and Operations Research.

As part of the effort to upgrade their pitching staff, the Orioles are taking a close look at three right-handers with the San Diego Padres, one of the few teams that have pitching depth.According to sources in both leagues, the Orioles are checking on the performance potential and availability of right-handers Tim Worrell, Scott Sanders and Willie Blair. All three are currently pitching out of the Padres' bullpen, but would prefer to start. The Orioles have continued to talk to the Florida Marlins, as well, about right-hander David Weathers.

MILWAUKEE - Baseball's annual All-Star festival has everything a fan could want, but the 73rd midsummer classic will be played in the shadow of everything that baseball fans have come to fear. The All-Stars will come out tonight at Miller Park for what is supposed to be the sport's most fan-friendly event. Curt Schilling will start against Derek Lowe in a dynamic pitching matchup. Super-sluggers Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa will bat in the same lineup. Milwaukee, long one of baseball's backwater towns, will be the center of the baseball universe.

The first firing of a major-league manager in 1994 took nearly everyone in baseball by surprise. The most likely second firing should shock no one.Like Buck Rodgers, fired by the California Angels, San Diego Padres manager Jim Riggleman has little talent with which to work. Unlike Rodgers, Riggleman's team is not in a pennant race.The Padres, a Double-A caliber team with a Tony Gwynn here and an Andy Benes there to break up the monotony, lost for the 12th consecutive time Friday night to set a Padres record and fuel speculation that Riggleman's job is on the line.

Offense -- He can hit anything. What makes him such a good hitter is that he can use all fields. He doesn't have the optimum amount of power for a first baseman but he can be a Mark Grace-type hitter. Defense -- He is very smooth. He has very soft hands and can make saves. He's very stylish, like Keith Hernandez without the range. His range is a little suspect, but I think there is potential there. Overall -- Adrian has a chance to win a batting title and a Gold Glove. He's that kind of player.

According to sources, the Cubs are kicking the tires again on Padres closer Heath Bell (left), as they did at the winter meetings. He would strengthen the bullpen, but Lou Piniella would be back to juggling two would-be closers in Bell and Carlos Marmol , who went 11-for-11 in save situations after Piniella gave him the job. … The Brewers are thrilled with shortstop Alcides Escobar . He got to the big leagues with his glove...

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado confirmed on Thursday that he is engaged to be married to girlfriend Yainee Alonso, but he did not say whether a date has been set for the wedding. Alonso is the sister of one of Machado's closest friends, San Diego Padres first baseman Yonder Alonso, who played college baseball at the University of Miami. Machado said he and Yainee were brought together by the baseball connection with her brother, but it's also the result of the close-knit nature of the sports community in Miami.

The roots of Detroit's raucous reputation as a sports town go deep. Seventy years ago, Tigers fans pelted St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Joe "Ducky" Medwick with garbage during the seventh game of the 1934 World Series. Provoked by Medwick's mettle on the bases - he had just spiked a Detroit player - the crowd took aim. Bottles, shoes and rotten tomatoes flew at Medwick for 20 minutes. Enough, said baseball commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis, who ejected the Cardinals Hall of Famer "for his own good."